I Collect Skill Fragments in the Demon World

The place where the refugees entered was the territory of Marquis Wen.

The territory of Marquis Wen was prosperous, and within it stood Nine-Head Mountain, one of the five supreme mountains under heaven, a natural barrier that separated Jiangnan from the Minnan region.

Within Marquis Wen’s domain, countless refugees were resettled by him, constantly having fields divided and lands opened up, or else being directly purchased as slaves.

Zhang Chen stood in a courtyard of an inn, his hands tucked in his sleeves, pondering why the Demon Race had withdrawn their troops.

Just as he was patiently thinking, a sound suddenly came from afar; Fox Immortal Nannan walked in from outside the courtyard, her voice filled with gravity: "The two Demon Gods, Chen Dragon and Hai Pig, are tied to the Demon Race’s fate. Now that you’ve suppressed them, it’s stirred up trouble. Unable to find you, the Demon Race has begun turning on Yellow Heaven Dao, pressuring Yellow Heaven Dao to hand you over."

"The Demon Race is currently busy making trouble for Yellow Heaven Dao, and can’t be bothered with ordinary commoners." Fox Immortal Nannan said, "The fate gathered on those two Demon Gods is of tremendous importance, far more crucial than capturing cities and seizing territory."

Hearing this, Zhang Chen showed a look of dawning understanding: "So that’s how it is. Hopefully Yellow Heaven Dao can withstand the pressure from the Demon Race, so we can relax a bit as well."

"Yellow Heaven Dao is anything but simple. Ever since Gu Mingyue attained Divine Enthronement at the Twelfth Tier, they snatched food from the Demon Race’s jaws, occupying the realm of the Yangtze River. Even the Demon Race doesn’t dare invade lightly. That Great Virtuous Master is unfathomable, his power connecting heaven and earth; even the Demon Race doesn’t want to stir up trouble with him. Both sides rely on their own strength to seize territory—whoever takes a domain, that domain belongs to them. Now that two Demon Gods of the Demon Race have fallen into your hands, and with the Demon Race having plotted against Gu Mingyue first, the conflict between the two has completely erupted. From here on, Yellow Heaven Dao is unlikely to know peace, and the Demon Race will probably slow their offensive against the Great Victory Dynasty." Fox Immortal Nannan’s voice carried a trace of solemnity.

Zhang Chen silently compared the strength of the two sides. Though the Demon Race had the Twelve Primordial Stars, Yellow Heaven Dao possessed the Southern Dipper and the Beidou Seven Stars. Once blessed with Star God Authority, they might not be inferior to the Twelve Primordial Stars of the Demon Race.

However, he himself had already suppressed two of the Twelve Primordial Stars, and Yellow Heaven Dao’s Beidou Seven Stars’ star lord of Ziwei, Zhang Xiaohua, had also been killed by him. Both sides were missing portions of their fate, evenly matched in loss; next, the comparison would be at the level of top-tier combat strength.

At the apex, the Demon Race had the unfathomable Peacock Ancestor, while Yellow Heaven Dao had the Great Virtuous Master. The Demon Race had Hu Li the Immortal, who proved the Dao to the Twelfth Tier through bloodline, whereas Gu Mingyue’s Twelfth Tier could only be maintained within the Yangtze River basin, and so he would be at a disadvantage when facing the Demon Race.

Moreover, the Demon Race also had a Chen Sanliang. As long as he himself revived Chen Sanliang, Chen Sanliang could ride the momentum of his Dao-discourse to sweep across all Jiangnan, completely occupying Jiangnan, and at that time he would inevitably step into the Twelfth Tier.

