Devil Venerable Also Wants to Know by ⻘⾊⽻翼 Cyan Wings

Chapter 1 – Devil Venerable Also
Wants to Know
Table of Contents –
Chapter 1 – Divine book from the heavens
In the main hall of the Xuanyuan Sect, the Lord of Demons Wenren È had
already been in secluded meditation for seven days, door shut tight behind
him, the food and drink sent daily by his subordinates untouched. Who
knew what profound cultivation technique he had comprehended?
Altar Master Yuan, who managed the main hall, felt quite troubled. The
Venerable Lord suddenly entered seclusion without any orders to his
subordinates, and no one knew when he would emerge. If he’d really
enlightened to a new technique or ascended in realm… shouldn’t a
celebration be prepared?
The Lord of Demons wasn’t extravagant in nature and didn’t like

formalities. But if he really rose in level, then Altar Master Yuan should at
least assemble everyone in the meeting room of the main hall, in order to
congratulate him on his increase in strength and discuss the future of the
Xuanyuan Sect in conquering the cultivation world[1].
Altar Master Yuan, after puzzling over his dilemma, finally decided to ask
the Xuanyuan Sect’s Left Protector, Yin Hanjiang, for help. Yin Hanjiang
was the Venerable’s closest confidant and had contact with him right before
he entered seclusion. He was the one most likely to understand Wenren È’s
thoughts.
Yin Hanjiang had been guarding the door to the meditation chamber for the
full seven days, wearing all black, a frosty expression on his face. He was a
man of few words. After listening to Altar Master Yuan’s concerns, his
indifferent face showed a slightly puzzled expression, and he seemed to be
at a loss.
The rather short Altar Master Yuan looked up to meet Yin Hanjiang’s eyes,
waiting for advice from him.
Yin Hanjiang worked his mouth and forced out a few words. “Not for now.”
“Huh?” Altar Master Yuan said blankly. “This one heard that the Venerable
received a rare tome seven days ago and immediately entered seclusion.
The Venerable has not had a breakthrough in his cultivation for years. If a
technique exists that can catch his eye and lead him to immediately study it
behind closed doors, then isn’t it possible it might lead to a breakthrough?”
“Like I said, it’s not necessary,” Yin Hanjiang said coldly, and the sword in
his hand flashed with a keen light. Altar Master Yuan didn’t dare to ask any
more questions and hurried away.
After he left, Yin Hanjiang turned to look at the tightly-shut door behind
him, and his frosty expression became one of confusion.
The Venerable indeed received a book seven days ago. Everyone assumed it
was a secret tome, but only Yin Hanjiang, who was nearby at the time,
caught a glimpse of the book’s title—Abusive Romance: You Are the
Unchanging One in My Heart.
The title was mushy enough to make Yin Hanjiang’s teeth ache. Nothing
about this book resembled a book of secret techniques. Even the romance
novels written by mortal scholars had more classy titles than this.
Yin Hanjiang had thought that Wenren È would immediately burn that
rubbish work to ash, but who would’ve thought he’d open it, glance at the
first page, let out a deep sigh, and immediately seclude himself with it?
For the Lord of Demons, was a mortal novel worth carefully pouring over
for seven days?
The longer Yin Hanjiang stood in front of the doors, the more troubled he
was.
This was the cultivation world—it couldn’t be compared to the Jianghu and
Wulin[2] of the mortal world. Wulin and Jianghu were gatherings of
mortals who dedicated themselves to strengthening their bodies in order to
stand out as slightly stronger than ordinary men. No matter how much they
trained their inner power, it was only acquired strength, and at most they
could manage to slay a beast with one fist. However, the cultivation world
was a level above the martial world of Wulin. Cultivators left behind the
affairs of the mortal world, using various methods to ascend to the realm of
immortals. Their innate power also far surpassed the Wulin martial artists’
acquired power.
The people of Wulin could concern themselves with love and lust, and
stories of heroes and beautiful women, but cultivators tried to abandon the
secular world, cut off ties of love and affection, and enlighten to their own
version of the great Dao. And the Xuanyuan Sect was a demonic sect[3].
Those there who cultivated using male-female relations only did so with
lust, not love. Using the art of plucking and replenishing[4] to steal essence
from other people was far from a sentimental love story.
And the path Wenren È cultivated was the path of slaughter. He had never
had sexual relations. How… how could he read Abusive Romance: You Are
the Unchanging One in My Heart for seven days and seven nights?
Yin Hanjiang didn’t understand. He didn’t understand at all, but he was one
of the Venerable’s protectors, Wenren È’s most loyal subordinate. He had
vowed he would die before letting anyone give Wenren È so much as a
scratch. Anyone who wanted to kill Wenren È had to first go through Yin
Hanjiang.
So even if he knew the Venerable was reading a love story, not meditating
in seclusion, Yin Hanjiang still held his sword and stood before the doors of
the cultivation chamber, still and silent, not moving a step.
On the other side of the door, Wenren È placed the book down, resting a
hand on the cover. For a moment it seemed as if he would disintegrate the
book with one strike. But his hand was trembling slightly, and finally he
withdrew it, leaving the book intact.
He had his brows furrowed, one fist propped against his forehead, and
seemed to be thinking his way through a thorny problem.
Seven days ago, Wenren È had been discussing with Yin Hanjiang how they
should teach a lesson to the righteous cultivators always threatening
Xuanyuan Sect, when a thick volume suddenly appeared in his hand.
Wenren È was one of the most powerful figures of the cultivation world.
Unless an immortal had descended from the upper realms, no one in this
world could place a book into his hand without him noticing, and without
leaving any sign of their presence.
Wary of this situation, Wenren È didn’t destroy the book and, managing to
look past the title, opened the cover and found a few lines on the first page:
“Due to an overabundance of plot holes, this story has been rejected by its
readers. Thus, the most popular character among the readers has been
selected to personally verify the story’s consistency, and make suitable
changes.”
After reading this line, Wenren È immediately secluded himself, spending a

full seven days reading this novel of over one million words cover to cover,
word by word, several times over. With his strong powers of cognition, he
had memorized it by the first read and had no need to reread, but he still did
so several times, considering the meaning of every sentence.
After spending all this time, if there was something he still didn’t
understand, he never would.
He understood all the words and sentences. He could even visualize what
was described when they were linked together. But in the end, he just didn’t
get it!
The book told the story of the love and resentment of a man and woman’s
entanglement across two lifetimes.
The female lead, in her previous life, was a primordial goddess of heaven.
Unlike a mortal who had acquired godhood, she was born as a god, at the
same time as heaven and earth. She was in charge of calamities, spreading
plague, disaster, and death across the mortal world. It sounded like she was
an evil goddess, but in fact she maintained the balance of the cosmos. Life
and death must always coexist. In the cycle of the universe, all things have
a beginning and end. She was absolutely just and impartial, never targeting
any race of people, doing her work for uncountable ages without joy or
sorrow.
After an indeterminable number of eons, most of the primordial gods had

fallen, and the divine realm was populated by many ascended gods. These
gods were those members of humanity, chief among all living things, who
had awakened to the ways of heaven, gathered the essence of heaven and
earth inside their bodies, and passed thousands of trials in order to gain
power on the level of the primordial gods and ascend to the divine realm.
The male lead was one of them.
The male lead was someone who saw all lives on earth as his responsibility.
In the divine realm, he learned that the female lead was one of the rare
primordial gods, in charge of unleashing disasters. Many natural disasters
he had heard of as a human were in fact caused by her. Thus he began
constantly making appeals to the female lead, hoping for her to change her
ways.
The primordial goddess was as emotionless as the cosmos. To her, the male
lead’s words were no different than the drifting clouds, the soaring birds, or
the buzzing of a fly near her ears. If he became too noisy, she would often
use a silencing spell to seal his lips and toss him down from the thirty-three
layers of heaven.
But the male lead was stubborn. He climbed back up every time, found a
way to get rid of the silencing spell, and went back to earnestly begging her
to have empathy for mortal lives.
Millions of years passed like this, and the goddess’s predetermined trial
came.
The cosmos must undergo the three calamities of wind, water, and fire,
being destroyed and recreated innumerable times, and this applied to gods
as well. The female lead accepted her own fate and actively faced the
tribulation[5]. When she was prepared to undergo it, the male lead showed
up.
The tribulation of a primordial god far surpassed any normal one. The
female lead knew she would certainly die. Only if she could maintain her
soul, undergo reincarnation, and comprehend again the principles of heaven
did she have a chance of survival. Therefore, before she underwent her
tribulation, she left behind her divine essence, sealed somewhere in the
human world, so that in the future she could reclaim it, regain her power,
and return to the divine realm.
As she was undergoing her tribulation, about to relinquish her body and
enter reincarnation, the male lead arrived and blocked a lightning strike for
her, effectively taking on part of the tribulation in her stead. The two
entered the reincarnation cycle together.
Unknowingly, the male lead had created a karmic relation with her. After
reincarnating, the naive and innocent female lead was inducted into a
cultivation sect, and when she laid eyes on the sect’s chief disciple for the
first time, she was met with a sensation like her heart being struck by
lightning. A lightning strike was how Wenren È judged the book’s
description: “A tingling sensation spread through her body at first sight, and
she was unable to move her gaze away or take a single step.” Wenren È had
never experienced love, and assumed that these symptoms could only be
caused by lightning strikes.
The two fell in love at first sight. The female lead, named Baili Qingmiao in
this life, had her heart stolen by Hè Wenzhao, the chief disciple who as
before cared wholeheartedly about mortal lives. This was the beginning of a
masochistic story of the female lead being abused body and heart, yet never
relinquishing her love, and finally giving up the divine essence for Hè
Wenzhao, only wanting to live happily ever after with her beloved.
An overview of the specifics would be false accusations,

misunderstandings, Baili Qingmiao being imprisoned, being abused, being
poisoned, being hunted down, Hè Wenzhao marrying someone else, several
important supporting male characters being wholeheartedly devoted to Baili
Qingmiao, protecting and cherishing her, but Baili Qingmiao only loving
Hè Wenzhao, ignoring everyone else’s goodwill, insistent on finding Hè
Wenzhao and marrying him, then after being hurt by her enemies or fellow
disciples, another male character would save her, and after recovering she
would run off to be abused again.
This kind of plotline went on for over 800,000 words, and Wenren È nearly
had a qi deviation[6] from reading it. If Baili Qingmiao appeared in front of
him right now, he would crack open her skull to see just how her brain
worked.
The last page had no more story but a bunch of odd messages, labeled as a
reviews section. The reviews were mostly along the lines of—
[This MC is insane, giving up being a god to stay with a previously married

scumbag!]
[Trash, underdeveloped, kept me waiting for over a million words for MC

to reclaim her divinity and punish the scumbag, but she was a wh*** until
the end.]
[Hè Wenzhao loves the MC, but the world is more important than her, the
sect elders are more important than her, the common people are more
important than her, everything else is more important than her. Hè Wenzhao
can toss her aside whenever he wants. This love is far too humble, I can’t
handle it.]
[Hè Wenzhao ruined MC’s life twice. She was a primordial goddess, she
saw things in a different way than an ascended god. Causing disasters was
her duty, and it was also in order to balance the universe. He kept
pressuring her to favor humanity and messed up her heavenly tribulation,
making it so her next life she couldn’t help but be bound to him. This guy is
too terrifying, torturing the female lead for the sake of righteousness!]
[Falling in love at first sight can be treated as the karma from their past life,
but how come this karma is nothing to Hè Wenzhao? Yet it’s Baili
Qingmiao who wants to die for him? Hè Wenzhao can marry the Violet
Spirit Pavilion Master, so why can’t Baili Qingmiao marry Zhongli Qian or
Wenren È? Is the heir to the number one cultivation family not good-
looking enough, is the Lord of Demons not cool enough? Why do you gotta
hang yourself on Hè Wenzhao?]
[Wenren È was the only thing keeping me going for 1 million+ words. I
wanted to see him tear the male lead a new one, but in the end the female
lead still got him killed.]
[Wenren È, Zhongli Qian, Yin Hanjiang, any of them are better than Hè
Wenzhao, the MC is blind!]
[That may be true but let’s forget about Yin Hanjiang, he’s too scary.]
[Cross out Yin Hanjiang, just seeing that name is gonna give me
nightmares.]
[Cross him out +1, let’s just talk about Wenren È.]
These names that kept appearing in the comments, Wenren È, Yin Hanjiang,
Zhongli Qian, and other familiar names, were the reason the Lord of
Demons endured reading through the book.
Wenren È knew the one written in the book was he himself.
Just like the first lines in the book said, Wenren È was Abusive Romance:
You are the Unchanging One in My Heart‘s haughty but infatuated second
love interest. The world he lived in was but a story in a book.
A normal cultivator who learned such a truth about the world would
probably take a heavy psychological blow, either apathetically living out the
rest of their days, or deviating and going mad. Even Wenren È was in a daze
for a while, but he was a person who sought enlightenment in the midst of
death and slaughter, and had an unshakable will. He quickly realized that
the cultivation world was only one of the myriad worlds of the cosmos. In
other people’s eyes, his world was only a novel, but the novel Abusive
Romance: You are the Unchanging One in My Heart only recorded the love,
hate, amity, and animosity of a few dozen people. The things not included
within it were enough to make up an entire world. The book was only a
record of the lives of certain people at certain times, not a world in itself.
Wenren È knew that he certainly existed, his thoughts and actions weren’t
subject to anyone else’s control, and the world was real, so that was enough
for him.
The thing that Wenren È really couldn’t figure out was that the book said he
would, in the future, fall in love with Baili Qingmiao, take on the world for
her, and give his life for her. The cold and dispassionate Wenren È couldn’t
understand this.
Just by reading the book, he wanted to yank Baili Qingmiao’s soul out of
her body, make her forget her feelings for Hè Wenzhao, then shove it back
in. How could he, for the sake of protecting her, risk his life to help Hè
Wenzhao because she asked him to?
Wenren È knew that if he didn’t get to the bottom of these things, the
obsession might give rise to an inner demon[7] that would obstruct his
cultivation. He had to figure out these matters, not necessarily to fulfill the
assignment he was given at the start of the book, but just to settle his mind.
After contemplating for three days, he made his decision—that he would

figure out why Baili Qingmiao was such a shameless… ahem, why she was
so hopelessly infatuated. He himself couldn’t figure out, and maybe Baili
Qingmiao was also muddleheaded—she’d been struck by lightning, after
all, so maybe her brain wasn’t working right. But the other people in the
book, in particular Baili Qingmiao’s romantic rivals, probably knew what
they were doing. After all, they also loved Hè Wenzhao, and were willing to
fight each other to the death for Hè Wenzhao’s sake.
If one person wasn’t enough, then he would just have to find more. If he
asked enough people, he was certain to get an answer. When he figured out
the problem, the difficulty of changing the plot would decrease.
After he made his plans, Wenren È opened the doors. As Yin Hanjiang,
standing guard just outside, saw him, he dropped to one knee and set his
sword on the ground, quietly awaiting the Venerable’s command.
Wenren È looked at his Left Protector whom he trusted above anyone else
and remembered that he was also in the novel. “Protector Yin, your
thoughts on love… Actually, nevermind.”
After he said only a few words, Wenren È remembered Yin Hanjiang’s

actions in the story that caused all the readers to be so creeped out and
decided against asking.
Yin Hanjiang probably also didn’t understand love.
Thank you for reading. If there are any mistakes, I hope my fellow
cultivators will offer guidance.
Please support the original author over on jjwxc.
1. Not literally a world. Refers to the community of cultivators who exist

separately from normal society, but in the same world. ↩
2. Jianghu and Wulin are terms referring to the communities of martial

artists in wuxia novels, separated from ordinary society. ↩
3. Not literally demons. Demonic sect, demonic cultivator, and demonic

path will be used to refer to those who cultivate using destructive methods
not approved of by righteous sects, or those methods. ↩
4. Refers to a technique to cultivate by having sex. ↩
5. Tribulations are sent by the will of heaven in order to enforce certain

laws of the cosmos. This is usually relevant because cultivators defy the
laws of heaven. A cultivator often has to undergo a heavenly tribulation in
order to move up a stage, usually taking the form of a shitton of lightning
strikes. If they fail, they die. ↩
6. If you cultivate with an unstable state of mind, your qi can become

messed up and damage your body and mind. ↩
7. Literally, heart demon. Also not actually a demon. An obsession that

someone cannot let go of which eventually prevents them from advancing,
disrupting their mind and causing them to see illusions. ↩
Table of Contents –
Wants to Know
– Table of Contents –
Chapter 2 – Temptress of Xuanyuan Sect
Yin Hanjiang figured out what Wenren È was about to say, that he was
asking him his thoughts on love. Honestly, Yin Hanjiang also didn’t
understand.
As a child, he was picked up out of a mass grave by Wenren È and taken

back to Xuanyuan Sect. From the beginning, the Venerable’s command was
his will, and he had never expressed his own opinions. Even though Wenren
È hadn’t finished the question, Yin Hanjiang bowed his head and said, “The
Venerable’s preferences are this subordinate’s beliefs.”
If the Venerable liked stories, Yin Hanjiang would collect all the stories on
Earth for him. If he liked men or women, Yin Hanjiang would bring all the
people he liked before him. The Venerable’s desires were Yin Hanjiang’s
purpose in life.
Wenren È stared at Yin Hanjiang kneeling before him and recalled the novel
filling his brain for the past few days.
Judging by the novel’s account, Yin Hanjiang really did act according to his
words.
Yin Hanjiang was Abusive Romance: You are the Unchanging One in My
Heart‘s love interest number four, trusted subordinate to number two
Wenren È. He was habitually silent and reserved, faithfully protected Baili
Qingmiao, and tended to her every need. When Wenren È couldn’t watch
over Baili Qingmiao himself, he would send Yin Hanjiang to guard her. Yin
Hanjiang took blows for her, got poisoned for her, got injured for her, and
nearly lost his life, all without a word of complaint. He never even
confessed to her. The most revealing words he’d ever expressed was when,
while the two of them were facing danger, Baili Qingmiao told him to
escape first. He replied in a hoarse voice, “Either we both survive, or I die
to protect you.”
What girl could resist such devoted, honest, and heartfelt words? In the
earlier parts of the novel, Yin Hanjiang’s popularity exceeded Wenren È’s at
some point. Even Baili Qingmiao, still crazy for Hè Wenzhao, once told Yin
Hanjiang in tears that she couldn’t repay her debt to him if she spent her life
trying.
All the readers, including Wenren È, thought Yin Hanjiang was deeply in
love with Baili Qingmiao, but after Wenren È died for her, Yin Hanjiang…
Wenren È thought back to the storyline he had reread four or five times. He
asked Yin Hanjiang, “While this Venerable is here, you certainly are
wholeheartedly loyal. But what if, someday, this Venerable is no longer
here?”
Listening to Wenren È’s words, a shudder ran through Yin Hanjiang’s body,
and the hand propping him up trembled slightly. It seemed as if he could
hardly endure even thinking about the possibility of Wenren È’s death. He
didn’t want to imagine, but Wenren È had asked the question, so he forced
himself to consider it. In a few moments, a cold sweat had broken out on his
forehead and it seemed he was at his limit.
After a long while, he forced an answer out through gritted teeth. “This
subordinate will die before the Venerable.”
Wenren È absently wiped away the sweat on Yin Hanjiang’s forehead with
a brush of his sleeve. His actions were warm, but his words were uncaring.
“What if this Venerable had unfinished business, and didn’t allow you to
die?”
Yin Hanjiang’s pupils trembled, and he switched to kneeling with both

knees, pressing both hands against the ground, lowering his head deeply.
“This subordinate doesn’t know.”
He didn’t know, but Wenren È did.

In the book, Wenren È ordered Yin Hanjiang to protect Baili Qingmiao
before he died, thinking that Yin Hanjiang also liked Baili Qingmiao, and
would certainly protect her just as he himself intended. And Yin Hanjiang
indeed carried out his order, never leaving Baili Qingmiao’s side.
But at the same time, a man in a ghost mask inexplicably appeared in the
story. He seemed to be inescapable, using every method he could think of to
harm Baili Qingmiao. After Baili Qingmiao was injured, he sprinkled bone
powder on her wounds. After Baili Qingmiao passed out, he threw her into
the Thousand Snake Pit. When Baili Qingmiao was alone, he hung up a
cauldron and tried to refine her into lamp oil. With each of his appearances,
he became more and more depraved.
The entire time, the readers had guessed that the Ghost Mask was a jealous
female character disguising herself. Even though he was described as a
man, in the cultivation world, there were many ways for a woman to
pretend to be a man.
But no one could’ve guessed what happened when, at one point, Baili
Qingmiao and Yin Hanjiang hid in a cave as they fled from the Ghost Mask.
Baili Qingmiao had said quietly, “Mister Yin, I’m so lucky you’re here.”
“Really?” Yin Hanjiang had said.
Baili Qingmiao was exhausted, about to doze off against his back, when she
saw that a corner of a bundle that Yin Hanjiang had been carrying had fallen
open. What she glimpsed inside was the very same sight that had made her
jerk awake from countless nightmares, the ghost mask!
After Wenren È died, Yin Hanjiang finally acted against his orders. He
wanted to torture Baili Qingmiao to death, he wanted to send her down to
accompany him, he wanted to refine her soul into an everburning lamp, to
light Wenren È’s path in the afterlife.
All the ways he had taken care of her in the past weren’t because he loved
her, but because this was what Wenren È had ordered. Because of that, he
made Baili Qingmiao’s safety his priority. After Wenren È died for Baili
Qingmiao, Yin Hanjiang only wanted to hurt her in a thousand different
ways.
While reading, Wenren È didn’t understand Yin Hanjiang’s motivations.

Only after coming out and asking him did he realize how much pain Yin
Hanjiang must’ve been in. His first point of confusion in the book was now
solved.
“You can get up,” Wenren È said.
Yin Hanjiang, after wiping his bottom lip with his sleeve, got steadily to his
feet. Wenren È caught his arm and smelled a tinge of blood on his sleeve.
Forcing him to imagine the Demonic Lord’s death actually caused Yin
Hanjiang this much pain. Even Wenren È, who cultivated the Path of
Slaughter, was a bit moved.
Right now Wenren È hadn’t fallen in love with Baili Qingmiao like the him
in the book, so he didn’t think there was anything wrong with what Yin
Hanjiang did. Among those who cultivated the demonic paths, who could
be considered selfless? If you can’t have something, destroy it. If you die,
take your enemy with you to the afterlife. This was all perfectly normal.
Wenren È just wanted to tell the book’s Yin Hanjiang, “Not bad!”
And while he’s at it, he’d like to beat up the book’s Wenren È. The female
lead at least had something wrong with her head. What Wenren È really
couldn’t accept was that he himself had abandoned everything for the sake
of love. That was totally impossible.
Why would he be pulled under and become completely unable to free

himself? And why would Baili Qingmiao be infatuated with Hè Wenzhao
until she lost herself, still wanting to be with him after being injured so
many times? Why would the jealous female villains frame an innocent girl
because of Hè Wenzhao?
There was too much that Wenren È didn’t understand.

Yin Hanjiang had cleared up one point of confusion for him, but there were
many more questions facing the Lord of Demons.
Wenren È rested a hand against Yin Hanjiang’s chest and sent a stream of
energy into him to help him heal. Yin Hanjiang put up no resistance,
allowing Wenren È’s oppressive energy freely enter his dantian[1] and help
suppress his spiritual essence, in turmoil from his unsteady mental state.
After casually fixing up Yin Hanjiang, Wenren È commanded, “Tell the

Right Protector to come to the meeting room.”
Yin Hanjiang obeyed, taking out one of the Venerable’s commanding

talismans and sending a summons to the Right Protector.
The two came to the meeting room and waited a while, until a woman in
purple clothes arrived leisurely. What she was wearing could less be called
clothes and more a strip of purple gauze wound about her body, barely
covering any vital areas, and instead outlining her alluring figure, capturing
people’s attention.
Unfortunately, the two in front of her were blind and had hearts of ice. The
Right Protector, Shu Yanyan, had long gotten used to this kind of reaction
from them. She made a suggestive bowing motion to Wenren È, and after
being allowed to rise, said impatiently, “Venerable, do you need me to go
beat up those two-faced hypocrites of the righteous sects? This subordinate
has been itching to do it.”
She covered her mouth, while revealing a bashful smile.
Wenren È well understood this subordinate of his. “Are you itching to

punish them, or to harvest their yang to supplement your yin[2]?”
“Aren’t those the same?” Shu Yanyan fluttered her eyelashes at Wenren È.
“Venerable, you know me. I follow the path of desire. I wouldn’t miss the
chance to kill two birds with one stone.”
Wenren È raised a hand. Shu Yanyan, receiving his permission, walked to

the seat on his right and sat down, languidly stretching out her long legs,
every movement displaying irresistible feminine charm.
Wenren È ignored the seduction she had inadvertently released and said
unhurriedly, “Do you know the chief disciple of Shangqing Sect, Hè
Wenzhao?”
“Oh, him? Now that piques my interest.” Shu Yanyan sprawled lazily across
the chair, without a hint of proper posture. Propping her chin with one hand,
she said with a wink, “Venerable, didn’t you send us out three months ago
to investigate the righteous sects’ plans? I disguised myself as a frail and
pitiful songstress and pretended to be mistreated in front of some young
disciples from Shangqing Sect. Hè Wenzhao was the one who came to my
aid. That guy…”
Stopping there, Shu Yanyan licked her lips, as if savoring a taste, and
paused for a moment before continuing. “His true yang was quite
satisfying.”
Wenren È knew exactly what she was talking about.
In the book, Hè Wenzhao’s true yang was indeed taken by Shu Yanyan, and
he had lost a lot of power. Shu Yanyan locked him up in her cultivation
grounds and just about sucked him empty, and in the end it was Baili
Qingmiao, as always, who risked her life to save him. In addition, to help
him replenish his true essence, she went to the Thousand Mile Ice Plains to
find the elixir known as the Snow Flame. She then helped Hè Wenzhao
absorb it, increasing his cultivation immensely.
Shu Yanyan was essentially the number one villain of the first part of the
story. She wasn’t in love with Hè Wenzhao but simply coveting his yang
energy, a temptress in all aspects. And due to Shu Yanyan being a wicked
person trying to harm Hè Wenzhao, Baili Qingmiao, for the first time,
forgave him for having dealings with another woman.
The temptress of Xuanyuan Sect practiced the art of seduction, and her
power was far above that of Hè Wenzhao. If she wanted to do something,
Hè Wenzhao had no way to resist. He was the victim here.
What Baili Qingmiao didn’t know at the time was that there would be a
second occasion and a third, and innumerable occasions beyond that when
Hè Wenzhao was being “coerced”, expecting her to understand.
“Tell me what happened then,” Wenren È said.
Going by the book’s word count, the current plot should only have
advanced 70 or 80 thousand words in, which was also the only happy
portion of the book. After Baili Qingmiao entered Shangqing Sect, falling in
love with Hè Wenzhao at first sight, the two of them cultivated for over ten
years, spending time together as innocent children. Hè Wenzhao showed
every consideration to his little shimei[3]. The two often secretly stole out
to pick flowers and watch the moon, or practiced techniques with each other
in the dead of night, never going further due to propriety. Their affections
toward each other were as sweet as honey, enough to give one cavities.
There were also some female disciples who stirred up trouble, but back then
everyone was young and innocent and none of them did anything improper.
Hè Wenzhao was also an upstanding young hero, the sect’s beloved prodigy,
and yet to take on any heavy responsibilities.
The temptress Shu Yanyan was the first conflict between them.
“Who remembers that much?” said Shu Yanyan. “All I was thinking about
was that man’s yang energy. As I’m sure the Venerable knows, my
cultivation level has remained stagnant for many years. If this keeps up
much longer, I’m going to get wrinkles.” While talking, she brought out a
mirror and inspected her face, which looked no older than a sixteen-year-
old girl’s, and after finding it satisfactory, continued. “Hè Wenzhao’s yang
energy is unusual. He has a lightning spiritual root, and there also seemed to
be a deeper, mysterious power inside him. I’m certain that if I can take his
essence, I’ll be able to raise my cultivation!”
Among cultivators, there were five different kinds of normal spiritual roots
—metal, wood, water, fire, and earth—and five kinds of variant spiritual
roots—wind, lightning, ice, light, and land. Ordinary people mostly had
mixed spiritual roots of three, four, or five elements. People with dual
element spiritual roots were already considered naturally gifted. A normal
pure spiritual root was one in a million. A pure variant spiritual root was a
heaven-blessed genius which might not be encountered even once in ten
thousand years. Yet Hè Wenzhao possessed a pure lightning spiritual root.
Did this lightning spiritual root come from the heavenly lightning he was
struck by in his past life? Wenren È muttered to himself, deep in thought.
And that mysterious power was naturally his divine power. Hè Wenzhao
was an ascended god in his past life and kept his acquired divine essence
with him in reincarnation. Baili Qingmiao possessed a primordial divine
essence which was born together with heaven and earth. Unlike Hè
Wenzhao’s, it could not follow her into a mortal body.
If Shu Yanyan stole Hè Wenzhao’s essence, his divine power would

certainly increase her cultivation significantly.
“Why didn’t you take action against him three months ago? His level of
strength can’t stand up to yours,” Wenren È said.
“Ah,” Shu Yanyan sighed, “I wanted to take him, but the power in him is
very unusual. If he isn’t willing to be with me, I can’t force him. He has a
sweetheart, a little girl whose looks aren’t worse than my own. She’s very
sharp too, and was suspicious of me the whole time, always keeping an eye
on her man. I couldn’t even find a chance.”
“Oh?” Wenren È raised an eyebrow slightly. “They have to be willing?”
The book hadn’t mentioned that. It was written from Baili Qingmiao’s point
of view, and when Hè Wenzhao told her that Shu Yanyan drugged and
abducted him, Baili Qingmiao believed it.
“Venerable, don’t you know me at all?” Shu Yanyan said, pouting. “In these
matters, I always pay attention to mutual consent. If a man performs
particularly well and I like him, I’ll pay him back a little while cultivating
and help replenish his lost essence. Aside from my enemies, those
sweethearts at my cultivation grounds have all received benefits.
Sometimes I get tired of someone and try to shoo them away, but they
aren’t even willing to leave.”
‘I actually never knew that. It seems what this Venerable doesn’t know
amounts to a great deal,’ Wenren È thought.
“But I won’t let Hè Wenzhao off lightly,” Shu Yanyan said faithfully to
Wenren È. “His Shangqing Sect was the ringleader in the last assault on
Xuanyuan Sect. How can I show mercy to the chief disciple of an enemy
sect? Don’t worry, Venerable, I’ve already had secret contact with Hè
Wenzhao behind that little Baili Qingmiao girl’s back for several days,
while pretending to be an innocent maiden. He pities me and kept sneaking
out to bring me gifts. He’ll be mine soon enough.”
Wenren È hesitated for a moment. “No, it’s not necessary,” he said.
“What isn’t necessary?” Shu Yanyan said, blinking her large, pretty eyes.
“It’s not necessary to ruin him,” Wenren È said, tapping a finger on his
armrest. “Do what you’re accustomed to. Draw it out for a while. He indeed
has a unique power within him, which will be of benefit to you. No need to
do anything extreme.”
“Huh?” Shu Yanyan stared in shock. Is this the same Venerable who would
eradicate his enemies root and branch and not show a shred of mercy?
She furrowed her brows. “He’s Shangqing Sect’s most favored chief
disciple, pillar of the righteous sects. Should we not deal with him while
he’s young, and instead leave him to become a problem in the future? If I
repay him while cultivating with him, his power will rise even more
quickly. This might benefit me, but it wouldn’t be a benefit to Xuanyuan
Sect.”
As Shu Yanyan spoke, her expression became vicious, all signs of her
gentle, charming manner gone.
These words pleased Wenren È greatly.
If you asked Wenren È, this was how a cultivator should be. The great Dao
is emotionless. Rather than cling to passions, better one uses them for their
own benefit. And one must stand firm, lest in a moment of weakness they
bring about their own demise.
Seeing Shu Yanyan’s farsightedness and Yin Hanjiang’s efficiency, then

remembering the him in the book, so blinded by love he was willing to
abandon the Xuanyuan Sect for Baili Qingmiao, Wenren È felt deeply that
he wasn’t much above his two Sect Protectors.
A normal person would probably try to stay away from Baili Qingmiao in
the future, to avoid the possibility of being entrapped, but Wenren È was a
person who faced problems head-on. He was determined to meet Baili
Qingmiao and Hè Wenzhao, to harden his heart and not be moved by any
emotion!
Thinking that, he ordered, “Shu Yanyan, we must think more long-term.

You need to sabotage Shangqing Sect.”
Shu Yanyan thought for a moment and clapped her hands, eyes lighting up.
“Venerable, this subordinate understands your intention. What I must do is
use the guise of a poor, honest woman to lure astray the future pillar of the
righteous sects, break down his defenses and have him wrapped around my
finger, letting him believe that I’m a good-hearted woman who went down a
wicked path, but inside still wishes for redemption. I should get him
obsessed with me, captivated by my beauty, captivated by the power he can
gain from me. And afterward, if one day I plead to him, ‘save me,’ he’ll
happily divulge information regarding his sect that he doesn’t see as very
important. Even better if he can take leadership of the sect in the future. I
can slowly lead him onto the demonic path, until he finds himself in too
deep and unable to turn back.”
Shu Yanyan got more and more enthusiastic as she spoke, wanting to
immediately head out to play damsel in distress. Playing the long game was
the right way to go!
Wenren È: …
He just wanted Baili Qingmiao to see clearly that Hè Wenzhao was

willingly together with Shu Yanyan, so let Shu Yanyan hook Hè Wenzhao.
But as it turned out, Shu Yanyan thought more deeply than him, and
elevated it from a matter of a relationship to being about the Great Sect
War.
His Right Protector actually was a woman with high aims. In the past,
Wenren È hadn’t even known.
“Your plan is functional. But keep two points in mind. First, do not harm
Baili Qingmiao. Second, do not be entangled by love yourself,” Wenren È
said.
“The Venerable indeed has keen foresight. Leaving Baili Qingmiao alone
and letting her cause trouble will only push Hè Wenzhao closer to me, the
good and obedient one. She’s certainly more useful alive than dead,” Shu
Yanyan said, nodding. “As for Hè Wenzhao, there’s no need for concern.
Your subordinate is a seasoned veteran; she can see though all the two-
faced men in the world.”
After saying this, Shu Yanyan turned and left the meeting room, leaving the
two silent men with the image of her slim back.
“Protector Yin,” Wenren È said after a long while. “This Venerable is not
much better than the Right Protector.”
He was referring to the him in the book.
Yin Hanjiang said, “The Venerable is the most farseeing man in the world.
The Right Protector is not worth a thousandth of the Venerable.”
“Ah, you…” Wenren È shook his head and changed the subject. “Leave the
mountain with me. I want to meet this junior from Shangqing Sect.”
He wanted to see, now that Shu Yanyan wouldn’t steal Hè Wenzhao’s

essence, just how Hè Wenzhao was going to explain himself to Baili
Qingmiao, and whether or not she would forgive him as she had in the
book.
The Lord of Demons was quite curious.

1. The dantian is an area in the lower abdomen where qi is gathered in order

to form a golden core, to concentrate and refine the qi and increase in
power. ↩
2. The principle of dual cultivation, cultivation by having sex. Men are high
in yang, and women are high in yin. A woman will take yang from a man to
complement her yin, and vice versa. ↩
2. Marital sister. Used to refer to two peers from the same sect. You can
refer to this. ↩
Wants to Know
Chapter 3 – So that was it
Cultivators could use the power of heaven and earth to travel a thousand
miles in a flash. In less than half a day, the group had arrived at a small
town near Shangqing Sect. This was with Wenren È lowering his speed to
wait for Yin Hanjiang; otherwise, he could’ve arrived in fifteen minutes.
Cultivation stages in this world were split into nine stages—Qi Gathering,
Qi Refining, Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul,
Deity Transformation, Body Unity, Void Boundary, and Mahayana. Each
stage had nine levels. After you broke through the ninth level of the
Mahayana stage, the heavens would send down a tribulation, and if you
passed that you could ascend to the immortal realm. It’s said that immortals
were also split into Wandering Immortal, Heavenly Immortal, Golden
Immortal, Great Golden Immortal, Immortal Lord, and Immortal Emperor.
After breaking through the Immortal Emperor stage, one could ascend to
the divine realm. The divine realm was also split into countless stages, but
no matter how much an ascended god cultivated, they could not surpass the
primordial gods, born alongside the cosmos. Ascended gods, no matter how
strong they were, were only borrowing the power of the cosmos. For the
primordial gods, the cosmos was their home, while the ascended gods were
just lodging temporarily. The difference between them was vast.
Wenren È, the Lord of Demons, was already recognized as the strongest

among the demonic sects, but he was only at the sixth level of Mahayana.
In the female lead’s past life, she had been infinitely stronger than anyone
else who appeared in the book. Yet she had actually given up her divine
essence to be with Hè Wenzhao. You couldn’t blame Wenren È for thinking
she had some issues in the head.
He would even suspect Hè Wenzhao had cast some sort of sorcery on her
soul to control her, but the sorcerous arts of the cultivation world, no matter
how strong, would all shatter when faced with Baili Qingmiao’s true divine
might. They would be like a drop of poison in the ocean, or a wisp of toxic
gas in a hurricane. In the face of absolute power, all the sorcery of the world
amounted to nothing.
Wenren È, sitting on the second floor of a tea house, sipped the tea Yin
Hanjiang had brought him as he pondered.
“This subordinate’s powers are weak, and has wasted the Venerable’s time.”
Yin Hanjiang didn’t sit, instead standing at Wenren È’s back.
“No matter.” Wenren È indicated the seat next to him. “Sit.”
Yin Hanjiang obediently sat next to Wenren È. Without a command from

the Venerable, he wouldn’t sit, and if he was commanded, he wouldn’t say
empty words like “This subordinate doesn’t dare.” If Wenren È ordered it,
even if Yin Hanjiang didn’t dare, he had to do it.
“Act natural, relax your breathing. Right now, we’re just two warriors from
Wulin who know some martial arts,” Wenren È said, seeing Yin Hanjiang’s
stiff back.
If Wenren È spoke once, Yin Hanjiang moved once. He relaxed his ramrod-
straight back, though his muscles were still tense.
Yin Hanjiang was very rarely face-to-face with Wenren È. He hardly lifted
his head, holding his teacup and watching the steam rise off it without
drinking.
He was almost like a marionette, with no thoughts of his own. If Wenren È

commanded, he acted.
Yin Hanjiang was only at the Body Unity stage, yet at Xuanyuan Sect he
ranked above all but one man. The weakest of the Altar Masters, Altar
Master Yuan, was at the ninth level of Body Unity, and the other three were
at the top of Void Boundary. Right Protector Shu Yanyan was also at the
sixth level of Void Boundary. Of the six in Xuanyuan Sect who served
directly under Wenren È, Yin Hanjiang was the weakest.
Sensibly, there’s no way he should be the Left Protector. The only reason he
had such a high position was because Wenren È trusted him, and he was
dedicated to Wenren È.
When Wenren È pulled him out of a pile of corpses, he was barely breathing
and half his body was necrotic. No one would’ve thought he was alive, and
even if they knew he was still breathing, they wouldn’t have tried to save
him.
Wenren È had a keen sense of life and death. When he walked past, he
discovered Yin Hanjiang, lying there and waiting for death with dull,
staring eyes.
Wenren È, who at the time was the leader of a small demonic sect, used his
foot to move the corpse on top of Yin Hanjiang’s body. Looking down at the
child, he said in an impassive tone, “I need a sword.”
The tiny Yin Hanjiang somehow worked up the strength to raise his small,
thin arm and grab Wenren È’s shoe.
From then, Yin Hanjiang became an emotionless sword, only swung for
Wenren È.
He improved at breakneck speed and in only a few decades, achieved Body

Unity stage, advancing many times faster than Wenren È himself had. But
after reaching Body Unity, Yin Hanjiang couldn’t raise his level no matter
how he cultivated, stagnating for a hundred years.
Wenren È originally thought Body Unity stage was Yin Hanjiang’s natural
limit, but the book clearly stated the Ghost Mask was at the peak of
Mahayana.
This was also why Baili Qingmiao never would’ve guessed Yin Hanjiang
was the Ghost Mask. The first reason was how Yin Hanjiang always treated
her so well that there was no way she could’ve doubted him. The second
was that even though Yin Hanjiang had chanced upon some ways to
increase his cultivation while protecting her, he was still only at the ninth
level of Body Unity. Who would conflate him with the Mahayana stage
Ghost Mask?
By the latter parts of Abusive Romance, the Ghost Mask’s power already
ranked number one in the cultivation world. If he wasn’t obsessed with
refining Baili Qingmiao into lamp oil, he could’ve long since broken
through the final level and ascended.
Baili Qingmiao really did get thrown into a furnace to be refined, but her
luck came through at the last moment and she merged with the divine
essence, releasing a burst of devastating power at that instant that killed Yin
Hanjiang.
Yin Hanjiang was at Body Unity, but the Ghost Mask was at Mahayana,
two stages above.
Wenren È looked at his most trusted subordinate’s face and said, “Hold out
your hand.”
Yin Hanjiang offered his hand and Wenren È took hold of his wrist, sending
a stream of energy into his meridians[1]. After a moment of investigation,
he confirmed Yin Hanjiang really was at the first level of Body Unity,
without any hints otherwise. And he had gathered a large volume of
spiritual energy in his dantian that he was unable to transform, over a
hundred years of cultivation. He had probably forcibly gathered this
unbearable amount of energy in order to break through, and had been
suffering all this time.
Were it not for the book, Wenren È would never be able to understand his
situation, and would’ve only assumed his talent was insufficient.
It seemed many plotlines in the book that looked unreasonable at first sight
actually had reasonable explanations behind them.
“How long has this gone on?” Wenren È said.

Yin Hanjiang avoided the question, instead saying, “This subordinate will
put all efforts toward making a breakthrough.”
Looking at him, a distant memory came to Wenren È’s mind. When he took
Yin Hanjiang back to his sect, his first priority was eliminating his enemy
sects, so he left him at home to grow up and casually tossed him a
cultivation manual for him to study on his own.
Ten years later, when he returned to his sect, Yin Hanjiang had already
grown into a tall youth, and was hacking away with the sword again and
again on the mountainside. The assignment Wenren È had left him ten years
ago was to split a waterfall, so he had been swinging at it for ten years.
Dedication, resolve, loyalty. These three words outlined everything about

Yin Hanjiang.
“Don’t push yourself so hard,” Wenren È said. “You can take things slowly.
This Venerable is already plenty strong.”
He thought that would reassure him, but a flash of pain showed in Yin
Hanjiang’s eyes, like he was being abandoned. “Does the Venerable no
longer need this subordinate?” he said hoarsely.
Honestly, he was not very necessary. Back then Wenren È wanted to unify
the demonic sects and urgently needed talents under him. Now Xuanyuan
Sect had great power and influence, all the demonic sects were under
Wenren È’s heel, and the Sect Protectors and Altar Masters were loyal to
him. Wenren È long since had no need for a personal guard at the Body
Unity stage.
The sword known as Yin Hanjiang had no chance to be unsheathed.
Wenren È didn’t answer him. He retrieved that brick of a book from his
Qiankun sleeves[2] and opened it to a certain page.
That was when Yin Hanjiang was protecting Baili Qingmiao from
Shangqing Sect’s pursuers. Baili Qingmiao said gratefully to him, “Mister
Yin, you’ve done so much for me.”
Yin Hanjiang held his sword. The firelight reflected on his faintly smiling
face. “You are the only person the Venerable needs a sword to protect.”
The first read, one would think that Yin Hanjiang had feelings for Baili
Qingmiao, using loyalty as an excuse. But reading through again, Wenren È
noticed the word “sword”.
Wenren È had left this sword, Yin Hanjiang, unused for too long. Only for
Baili Qingmiao’s safety did he finally pick it up again. Why was Yin
Hanjiang smiling? It wasn’t that he loved Baili Qingmiao, but that he was
needed once again by Wenren È.
Wenren È replaced the book. Looking at Yin Hanjiang, a bitter, nameless

feeling rose in his heart.
“This Venerable doesn’t need a sword,” he said in a cold tone.
The light in Yin Hanjiang’s eyes died somewhat. He withdrew his hand
resting on the table and tightly gripped the sword at his waist.
The book often described Yin Hanjiang as holding a sword. Once a

cultivator reached Foundation Establishment stage, they could store their
bonded weapon inside their bodies. Even at the Qi Refining stage, they
could use Qiankun bags and other storage items. There was no need to hold
their weapons all the time, yet Yin Hanjiang always had his sword in hand.
Unknown to Wenren È, his gaze had softened. He continued, “But this

Venerable needs Yin Hanjiang.”
Yin Hanjiang’s hand on his sword relaxed a bit. He heard the next words
from Wenren È. “Back when we had just met, this Venerable did not trust
anyone on earth. This Venerable only trusted Yin Hanjiang.”
“Venerable…”
Yin Hanjiang’s words were hardly out of his mouth when he was
interrupted by a woman in a thin white robe and a pipa[3] in hand. She had
walked up to the second floor, strumming the pipa and beginning to sing.
Wenren È: …
Yin Hanjiang: …
This woman was Shu Yanyan. The two had gotten used to seeing her in
revealing clothes, and this proper and pitiful Shu Yanyan like a white lotus
flower that trembled in the wind looked really out of place to them.
There were a good number of guests with them on the second floor. Shu
Yanyan was the tea house’s songstress. After she finished her song, she
began to sell flowers.
She was trying to be self-sufficient, not charging for songs, just selling
flowers after singing. The income from the flowers had to be split thirty-
seventy with the tea house’s owner, thirty for her, seventy for him. She
really was as pitiful as you needed her to be.
Wenren È took out a ten-tael silver piece and casually tossed it into the
flower basket in front of Shu Yanyan. Shu Yanyan picked up the flower
basket and slowly walked up to Wenren È. “Honored guest, this maiden is
not selling songs, but flowers,” she said in a soft voice. “One basket is only
ten copper coins. There’s no need to pay this much.”
She had ten baskets of flowers at her feet. Even if she sold all of them, after
splitting it with the owner, she would only have thirty coins for herself. If
she saved for half a month, she could afford a taste of meat, and the other
days she could only eat steamed buns.
Wenren È didn’t look at Shu Yanyan. He glanced at Yin Hanjiang and

mentally transmitted to him, “Call me brother.”
Yin Hanjiang looked dazed, like he was in a dream. He spoke his lines
woodenly from the script Wenren È had given him. “The Ve— my
brother[4] gave it to you, so take it. Don’t be ungrateful.”
When he said the word “brother”, Yin Hanjiang’s ears turned bright red.
“This one appreciates these honored guests’ generosity, but it’s not right for
me to accept silver. This maiden isn’t willing to do so.” Shu Yanyan reached
out her slender and ice-cold fingers, retrieved the silver piece from the
basket, and placed it on their table, bowing to them respectfully.
What Wenren È was supposed to do was stuff the silver piece down the
front of Shu Yanyan’s robes and tell her, “Take it out right here and I’ll
accept it back”, making her cry helplessly in the middle of the tea house.
But he really didn’t know how to do that sort of thing, and Yin Hanjiang
didn’t have any interest in that either, so the two of them only sat drinking
their tea, ignoring Shu Yanyan.
Shu Yanyan grew anxious at their lack of response. If they didn’t humiliate
her, how was she supposed to play the next part? She had already made
plans for her subordinates to play the act, but the Venerable wanted to
participate in the action, so she called off her subordinates and gave the
main role to him.
She thought men all had these base urges; wouldn’t any be happy to play
this kind of role? But as it turned out, the Venerable wasn’t that sort of
person at all, and had no interest in bullying the weak.
Aren’t you a demonic cultivator? Can’t you act a bit like one?
Shu Yanyan saw Hè Wenzhao and Baili Qingmiao had already arrived to the
ground floor of the tea house. The audience had taken their seats, but the
stage wasn’t set yet; this wouldn’t do at all. She winked furiously at the
Venerable until she was going cross-eyed.
“You do it,” Wenren È transmitted to Yin Hanjiang.
He had decided to delegate more things to Yin Hanjiang in the future, to try
and help his “if the Venerable doesn’t need me, I can just die” attitude.
Yin Hanjiang, hearing his order, thought back to the script Shu Yanyan gave
him, and stared numbly at the beautiful young woman. He was supposed
to… pull open her robes, and shove the silver piece down her bosom? In
front of the Venerable?
He felt extremely awkward, but the Venerable had given him an order!
“You can go according to your own judgment. No need to follow Shu

Yanyan’s script,” Wenren È transmitted, sensing Yin Hanjiang’s distress.
Gaining his approval, Yin Hanjiang’s expression immediately relaxed. With

a frosty and toneless voice, he said, “If you insist on being ungrateful, then
don’t blame me for what I’m about to do.”
With that, he picked up Shu Yanyan with one hand and tossed her down
from the second floor, having her fall directly in front of where Baili
Qingmiao and Hè Wenzhao were sitting.
Shu Yanyan: …
Hè Wenzhao saw a human figure fall from the sky and wanted to help, but
Baili Qingmiao was right next to him. He had just had a fight with Baili
Qingmiao back at the sect about his Liu-shimei and didn’t want to provoke
her temper again. Seeing this figure was a woman and not seeing her face,
he decided not to act.
On the other hand, Baili Qingmiao saw a person fall from the second story
and immediately leapt forward to save her. Shu Yanyan’s plan was falling to
pieces. She couldn’t let herself be saved by Baili Qingmiao! The one who
saved her should be Hè Wenzhao, embracing her in front of Baili
Qingmiao!
So Shu Yanyan, hardening her resolve, used her spiritual energy to speed up
her fall, so that Baili Qingmiao’s outstretched hand could only brush a
corner of her clothes before she hit the ground. She even stealthily used her
spiritual energy to wound herself, acting like the fall had seriously injured
her.
Baili Qingmiao’s fingers only clutched a piece of white fabric before she
saw that frail woman slam into the ground, spitting out a mouthful of blood.
She jumped down, kneeling by the woman’s side, and propped her up.
“Maiden, are you alright?” she said with concern.
When the woman turned her head, she discovered it was someone she
knew. “Miss Shu?” Baili Qingmiao said in shock.
Hè Wenzhao only then arrived. Seeing it was the poor girl he’d saved
several days ago and still felt goodwill for, he regretted not being there to
save her.
Shu Yanyan, who had taken the name Shu Lian, shed a single tear in her
heart as she was held in Baili Qingmiao’s lap. This wasn’t how it was
supposed to go!
Going by her script, she was supposed to have been humiliated by one of
the guests, so that Hè Wenzhao couldn’t watch anymore and had to help,
and then subsequently took off his outer robe to wrap it around her. Baili
Qingmiao, when seeing another woman wearing her sweetheart’s clothes,
would be so jealous she couldn’t think and have a fight right then and there
with Hè Wenzhao, pushing Hè Wenzhao to Shu Yanyan’s side. Hè Wenzhao
would escort her home, she would cry, Hè Wenzhao would hold her to
comfort her. One thing would lead to another, and things would get out of
hand. Men, right?
Why did it end up like this?
Baili Qingmiao took out a medicinal pill. She carefully pried the dying Shu
Yanyan’s mouth open and gave it to her. Normal people couldn’t take the
strength of the spiritual pills that cultivators used, so Baili Qingmiao could
only give her some medicine to strengthen her heart and internal organs.
She would have to recover from her outer injuries and broken bones herself.
After swallowing the pill, Shu Yanyan’s deathly pale complexion improved
significantly, and she couldn’t go on pretending to be unconscious. She
despondently opened her eyes. Staying in character, she said tearfully to
Baili Qingmiao, “Thank you, Miss Baili.”
While falling, Shu Yanyan made sure to protect her face, only letting her
forehead be struck so a drop of blood ran down it, to maintain the image of
an injured beauty. That, combined with her expression, tugged at people’s
heartstrings. Too bad that currently, her face was being seen by Baili
Qingmiao, and Hè Wenzhao was standing behind her.
Baili Qingmiao had grown up at Shangqing Sect and was taught to oppose
bullies and support the weak. Even if she usually had a temper toward Hè
Wenzhao and had previously raised a fuss over him paying too much
attention to Shu Yanyan, when it came to important matters, she could keep
a level head.
And she would never allow a frail woman to be hurt in front of her!
With one arm around Shu Yanyan’s waist, she leapt to the second story.
After setting Shu Yanyan down on a chair, she glared at Wenren È and Yin
Hanjiang. “Were you the ones who threw her off?”
Shu Yanyan didn’t dare to look at the Venerable and started pretending to
cry.
Wenren È put down his cup and looked at Baili Qingmiao.
In the book, the first time Wenren È met Baili Qingmiao was after he had
encountered a problem in his cultivation, and also run into the combined
forces of the righteous sects, attacking the Xuanyuan Sect under the
leadership of the Shangqing Sect. He sustained serious injuries in reckless
battle and collapsed in a river. Baili Qingmiao, alone after being forced out
by the rival female characters, found him. She didn’t recognize Wenren È
and thought he was a fellow cultivator from an allied sect, so carefully
tended to him.
Wenren È, awakening, saw a ray of sunlight fall across Baili Qingmiao’s

face. Her body seemed to be shrouded in divine light, a beautiful sight out
of this world. His heart was captured in an instant, and from that moment
on, he’d protect and cherish this kind-hearted girl in every way.
Right now, without being injured and in an unsteady frame of mind, without
the debt of his life being saved, when he met Baili Qingmiao in an ordinary
situation, he wanted to see just what would happen.
Baili Qingmiao was furious, her long hair fluttering with her spiritual
energy. Wenren È examined her, and found her body was shrouded in a faint
layer of divine light.
Huh?
Wenren È blinked, used his spiritual energy to see clearly, and still saw that
light.
When the book described Baili Qingmiao from Wenren È’s perspective, it
would always use words like “goddess” and “holy”. He thought it was just
figurative, but it turned out it wasn’t just a description—she was actually
surrounded by divine light!
He glanced at Yin Hanjiang and Shu Yanyan out of the corner of his eyes,
but they didn’t seem to see any light.
Wenren È thought furiously and suddenly realized—he cultivated the Path

of Slaughter. He set out on this path three hundred years ago, in the midst of
war.
What was Baili Qingmiao’s role in her past life?
She had been in charge of disasters, sending plague, war, and death to
humankind. Baili Qingmiao was currently eighteen years old, which was to
say, her heavenly tribulation in the divine realm was eighteen years ago.
Thus, that war three hundred years ago that had led Wenren È to enter the
Dao had been caused by Baili Qingmiao’s past incarnation. Effectively,
Baili Qingmiao was the reason Wenren È had awakened to the Dao, and she
could be considered half Wenren È’s master.
If Baili Qingmiao hadn’t reincarnated, Wenren È wouldn’t have had to

repay this karmic debt until he ascended to the divine realm. But she ended
up reincarnating and meeting Wenren È. Unbeknownst to him, there was a
debt of gratitude he had to pay to his teacher in order to pass his heavenly
tribulations.
So, that was it.
1. Meridians are a system like veins that circulate qi through the body. ↩
2. Refers to an extradimensional storage space, like a bag of holding. In his

sleeves. ↩
3. A Chinese stringed instrument, like a lute. ↩
4. Doesn’t necessarily refer to familial relations, could be for friendship. ↩

Wants to Know
Chapter 4 – Two birds with one stone
Being the protagonist of a novel, Baili Qingmiao’s appearance had no

flaws. She wore the buttercup yellow dress of the female disciples of
Shangqing Sect, hair tied in a simple bun with an ordinary multicolored
string. A fresh peach blossom was stuck in her hair, and her face held the
same gentle flush as its petals. A few strands of hair fell elegantly across her
forehead and framed her face, clear and free from makeup. She wore a pair
of light yellow bead earrings and was filled with a youthful grace.
Wenren È was engrossed with her divine light and hadn’t noticed her
appearance at all. Yin Hanjiang clutched his sword. In his eyes, this girl
who had confronted Wenren È with hostile intent was already dead.
Hè Wenzhao finally made it up the stairs. He had known Baili Qingmiao for
over ten years, and would’ve gotten used to it no matter how beautiful she
was. After getting to the second floor, all his attention was on Shu Yanyan.
With a few coins, he sent one of the waiters to get a doctor who could treat
fractures, then crouched near Shu Yanyan’s chair and said anxiously, “Don’t
worry, Miss Shu, I’ll make sure to get justice for you!”
Shu Yanyan: …
No way, was she the only one who noticed this little Baili Qingmiao girl
was really quite beautiful? Do these three men all have eye problems? And
the one getting justice is clearly Baili Qingmiao, what is Hè Wenzhao trying
to get in on the action for?
Even though she was filled with doubts, Shu Yanyan had a strong work
ethic and remembered her task—seduce Hè Wenzhao. With effort, she
placed her pale hand into Hè Wenzhao’s considerably larger hand, and said
with eyes full of affection, “This maiden’s life is as thin as paper. Being
able to meet Young Master Hè today is the fortune of three lifetimes. Miss
Baili, you don’t need to make enemies for someone like me.”
Even if you do, you can’t beat them, Shu Yanyan grumbled in her heart.
Baili Qingmiao was still too young, barely at Foundation Establishment. Hè

Wenzhao was a bit older, but still only at Core Formation stage. Wenren È
didn’t need to act, and Yin Hanjiang didn’t need to unsheathe his sword. He
could kill these two Shangqing Sect juniors with one finger.
Baili Qingmiao was even more furious after hearing Shu Yanyan’s words,
and she also felt regretful. That day, Hè Wenzhao had wanted to call on
Miss Shu, saying that some disciples met her in the small town a few days
ago and helped her out. Even if it was a chance encounter, they had to take
responsibility until the end. If they helped her but abandoned her halfway,
this karma would be on them, and their heavenly tribulations would be
harder in the future.
Baili Qingmiao was always preoccupied with her own jealousy. She’d just
had yet another spat with her shixiong Hè Wenzhao about Liu-shijie. They
had originally planned to set out at seven in the morning, but she had
delayed them until nine. Her shixiong’s cultivation was much stronger than
hers and he could deduce the ways of heaven better than she could. Maybe
today he’d gotten a feeling that something was wrong, and that’s why he
was anxious to leave early. If she had been just a bit earlier, maybe Miss
Shu wouldn’t have…
While berating herself, Baili Qingmiao heard Shu Yanyan’s words and
couldn’t restrain her anger anymore. She reached out an arm and the strip of
silver silk around her waist, which clashed with the color of her clothes,
moved of its own accord. This was the bonded weapon she had refined after
attaining Foundation Establishment, the Moonlit Frost Silk. As it uncoiled,
it resembled a streak of silver light glittering under the full moon, sublime
and beautiful.
“Shimei!” Hè Wenzhao was concerned about Shu Yanyan, but he also

worried for Baili Qingmiao who he had taken care of throughout her
childhood.
Seeing her bring out her bonded weapon, he was anxious she would get hurt
if her opponents turned out to be cultivators. He flashed in front of her, the
sword on his back rising out of its sheath to float in the air, tip aimed at the
two men.
“Please don’t get hurt for my sake!” Shu Yanyan sobbed.
All the guests in the cafe had already run off when Yin Hanjiang threw Shu
Yanyan, so the only people left on the second floor were the few caught in
this confrontation.
Yin Hanjiang’s expression darkened. If the opposing side had already

brought out their weapons, then he might as well…
“Hanjiang.” Wenren È held Yin Hanjiang’s hand on his sword down,

gripping it tightly, preventing him from killing the two protagonists in one
stroke.
Because Yin Hanjiang had lain in a corpse pile for several days in his
childhood and still had death qi left in his body, no matter how much he
cultivated, his limbs were always chilled, and his hand was currently ice-
cold.
Wenren È sought the Dao in hot-blooded warfare. His body temperature

was higher than normal people’s, and his hand was burning hot. Wrapped
around Yin Hanjiang’s hand, it slowly transferred warmth to it.
Yin Hanjiang, after coming into contact with Wenren È, didn’t dare to
move. It seemed to him it would be improper to let even the tip of one
finger brush against Wenren È’s palm.
With his hand this cold, he probably had some internal injury, most likely
left over from his childhood experience. This was likely also the reason Yin
Hanjiang had a hard time advancing in realm, Wenren È thought. The
treatment happened to be finding the strongest concentration of yang under
the heavens, dwelling only in the bitterest frost—the novel’s Snow Flame.
Yes, the very Snow Flame Baili Qingmiao nearly threw her life away to get
for Hè Wenzhao.
Wenren È wasn’t interested in taking the protagonists’ opportunity for

himself. He was practically the number one cultivator in this world and
didn’t need those kinds of things, but Yin Hanjiang did need the Snow
Flame.
He hadn’t concerned himself with Yin Hanjiang for many years, just
treating him as another subordinate. If it weren’t for that book, he probably
would’ve disregarded him forever. Thinking of how Yin Hanjiang had
become so crazed and obsessed after his death, Wenren È was emotionally
moved and couldn’t help but want to treat him a little better.
“Seeing as you two are honorable cultivators with profound powers, what
need is there to pick a fight over a lowly woman?” Wenren È didn’t want to
make an enemy of his half master Baili Qingmiao, so decided to back down
first.
“What did you say?!” Baili Qingmiao got angrier at his words and tried to
charge, but Hè Wenzhao blocked her way.
Baili Qingmiao had yet to suffer the cruelties of the novel and had a simple
and frank outlook, unable to see these people’s hidden depths. Hè Wenzhao
already had much more experience with the outside world and could see
that Wenren È was likely of higher capability than he let on. These two
were so calm; what if they were Nascent Soul stage experts?
His palms broke into a sweat and he transmitted to Baili Qingmiao,

“Shimei, they aren’t good opponents for us. I’ll hold them off for now, you
hurry back to the sect for backup.”
In Hè Wenzhao’s heart, Baili Qingmiao was his beloved little shimei who
he was deadset on protecting. Even if he died, he couldn’t let his lovely
shimei get hurt.
“Shixiong…” Baili Qingmiao saw how tense and serious her shixiong was
and realized they’d run into high-level opponents. She felt frightened, as
well as grateful.
While they were transmitting messages and making plans, they were
unaware that with how much lower their levels were, the other three in the
room could hear them loud and clear.
Wenren È was a bit confused. He had already backed down, so how come
the atmosphere had become even more tense? How should they end this? In
the past, what did he usually do in these situations? It seems it was… kill
’em all? He couldn’t even remember the faces of the people who picked
fights with him in the past.
Luckily, Shu Yanyan was there. As the Venerable’s Right Protector, she
immediately saw though his thoughts and dragged her broken body to
before the four of them, grabbing the silver piece on the table with a
trembling hand. “Young Master Hè, Miss Baili, you don’t need to get hurt
for my sake. What this master said was right. I am no more than a lowly
woman.”
She bitterly put the silver piece into her lapel herself and choked out,
“Thank you, honored guests, for your generosity.”
While saying her lines, she transmitted to Wenren È, “I’m begging you,
Venerable, just say, ‘since you know your manners, I’ll save the Shangqing
Sect some face and avoid picking a fight with its juniors’, and then go. I’m
certain my acting has managed to hook him.”
Wenren È nodded and said woodenly, “Since you know your manners, I’ll
save the Shangqing Sect some face and avoid picking a fight with its
juniors.”
The moment he finished speaking, he grabbed Yin Hanjiang and

disappeared. Hè Wenzhao and Baili Qingmiao couldn’t follow even if they
wanted to.
“Miss Shu!” Hè Wenzhao frantically held Shu Yanyan in his arms, who had
broken her bones and could only crawl. His heart ached incessantly for her.
His cultivation was too low, and he had no way of defeating those two
probably Nascent Soul stage experts. He could only let this frail but self-
reliant woman who was like a lotus flower rising pristine from the mud
humiliate herself to protect him. The fault was on him.
Baili Qingmiao looked at Hè Wenzhao holding Shu Yanyan, and, also

seeing Shu Yanyan’s bleeding legs and her white dress which had already
been stained half crimson, couldn’t bring herself to feel jealous. “Miss Shu
probably won’t recover completely even if treated by a doctor. I’ll return to
the sect and bring Yao-shixiong to help her.”
Hè Wenzhao nodded. “Alright, I’ll take her home.”
After Baili Qingmiao left, he picked Shu Yanyan up in his arms and brought
her to her run-down thatch hut.
Though the inside was shabby, it was clean and neat, and a few pieces of
delicate embroidery hung on the walls. You could tell at one glance that the
owner was a poor but honest and cultured maiden.
Hè Wenzhao set Shu Yanyan carefully on her straw bed. Shu Yanyan had
lost too much blood and was hovering on the edge of unconsciousness, her
breathing growing faint. She weakly lifted her bloodstained fingers and said
softly, “Young Master Hè, this lowly woman should’ve long since passed.
There’s no need for you…”
The moment her cold fingertips touched Hè Wenzhao’s cheek, Shu Yanyan
fainted, leaving a streak of blood down his face.
“Miss Shu!” Hè Wenzhao felt her pulse and found her life force extremely
weak. He feared she couldn’t wait for his shimei to fetch Yao-shidi.
He gritted his teeth and said, “Sorry about this!”
He undid Shu Yanyan’s sash. Seeing a silver piece fall out, he felt another
pang in his heart. Putting aside the proper relations between men and
women, he pressed his palm to the warmth of Shu Yanyan’s chest and
poured his spiritual energy into her, at the same time taking out a medicinal
pill.
It was true that ordinary people could not withstand a cultivator’s medicine
and couldn’t take them directly. But if a cultivator was willing to use their
spiritual power to help break down the medicine and guide it through the
body, they could absorb it.
The cultivator would lose some strength by doing this. Not often would
cultivators waste their hard-earned spiritual essence on an ordinary person.
Yao-shidi had drugs that would help an ordinary person take the pills,
typically used for new disciples who couldn’t absorb qi yet, but he couldn’t
wait any longer.
Hè Wenzhao was at Core Formation stage and had a comfortable amount of

spiritual essence. After his qi completed a circuit in Shu Yanyan’s body, he
fed the pill to her mouth-to-mouth, helping her absorb it.
After a few minutes, Shu Yanyan was completely healed. Hè Wenzhao

embraced her and breathed a small sigh.
Only now did he realize how he was holding the warm and pliant body in
his arms, like…
Why isn’t shimei back yet?!
While pretending to be unconscious, Shu Yanyan sent a long distance

transmission to her underlings. “You guys, delay Baili Qingmiao for me,
I’ve almost got it. No matter what, don’t let her bring that Yao-shixiong to
wreck my plans!”
“No need to send your subordinates. I have delayed Baili Qingmiao,” a

familiar deep voice sounded by Shu Yanyan’s ear.
Shu Yanyan: …
Venerable, how come you want to do it yourself again? This—this

subordinate doesn’t wish to trouble you; nothing good could come from you
being involved!
Though she shed tears in her heart, she was fully in control on the surface.
She opened her eyes with a soft cry and, finding herself lying in Hè
Wenzhao’s lap, with her clothes… She exclaimed weakly, and her face
turned bright red.
Elsewhere, Baili Qingmiao once again brought out the Moonlit Frost Silk,
her expression grim, facing off against Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang.
Wenren È forbade Yin Hanjiang from acting and, extending a finger, tapped
the silver silk once lightly. Baili Qingmiao’s bonded weapon quietly
returned to within her body, and she found out she was unable to exert a
hint of spiritual power.
Baili Qingmiao finally realized the extent of her opponents’ strength. She
had grown up at Shangqing Sect and not really traveled the world before.
As a cultivator, she had beaten countless Wulin martial artists, but she never
expected such hidden masters to be mingling among the populace.
Her shixiong was far more experienced and had probably already seen
through these people’s true depths, yet he still stood his ground in front of
her. Her shixiong treated her so well, willing to risk his life for her, yet she
was always throwing tantrums and distrusting him. Her behavior was
altogether too ungrateful.
“If you want to kill me, then go ahead! If I even flinch, I’m not worthy of
being a disciple of Shangqing Sect!” Baili Qingmiao said resolutely.
Wenren È didn’t know what twists and turns her thoughts were taking, and
said evenly, “Miss Baili, don’t misjudge us. This Ven— I purposefully
sought you out, as I have a request of you.”
He raised a hand, and in the mountain wilderness, three elegant chairs

appeared. They didn’t come from a storage item on him, but were
transparent chairs condensed from the spiritual energy of the mountains.
Mahayana cultivators could connect to the heavens and the earth and
manifest their will with a thought. Oftentimes cultivators at this stage
wouldn’t lightly use their magic weapons, and could create weapons out of
ambient spiritual energy to attack their opponents.
Wenren È made a gesture for Baili Qingmiao to help herself. After a
trembling Baili Qingmiao sat down, he sat as well.
Usually he would sit first, but he had to show the proper respect to his half
master, so he offered the seat to Baili Qingmiao first.
One of the three chairs was for Yin Hanjiang, but Yin Hanjiang didn’t sit,
instead standing behind Wenren È without a word.
Wenren È didn’t make any demands to Baili Qingmiao. “Miss Baili,” he

said, “you can probably tell that, with our strength, we’ve no need to
trouble an ordinary person. Earlier, I had seen you walk by downstairs, and
merely threw down an object to catch your attention.”
Baili Qingmiao was furious, but the people she was facing were too
powerful. Holding herself back with fists clenched, she said, “That was a
person, not an object!”
“Really?” Wenren È flicked a finger and an ant crawling across the ground
was whisked up by a gust of wind and landed on Baili Qingmiao’s knee.
“What difference between that and this?” he said indifferently.
The ant struggled to crawl on Baili Qingmiao’s leg. She lifted it with one
hand and set it on the ground. “They are different,” she said in a shaky
voice. “And ants are also guiltless.”
“In your life, have you eaten meat?” Wenren È asked
Baili Qingmiao didn’t say anything. Cultivators past Foundation

Establishment could go without food, sustaining themselves on the qi of the
environment. She established her foundation a year ago, and had grown up
eating mortal food for the previous seventeen years.
She could only shake her head and say, “That’s not the same.”
“As a cultivator, you should know that all life under heaven goes to the
same destination, and all things have their own awareness. There is no
distinction between man and other living beings,” Wenren È said. “We as
cultivators absorb the spiritual energy of the environment. Do you know
how many lives that energy could’ve given rise to? Shangqing Sect has
occupied its spiritual mountain for centuries—do you know how many
unique creatures and spiritual beings that mountain sustained in ancient
times? Why is it that now, not one is left? Because human beings cultivating
on that mountain have seized the spiritual energy. That mountain is no
longer able to give rise to spiritual beings.”
Baili Qingmiao had been a cultivator for only a short time, and had no way
to refute Wenren È’s words. Her heart was in disorder, feeling like her old
worldview had been toppled. Her spiritual essence ran wild out of her
control, and sharp pains stabbed into her internal organs like knives.
Wenren È wasn’t willing to just watch his half master have a qi deviation,
so changed his angle and said, “There’s no need to blame yourself for this.
Humanity is currently the chief of all living things, and this was also
decided by fate. In the age of gods and demons, humanity suffered
endlessly. Any beast of the land or air, or deadly flower or tree, could treat
human beings as its prey, refine their bodies into magic tools or absorb their
souls. Now, the fact that humanity has the upper hand can be seen as
nothing more than the revolution of fortunes.”
Hearing this, Baili Qingmiao’s expression eased. The things that bewildered
her in her mind seemed to be resolved, and her mental state relaxed quite a
bit.
She closed her eyes to contemplate in silence. After a quarter hour, she
opened her eyes, stood, and cupped a fist toward Wenren È. “Thanks to this
master for the guidance.”
Wenren È waved a hand. “It was hardly anything. I just randomly said some
truths of heaven. The fact that you were able to comprehend shows that
you’re naturally suited to cultivate the Path of Indifference. In your future
cultivation, don’t choose the wrong path.”
Baili Qingmiao had just enlightened to a principle of heaven, and the

expression in her eyes was currently far from that of the innocent young girl
she had been. Underneath her long lashes, her eyes were dispassionate yet
held compassion, and though she was looking at that ant, she also seemed to
be looking at nothing at all.
Wenren È looked upon her with approval, but in the next instant, Baili
Qingmiao’s eyes brightened. Coming back to her senses, she said,
“Shixiong and Miss Shu are still waiting for the medicine!”
Her eyes twinkled like stars, resembling once more the lovestruck girl from
before.
“No need for concern, that woman is fine,” Wenren È said. “I came to you
because I needed you to help me retrieve something.”
“Senior just guided me in my cultivation. Baili is deeply grateful. If there’s

anything I can do to help my senior, I would not hesitate to do so,” Baili
Qingmiao said.
“I am looking for the spiritual treasure called the Snow Flame, to help my
sub— friend recover from his injury,” said Wenren È.
Yin Hanjiang looked at Wenren È in astonishment.
“I have heard of the Snow Flame from my master before. It appears in the
Thousand Mile Ice Plains, and no one knows its location. Any cultivator
below Core Formation stage who enters would almost certainly die. Senior,
your cultivation is profound. Can this junior really be of use?” Baili
Qingmiao said in confusion.
“The Snow Flame is fated to be yours,” said Wenren È. “Other people can’t
take it. We can only have it with your permission. Everything has its
predetermined outcome, and one cannot obtain everything just by having
power.”
Actually, they could just follow Baili Qingmiao, and after she obtained the
treasure, take it from her. This would be the way of a demonic cultivator.
But Wenren È couldn’t steal something from his master, and he didn’t want
to do something as lowly as rob another person of their fortune either. He
wanted to make an exchange.
“I can help you ascend to divinity. I can help you comprehend the Dao. I
can assist you in obtaining the things you want, all in return for the Snow
Flame.”
Wenren È thought this was a fine idea which could repay his debt to his
master and help Yin Hanjiang at the same time, and secretly approved of
himself for his own quick thinking. Behind his back and unbeknownst to
him, Yin Hanjiang’s eyes were faintly rimmed in red.
Yin Hanjiang bowed his head, hiding his eyes, and spoke hoarsely.
“Venerable—”
Wenren È, with a sweep of a gold-embroidered black sleeve, cut off Yin

Hanjiang’s words. He transmitted to him, “This Venerable is giving it to
you, so you’re not allowed to refuse.”

Wants to Know
Chapter 5 – Brilliant plan, Venerable
Wenren È was an unfeeling man. The book’s description of him was that he
had no eyes for anyone on earth except Baili Qingmiao. He would take the
moon and the stars from the heavens for Baili Qingmiao. A character like
that attracted hordes of fans, and every time there was a scene in which he
was alone with her, the readers would all be engrossed and cheering them
on.
One of their typical interactions was: The night Hè Wenzhao was to be

married to the Violet Spirit Pavilion Master, Baili Qingmiao was injured
and accompanied by Wenren È as she gazed at the night sky filled with
stars. She pointed at the stars of the Cowherd and Weaver Girl[1] separated
by the Milky Way and said, “Such a happy couple, why did they need to be
torn apart?”
A single tear slid down her pale face. The bright-eyed and smiling young
girl from the beginning had long since vanished. Even though cultivators
almost never aged after Foundation Establishment and she still looked the
same age of eighteen, her heart had grown much older.
Wenren È raised a hand and covered Baili Qingmiao’s eyes. “Before I

become a god, don’t look at the stars.”
“Why?” Baili Qingmiao said in confusion.
“It’s said that when a cultivator ascends to godhood, they can change the
stars and galaxies to their liking. I will bring the Cowherd’s star to the other
side of the Milky Way.”
Baili Qingmiao smiled and nodded. “Okay. Until you become a god, I
won’t look at the night sky again.”
In the end Wenren È died without being able to ascend to godhood, but he
fulfilled his promise to Baili Qingmiao nonetheless. Baili Qingmiao was
able to regain her divine essence thanks to the arrangements Wenren È had
made prior to his death. In the moment she merged with the divine essence,
the heavens trembled and stars shifted, and the Cowherd and Weaver Girl
were brought to each other’s sides. The power unleashed by the changing
stars instantly turned a continent into an ocean.
This was the power of a primordial god. The moment the goddess of
calamities reclaimed her place, chaos was unleashed across the world.
When Baili Qingmiao came back to her senses and saw that she had
destroyed an entire continent, she thought back to her shixiong’s teachings
and the words of that ascended god in her past life. She didn’t want to be a
god, to disrupt the stars so casually, so she abandoned her divinity.
The Cowherd and Weaver Girl didn’t return to their original places, though.
They were finally together, like the two protagonists in the end.
Regarding this plotline, the readers discussed like crazy that it was Wenren
È’s love for the female lead even after his own death, saying that if this man
wanted to pamper someone, he would really go to any lengths, he wouldn’t
let her suffer any grievance—even if he died, he would be there for her until
the end.
Wenren È had no reaction when he read this part and the discussion about
it, because he knew how fickle he really was.
Xuanyuan Sect had countless subordinates who would wholeheartedly

dedicate themselves to him, but Wenren È never paid them any mind. He
knew this dedication was built on the power he possessed that could crush
all opposition. If someone else had the same power, those people would
show the same kind of devotion. The target of this devotion wasn’t Wenren
È, it was the strength of a Mahayana stage cultivator.
As for familial bonds, Wenren È had already set them aside when he
entered the Dao. Three hundred years had passed, and there was no one
with his bloodline left on the earth.
What he had with Baili Qingmiao was the workings of karma and heavenly
law, and couldn’t be counted as love.
He was alone in this world, and there was nothing in the world that would
tie him to it after he left.
Just that after reading that book, an odd feeling had grown inside him
toward Yin Hanjiang.
Yin Hanjiang had toward him a debt of life, of being raised by him, and of
being taught by him. After his death, whether Yin Hanjiang sought
vengeance for him or carried out his final wishes, it was all what he
naturally ought to do. Even if his body was broken and his bones were
shattered for Wenren È, it would be reasonable.
But Yin Hanjiang had to choose such a wretched way to show his devotion.
While reading, Wenren È had never taken Yin Hanjiang to be the Ghost
Mask, and when the truth was revealed, at the moment the female lead saw
the mask in Yin Hanjiang’s bundle, it wasn’t just Baili Qingmiao who was
shocked. Wenren È was also shaken by it.
At one point in the book, one of the female villains got a magic item that
could change one’s appearance in a way undetectable to others. She took
Baili Qingmiao’s appearance to trick Hè Wenzhao, but got captured by Yin
Hanjiang instead. Without a protagonist’s plot armor, she naturally got
refined into lamp oil. Yin Hanjiang had taken off the ghost mask and come
to Wenren È’s cenotaph. Lighting the everburning lamp, he entered the
tomb and, clutching Wenren È’s black robe covered with dark gold patterns,
peacefully closed his eyes.
That sentence sent a chill through Wenren È. It seemed as though the next
moment Yin Hanjiang would, while hugging Wenren È’s robe, self-destruct
his Nascent Soul to kill himself.
However, at that point, the tracking device that Yin Hanjiang had placed on
the female lead lit up. He saw that she was still alive and had run into
trouble again.
Yin Hanjiang stared at the image of her that was displayed in the air before
him, tilting his head slightly, then he rubbed his cheek along Wenren È’s
robe, folded it, and replaced it neatly in the tomb.
He quietly walked out of the tomb. Without using spiritual energy to protect
his hand, he smothered the everburning lamp with his palm. Next, with a
sweep of his arm, it shattered against a nearby boulder, shards scattering
across the ground, lamp oil slowly spilling into the dirt.
“Hahahahahaha!”
Yin Hanjiang looked at his singed palm and suddenly burst into laughter. As
the laughter went on, he placed a hand over his mouth, making painful,
muffled noises, as if it was taking all the strength he had to restrain his
emotions.
He bowed his head, staying that way until Venus rose in the sky. At the
darkest moment before daybreak, Yin Hanjiang lifted his head and placed
the ghost mask on his face. From behind the mask came words through
gritted teeth. “Bai. Li. Qing. Miao.”
This whole section made readers’ hairs stand on end. Wenren È, as one of
the story’s protagonists, felt an indescribable emotion.
He could accept Yin Hanjiang dying for him, but he was unable to
understand Yin Hanjiang going mad because of him
To go from perfect calm to extreme mania, what kind of suffering did he go

through?
When Yin Hanjiang rubbed his cheek against Wenren È’s robe, it was like
against his heart. Wenren È, looking up from the book to Yin Hanjiang
himself, felt like he was properly seeing this subordinate of his for the first
time. He felt like what he had done for Yin Hanjiang wasn’t worth such
heartfelt repayment, so he ought to treat Yin Hanjiang a little better.
Shu Yanyan wasn’t planning to suck Hè Wenzhao into an empty husk this
time around and was even going to use her techniques to help him improve
in cultivation, so he wouldn’t need the Snow Flame. It was a perfect chance
to use it for Yin Hanjiang.
Wenren È had been the Xuanyuan Sect Master for many years and had
obtained quite a large collection. He dug around in his Qiankun sleeve and
gave Baili Qingmiao some materials, pills, and magic items that were
suitable for her cultivation stage, and a Flame Feather Cloak to protect her
from the cold air of the Ice Plains, so the protagonist didn’t freeze to death.
“This… I can’t take all this!” Baili Qingmiao looked at the items that were
rapidly piling into a small mound, her face reddening as she waved her
hands.
Wenren È also took out a simple hairpin, which was a storage item suitable
for holding the things he had provided. Giving Baili Qingmiao no
opportunity to refuse the gifts, he grabbed Yin Hanjiang and left.
Baili Qingmiao held the hairpin in her hand and spaced out for a bit, staring
at the sky in the direction Wenren È had disappeared. With a stamp of her
foot, she said, “Shixiong! Miss Shu!”
She quickly stored all the gifts in the jade hairpin, placed it inside her robe,
and flew at a slow pace toward Shangqing Sect.
Disciples leaving Shangqing Sect all took with them an emergency

talisman. If they shattered the jade talisman, nearby disciples would be
alerted to come and save them. Baili Qingmiao could’ve used this method
to call for help, but these talismans were meant to be used in matters of life
and death, not whenever one wanted. If she really broke one and called over
a pack of disciples only for it to turn out to be no urgent matter, she would
earn the disapproval of her seniors. After Nascent Soul stage, she would be
able to create her own communication talismans, but Baili Qingmiao hadn’t
reached that stage yet, so she had to go up the mountain herself.
Meanwhile, Shu Yanyan slept on a straw bed, her face rosy and one of her
shoulders bared. Hè Wenzhao, standing next to the bed with his shirt open,
spaced out for a moment, then pulled a simple blanket over Shu Yanyan.
His action woke her.
Shu Yanyan opened her eyes, and when meeting Hè Wenzhao’s eyes, her
face reddened and she grabbed her clothes and pulled them over herself
carelessly. She wrung her hands and said in a soft voice, “Young Master Hè,
you don’t need to worry. I know you have feelings for Miss Baili. This was
unintentional. I had been injured, so Young Master Hè was just helping me
recover.”
Hè Wenzhao was perfectly clear whether or not it had been to help her
recover. He stared at Shu Yanyan, simultaneously wondering how he
could’ve done something like this, and reminiscing over how it had felt
earlier. There was even a bit of tenderness in his eyes as he looked toward
her.
“I— I’ll help you buy a house. This place is too run-down, it’s not a suitable
place to live,” Hè Wenzhao said dully.
Shu Yanyan cursed men out in her mind a few times, but shook her head
with a slight smile. “Young Master Hè, are you treating me as a prostitute?
If I had wanted to sell my body, why would I wait until now?”
Hè Wenzhao stared dumbly for a few more moments.
“I am a lowly woman, and I do not mind how others see me. But Young
Master Hè is such a noble character. How could he be a man who pays for
pleasure?” Shu Yanyan said, turning the subject around as she looked sadly
at Hè Wenzhao.
She wouldn’t accept the money not only because of her own morals, but out
of concern for Hè Wenzhao. Such a thoughtful and considerate person!
“But… I truly have disrespected you, miss.” Hè Wenzhao reached out and
brushed a strand of Shu Yanyan’s hair back behind her ear. He accidentally
touched her blushing cheek and his heart skipped a beat.
Shu Yanyan smiled warmly. “Isn’t it often mentioned in stories that one
should give oneself to repay a life debt? Young Master Hè is a noble hero. I
am honored to be with you.”
Her words gradually smoothed away Hè Wenzhao’s regrets. He thought