A hint of gravity appeared in Zhang Chen’s eyes: "The Demon Race ultimately holds the advantage. But Yellow Heaven Dao has that Great Virtuous Master of unknown depth. That Great Virtuous Master is hailed as the number one under heaven; even though the Great Victory court possesses three mysterious Twelfth-Tier artifacts, they still cannot do anything to him. The Demon Race might not dare tear things completely open with Yellow Heaven Dao. If the Demon Race and Yellow Heaven Dao were to rip their faces apart and battle in earnest, the Great Victory court would be eyeing them like a tiger from the sidelines. Once the Great Victory Dynasty strikes, with the Demon Race hamstrung on both sides, they would inevitably fall into a disadvantage, their favorable situation dissolving like running water, and might even be driven once more beyond the White Bone Great Wall by the Human Race."

At this moment, Zhang Chen could discern some of the threads of the world’s great trend. The Demon Race would not start a war with Yellow Heaven Dao, and would, in all likelihood, only exert pressure on Yellow Heaven Dao. The two would compete for territory, yet fight without breaking completely, maintaining a shared understanding to resist and guard against the Great Victory court.

"The Great Victory court truly is no simple foe." Zhang Chen muttered softly, "To actually force the Demon Race and Yellow Heaven Dao into cooperation—that shows just how formidable its strength is."

Having thought this through, Zhang Chen stopped expending effort on further speculation, and instead considered whether he ought to bring Chen Sanliang back to life.

"If Chen Sanliang is resurrected, perhaps more of the Human Race will have a chance to survive." With that thought, Zhang Chen drew Chen Sanliang’s corpse from his sleeve, laid it flat upon the bed, lowered his head to look at Chen Sanliang’s body, and sensed the Weak Water Power within him.

On Chen Sanliang’s chest, the Sea Calming Pearl emitted a faint glow, constantly forcing the Weak Water within his body to turn into ordinary water, which then seeped out through his skin and pores.

"Judging by the situation, it should be almost done." After sensing Chen Sanliang’s physical condition for a while, Zhang Chen put the Sea Calming Pearl back into his sleeve. In the next instant, the Yama Authority was activated:

"Resurrect!"

The two words that left Zhang Chen’s mouth were like inviolable law, carrying a powerful force of decree. Chen Sanliang’s soul shuddered within his body, and in that instant his flesh surged with vitality; blood began to flow, and his heart started beating once more.

"He’s alive!" Zhang Chen felt the vitality within Chen Sanliang’s body and a hint of joy flashed in his eyes.

After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the unconscious Chen Sanliang slowly opened his eyes, staring blankly at the roof: "Where am I?"

His voice was somewhat hoarse and slurred, likely because his body had only just been brought back to life, and the muscles of his vocal cords were still stiff. With a face full of bewilderment, he asked the question.

"Sir, you’re awake. I’ve already brewed ginseng soup for you. Please drink a mouthful to replenish your Primordial Qi." Zhang Chen picked up the bowl of ginseng soup, came to Chen Sanliang’s side, and handed it to him.

Chen Sanliang looked at Zhang Chen in astonishment. "Didn’t I enter the Water God Tomb, fall into the Weak Water, and die?"

His body stiff, Chen Sanliang slowly sat up, confusion all over his face as he looked at Zhang Chen. Zhang Chen smiled squint-eyed and said, "Sir, you indeed died earlier. I went back into the tomb and fished you out, brought you back to life."

Chen Sanliang was stunned at that, then took the ginseng soup and asked, "Since you have the ability to enter the tomb without being drowned by the Weak Water, did you happen to see the legendary Six Paths of Reincarnation?"

"Sir, you barged into the tomb far too rashly. Why didn’t you tell me in advance?" Zhang Chen said impatiently. "I could have accompanied you into the tomb together."

Zhang Chen concealed the matter of the Six Paths of Reincarnation and the Soul-Forming Lamp. It was not the time to tell Chen Sanliang. Now that Jinling City’s crisis had already been resolved, what use would it be to tell him? Better to quietly take care of things himself while he had the chance.

Besides, Zhang Chen felt that if Han Suzhen’s soul and corpse were in his own hands, they might be of some other use in the future.

Though Chen Sanliang was in the limelight now, what he was doing was far too dangerous. The Academy had yet to counterattack, had yet to unleash its thunderous methods. The Academy’s foundations ran deep; it was not something so easily defeated.