about all the times he’d helped Miss Shu. This woman didn’t have many
capabilities, and could probably only use this method to repay him. Besides,
back then, with her warm and supple body in his lap, and her wholehearted
trust in him, what man would be able to hold back? And it’s not like she
was a woman from a brothel. They both had feelings for each other, so
wasn’t it a good thing?
The only problem was Baili Qingmiao. What should he do about her?
But wasn’t the fact that the situation had progressed this far because of Baili
Qingmiao taking her sweet time? If she came back earlier, he wouldn’t have
had to forego propriety with a woman in order to save her!
The more Hè Wenzhao thought, the more he felt that he didn’t do anything
wrong. He just didn’t know how he would explain it to his beloved shimei.
He really did like Baili Qingmiao. They were childhood friends, and Hè
Wenzhao had taken care of her since she was just a seven or eight year old
child. He had watched her grow from a little girl plump with baby fat to a
beautiful young woman. Shu Yanyan couldn’t come between such deep
feelings.
Shu Yanyan didn’t want to get between them either. She placed a soft hand
on Hè Wenzhao’s shoulder and said understandingly, “Worry not, Young
Master. This matter stays between you and me. No one else will hear of it.”
Right! Wasn’t it fine as long as no one else knew? Miss Shu was a smart
girl, she got it.
Hè Wenzhao, his inner conflict now resolved, embraced Shu Yanyan.
Shu Yanyan, after arranging her clothes properly, fell asleep again, acting
like she’d been put through too much and was exhausted.
Hè Wenzhao, looking at her sleeping face, in the end still felt his heart
move for her.
After staring for a moment, Hè Wenzhao remembered he had violated his

body of true yang. His teacher always reminded them that they should avoid
dual cultivating with anyone until they reached Nascent Soul stage, or they
could easily harm their cultivation. Hè Wenzhao hurriedly checked himself
over and found that his cultivation had not weakened and instead risen
significantly, from the seventh level of Core Formation stage right to the
ninth!
Shu Yanyan had cultivated to the sixth level of Void Boundary though this
method. Raising a Core Formation stage junior’s level was as easy as
breathing for her. She had also absorbed the lightning energy from inside
Hè Wenzhao’s body and that mysterious power he possessed, so she
benefitted quite a lot herself. She was just waiting for Hè Wenzhao to go so
she could cultivate.
Why would his cultivation increase? Hè Wenzhao was very confused.
He looked at Shu Yanyan and thought back to a book he had read in the sect
library on dual cultivation. At the time, he’d discovered he was in love with
his shimei, so went looking for methods of dual cultivating. That book had
also said that one should not dual cultivate before Nascent Soul stage, but
with two exceptions—those with a nine yang body, and a nine yin body.
If a woman with a nine yin body were to dual cultivate with a man, even if
she was just an ordinary person, she could still raise their cultivation and
provide many benefits. Could Miss Shu have a nine yin body?
While Hè Wenzhao was letting his thoughts wander, Baili Qingmiao finally
arrived with Yao-shixiong. “Sorry I was late, shixiong,” she said, out of
breath.
Hè Wenzhao patted her head and said, “No worries, shimei. Miss Shu is
already okay. As it turned out, Yao-shixiong made this trip for no reason.”
Seeing Shu Yanyan sleeping on the bed with a rosy complexion, Yao-
shixiong felt suspicious and said, “How did she recover?”
Hè Wenzhao didn’t want him to check Shu Yanyan and said in a low voice,
“We shouldn’t talk here, let’s go outside first.”
They left the thatch hut, and Hè Wenzhao explained that the situation had
been urgent and Miss Shu had been coughing up blood and near death, so
he helped her take some medicine of the kind cultivators used. He even
took out his pill bottle to show that it was missing one pill.
“Can an ordinary person endure that kind of medicine?” Yao-shixiong

sniffed at the pill bottle. “These pills are for Foundation Establishment
cultivators. An ordinary person’s meridians wouldn’t be able to bear such
strong spiritual energy. Their meridians would rupture and they’d die.”
“I used my spiritual essence to help her absorb it,” Hè Wenzhao said,

putting it simply.
“But…” Yao Wendan thought about the procedure to help someone absorb
medicine. He mainly studied refining medicinal elixirs and knew clearly
that this procedure required skin to skin contact.
“But what?” Baili Qingmiao said innocently. She was young, and she
hadn’t learned about this yet.
Hè Wenzhao fixed his gaze on Yao Wendan. Yao Wendan got his intent and
said, “Well, I was just worried shixiong didn’t understand enough about
medicine and hadn’t treated her properly. But I see now that Miss Shu is
completely healed, so there’s no issue.”
Baili Qingmiao relaxed at that and wanted to go see Miss Shu. Hè Wenzhao
had said that any danger was past, and an unmarried man and woman
shouldn’t be together alone, so let Baili Qingmiao go in on her own.
Once she entered the house, Yao Wendan raised an eyebrow and elbowed
Hè Wenzhao. He said with a smirk, “Shixiong, have you done something
improper?”
“The situation was urgent, so I had to do something on the spot. I covered
my eyes at the time,” Hè Wenzhao said.
He acted exceedingly righteous. Yao Wendan said, with some lingering

doubt, “Then why didn’t you tell shimei earlier?”
Hè Wenzhao sighed and shook his head. “It’s not like you don’t know
shimei’s attitude. She even raised a fuss when Liu-shimei came to me to ask
about a technique. I’m everyone’s senior, it’s my duty to help my juniors
with their cultivation. If our master is busy with other stuff, it’s up to me to
fill in. I even taught you your first techniques. Why wouldn’t I help Liu-
shimei?”
“That’s all true,” Yao Wendan said. “Baili Qingmiao is good in so many
aspects, just that she gets jealous too easily.”
“That’s right. And it wouldn’t be right to Miss Shu to tell people, so let’s
just shut it down here. A human life is invaluable. What I did is still a good
deed.”
Yao Wendan bought Hè Wenzhao’s words. After Baili Qingmiao confirmed

that Shu Yanyan was fine and left the hut completely oblivious, they
returned to Shangqing Sect.
After they left, Shu Yanyan got up, rubbed at her skin, and kicked the straw
bed, exclaiming, “This straw is too prickly! How can anyone sleep?”
“Just now, why didn’t you tell Baili Qingmiao what you and Hè Wenzhao
did?” a voice spoke in the thatch hut.
Shu Yanyan looked up and saw that the Venerable and Protector Yin had
appeared in the hut at some point. She chuckled and said, “Venerable,
you’re a hard-hearted man, you don’t know anything about women. How
could you understand how those self-important false gentlemen think?
Those men, in bed they’ll say all the sweet words for free, but after they put
their clothes back on they’ll act like they don’t know you. If I’d said it, the
next day Hè Wenzhao would’ve said that I’d bewitched him and blamed me
for everything.”
Wenren È thought about it. It really did happen like that in the book. Hè
Wenzhao clung to the story that Shu Yanyan had abducted him, and there
was no way he could fight off the Right Protector of a demonic sect.
“Then when will you tell her?” Wenren È asked.
He wanted Baili Qingmiao to hurry up and see Hè Wenzhao’s true face, so

as to more quickly lead her to cultivate the Path of Indifference and ascend.
After she successfully merged with the divine essence, Wenren È could
consider his debt repaid.
“We need to wait a while,” Shu Yanyan said, leaning against a wall. “After
Hè Wenzhao leaves, it’ll only be a few days before he comes looking for me
again. After getting a taste, what man wouldn’t want a second? And I can
even help his cultivation improve. As time passes and things develop, he
really won’t be able to get me out of his head. And one time might have
been coercion, but could a second and third also be coercion? In the future,
even if he tries to make excuses, he wouldn’t be able to gloss over all of
that.”
She frowned. “Though, didn’t Venerable want me to win over Hè Wenzhao

and play the long game, to get intel for the Great Sect War?”
“Mm.” Wenren È nodded. “That’s also necessary. But when it comes to

Baili Qingmiao, it’s better to have her sooner leave her sect and switch to
cultivating the Path of Indifference.”
“Huh?” Shu Yanyan didn’t get it. What did the Venerable mean by that? If
he was interested in Baili Qingmiao, he ought to get her to betray her sect
and go down the demonic path, then find some way to make her his. Why
the Path of Indifference?
“Just do what you’re supposed to,” Wenren È said.
“Then I need a few subordinates for luring away Baili Qingmiao to give Hè
Wenzhao more chances. Every time they leave the mountain they’re joined
at the hip. It’s way too hard to find an opportunity.”
“No need. I’ll keep Baili Qingmiao away for a few days,” Wenren È said.
“You—you personally, again?” Shu Yanyan’s expression stiffened.
Wenren È raised an eyebrow. “Is there a problem?”
“Not at all,” Shu Yanyan said with a weak laugh.
Yin Hanjiang saw that she didn’t trust Wenren È and said unhappily, “The
Venerable sent Baili Qingmiao to retrieve the Snow Flame. We’ll be able to
obtain a treasure, and make it easy for you to seduce Hè Wenzhao at the
same time. It’s two birds with one stone.”
“So that’s it!” Shu Yanyan’s respect grew and she knelt on one knee.
“Brilliant plan, Venerable.”
“Mm.” Wenren È nodded expressionlessly.
1. Google the story of Qixi. This is also the Tanabata story if you’re more
familiar. ↩
Wants to Know
Chapter 6 – Thousand Mile Ice Plains
Baili Qingmiao didn’t feel comfortable taking the pile of treasures Wenren
È had left her. She returned to Shangqing Sect and after meditating for a
night, found that her level had actually increased from the second level of
Foundation Establishment all the way to the seventh, an abnormally big
leap. She assumed it was the help of those two experts’ guidance.
Baili Qingmiao had been taught since childhood that the gratitude of a drop
of water should be repaid by a spring. She couldn’t accept such a benefit for
free, so met with her master and said she wanted to leave the mountain to
gain experience.
Baili Qingmiao’s master Elder Qingrong was a female cultivator, and most
of the female disciples were under her. Shangqing Sect didn’t forbid its
disciples from dual cultivating and just warned them that dual cultivation
should only be done after Nascent Soul stage. The first reason was to give
irresolute disciples something to look forward to; if someone had a goal,
they would put out more effort. The second reason was that after Nascent
Soul stage, a cultivator’s emotional maturity would rise and the impulses of
youth would be weakened. Only true and deep desires would remain. So it
was also to help disciples know their own hearts, so they wouldn’t sabotage
themselves while still young.
The Shangqing Sect believed that it was better to restrict something than to
forbid it. Instead of banning disciples from romantic relations, it was better
to properly guide them, to avoid making them want to rebel.
This regulation worked quite well. Some disciples dedicated themselves to

cultivating hard so they could be together properly with the person they
loved. The whole sect was full of motivation to advance.
Elder Qingrong, hearing that her favorite young disciple had resolved to set
out alone to train, showed a gratified smile. She patted Baili Qingmiao’s
hand and said warmly, “And I was worried that you were too reluctant to
leave your shixiong to travel alone.”
“Oh my god, master…” Baili Qingmiao blushed, hugging Elder Qingrong’s

arm.
Elder Qingrong saw that her little disciple had finally grown up and felt
relieved. She nodded and said, “It’s good that you’re motivated. You’re a
rare talent. Back then, if I hadn’t held you back, thinking that it was too
early, you probably would’ve built your foundation at twelve or thirteen.
After Foundation Establishment, your body won’t grow until Nascent Soul
stage. Would you have wanted to have a twelve or thirteen year old body for
the next hundred years of cultivation?”
Baili Qingmiao was a bit embarrassed. Back then she was young, okay, she
didn’t understand anything. If she looked twelve or thirteen, shixiong taking
her places would look like a father with his daughter. That would be awful.
Elder Qingrong told Baili Qingmiao that she shouldn’t go anywhere too
dangerous, and to immediately break her jade messaging talisman if she ran
into trouble, to think before acting and not show off. After cautioning her on
a great many things, she also gave her a protective magic item, which could
block one full-power attack from a Deity Transformation stage cultivator.
After she felt she had covered everything, she finally sent Baili Qingmiao
with her own seal down to the administration hall to make a record.
Shangqing Sect had many disciples, and they needed to keep a clear record
of everything. These kinds of trips usually lasted half a year to a year, and if
Baili Qingmiao wasn’t back by then, the elders would set out to find her
whereabouts, so it was also for the disciples’ safety.
Hè Wenzhao was the chief disciple and also held several posts at the
administration hall. He was currently on duty, and when receiving Baili
Qingmiao’s seal of authorization, he stared at her for a moment. “Shimei,
you want to leave the mountain alone?”
“Yeah, I can’t be shixiong’s shadow forever,” Baili Qingmiao said with a
smile. “I want to quickly reach Nascent Soul, so I can slay monsters and
defeat evil alongside shixiong, and become renowned in the cultivation
world.”
“Is that so? Good, that’s good…” Hè Wenzhao had had erotic dreams all
night and was a bit distracted, his mind feeling blank. He originally felt a
bit guilty when he saw his shimei, but when hearing she wanted to leave, he
didn’t feel reluctant and actually relaxed a bit.
Baili Qingmiao didn’t notice Hè Wenzhao’s inattentiveness. After making

her record, she lit a soul lamp, which was what all travelling disciples were
meant to do. If something happened to them, the lamp would go out, and
people at Shangqing Sect would know immediately.
After reluctantly bidding farewell to Hè Wenzhao, Baili Qingmiao left the

mountain and came to the tea house where she had previously met Wenren
È.
Wenren È had already made the arrangements with Baili Qingmiao. Seeing
her arrive, he nodded and said, “You start flying, we’ll catch up later.”
At Baili Qingmiao’s speed, it would take at least seven days to get to the Ice
Plains. Yin Hanjiang could get there in four hours, and Wenren È in less
than ten minutes.
“I’d rather return these things to you. It’s not right for me to take them.”
Baili Qingmiao took off the storage hairpin and placed it on the table. “I’ve
kept the Flame Feather Cloak to protect myself in the Ice Plains. Due to
senior’s guidance, I’ve risen much in cultivation. Since you’ve already
given me something, it’s only natural I complete a task for you. I can’t
accept more on top of that.”
Wenren È raised an eyebrow. “All things are guided by karma, and the
things I’ve given you are also due to that. You’re just being repaid, not
incurring a debt, so don’t be concerned.”
“Oh?” Baili Qingmiao said, surprised. “I have a karmic connection to this
senior? But I grew up at Shangqing Sect. I’ve never met you before.”
“Karmic relations are not limited to this life, and not necessarily incurred by
you. They may be from past lives, or your blood relatives,” Wenren È said.
“I’m not only going to give you these, I’m going to assist your cultivation,
help you become a god, help you realize all your desires.”
Baili Qingmiao tugged at her sash and said bashfully, “I don’t dare think
about becoming a god, but I do have a desire. I want to quickly reach
Nascent Soul stage, so I can…”
She trailed off midway, but Wenren È could guess where she was going.
Disappointed but unable to do anything about it, he gulped down a
mouthful of ordinary tea without a hint of spiritual energy and waved her
off. “You get going. We’ll meet at the entrance to the Thousand Mile Ice
Plains in seven days.”
“Okay.” Baili Qingmiao left the tea house, leaving the hairpin on the table.
After she left, Yin Hanjiang used his sword to draw an array in the air,
casting a simple illusion around the two. Anyone looking from the outside
would see the two of them sipping tea and eating while chatting idly, but
they could do whatever they wanted within the illusion.
Wenren È frowned and said, “Protector Yin, what’s your desire?”
“This subordinate is the Venerable’s sword. While the sword exists, I exist.
When the sword breaks, I die,” Yin Hanjiang said.
He didn’t even blink, seeming to say these words instinctively without

thinking about them, like he had replayed them many times in his heart and
it had already become an obsession.
“You certainly are boring.” Shu Yanyan walked out of a corner. Leaning
against Yin Hanjiang’s shoulder, she said, “A high position, unmatched
power, good-looking guys—ah, I mean girls—which one of these wouldn’t
people desire? Am I not right, Venerable?”
Wenren È said expressionlessly, “I’ve never thought about it.”
Shu Yanyan: …
Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang were like two lumps of steel, and it brought an
unhappy memory to Shu Yanyan’s mind.
It was eighty years ago, when Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang fought their way
into the main hall of Xuanyuan Sect and Wenren È dueled the old sect
master, killing him after three days and nights of combat. Yin Hanjiang
stayed by him for all that time, preventing anyone else from approaching.
Yin Hanjiang was only at the first level of Body Unity, but he wielded a
demonic sword which he had forcibly fused with, and could unleash a
frightening amount of power in an instant. He would kill man or god who
got in his way, and many Void Boundary experts were too scared to
approach a mere Body Unity stage opponent.
But demonic cultivators didn’t just fight face-to-face, and had quite diverse
methods. Altar Master Yuan had Shu Yanyan go up and seduce Yin
Hanjiang, and she wasn’t just a pretty face. If a Void Boundary expert were
to unleash all her charm, anyone under Void Boundary stage, no matter if
male or female, old or young, would all become Shu Yanyan’s servants, and
even men above Void Boundary would have a hard time resisting. Dealing
with a Body Unity opponent would be a piece of cake.
So Shu Yanyan approached full of confidence and got several teeth knocked
out by Yin Hanjiang. For over a year, her teeth were full of gaps and she
couldn’t talk properly, and it wasn’t until Wenren È reinstated the sect’s
previous positions did she dare to heal them.
That battle essentially gave Shu Yanyan a fear of Wenren È and Yin
Hanjiang. They seemed to have no feelings. Wenren È cultivated the Path of
Slaughter, and when he saw a beautiful woman, his first thought would be
what kind of difference there was to fight a woman versus a man. And as
for Yin Hanjiang, he actually seemed to deeply believe he was an ice-cold
sword, blind and heartless, not caring if what was in front of him was a
man, woman, or beast, so long as it wasn’t Wenren È.
Yin Hanjiang’s world was divided into Wenren È and not Wenren È, and
Shu Yanyan occupied the “not” category. Over eighty years had passed, but
whenever Shu Yanyan saw Yin Hanjiang, her teeth would ache, and this
man nearly became her inner demon.
But she was a woman who rose to challenges, so how could she let
something like this hold her back?
Just as Wenren È assumed, the loyalty of his subordinates was dependent on

his own overwhelming power, but they constantly desired to drag him down
from that altar. Shu Yanyan was that kind of ambitious woman.
She walked in front of Wenren È, her voice soft like an enticement from the
abyss. “Venerable, you already have power and status, so don’t you want
something more? That Baili Qingmiao is such a good innocent girl. Should
this subordinate coax her to your side for you?”
Unbeknownst to Shu Yanyan, when she said these words, Yin Hanjiang’s
face paled and he stiffened against the wall, like an emotionless puppet.
Shu Yanyan knew she didn’t have the power to charm the Venerable, but
that was fine. If Wenren È was tempted, his heart would be moved, and she
would have a chance.
“Shu Yanyan.” Wenren È placed a hand on Shu Yanyan’s scalp, but the
action was without a slight hint of warmth, and the pressure was as if he
was looking to crush Shu Yanyan’s skull with one hand. “I approve of my
subordinates’ ambition, and so allow you to do what you want, and I also
don’t care about you placing your weird notions on me.”
“Ah, ah, the Venerable is magnanimous.” Shu Yanyan was too scared to
breathe.
“But, don’t overestimate yourself,” Wenren È said in a heavier voice. “Use

your ambition for productive things. I’m still looking to the Great Sect War
as a chance to increase my cultivation.”
In the path of slaughter, one advanced in combat. At Wenren È’s current
realm, mortal warfare could not have any effect for him. Only a war that
affected the entire cultivation world would be enough. The righteous sects
were taking the offensive this time, and Wenren È planned to use it as an
opportunity to break through his realm.
“Yes, yes,” Shu Yanyan said, her head in splitting pain and a few streams of
blood running down her forehead. Her expectations that had just been
raised came crashing down.
Wenren È saw that the lesson was sufficient and released her. Yin Hanjiang
handed over a handkerchief, which Wenren È used to wipe the blood from
his fingertips before tossing on the floor.
Shu Yanyan didn’t dare to wipe her blood and said with it dripping down
her face, “This subordinate will put every effort towards getting
information. The day the Venerable returns from the Thousand Mile Ice
Plains will be the day the Great Sect War begins!”
“One more thing,” Wenren È said. “Do your best to make Hè Wenzhao
obsessed with you. I want Baili Qingmiao to give up on that man.”
“Understood!” Shu Yanyan bowed her head, looking like a female ghost
with her hair loose.
After waiting for a while and hearing nothing, she lifted her head and found
the two men had left. She plopped down on the floor in a cold sweat, hand
over her heart.
After she treated her injuries, she saw from the second floor Hè Wenzhao
walk by below, in the direction of her home. Shu Yanyan chuckled coldly.
Ah, men, so impatient. Little shimei’s just left and here you are—can’t even
wait a few days.
But these kinds of men still gave you a sense of accomplishment. As for the
Venerable and his Left Protector…
Shu Yanyan shook her head, chased the memories of her painful experience
from her mind, and focused her attention on Hè Wenzhao.
Wenren È brought Yin Hanjiang to the entrance of the Thousand Mile Ice
Plains. Seeing Yin Hanjiang was very pale, he grasped his hand and found
that it felt like that of a frozen corpse. “Better for me to enter alone,” he
said. “Your body is chilled and can’t take the cold air. Wait at the entrance
for me.”
Yin Hanjiang looked toward the boundless expanse of ice and shook his
head. “It’s said to be an extremely dangerous place where wandering
immortals are secluded. This subordinate insists on following the
Venerable.”
“I order you to wait here,” Wenren È said.
“This subordinate does not wish to deceive the Venerable. When the
Venerable goes, this subordinate will follow.”
He was stubborn like an unbending sword, and his honesty actually

managed to move Wenren È.
Wenren È sliced open his wrist with a finger and brought it in front of Yin
Hanjiang. “The Path of Slaughter may be rejected by the righteous sects,
but it is a path of true yang. The hot blood of combat, the stirring emotions,
the ruthless spirit of hundreds or thousands of men meeting in battle that
leads even vengeful ghosts to keep their distance, all fills this Venerable’s
blood with yang energy. If you drink this blood, this Venerable’s power will
be able to protect you on your way through the Ice Plains.”
“Venerable, you’re hurt. This subordinate isn’t worthy…” A hint of pain

showed in the depths of Yin Hanjiang’s emotionless eyes.
“That demonic sword is associated with coldness and yin. Do you want this
Venerable to have to save you in the Ice Plains because you cannot bring
out the full power of merging with the sword? Besides, whether or not
you’re worthy is up to this Venerable,” Wenren È said. “If you’re not
willing, this Venerable will seal your power and leave you at the Ice Plains’
entrance.”
Crimson blood dripped slowly from Wenren È’s wrist. Yin Hanjiang shut
his eyes in pain for a moment, then opened them. He gritted his teeth, then
brought his lips to Wenren È’s wrist and sipped a mouthful of warm blood.
A current of warmth flowed into his dantian. Wenren È used spiritual

energy to stop the flow of blood and, squeezing Yin Hanjiang’s finger, felt it
was finally gaining some warmth. He nodded, satisfied.
Yin Hanjiang’s expression looked a little strained. He rubbed his warm

chest and felt a bit off-balance in his heart. That shouldn’t be; the
Venerable’s sword shouldn’t have thoughts of its own.
He suppressed his unruly emotions and stood wordlessly by Wenren È.

They waited there for ten days, until Baili Qingmiao finally arrived.
Wenren È didn’t mind; while the protagonist was travelling alone, she was
sure to run into some unexpected situations and be delayed. That was quite
normal.
Baili Qingmiao on the other hand was rather embarrassed. “Apologies,

seniors. On the way here, I passed by a village cursed by ghosts. I was
delayed for a few days to exorcise them, and failed to meet our agreement.”
A village cursed by ghosts?
Wenren È was certain that this was the debut of love interest number five,
Baili Qingmiao’s little disciple.
This little disciple was originally a stillborn fetus. While Baili Qingmiao
was exorcising ghosts, one of the evil spirits had actually not been dispersed
and hid inside that fetus, filled with hate for her. Eighteen years later, he
reencountered Baili Qingmiao who was now at the Nascent Soul stage and
took her as a master, waiting for a chance to eat her soul.
Later, Baili Qingmiao’s kind, honest, beautiful, and gentle nature led this
ghost cultivator to reform and willingly become her disciple. Hating Hè
Wenzhao for causing his master to cry, he tried to assassinate him and was
killed by him. After his death, he was exposed as a ghost cultivator, and the
female villains took the opportunity to accuse Baili Qingmiao of colluding
with evil.
The reason he existed was probably to give Hè Wenzhao a better excuse to

mistreat the female lead.
Wenren È didn’t really worry about these small details. None of these things
would be a problem anyway if Baili Qingmiao didn’t love Hè Wenzhao.
The three of them entered the Ice Plains. To let Baili Qingmiao find the
Snow Flame her own way, Wenren È put a tracking spell on her and told her
to wander around randomly in the endless field of ice. He and Yin Hanjiang
just had to keep an eye on her from afar.
Baili Qingmiao’s cultivation was low, and even with the Flame Feather
Cloak protecting her, she was still so cold her face was turning purple,
struggling arduously through the frost and snow. On the other hand, Yin
Hanjiang was at Body Unity stage and had drunk Wenren È’s blood, and
Wenren È also provided him with his own spiritual energy now and again.
Even after several days, his face was still flushed, and his condition had
also improved significantly. It was a sad comparison to make with Baili
Qingmiao.
Yin Hanjiang, watching Baili Qingmiao’s movements, opened his mouth

several times wanting to ask something, but always held back.
In this way, they tailed her for five months. As Baili Qingmiao endured the
harshness of the Ice Plains, she managed to raise her cultivation to the peak
of Foundation Establishment, and would only need to use a Core Formation
cultivation manual to raise her stage. However, she found no trace of the
Snow Flame.
Wenren È also didn’t expect to waste this much time in the Ice Plains.
Puzzled, he said, “This shouldn’t be. The Snow Flame is destined to belong
to Baili Qingmiao. Why hasn’t it appeared?”
He thought back to the story and realized that the time now aligned with the
book’s progression, just around the time Baili Qingmiao would’ve found Hè
Wenzhao sucked empty by Shu Yanyan, and took him to find the cure.
In the book, Baili Qingmiao hadn’t had the Flame Feather Cloak. Her limbs
were frostbitten after three days of being in the Ice Plains, and all her
spiritual energy was going towards protecting Hè Wenzhao, as she crawled
across the ice with him on her back. When she was on the verge of freezing
to death, a ball of flame appeared before her. She reached for it with all her
remaining strength and caught that flame, tears of relief flowing from her
eyes.
“Could it be that she has to be near death to see the Snow Flame?” Wenren
È mused.
The Lord of Demons was an action-oriented man. With a thought, the

Flame Feather Cloak on Baili Qingmiao’s body vanished and appeared in
his hand. The merely Foundation Establishment girl was instantly left
shivering from the cold.
Seeing this, Yin Hanjiang opened his mouth again.
Wenren È saw his expression and said, “You’ve been holding off on saying
something all this time. What is it? This Venerable orders you to say it.”
With Wenren È’s order, Yin Hanjiang was more at ease, and said, “Doesn’t
the Venerable like Baili Qingmiao? Why…”
Why doesn’t it seem like you like her at all? Why does it seem like you’d
be fine with her freezing to death?
“Who told you I liked her?” Wenren È felt this matter was very important to
clarify; he didn’t want Yin Hanjiang to misunderstand like in the book. He
poked Yin Hanjiang in the forehead. “This Venerable has deduced the
workings of fate and realized I have a debt to Baili Qingmiao’s previous
incarnation for helping me enter the Dao. In this life, I have to help her
ascend. That’s why I helped her.”
“Now I see.” For some reason, a weight was taken off Yin Hanjiang’s chest.
He pointed to Baili Qingmiao and said, “But Miss Baili is going to freeze to
death.”
“Not a problem,” Wenren È said. “There are so many cultivation paths in

existence. If she dies, she can cultivate as a ghost. She doesn’t necessarily
need to cultivate the righteous path.”
Yin Hanjiang thought for a moment and nodded. The Venerable’s words
were reasonable as always.

Wants to Know
Previus – Table of Contents –
Chapter 7 – Battle with a wandering immortal
Baili Qingmiao was not a suspicious person by nature, and believed what
people told her. This inclination somewhat had to do with her position in
her previous life. Back then no one dared to lie to her face, and her vast
power also meant she didn’t need to worry whether other people were
telling the truth or not. She didn’t care to hear a word either way. Due to
that, in this life she had no ability to distinguish a lie.
She never considered that this senior who had suddenly shown up could
have harmful intentions toward her. His powers were vast and he could kill
this little junior by lifting a hand, so what need was there to scheme against
her?
When the Flame Feather Cloak vanished, she didn’t think much of it, just
assumed that the cold of the Ice Plains was too fierce and the cloak had run
out of spiritual energy and vanished, or some powerful creature that lived in
the Ice Plains had stolen it away without her noticing.
She used her spiritual energy to warm her body and continued forging
through a field of endless white.
Baili Qingmiao had no idea where to find the Snow Flame. She just knew
that that senior had advised her to wander around and follow her intuition,
and she was sure to find it one day.
The Thousand Mile Ice Plains were buried in snow year-round. In daytime,
the sky was blanketed in grey clouds, and at night, the light reflected off the
snow was almost as bright as day, so it was difficult to tell time. Baili
Qingmiao didn’t know how long she’d been walking. She had shed tears
multiple times, but she didn’t give up once.
Shangqing Sect taught its disciples to uphold their promises. Baili
Qingmiao had already agreed to this for her seniors, so she couldn’t break
her word.
Without the Flame Feather Cloak, Baili Qingmiao very soon collapsed into
a snowdrift. Fluffy flakes of snow floated down from the sky. Slowly, she
reached out her numb fingers to catch the falling flakes.
Shangqing Sect was located south of the Yangtze River, in the area richest
in spiritual energy in the Nine Provinces[1]. It had mild seasons and little
snow. Baili Qingmiao’s only impression of snow was during her sixteenth
birthday, when flurries had filled the sky, but melted into the dirt when they
landed. She hadn’t seen snow before and reached out a hand, but only felt
the cold water it melted into.
Baili Qingmiao was sitting on the stone steps of the sect and pouting,
staring into the air. Hè Wenzhao, who was on patrol duty that day, saw his
shimei sitting in the snow hugging her knees, the end of her yellow dress
stained with mud, and had to ask, “Baili-shimei, why are you sitting here?”
“I’m watching the snow,” Baili Qingmiao said unhappily. “It’s so pretty, but
it melts so quickly. I can’t see the ground covered with snow. It’s not fair.”
Hè Wenzhao smiled at her, and said to his juniors patrolling with him,
“How are your freezing spells? Since it’s snowing today, it’s a good chance
to practice.”
He had a few dozen disciples simultaneously use the freezing spell. Frosty
air blanketed the ground in front of Shangqing Sect’s gates, preventing the
snowflakes from melting. Flake after flake landed on Baili Qingmiao.
“Happy birthday, shimei,” Hè Wenzhao said with a warm smile.
Baili Qingmiao, hearing the sound of falling snow and the loud pounding of
her heart, realized at that moment how much she liked her shixiong.
The snow of the Ice Plains wouldn’t melt without a freezing spell. It fell
gently, slowly burying Baili Qingmiao until the spot of bright yellow was
no longer visible.
Baili Qingmiao closed her eyes in the snowdrift. With tears frozen on her
face, she sobbed quietly. “Shixiong…”
A voice sounded by her ear. “What a besotted little girl. Are you thinking of
your lover?”
The voice was cold like an icicle falling in the distance, belonging to a
woman.
Baili Qingmiao’s face was numb from cold. She worked her mouth and said
silently, “Shixiong…”
As her consciousness slowly faded, a ray of brilliant light appeared in her

sight, and a gentle warmth enveloped her. From somewhere deep within the
ground, a ball of flame rose up. Baili Qingmiao opened her eyes and saw a
lick of flame appear in her outstretched palm, warming her limbs and body,
yet the nearby snowflakes didn’t melt.
It was the Snow Flame!
It seemed this mystical flame really was hidden in the snow, and she could
only find it when she was buried in the snow herself.
Baili Qingmiao’s spiritual energy was restored. Cupping that lick of flame
in her palm, she climbed out of the snowdrift, and saw that in front of her,
the wind and snow solidified into a woman in white. She had white hair and
brows and lustrous skin like snow. Even her eyes were a pure white, with
no pupils.
She may have been a person, but she seemed more like a sculpture made of
ice and snow.
Translucent fingers brushed Baili Qingmiao’s cheek and the voice came
again. “Sweet girl, take the Snow Flame to see your beloved. But you must
give your word—if someday your love betrays you and your heart turns to
ash, you must come back and stay with me.”
“Forget it!” a voice rang out. At the same time, the Snow Flame in Baili
Qingmiao’s palm was transferred to that person’s hand.
Wenren È took possession of the Snow Flame, having figured out the
situation. It turned out Baili Qingmiao only needed to be buried in the snow
and visualize her true love Hè Wenzhao for it to appear. With a body in cold
frost but a heart seeking warmth, that single ember in the midst of the
endless fields of ice would be able to call forth the Snow Flame.
But what about this woman before him? The book hadn’t mentioned her.
When the woman in white saw Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang come forward,
one of her arms suddenly turned into a blizzard of howling snow, gathering
into a vortex and aiming straight at Yin Hanjiang’s chest.
The whirlwind was impossibly quick, and before Wenren È could raise a
sleeve to block it, it had engulfed Yin Hanjiang and carried him into the sky.
The snowflakes transformed into innumerable blades of ice, drawing lines
of blood across his face.
“Senior!” Baili Qingmiao cried in shock, and hurriedly beseeched the

woman in white. “This senior, please, those two are my companions. I was
retrieving this Snow Flame for them, they didn’t take it from me!”
Though Yin Hanjiang was being attacked, Wenren È had not moved an
inch, and only Baili Qingmiao was frantically running around.
In the air, Yin Hanjiang unsheathed his sword and let it merge into his body.
In an instant, Yin Hanjiang’s body split into countless streaks of blood-red
light. Looking closely, one could see that they were actually innumerable
red swords. At the tip of each blade, a gap was opened in the wall of wind
and snow.
Under the assault of the crimson light, the blizzard formed from the natural
energy of the Ice Plains was slashed apart. After breaking through the snow,
the flurry of blood swords circled once around Wenren È, and then gathered
together behind his back, solidifying again into Yin Hanjiang with the
Flame Feather Cloak draped over his shoulders.
“Huh?” Baili Qingmiao stared blankly at the cloak he was wearing.
The woman in white slapped her on the head. She pointed at Yin Hanjiang.
“Are you silly? These two’s powers are higher than yours. Why would they
need you if they wanted to come to the Thousand Mile Ice Plains? They
clearly knew of my preferences and put your life on the line to lure me out!
Do you really think they care whether you live or die?”
“No! Senior, you’re mistaken!” Baili Qingmiao believed both sides’ words
and trusted they were all good people, and this was just a misunderstanding.
She spread out her arms and stood in front of Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang,
forbidding the woman from harming them.
The woman in white had possibly never met such a silly girl. She waved a
sleeve of snow and tossed Baili Qingmiao to one side. “Get lost!”
Baili Qingmiao had been thrown into an ice wall and turned into a wall
relief, still maintaining her protective pose with both arms out and concern
in her eyes.
Wenren È scrutinized Baili Qingmiao’s expression and posture and felt he’d
finally answered one of the questions that had been plaguing him.
There were many scenes in the book of Baili Qingmiao throwing her arms
out to block an attack for Hè Wenzhao, Wenren È, Zhongli Qian, and
various other people. Wenren È really couldn’t understand the thought
process of the female lead while he was reading, and thought this depiction
was completely illogical. All of the people Baili Qingmiao wanted to
protect had stronger cultivations than her. No one would use a Foundation
Establishment body to protect a Mahayana-level cultivator. This was sillier
than a mantis trying to stop a chariot.
Now that Baili Qingmiao had jumped in front of him for just that purpose,
Wenren È understood that this was really something the female lead was
capable of.
But it was still inexplicable.

Black robes billowing around him, the Lord of Demons transformed into a
ray of light and appeared in front of Baili Qingmiao. With a tap of his
finger, the ice wall shattered and Baili Qingmiao tumbled out from within,
falling into the snow. She clutched her heart in shock and said to Wenren È,
“Many thanks, senior.”
Wenren È didn’t need her thanks. Looking down at her, he said, “Do you
know my realm?”
“I’m not sure, perhaps Nascent Soul?” Baili Qingmiao said hesitantly. Her
master was at Deity Transformation stage, and in Baili Qingmiao’s mind, no
one could be stronger than her master, so this expert must be at Nascent
Soul stage.
“Mahayana,” Wenren È said slowly.
Baili Qingmiao’s eyes went blank, completely unable to comprehend the

realm Wenren È was talking about.
“Why is a merely Foundation Establishment stage ant thinking of protecting

me, at Mahayana stage?” Wenren È said.
Baili Qingmiao shook her head. “I—I didn’t think it over at the time. I just
rushed forward.”
Wenren È didn’t think this was much of an answer, but Baili Qingmiao
really did seem like she was lacking in brains, so he could only reluctantly
accept it. “Next time you try to take a hit for someone, even if there isn’t
time to think, at least count down from three in your head before you rush
in. You probably can’t manage to think before you act, but you can start by
learning to count.”
“Oh.” Baili Qingmiao was so berated by Wenren È’s toneless words that she
couldn’t look up. Hanging her head, she recorded his words into her
memory.
Some distance away, Yin Hanjiang was fully occupied with fighting the
snow woman. The reason Wenren È could approach Baili Qingmiao without
any interference was all because Yin Hanjiang was keeping her away.
The woman turned into snow flurries, surrounding Yin Hanjiang, who once
more turned into swords and began skirmishing with her. The Ice Plains
instantly became a subzero hell, and Baili Qingmiao saw a piece of her robe
that landed on the ground immediately shatter into pieces. The current
temperature was probably dozens of times colder than when she was buried
in the snowdrift.
In the midst of the howling blizzard, only the area in which Wenren È was
standing remained calm, like a paradise in a different realm.
Mixed in with the wind was a voice, howling alongside the storm into
everyone’s ears. “A mere Body Unity stage who picked up a demon sword
from who-knows-where thinks he can fight me? Even your Mahayana stage
master is nothing to me!”
At her words, the attacks of the blood swords became more vicious. Of the
swords guarding Wenren È, half of them buried deep into the snow. When
the woman tried to call up the power of the Ice Plains, torrents of snow
exploded from her body and burst from the ground, along with her blood-
curdling cry.
Crimson blood dotted the white expanse.
Wenren È reached out and caught a drop of blood. He clenched his fist,
veins popping out on the back of his hand and moving under his skin like
green snakes.
Fury filling his chest, he raised his voice. “Come back!”
At his command, the blood swords flew to Wenren È, dropping to the

ground and transforming into a half-kneeling Yin Hanjiang.
Wenren È grabbed his shoulder with one hand. One of Yin Hanjiang’s hands
and feet were missing. When Yin Hanjiang was fused with the demonic
sword, each sword was made from part of his body. The swords that had
just blown apart the snow were his hand and foot.
“Ah! You’re hurt!” Baili Qingmiao frantically took out a handkerchief and
tried to hand it to Yin Hanjiang, but Wenren È shoved her aside with a burst
of energy.
“Absorb the Snow Flame. I will protect you.” Wenren È opened his palm,
and the flame materialized before Yin Hanjiang.
“But…” Yin Hanjiang glanced at the snow flurries that were currently
trying to solidify again, and his eyes dimmed. He hadn’t been able to kill
the woman with that one attack.
Wenren È didn’t give Yin Hanjiang any more chances to argue. He slapped
his palm on Yin Hanjiang’s head and sent the Snow Flame into his body
through his Baihui acupuncture point. After the Snow Flame entered his
body, Yin Hanjiang must circulate his spiritual essence to absorb it, or waste
the Venerable’s efforts.
He couldn’t go against the Venerable’s orders, so sat cross-legged on the

spot to meditate.
By now, the snow swirling in the sky formed into a woman smaller than
before, and her voice now carried a tone of rage. “A mere Body Unity stage,
yet you managed to harm me?”
Wenren È’s robes billowed in the wind. A frosty light shone in his hand and
formed into a black halberd. With a sky-rending thrust, it drove into the
woman’s body.
The woman’s body dispersed in midair and the entire Ice Plains trembled.
The near kilometer-thick layer of ice under it shattered, and thousands of
tons of snow were blasted into the sky, to fall down again and stir white
flurries into the air. Baili Qingmiao huddled close to Yin Hanjiang, feeling
like she was a tiny bird beneath the vast heavens, her feathers nearly blown
off by the snow, whimpering and shivering in the Thousand Mile Ice Plains.
She couldn’t see her surroundings clearly; the only thing visible in the snow
and mist was Yin Hanjiang by her side. She looked into the snow for a
while and felt her eyes were a haze of white and she couldn’t see anything.
It was snow blindness—she’d hurt her eyes by looking at the snow too
long.
Baili Qingmiao quickly closed her eyes, curling up in the snow and
listening to the wind howl around her.
After some time, she heard Wenren È’s unwaveringly steady voice.
“Wandering immortal? Do you think being a wandering immortal puts you
above others? Without the Ice Plains, you’re absolutely nothing!”
Again the sounds of combat followed. Baili Qingmiao used her spiritual
energy to heal her eyes and after a moment felt she could see again. She
opened her eyes and got a shock from the landscape around her.
There was no more Thousand Mile Ice Plains and woman made of snow.
Only Wenren È facing off against a blue-robed woman above a field of
bubbling magma.
Where… where was the snow?
The blue-robed woman bore the same features as the snow woman, but she
had the complexion of a living person and black hair and eyes. She was
clutching her chest, blood dripping from a corner of her mouth, looking
heavily injured.
Wenren È held his halberd in one hand. It was the same gold-threaded black
as his robe, though now Baili Qingmiao could see that the gold on his robes
and halberd linked together to form a diagram of the star Polis[2]. As gold
light shimmered on the black cloth, Polis in the sky above gave off a
brilliant radiance.
Manipulating the power of the stars, shattering the Thousand Mile Ice
Plains—this was the power of a Mahayana stage cultivator. With a wave of
a hand, the landscape was changed.
The Thousand Mile Ice Plains which Baili Qingmiao had trouble even
breathing in could not stand up to a single strike of Wenren È’s true
strength.
Yin Hanjiang, who had awoken after completely absorbing the Snow
Flame, muttered, “Venerable…”
Baili Qingmiao looked over and saw that his foot had already been restored,
though his hand was still slowly healing itself.
She hopped up and ducked behind Yin Hanjiang’s back, peering out to
watch Wenren È.
Baili Qingmiao thought back to when he had asked her why she was
jumping in front of people. She had only given half an answer, because she
really couldn’t bring herself to say that she had actually thought she could
block a blow.
Only now, as she watched the battle between these two shake the heavens
and earth, did Baili Qingmiao realize that she was really insignificant as a
speck of dust, and her whole body could not block a single breath from
these opponents.
Previously, Baili Qingmiao had wanted to reach Nascent Soul because her
shixiong had said they would be able to dual cultivate together after that.
She didn’t really care about the Dao, having only love in her head. Seeing
Wenren È’s strength, she finally understood what being a cultivator meant,
what power meant.
Not reaching Nascent Soul so you could become cultivation partners, but
using a mortal body to surmount the heavens and conquer the void!
Baili Qingmiao had a moment of sudden enlightenment, entering a deeper

realm. Even without a Core Formation manual, the essence inside her
dantian had begun to condense. Dark clouds gathered in the sky, building
up heavenly lightning.
Cultivators would have to undergo a heavenly tribulation at each stage

starting from Core Formation. The Core Formation stage had a small
lightning tribulation, the Nascent Soul stage had one face their inner
demons. These were all set in stone and could not be avoided.
Wenren È took the time to glance over at Baili Qingmiao and silently
approved. She was worth teaching. If she enlightened to the Path of
Indifference this easily, there was no need to kill her and make her cultivate
the ghost path.
The blue-clothed woman’s arms trembled slightly. “Who are you?” she
demanded. “Why have you destroyed my cultivation grounds and damaged
my foundation? I’ve never heard of anyone like you prior to my seclusion!”
“I don’t think you were in seclusion,” Wenren È said. “You discarded your
body and used secret techniques to cultivate into an immortal, no?”
A cultivator who reached the peak of Mahayana would have to face a

heavenly tribulation, and after passing it would be able to ascend to the
realm of immortals. Many cultivators died in this final tribulation, body and
soul extinguished. Some Mahayana cultivators knew they couldn’t avoid it,
so during the tribulation, they would use secret arts to disperse their own
body and trick the heavens, as well as using the immortal qi exposed during
the tribulation to cultivate into wandering immortals. Then, after they
cultivated to the next stage, they could ascend to the immortal realm
without undergoing a heavenly tribulation. This counted as stealing power
from heaven, and their strength also surpassed that of a Mahayana
cultivator’s.
Many large righteous cultivation sects had wandering immortals supporting

them, and they didn’t easily show themselves, only acting when the sect
met with great trouble.
In the book, Wenren È had been injured by the wandering immortal of

Shangqing Sect before being rescued by Baili Qingmiao, and that immortal
had been killed by him. After losing their strongest asset, Shangqing Sect
slowly declined.
“This Venerable entered the Dao three hundred years ago,” Wenren È said.
“How long have you been hiding from heaven?”
The blue-robed woman was speechless. Mahayana in only three hundred

years? She had been in seclusion for eight hundred years! Were all the
young cultivators of this age so impressive?
“As for destroying your cultivation grounds,” Wenren È said, gaze

sweeping over the Ice Plains, “we only wanted to retrieve a Snow Flame.
Was it not this elder who attacked my subordinate without reason?”
“That was because of how you were mistreating that little girl. I saw it as
unjust,” said the woman in blue.
“The fact that she has now awakened to the Core Formation stage is partly
because of the life-threatening experiences she has undergone,” Wenren È
said. “It is not your place to meddle in our business. I wonder if the truth
was that this elder had made advances in cultivation and when seeing us
here, wanted to test your strength against us?”
The woman in blue was rendered speechless.
Wenren È swung his halberd and said coldly, “Attacking groundlessly

because you felt you’ve gotten stronger, and even picking a low-level
target; now that you’ve realized you might not win, you’re trying to reason.
But what you’re mistaken on is that this Venerable is the one who decides
whether or not we have anything to discuss.”
1. Ancient name for China. ↩
2. Polis is a star in the modern constellation of Sagittarius. In Chinese it’s

known as the Seven Killing Star and the General Star. ↩
Previus – Table of Contents –
Wants to Know
Chapter 8 – Violet Spirit Pavilion Master
Wenren È watched the roiling magma beneath his feet. The Seven Killing
Halberd in his hand swung lightly to point to the blue-robed woman,
making it clear he had no intention of letting her off easily.
“Wait a minute!” the woman said. “We have no grudge with each other and
you’ve obtained the Snow Flame, so why don’t you let it go now?”
Seeing she couldn’t win, she was trying to escape.
“I can let you off,” Wenren È said. “Protector Yin, you’ve followed me for
many years. Under what circumstances will I let my opponents go?”
Yin Hanjiang appeared behind Wenren È, clutching his missing hand. “The
Venerable is magnanimous, and rarely insists on killing his opponents.”
Though he practiced the path of slaughter, Wenren È very rarely killed

people himself. Back when he attacked Xuanyuan Sect, most of the killings
were done by Yin Hanjiang, and Wenren È only killed the old sect master.
As for the remaining high-ranking people like Shu Yanyan, Wenren È left
them completely untouched.
Yin Hanjiang explained to the blue-robed woman, “The Venerable will very
rarely take action against those weaker than him. They are not worth his
attention. As for those with potential, the Venerable will give them a way
out, and wait to battle them again after they’ve raised their strength.”
The Path of Slaughter consisted of struggling for survival against

impossible odds. Without an opponent who could push oneself to one’s
limits, without an even match, without winning from a disadvantage, there
was no way to advance. After Wenren È had first stepped onto this one-way
road with no going back, every step was taken on thin ice, yet he had quite
enjoyed the journey.
“Can you increase your strength? Do you have any worth for this Venerable
to spare you?” Wenren È asked.
The blue-robed woman gritted her teeth. She pointed a finger at Baili
Qingmiao. “My reason was her.”
Wenren È raised an eyebrow. “Hm?”
Baili Qingmiao sat in the midst of striking lightning, which filled the air
around her for hundreds of meters with silver flashes. It looked impressive,
but to these three people, a mere lightning tribulation at the Core Formation
stage was nothing.
“Speaking of, why did you give her the Snow Flame?” Wenren È asked.
In the original plot, Baili Qingmiao spent five days treating Hè Wenzhao
after obtaining the Snow Flame, but hadn’t encountered any wandering
immortal.
“I didn’t give her the Snow Flame. It was drawn to her.” The blue-robed
woman knew it was meaningless to lie to Wenren È. “I’ve been cultivating
underneath these Ice Plains for eight hundred years, in order to obtain the
flames of true yang underneath the ice. But after all these years, I’ve not
obtained a single wisp of yang energy, while she found it after just arriving.
I wanted to see just what was with this little girl.”
Yin Hanjiang thought about what Wenren È had said, that the Snow Flame
was Baili Qingmiao’s destiny and could not be obtained by anyone else.
Indeed the Venerable had spoken a truth of heaven. All the time this
wandering immortal had waited couldn’t match up to five months for Baili
Qingmiao.
“I have the essence of an immortal, so I can see things that ordinary

cultivators cannot. As she was on the brink of death, between her brows,
there was a ray of divine light protecting her, which attracted the Snow
Flame to her. I think she may have a connection to the remnants of some
old divinity, so I placed a mark on her in order to keep an eye on her in the
future.”
“That’s all?” Wenren È said. “The mark of a wandering immortal shouldn’t

require you to show up.”
“Isn’t that because I discovered your presence?” said the blue-robed

woman. “I was worried you’d also figured out there was something special
in that little girl and were after that trace of divinity. I didn’t want to hand it
over to you, so I was planning on unmasking your identities as demonic
cultivators in front of Baili Qingmiao and then doing away with you to gain
her trust. Then in the future I could find a way to stick with her, awaiting an
opportunity to steal her destiny.”
All quite reasonable; this was how a cultivator ought to act. Wenren È
nodded his head slightly in approval. But how come this woman was never
named in the original story? She never made her appearance to harm Baili
Qingmiao right up to the end.
“If we weren’t here, would you have contacted Baili Qingmiao?” Wenren È
asked.
The blue-robed woman was silent, seemingly not wanting to answer.
Wenren È raised an eyebrow and the Seven Killing Halberd shone with dark
gold light. An immense force fell upon the blue-robed woman, as Wenren È
pressed her head toward the lava below. This wasn’t ordinary lava, but the
flames of true yang which were sealed under the Ice Plains. Touching it
would damage the soul as well.
While Wenren È was fighting that snow woman, he realized it wasn’t her
true body, but was just an avatar unleashing great power using the energy of
the Ice Plains. If they couldn’t find the real body, there was no meaning in
defeating the false one.
So he had brought out his bonded weapon, the Seven Killing Halberd. The
gold patterns on the halberd and Wenren È’s robes linked together to form
an array, invoking the power of the sixth star of the Southern Dipper[1].
With his body as the foundation and the harsh energy of many winters as
the focus, he could draw upon the power of the star for his own use,
breaking apart the millennia-old Ice Plains and uncovering her true body
hidden in the ice sheets.
Sadly, despite having sealed herself in the ice for eight hundred years, she
had never realized that not a hundred meters below her was the fire of true
yang.
The blue-robed woman was beautiful, but she had a haughty and aloof aura,
quite different from Shu Yanyan’s charming manner. She highly valued her
looks, and with Wenren È pressing her down like this, the injury to her face
would never fully heal until she could ascend to the immortal realm and
recreate an immortal body for herself.
“Stop!” she cried. Admitting defeat, she said, “I’m the supreme elder of
Violet Spirit Pavilion. Wandering immortals are not restricted to a flesh
body. I have an agreement with the master of Violet Spirit Pavilion, whose
body I can use in order to carry out affairs. I saw that the little girl
cultivated Shangqing Sect’s techniques, so if you guys hadn’t been here, I
would’ve gone to Violet Spirit Pavilion to make my plans.”
The Violet Spirit Pavilion Master? Wasn’t that the woman Hè Wenzhao had
married in order to support his sect? And afterward, when she discovered
Hè Wenzhao loved another woman, she went after Baili Qingmiao’s life
like mad, taking the role of a very powerful female villain.
In the original plot, Baili Qingmiao had dragged Hè Wenzhao to the Ice
Plains. With how cunning this wandering immortal was, she would’ve
instantly seen that Hè Wenzhao was Baili Qingmiao’s weak point. So that’s
why she cared about him—in order to get Baili Qingmiao’s divinity.
This made perfect sense then. Wenren È not only didn’t get why Baili
Qingmiao was so attached to Hè Wenzhao in the book, but also why all the
other female characters were so possessive over him. Why were they so
cutthroat over this indecisive man, that they were even willing to kill each
other? Wenren È never thought people could become so crazed over love,
but if it was for power or prestige, then he understood perfectly.
The power of an old god was worth going wild over for any cultivator. Too
bad this wandering immortal never realized that Baili Qingmiao didn’t have
a connection to a divine remnant, but she herself was an old god, and her
divinity was something no other person could take.
Unless Baili Qingmiao chose of her own will to give it to them.
From what Wenren È remembered about the Violet Spirit Pavilion Master,
she spent most of her time sucking up to Hè Wenzhao or plotting against
Baili Qingmiao, and her power had not grown very much. There wasn’t any
use in letting her go.
Thinking this, Wenren È’s expression didn’t change, and he kept pushing
her head toward the roiling lava.
The blue-robed woman struggled like mad, resisting with the full strength
of a wandering immortal. But she was held fast by the Seven Killing
Halberd, only managing to slow down Wenren È slightly.
However, at this moment, Baili Qingmiao finished her heavenly tribulation,

entering the first level of Core Formation. She awoke within the flashes of
lightning, opening her eyes.
She first blinked her eyes in confusion, then examined her dantian. Seeing
that she had successfully formed a golden core, she jumped up excitedly.
“I’ve finally reached Core Formation! When I get to Nascent Soul next, I
can be together with shixiong!”
Wenren È: ?
He released the blue-robed woman and moved to Baili Qingmiao in a flash.

Yin Hanjiang followed, standing behind Wenren È, warily watching the
woman in case she held a grudge and attacked when their backs were
turned.
With Yin Hanjiang there, Wenren È never had to fear attacks from behind.
“What did you just say?” Wenren È said with a cold look.
“Be together with my shixiong…” Baili Qingmiao flushed and stamped a

foot. “Oh my god, senior, don’t talk about it!”
Wenren È grabbed her wrist and checked her spiritual essence. With a
strained look on his face, he said, “What happened to your Path of
Indifference?”
She had just formed her golden core by enlightening to the Path of
Indifference, not using the Shangqing Sect methods at all. But after
undergoing the tribulation, she no longer had the methods of the Path of
Indifference inside her, and the way she circulated energy throughout her
body was the same as Hè Wenzhao, the method of the Shangqing Sect.
“Path of Indifference?” Baili Qingmiao said, like she had no memory.

“What’s the Path of Indifference?”
She seemed to have forgotten the guidance Wenren È had previously given.
“It seems your brain really was struck by lightning,” Wenren È sneered.
Or how would she completely forget the Path of Indifference after

undergoing the tribulation, and only be thinking of Hè Wenzhao?
“Take her out of the Ice Plains.” Wenren È singlehandedly picked up Baili
Qingmiao and tossed her at Yin Hanjiang.
Yin Hanjiang caught her. He didn’t ask why, just slung Baili Qingmiao up
with one hand like Wenren È and flew off. In the book Wenren È handled
the female lead like a treasure that he feared would shatter, treating her with
every care, so Yin Hanjiang would also take care of her like the Venerable’s
own life. Now that Wenren È treated Baili Qingmiao as a weed, Yin
Hanjiang also didn’t care about her.
After they left, Wenren È walked up to the blue-robed woman. He thought

of how Shu Yanyan smiled when she was coaxing her subordinates and
tried to smile at her.
The Supreme Elder of Violet Spirit Pavilion was so terrified that she knelt
down in midair. “W—w—what do you want?” she said in a trembling
voice.
What’s with her? I’m smiling warmly and everything. Wenren È was
puzzled. He stopped smiling and said with a stony face, “I’m interested in
the divine remnant you spoke of. If you find a way to obtain it, I won’t
expose your true aim to Baili Qingmiao.”
The blue-robed woman looked suspiciously at Wenren È. He clearly wasn’t

interested earlier!
“If you don’t believe this Venerable, I won’t force you. This Venerable will
come find you a hundred years later, in the hopes that by that time your
strength is worth fighting.”
“What kind of monster are you?” the woman said, trembling. “How could a
Mahayana cultivator have the power to stand against an immortal?”
“Wenren È of Xuanyuan Sect.” With those last words, Wenren È left the Ice
Plains.
Baili Qingmiao had been undergoing her tribulation while they were talking
and hadn’t heard what they said. She didn’t realize the blue-robed woman
wished her harm and thought she was another well-intentioned senior.
She didn’t know Wenren È was the master of Xuanyuan Sect either, so
obediently waited for him with Yin Hanjiang at the Ice Plains’ entrance.
She was even worried for the blue-robed woman, and paced at Yin
Hanjiang’s side. “Is senior going to be okay? Is the senior from the Ice
Plains going to be okay? They should stop fighting. They’re clearly both
good people, so why do they need to fight? It was all my fault.”
Yin Hanjiang acted as if deaf and showed no reaction to anything Baili

Qingmiao said.
Wenren È, who had arrived just in time to hear these words, let out a sigh.
Was her brain beyond help?
“Senior!” Baili Qingmiao’s eyes brightened when she saw Wenren È return
unharmed, and she rushed forward. On seeing his impassive expression, she
felt anxious again. “The senior from the Ice Plains…”
“Not dead,” Wenren È said casually.
Baili Qingmiao calmed down at that and bowed to Wenren È. “Many thanks
to senior for the assistance. If you hadn’t sent me to the Thousand Mile Ice
Plains, and also taken away the Flame Feather Cloak, I would not have
awakened to the Dao while facing death and cultivated a golden core.”
On hearing this, even the cold-hearted Wenren È wanted to say, no, this
Venerable was planning for you to die.
“Mm.” He nodded. “You’ve been gone for long, and I need to treat him, so
you can go now.”
Baili Qingmiao formally bid him farewell and set off happily, seeming full
of enthusiasm even from the back.
Wenren È placed a hand on Yin Hanjiang’s severed wrist and said in

displeasure, “The point of coming here was to heal you, but it led to your
injury instead.”
“This subordinate was too weak,” Yin Hanjiang said, head lowered.
“Let’s return to the sect. This Venerable will treat you.”
Saying this, Wenren È wrapped an arm around Yin Hanjiang’s waist. He

enveloped him in his light flash, and in the blink of an eye, they arrived
back at Xuanyuan Sect’s main hall. As for the wrecked Thousand Mile Ice
Plains, Wenren È couldn’t care less. The Ice Plains had a special
environment anyway, filled with cold energy, so it would probably restore
itself in a hundred years’ time.
They came to the spiritual spring behind the main hall and Wenren È had
Yin Hanjiang enter. Yin Hanjiang immediately took a few steps back. “This
is the Venerable’s cultivation grounds, this subordinate cannot.”
“Yin Hanjiang, don’t make this Venerable repeat himself over and over.”
Wenren È grabbed Yin Hanjiang’s chin. “If you refuse one more time, this
Venerable will cut off your tongue.”
Warm fingertips brushed against Yin Hanjiang’s skin, and his face burned.
He daringly looked at Wenren È for a long moment, then closed his eyes,
removing his robes and entering the spring.
Most cultivator clothes were protective magic items, like Wenren È’s robe
which had been personally created by him to serve as an offensive and
defensive tool. If everyone wore ordinary clothes, forget about defense; the
weak materials would be blasted into dust by one’s own spiritual power,
which would be in bad form.
Because clothes served a protective use, they would block most external
spiritual energy, so for things like cultivating in this spiritual spring or
healing, they would need to change into normal clothes. Yin Hanjiang wore
a thin inner robe, which stuck to his skin after it got wet.
Wenren È also took his robe off and entered the spring. He placed a palm
against Yin Hanjiang’s back and helped him separate from the demonic
sword.
After being forced to leave Yin Hanjiang’s body, the blood-red sword spun
unhappily in midair. Wenren È called out his halberd, which resonated with
a humming sound, and the demonic sword obediently returned to its sheath.
“You need to refine your own bonded weapon,” Wenren È said. “The
demonic sword can forcefully increase your power, but there’s no way for
you to develop it further, and you cannot control it as you will. The lava
underneath the Thousand Mile Ice Plains is a good place to forge a weapon,
but there are no suitable materials.”
Yin Hanjiang felt drained after the demon sword left his body and couldn’t
speak. He closed his eyes and started to absorb spiritual energy with
Wenren È’s help.
Wenren È guided him a little and seeing that Yin Hanjiang had successfully
entered a meditative state, exited the spring. He set up an energy gathering
array and waited for Yin Hanjiang to slowly refine the Snow Flame.
He retrieved a jar of spiritual wine from his sleeve and sat against a rock
near the spring, simultaneously watching Yin Hanjiang cultivate and
considering what he should do next.
In this trip, he’d had extensive contact with Baili Qingmiao, met the Violet
Spirit Pavilion Master, and through Shu Yanyan, made contact with the
male lead Hè Wenzhao. Through these interactions, he’d realized things
weren’t as he’d imagined.
He took out the book and looked through it again, and found many details
that shocked him. He had originally thought it was filled with
inconsistencies, but now it seemed methodically thought out.
For example, the Violet Spirit Master. Wenren È had taken her as a pathetic
woman who had been won over by Hè Wenzhao’s flowery words and
blinded by love, doing many irrational things with her mind overtaken by
jealousy, using every method under the sun to torment a poor girl.
But after meeting the blue-robed woman today, he’d realized that
everything the Violet Spirit Master had done was reasonably motivated.
Without the remnants of an ancient god as bait, how was Hè Wenzhao
qualified to have a woman love him to such an extent?
Since this character turned out to be sensible, the Lord of Demons in the
book giving his life for Baili Qingmiao must also have something deeper
behind it. Could what he had thought was a trashy book actually turn out to
contain profound knowledge?
Wenren È flipped though it while drinking, memorizing each illogical detail

to investigate in the future.
He didn’t necessarily need to care about this. Wenren È didn’t have any
interest in fixing plot holes as the first page had instructed him to do. But he
had to repay his debt to Baili Qingmiao. And if things would play out like
the book from beginning to end, then was his death and Yin Hanjiang’s
madness predetermined?
He had already been swept up in the midst of things, so there was no reason
to try and escape now. Wenren È wasn’t predisposed to avoiding trouble
anyway. If things were thus destined, then he would reject the heavens and
rewrite destiny!
Spiritual wine still had some effect on cultivators. Wenren È’s thoughts
wandered and, half-closing his eyes, he dozed lightly against the rock.
Yin Hanjiang stirred in the spiritual spring, having completely absorbed the
Snow Flame. His hand had been restored, the corpse energy inside his body
had been entirely cleared out, and his level had risen from the first level of
Body Unity to the ninth, with the Void Boundary stage within sight.
Yin Hanjiang saw that his Venerable had apparently fallen asleep. He
climbed out of the spring, watching Wenren È’s sleeping face. He stared
intently for a while, then picked up the outer robe that Wenren È had tossed
onto the floor and, after holding it to his chest for a moment, draped it over
Wenren È.
He then looked at the half dish of wine Wenren È had left and stood
unmoving, like a puppet.
Wenren È had woken when Yin Hanjiang draped the robe around him, but
kept his eyes closed and pretended to be asleep. He wanted to see what Yin
Hanjiang was like when he thought he wasn’t looking.
Being accustomed to the usual deferential Yin Hanjiang, then thinking of

his madness later in the book, Wenren È thought that a person couldn’t
instantly change in such a drastic way—there had to be signs that he just
hadn’t noticed before.
Yin Hanjiang stayed frozen for a long time. After seeing that Wenren È
wasn’t going to wake, he slowly reached out a hand and picked up the wine
dish which had already cooled. He stuck out a tongue and sampled it a bit,
before putting it back.
He didn’t even drink it, just tasted a drop. If Wenren È hadn’t seen it just
now, he never would’ve noticed.
Yin Hanjiang’s heart was pounding, his breathing fast, when he heard
Wenren È behind him say, “Protector Yin, do you want to drink?”
Yin Hanjiang turned pale, not daring to look up. He said in a shaky voice,
“Venerable, this subordinate…”
“You always have such self-restraint that you won’t cause any problems
even if you drink. There’s no need to repress yourself to such an extent.”
Wenren È got up, and with a gesture, his robe replaced itself on his body.
He picked up the wine jar and dish and pushed them onto Yin Hanjiang.
“When idle, this Venerable permits you to drink.”
Yin Hanjiang: …
1. An ancient Chinese constellation which corresponds to part of

Sagittarius. The sixth star is Polis. ↩
Wants to Know
Chapter 9 – Polis and Alkaid
Wenren È thought he really needed to have a conversation with Yin

Hanjiang. Yin Hanjiang was the Left Protector of the first and foremost
demonic sect. There was no need for him to be so timid that he had to wait
until Wenren È was asleep to secretly sip some wine.
Back when he first picked up that child, Wenren È hadn’t wanted a puppet.
He flicked his fingers, and the robe discarded on the floor draped over Yin
Hanjiang. Yin Hanjiang had just taken in the Snow Flame and was full of
yang energy, so his wet clothes and hair had already dried. Yin Hanjiang
stuck his arms through his robe, tied up his hair again, and got down on one
knee before Wenren È, sword in hand, deferent and respectful.
Wenren È slowly said, “Protector Yin, back when this Venerable ordered
you to become a sword cultivator, did you have any complaints?”
Back then, after Wenren È brought that child home to his sect, he had his
fortune and aptitudes looked into. Yin Hanjiang had a pure metal spiritual
root, and his birth had been influenced by Alkaid, the seventh star of the
Big Dipper, also known as the Army Crushing Star, favoring offense and
possessing great destructive power. In mortal armies, this was suited toward
being a vanguard or suicide unit. Wenren È’s star was Polis, also known as
the General Star, and was the most suitable pairing with Alkaid.
With these kinds of aptitudes, Wenren È thought Yin Hanjiang was suited to
being a sword cultivator as well as his vanguard, so handed him a sword
and a manual he’d stolen from someplace. From then on, Yin Hanjiang
became Wenren È’s sword.
Wenren È rarely asked Yin Hanjiang for his thoughts. Yin Hanjiang raised
his head to look at him, eyes shining like stars. “Venerable…”
He had something to say but hesitated. Wenren È knew Yin Hanjiang was
stubborn and wouldn’t say what was actually on his mind unless forced to,
so he said coldly, “Speak.”
After getting Wenren È’s order, Yin Hanjiang spoke smoothly. “When this
subordinate was five years old, foreign tribes attacked and slaughtered my
entire village. This subordinate was fortuitous and barely survived. Seeing
someone pass by, I thought the worst that could happen was that I would
die, so I mustered up the strength to grab that person’s robes. That’s how
this subordinate met the Venerable.”
He rarely spoke so many words, so Wenren È sat and listened earnestly.
“There is something the Venerable doesn’t know.” Yin Hanjiang patted the
storage belt on his waist, and an old sword spotted with rust appeared on the
ground before him. It was the one Wenren È had given him. “When this
subordinate was eighteen and had reached Foundation Establishment, I took
the sword the Venerable had given me and left to find the foreign warriors
who slaughtered my village.”
That year… Wenren È absently thought back to something.
The corner of Yin Hanjiang’s lips curved slightly, as if in a smile. He

stroked that old sword and said quietly, “This subordinate saw the
Venerable, wearing silver armor with a spear in hand, draped in a red cloak,
leading a group of battered soldiers to face the invading forces.”
Wenren È had raised his broken spear and spoken to those ragged soldiers,
“We can flee, but do remember, behind us are the commoners living at the
border. If the city wall falls, we can form a wall with our bodies, but if we
flee, do you want the common people to use their bodies to protect us?”
Wenren È had not been using any superhuman powers. He’d sealed his
spiritual energy, and alongside his comrades, fought off the enemy with the
strength of a mortal man. After several days, they had successfully defended
the borders and killed all the enemy tribesmen who had attacked the village
that day.
Yin Hanjiang was afraid the Venerable would notice him, so acted like an
ordinary commoner and hid in the border town, waiting for Wenren È to
return triumphantly with his troops.
What was the Path of Slaughter? Yin Hanjiang watched those smiling
soldiers return after their victory and began to understand.
The Path of Slaughter could be to act as the blade that slaughtered the
masses, or the sword that protected the people. Killing to stop death,
fighting to stop war, was Wenren È’s path.
Yin Hanjiang offered up the sword with both hands. “While this subordinate
was hiding and watching the Venerable’s return, there was only one wish in
my heart, to be the Venerable’s vanguard.”
He carefully held the sword in his lap, hand resting on the rust-stained steel,
as if he was telling him with every action that Yin Hanjiang was willing to
be Wenren È’s sword.
Wenren È never realized that something like that had happened a hundred
years ago. He had to strengthen his mental state in the midst of countless
battles, so in order to temper his mind, he would often seal his powers and
go to the mortal world, starting from a foot soldier and rising through the
ranks all the way to a general leading forces into battle.
When cold blades sliced across his face, when his fellows’ blood splashed
across his cheeks, life and death was the most clear-cut truth.
The most difficult part of the Path of Slaughter was how to remain clear-
headed in the midst of death, to not blame oneself for it, and to not go mad
from it.
After innumerable battles, the Seven Killing Halberd was forged on the
battlefield. Wenren È thought it would be an evil weapon that consumed
souls, but didn’t expect that what the most savage grounds on Earth would
give rise to was a weapon made to protect.
When Wenren È entered this path, he had suffered immense trauma and
wanted to gain power by taking lives, thinking to ascend to divinity by
stepping on innumerable corpses and becoming a heartless demon. But in
that battle that Yin Hanjiang had witnessed, the one where the Seven
Killing Halberd had finally taken form, Wenren È had to acknowledge
something—since his youth, he had never changed.
The Supreme Elder of Violet Spirit Pavilion hadn’t understood how Wenren
È could have power surpassing the Mahayana stage, sufficient to subdue a
wandering immortal. She only knew to hide from tribulations and seclude
herself for eight hundred years, so how could she understand that the Seven
Killing Halberd upheld not just the power of one demonic cultivator, but the
wishes of the common people in the three hundred years of war Wenren È
had participated in?
When the Seven Killing Halberd was forged, the General Star shone, and
the Army Crushing Star along with it.
Wenren È’s moment of enlightenment was also the moment Yin Hanjiang
had entered the Dao.
“So that was it.”
Wenren È beckoned with a finger, and the vicious demonic sword that Yin
Hanjiang wielded landed obediently in his palm. If gods exist, demons must
exist. Wenren È had obtained this demonic sword at the Blood Hell. It was a
weapon that had collected the murderous energy of a hundred thousand evil
spirits, its power surpassing the first-grade magic items of the cultivation
world.
Magic items were split into three stages of magic treasure, spiritual treasure,
and magic artifact, and each stage was split into upper, middle, and lower
grade. Also above magic artifacts were immortal artifacts, which didn’t
originate in the cultivation world. Only a few large sects had immortal
artifacts to guard their locations. Demonic artifacts were equivalent to
immortal artifacts. When Yin Hanjiang fused with the demonic sword, he
could unleash power far beyond his own realm, but it also harmed his soul.
At the time, Yin Hanjiang had begged Wenren È to bestow the demonic
sword on him, so that he could follow Wenren È and be his Left Protector.
By using his own body to feed demons, he gained power far beyond that of
a Body Unity cultivator.
Yin Hanjiang had corpse energy in his body, which allowed him to fuse
with the demonic sword, but also caused him a lot of suffering. His soul
constantly had to fight the demonic sword, and he had only avoided being
corrupted by it because of his dedication to Wenren È.
“This sword doesn’t suit this Venerable’s vanguard.” Wenren È tossed aside
the demonic sword and lifted Yin Hanjiang out of his kneeling posture.
“This Venerable will forge you a better one.”
“It’s because this subordinate is too weak, and has to rely on the demonic
sword’s power,” Yin Hanjiang said.
“No need to worry,” Wenren È said. “As this Venerable’s vanguard, you
should naturally follow this Venerable throughout every life. From the
cultivation realm to the immortal realm or the demon realm or the divine
realm, you must follow me no matter where I go, so how could you let this
demonic sword impede your progress?”
The sword he would make for Yin Hanjiang could not in any way be
inferior to the demonic sword. In order to forge a legendary weapon,
timing, location, and human qualification all needed to be right. For timing,
the Great Sect War was approaching and the spiritual energy and fighting
intent stirred by so many cultivators was a perfect opportunity. The place
was also set, the flames underneath the Thousand Mile Ice Plains being a
suitable location to forge the sword. Also, Yin Hanjiang had awakened to
the depths of the Army Crushing Star’s meaning, and with the assistance of
the Seven Killing Star, the human qualifications were also met.
The only issue was the materials. Wenren È dug around in his Qiankun
sleeve. He had collected many treasures over the years, but none of them
suited Yin Hanjiang and they could only serve as supplemental materials.
While looking, Wenren È found the Abusive Romance book, and when his
hand landed on the book’s cover, he suddenly remembered that the book
detailed many legendary treasures, the Snow Flame being only one of
which.
In the book, Hè Wenzhao had reached Nascent Soul stage after absorbing
the Snow Flame, conveniently right at the beginning of the Great Sect War.
Nascent Soul and above cultivators were told to follow the sect elders and
help set up an array, in order to serve as the main force of the war. The
Great Sect War raged for ten years, and Hè Wenzhao had just reached
Nascent Soul, so his power was lower than his fellows. The bonded weapon
he had refined at Foundation Establishment stage was broken, and his
foundation seriously damaged.
By the end of the war, both sides had sustained heavy casualties. Many sect
leaders and wandering immortals had fallen by Wenren È’s hands, and
Wenren È himself had hidden after suffering serious injuries, ending up
saved by Baili Qingmiao.
Baili Qingmiao, after treating Wenren È, heard Hè Wenzhao’s foundation

had been damaged, and unless a suitable treasure was found to create a new
bonded weapon, he would age and die within five years.
Baili Qingmiao couldn’t stop crying as she saw her shixiong bedridden with
grave injuries. When she heard that there was a spiritual realm at the
Golden Coast Cliffs, in which one could find magical pills or materials, she
secretly ran off to look for something that could heal her shixiong.
On the way, she ran into Wenren È, who on hearing she was planning to
face danger alone, accompanied her on her journey. After facing
innumerable trials at the Golden Coast Cliffs, they finally found the
spiritual realm and within it the Shattered Mountain Meteorite. Baili
Qingmiao giddily took the treasure to Hè Wenzhao, not mentioning a word
of how much danger she had gone through and only wishing to see her
shixiong recover.
But while she had been searching for a year, Hè Wenzhao had been on the
brink of death a few times, and his shimei Liu Xinye, seeing her shixiong
undergoing a qi deviation, forcibly dual cultivated with him despite herself
being only at Core Formation stage, using her own true yin to save Hè
Wenzhao’s life. Due to that, she dropped from Core Formation to
Foundation Establishment stage.
Hè Wenzhao, even with Liu Xinye’s help, didn’t manage to return to his
original level, though his life had at least been saved. With the addition of
the treasure Baili Qingmiao had found, he secluded for three years, refining
the Shattered Mountain Meteorite, and rose to Deity Transformation stage
in one go.
Baili Qingmiao found out what had happened between Hè Wenzhao and Liu
Xinye during that period and cried daily for three years, but whenever she
saw a sickly-looking Liu Xinye practicing with a group of rookie disciples,
she couldn’t help but feel bad. Liu Xinye was another natural genius with
aptitudes comparable to Baili Qingmiao’s, and in the sect everyone had
revolved around her, but now that she had fallen to Foundation
Establishment stage, and there were also a few disciples who said she took
advantage of Hè Wenzhao, there was no way Baili Qingmiao could take up
an issue with her. She just had to grit her teeth and bear it.
After Hè Wenzhao exited seclusion, he wanted to find an elixir for Liu

Xinye to restore her cultivation. Baili Qingmiao had been holding back her
anger for three years and had a huge fight with Hè Wenzhao, demanding to
know whether he had feelings for Liu Xinye.
Hè Wenzhao grabbed Baili Qingmiao’s shoulder and said soothingly,

“Baili-shimei, you saw how injured I was at the time. Liu-shimei acted on
her own accord. I didn’t even know what had happened! Qingmiao, let me
tell you, ever since we were kids, the only one for me has been you. But I
owe a debt to Liu-shimei, and I won’t be able to live comfortably for the
rest of this life if I don’t repay it. It would also become an inner demon in
my future tribulations. Shimei, please understand this once, I have to help
her! And Liu-shimei is in such a bad situation. Don’t you feel sympathy?”
Baili Qingmiao pointed to her chest and said tearfully, “Shixiong, you only
see how Liu-shimei damaged her foundation for your sake, but what about
me? All those times I risked my life at the Golden Coast Cliffs? Just
because you didn’t see those, shixiong, do they not exist to you?”
“Of course not!” Hè Wenzhao grabbed Baili Qingmiao. “Shimei, you and I
swore to live and die together. Pain on your body is pain in my heart!”
Hè Wenzhao did all he could to coax Baili Qingmiao, either catching

fireflies with her in the mountains and releasing them to light up the night
sky, or using Deity Transformation stage power to bring her above the
clouds, sitting with her and speaking sweet words.
When Baili Qingmiao’s temper finally faded, she still had to accompany Hè
Wenzhao to find a cure for Liu Xinye. She thought that after she found a
cure, shixiong would have no more obligation to Liu Xinye, but in the end,
it was Liu Xinye who hurt her the most cruelly, showing no gratitude for
everything Baili Qingmiao had done for her.
What was also worth mentioning was that Liu Xinye was the girl who got
refined into lamp oil by Yin Hanjiang. In the end, she paid her debt to Baili
Qingmiao with her life.
Everything one gets in life is predetermined.
Wenren È thought back to this plotline, but he had no interest in Baili

Qingmiao and Hè Wenzhao’s abusive relationship that dragged on for
several hundred years. The thing that caught his attention was the Shattered
Mountain Meteorite.
Hè Wenzhao had refined it into a fan, so he could look fittingly cool for a
male lead.
Hè Wenzhao’s lightning root and Yin Hanjiang’s metal root were both
associated with metal in the five elements, so a material suitable for Hè
Wenzhao should be suitable for Yin Hanjiang. Wenren È wouldn’t steal a
treasure which was destined to belong to someone else, like the Snow
Flame, which he traded for with Baili Qingmiao.
But the Shattered Mountain Meteorite was originally obtained by Wenren È
for Baili Qingmiao. The Lord of Demons had full rights to decide what to
do with something that originally belonged to him.
And why should the Lord of Demons give something of his to Hè

Wenzhao?
Wenren È had a karmic relation with Baili Qingmiao, but he had no

connection to Hè Wenzhao. Hè Wenzhao could die for all he cared, but he
certainly wouldn’t use something that belonged to him to save Hè Wenzhao.
Thinking that, Wenren È beckoned to Yin Hanjiang. “Come here.”
Yin Hanjiang hesitantly approached and sat at Wenren È’s side. Wenren È
said, “There is a spiritual realm at the Golden Coast Cliffs, in which is
hidden the Shattered Mountain Meteorite. In ten years, the door to the realm
will open, and this Venerable will retrieve the meteorite for you, to create a
legendary weapon.”
Yin Hanjiang didn’t refuse this time. The Venerable didn’t permit him to
refuse.
Wenren È was pleased with his obedience and said, “The Shattered
Mountain Meteorite is in this Venerable’s destiny, so it is my right to take it.
But this Venerable is destined to face a bloody trial in the Great Sect War.”
Yin Hanjiang’s face turned gloomy on hearing this. The demonic sword
sensed his mood and returned to his hand with a swish.
“Don’t worry,” Wenren È consoled, “I’m not fated to die. Cultivate well,
and at the time, if I go missing, come here to find me.”
He indicated to Yin Hanjiang the place he had washed up in the book. This
time, he wouldn’t need Baili Qingmiao to save him. He was entrusting his
safety to Yin Hanjiang’s hands.
In Abusive Romance, Yin Hanjiang had probably searched tirelessly for

Wenren È, but he would constantly have to deal with attacks from disciples
of the righteous sects. By the time he found Wenren È, it was already after
Wenren È had gone to the Golden Coast Cliffs and gotten the meteorite.
The book’s Wenren È had been heavily injured and knew well he wouldn’t
be able to maintain his hold on the ambitious members of Xuanyuan Sect,
so he didn’t contact his subordinates even when he could. Back then, he
didn’t even trust Yin Hanjiang.
But now, after reading the book, Wenren È knew that Yin Hanjiang would
never betray him.
After knowing Wenren È would face disaster, Yin Hanjiang became very
anxious, training at Xuanyuan Sect every day and hoping he could break
through to Void Boundary Stage before the Great Sect War. Every bit he
could increase his power was another bit of help he could be to his
Venerable.
Wenren È had no fear despite knowing his fate. After receiving information
from Shu Yanyan, he ordered the four Altar Masters to prepare for war.
It had already been six months since their meeting in that small town. With
Baili Qingmiao gone, Hè Wenzhao constantly used going down the
mountain to patrol or slay monsters as an excuse to meet Shu Yanyan.
Though he didn’t have the Snow Flame this time, by dual cultivating with
Shu Yanyan, he had reached Nascent Soul just as in the original plotline.
After reaching Nascent Soul, he could have access to more of the sect’s
resources. The sect master and many elders also viewed Hè Wenzhao
favorably, even telling him some pieces of information that only the sect
master could know.
After Hè Wenzhao had gotten such obvious benefits, he favored Shu

Yanyan even more, buying a house for her in the small town where they
spent time together like husband and wife—a far cry from their enmity in
the book.
In the book, Shu Yanyan had been killed by Hè Wenzhao. She was
effectively a huge obstacle that Hè Wenzhao had run into early in his
cultivation and which had caused him a not insignificant amount of
suffering. Hè Wenzhao despised her and later, when he had gained enough
power, killed her the first chance he got.
Shu Yanyan was skilled at ferreting out information and found out many of
the righteous sects’ plans from Hè Wenzhao, all while feigning ignorance.
She secretly sent this information to Wenren È, while also asking,
“Venerable, when can I ditch Hè Wenzhao to go be with my subordinates?
It’s been six months! I’ve touched just one man for six months. Do you
know what it’s like to eat only one dish for six months? It’s awful!”
Wenren È: “This Venerable practices inedia and doesn’t eat food.”
Shu Yanyan: “…Then just absorbing spiritual energy from one area for six
months?”
Wenren È: “When you cultivate in seclusion, can you be unsatisfied with

the spiritual energy you’re absorbing, get up, and go cultivate somewhere
else?”
Shu Yanyan: …
She didn’t have high hopes for her cold-hearted master’s understanding,
and just secretly wished for the fighting to start sooner; best if Hè Wenzhao
died in the great war.
At the same time, Baili Qingmiao finally returned to the sect and reported
her advancement to her master. She became the youngest to achieve Core
Formation in the whole of recorded history, shocking the entire Shangqing
Sect.
Hey guys if I ever mix up Polis and Alkaid please tell me

Wants to Know
Chapter 10 – The great Dao is emotionless
Before Baili Qingmiao, the fastest to achieve Core Formation in Shangqing

Sect had been Hè Wenzhao, who after reaching Foundation Establishment
at eighteen, formed a golden core in a mere three years. Cultivation was the
way of stealing from heaven, more difficult the further you advanced. Qi
Gathering and Qi Refinement were simple enough, and people of Wulin
with good aptitudes could accomplish them, but Foundation Establishment
was the threshold to the cultivation world, and it was a high threshold
which blocked countless people aspiring to seek the Dao, who could never
advance a single step further.
And you couldn’t fly all the way to the top just by reaching Foundation
Establishment.
There were many people who stalled at Foundation Establishment for fifty
or a hundred years, unable to form a golden core until their spiritual energy
ran out and their lifespans were up. Qi Gathering was absorbing the energy
of the cosmos into one’s body, Qi Refinement was refining it for one’s own
use, and Foundation Establishment was using the Qi of the cosmos to force
out acquired impurities in the human body, acquiring a primordial body.
The golden core was formed out of spiritual essence within the dantian. For
the first time, one’s spiritual awareness could see within one’s own body,
and the Violet Palace[1] first appeared within the dantian. The inside of
one’s body would form its own contained cosmos, and this would be a
person’s first step toward transforming their body into an immortal’s.
Hè Wenzhao taking three years was already exceptional, but as for Baili
Qingmiao, she had established her foundation when she’d just turned
eighteen, and before the year was out, before her master even had time to
teach the core formation methods to her, she had inexplicably formed a
core.
Elder Qingyue checked Baili Qingmiao over at the administration hall and
confirmed that her qi was pure and orderly and she had cultivated perfectly
by Shangqing Sect’s methods, somehow comprehending the core formation
methods by her own ability.
This kind of gift was unprecedented in Shangqing Sect.
Elder Qingyue nodded with approval and smiled slightly. After offering
incense to the sect founder, he rang the sect’s Moon Pool Bell.
The Moon Pool Bell was one of Shangqing Sect’s three great immortal
artifacts, supporting the wards around their mountain for years. If it was
rung, anyone in the sect could hear it unless they were on the brink of death.
Ordinarily forming a golden core wouldn’t be worth the administration hall
elder announcing it to the entire sect. Even Hè Wenzhao’s three years hadn’t
been worth such treatment. Baili Qingmiao’s situation was truly unique, and
after deep consideration, Elder Qingyue decided to ring the bell.
When it sounded, Hè Wenzhao who was in bed with Shu Yanyan also heard.
After three rings, Elder Qingyue’s voice was transmitted to each person’s
ears. “Baili Qingmiao of Rising Clouds Peak, under Elder Qingrong, has
formed her golden core in one year.”
Hè Wenzhao froze, dumbfounded.
Shu Yanyan also heard the ringing of the bell, but she wasn’t a disciple of
Shangqing Sect and couldn’t hear Elder Qingyue’s transmission. She acted
as if she hadn’t noticed anything and wrapped her arms around Hè
Wenzhao’s neck, saying, “Dear Hè, don’t be cruel, hurry…”
Impeccable acting skills, worthy of the Xuanyuan Sect’s Right Protector!
But Hè Wenzhao wasn’t in the mood and hurriedly got up, using a
purification spell to rid his body of any smells. Shu Yanyan turned over, her
eyes hazy. “My dear?”
“I just remembered urgent business I must return to the sect for,” Hè