If one day in the future the Human Race truly was wiped out by the Demon Race, Han Suzhen might be the only source of Vitality left for the Human Race.

Moreover, Zhang Chen was not actually lying to Chen Sanliang, because on this trip he truly had not seen the Six Paths of Reincarnation—he had already taken them away long ago.

Stretching his body, Chen Sanliang slowly took a sip of the ginseng soup before saying, "I never thought that in the end I would still be calculated by the Yellow Heaven Dao. How is the situation outside? Why is it so quiet?"

"Jinling City has already fallen, captured by the Demon Race army. We’ve fled to the Earth Realm of Minnan and come to Marquis Wen’s territory to take refuge," Zhang Chen replied.

Chen Sanliang fell silent at that. After a long while he looked at Zhang Chen. "With Jinling City fallen, who knows how many have died. Will you blame me?"

"The dead were not my own brothers and sisters, so how could I blame you, sir?" Zhang Chen said.

Chen Sanliang looked at Zhang Chen. He knew that the tens of millions of commoners in Jinling City had likely already died beneath the Demon Race’s Twelve Primordial Stars grand formation, so he earnestly explained, "The Demon Race’s invasion of the Divine Land of the Human Race was a foregone trend. Even without me, they would have headed south sooner or later. With me operating behind the scenes, the Human Race may yet grasp a sliver of chance amid the tangled situation, a chance to preserve a spark of fire under the Demon Race."

"Sir, you think too much. I truly have never blamed you," Zhang Chen said with a smiling lilt.

Chen Sanliang looked at Zhang Chen, unable to see clearly what lay in his heart.

"Oh right, I’ve already enlightened Zhou Qiucheng, helped him awaken to another Dao. In the future, sir, you may find yourself with one more great enemy," Zhang Chen said, teasing Chen Sanliang.

Chen Sanliang dismissed this. "If I can defeat him once, I can defeat him a second time. That fellow Zhou Qiucheng is nothing but a hypocrite. He babbles about a selfless human heart, yet he’s not even as good as Iron-Faced Impartiality. He’s completely unpresentable, simply not worth a blow."

"You mustn’t underestimate his new Dao. The Dao he has newly comprehended was inspired by my guidance. Sir, you must not grow careless, lest you accidentally capsize in the gutter," Zhang Chen warned him.

Chen Sanliang remained unconcerned. "Even if his Dao is ever so subtle, even if it far surpasses mine, do you think he still has any chance to turn the tables? I am already on the verge of stepping into the Twelfth Tier; crushing him would be no more than crushing an ant. By the time he has summarized his doctrine and then spreads his Dao, I will already have stormed into Kyoto to preach to the world, having stepped into a realm beyond the Twelfth Tier. Besides, no matter how exquisite the Dao Zhou Qiucheng has realized may be, will he have the chance to pass it on? The old codgers in the Academy will surely covet it in secret and trip him up, just as they once seized my Dao. They will look for an opportunity to take Zhou Qiucheng’s Dao away. Zhou Qiucheng’s future lies in being dragged into internal strife within the Human Race. He has already been left an era behind by me—how could he still have any chance to rise again?"

There was an inexplicable emotion in Chen Sanliang’s voice. "This is a great era! A truly vast age is about to arrive. I will overthrow the Academy, destroy the Human Race’s order, and build a new Great Unity world."

Zhang Chen glanced at Chen Sanliang. He felt that it would be extremely difficult for Chen Sanliang to realize his goal. Why? Because in Zhang Chen’s eyes, there were far too many problems Chen Sanliang would have to face.

He was only a Demon Master, after all, not the ruler of the Demon Race.

After finishing the ginseng soup, Chen Sanliang slowly stood up and stretched his limbs. "I’m leaving first. I’ll see if there’s still any chance to save the commoners of the Jinling region. If I can get back a little earlier, perhaps I can let countless people live a little longer."

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