Wenzhao said coldly. “I might not be able to see you for the next few days.
Be good and wait for me.”
Then he turned around and left. Shu Yanyan sprawled over the bed,
propping her chin on her elbow. “Once they have their clothes on they’ll act
like they don’t know you. No-good swine, pah!”
“Baili Qingmiao has returned,” a voice came from the window. Shu Yanyan
jumped, and when she looked over, she found Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang
had entered through the window at some point.
“Oh, it’s you, Venerable, you nearly scared your subordinate to death. I
thought that my cultivation had dropped and my awareness had gotten so
bad that I didn’t even notice intruders coming in.”
Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang acted like they were blind to the state of Shu
Yanyan’s body. Yin Hanjiang used a spell to clean a desk and chair inside
the room, opened a window and cleared the smell out of the air with a wind
charm, and only afterward, invited the Venerable to sit.
Shu Yanyan: …
She grimaced and waved a hand, having the clothes on the floor put
themselves on her body. She respectfully greeted Wenren È, then glanced at
Yin Hanjiang, and her face stiffened. “Protector Yin, you’re already at the
top level of Body Unity?”
Shu Yanyan felt alarm in her heart. She and Yin Hanjiang were both the
Venerable’s Protectors, but the Left Protector had been favored by the
Venerable from the beginning. Before, Shu Yanyan would console herself
that Yin Hanjiang was only Body Unity stage, and though the demonic
sword was powerful, using it harmed his body and soul and could not be
sustained for too long, or he would be corrupted by it. If they really went at
it, she had the upper hand. But in a mere six months, Yin Hanjiang had
managed to rise from the first level of Body Unity to the ninth. Wasn’t he
about to break through to Void Boundary stage any day now?
The Right Protector felt quite threatened.
However, the Venerable shook his head, seeming displeased. “Only the
ninth level of Body Unity. There’s still far to go.”
This wasn’t right! Shu Yanyan felt like she’d caught a whiff of something
odd. She looked back and forth between Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang
several times. Yin Hanjiang was the same, silently loyal as always, and the
Venerable was as cold and overbearing as he always was, and nothing about
their interaction had changed. The only thing was…
Shu Yanyan squinted and found that Protector Yin was standing a bit closer
behind the Venerable than before, and with Yin Hanjiang protecting his
back, Wenren È’s posture was also slightly more relaxed.
Just slightly, but it gave off a completely different feeling.
Alarm bells sounded in her mind and she hurried to report. “Venerable, for
this past half year, this subordinate has offered herself to Hè Wenzhao,
helping him reach Nascent Soul stage, giving him the chance to participate
in important matters of his sect. I have found out the location the Nascent
Soul disciples will be setting up their array. The five great forces of
Shangqing Sect, Tianjian Sect, Jiuxing Sect, Biluo Sect, and Wuxiang
Temple, as well as several smaller sects, will be sending out their Nascent
Soul disciples to form a giant array north and south of Xuanyuan Sect in
order to temporarily sever the spiritual veins[2], so that we won’t have
access to natural spiritual energy as we fight.”
Shu Yanyan reported everything she had done over the past months and all
the information she had gotten, trying to vie with Protector Yin. She needed
to show him just kissing up to the Venerable wasn’t enough, you had to
accomplish things!
Abusive Romance had described the Great Sect War from Baili Qingmiao’s
point of view. She was just a Core Formation disciple and didn’t get to
know much. For ten years it was basically missing her shixiong, worrying
for him, and being concerned for him, all while she saved people here and
there, showing off her kind nature as the female lead. Thus, Wenren È
hadn’t known exactly what plans the righteous sects were making. With Shu
Yanyan’s information, their schemes were starting to come into shape.
“This subordinate believes that we should send two able fighters to the
locations ahead of time and have them take the best positions to break the
array, and subsequently exterminate all those Nascent Soul disciples!” Shu
Yanyan looked up, and the seductive warmth in her eyes had vanished, only
leaving ruthlessness.
In her white robe, she seemed like a blooming spider lily, softly beckoning,
leading the lost to the next shore[3].
Cold-hearted and merciless, willing to use any means toward a goal—this

was the true nature of the Right Protector of Xuanyuan Sect, Shu Yanyan.
As she spoke, Dubhe[4] appeared in the night sky, giving off dazzling
radiance.
The leader of Shangqing Sect was currently with the leaders of several
other major sects, observing star signs to predict the ways of heaven. The
Jiuxing Sect Leader looked at the night sky, his expression grave. “Polis,
Alkaid, and Dubhe are all shining, resonating with each other. It is an ill
omen!”
“How could this be?” said the leader of Biluo Valley. “Several months ago,
we made our calculations, that Dubhe would vanish, subdued by lightning;
Alkaid had demonic signs, showing the color of blood, and the possibility
of self-destruction would be high; and Polis had signs of peach blossoms
and would meet with a tribulation of love. The three stars all had signs of
decline—it was a perfect opportunity for the righteous sects to wipe out the
demonic. How did fortune suddenly take such a turn?”
The Tianjian Sect Leader glared at the sky. “Six months ago, Polis’s love
tribulation vanished, his protector Alkaid shook off demonic temptation,
and Dubhe brightened. Everything suddenly changed, and the source is
Polis.”
The Shangqing Sect Leader said, “Polis represents Xuanyuan Sect’s Wenren
È. This man took the world by storm a hundred years ago, with a demonic
sword wielder behind him, and unified the demonic sects in just a few
decades. The balance of power shifted, and the righteous sects have been
gradually weakening. If we do not eliminate Wenren È, that one man will
suppress the righteous sects for a thousand years.”
“We had originally planned for Shangqing Sect alone to deal with him, but
it seems now that will not be enough,” said the master of Biluo Valley. “We
must send more high-level experts and immortal artifacts to surround and
eliminate Wenren È.”
The Jiuxing Sect Master said, “The will of heaven is hard to fathom. My
sect reads the signs earnestly, trying to glean heavenly mysteries, but often
fail. Why is it in this past half year, destinies have changed so quickly? Do
the heavens not wish for us to see the outcome of the great war?”
The abbot of Wuxiang Temple, while reciting a Buddha’s name, set down
the rosary in his hand, and a monk’s staff appeared in his palm. He opened
his eyes, and all shades of compassion faded from them, replaced with
furious light. He resembled the ferocious law-protectors placed before
statues of the Buddha.
“Abbot, you will act personally?” The Shangqing Sect Master was filled
with glee. “With you there, we can do twice the work in half the time, and
victory will be within our grasp.”
During the great sect leaders’ secret meeting, they set down the time of
attack and one by one returned to their own sects. The Shangqing Sect
Master left the secret room, arriving at the administration hall and asking
Elder Qingyue, “Baili Qingmiao has risen to Core Formation stage?”
Elder Qingyue explained everything to him, and the Sect Master smiled,
gratified. “With Qingmiao and Wenzhao, the Shangqing Sect has promising
successors. We can freely focus on this war. Qingyue-shidi, stay at the sect,
protect the Moon Pool Bell, and maintain the Shangqing Sect’s strength.”
Qingyue knew this battle was unavoidable. He said, “But these two children
are currently squabbling with each other.”
“Baili Qingmiao is having another tantrum?” The Sect Master chuckled.

“Young girls can be moody. After she reaches Nascent Soul, she won’t be
like this anymore.”
Qingyue and the Sect Master didn’t take the two’s fight very seriously, but
Hè Wenzhao was doing everything he could to win over Baili Qingmiao.
The reason was when Baili Qingmiao returned, she immediately went to the
administration hall to check her shixiong’s patrol records. This was her first
time being away from her shixiong for so long, and she had just personally
witnessed a clash between a wandering immortal and a Mahayana-level
expert in the Ice Plains. Feeling lucky to be alive, she naturally missed her
shixiong and wanted to know what he had been doing while she wasn’t
around.
The administration hall’s records were publicly available. Baili Qingmiao

was at first happy for her shixiong for reaching Nascent Soul, but she felt
something was off the more she looked. Hè Wenzhao was heading down the
mountain once every two days or so—that was way too often!
Baili Qingmiao used to be just about joined at the hip with Hè Wenzhao,
and she would follow nearly every time he left the mountain, so she knew
well that he left about once a month. Just at that moment, Yao Wendan
happened to come to the administration hall to retrieve materials for the
medicinal pavilion and found Baili Qingmiao spacing out in front of the
jade slip records, so went over to congratulate her for reaching Core
Formation.
“Yao-shixiong,” Baili Qingmiao said, “have you seen head shixiong? I saw
the task rotations, and he’s supposed to patrol the mountain today, so why
isn’t he around?”
“He probably left. He’s been heading down the mountain all the time lately
and even bought a house for Miss Shu, probably out of guilt.” Yao Wendan
was a straightforward person and blurted this out without thinking. He
immediately regretted it and slapped himself on the cheek.
The jade slip in Baili Qingmiao’s hand clattered to the floor. “What did you
say? Shixiong bought a house for Miss Shu?”
Hè Wenzhao got back in that moment, just in time to hear Baili Qingmiao’s
tearful words, and his vision went dark for a moment. He grabbed Baili
Qingmiao and said soulfully, “Shimei, you’ve finally returned. I’ve been so
worried about you these past days. I’ve missed you so much.”
Yao Wendan knew he had misspoken and ran off with his head down,
leaving Hè Wenzhao and Baili Qingmiao to figure things out themselves.
After Baili Qingmiao interrogated Hè Wenzhao, she rushed down the

mountain to find Shu Yanyan and question her on her relationship to him,
with Hè Wenzhao rushing after her.
After she left the mountain’s wards, Shu Yanyan could detect her
movements. “Venerable, what should this subordinate do?” she asked.
“Don’t reveal your identity before the Great Sect War. Everything else is up
to you,” Wenren È said.
“Great!” Shu Yanyan said with a clap. “I’ve had enough. I want to get out
of here and go back to my cute subordinates, boo-hoo…”
She really did tear up. Ever since she had started cultivating, she had never
been with one man for this long. She had already gotten enough of the
lightning spiritual root and that mysterious power, and risen to the ninth
level of Void Boundary. She’d long since gotten sick of Hè Wenzhao too,
and wouldn’t have forced herself to endure this much if it weren’t for
getting information.
Wenren È shared a glance with Yin Hanjiang, then left the room and cast a
monitoring spell in the adjoining one, to see events unfold.
Wenren È was curious what kind of choice Baili Qingmiao would make this
time, after knowing Hè Wenzhao’s actions.
The other room in Shu Yanyan’s house was a servant’s room, but since she
didn’t have any, it stayed empty, with only one small bed placed in it. After
Wenren È sat down on it, Yin Hanjiang couldn’t stand behind his back
anymore, so stood at his side. Wenren È tugged him down. “Sit.”
Yin Hanjiang, seemingly overwhelmed, sat shoulder-to-shoulder with the

Venerable on that small bed, his throat bobbing slightly, his eyes downcast.
He didn’t dare to look at their shoulders, which were barely half an inch
apart.
They waited for a while, but Hè Wenzhao and Baili Qingmiao still hadn’t
arrived, probably arguing with each other on the way. Wenren È sensed Yin
Hanjiang by his side open his lips slightly, as if he had something to say,
and said, “Just say it.”
Yin Hanjiang, hearing an order from the Venerable, no longer dared to hide
it and after some hesitation, spoke, “The Venerable’s Path of Slaughter is
for the purpose of preventing deaths and protecting living beings, so why
start the Great Sect War and bring chaos to the common people?”
He wasn’t any sort of good person and hadn’t minded earlier when Shu
Yanyan had spoken of exterminating all those righteous sect disciples. No
matter what the Venerable wanted him to do, he had no objections.
But, there was a hint of confusion within his heart, and he didn’t understand
why the Venerable was doing this. If he already knew about the Great Sect
War, couldn’t he avoid it? This didn’t seem like the Venerable’s Dao.
Ordinarily Yin Hanjiang would never take the initiative to speak up, but
now the Venerable had asked first. Alkaid should not question Polis, so Yin
Hanjiang decided to confide in the Venerable, and allow him to clear his
doubts.
Wenren È didn’t answer his question, instead asking, “Protector Yin, what
do you think cultivators are?”
Yin Hanjiang thought for a moment. “The elite?”
He had never considered this type of question before. He just knew that
ordinary people would call cultivators “esteemed immortal”, and cultivators
would also think of themselves highly, separating the cultivation world
from the secular world, when they clearly both existed in the mortal realm.
“Wrong,” Wenren È said emotionlessly. “You, I, and the thousands of other

cultivators whether righteous or demonic, are all a pack of petty thieves
who steal opportunities from other lives.”
Yin Hanjiang never realized that Wenren È had this judgment of cultivators.
“Look at the location of Shangqing Sect,” Wenren È said, pointing to the

distant mountains. “How many living beings could be nurtured by this
mountain abundant in spiritual energy and protected for millennia from
natural disasters? If human beings built a city in this area, many millions of
people could be born in it in a thousand years. But Shangqing Sect has less
than a hundred Core Formation and above disciples.”
“The great Dao is emotionless,” Yin Hanjiang said. “The lives and deaths of
mortals are nothing to it.” He pressed his lips together, thinking back to his
slaughtered village. He had spoken of his thoughts toward the heavenly Dao
for the first time.
“That’s true, but the laws of heaven will not allow cultivators to steal
opportunities granted by heaven. If cultivators had no internal strife, and
everyone focused on cultivating in seclusion without disrupting one
another, then after several thousand years, all the spiritual energy in the
world would be completely consumed and not a blade of grass would be
able to grow. There would be no more life in this world,” Wenren È said.
The purpose of the Great Sect War was not for the righteous sects to slay
the demonic, or the demonic sects to slaughter the righteous, but it was that
both sides had found through analyzing signs that another heavenly
calamity was imminent, and if they didn’t relieve pressure through
infighting, many more cultivators would die in heaven’s judgment, until the
world had no more cultivators, and no more human beings.
Stealing from heaven, deceiving heaven, robbing heaven, that was the true
nature of cultivators. They tried to maintain a balance with the laws of
heaven, seeking a way of survival.
“Whether or not this Venerable dies in this battle, my spiritual energy would
still belong to this world. If I died and all my cultivation was lost, the place
where I was buried would nurture countless lives in a hundred years,”
Wenren È said.
He looked calm and indifferent, unconcerned about life or death.
Yin Hanjiang felt a pang of pain in his heart, however, and clutched the
demon sword. “This subordinate will not let the Venerable die.”
“This Venerable knows.”
In the book, Yin Hanjiang had proven his loyalty to Wenren È with his life.
Wenren È patted the back of his hand, and his voice held a rare warm tone.
“If this Venerable is gone, you can follow me.”
Don’t be like in the book, living half a life on the order of the Lord of
Demons.
Yin Hanjiang, hearing these words from Wenren È, unintentionally showed

a look of relief and said solemnly, “Thank you, Venerable.”
1. From what I can find, the Violet Palace refers to the upper dantian which
is in the head, but who cares. Anyway for this story’s purposes, it’s a part of
the dantian, in the abdomen. ↩
2. Like ley lines. ↩
3. Referring to the afterlife. Spider lilies are said to bloom on the path to the
underworld. ↩
4. A star of the Big Dipper. Also called the Greedy Wolf Star in Chinese. ↩
Wants to Know
Chapter 11 – Escape by feigning death
When reading the book, Wenren È had felt that Baili Qingmiao’s awareness
wasn’t consistent and had an obvious bias. Toward Hè Wenzhao, her fellow
disciples, or some of the female rivals, she acted like a fool and believed
everything she heard. But whenever Hè Wenzhao had any suspicious
contact with another woman, Baili Qingmiao became unusually perceptive,
able to notice something was wrong in an instant. When she was with Hè
Wenzhao, she could always tell when her love rivals were making advances
toward him.
If Baili Qingmiao hadn’t been sent off by Wenren È, to leave and travel for
six months, there was no way Hè Wenzhao could’ve messed around all day
with Shu Yanyan. It would’ve taken only one or two times for Baili
Qingmiao to notice.
And indeed, she figured out something was wrong right upon returning. The
entire way down the mountain, Hè Wenzhao tried to obstruct Baili
Qingmiao, but wasn’t able to. He could only watch as his shimei leapt onto
the Moonlit Frost Silk and burst through Shu Yanyan’s window without
warning. Shu Yanyan was currently taking off her earrings in a mirror.
She leapt up, hearing the window fly open, and saw a furious Baili
Qingmiao, and Hè Wenzhao rushing in after her, while winking furiously at
Shu Yanyan.
Shu Yanyan pretended to not see Hè Wenzhao, freezing up the moment she
laid eyes on Baili Qingmiao. Tears instantly rolled down her cheeks. Her
legs wobbled, and she fell to her knees.
Miss Shu was always a considerate person. Hè Wenzhao had originally
wanted to hint at her to not say anything while Baili Qingmiao was
distracted questioning her, but it turned out Miss Shu didn’t even see him,
already too terrified by Baili Qingmiao.
“Miss Shu, you don’t have to be so polite even if you’re grateful to me,” Hè
Wenzhao hurriedly said.
“You shut your mouth!” Baili Qingmiao said, shooting a glare at Hè

Wenzhao.
She walked over to Shu Yanyan and said coldly, “Why are you kneeling to
me?”
Shu Yanyan said nothing. She was sobbing so hard she couldn’t take a
breath, and with a soft cry, she fainted on the floor.
Baili Qingmiao scooped up that little white flower Shu Yanyan with one
arm and pinched the space between her nose and lips hard, waking her. She
set her on a chair and said coldly, “Miss Shu, you’re a civilian. I wouldn’t
harm you however angry I was. You don’t need to cry.”
Despite those words, Shu Yanyan started crying again. “Miss Baili,” she
sobbed, “you’re the one who saved my life. I—I cannot face you.”
Hè Wenzhao paled, hearing Shu Yanyan’s words. He clenched a fist, and

were Baili Qingmiao not there, he didn’t know what he might’ve done.
Shu Yanyan glanced at Hè Wenzhao’s expression from the corner of her eye
and chuckled inwardly.
They had known each other for six months. Shu Yanyan had known
countless men, and figured out Hè Wenzhao’s true nature at a glance.
Hè Wenzhao really did love Baili Qingmiao and would always love her
more than anyone. The two were childhood sweethearts who no one else
could easily get between. But Hè Wenzhao felt there was a clear distinction
between his body and his heart. He thought that since he only loved Baili
Qingmiao, his heart was pure, and he had done nothing wrong toward Baili
Qingmiao. Shu Yanyan was just a temporary mix-up and a way to boost his
cultivation. With his shimei gone, Hè Wenzhao would say all the sweet
words in the world to lure Shu Yanyan to his side, but now that shimei was
back, Shu Yanyan was dirty laundry he had to cover up at all costs, and he
had no feelings to spare for her.
When secretly seeking pleasure, it was only pleasurable if you could keep it
hidden. Otherwise it was nothing but trouble.
“Why can’t you face me?” Baili Qingmiao turned to give Hè Wenzhao a
look, then turned her gaze back to Shu Yanyan.
“I…” Shu Yanyan said hesitantly, then stopped.
“Miss Shu, I will use a truth spell. The truth spell has no effect on someone
of a higher level or stronger spiritual cognition than me, but against an
ordinary person, I can get anything I want answered,” Baili Qingmiao said.
Hè Wenzhao, hearing this, continued winking madly at Shu Yanyan. He

made a hand seal, trying his best to tell Shu Yanyan that his level was
higher than his shimei’s, and he could break the truth spell. Shu Yanyan
could say any lie she liked. If anything happened, he would take
responsibility.
In Hè Wenzhao’s mind, Miss Shu had always been a nice and obedient girl,
and she knew she wasn’t worthy for Hè Wenzhao. She wouldn’t try to
compete with Baili Qingmiao for him. At this time, she wouldn’t be willing
to or have the guts to speak the truth.
Unfortunately, Shu Yanyan failed to see him again, only staring at Baili
Qingmiao with watery eyes. “Miss Baili,” she said softly, “I’m a little
thirsty. Will you let me have a few sips of tea before I start talking?”
“Go ahead, I have time to wait,” Baili Qingmiao said, stepping back.
Shu Yanyan rose gracefully and took a tea bag out of a box, putting it in a
pot. After the tea was brewed, she drank it slowly.
She looked toward Baili Qingmiao with a bleak expression and said quietly,
“Ever since that meeting in the tea house half a year ago, I have not been
able to forget Miss Baili’s heroism. After I fell that day, when Miss Baili
carried me up to the second floor and demanded justice for me, I felt so
happy.”
Seeing her in this state, Baili Qingmiao’s expression softened, and she
pulled over another chair to sit in front of Shu Yanyan. Hè Wenzhao also
relaxed, feeling that Miss Shu wouldn’t say anything out of place.
“Back then I thought, if I could live like Miss Baili, it would be so

wonderful.” Shu Yanyan looked sadly toward Baili Qingmiao, reaching out
a pale and ice-cold hand to wrap around Baili Qingmiao’s.
Baili Qingmiao didn’t pull away.
She started to think that perhaps she had misunderstood. Her shijies’
feelings for her shixiong were all written on their faces, plain at a glance,
and Baili Qingmiao could see them clear as day. But Miss Shu’s eyes held
no love for her shixiong, only admiration for Baili Qingmiao. And she was
such a self-respecting woman; she couldn’t do something like this.
However, Shu Yanyan’s words took a turn. She shook her head and said,
“But in the end I’m not Miss Baili. I’m so low, so selfish, so weak. In this
world, I can’t even live without someone to depend on.”
“Shimei, I saw that too, so I helped Miss Shu buy a house,” Hè Wenzhao
said, taking over. “I come check on her once in a while and try to make her
life a bit more comfortable. She’s someone you saved, so as your shixiong,
I can’t let your kindness amount to nothing.”
Baili Qingmiao’s thoughts were in a tangle and she actually believed these
words. She looked ashamed and said, “Shixiong, I misjudged you. I’m
sorry.”
Wenren È frowned, watching from the other room. He really wanted to give
Baili Qingmiao a whack on the head. Things would be so much easier if she
was dead.
“Protector Yin, would you believe something like this? Can love really
make people so brainless?” Wenren È really didn’t get it, and couldn’t help
transmitting this question to the only other person there.
“This subordinate believes anything the Venerable says, and hears not a
word of anything anyone else says,” Yin Hanjiang answered.
Wenren È shook his head. He shouldn’t have asked Yin Hanjiang—there

really was no point to it.
Meanwhile, Shu Yanyan watched as Baili Qingmiao and Hè Wenzhao

embraced each other, all lovey-dovey again after their conflict was solved.
Even while hugging Baili Qingmiao, Hè Wenzhao remembered to give Shu
Yanyan an appreciative glance.
Shu Yanyan returned a beautiful but odd smile. Blood dripped from the
corner of her mouth.
“Miss Shu!” Only after Baili Qingmiao had hugged her shixiong for a while
did she realize something was wrong. She turned and got a shock to see Shu
Yanyan start bleeding from the nose and mouth.
She glanced over to the pot of tea and poured it out to discover the teabag
inside actually held deadly poison.
Baili Qingmiao frantically held Shu Yanyan, one hand placed against her
back, trying to use spiritual energy to remove the poison from her system.
Shu Yanyan shook her head with difficulty. She lifted a hand and softly
touched Baili Qingmiao’s face. “I really wanted to be you,” she said with a
faint smile. “But… my life is… thin as paper. Couldn’t be you… I’m too
ashamed… to live… I hope… in the next life…”
Before she could say what she hoped, her eyes closed and the life drained
from her.
“Miss Shu, why did you take such a desperate way out? I didn’t want to
hurt you. Even if you and shixiong really… I would’ve just backed off
quietly, so why did you?” Baili Qingmiao felt Shu Yanyan’s cold fingers
slide from her face, her heart freezing over.
Hè Wenzhao also couldn’t have guessed that Miss Shu would use such a
method to cover up their secret. Until the end, she never spoke of her
relationship with Hè Wenzhao, only her admiration toward Baili Qingmiao.
She hadn’t even glanced at Hè Wenzhao.
Hè Wenzhao also knelt down and said solemnly, “Miss Shu must’ve been
harmed by someone while I wasn’t around. Shimei, we need to avenge
her!”
Wenren È: …
Hold on, how did Hè Wenzhao come to that judgment?
Baili Qingmiao held up the teabag she’d just fished out from the pot. “Look
at this mark. This is the tea Shangqing Sect gives to disciples who can’t
practice inedia yet!”
“And there’s this!” Baili Qingmiao took a purse off Shu Yanyan’s belt and
opened it to reveal a strand of hair inside. “Shixiong, isn’t this your hair?”
“Shimei, don’t be suspicious of every little thing!” Hè Wenzhao said,

grabbing her frantically. “I gave her the teabag. It was what I had left over
from before I established my foundation. Spiritual tea is beneficial to the
body. Miss Shu had fallen from the second story, and I was afraid she’d hurt
her vital energies, so I gave her this tea to help her recover. I have no idea
why the tea would be poisoned, or whose hair is in her purse!”
Baili Qingmiao threw off Hè Wenzhao’s embrace. Holding Shu Yanyan’s

body, she shook her head, saying tearfully, “Shixiong, I don’t want to look
at you right now. I’ll—I’ll go give Miss Shu a proper burial.”
She left the house with Shu Yanyan. Hè Wenzhao went after her, but she
had somehow disappeared without a trace despite having just left, and he
had no idea where she went.
This was due to Wenren È casting an illusion spell, preventing him from
following Baili Qingmiao.
Baili Qingmiao’s heart was a tangle of emotions. She arrived at a coffin

shop in the dead of night, took a coffin after tossing down a silver piece,
and placed Shu Yanyan inside.
Carrying the coffin with one hand, she flew to the cemetery near the town
and dug a grave with the Moonlit Frost Silk, setting the coffin carefully
inside.
She stared at the coffin for a long time without covering it with dirt. A voice
came from behind her. “I can teach you the soul imprisoning technique, so
you can capture her soul before it enters the underworld and get to the truth
of matters. A living person can lie, but a dead soul won’t dare before the
soul imprisoning technique.”
Baili Qingmiao turned and saw Wenren È standing behind her. “Senior,”
she said quietly.
“I’ve used an illusion to trick Hè Wenzhao, preventing him from following

you,” Wenren È said. “You can ask questions without fear of him finding
out.”
“Will it cause harm to Miss Shu’s soul?” Baili Qingmiao asked.
“Naturally. After the soul imprisoning technique is used, she’ll miss the
emissaries of the afterlife and never be able to reincarnate,” Wenren È said,
unconcerned.
“I can’t do that,” Baili Qingmiao said. “Miss Shu has had a hard life. I’ll
send her soul on, hoping she’ll be born into a better family next life.”
“You don’t want to know the truth?” Wenren È said.
Baili Qingmiao wordlessly bowed her head, looking at Shu Yanyan’s coffin.
She raised her hand and tossed the first handful of dirt onto it, as if she was
trying to bury the doubts in her heart.
Actually, Shu Yanyan’s words and actions all that time had been telling
Baili Qingmiao that she’d had relations with Hè Wenzhao. And because she
respected Baili Qingmiao, she felt too ashamed and therefore chose to take
her own life with poison before she could be questioned. Baili Qingmiao
had guessed all this, but she didn’t want to believe it without substantial
proof.
“Find out the truth, and if Hè Wenzhao really betrayed you, I’ll help you
kill him.” Wenren È stood behind Baili Qingmiao, his low voice like the
whispers of a demon.
A shiver ran through Baili Qingmiao and she frantically shook her head.
“No no, even if shixiong really cheated on me, we only had a verbal
agreement and private plans. We aren’t yet cultivation partners. At most,
we’ll each go our own ways. How can I kill him? Plus, shixiong didn’t
necessarily… maybe someone else really set him up. Shixiong is a
gentleman—he wouldn’t take advantage of someone.”
Wenren È raised an eyebrow. He heard Shu Yanyan sigh inside the coffin. It
seemed the Right Protector also thought Baili Qingmiao had mental issues.
“If you really like Hè Wenzhao, there’s another method,” Wenren È said.
“Turn him into a puppet, so he’ll listen only to you and love only you, and
never betray you for the rest of his life. Isn’t that better?”
Baili Qingmiao was taken aback. “Senior, how can you think like that?
Love is built on both sides’ willingness, it must never be forced!”
“Then suit yourself,” Wenren È said, flashing away and leaving Baili
Qingmiao to engrave a headstone for Shu Yanyan alone.
After they left the small town by Shangqing Sect, Shu Yanyan caught up
shortly and they returned to Xuanyuan Sect’s main hall. Shu Yanyan rolled
her eyes and said, “Baili Qingmiao sure is stubborn. What exactly is good
about Hè Wenzhao? This Protector has gotten so sick of that lovey-dovey
act. Now that I’m finally back, I’m going to have a feast before the Great
Sect War, and taste a few dishes at once!”
Wenren È said, “You don’t get it either? This Venerable thought you would
understand Baili Qingmiao’s thoughts, since you’re both women.”
“Venerable, if I professed undying love to a man, it would be because he

has some value to me,” Shu Yanyan said firmly. “If I can get Shangqing
Sect by flattering Hè Wenzhao, I’ll flatter him any way I can.”
As she was talking, she called over her favorite subordinate, an

extraordinarily good-looking man. She held his chin and said, “Dear, tell
this Protector, what do you like about me?”
Her subordinate was at Nascent Soul stage. He wrapped his arms around
Shu Yanyan and said, “Of course, that the Protector is brilliant, powerful,
and beautiful without compare. This subordinate admires the Protector from
the bottom of his heart.”
“Speak properly,” Wenren È said.
The man knelt down with a plop, not daring to speak a word of a lie before
Wenren È. “Naturally because I have benefits, I can raise my cultivation,
and the Protector is an incomparable beauty. It’s not a bad deal for me.”
Shu Yanyan didn’t mind at all, pulling up her subordinate. “I really like the
way you know what’s what.”
“Why didn’t you expose your relationship with Hè Wenzhao, and make
Baili Qingmiao truly give up on him?” Wenren È asked.
“For the Great Sect War, of course!” Shu Yanyan said. “This subordinate
was concerned that Hè Wenzhao’s mental state would be disrupted by
fighting with Baili Qingmiao, and Shangqing Sect would change their plans
and not let him participate in the array. The position of each disciple in the
Spirit Severing Array has to be carefully calculated, and the entire layout
has to be changed if one person is changed. This subordinate can’t mess up
Hè Wenzhao at this point. Without the matter exposed, he can coax Baili
Qingmiao back to his side and keep his spot in the Spirit Severing Array.”
She was going to strike a major blow against the righteous sects in the great
war in order to gain prestige in her sect. How could she let her plans be
ruined by something so small?
Hearing her mention the Great Sect War, Wenren È said, “Inform the four
Altar Masters to prepare for battle!”
Shu Yanyan didn’t have time for fun when there was work to be done. She
patted her subordinate on the chest and said, “Call over a few capable
people and wait for me at the energy gathering array in my cultivation
grounds.”
Her subordinate left happily. Wenren È saw Shu Yanyan’s indifferent

attitude and silently approved. This was the way a demonic cultivator
should be.
The four Altar Masters, after receiving Wenren È’s orders, immediately
gathered at the meeting hall. Before starting the meeting, Wenren È made
sure to commend Shu Yanyan’s sacrifice for her mission and allowed her to
cultivate for ten years in the Xuanyuan Sect’s forbidden grounds.
Every major sect had immortal artifacts, and Xuanyuan Sect, as the number
one evil sect, naturally had a demonic artifact defending it. Located in the
forbidden grounds was the demonic weapon, the Burning Sky Drum. It was
said that during a war in the immortal realm, the blood of countless
immortals and demons, filled with spiritual energy, solidified into this
drum. It held terrifying power, but no one in the Xuanyuan Sect dared to
sound it, only cultivating on its surface.
Back when Wenren È dueled the old sect master of the Xuanyuan Sect, the
sect master used the Burning Sky Drum in desperation and actually
managed to cause Wenren È quite a bit of trouble. But before the sect
master managed to kill Wenren È, the fighting spirit of demons and
immortals that lingered inside the drum invaded his mind and, in a moment
of distraction, he found himself on that ancient battleground. After he
suffered qi deviation, the heavily injured Wenren È shattered his soul with
one blow.
The drum was excellent to cultivate on, but if one used it, they would risk
their life.
After obtaining this reward from Wenren È, Shu Yanyan giddily thanked
him. She glanced over at the other Altar Masters and said, grinning, “After
this period of cultivation, I might just reach Mahayana stage.”
“Sure, and get killed by lightning in your next heavenly tribulation,” said
Altar Master Qiu Congxue.
She was the only female cultivator among the four Altar Masters and
cultivated an entirely different path from Shu Yanyan. She and Shu Yanyan
could never get along. Additionally, being already at Mahayana, she was
stronger than Shu Yanyan.
Shu Yanyan was a bit afraid of Qiu Congxue. She cultivated the Asura path,
the most difficult within the ghost path. In order to reach Mahayana, she
had willingly entered the hungry ghost path[1]. Fifty years later, when she
emerged, all that was left of her body was a skeleton and a perfectly
undamaged head.
Qiu Congxue’s subordinates were also ghost cultivators, each and every one
of them wrapped in black robes. Their heads might be normal, but who
knew what their bodies looked like underneath.
Wenren È glanced over his six subordinates, each scheming against each
other, all openly hostile with no sense of camaraderie, and secretly very
much approved. This was how demonic cultivators should be.
Out of curiosity, he directed a question at Qiu Congxue. “Altar Master Qiu,

if you had a lover, and he betrayed you for another woman, yet with his
words he kept insisting that he really did love you, what would you do?”
Qiu Congxue’s face was pale and her voice ghastly. “This subordinate
would never have any lovers, but if I did, I would turn him into a ghost,
refine him into a magic item, and keep him in my robes.”
Shu Yanyan gulped. She knew Qiu Congxue’s robes were full of evil spirits
and her bones!
Wenren È sighed inwardly. There really was no point asking these

subordinates of his.
1. Both the Asura path and the hungry ghost path are part of the six paths of
reincarnation in Buddhism. ↩
Wants to Know
Chapter 12 – The coming storm
As Altar Master Yuan managed the main hall, he had the most contact with
Wenren È and was the best at guessing his intentions. Seeing the Venerable
look at them with an expression of ‘I can’t believe you’re all so useless’, he
hurriedly said, “Is the Venerable speaking of a woman? There won’t be
much use in asking Protector Shu or Altar Master Qiu about women. The
Venerable should ask this subordinate instead.”
Shu Yanyan and Qiu Congxue looked at Altar Master Yuan. What do you
mean, not much use in asking them about women? Aren’t they women?
Altar Master Yuan paid no attention to those two needle-like gazes on him
and continued, “If this subordinate may be so bold, what does the Venerable
need this woman to do?”
“Not much, just forget a man,” said Wenren È.
Altar Master Yuan was short and plump, like a jolly next-door uncle. His
eyes squinted when he smiled, making him look kindly, but his next words
were anything but. “This subordinate sees two methods. The first, kill that
man. The second, find another man, and make this woman fall in love with
him.”
Wenren È thought for a moment. The first method wouldn’t work for now.
Baili Qingmiao loved Hè Wenzhao deeply, and if Hè Wenzhao died now,
Baili Qingmiao’s heart would be stuck on him forever, and she would be
trapped by her obsession and unable to pass her inner demon tribulation at
the Nascent Soul stage. The second method, though, had some merit. But
where to find that man?
Abusive Romance‘s love interest number one Hè Wenzhao, number two
Wenren È, and number four Yin Hanjiang were already struck from the
running. Number five was currently less than a week old and couldn’t
qualify, so the only one left was number three, Zhongli Qian.
But Zhongli Qian had debuted even later than number five. It had been the
day Hè Wenzhao wedded the Violet Spirit Pavilion Master. He came to
offer congratulations on behalf of the number one cultivation clan, the
Zhongli clan, and met Baili Qingmiao, who had been confined to the back
mountains by Hè Wenzhao and was trying to escape. That was still fifty
years in the future.
Wenren È didn’t have the patience to wait fifty years. He decided that after
he recovered from the injuries he would sustain in the Great Sect War, he
would go kidnap Zhongli Qian from the Zhongli clan and throw him at
Baili Qingmiao, to wait for them to slowly develop feelings for each other.
“This method might work.” Wenren È gave Altar Master Yuan an

appreciative look. “Avoid discussing this matter for now. Right now, we
should focus on the Great Sect War. After the war, everyone will be
rewarded appropriately for their efforts.”
“Understood!” said the five in unison.
For the rest of the meeting, Shu Yanyan revealed the righteous sects’ plans,
the Altar Masters offered their own ideas, and they finally settled on a battle
plan. After they had each been assigned their duties, they went their
separate ways.
After leaving the meeting room, Altar Master Yuan came up to Shu Yanyan
and asked, “Protector Shu, is there a woman who has caught the Venerable’s
eye?”
“What?” Shu Yanyan gave him a sideways look. “Do you want to take
advantage of his weakness of heart to harm him?”
Shu Yanyan spoke very frankly, but Altar Master Yuan waved his hands and
said, “No, no, how could that be?”
While they were talking, the other three Altar Masters also walked up. Even
the frosty Qiu Congxue had a look of “I heard someone plotting against the
Lord of Demons and I’m interested” on her face. Four pairs of eyes
watched Shu Yanyan intently.
Shu Yanyan sighed. “You’re overthinking it. Trust my years of experience.

The Venerable probably isn’t interested in that girl, he just wants her as a
disciple. He’s set on having a righteous sect disciple switch to cultivating
the Path of Indifference, and I have no idea why either.”
The four Altar Masters’ enthusiasm vanished immediately. Taking a disciple

was nothing interesting. Demonic cultivators didn’t worry about continuing
a heritage like the righteous sects. They stole their cultivation methods, and
would pass them on to their underlings if they felt like it. Did that count as
disciples?
“Why does the Venerable want to take a disciple, then?” asked Altar Master
Yuan. “He cultivates the Path of Slaughter. Does he want his disciple to kill
him?”
“How would I know? In any case, that girl’s aptitudes really are
exceptional. She established a foundation at eighteen and formed a golden
core the same year. It’s just that her brain is filled with a man,” Shu Yanyan
said with a shrug, then left quickly. She still had a feast waiting for her!
The other Altar Masters all nodded as they heard Baili Qingmiao’s speed of
advancement. That kind of talent really was worth paying attention to. It
wasn’t too strange that the Venerable would be tempted to take on a disciple
for fun.
After all his subordinates left, only Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang were left in
the meeting room. “There should still be two or three months before the
Great Sect War,” Wenren È said. “In this time, you should do your best to
break through to Void Boundary stage, so as to add to our combat strength.”
“Understood,” Yin Hanjiang said.

“This Venerable will take you someplace.” Wenren È stood and led Yin
Hanjiang to the back mountains of Xuanyuan Sect.
There was a ravine running through the mountains, the bottom of which
was obscured by blackness and could not be seen. This was quite illogical.
Even an ordinary person should’ve been able to see the bottom under
sunlight, not to mention a cultivator could use their spiritual cognition to
sense something even their eyes couldn’t perceive.
Wenren È stepped into the ravine and Yin Hanjiang followed, with no sign
of hesitation at the foreboding depths.
After he flew for what felt like several dozen meters, he landed on a flat,
hard surface which didn’t feel at all like solid ground.
“Where are we?” Yin Hanjiang said hesitantly.
“Under your feet is the Burning Sky Drum,” said Wenren È. “The legendary
treasure of the Xuanyuan Sect. If back then the old sect master hadn’t tried
to defeat this Venerable using it, this Venerable would never have known
where it was hidden.”
This was the demonic artifact of the Xuanyuan Sect, only authorized to be
used by the sect leader. Yin Hanjiang hadn’t thought the Venerable had so
much trust in him that he would lead him to its location.
“The Burning Sky Drum may be called a demonic artifact, but it has also
absorbed much blood from immortals. Whether it’s celestial or demonic in
nature depends on how cultivators use it. For these next few months,
cultivate on the drum by using the demonic energy of the demon sword to
invigorate the immortal energy inside the drum, and raise your own sword
cultivation with the clash of the two forces. At the same time, you can
weaken the demon sword’s essence,” Wenren È said.
Yin Hanjiang had used the demonic sword to forcibly increase his power,
and was already closely linked to it. Even if he created a new weapon, he
would have a hard time bonding with it due to it being unable to overcome
the demonic sword’s remnant power.
Only by slowly whittling away at it could he free himself from its influence.
“Venerable…” Yin Hanjiang stood on the Burning Sky Drum, gazing at

Wenren È.
In all the years Xuanyuan Sect had had the Burning Sky Drum, no one had
been allowed to see it beside the sect leader. Wenren È allowing Shu
Yanyan to cultivate on it was already quite an exception. Yin Hanjiang had
never thought he’d stand here before Shu Yanyan.
He didn’t say anything about whether or not he was worthy or whether or

not he dared. The Venerable had already said, that whether or not he was
worthy was up to the Venerable to decide.
Yin Hanjiang firmed his expression, cupped his hands together, and knelt
on one knee. He said solemnly, “This subordinate will put every effort
toward breaking through to Void Boundary stage, to sweep away all in the
Venerable’s path come the great war.”
“This Venerable doesn’t need you to be so desperate.” Wenren È raised a

hand slightly, and a force lifted Yin Hanjiang to his feet. “Cultivate well.
This Venerable will be waiting for you to treat his injuries after the war.”
Wenren È didn’t want to be saved by Baili Qingmiao this time. It was

enough to owe her for starting his cultivation; he couldn’t afford owing his
life to her too. In the book, Wenren È was saddled with two heavy debts,
which triggered a love tribulation and made him want to give up everything
for Baili Qingmiao.
Speaking of which…
Wenren È took out the book, tapping his fingers on the cover, suddenly
remembering that the book foretold something else, the arrival of his love
tribulation.
Were it not for every factor being right, how could Wenren È fall in love
with Baili Qingmiao? He had met her quite a few times by now, but never
had the slightest feeling toward her.
He didn’t know whether this love tribulation would still arrive, and who
would be the target.
Wenren È tried to guess but only came to the conclusion that the mysteries
of heaven could not be comprehended by mortals, and even he didn’t know
what would come in the future.
Putting away Abusive Romance, Wenren È said to Yin Hanjiang, “You focus
on cultivating. This Venerable will protect you.”
Yin Hanjiang, hearing that he would be protected by his Venerable, felt

deeply touched. He stared at the demon sword in his hand. If it weren’t for
him being so weak that he could not suppress the demon sword, the
Venerable wouldn’t have to expend so much effort on him.
Wenren È left the ravine and sat cross-legged on a mountain peak, closing
his eyes and entering meditation as well, as he sensed Yin Hanjiang’s aura
below.
Before long, he faintly heard the sounds of war drums, clashing blades, and
roars that shook heaven and earth. The memories of the Demonic War
within the Burning Sky Drum had been reawakened by the demon sword,
creating an illusory realm.
Yin Hanjiang’s sword aura was vanishingly weak within the illusion, like
something was obstructing it. Wenren È opened his eyes and raised the
Seven Killing Halberd. Killing intent surged around him, like a beacon to
illuminate a path for Yin Hanjiang.
Yin Hanjiang was trapped in the illusion. He felt tiny among mountains of
corpses, turning over bodies and searching for his Venerable, panic rising in
his heart. As he was on the verge of despair, Polis shone in the sky, and a
familiar aura called him back to awareness.
That’s right, the Venerable was protecting him while he cultivated.
Yin Hanjiang made a hand seal and the demonic sword appeared. He
gripped the sword that had tried to drive him toward madness with this
illusion and raised it toward the sky, a bloody aura surging around him.
With a single slash, he dispersed the illusion around him.
Wenren È, feeling that familiar unwavering aura, showed a barely

perceptible smile. Resting his halberd against the ground, he stood on the
summit, silently watching over Yin Hanjiang.
He stood there for three months.
He stood there until a message came from Shu Yanyan, reporting that the
righteous sects had made their move. Their Core Formation and above
disciples had gathered and were now heading toward Xuanyuan Sect.
“You confront the enemy first. This Venerable will need a few more days,”
Wenren È said, not acknowledging Shu Yanyan’s urgency, the halberd in his
hand remaining perfectly still.
The Great Sect War would last for ten years, so a few days would make no
difference.
Shu Yanyan received the Venerable’s response and wanted to rip her hair
out. As the master of the demonic sects, shouldn’t he be eager to personally
massacre the righteous sects right now? What was worth waiting for?
Shouldn’t they take their chance before the high-level experts showed up to
shred the Deity Transformation and below cultivators and show off the
power of the demonic sects?
After fuming for a while, she sent a talisman with Wenren È’s order to the
four Altar Masters, then picked up a veil and placed it over her face.
One of her underlings came and wrapped his arms around her waist,
nibbling her ear. “Protector, why are you wearing a veil? It’s a shame to
cover such a pretty face.”
Shu Yanyan chuckled. “I’m going to break the Spirit Severing Array with
Qiu Congxue. There’s someone there who I don’t want to see me for now.”
“Eh?” the subordinate said, puzzled. “How could there be someone who the
Protector is afraid to face?”
Shu Yanyan held his chin, her smile fading and the look in her eyes
becoming sharp. “It’s not fear. Sometimes, it’s more fun to save a dessert
for last.”
After Shu Yanyan met with Qiu Congxue, they headed to the location of
Xuanyuan Sect’s spiritual veins. Before long, a horde of righteous sect
disciples approached, led by a Body Unity stage elder. Shu Yanyan, seeing
them approach, said warily and somewhat frantically, “The Xuanyuan Sect
lies this way. You are forbidden to advance!”
The elder said, “This is the wicked temptress who practices seductive arts.
Everyone, recite the Clear Mind Spell and concentrate on the array. Do not
fall for her temptations!”
The disciples obeyed, taking their places according to their plan. The 108
disciples carried 108 demon subduing flags, inserting them into the spiritual
veins’ intersection points and circulating their spiritual energy, forming the
Spirit Severing Array.
Hè Wenzhao was reciting the Clear Mind Spell in his mind, but he still felt
irritable.
Baili-shimei had been bickering with him for three months now. No matter
how he tried to explain his relationship with Shu Yanyan, no matter how he
tried to win her over, Baili Qingmiao always shook her head with
disappointment and said she wanted to be alone.
If he sucked up to her too much, she would give him a pained look and say,
“Aren’t you sad at all that Miss Shu died?”
Of course he was sad, she had a rare nine yin body and Hè Wenzhao could
raise his cultivation at incredible speeds with her. How could he not feel
dejected? But right now whether he said he was sad or not, it was a lose-
lose situation. If he said he was, his shimei would say, “you really were
involved with her”; if he said he wasn’t, shimei would say, “you’re too cold,
not feeling sad at all when a woman you knew died in front of you.”
Hè Wenzhao understood Baili Qingmiao. She was a cute girl, just

sometimes she really was quite a hassle. So he answered her, “I was
acquainted with Miss Shu and she died so brutally in front of us. I’m not a
heartless person, so there’s no way I couldn’t be saddened. But we must
look to the future, shimei. This is the path of a cultivator, and we’ll
probably have to face many more deaths in the future. We must learn to let
go of life and death.”
He cleverly turned the problem from Baili Qingmiao’s suspicion of him to

her weakness in the face of death. His shimei always listened to him, so she
really did start to consider her views on life and death instead and let go of
the matter over time.
Unfortunately, she still hadn’t forgiven him. He hoped that by the end of the
war, after shimei had experienced the fear of losing him, she would treasure
their relationship more.
Hè Wenzhao wasn’t concerned about Baili Qingmiao’s safety. She was at

the rearmost lines with Yao Wendan, preparing to tend to injured disciples,
the safest place she could be. Hè Wenzhao was also quite safe. After the
Spirit Severing Array was set up, the demonic sects wouldn’t have access to
natural spiritual energy and would soon be routed. The 108 demon subduing
flags would raise barriers to protect the disciples in the array. This was an
immortal-level array, and even if the Lord of Demons himself came, he
might not necessarily be able to break it.
With the protection of a Body Unity stage elder, the two demonic sect
women were unable to stop them. The formation was complete in no time,
and all the spiritual energy of the Xuanyuan Sect’s mountain range
vanished.
Hè Wenzhao looked at the two women being beaten black and blue by the
elder and thought the one in the veil looked somewhat familiar. Perhaps he
had bumped into her once while fighting demonic cultivators.
Realizing he was spacing out, he hurriedly recited the Clear Mind Spell and
concentrated on maintaining the array.
The elder noticed the array was complete and quickly retreated, planning to
fall behind its barrier. However, the black-robed woman who he had been
beating so handily suddenly smiled ghoulishly at him. Her black robe blew
open, exposing an eerie set of white bones and countless hungry ghosts
winding around her body.
The woman only had a head. Below it, there was no flesh at all.
Qiu Congxue extended a hand and seized the elder’s shoulder with bony
fingers. Hungry ghosts leapt onto his body from her fingertips, their ghastly
wails chilling his very soul. He tried to disperse them with a spell, but a
wave of wicked energy entered his dantian and he found himself unable to
use any of his spiritual energy.
“The Asura Path… you—you’re Qiu Congxue, the Mahayana ghost

cultivator!” The elder tried to shout for the disciples behind him to retreat,
but a hungry ghost bit down on his tongue, preventing him from speaking.
How could a Mahayana stage cultivator be beaten by him, and how could
one let them successfully set up an array? The demonic cultivators had
planned this!
This was bad…
That was the elder’s final thought. Surrounded by countless hungry ghosts,
his consciousness gradually faded, and he was pulled into the hungry ghost
path.
The elder was from Biluo Valley. Seeing him die, the Biluo Valley disciples
were horrified, yelling, “Shishu!”
“Shh…” A white bone finger was placed against a crying disciple’s mouth
across the barrier. The pale woman bared pure white teeth in a smile and
said, “Take care with the array. Don’t let your shishu die for nothing. And
don’t even think about abandoning the formation and running. Right now,
the array is protecting you, but if even one flag is removed, each and every
one of you will die. I won’t let a single person escape.”
She still had many hungry ghosts under her robes, and before long they had
surrounded the area in all directions. The Spirit Severing Array was
enveloped by a bloody haze that the disciples could no longer see through.
They could only maintain the formation.
They were the ones who severed the spiritual veins, so why did it feel like
they had fallen into a trap instead?
The 108 disciples heard Qiu Congxue’s voice resonate through the bloody
mist. “If the righteous sects want to incite war, our Xuanyuan Sect
welcomes them with open doors. But we’d rather you come at us in a
straightforward battle. I’m not a fan of underhanded tricks like severing
spiritual veins.”
Hè Wenzhao immediately said, “Nobody panic! She can’t break through the
Spirit Severing Array. We just need to maintain it, and after our elders win,
they’ll come to save us! Even wandering immortals have mobilized, so a
mere Mahayana cultivator is nothing! Her words were trying to shake us
and prevent us from maintaining the array, so she can win without raising a
finger. Don’t fall for it!”
His words reassured the group of disciples, who immediately sealed their
senses and focused on the array. The power of the barrier strengthened,
preventing the vengeful ghosts from approaching.
Shu Yanyan had one of her subordinates bring out a couch and lounged on
it, watching Qiu Congxue scare the righteous sect disciples. She couldn’t
help letting out a yawn, and said, “We really are huge villains, huh?”
“What?” Qiu Congxue’s ice-cold gaze swept over Shu Yanyan’s body.
“Nothing,” Shu Yanyan said, propping her chin in one hand. “This is the
true nature of us demonic cultivators. I like being the bad guy.”
“Be patient, don’t ruin the Venerable’s plan,” Qiu Congxue warned. “He
wants to lure out the high-level experts of the righteous sects to fight them
face-to-face.”
“Tch, he himself has no idea what he’s doing,” Shu Yanyan said, rolling her
eyes in an unattractive manner.
Said Lord of Demons stood guard at the top of the ravine. The Spirit
Severing Array had not affected the energy of the Burning Sky Drum, so he
stood patiently for another forty-nine days, until he saw a sword aura pierce
through the black fog of the ravine. Yin Hanjiang flew up on his sword,
stopping in front of Wenren È.
The demonic energy of that restless demon sword was very weak. Yin
Hanjiang held it tightly in his hand, and it was unable to rebel anymore.
“Second level of Void Boundary.” Pleased, Wenren È clapped Yin Hanjiang

on the shoulder. With a flick of his sleeves, he turned around and called,
“Join this Venerable in battle!”

Wants to Know
Chapter 13 – Alkaid paves the way
Only now did Wenren È take out the message talismans sent by the four
Altar Masters and the Right Protector, and break one at random to listen to.
Shu Yanyan’s exaggeratedly panicked voice came out of it. “My god!
Venerable, the righteous sects have set up a Spirit Severing Array, and I and
Altar Master Qiu have no spiritual energy to use. Oh, I can’t go on! I’ll just
lie here and wait for the Venerable to save us.”
Wenren È: …
Even though he knew it was an act, Yin Hanjiang was still angry. “As one
of the Venerable’s Protectors, you still asked to be saved by him?
Unworthy!”
Wenren È approved of Yin Hanjiang’s words. Shu Yanyan had been top-
notch at acting to hook a man, but her ability to fake a loss in battle was too
poor.
Altar Master Yuan was the opposite. When Wenren È snapped his talisman,
his frantic voice came from within. “Venerable, I encountered a large group
of righteous cultivators while patrolling the northern mountains, each Deity
Transformation or above. Fortunately, two other Altar Masters were there
with me, and we led the rest of the sect into combat, but the natural spiritual
energy was suddenly severed, and we could only use our own to fight! We
can’t last for much longer! We must immediately break the Spirit Severing
Array. This subordinate begs the Venerable to use the Burning Sky Drum!”
According to these two messages, clearly intended for the righteous

cultivators’ ears, Wenren È should be heading toward the Spirit Severing
Array with the Burning Sky Drum, in order to break it as soon as possible.
Therefore, there would certainly be an ambush on the way to the Spirit

Severing Array, with who knew how many high-level cultivators lying in
wait.
Pleased, Wenren È said, “Half a year ago, this Venerable dueled a

wandering immortal in the Thousand Mile Ice Plains. Even though she was
of a higher realm, she offered no improvement to my cultivation. Ordinary
fights are no longer able to make me advance in realm. Hopefully, the
gathered forces of the righteous sects will not disappoint this Venerable.”
He turned into a ray of light and flew at blinding speed toward the Spirit
Severing Array.
Yin Hanjiang chased after him on his sword, but was completely unable to
keep up with Wenren È.
Previous occasions, Wenren È had slowed down to wait for Yin Hanjiang,
but now he didn’t hold back. Just by his own light flash, he could surpass
the speed of Yin Hanjiang’s sword by several dozen times.
Despite having broken through to Void Boundary, despite having awakened

to a higher sword will on the Burning Sky Drum, Yin Hanjiang was still as
powerless as always to keep up with his Venerable.
When Yin Hanjiang caught up to Wenren È, he saw him trapped in an array

by twenty Mahayana and above cultivators.
Seeing this, Yin Hanjiang’s eyes blazed in rage, and drawing upon his
spiritual essence, he was about to charge into the array and fight side by
side with his Venerable.
But just at that moment, he heard a cold and harsh yell. “Stay back!”
Yin Hanjiang froze instantly. Standing outside the array, he saw Wenren È
turn and smile with satisfaction. “This Venerable never expected that the
righteous sects would’ve brought out their highest talents in order to deal
with me. This Venerable is very pleased. Protector Yin, don’t ruin this
Venerable’s fun.”
Yin Hanjiang understood Wenren È. He had followed him for many years,
watching his every action and expression. He could see that the Venerable
really was surprised, and really was eager.
Wenren È had high expectations for this war. In his personal analysis with
Yin Hanjiang, they had figured the righteous sects would send maybe ten
Mahayana cultivators, and perhaps some of Shangqing Sect’s wandering
immortals. Wenren È thought ten was a bit low, as he would have a hard
time breaking through his realm unless he was on the brink of death. At the
least, there were other ordinary disciples to fight.
He and Yin Hanjiang never could’ve predicted that the righteous sects
would mobilize all their forces, and actually send twelve Mahayana
cultivators, eight wandering immortals, and a tenth generation Buddhist
priest. The twenty-one experts had set a spell formation in advance and
trapped Wenren È, swearing to take down the most powerful demonic
cultivator here and now.
In the book, only Shangqing Sect had mobilized their full forces, but this
time the five top righteous sects were throwing all they could at him.
“Hahahahaha!” Wenren È’s laugh echoed through the sky.
Yin Hanjiang heard Wenren È’s joy in his laughter, and could tell that he
truly believed it would be fine if he died in this battle.
This wasn’t what they had planned for! There were too many enemies, and
the Venerable truly faced a threat to his life.
Yin Hanjiang closed his eyes, perfectly still, and opened them a moment
later. His eyes were filled with resolution. Wielding his sword, he continued
his charge toward the formation.
This was the first time he had ever disobeyed Wenren È’s orders. Even if he
were to die, he wanted to die before his Venerable. He couldn’t take looking
on and being unable to do anything as his Venerable faced danger.
“Alkaid has appeared,” said the Jiuxing Sect Master. “If Polis falls, Alkaid
will go mad. The two must be eliminated together, lest Alkaid bring disaster
to the human realm.”
A wandering immortal of Shangqing Sect tossed out a gold ring, carved in

the form of a dragon biting its own tail. It was the second immortal artifact
of Shangqing Sect, the Dragon Locking Ring.
The Dragon Locking Ring could even trap an immortal. As it was about to
hit Yin Hanjiang, a black and gold halberd smacked it with a loud clang.
The ring transformed into a golden dragon and wrapped tightly around the
halberd.
Wenren È was right behind it, appearing in front of Yin Hanjiang and
shielding him. “Go!” he yelled in a low tone.
“Venerable!” Yin Hanjiang gripped his sword, his eyes burning, refusing to
take a step away from Wenren È.
Wenren È understood him. The Jiuxing Sect Master was correct; if Polis
fell, Alkaid would go mad. There was no way Yin Hanjiang could see his
Venerable surrounded by so many enemies and turn away.
“This Venerable promises you not to die.” Wenren È reached out a hand and
placed it against Yin Hanjiang’s chest.
His face was very close to Yin Hanjiang’s, close enough that it seemed their
lips would touch at any moment. Yin Hanjiang gazed into the Venerable’s
eyes, and heard him say, “In ten years, the Spirit Severing Array will be
broken. Watch how this Venerable will do it!”
He shoved Yin Hanjiang with his palm, using immense spiritual energy to
force him out through a crack that had formed in the barrier when the
Dragon Locking Ring and the Seven Killing Halberd clashed.
Yin Hanjiang saw the barrier seal instantly behind him, leaving his
Venerable trapped within with twenty high-level opponents. He was unable
to resist Wenren È’s force, being pushed into the distance, only managing to
stop in the air above the sect’s main hall.
“Venerable!” Yin Hanjiang let out a pained shout, then merged with the
demon sword and transformed into many red blades, flying toward the
north.
In the mountains north of Xuanyuan Sect, over a hundred Deity

Transformation or above cultivators were fighting the Altar Masters and
their forces. After the Spirit Severing Array had been set, the righteous as
well as demonic cultivators were unable to access natural spirit energy.
However, the righteous cultivators had come prepared, and in the rear lines,
nine Void Boundary cultivators manipulated nine Spatial Transfer Flags,
forming a spatial link to continuously transfer spiritual energy from a
distant vein.
Each of the righteous cultivators carried a magic item linked to the Spatial
Transfer Flags, supplying them with spiritual energy.
The demonic cultivators couldn’t access spiritual energy, while the

righteous sects had a steady supply. They were waging a war of attrition,
and when the demonic cultivators exhausted their inner supply of energy,
the righteous sects would be victorious.
A flurry of blood swords tore through the sky like swift arrows. While
passing the crowd of demonic cultivators, several whisked around Altar
Master Ruan Weiyi, forcing him to charge the righteous sects’ formation
together with them, and causing him to take all the righteous cultivators’
attacks.
“I’ll fuck your grandma, Yin Hanjiang!” Altar Master Ruan frantically
raised his shield, forced to block the attacks coming at him and Yin
Hanjiang.
Yin Hanjiang ignored Altar Master Ruan’s fury. Altar Master Ruan had an
earth spiritual root, and the power of the vast earth provided great defensive
ability. Yin Hanjiang couldn’t make a reckless charge to the Spatial Transfer
Flags in the back lines alone and needed a strong defense, so he had picked
Altar Master Ruan.
Altar Master Ruan was a Mahayana cultivator, but he knew he had to obey
Yin Hanjiang at this time. The brat disregarded his own life in a fight, and
was capable of killing him first if he tried to rebel.
While cursing out Yin Hanjiang, Altar Master Ruan yelled, “What are you
fools doing? Hurry up and support me and Protector Yin! I’m gonna get
killed if you keep standing around like a bunch of morons!”
At Altar Master Ruan’s yell, the demonic cultivators finally gathered their
strength and, disregarding defense, charged forward to open a path for Yin
Hanjiang.
For the last few years, the demonic cultivators had been forced into
obedience by Wenren È, and they all knew that if they didn’t fight today,
then if either Wenren È or Yin Hanjiang survived the war, those who hadn’t
given their full strength on the battlefield would wish they had died. If they
died but their soul was intact, they could seek Altar Master Qiu’s help in
becoming a ghost cultivator, but if they angered Wenren È, they wouldn’t
be able to die if they wanted to.
The demonic cultivators charged forward without fear of death, and the
righteous sects were forced on the defensive. After a bout of fighting, Yin
Hanjiang arrived at the back lines in a hail of blood swords. He saw the
formation overflowing with spiritual energy created by the Spatial Transfer
Flags, and used a portion of his swords to haul Altar Master Ruan to block
the array’s focal point.
“Yin Hanjiang! I ain’t fucking your grandma! If we survive this, I’ll fucking
fuck you, you just wait!” Altar Master Ruan cursed as he was tossed in the
center of the array.
The only one in Yin Hanjiang’s eyes was Wenren È. For Wenren È, he
could give his own life, the lives of other people, and even all lives on
Earth.
Ruan Weiyi, tossed into the array, was forced to bring out his bonded
weapon, the Xuanwu Shell[1]. A yellow-brown suit of armor surrounded his
body like a tortoise’s shell, covering him on all sides, and his body grew
until he could block the array.
At the same time, the blood swords condensed into nine, demonic energy
surging around them, and they flew toward the nine cultivators’ dantians.
No one doubted the power of these swords. If they really pierced one’s
body, even if the Violet Palace of the dantian was not destroyed, their
bodies would be invaded by demonic energy.
The nine experts hurriedly used spiritual energy to protect themselves, but
the nine swords split into two the instant before striking, the second
charging toward the nine Spatial Transfer Flags.
No one had expected Yin Hanjiang would use the swords formed from his
own flesh and blood to attack immortal artifacts.
The Spatial Transfer Flags were not quite immortal artifacts, but they
surpassed the magic artifacts of the cultivation world and had room to grow.
These kinds of magic items were known as near-immortal artifacts.
It was akin to striking a stone with an egg or meeting a blade with one’s
flesh. After a deafening crash, Yin Hanjiang stood above Altar Master
Ruan’s tortoise shell, dripping blood from wounds all over his body, nine
tattered Spatial Transfer Flags in one hand.
“If you want to fight, then fight fairly!” Blood dripped from Yin Hanjiang’s
mouth, but his voice rang over the battlefield. “The Xuanyuan Sect doesn’t
fear attack. Our Venerable Lord welcomes any who dare to bring a
challenge, but remember this: I, Yin Hanjiang, will not forgive any who try
underhanded schemes on the battlefield to harm my lord!”
With a casual toss, the nine tattered flags fluttered to the ground. The nine
cultivators watched Yin Hanjiang swaying on his feet, on his last legs, yet
were unable to approach.
When faced with such resolution, whether from friend or enemy, one could
only feel admiration.
With the Spatial Transfer Array broken, a weight fell from Yin Hanjiang’s
chest. With spiritual energy unavailable to both sides, the Venerable surely
wouldn’t lose.
The moment he relaxed, he fell heavily to the ground.
Altar Master Ruan’s shell dispersed and he slung Yin Hanjiang up with one
hand, carrying him toward their own forces and cursing while he ran.
“Motherfucker, I’ve lost centuries worth of spiritual essence in this fight.
Yin Hanjiang, if you don’t fucking repay me when we get back, I’ll go find
Shu Yanyan and learn the art of plucking and replenishing so I can
personally suck you dry!”
Yin Hanjiang didn’t even hear Ruan Weiyi’s words. A weak smile came to
his lips and he muttered, “Venerable… I won’t… let you die before me…”
“Fuck you!” Ruan Weiyi spat, hearing that.
With the Spatial Transfer Array broken, both sides were in the same
position, and the victor of this battle was now indeterminable.
In the northern mountains, the demonic and righteous cultivators both

retreated several meters, reassembling the battle formations that Yin
Hanjiang had broken, deploying magic artifacts and preparing for the next
clash.
Altar Master Ruan, with great effort, brought Yin Hanjiang back behind his
own lines and tossed him at the Medicinal Hall’s master, saying, “Fix him
up for me, and when he wakes up, I’ll kill him personally!”
He spat blood while he talked. The Medicinal Hall Master said while
trembling, “Altar Master Ruan, you should come for treatment too. Your
injuries are also severe…”
“Pah! I ain’t a weakling like Yin… Han…”
Before he could finish speaking, a purple robe flashed before him and he
collapsed.
The feminine and androgynous-looking Altar Master Miao said to the

Medicinal Hall Master, “I’ve put a heart-eating parasite in him, so he’ll be
unconscious for now. Take the people who can be saved away for treatment,
and when they’re half-healed, I’ll toss them back into the fight. No one
who’s still breathing gets to slack off.”
The Medicinal Hall Master wiped sweat from his forehead. This wasn’t
reasonable, all he needed to do was make Altar Master Ruan unconscious.
There was no need for such a terrible gu insect[2] as a heart-eating parasite.
If Altar Master Miao didn’t plan on removing it after the battle, Altar
Master Ruan would be under his control forever…
“Hm?” Altar Master Miao raised an eyebrow at the Medicinal Hall Master.
His eyes seemed to say, this Master has been waiting for such an
opportunity for a long time, so why are you questioning me?
The Medicinal Hall Master was scared of angering any of the Altar Masters,
and led his apprentices to carry away the injured for treatment.
At this time, the twenty-one experts who surrounded Wenren È had also
paused. The Jiuxing Sect Master said with concern, “When Polis acts,
Alkaid will pave the way. The Spirit Transfer Array has now been broken.
We indeed should’ve kept Alkaid here.”
Wenren È smiled in satisfaction and said, “Worthy of this Venerable’s

vanguard.”
Yin Hanjiang used his every action to declare his loyalty to Wenren È.
“I never approved of such methods in the first place,” said the Tianjian Sect
Master. “We’ve already mobilized twenty-one experts to surround Wenren
È, so why do we need such arrays? We need only set up a barrier and
directly attack.”
“You’re gravely wrong, Tianjian Sect Master,” said Wenren È. “Without

that array, none of you are any match for this Venerable.”
“Amitabha.” The abbot of Wuxiang Temple took off his monk’s robe,
revealing the dragon tattoo around half his arm. Divine light shone from his
staff, and he said, his voice filled with compassion, “I wonder if adding this
old monk will be enough?”
“You’re about there.” Wenren È smiled, as Polis under the support of Alkaid
shone with unprecedented radiance in the sky.
Wind billowed Wenren È’s robes as fighting intent surged around him.
Even if a Mahayana cultivator didn’t have natural spiritual energy, their

inner energy was near limitless. The war raged on for ten years.
For ten years, Baili Qingmiao and the other disciples with Yao Wendan
collected countless corpses from their side. The dead outnumbered the
injured, and the injuries sustained were more heavy than not. Those lightly
wounded received some minor treatment, then had to return to the
battlefield.
Both righteous and demonic sects sustained heavy blows in the war.
And as these cultivators lost their lives, the sun and stars were radiant, and
the human world experienced ten years of prosperity, wars stopping and the
dynasty entering a golden age.
After ten years, both sides had exhausted all their spiritual energy.
Qiu Congxue’s bony fingers dragged Shu Yanyan out of her halls of
pleasure as she said coldly, “The time is near.”
Shu Yanyan put on her clothes and her veil, saying to Qiu Congxue, “I
know, I’m a key link in this plan. Tell me, since there’s no spiritual energy
on the battlefield, is everyone just spitting on each other?”
“Shut up.” Qiu Congxue had no desire to chat with Shu Yanyan and tossed
her toward the Spirit Severing Array.
Shu Yanyan turned gracefully in midair and descended like a fairy before
the array.
At the same time, Qiu Congxue lifted the blood mist. In the Spirit Severing
Array, Hè Wenzhao saw the veiled woman smile at him and extend a hand,
actually reaching through the barrier.
“How…” Hè Wenzhao never imagined that this barrier he’d steadily

maintained for ten years was only by the allowance of the demonic sect,
and they could’ve easily broken it at any time.
“Do you still remember me, dear Hè?” Shu Yanyan said in a soft voice,
taking off the veil and showing him a warm and loving smile.
“M—Miss Shu…” Hè Wenzhao was stunned. He felt a pain in his dantian

and looked down to see Shu Yanyan had already stuck her hand into it.
“Are you confused about how I can enter the barrier?” Shu Yanyan said
with a laugh. “This Protector can naturally take back the essence she gives
out whenever she wants. Don’t forget, we’ve dual cultivated for half a year
and our essences are already completely intermingled. Our essences
resonate with each other, and if I want to enter, you’re effectively a wide-
open door for me.”
“Then, why did you drag it out for ten years…” Hè Wenzhao was unable to
believe her words.
“That would be our lord,” Shu Yanyan sighed. “He said the Spirit Severing
Array was a benefit, otherwise if we all used natural spirit energy to fight
for ten years, the human world would be drained of spiritual energy, fields
would be barren, and nothing would grow. Now everyone’s exhausted and
unable to command too much spiritual energy, so it’s the perfect time to
destroy the array!”
She tugged lightly with her hand and yanked Hè Wenzhao’s Nascent
Soul[3] entirely out of his dantian. “What this Protector gives out must be
paid back with interest. I’ll take your Nascent Soul in exchange.”
“Shu… have you… ever loved me?” Hè Wenzhao actually asked such a
question as his Nascent Soul was pulled out of his body.
Shu Yanyan curled a lip and said coldly, “The art of plucking and
replenishing is the same to me as you righteous cultivators taking in natural
spiritual energy. Do you love the natural spiritual energy you cultivate
with?”
Hè Wenzhao widened his eyes, as if completely unable to believe such

heartless words.
“Ah, right,” Shu Yanyan said. “Even spiritual energy can be rich or sparse,
pure or mixed. To this Protector, you’re like a particularly boring and self-
important mass of spiritual energy, who can’t even match up to my
darlings.”
With a harsh yank, she ripped Hè Wenzhao’s Nascent Soul from his body.
Hè Wenzhao fell from the sky, and the Spirit Severing Array shattered.
Qiu Congxue’s hungry ghosts instantly entangled every disciple in the

array.
1. The Xuanwu is the Black Tortoise, one of the four sacred beasts of
Chinese mythology (azure dragon, black tortoise, white tiger, vermillion
bird), the guardians of the four cardinal directions. ↩
2. Gu insects are made by putting many poisonous insects together and

having them eat each other. At the end only one survives and it’ll,
supposedly, have gained the toxicity of the others. Anyways they’re usually
just magic bugs. ↩
3. The Nascent Soul is something you develop through cultivation in the

dantian (usually the upper dantian). It’s typically represented as an infant.
Generally it’s a sort of avatar which at high levels can exit the body and
make you immortal, among other things. Well, in this story it doesn’t do
anything. ↩
Wants to Know
Chapter 14 – End of the great war
The Spirit Severing Array used power that went against the natural order to
forcibly change spiritual veins, and was an extremely difficult array to set
up. It required 108 flags and 108 Nascent Soul and above cultivators.
Nascent Soul was already an impressive level among cultivators, and any
sect who could deploy more than fifty at once would automatically rank
number one among the cultivation world.
108 Nascent Soul disciples required the collective power of all the righteous
sects to gather, and if they were missing even one person, the array would
disperse, and all their efforts would be for naught.
The sects had been highly selective in choosing the disciples in the array,
afraid one of them might have dealings with a demonic sect or their will
wouldn’t be firm enough and they would be influenced by inner turmoil. All
108 disciples they chose were future pillars of the righteous sects. Only
when they were sure the array wouldn’t be broken did they feel free to
attack the demonic sects.
They never thought that Shu Yanyan had planted a time bomb in the
righteous sects eleven years ago, and now, eleven years later, it disrupted
the Spirit Severing Array and shook up the righteous sects’ entire plan.
In midair, the white-robed woman held a righteous cultivator’s Nascent

Soul in one hand, and stuffed it casually inside her magic weapon, an
unopened spider lily.
Shu Yanyan’s bonded weapon was a near-demonic artifact as avaricious and

bold as she was. It demanded to be fed a Nascent Soul every time it was
used.
After devouring Hè Wenzhao’s Nascent Soul, the spider lily slowly opened,
and amidst Qiu Congxue’s ghosts, flowers bloomed into a blood-red path,
like the one that led lost souls to the afterlife.
The remaining 107 disciples watched these two beautiful yet wicked
women with despair, and gradually lost consciousness among the fragrance
of the spider lilies.
“Shu Yanyan!” Qiu Congxue yelled. “Your flowers devoured several of my

ghosts!”
“You know my lilies,” Shu Yanyan said unconcernedly. “Even I can’t

control them. They’ll eat whoever they want. Are you capable of controlling
your ghosts? Every time I get near you, I can hear the sound of those ghosts
gnawing on bones—doesn’t that hurt? No wonder you can never beat the
Venerable even at Mahayana stage. You can’t even control your own
weapons, that’s so pathetic.”
The two women continued taunting each other while mopping up the enemy
forces. Qiu Congxue grumbled. “The Venerable won’t even let me eat any
of their souls. I can’t take it.”
She ground her ghastly white teeth.
“The Venerable said that dead cultivators can reincarnate into ordinary
people in their next life, so unless there’s a deep grudge, there’s no need to
destroy someone’s soul,” said Shu Yanyan. “Us killing cultivators is those
who defy heaven killing others who defy heaven, so cosmic law won’t
assign us any crime. But destroying a soul is messing with the system of the
six paths of reincarnation. It’ll be punished by the heavens, and our
tribulations would be harder to pass.”
“He’s a demonic cultivator who’ll kill people without a thought, but he has
hangups about weird things,” Qiu Congxue said disapprovingly. “After I
first stepped down the Asura Path, I never thought of turning back.”
Shu Yanyan shrugged. “You can disapprove of the Venerable all you want,
but you gotta be able to beat him first. In Xuanyuan Sect, might has always
made right.”
Alongside the blossoming of Shu Yanyan’s spider lilies, Dubhe was slowly
colored red in the sky, shining down with bloody light.
“Indeed,” the Jiuxing Sect Master said. “These three stars, Polis, Alkaid,
and Dubhe, are our greatest obstacles in this war.”
The Biluo Valley Master said, “Then it’s fortunate we still have a backup
plan.”
“Amitabha.[1]” The Wuxiang Temple abbot softly flicked the prayer beads
in his hand, and after reciting a Buddha’s name, he tossed them into the air.
At the same time, Shu Yanyan and Qiu Congxue saw above their heads a
peacock shining with multicolored divine light. Under the light, the spider
lilies withered. Shu Yanyan’s smile froze on her mouth and she said dully,
“No way, the Buddhists have even called in the Great Peacock Wisdom
King[2]?”
In Buddhist teachings, it was said that the peacock was born from the
phoenix, and liked to eat people. One day, she devoured the Buddha, who
cut her stomach and escaped, and wanted to kill her. The other Buddhas
dissuaded him, believing the peacock had a destiny to be reborn, so he
sealed her in a spiritual mountain and gave her the title, “Mother of Buddha,
Great Peacock Wisdom King Bodhisattva”.
The Peacock King was said to have the power to protect from disasters,
cure illnesses, and prolong life. Shu Yanyan’s flowers and Qiu Congxue’s
ghosts were both powerless under its might.
Under the Buddha’s light, the spider lilies wilted, and the vengeful ghosts
reentered the paths of samsara.
Shu Yanyan had it a bit better. Even if minds were cleared of desires under
the Buddha’s light and the power of her charm was weakened, it didn’t
harm her foundation. However, Qiu Congxue was a ghost cultivator, and
she was in danger of being released from the world into samsara, her very
life at risk.
Within the couple dozen remaining Nascent Soul disciples, eighteen took
off their wigs and exposed bald heads, sat cross legged, and began reciting
sutras.
“What’s going on?” Shu Yanyan cried. “I never heard there were a bunch of
monks in the array! I can’t do anything to them!”
Qiu Congxue chuckled in the midst of the Buddha’s light and said, “Just
now, we’ve killed or injured most of these righteous disciples, and the rest
are low on spiritual essence and can’t fight anymore. Our duties are already
done. Just wait for me to destroy the Wisdom King avatar, so you can
escape.”
“Are you crazy? Do you want to be sent on?” Shu Yanyan said. “Is Qiu
Congxue someone who’ll sacrifice herself for others?”
“Oh, you shut up.” Qiu Congxue gave Shu Yanyan a kick and flew upward.
Many bones extended from her body, blocking the Buddha light for her.
A string of prayer beads was faintly visible in the light. Qiu Congxue could
smell her own body burning, and her shield of bones gradually dissipated
under the light’s assault.
She found it!
Reaching out bone fingers, she grabbed the prayer beads and threw them
into the distance.
Shu Yanyan heard a terrible cry come from Qiu Congxue, and her silhouette
vanished in the light. The eighteen monks all spat up blood. In this fight in
which neither side had attacked, there ended up being no victor.
The Buddha’s light vanished. Shu Yanyan glanced at the beaten and
bloodied righteous cultivators and the monks who had no more power to
fight. Her smile faded and she said lightly, “You can go.”
The crowd stared at her uncomprehendingly, having thought she would start
a massacre. Instead they heard, “There have been uncountable casualties in
this decade-long war. Both the righteous and demonic sects will need a
century to recover afterward. Enough have died, and I’ve also done enough
killing already.”
With a piece of black cloth in her hand, she turned and left, leaving the
surviving cultivators looking at each other in disbelief.
At the outskirts of the Xuanyuan Sect’s mountain range, Baili Qingmiao

was unceasingly working to pick up fallen cultivators, giving first aid to the
survivors. She headed further and further, gradually leaving behind the
other troops, and when she saw a black-robed figure on a riverbank, she
quickly picked them up with the Moonlit Frost Silk.
“Thank the heavens, you’re still alive!
“Oh my god! There’s no flesh on your body!
“Your face is completely blackened, I can’t tell which sect you’re from.
“Are you a man or woman?
“Don’t give up, you must continue to hold on!”
Qiu Congxue’s eyelids twitched, roused by the racket near her ears. She
opened her eyes slightly and saw a girl in yellow robes treating her
tearfully.
“Shut the hell up,” Qiu Congxue opened her mouth to say, but found that
her throat had been burned and she could only make an inhuman rasping
noise.
“You’re still alive!” Baili Qingmiao said, and started sobbing. “Please don’t
die. Too many people have died. So many elders are gone now. Don’t die, I
don’t want to see anyone die anymore!”
Qiu Congxue: …
She opened her eyes, and for some reason, a line came to her mind—”A
single ray of the rising sun landed on Baili Qingmiao’s body. Her
expression was warm but resolute, with a beautiful and pure wish to save
others.”
What was that rubbish? Qiu Congxue wrinkled her blackened brows. How
did such cheesy words suddenly appear in her head?
As the sun rose, another battle elsewhere neared its end. The battling armies
of cultivators in the northern mountains of Xuanyuan Sect were nearly
evenly matched in strength, and in ten years their numbers had decreased by
more than half. The Medicinal Hall’s stores collected over many years had
all been used up, and even if more wounded arrived, nothing could be done
for them.
Altar Master Yuan was the only one of the Altar Masters who could still
stand, and the righteous cultivators also only had a handful left who could
move. “Are we still fighting?” Altar Master Yuan asked. “The spiritual
energy has returned, so if we keep fighting, everyone’s sure to die.”
The righteous cultivators silently looked toward Wenren È’s battle with
twenty-one experts and shook their heads.
Ten years of war had come to a cruel resolution. At the very least, they had
managed to ensure the survival of the cultivation world and avoid a once in
ten millennia calamity.
Altar Master Yuan cupped a fist and said, “In that case, we ask you kindly
to leave Xuanyuan Sect, and in return promise not to attack while your
backs are turned.”
After a moment of discussion among the righteous cultivators, they nodded

and, carrying their allies, deployed a large flying boat and left Xuanyuan
Sect.
The only participants left in the Great Sect War were its twenty-two top
cultivators.
Yin Hanjiang had recuperated for many years and recovered from his
injuries. He paid no mind to the retreating cultivators, only gazing at that
faraway battlefield. The day passed, night fell, and stars appeared, but Polis
was dark.
“Venerable!” Yin Hanjiang said frantically, getting to his feet with sword in
hand.
“Stop looking, there’s no way Wenren È will survive,” Altar Master Ruan
“reassured” at his side. “He’s surrounded by twenty-one high-level experts,
and one of them is a Buddhist. Do you know how strong their edicts to
‘deliver all living beings’ and ‘let go of the blade’ are? A single sutra can
make all your fighting intent vanish. Wenren È has defeated opponents
stronger than him so many times by relying on passionate fighting intent, so
a Buddhist cultivator is his worst matchup. Without fighting intent, Wenren
È is just an ordinary Mahayana cultivator.”
Altar Master Ruan really demonstrated the backstabbing nature of demonic

sects. He had been saying “Venerable”, but now instantly switched to
“Wenren È”, willing to abandon someone in an instant.
After that reassurance, he spat a dead bug out of his mouth and stamped it
under his heel, cursing lowly, “Putting a heart-eating bug in me? I’ll kill
you dead! Ten years ago while Wenren È was still alive, you already had a
plan for controlling all the Altar Masters and Sect Protectors to steal his
position, didn’t you? Why didn’t you die in the great war, you little
schemer?”
“He might as well be dead,” said Altar Master Yuan. “His queen parasite
was killed. Otherwise, how could you spit out his bug so easily?”
Even the merciless Altar Master Ruan, looking at the remnants of

Xuanyuan Sect, couldn’t help but remark, “There were too many deaths.”
“The righteous sects were just trying to prevent the calamity of a

millennium,” said Altar Master Yuan. “The demonic sects have actually
gotten quite tame under the Venerable’s management. We just mess with
righteous cultivators, and don’t even dare go after civilians anymore. The
righteous sects taking the offensive and starting the Great Sect War, even
using strategies like the Spirit Severing Array, was all to trick the heavens
and mitigate the cleansing of the human world via a great disaster. Using
this many human lives to ensure survival for the next ten thousand years
can still be considered a worthwhile trade.”
“We’re all people who invite calamities. It’s in our fate.” Altar Master Ruan
spoke some rare cultured words, then turned and saw Yin Hanjiang had
disappeared and started cussing again. “Fuck, where’d Yin Hanjiang go?!”
The people who could still move turned their heads painfully and found the
spot where Yin Hanjiang had sat conspicuously empty. And from deep
within the mountains, in the Xuanyuan Sect’s forbidden ground, came the
faint sound of drumming, each beat louder than the last.
Hearing Altar Master Ruan’s words, Yin Hanjiang understood what kind of
attack the Venerable was facing.
Fighting intent! If only there was fighting intent, the Venerable would not
lose!
But of the three battlefields, two of them had already laid down their flags,
and the Venerable was up against the most powerful Buddhist cultivator of
the Wuxiang Temple. There was no fighting intent for him.
In his desperation, Yin Hanjiang remembered the Burning Sky Drum, filled
with the memories of the Great Demon War in the immortal realm.
He instantly fused with the demonic sword and transformed into a hail of
red blades to rush headlong to the Burning Sky Drum. With the power of a
Void Boundary cultivator, he used his own body to sound the drum.
The first light drumbeat seemed to resonate in Wenren È’s heart.
He slowly opened his eyes and saw a kind-faced old monk facing him,
saying, “Major-General Wenren, let go of your hate. Set down your blade,
and you will be absolved of your sins.”
Major-General? Such a nostalgic title; it had already been three hundred
years since he’d last heard it.
Three hundred years ago, he was still an ordinary person, and the Wenren
clan were loyal servants of the state. But the entire clan ended up executed.
He hated, he resented, he wanted to kill every foolish ruler on the earth,
but… what happened afterward?
Bong! A second beat struck heavily in Wenren È’s heart. His brows rose,
seeing a young child appearing in his memories, reaching out a tiny hand
and grabbing the end of his robe. So much like a younger him, barely
surviving a battle and being saved by the civilians living at the border, only
to hear that the Wenren clan had been exterminated to a man.
“Major-General, the sea of suffering is boundless, but turn around and you
will find the shore.” The old abbot went back to reading sutras, and the
fighting intent that had risen within Wenren È dissipated again.
Bong bong bong! Three urgent beats sounded, like a horn calling Wenren È
to battle.
He saw another image, a man in a ghost mask, embracing his robe before an
everburning lamp and peacefully closing his eyes.
Bong bong bong bong! The sound of the Burning Sky Drum was deafening,
sounding like a voice by Wenren È’s ear yelling, “Venerable, Venerable!”
Wenren È opened his eyes fully and said to the monk looking upon him
with compassion before him, “Great master, if you want me to set down my
blade, how about you first ask if my blade is willing?”
The Wuxiang Temple abbot shook his head, trembling. “It seems we were
just short.”
Along with his words, the illusion surrounding Wenren È shattered, and
twenty-one experts brandished their bonded weapons at him. If he had
awoken a second later, these twenty-one weapons would’ve destroyed him
body and soul.
The drumbeats continued incessantly. Wenren È raised the Seven Killing
Halberd and said in a clear voice, “The fact that you could pressure this
Venerable to such an extent shows you were worthy of the full extent of this
Venerable’s strength. We’re all at our limits, so in this last bout, let the
heavens determine the survivors!”
Polis shone radiantly in the sky, as Wenren È’s halberd clashed with twenty-
one bonded weapons. The force unleashed by twenty-one powerhouses
clashing called down peals of thunder around them.
As the Xuanyuan Sect cultivators chatted idly and looked at the sky, Altar
Master Ruan said in disbelief, “The Venerable is actually still alive! How
did he survive? He’s fighting twenty-one experts!”
“Is calling him Venerable again what’s most important? Hurry up and set up
a barrier! Do you want to die?” Altar Master Yuan planted a foot in Ruan
Weiyi’s rear end.
Ruan Weiyi hurriedly activated Xuanyuan Sect’s wards. The instant the
barrier rose, a streak of red light flew out of it, charging into the battlefield
without a second thought.
Yin Hanjiang was uncaring of how the aftermath of such powerful

opponents clashing might cause him injury. His vision was a field of red, as
he searched among rubble and ruins for Wenren È’s figure.
That limb wasn’t his, and that weapon wasn’t his—where was he, where
could he be?
A monk staff fell from the air, about to hit Yin Hanjiang, but in that
moment, a beaten-up halberd flew forth to shield him as if it had a will of
its own, blocking the staff.
Seeing that halberd, Yin Hanjiang resumed human form. He held Wenren
È’s bonded weapon, and following its resonance, found the barely breathing
Wenren È.
He flew forward and scooped him up. His mouth felt numb from joy, and he
found himself unable to speak.
The two landed on flat ground. Yin Hanjiang clutched Wenren È, trembling
all over. Wenren È slowly raised a hand and stroked Yin Hanjiang’s cheek.
“Protector Yin, you really did save this Venerable,” he said weakly.
1. The Buddha of infinite light. ↩
2. You can look up Mahamayuri. ↩

Wants to Know
Chapter 15 – Severing blood and engraving soul
After regaining awareness with the help of the Burning Sky Drum, Wenren
È engaged twenty-one experts in a desperate battle to the death. He didn’t
know how many of them he had managed to kill, and how many had
survived.
Wenren È had originally planned to unleash all of his power and fight to his
limits, to learn just what he was capable of. He had wanted to disregard
everything else, but the drumbeats brought him back to his senses at the last
moment.
Yin Hanjiang had not risked his life using Void Boundary stage power to
activate the Burning Sky Drum in order to see Wenren È die in battle.
He had promised Yin Hanjiang before the battle that he would survive.
Wenren È would never go back on his word. At the very end, he held back a
part of his power in order to defend himself, and so managed to preserve his
life to be saved by Yin Hanjiang.
With his last breath, he let Yin Hanjiang know that he was still alive, before
losing consciousness.
His injuries were too severe, and while drifting in and out of consciousness,
he could hear Yin Hanjiang calling him, but his eyelids felt heavy and he
couldn’t open them.
In the original plot, Wenren È had lain unconscious for some time, and upon
waking, saw Baili Qingmiao busy working before him. He saw a single ray
of the rising sun land on Baili Qingmiao’s body. Her expression was warm
but resolute, with a beautiful and pure wish to save others. Seeing her
bathed in that ray of sun, or perhaps divine light, the heart of the demonic
sect leader was moved.
At the time, Wenren È was not yet aware that his love tribulation had
arrived, and only coldly told this righteous junior disciple that he could
grant her one favor. Baili Qingmiao stared blankly for a moment, then
shook her head and said, “I just need you to live.”
Wenren È had sustained heavy internal injuries, and also wasn’t willing to
return to Shangqing Sect with Baili Qingmiao for treatment. Baili Qingmiao
could only use the communication talisman Master Qingrong gave her to
report back that she would be gone for a while.
Before the war, Shangqing Sect had given each of the support disciples a
jade slip and rushed them through some medicinal knowledge and the
locations of some magic herbs. During the three months Yin Hanjiang had
been cultivating, Baili Qingmiao and her fellow disciples were busy
memorizing the jade slips and practicing medicinal spells.
She realized Wenren È’s injuries were too severe; the Violet Palace of his
dantian was a mess and his spiritual essence was almost completely
drained. In order to save his life, Baili Qingmiao decided to take him to the
Nine Cauldron Mountains, the location of the Nine Yang Soul-Reviving
Flesh Mushroom which could bring back the dead and regrow flesh from
bones, as recorded in her jade slip. Wenren È watched her coldly for the
entire journey as she climbed the mountain carrying him and did battle with
the beasts guarding the mushroom. After she obtained the mushroom, she
boiled it into broth and didn’t take a spoonful for herself, feeding it all to
Wenren È.
In the book, after Wenren È was healed, he saw Baili Qingmiao’s overjoyed
expression and his heart finally fell for her. He didn’t reveal his identity,
just left a token and told her she could use it to call him if she met with
trouble. No matter what it was, Wenren È would go through hell and high
water to help her.
Baili Qingmiao had never thought of receiving something in return from

Wenren È, and was only happy she was able to save one more life. After
bidding Wenren È farewell, Baili Qingmiao returned to her sect and, when
she saw Hè Wenzhao had lost his Nascent Soul, her heart froze in an
instant.
The gravely injured and despondent Hè Wenzhao said to Baili Qingmiao,

“Shimei, when I was injured, all I wanted to do was see you one last time,
but where were you then?”
Baili Qingmiao was sobbing so hard she couldn’t speak. She had just
obtained the Flesh Mushroom, but used it on a stranger instead of her
shixiong.
She asked her elders for a way to save Hè Wenzhao, and set out alone
toward the Golden Coast Cliffs. Along the way, she “bumped into” Wenren
È, who had been watching her all that time, and now accompanied her on
her journey.
This time, the one saving Wenren È was Yin Hanjiang, who didn’t know
where the Flesh Mushroom grew. The Venerable was unconscious, so all he
could do was bring him to the small mountain valley where he’d begun
cultivating.
This was the small sect that Wenren È had led once, which he brought Yin
Hanjiang to after picking him up. After Wenren È unified the demonic sects,
he secretly gave this place to Yin Hanjiang and set up wards around it. It
belonged to Yin Hanjiang alone and no one else knew of it.
While Wenren È was in battle, Yin Hanjiang had noticed how Altar Master
Ruan had dropped his title. The demonic sects were rife with ambition, and
from the Protectors and Altar Masters to the common cultivators, each and
every one would kick you while you were down. If Yin Hanjiang brought a
heavily injured Wenren È back to Xuanyuan Sect, Shu Yanyan would
probably be the first in line to kill him.
When the Venerable was at his full power, the Xuanyuan Sect all stood
behind him, but when he was weak, Xuanyuan Sect was as a den of
cannibals.
Since Yin Hanjiang didn’t dare bring Wenren È to Xuanyuan Sect, he only
had two options. First, the small border town where he had grown up, and
second, the place the Venerable had taken him to train when young.
Holding Wenren È, he dove through the waterfall he once cultivated in front

of into the small cave behind it, rich in spiritual energy and well suited for
recovery.
The Venerable was seriously injured. Yin Hanjiang placed him down on his
back and took out all the medicine in his storage belt, picking out some
milder ones that could replenish spiritual essence and shoving them in
Wenren È’s mouth.
Wenren È had no spiritual energy and was unable to swallow the pills. Yin
Hanjiang hesitated for several moments, then after saying, “Excuse my
rudeness,” pried open Wenren È’s mouth, and, with an inch of distance
between them, exhaled a mouthful of spiritual energy into Wenren È.
He acted with extreme care, terrified of touching his Venerable’s pale lips
with his own.
After Wenren È had taken the medicine, Yin Hanjiang also poured the
remaining dregs of his spiritual essence into him and cycled it through his
body once. After feeling his Venerable’s essence begin circulating on its
own and absorbing the medicine, he breathed a sigh of relief.
After relaxing, Yin Hanjiang found himself wobbling on his feet. He

coughed up a mouthful of blood and collapsed at Wenren È’s feet.
The old sect master of Xuanyuan Sect had been at the peak of Mahayana,
but while using the Burning Sky Drum, he had been trapped by its illusions
and suffered qi deviation. Yin Hanjiang was barely in Void Boundary stage.
After forcibly activating the Burning Sky Drum and suffering the backlash
of its violent energy, his internal organs had been heavily damaged.
Singlemindedly desiring to save Wenren È, he hadn’t even noticed his own
state or felt the pain. Only after he revived Wenren È did Yin Hanjiang
notice that he was on his last legs.
Waking up after absorbing the medicine, Wenren È found himself in a dark
and damp cave, with a black-clothed man lying at his feet, face pressed
against the cold stone. Turning him over, he found green lichen smeared on
his face, making him look like the victim of some horror from a folk ghost
story.
When Wenren È tried to channel energy, pain shot through his dantian like
it was tearing apart. He took off his black robe and saw that his body was
covered with wounds from swords, knives, whips, staves, seemingly every
kind of wound that could be made by eighteen different magic weapons.
His physical injuries weren’t a big deal, but what was more important was
that the Violet Palace of his dantian had been destroyed and he had drained
his spiritual essence using the Seven Killing Halberd. Without the Flesh
Mushroom, he might not recover after recuperating for a hundred years.
He struggled to sit up and lift Yin Hanjiang in his arms, and felt that Yin
Hanjiang’s clothes were damp. He opened his robe and saw that his thin
body looked like it’d been slashed up by a blade before being stitched up by
thin thread. It was hard to find an undamaged patch of skin on him.
Wenren È was aghast at the sight of his split-open flesh. He placed a hand
on Yin Hanjiang’s chest, trying to heal him, but he couldn’t call up a single
wisp of spiritual energy. Powerless, he could only sit down next to Yin
Hanjiang and let out a despairing laugh.
In the three hundred years since he’d entered the Dao, he’d never before
been in such a pathetic state.
He had no way to heal himself. In the book, Baili Qingmiao had found the
Flesh Mushroom to save him, but in order to change the plot, Wenren È had
given up on the easy way out and picked a painful and arduous path for
himself.
“Protector Yin,” Wenren È said lightly. “The most difficult time in this
Venerable’s life was three hundred years ago, when I dug through that mass
grave to find my family.”
There were two hundred and seventy-three corpses of the Wenren clan
there, all beheaded. Criminals would not get a burial, and after the
execution the heads would be burned and bodies thrown into a mass grave.
Seven days had already passed by the time Wenren È made it back to the
capital and the bodies had started to decompose. There was no way to tell
anyone apart.
He dug through the corpse pile day and night, dragging out two hundred
and ninety-six headless corpses. The youngest was just three months old.
Aside from the few with unique statures, Wenren È had no way of telling
apart the remaining two hundred and thirty-seven corpses.
The bodies of other criminals were mixed in, so Wenren È didn’t even
know which were his relatives.
The entire clan had been loyal to the end, yet they were killed and their
corpses desecrated. At sixteen, Wenren È knelt before two hundred and
ninety-six headless corpses, crying and howling, unable to vent his hatred.
The Wuxiang Temple abbot’s power had been great, and led Wenren È to
uncover memories that had been forgotten three hundred years ago. He
glanced over at Yin Hanjiang’s closed eyes, and his gaze held a weak smile.
“Protector Yin, when this Venerable walked past that corpse pile and saw a
hand grab me, do you know how happy I was?”
A hundred years ago, when Wenren È thought he’d already forgotten the
past, that tiny hand reached out for the train of his robes. He picked that
child up out of the corpse pile and felt his neck to check that he wasn’t a
beheaded corpse. He pressed an ear against the child’s chest, and that weak
heartbeat was like music to his ears.
At that moment, the cold and heartless Wenren È held little Yin Hanjiang in
his arms, not noticing the tears that slid from his eyes.
It was like he was finally free of the powerlessness he had felt at sixteen.
He had finally managed to save someone.

Wenren È held Yin Hanjiang’s wrist. The child he’d saved back then was
going to die soon.
This silly child was already heavily injured, but had given the last of his
spiritual essence to Wenren È, throwing away his last lease on life.
“Yin Hanjiang, if this Venerable can save you once, he can save you twice.
If this Venerable doesn’t allow you to die, then you can’t die.” Wenren È
looked at the demonic sword at Yin Hanjiang’s side, as his expression
darkened.
Yin Hanjiang never put his sword away in a storage item, stubbornly
holding it like a sentinel. Yet this sword had a will of its own.
After becoming a cultivator, Wenren È had stolen many techniques from

other demonic sects. There had been one which was the hardest to use of
all, but perfect for this moment.
“Your name is Chiming,” Wenren È said to the sword.
Back when he handed this sword to Yin Hanjiang, he never told him its
name.
Calling the name would call awake the demonic sword’s consciousness.
Chiming, hearing its own name, trembled lightly and left its sheath,
hovering before Wenren È. Many sinister patterns appeared on the surface
of its blade, an appearance Yin Hanjiang had never seen.
Looking at the sword, Wenren È recited a spell, and the same patterns
appeared on his body.
The Seven Killing Halberd sensed what its master was doing and hummed
plaintively. Wenren È raised a hand. “Don’t fuss.”
The halberd reluctantly trembled a few times, but eventually came under
Wenren È’s control and quieted down.
Chiming transformed into a hail of blood swords and, with Wenren È’s
spell, stabbed deep into the patterns on his body, pinning him to the cave
wall. Blood flowed down the stone, dripping onto Yin Hanjiang’s face.
Yin Hanjiang’s eyelashes twitched painfully a few times, but in the end he
was unable to wake and see the Venerable he wanted to protect at all costs
engrave his body with the Chiming blade and go down a path few survived.
With thousands of swords in his body, Wenren È never stopped reciting. He

slowly raised a hand and drew an array in midair with difficulty, matching
the patterns on his body.
The Lifeblood Soul Locking Array. After the array was completed, the lines
drawn in crimson light melded into Wenren È’s soul.
Using the body to sever the blood, and using the blood to engrave the soul.
Chiming left Wenren È’s body, and the instant the blades were pulled out,
Wenren È’s body burst into a cloud of bloody mist, dispersing within the
cave.
The Seven Killing Halberd let out a lamenting cry, and the sixth star of the
Southern Dipper was gradually stained blood-red.
After several minutes, the blood mist gradually condensed, solidifying into
a human figure. At the moment when his body and soul were dispersed, he
endured the soul-splitting pain and, through his resolution, managed to
complete the Blood Severing Array.
There was a lost technique in the cultivation world called the Blood
Severing Art.
The user needed to carve the blood marks into their flesh, then voluntarily
destroy their body and soul, and use the technique at the moment before
death. It would fuse one’s soul and body together, and from then on, if a
single drop of one’s blood remained in the world, they would not die.
Only one person had succeeded at the blood art in hundreds of thousands of
years. It was not because it was weak, but because it had such a low chance
of success. Without an iron will, no one could even bear the pain.
After it was completed, one could recover from any injury no matter how
severe, as long as they had sufficient spiritual energy.
Wenren È put the black robe he’d discarded back on, the pain of his soul
shattering still lingering in his body. He frowned slightly and took a pill
from his sleeve to swallow.
After he had mostly recovered, he picked up Yin Hanjiang and sent the
spiritual energy he had just restored into his meridians, chasing out the
murderous aura of the Burning Sky Drum.
For the next few months, Wenren È stayed in that small cave, absorbing
spiritual energy to transfer to Yin Hanjiang, slowly restoring his damaged
meridians.
In a distant location, Qiu Congxue was being carried on Baili Qingmiao’s

back as she scaled a mountain.
Qiu Congxue had said to Baili Qingmiao, “Leave me be, don’t take me
back to your sect,” before passing out. She was injured worse than Wenren
È. The Buddha’s light was terribly effective against ghost cultivators and all
the spirits she kept inside her body had been sublimated. She had no power
left.
Baili Qingmiao assumed the reason Qiu Congxue didn’t want to return to
her sect was that she didn’t want to face her compatriots like this, injured so
severely with no hope of recovery. She was determined to save her fellow
cultivator.
After reporting the situation with her message talisman, she tied the
unconscious Qiu Congxue to her back and set off to Nine Cauldrons
Mountain.
It was said that Nine Cauldrons Mountain was a dwelling place of
immortals. Even a Mahayana cultivator there would have their powers
suppressed to the level of an ordinary person.
Baili Qingmiao was unable to fly and the cliffs were treacherous. She
gripped a vine and climbed, gritting her teeth and holding back tears.
She fell countless times on the way up, until her face and body were bruised
and battered. She thought of giving up, but each time, she remembered how
the person on her back was relying on her, and how she had been unable to
save so many people in the Great Sect War, and she gritted her teeth and
encouraged herself to continue climbing.
By the time she reached the top, she was about to collapse from exhaustion.
The Flesh Mushroom was very well hidden, impossible for ordinary people
to find. After Baili Qingmiao collapsed on the mountaintop, the mushroom
took her for a corpse and, drawn by her divinity, rose up from the ground in
order to eat her.
A spiritual snake who protected the Flesh Mushroom slithered up and,

seeing that the mushroom had emerged, bit down on it and began wrestling
with it.
Baili Qingmiao was roused by the noise and was overjoyed to see the Flesh
Mushroom right before her. With the dregs of her strength, she slew the
snake and picked the Flesh Mushroom, then cooked it in a stew together
with the snake.
The aroma emanating from the Flesh Mushroom healed Baili Qingmiao’s
wounds, and also allowed her to rise from the fifth level of Core Formation
all the way to the final level.
If she drank the broth, she could probably ascend on the spot. But she had
no desire of it for herself. She let Qiu Congxue soak in the broth and
watched as flesh regrew on her bones. “So you’re a girl,” she exclaimed
happily.
After all of Qiu Congxue’s organs had been restored, Baili Qingmiao fed
every spoonful of the broth to her.
Qiu Congxue’s realm was instantly restored to Mahayana, her skin rosy,
looking to be in perfect health.
After waking, Qiu Congxue saw a beautiful girl watching her with chin in
one hand, expression filled with genuine joy. “Senior, you’re healed at last.”
Healed? Qiu Congxue sat up and felt something was off with her body. She
checked and saw that she had flesh now.
A passage appeared in Qiu Congxue’s mind—”He saw Baili Qingmiao’s

gaze filled with concern and that empty pot of broth which had all been
given to him, and let out a sigh. ‘Well, that’s it, I guess.'”
Qiu Congxue had no idea where these words came from, but she nodded in
agreement. “That’s it.”
“What is?” Baili Qingmiao said, blinking naively as she gazed toward Qiu
Congxue.
“This Altar Master was a perfectly good ghost cultivator, willingly offering
her own body to hungry ghosts in order to cultivate the Asura Path and
reach Mahayana.” Qiu Congxue turned a threatening gaze toward Baili
Qingmiao.
Baili Qingmiao finally realized something was wrong. She backed away a
few steps and fell to the ground, saying in a wavering voice, “S—senior,
what’s wrong?”
“What’s wrong?” Qiu Congxue said, rising and approaching her. Her warm
fingers clenched around Baili Qingmiao’s neck. “Do you know how hard it
was to give up my body? You went and restored it with a few spoonfuls of
soup! I’ll kill you!”

Wants to Know
Chapter 16 – A handful of moonlight
Qiu Congxue’s cultivation was suppressed by the seal on Nine Cauldrons

Mountain, and her strength was currently roughly equal to Baili
Qingmiao’s.
Baili Qingmiao forced back Qiu Congxue’s hand and rolled out from
underneath her, getting out of her range.
She seemed about to say something, then suddenly her face flushed and she
ran off. In a moment, she came back with a black robe in her arms, which
she threw onto Qiu Congxue. She turned her face away and said, “Senior…
please put something on.”
“Huh?” Qiu Congxue looked down at her body which was as full and
curvaceous as Shu Yanyan’s, and didn’t see anything wrong with it.
She had gotten used to walking here and there as a skeleton, and long since
forgotten what it was like to have a flesh body.
She was still fuming, but when Baili Qingmiao backed off, she calmed
down a bit and realized her cultivation was being suppressed. Without
spiritual energy, she stopped lashing out at her savior and coldly watched as
Baili Qingmiao blushed and ran off for clothes.
Qiu Congxue slowly put on the robe. She squinted at Baili Qingmiao and
suddenly said, “You’re Baili Qingmiao?”
“I am.” Baili Qingmiao only turned fully around after seeing that Qiu
Congxue was dressed properly. “Did senior hear me muttering to myself
while you were unconscious?”
She hadn’t heard it, but that passage like a excerpt of text or someone
reading a story by her ear had told her this girl was called Baili Qingmiao.
Speaking of which, that name Baili Qingmiao seemed kind of familiar.
Qiu Congxue wasn’t like Shu Yanyan, constantly full of wicked ideas and
acting behind people’s backs. Altar Master Qiu never used her mouth if she
could use her fists. Well, mouths were involved, but it was the mouths of
her hungry ghosts.
Though she was lying in wait to kill Wenren È, Shu Yanyan was a dedicated
Sect Protector, helping Wenren È sort out the sect’s business, keeping the
smaller sects under Xuanyuan Sect firmly in line, while not forgetting to
pick a few good-looking men from them to take home with her. She made
every move to build Wenren È’s trust, while only wanting to indulge herself
and steal the life force of a Mahayana cultivator.
Too bad that Wenren È was blind and really treated beautiful women like
dirt. Every time Shu Yanyan showed a hint of seductive power, she’d be
thoroughly dealt with, and so had settled down a lot after a few decades.
On the other hand, Qiu Congxue also wanted to overthrow Wenren È, but
never concealed her hostility and had an agreement to duel him every ten
years. At the present time, she had already had all the bones in her body
smashed five times by Wenren È.
Shu Yanyan often said Qiu Congxue’s brain had been eaten by a hungry
ghost, and that was pretty much the truth. A thousand year old ghost lived in
her skull and served as her hidden ace, which she didn’t bring out lightly.
Baili Qingmiao… Qiu Congxue thought for a long time, and finally
remembered that Shu Yanyan had mentioned her eleven years ago. She was
the talented disciple who Wenren È favored, the one he wanted to steal from
Shangqing Sect and have practice the Path of Indifference.
“You’re a Core Formation disciple of Shangqing Sect?” Qiu Congxue

asked.
“I am. Have we met before, senior?”
Core Formation at eighteen was certainly unprecedented, but Baili

Qingmiao was now twenty-nine and still at Core Formation, so that was a
bit less special.
“Stick out your hand,” Qiu Congxue commanded. She typically

commanded hordes of ghosts and was used to ordering others around.
Fortunately, Baili Qingmiao was obedient and respected her as a Mahayana
cultivator, so stuck out her hand without hesitation.
Qiu Congxue probed Baili Qingmiao’s meridians and her eyes widened.
“Ninth level of Core Formation?”
The first level and the last level of Core Formation were completely
different. The ninth level of Core Formation put Baili Qingmiao on the
threshold of Nascent Soul, only needing the manual and to pass her inner
demon trial.
Nascent Soul before the age of thirty certainly was exceptional talent. Even
the cold-hearted Qiu Congxue felt some appreciation for her.
No wonder the Lord of Demons wanted her as a disciple. If Baili Qingmiao

cultivated for a hundred years, there was a possibility she could surpass
Wenren È.
“If I can’t beat Wenren È, maybe I can steal his disciple?” Qiu Congxue
scrutinized Baili Qingmiao head to toe.
Baili Qingmiao was intimidated and worried over whether this senior had
had a qi deviation. None of her behavior after waking up made sense. She
tugged carefully on Qiu Congxue’s robe and said, “Senior, I’ve already
been away from the sect for too long. Now that you’re healed, why don’t
we part ways here?”
She didn’t bring up a word of the other’s debt to her. Just saving a life was
enough for Baili Qingmiao.
“Hold on!” Qiu Congxue grabbed Baili Qingmiao’s collar. “We’re heading
down together.”
Qiu Congxue was over a thousand years old, but still appeared as a young
woman, with smooth pale skin and jet-black hair, fine brows, and elegant
eyes. They were tender yet heartless, making her a cold, distant beauty.
Just that she was far too casual, lifting up her robes and spreading her legs
multiple times as she descended the mountain, acting like she was still a
skeleton.
Baili Qingmiao felt like facepalming several times, but she didn’t want to
put pressure on Qiu Congxue, so managed to bear with it.
At the bottom of the mountain, she finally spoke. “Senior, I have a gown.
It’s not of the best quality, but… but it can at least cover you up.”
She took out a light green gown, something that Wenren È had previously
given to her. She had been determined to refuse at first, but Wenren È left
her with no other choice.
Qiu Congxue put it on. The gown suited her very well. With her tall stature
and slender waist, she seemed like a thin willow. Baili Qingmiao looked at
her for a moment, then took out an ordinary jade hairpin she had bought and
helped pin up Qiu Congxue’s hair.
“Senior is so beautiful,” she said with a small sigh.
“What’s the point?” Now that Qiu Congxue was off the mountain, her
power was no longer being suppressed. She investigated her condition and
was so irritated she almost rolled her eyes at Baili Qingmiao.
Her realm really had been restored and her powers had grown, but the ghost
qi she had spent so much effort cultivating was gone, and her body was
filled with immortal qi instead. She had become a wandering immortal.
Qiu Congxue tried summoning some nearby spirits, but not a single one
came.
She clenched her fists. How was she supposed to use this body to vie for the
leadership of Xuanyuan Sect with Wenren È? How was she supposed to
keep Shu Yanyan in her place?
Fortunately, Altar Master Qiu was a determined person. She could offer her
body to hungry ghosts in order to cultivate the Asura Path, so now she could
switch to cultivating as an immortal!
Baili Qingmiao felt much more at ease after taking care of Qiu Congxue
and bid farewell to her so she could return to her sect, only for Qiu
Congxue to grab her hair.
“Ow ow ow!” Baili Qingmiao clutched her hair and said lightly, “Senior, do
you need anything?”
“I recall that your righteous— er, your Shangqing Sect has a regulation that
you can accept a wandering immortal as a guest, as long as they stay and
help Shangqing Sect. According to how much they contribute, they can
study techniques passed down from other wandering immortals in the sect
library.”
Wandering immortals were exceptional existences in the cultivation world.

They were more powerful than Mahayana cultivators, and the strongest
among them could go toe to toe with immortals from the upper realm. Any
sect would highly welcome an unaffiliated wandering immortal. The sect’s
core techniques obviously couldn’t be passed on to outsiders, but there was
nothing wrong with letting them study some other techniques left behind by
predecessors. The wandering immortal could also leave behind their own
knowledge, so Shangqing Sect had collected many secret techniques over
the years. This was what Qiu Congxue was after.
The Shangqing Sect had sustained heavy losses in the Great Sect War and
needed the support of powerful experts. Qiu Congxue’s body was full of
immortal essence after eating the Flesh Mushroom and no one could tell she
was a demonic cultivator, so she was confident she’d be accepted by
Shangqing Sect. She decided to become the respected elder of a righteous
sect, and after gaining influence at Shangqing Sect, fight her way back into
Xuanyuan Sect and keep challenging Wenren È.
“Huh?” Baili Qingmiao said, dumbfounded. Why did this senior want to
follow her back to her sect now?
“Let’s go. I’ll take you back to Shangqing Sect.”
Qiu Congxue was a resolute woman and her actions always followed her
words. Since Baili Qingmiao flew too slow, she picked her up and flew
toward Shangqing Sect in a streak of light.
By the time they arrived, Wenren È had finished purging the violent qi from
Yin Hanjiang’s body. Yin Hanjiang opened his eyes slowly and immediately
caught sight of Wenren È.
“Venerable!” Yin Hanjiang instantly went to stand, but was held down by
Wenren È and sat back down.
“Your body was badly damaged by the violent qi of the Burning Sky
Drum,” Wenren È said lightly. “This Venerable has already cleared it out,
and there are some medicinal elixirs here you can take on your own.”
“Many thanks to the Venerable!” Yin Hanjiang took the medicine. Turning
his senses to his dantian, he found the energy of the Burning Sky Drum
completely gone and his wounds healing easily.
After circulating qi through his body thirty-six times, he had completely

recovered from his wounds. The only problem was that he had lost some
spiritual essence, but he could slowly cultivate it back. After healing, he
went looking for Wenren È and found him standing at the cave entrance,
watching the waterfall outside.
“Awake now?” Wenren È said.
“This subordinate is useless,” Yin Hanjiang said, kneeling. He hadn’t been

able to help the Venerable with his injuries, and forced the Venerable to help
him. He was far too incompetent.
Wenren È said nothing. He flew out of the cave, with Yin Hanjiang
following close behind him.
Wenren È had been busy treating his and Yin Hanjiang’s injuries the past
few days and hadn’t noticed where they were. He had only sensed the wards
he himself had put up and known it was safe. After exiting the cave, he
looked around and saw it was indeed the mountains behind the small sect he
used to lead, where Yin Hanjiang had grown up.
“This was where you practiced the sword,” Wenren È said, looking at the
waterfall.
“The Venerable still remembers?” Yin Hanjiang said.
A full moon happened to be out tonight, bathing the two in gentle

moonlight. Yin Hanjiang’s face seemed to be shrouded in a silver glow.
Wenren È closed his eyes. “This Venerable remembers. After we obtained

Xuanyuan Sect, I gave this place to you. Have you given this place a
name?”
“Yes.” Yin Hanjiang walked to the pool before the waterfall and scooped up
a handful of water. “This subordinate has named this area the Moon-Fishing
Pool.”
“Moon-Fishing?”
Yin Hanjiang’s brows softened, as if thinking of a happy memory. With a

faint smile, he said, “This subordinate used to practice the sword here, until
I was too exhausted to move, and laid beside the waterfall looking at the
sky. Sometimes the moon was curved, and sometimes it was round and
reflected in the pool. Back then, I thought you could scoop up the
moonlight, and fished at the water again and again.”
There was faint amusement in his words. He held his handful of water out
to Wenren È. “Eventually, when my hands steadied, I could scoop up the
moonlight.”
Wenren È looked down and saw the moon reflected in that handful of water
which Yin Hanjiang held up with his spiritual energy. He was presenting a
tiny image of the moon in his hands.
This had been Yin Hanjiang’s favorite game in his short, lonely childhood.
Wenren È gazed at the Moon-Fishing Pool and seemed to see a little child,
picking up handfuls of water again and again under the full moon, trying to
catch the ever-elusive moonlight.
He reached out a hand and kept the water together using his spiritual
energy. From his sleeve, he produced a crystal vase and poured the water
inside.
“This Venerable accepts your moonlight.”
Yin Hanjiang stared, dumbfounded, as he watched Wenren È use a treasure

which could hold an entire river to store his little handful of water, then
replace it in his sleeve. The night wind blew across Yin Hanjiang’s face
with a faint coolness, and only then did he realize that his face was burning
hot, and even his ears had turned bright red.
“Venerable, it was nothing,” Yin Hanjiang mumbled, bowing his head.
Wenren È clasped his hands behind his back. “This Venerable can’t
remember many old things. I just remember that in my childhood, I grew up
in a border town where my father and elder brother were garrisoned year-
round, leaving behind me and my mother. She personally taught me to fight
with a halberd, but I complained that a halberd was not as elegant and good-
looking as a sword.
“My mother told me that length lends power and protection. The weapons
on a battlefield are indiscriminate, and she wanted me to have a better
chance of survival, so she taught me the halberd.
“Before my sixteenth birthday, I woke with the dawn each morning and
studied combat and literature, in order to follow in my father and brother’s
footsteps and become a learned general who could protect the town I lived
in. But I didn’t know how to be a child, how to play and enjoy myself. After
I took you in, I only thought about teaching you to cultivate, and not to have
fun.”
Yin Hanjiang opened his mouth, but didn’t know what to say. He only
stared wide-eyed at this completely unknown version of his Venerable and
committed the sight to memory.
“Thinking about it now, this Venerable never really had any childish
impulses. This handful of moonlight is the childhood that Protector Yin has
given to this Venerable.” Wenren È smiled faintly. “Since you’ve given this
Venerable something so precious, I should give you some reward. Is there
anything you want?”
“No…”
Yin Hanjiang wanted to say, no need, but seeing Wenren È’s slight smile, he
felt that he would ruin this rare good mood his Venerable was in if he
refused.
“This subordinate does have a wish,” he said quietly. “This subordinate has
always wanted to go back and visit the border town where he grew up.”
“That’s no big deal at all,” Wenren È said. “Since you want to go, why
don’t you take this Venerable on your sword? Then I won’t have to wait for
you there.”
Yin Hanjiang called out Chiming. Seeing the patterns that had appeared
across the blade, he felt some concern and wanted to ask, but at Wenren È’s
encouragement, just mounted the sword and flew off with Wenren È, until
they reached the little border town.
The sun had risen by the time they arrived. The two hid themselves from
sight and landed within the town. “What’s this?” Yin Hanjiang said in
shock.
The sparsely populated town he remembered had become a fort with walls
strong as steel and a bustling marketplace within. The citizens looked
prosperous and happy, and merchants peddled their wares enthusiastically
from their stalls.
“The Great Sect War allowed the mortal world to rejuvenate for ten years,”
Wenren È said. “With abundant spiritual energy, there have been few
disasters. Since the plains haven’t suffered storms or frost, the nomads have
been living well, and don’t need to plunder bordering towns for grain each
winter. Spiritual veins reinforce ley lines, so that more capable officials are
born in the capital. They’ve opened up trade, and the commerce has brought
prosperity to the residents here. Ten years is more than enough time for a
small town to become a fortress.”
Yin Hanjiang walked to the memorial shrines and found a temple dedicated
to a general. He bought incense to offer to the general and bowed to him
deeply.
Wenren È didn’t know what to say. After Yin Hanjiang left, he asked, “This
is what you wanted? This Venerable is right here. Why are you paying
respects to my old mortal identity?”
Looking at the statue people had carved for Wenren È, Yin Hanjiang said
solemnly, “It’s not the same.”

Wants to Know
Chapter 17 – Border town
In the decades that had passed, the temple would’ve already fallen into ruin
if not for repairs by the government, and there were few people making
offerings.
Wenren È saw how familiarly Yin Hanjiang did everything and felt some
suspicion. When Yin Hanjiang returned to his side after offering incense
and washing the statue, he asked, “Do you often come?”
The base of Yin Hanjiang’s ears reddened slightly, but his face didn’t
change. “If not in seclusion, I come once a year,” he said.
Though this was the first time he had come with Wenren È.
“This Venerable doesn’t cultivate merits or sustain himself on incense

offerings. I’m right by your side, so why do you need to come bow to a
statue of me?” Wenren È said, puzzled.
Yin Hanjiang had followed him from childhood, and Wenren È had
assumed he understood him. It was only when he opened Abusive Romance
that he discovered he was seeing only the side of Yin Hanjiang the man
deigned to show. Since then he observed Yin Hanjiang more closely, and
discovered many things he’d never noticed before.
For instance, this temple was over eighty years old, but the statue was still
like new. This must’ve been at least partially Yin Hanjiang’s doing. He
would visit every year, yet Wenren È had never noticed.
Yin Hanjiang was about to answer when a man dressed like a government
official approached them. He seemed around fifty or sixty, and came
forward to strike up a conversation upon seeing Yin Hanjiang. “Is this
young hero named Yin?”
Yin Hanjiang didn’t treat this old official coldly as he did all others. He
cupped his hands respectfully and replied, “I am.”
The official seemed reminiscent as he looked at Yin Hanjiang’s face. He

sighed. “I came into management of the memorial shrines when I was
sixteen. Now over forty years have passed, and fewer and fewer people
come to pay respects every year. Only the Yin family, from your
grandfather to you today, would visit every year before winter. Yet your
father didn’t show up for the past eleven years, so I thought your family had
also forgotten.”
“My father hasn’t been able to walk these past few years and kept
lamenting how he could not go. This year, I set out on a trip, and my father
implored me that I absolutely must come here. He told me that my great
grandfather had been saved by General Wenren eighty years ago, and the
future generations of the Yin family should not forget this debt. When I
grow old, my son should also come here.”
Yin Hanjiang rarely spoke so much and was never good at expressing his
thoughts. Wenren È saw how well he had played his own father,
grandfather, and great-grandfather in front of this official, and would
probably play his own son and grandson in the future, and an unfamiliar
feeling rose within him.
Those eleven years were hardly because his father’s legs didn’t work, but
that he had been caught up in the Great Sect War and unable to come.
“My father is the same,” the old official said. He wiped the stone stele that
stood in front of the entrance to the shrine with a damp cloth, so that each
name stood out clearly. “He always told me that in that war eighty years
ago, if it weren’t for General Wenren, this town would’ve already fallen to
the enemy.”
As his cloth ran over the names, he stared at one that said Zhang Ergou and
said with pride, “This one is my grandfather, who died in battle after my
father was born. My father said that the peace this town enjoys now was
won with the blood of my grandfather and countless other soldiers, and they
deserve the highest honors.”
A chilly wind blew past, and the old official wrapped his clothes more
tightly around himself. He said with a chuckle to Yin Hanjiang, “You young
people might not mind the cold, but if you don’t put on more layers when
winter is coming, you’ll feel it when you’re older.”
He picked up his washcloth and bucket and slowly walked away from the
shrine.
After he was gone, Yin Hanjiang turned to Wenren È and repeated his
earlier words. “It’s not the same.”
Wenren È understood this time.
Wenren È the ruler of the demonic sects wasn’t the same as the General
Wenren enshrined in the small border town, the same way Yin Hanjiang the
Left Protector of Xuanyuan Sect wasn’t the same as the Young Hero Yin
who visited the shrines every year.
Wenren È walked to the memorial stele and brushed his fingertips over the
names with a soft smile. “I can actually match each name to a face.”
Not “this Venerable”, just “I”[1]. At the moment he wasn’t the Lord of
Demons, but General Wenren.
All the people named on the stele had probably already entered the cycle of
reincarnation, maybe even multiple times. But in this small town, they lived
on in many people’s hearts.
Together, these names could be called “guardians”.
Winds at the border were strong and pierced your clothes like knives come
winter. As it picked up, the pedestrians on the road rushed along to the
warmth of their homes and the street merchants packed up their wares. In a
bit, only Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang were left standing out in the streets.
The bitter cold wind blew a lock of Yin Hanjiang’s hair across his face.
Normally, Yin Hanjiang’s hair was tied up neatly so not a strand was left
loose, so that even though his appearance was youthful, he gave off a far
older aura. With a loose lock of hair hanging by his face, blown by the
wind, Wenren È felt that Yin Hanjiang had gained a shred of youthful
innocence.
In truth, Yin Hanjiang had always been like this, and it was only that
Wenren È never really looked at him, and so had never noticed throughout
all these years.
Wenren È smiled slightly. He took out the Abusive Romance book from his
sleeve and said, “I must be grateful for this book. If not for it, this Venerable
would’ve overlooked one Yin Hanjiang.”
Yin Hanjiang’s eyes fell on that familiar title again, of the book his
Venerable so inconceivably kept around.
Maybe it was because he had shown the Venerable another side of himself
today, or maybe it was because today, the Venerable seemed different than
usual, but Yin Hanjiang decided to see him right now as General Wenren
and not the master of the demonic sects, so boldly asked a question. “Just
what mysteries does that book hold?”
He remembered that it was after obtaining this book that the Venerable had
left Xuanyuan Sect and focused his attention in particular on the righteous
disciple Baili Qingmiao, looking after her in various ways.
The Venerable only treated Baili Qingmiao as his junior, so Yin Hanjiang
had also unconsciously begun paying closer attention to this besotted young
woman, and even become frustrated at her various shortcomings. The
Venerable looked so highly upon her aptitudes, and said that they had a
karmic relationship, even wanting to take her as disciple. Yet Baili
Qingmiao just thought of living happily ever after with Hè Wenzhao, while,
with the kind of person Hè Wenzhao was…
Even though Yin Hanjiang rarely had opinions on people besides Wenren È,
he still couldn’t help but acknowledge that Hè Wenzhao didn’t deserve her.
Baili Qingmiao was at least a pure-hearted and kind disciple of the
righteous sects, but Hè Wenzhao really left a bad taste in one’s mouth.
If Yin Hanjiang gave his heart to one person, he would never have
considerations toward another. How could he bear to watch Hè Wenzhao
proclaim his love for Baili Qingmiao while at the same time sleeping with
Shu Yanyan?
“This book tells the story of a romance,” Wenren È said, in summary, then
changed his mind and said, “This book led this Venerable to consider
Protector Yin in a new light.”
Yin Hanjiang was dumbstruck again.
“The wind is picking up.” Wenren È put away the book. “What other secrets
does Protector Yin keep in this small town? You might as well tell this
Venerable all at once, now that we have this chance.”
“This subordinate… also often goes to restaurants to hear plays and

stories,” Yin Hanjiang said. “The actors and storytellers have made
excessive changes to the stories, but they’re still not bad to hear.”
“Why don’t you take this Venerable to one, then?” Wenren È said.
Yin Hanjiang obediently led Wenren È to a restaurant. After the wind

started, not many people remained outside, but the inside of the restaurant
was crowded. The first floor was already seated full, so Yin Hanjiang
requested an expensive room on the second floor.
The tea house at the foot of Shangqing Sect’s mountain served high-quality
teas with spiritual energy, offering delicate pastries and poetry readings.
The border town had a completely different atmosphere. The two had barely
taken their seats when a waiter brought over a bubbling pot, a large platter
of sliced beef, a platter of lamb, a jar of wine, and two bowls of sheep’s
milk tea.
The cups here were nothing like the delicate teacups in the Henan area,
wider than their bowls. Without a word, the waiter began pouring two big
bowls of wine for both.
Yin Hanjiang seemed a bit embarrassed at the lack of restraint and was
about to ask the waiter to switch for some smaller bowls, when he heard
Wenren È say, “No need for bowls. Isn’t wine meant to be drunk straight
from the jar?”
The waiter said with a clap, “I thought you’d know your stuff! I’ll go fetch
a jar immediately.”
Wenren È lifted the jar with one hand and took a swig. A trickle of wine ran
from the corner of his mouth and vanished before it could drip down,
evaporated by the temperature of his skin. Yin Hanjiang had never seen his
serious master act so unrestrained and took a hard swallow. He felt that the
wine in the jar smelled richer than before and raised it to gulp down a
mouthful. The sting made his eyes water, and he looked at Wenren È as if it
was somehow his fault.
Wenren È burst into loud laughter. “Hahahaha! So Protector Yin really can’t
drink alcohol. I can’t believe a mouthful of wine can burn a Void Boundary
cultivator so strongly.”
“The Venerable’s alcohol tolerance is just too good,” Yin Hanjiang replied.
Wenren È shook his head. “The first time I drank, I took a gulp like my
father and brothers and nearly killed myself. I didn’t understand why white
wine[2] was so intense, and later my mother told me that if a soldier was
injured on the battlefield, the strong liquor could save their life.”
Right up until the extermination of the Wenren Clan, Wenren È had never
learned to drink. It was a hundred years ago, as he fought alongside the
soldiers defending the border, that he learned to drink wine and eat meat
unreservedly like the rest of them. Back then, he still had a flesh body, and
despite practicing inedia had no problem with eating mortal food once in a
while.
Right now, on the other hand…

Wenren È glanced over to the boiling pot and cooked a slice of lamb meat
for Yin Hanjiang. He didn’t take a bite for himself and only drank and
watched the performances. Yin Hanjiang just thought Wenren È didn’t like
meat, so copied him in drinking wine. Once he got used to the strength of
the alcohol, he as a Void Boundary cultivator naturally didn’t need to worry
about intoxication.
In the center of the hall was a storyteller, relaying in a thick border accent
the story of a bold woman from a small town trying to land a husband. The
woman had a blunt attitude, was free in her emotions, and never beat
around the bush, and the audience loudly approved of her.
Listening, Wenren È nodded. “This is how love ought to go. If this

Venerable were to fall prey to a love tribulation, and the other party
reciprocated, I would keep that person by my side forever. If they had no
interest, then I would let them go. What dignity is there in clinging to
someone?”
He slapped Abusive Romance down on the tabletop. Whether it was Baili

Qingmiao or Wenren È, neither had chosen the right path in this story.
Yin Hanjiang saw a splash of wine land on the book’s cover. Wenren È
didn’t seem to treasure the book very much at all. Under the influence of
the wine, Yin Hanjiang showed open curiosity.
“This is a novel of Baili Qingmiao and Hè Wenzhao’s romance. It tells of

how Baili Qingmiao rose to unmatched heights, only to let herself be torn
down by Hè Wenzhao. Wouldn’t you say that’s ridiculous?”
Wenren È felt he could explain a part of the book’s contents to Yin

Hanjiang, to keep him from always looking like he was choking on his
words. He really worried this kid would suffocate someday. Though the
latter parts with Wenren È’s death and Yin Hanjiang’s madness could be left
out.
“Back when this Venerable obtained this book, I just thought it was a story,
but reading more closely, I found it divulged the arrangements of heaven.
This book records the events of the Great Sect War. It was what allowed this
Venerable to anticipate the plans of the righteous sects.”
Astonishment showed on Yin Hanjiang’s face, but he held back his

questions, quietly listening to Wenren È.
Wenren È summarized Baili Qingmiao and Hè Wenzhao’s relationship in

the book, omitting how he also fell in love with Baili Qingmiao and died.
Instead he provided as explanation, “This Venerable was also in the book,
and because of a debt to the primordial goddess, provided help to Baili
Qingmiao many times. That’s why I want to take her as a disciple, to lead
her to practice the Path of Indifference and free her from Hè Wenzhao’s
influence.”
“I understand now.” The doubts in Yin Hanjiang’s heart gradually dissipated

and were replaced with praise. The Venerable was indeed far-seeing, and
could even make use of the plot of a romance novel, taking the Great Sect
War as an opportunity to challenge heaven’s arrangements.
“This Venerable also learned of the location of the Snow Flame from this
book,” Wenren È said. “Additionally, the book mentioned that there was a
fated opportunity for you at the Golden Coast Cliffs, the Shattered
Mountain Meteorite, which is perfectly suited for refining into your sword.”
The Shattered Mountain Meteorite was really Wenren È’s fate, but he
swapped it around so Yin Hanjiang wouldn’t be moved by gratitude and
pledge to live and die for him again. Wenren È didn’t much like seeing him
like that.
Wenren È had benefitted plenty from the border conflict where he picked up
Yin Hanjiang, so there was no need for the man to act so indebted to him.
“It’s convenient for us that both the righteous and demonic sects are
currently recuperating from the war. Xuanyuan Sect should be fine for now,
so this Venerable will accompany you on a trip to the Golden Coast Cliffs,”
Wenren È said casually.
Xuanyuan Sect… should be fine? Yin Hanjiang furrowed his brows.
“Venerable, the Xuanyuan Sect is like a pack of dragons without a head
right now. This subordinate fears that if the Venerable is absent too long, the
Right Protector and Altar Masters will shift loyalties.”
“No matter.” Wenren È took a large gulp of wine. “I can kill them all and
save myself some effort. Right now the righteous sects can’t fight us, so
leaving so many high-level demonic cultivators alive doesn’t do us anything
but invite trouble.”
“Good point, Venerable,” Yin Hanjiang said respectfully.
Wenren È raised a finger and tapped him on the forehead. “This Venerable
isn’t all-knowing or all-powerful,” he said in an annoyed tone. “There are
times when I get things wrong too. If you follow me blindly in everything,
I’ll have trouble recognizing my mistakes. You also need to use your brain
now and then, and help this Venerable think.”
“This subordinate understands.” Yin Hanjiang rubbed his forehead and

smiled slightly.
This trip to the border seemed to have brought the two closer. Wenren È and
Yin Hanjiang no longer stayed in their rigid roles as master and subordinate
and had gained a deeper connection.
The two had finished ten jars of wine between themselves, and even the
shop’s owner was so astonished he came personally to ask the two’s names,
so they could be remembered as immortals in the restaurant.
Wenren È declined to give his name and, with Yin Hanjiang behind him,
left the world of mortals. He hadn’t touched a mouthful from the steaming
pot on the table, whereas Yin Hanjiang had eaten quite a bit.
After they left the town barely before curfew, Wenren È said, “Protector
Yin, why don’t you take this Venerable on your sword again until we get to
the Golden Coast Cliffs? The demon sword doesn’t have many days left
anyways. After we get the Shattered Mountain Meteorite, we’ll refine the
sword together with it.”
Chiming rattled a few times, as if objecting to Wenren È’s words.
Yin Hanjiang didn’t question him and took Wenren È on his sword, heading
toward the Golden Coast. His sword flight speed couldn’t compare to
Wenren È’s light flash and the Golden Coast was far enough away that it
took a day and night’s worth of flying. By Wenren È’s assessment, even if
Baili Qingmiao had returned to her sect by now, this wasn’t enough time for
her to set out for and reach the cliffs.
The Golden Coast Cliffs were in the far eastern part of the Middle Province.
The beaches were covered with fine golden sand, thus it was called the
Golden Coast. A high cliff lined the coast, and since golden stone made up
the cliff face, it was called the Golden Coast Cliffs.
Yin Hanjiang landed at the top of the cliffs, unable to ride his sword past
that point. An immortal realm was said to be hidden there, and any place
with traces of immortal or divine power would suppress a cultivator’s
power. The higher level they were, the more they were affected, while a
Nascent Soul or lower cultivator would be unrestricted.
Wenren È was stronger than an ordinary person even with his cultivation
suppressed, though, and since he practiced martial arts, his movements were
more agile and powerful than most cultivators. Yin Hanjiang was also quite
capable, having practiced the sword from youth, and they climbed the rock
face steadily as they descended the cliff.
In the book, Baili Qingmiao fell many times and had to be caught by
Wenren È, only to fall again, for him to catch her again, and so on. Thinking
back, it was odd—she hadn’t fallen once while climbing Nine Cauldrons
Mountain and carrying Wenren È, yet constantly lost her footing once she
came to the Golden Coast Cliffs. Was it because the rocks were weathered
by the sea spray and had come loose?
Yin Hanjiang didn’t cause any problems of the sort. His footing was firm
and he climbed quickly enough to keep up, no matter how fast Wenren È
progressed.
In the book, they spent a month searching for the spiritual realm, purely
because Baili Qingmiao would twist an ankle once every couple thousand
words, or sprain a shoulder, or get all kinds of other injuries, so that they
constantly needed to stop and treat her.
Wenren È didn’t know the exact location of the spiritual realm either. In the
book’s account, Baili Qingmiao had been bitten by a poisonous bat and
fainted. Wenren È was carrying her, and while she was near death,
discovered the entrance to the spiritual realm. Thinking back, Baili
Qingmiao had found the Snow Flame at the instant before she froze to
death, and the Flesh Mushroom had appeared before her on its own when
she collapsed and fell unconscious.
Hold on, was the cause for all these legendary treasures appearing Baili
Qingmiao’s near-death experiences?
After searching for three days, Wenren È finally paused. Would the spiritual
realm really not appear unless Baili Qingmiao was there?
Wenren È felt a bit troubled.
“Venerable?” Yin Hanjiang saw Wenren È stop, hanging onto the cliff face
while deep in thought, and hurried to his side.
“This Venerable seems to have…” Before Wenren È could finish, he

glimpsed a greenish-black blur out of the corner of his eyes, rushing toward
Yin Hanjiang. Instantly, with a wave of a sleeve, one of his arms
transformed into a cloud of crimson mist, enveloping the flying shape.
In a few seconds, the bat dissolved into blood in Wenren È’s hold, falling
drop by drop into the ocean below.
“Venerable, your arm…” Yin Hanjiang saw Wenren È’s dissolved arm, and
a tremble entered his voice.
“Seems you found out in the end.” Wenren È smiled slightly, solidifying his
arm again and ruffling Yin Hanjiang’s hair.
1. I do editorialize his dialogue sometimes to make it sound better in

English, but actually he says I all the time. Just to clarify. ↩
2. Baijiu, a Chinese liquor with a high alcohol content. ↩

Wants to Know
Chapter 18 – Elder Qingxue
The blood arts were lost techniques, due to so few people succeeding in
them, so very few people in the cultivation world knew of the Blood
Severing Technique. However, Yin Hanjiang had followed Wenren È for
many years and was there when Wenren È obtained the manual for the
blood arts. Therefore, he had some understanding.
Forgetting about the agony the Blood Severing Technique caused oneself,
or how difficult it was to succeed in, the most important fact was that ten
thousand years ago, the only blood cultivator in the world went mad and
became a demon, needing the combined forces of the righteous and
demonic sects to slay him.
This was not a demon as in the distinction between righteous and demonic
cultivators in the cultivation world, but as in an inner demon.
If the heavens were an elder, a cultivator was a junior. Righteous cultivators

would go along with the heavens in order to cheat spiritual energy out of it.
They used their techniques to connect themselves to the heavens, trying to
become one with the cosmos, so that the spiritual energy of the natural
world recognized them and allowed itself to be absorbed by them.
Righteous cultivators were careful to obey the principles of heaven and to
accumulate merit in order to harmonize with the cosmos. In order to fool
the heavens, they must first fool themselves. Thus, they walked the path of
cheating heaven.
On the other hand, demonic cultivators were like brats who struck their
elders and kicked their younger siblings. They directly stole spiritual energy
from the cosmos, their methods greedy and quick, known as the path of
robbing heaven.
The righteous cultivators had always disapproved of the demonic
cultivators, not because of differences in their ideology, but because stealing
was much faster than coaxing. While righteous cultivators spent much time
and energy to obtain a tiny bit of spiritual energy from the cosmos, the
demonic cultivators essentially stole most of the family inheritance.
If a righteous and demonic cultivator cultivated in the same spiritually-rich

spot, more than 90% of the spiritual energy would be stolen by the demonic
cultivator, leaving just some leftover scraps for the righteous cultivator.
This was the origin of both sides’ conflict. One was deceivers and the other
thieves, so there was no moral high ground either could claim. The whole
reason righteous sects found trouble with demonic sects was that they
couldn’t beat them in stealing.
However, there were upsides to the righteous path’s techniques. Since they
harmonized with heaven, their tribulations were relatively easy to pass. The
heavens went much easier on them, letting them off after throwing a few
lightning bolts their way. As for the demonic path, the more they stole, the
harder the tribulations they faced would be. It was said the immortal realm
was full of righteous cultivators, while demonic cultivators were very few,
likely having all died to heavenly lightning.
However, the type of demon that the blood cultivator had become wasn’t
referring to the distinction between schools of cultivation, but the
distinction between gods and demons, demons referring to collections of all
the negative energy in the cosmos.
When a cultivator underwent their tribulation, they could absorb the qi that
came down from the immortal realm, transforming their own essence
completely into immortal essence and ascending. But a blood cultivator was
unable to transform immortal essence. They could absorb all kinds of
energy in the world, spiritual qi, immortal qi, and even the primordial chaos
of the divine realm, but it would all be transformed into blood qi within the
body.
A blood cultivator had no limits and could cultivate to the power of a

Golden Immortal while still in the cultivator realm. But at the same time,
they could never ascend to the immortal realm, and could never become an
immortal without immortal essence. None of the upper realms would
welcome a blood cultivator, and if Wenren È dared to go there, all the gods
and Buddhas of heaven would join forces to destroy him.
Aside from the Blood Hell which was the entrance to the demonic realm,
there was now no place in the world for Wenren È.
Once he was corrupted, the demonic nature would overtake his humanity,
and he would become a monster only capable of transforming everything
around him into blood and absorbing it.
He hadn’t had any of the meat back at the restaurant because his body was
now composed of blood mist fused with his soul. Alcohol was a liquid and
could be absorbed into his blood without any problems, but as for other
foods, unless he dissolved it into blood to be absorbed, it would leave his
body unchanged as he could no longer digest food. He was unable to store
the Seven Killing Halberd inside his body either, since his dantian no longer
existed.
Right now, Wenren È’s body was made of solidified blood mist. He wasn’t
unable to use light flash anymore, and in fact, a blood cultivator’s light
flash was the fastest in the cultivation world. But if he used it, he would
expose himself to Yin Hanjiang.
After he carried out the Blood Severing Technique, the only path left to
Wenren È was abandoning his humanity and becoming a demon, with
ascension becoming a near-impossibility.
“Venerable!” Yin Hanjiang clutched frantically at Wenren È’s robes,

choking on his words and unable to speak further.
Wenren È picked Yin Hanjiang up with his now-solidified hand and

climbed back to the top of the cliff. He threw an arm around Yin Hanjiang,
patting his back, and said quietly, “Don’t grieve for me. This Venerable is
still alive, is he not? And now that I’ve increased my power, I’m afraid
there might be no one in this world who can take me on.”
Between living now and dying of his injuries back in that cave, Wenren È
had chosen to live.
He hadn’t wanted to tell Yin Hanjiang because he was worried Yin

Hanjiang would obsess over it, beating himself up for being too weak to
save his master.
Wenren È didn’t want to see that kind of self-blame. It was so meaningless.
Yin Hanjiang understood Wenren È well. He clung to Wenren È’s sleeve,

making choked noises, but in the end did not cry. Controlling himself, he let
go of Wenren È’s robe.
He got down on one knee and said resolutely, “It is indeed as the Venerable
said. The ultimate victory is survival. This subordinate has pledged to
follow the Venerable for life, so this subordinate can only ask the Venerable
to take him along to the Blood Hell.”
“Very good. This is more like the child this Venerable raised.” With a sweep
of his sleeve, Wenren È lifted Yin Hanjiang to his feet. “You can follow me,
but don’t kneel to me. This Venerable doesn’t want to see you kneel.”
“Understood,” Yin Hanjiang said.
The glimpse of pain on his face had already been hidden away, and the hint
of youthful vigor that he had shown over the last few days at the border
town had also vanished. Yin Hanjiang was once again the expressionless
Left Protector, dedicated to his master with no thoughts of his own.
His pain hadn’t vanished. He only forced it back, putting on his habitual
mask to cover up his emotions.
Wenren È saw that Yin Hanjiang had calmed and assumed he had been
reassured. If he guided Yin Hanjiang a bit now and again, then even if in the
end he died like the book said, Yin Hanjiang hopefully wouldn’t go mad.
Neither of them brought up the blood arts again as they continued to search
for the spiritual realm. In the end, aside from running into a horde of poison
bats, they didn’t manage to find anything after a month of searching.
The strangest part was that around now was the time Baili Qingmiao had
arrived at the Golden Coast Cliffs in the book, yet after waiting several
days, they saw no sign of her.
After the end of the Great Sect War, Wenren È hadn’t paid much attention
to the events of the plot, and hadn’t been interested in looking into the
righteous sects’ affairs. All he knew was that Shu Yanyan had taken Hè
Wenzhao’s Nascent Soul and broken the Spirit Severing Array, leaving Hè
Wenzhao to fall from the sky. Who knew if he had survived?
What if he had really died? Maybe Baili Qingmiao’s heart was broken and
that’s why she hadn’t come to the Golden Coast.
That wouldn’t be acceptable, Wenren È thought.
She could grieve all she wanted, but he needed the Shattered Mountain
Meteorite. Yin Hanjiang couldn’t go on not having a bonded weapon
forever.
“It seems the opening of this spiritual realm is also tied to Baili Qingmiao,”
Wenren È said. “We need to go pay a visit to Shangqing Sect.”
Yin Hanjiang didn’t say anything, only followed him in silence. It seemed
like the life that had returned to him over the last few days had all been
drained out of him.
He forced himself to think nothing, only trusting and following his

Venerable. If he thought, his heart would hurt, and if he let his pain show,
the Venerable would be disappointed in him. The Venerable wanted him to
become a strong and self-reliant sword cultivator, so he had to banish any
feelings of weakness.
“This Venerable will ride with you again,” said Wenren È. “I can’t let others
see my light flash at this point.”
Yin Hanjiang flew on his sword for a day and night, until the two arrived at
a deserted area near Shangqing Sect. To hide their identities, they tweaked
their appearances slightly and entered the small town at the foot of the
mountain.
Though ordinary people lived and worked here, since they were close to
Shangqing Sect but situated outside its protective barrier, they were
vulnerable to threats from the sect’s enemies. Therefore, the sect would
send disciples to patrol the town daily.
Shangqing Sect’s protective array was anchored to an immortal artifact, and

even Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang had no hope of getting in by normal
means. But as a blood cultivator, Wenren È had many more options open to
him.
They found the new patrol of disciples that had just arrived, a group of Qi
Gathering disciples led by a Core Formation stage girl.
Wenren È said quietly to Yin Hanjiang, “Protector Yin, wait for me here. I’ll
get Baili Qingmiao off the mountain.”
Seeing Yin Hanjiang assent, Wenren È transformed into a streak of crimson

light and entered the leading girl’s body. If he had his choice, even he
wouldn’t have preferred to take a woman’s body, but the outer disciples of
Shangqing Sect lived outside its wards and had no opportunity to come into
contact with Baili Qingmiao. The only one Wenren È could choose was the
Core Formation stage female cultivator.
A blood cultivator’s soul was fused with their blood and could tracelessly
enter someone’s body and meld with their bloodstream. The body he was in
would act like a shield for him, and even an immortal may not be able to
discover him.
The girl paused in her stride and stood for a moment with a hand on her
head. Her previously soft and anxious gaze instantly became steely. Her
consciousness had already been suppressed by Wenren È, and she seemed
like a completely different person.
Wenren È could kill her with less effort than raising a finger, but he wasn’t
interested in harming those weaker than him. He only temporarily
suppressed her awareness and put her in an unconscious state.
“Liu-shijie, are you feeling unwell?” said one of the disciples following her,
rushing forward after seeing her steps falter.
“No.” Wenren È didn’t know this girl’s personality, so the less he said, the
better.
He was fully capable of using a soul delving technique to read all the
memories of this disciple from her soul, so as to prevent himself from
slipping up, but that would lead to the certain death of the victim. Wenren È
only wanted to get Baili Qingmiao away from her sect, and had no wish to
cause further complications.
A female outer disciple in a grey robe said with concern, “Liu-shijie, are
you thinking of Hè-shixiong? There’s no need to worry. The elders are
incredible, so surely they’ll come up with a way to save Hè-shixiong.”
“No,” Wenren È said.
He had no interest in patrolling and continued, “We’re returning.”
After taking a few steps, he paused and turned to that outer disciple. “What
shixiong did you just mention?”
“Hè-shixiong,” she replied. “Liu-shijie, you look pale. When we get back,
you should go to the administration hall and request some calming drugs, so
you don’t make yourself ill from anxiety.”
Hè-shixiong? Was there another person named Hè in Shangqing Sect?

Unimportant characters in Abusive Romance hadn’t been given names, but
of the named disciples, Hè Wenzhao had been the only one with that
surname.
Also, what did this disciple just call him? Liu-shijie?

There indeed had been a named female disciple of Shangqing Sect in the
book, Liu Xinye, the very female cultivator who secretly had feelings for
Hè Wenzhao and forced herself upon him when he was injured, having her
foundation drained in order to replenish his essence. She was also the
villain who disguised herself as Baili Qingmiao and got refined into lamp
oil by Yin Hanjiang.
Seeing as she once… no, more like someday would become an everburning
lamp for him, and now Wenren È was possessing her body, perhaps their
fates were connected in some slight way.
This wasn’t a body that suited him very well, but he was only trying to find
Baili Qingmiao, and anyone would do for that purpose. Liu Xinye had a
high position within the sect and could easily reach Baili Qingmiao. It was
just a simple errand—he should be in and back in no time.
From what Wenren È remembered of the book’s descriptions, Liu Xinye

was a two-faced person who was warm and considerate in front of Hè
Wenzhao, but became quite condescending when with the outer disciples.
That sort of temperament wouldn’t be hard to imitate.
With a cold expression, he raised his voice. “As an outer disciple, is it your
place to tell me what to do?”
Liu Xinye was typically very highly respected among the outer disciples. In
the face of her anger, the disciples were too scared to say anything more and
followed Wenren È back up the mountain.
Wenren È only knew Shangqing Sect from general descriptions in the

novel, and had no knowledge of its specific layout. Fortunately, the
compound was constructed with careful attention to feng shui, and with a
little calculation he could figure out which area was most suited for housing
the outer or inner disciples, and which area was most suited for the
administration hall.
He quickly led the disciples there and in the day’s patrol records, mimicked
Liu Xinye’s handwriting from previous days and wrote “Nothing out of the
ordinary” down.
The outer disciples used the hall’s jade slips to record their day’s patrol
tasks. They would earn a few contribution points this way, and if they saved
them up, they could use it to buy elixirs.
After they left, Wenren È first searched through the record of departures,
not finding Baili Qingmiao’s name within it. After determining the location
of the inner disciples’ quarters, he was about to go look for her, when he
heard a completely plain and ordinary-looking Core Formation disciple call
to him, “Liu-shimei, haven’t you been concerned for Hè-shixiong? I’m
taking care of him tonight, so you can come see him.”
After saying that, he winked, as if to say, “Look how considerate I am,

giving you a chance to get close to Hè Wenzhao”.
Wenren È, who had Abusive Romance memorized cover to cover, was very
familiar with these words. The plotline they led to was the one where Liu
Xinye took the opportunity while caring for Hè Wenzhao at night to give
herself to him and help him recover his Nascent Soul.
“I’m not going,” Wenren È replied bluntly.
It was no concern of Wenren È’s whether Hè Wenzhao lived or died. He

was only here to find Baili Qingmiao, and after he got Baili Qingmiao
away, Liu Xinye could find her own opportunity to sleep with Hè Wenzhao.
The disciple who had fulfilled the role of a pimp in the story was shocked
speechless at Wenren È’s words, as he saw Liu Xinye turn away carelessly
with no regard to Hè Wenzhao’s well-being.
“No way, shimei,” he said. “Didn’t you like shixiong?”
Wenren È couldn’t raise suspicions right now and had to turn around,
feigning annoyance, and say, “When he was at Nascent Soul, of course this
— I liked him, but now that he’s useless, why should I waste my time on
him?”
The disciple was speechless.
The coldhearted “Liu Xinye” finally got away from the nameless disciple,
and headed directly for the inner disciples’ quarters.
Wenren È was puzzled by something. If Hè Wenzhao had been saved by the

relief teams and brought back to the sect, and this time around Baili
Qingmiao hadn’t used the Flesh Mushroom on Wenren È, shouldn’t she
have set out to find it for Hè Wenzhao?
Yet she hadn’t searched for the mushroom for him, and hadn’t gone to the
Golden Coast Cliffs to get the meteorite for him. What was she doing in the
sect?
Thinking this over, Wenren È hurried towards the compound where the
inner disciples lived and cultivated. Sword flight was forbidden within the
sect’s grounds, so he had no choice but to walk. After some time, he got to
the quarters for Core Formation female disciples, and yet didn’t know
which room Baili Qingmiao was in.
He saw a plain and ordinary female disciple pass by, who he could tell at a
glance was a bit character in the book whose position was far below Liu
Xinye’s, so he grabbed hold of her and asked, “Where’s Baili Qingmiao?”
His tone was harsh, but fortunately Liu Xinye often didn’t treat other
disciples very nicely, and her attitude got worse whenever she talked about
Baili Qingmiao.
The passerby replied, “Baili-shimei… no, now that she’s Nascent Soul
stage she should be shijie. Baili-shijie is in seclusion on Dustless Peak with
Elder Qingxue.”
Nascent Soul? Wenren È furrowed his brows. When had Baili Qingmiao
reached Nascent Soul? This didn’t match the novel’s events. And who was
Elder Qingxue? They had never appeared in the book.
After releasing the disciple, Wenren È found a deserted spot and accessed
the extradimensional space within his sleeves to retrieve the Abusive
Romance novel, wanting to double-check when Baili Qingmiao had reached
Nascent Soul in the story. However, when he opened the first page, he
found that the first line of text had changed: “Plot holes have been partially
fixed. Please continue your efforts.”
Wenren È hadn’t opened the book in eleven years and never imagined the
contents were capable of changing. He hurriedly flipped it open and
carefully scanned it, looking for alterations.
Abusive Romance was still from Baili Qingmiao’s perspective, but had
changed from the Thousand Mile Ice Plains on, perfectly matching the real
events that Wenren È remembered. He read up to the Great Sect War, and
saw that Baili Qingmiao had rescued a skeletal person in black robes.
Wenren È: …
After she saved them, the black robed person turned out to be a
domineering woman and a wandering immortal, following Baili Qingmiao
back to Shangqing Sect. The Shangqing Sect leader was heavily injured and
unconscious following his battle with Wenren È, just like in the original
story, and several wandering immortals were injured or killed, so the sect
was desperately in need of support. They quickly admitted this wandering
immortal overflowing with immortal essence who was clearly at a glance
not any sort of demonic cultivator. That wandering immortal took the new
name of Elder Qingxue.
After helping Elder Qingxue settle in, Baili Qingmiao went looking for her
shixiong and found that Hè Wenzhao had had his Nascent Soul taken by a
heartless demonic cultivator. Instantly forgetting the reasons for her
previous standoff with him, she threw her arms around him and started
sobbing.
Hè Wenzhao slowly opened his eyes and, seeing his beloved, said in a
heartbroken tone, “Shimei, when I was hurt, all I thought of was seeing you
one more time. But where were you then?”
Baili Qingmiao cried so hard she could hardly breathe. She was about to
blame herself when she heard a cold voice beside her say, “She went to find
the Flesh Mushroom to save me. Got a problem with that?”
Elder Qingxue’s cold gaze swept over Hè Wenzhao. “The Flesh Mushroom
certainly could’ve restored you, but if you put a wandering immortal side
by side with a disciple who’s lost his Nascent Soul, everyone knows who
ought to be saved. Can you possibly bring greater benefit to the Shangqing
Sect? Where do you get the audacity to ask Baili Qingmiao to save you?”
Hè Wenzhao was furious enough he could spit blood. Clutching Baili

Qingmiao’s hand, he forced out, “Shimei, I— I never said anything like
that.”
“I know,” Baili Qingmiao sobbed. She wanted to hug Hè Wenzhao, but was
picked up in one hand by Elder Qingxue.
“At your level, even if you want to save someone, you have to consider
whether you actually have the ability to,” said Elder Qingxue. “Hurry up
and take me as a master, and after you improve your cultivation, you can
worry about saving people.”
“B—but I already have a master,” said Baili Qingmiao awkwardly.
“No matter,” said Elder Qingxue. “I can just take your master as an
honorary disciple. I’m not worried about the distinction between being your
master or your master’s master.”
Baili Qingmiao: …
Wenren È: …
you ever just pour alcohol directly into your bloodstream

Wants to Know
Chapter 19 – A thoughtful subordinate
Baili Qingmiao’s master, Elder Qingrong, may have only been at Deity
Transformation Stage, but she was the same generation as Elder Qingxue.
After hearing the wandering immortal wanted to take her as disciple, she
hesitated for a moment, and after some thought, said, “At this moment, the
most senior members of the Shangqing Sect are the Sect Master and me. If I
were to become the nominal disciple of Elder Qingxue, you would become
the Sect Master’s martial sister. I don’t have the authority to do something
like that.”
In actuality, Qingxue being a wandering immortal meant she was entirely

qualified to be considered senior to Elder Qingrong and the Sect Master.
But she was a guest and Shangqing Sect could not allow an outsider to
stand in a more senior position than the Sect Master.
Qingxue’s expression twisted and she started using her few remaining brain
cells to weigh the possibility of getting rid of Elder Qingrong.
Fortunately, Elder Qingrong patted Baili Qingmiao on the head and said,
“And I know Elder Qingxue does not actually wish to take me as disciple,
but was only impressed by Qingmiao’s talent and unable to pass her up.
Qingmiao, it is your great fortune that Elder Qingxue wishes to transmit her
teachings to you, so there is no need to reject it. It would be awkward if she
wanted you to become her sworn disciple, but as a nominal disciple, there’s
no problem.”
“Mm, that’s fine,” said Qingxue.
Thus Baili Qingmiao entered seclusion with Elder Qingxue and rapidly
reached Nascent Soul stage, becoming the rising star of Shangqing Sect’s
next generation.
She wanted to visit her shixiong too, but Elder Qingxue was much more
powerful than her and had set a barrier around their cultivation grounds,
telling Baili Qingmiao that she wasn’t leaving until she could break it with
her own power.
For the sake of seeing her shixiong, Baili Qingmiao dedicated herself to
cultivating and made progress at breakneck speed, absorbing techniques
and teachings like a sponge.
Wenren È: …
He flipped a few more pages, but the rest of the story was identical to the
original, the two halves not matching up.
The last page had gained several more reviews, however.
[Extra, extra, the legendary trash novel writer has returned from the dead,
and started a revision!]
[Me before reading the revision: Can this braindead story actually be
revised? Probably just fixing typos. Me after reading the revision: Good
shit!]
[Elder Qingxue is so badass! ‘Between a wandering immortal and a disciple

who’s lost his Nascent Soul, everyone knows who deserves to be saved,
where do you get the nerve to compare yourself to me?’ That line killed me,
hahaha!]
[Don’t you guys think this Elder Qingxue’s appearance is too sudden? The
MC originally should’ve saved the Demon Lord, but instead Wenren È got
an earlier debut, and without a debt to the MC he didn’t care if she lived or
died. Instead Elder Qingxue took his place and started putting down the
male lead for her. I suspect that Elder Qingxue is a man in disguise. Look at
her description, she’s half a head taller than Baili Qingmiao. Seems
suspicious to me!]
[After seeing the above post, I suddenly want to see Elder Qingxue take off
her clothes to be revealed to be bigger than the male lead, haha!]
[Don’t be so hopeful, you guys! Back when the MC saved Qingxue, she
saw her body and she was definitely a woman. And besides, worst case the
author could be setting up a storyline where the ML takes Qingxue into his
harem, Qingxue and the MC become rivals, master and disciple turn on
each other, and the author can torture the female lead even worse.]
[Well, from what we have so far, the revised story is pretty decent. I’ll wait
and see.]
It seemed the changes made in this world would be reflected in the novel in
the form of revisions. And the viewpoint was very limited, only focusing on
Baili Qingmiao. Baili Qingmiao knew nothing about Wenren È’s blood
cultivation or Yin Hanjiang reaching Void Boundary stage, so the book said
nothing about it.
Well, it seemed reality was not set in stone. The world he lived in might
appear to be a novel, but it did truly have its own existence. Each and every
character, through their own thoughts and actions, could change the
thoughts and actions of those in a higher plane. After Wenren È obtained
Abusive Romance and started changing the plot, the author in a higher plane
had probably decided to start revising the story out of the blue one day,
inspiration flooding through their mind, and rewrote the first half to what
had happened up to now.
The author would think it was their own ideas, but in actuality it was
different worlds influencing each other.
After thinking this through, Wenren È could affirm his belief that, as long as
the people in this world acted in rational and befitting ways, the story,
which was to say, fate, could be changed.
He found the exact location of Baili Qingmiao’s seclusion in the book and
after putting it away, hurried to Qingxue’s cultivation grounds.
Though they couldn’t fly within the bounds of the sect, they could ride
flying boats to get from place to place, so Wenren È drove one to Frost
Peak. Shangqing Sect greatly respected Elder Qingxue and gave her this
entire mountain as a cultivation ground.
She was being treated pretty good. Wenren È’s expression darkened.
After arriving at Frost Peak, Wenren È disembarked and was immediately

stopped by a barrier. Qingxue’s array prevented people from entering or
even seeing inside.
A mere array was no obstacle to Wenren È. Even if he couldn’t unleash the

blood arts within Shangqing Sect’s territory, he was highly skilled in arrays.
He quickly found a weak spot and used Liu Xinye’s power to open an
entrance barely big enough for one person, then strode in.
A moment after, the opening automatically sealed behind him.
“Who dares?” A tall woman in the robes of Shangqing Sect appeared in the
air, glaring down at Wenren È.
“Indeed it’s you,” Wenren È said lightly, seeing her familiar face.
While reading the book, it was not hard at all for him to guess that Elder
Qingxue was actually Qiu Congxue.
“Who are you?” Qiu Congxue drifted down, continuing to look down at
“Liu Xinye” from her full height.
“Liu Xinye” stood with an aura of unruffled calm, hands behind her back,
and said with a dignified air, “Altar Master Qiu of Xuanyuan Sect, if you
wish to infiltrate the righteous sects, shouldn’t you at least remember the
faces and names of each disciple in your sect first?”
Qiu Congxue was at the very least an expert of the demonic sects. Even if
she didn’t have much intellect, she was very experienced. After scrutinizing
Liu Xinye for a moment, she said, “You must be a demonic cultivator, using
the Soul Puppeting technique or some other secret art to take over this
disciple.”
Wenren È didn’t really have anything to discuss with this subordinate of his
and after exposing her identity, continued with, “Whatever you plan to do at
Shangqing Sect is of no matter to this Venerable. This Venerable only cares
that you not do anything to Baili Qingmiao, as I have plans for her.”
“This Venerable? Wenren È!” Qiu Congxue exclaimed in shock. She

initially backed up several steps out of caution, then stood her ground and
said, “This is the Shangqing Sect’s territory, protected by an immortal
artifact. Even you would be suppressed by its power! Since you borrowed
this disciple’s body to infiltrate, you’ll be unable to exert your full strength.
If I kill off this disciple and activate the sect’s array against you, you’re sure
to sustain a heavy blow!”
After speaking, she struck without hesitation at Liu Xinye’s chest, showing
no regard for the disciple’s life.
Wenren È smiled lightly. The Xuanyuan Sect was still as he knew it, a
group of cold-hearted snakes who would betray anyone for their own
ambitions.
After a glance at the array surrounding the mountain peak, he gathered

blood mist around his body, and in a flash of crimson light, severed one of
Qiu Congxue’s arms. It slowly dissipated into blood vapor, while the
remainder of her arm began to dissolve as well.
Qiu Congxue acted decisively and, taking out a large blade, severed her
right arm from the shoulder, managing to stop the progress of the blood
mist.
“The blood arts… you’ve actually used the Blood Severing Technique!”
Qiu Congxue said in alarm. “So you’re not controlling this disciple from
afar, you’re here in person!”
Her eyes darted back and forth as she formulated an idea. On impulse, she
was about to open the barrier around the mountain peak.
“You’re thinking of opening the barrier and turning the main array of
Shangqing Sect against this Venerable,” Wenren È said. “A blood cultivator
would be the enemy of the entire cultivation world. If one was discovered
in Shangqing Sect, all of the righteous sects would mobilize to kill him.”
Qiu Congxue wasn’t deterred by Wenren È seeing through her plan and was
about to open the barrier anyway when “Liu Xinye” extended a hand
toward her, and a cloud of blood vapor pierced through her chest. Qiu
Congxue had just become a wandering immortal and was not yet familiar
with using her immortal essence. She instantly sustained heavy injuries
from that one attack.
“Altar Master Qiu, before you open the barrier, this Venerable can take your
body, dissolve your soul, and make all of your immortal essence his own,”
“Liu Xinye” said darkly. “It’s up to you how you should refer to this
Venerable, and it’s up to you whether you open the barrier.”
Qui Congxue wiped the blood that had dripped down her chin and said with
difficulty, “Venerable, this subordinate belongs to Xuanyuan Sect as a
wandering immortal in life, and a ghost cultivator in death! I swear absolute
loyalty to the Venerable!”
“That’s better.” Wenren È withdrew his hand and the blood mist vanished
back into Liu Xinye’s body. “Deal with your own wounds,” he said coldly.
“As a wandering immortal, these flesh injuries should be nothing to you.”
“This subordinate thanks the Venerable for his mercy,” Qiu Congxue said.
“This subordinate is fine.” Even as she spoke, the gaping hole in her chest
grew in size, but she stubbornly acted as if it didn’t bother her.
“This Venerable’s subordinates certainly are talented,” “Liu Xinye” said

with a cold sneer.
Qiu Congxue disregarded the scorn and quickly took a healing elixir. She
was an experienced demonic cultivator, and no one among her station
would say empty words without the strength to back them up. You could
only make it in the world by understanding which way the wind blew.
After much difficulty, she managed to fix her arm and the hole in her chest
and got down on one knee, bowing her head and no longer daring to look
down on “Liu Xinye”. Even if the Venerable was in a shorter body than
hers, a subordinate could not make their master look up at them.
“You don’t need to be concerned,” said Wenren È. “Just stay at Shangqing

Sect as a sect elder. I see you’re doing very well for yourself. However, I
have need of Baili Qingmiao today for a minor errand. Make an excuse that
you’re taking her to gain experience and bring her down the mountain.”
“Your subordinate understands.” After some hesitation, Qiu Congxue said,

“Venerable, as Baili Qingmiao is your favored disciple, it’s improper for
this subordinate to take her in. How about this subordinate slaughters the
Shangqing Sect and leaves her without a home, and if you then save her,
she’ll naturally accept you as her master.”
Wenren È: …
He was the Lord of Demons, but the way his subordinates thought always
managed to surprise him.
“That isn’t necessary. This Venerable is indeed impressed by her aptitudes,

but I have no need to take her as disciple. I just wish for her to become
sufficiently powerful.” He didn’t bother explaining why. In any case his
subordinates always came up with reasons for him.
Indeed, Qiu Congxue said, “I see, the Venerable wishes to train a worthy
opponent in order to raise his own realm. This subordinate understands, and
will make sure to raise Baili Qingmiao well.”
“…Mm, as long as you understand,” Wenren È said.
As they were conversing, a figure emerged from the cultivation chamber

and descended before Qiu Congxue, saying, “Master, this disciple has
already learned the Principles of Array Formation and has come to test the
barrier.”
It was indeed Baili Qingmiao, and only after reporting to Qiu Congxue did
she turn around to see the person with her master. Upon seeing it was Liu
Xinye, her expression stiffened.
Liu Xinye wasn’t a fan of Baili Qingmiao, and Baili Qingmiao wasn’t an
ass-kisser. Since Liu Xinye also liked her shixiong, she had always resented
her.
After shrinking behind Qiu Congxue’s back, she poked out her head and
said, “Master, are you also going to take Liu Xinye as a nominal disciple?
Eh? Master, why are you squatting?”
Qiu Congxue couldn’t let Baili Qingmiao see her kneeling, but she also
didn’t dare stand taller than Wenren È, so she could only half squat on the
ground, completely disregarding how improper it looked.
“This is the horse stance,” Qiu Congxue explained. “Even if we cultivators

have great spiritual powers, we can’t neglect our physical prowess. That
way, we can be prepared for any situation.”
“I see!” said Baili Qingmiao, nodding. “Thank you for the instruction.”
Qiu Congxue, noticing Wenren È’s gaze upon her, immediately said, “Baili
Qingmiao, you can exit seclusion. You’re going on a trip to the Golden
Coast Cliffs.”
“Really?” Baili Qingmiao said cheerfully. After fiddling with her fingers,
she asked, “Then, can I go visit shixiong before I go?”

Wants to Know
Chapter 20 – Blood Demon Elder
Baili Qingmiao hugged Qiu Congxue’s arm and shot a look at Liu Xinye.
Though she was being subtle, her provocative intent was clear to see.
Wenren È: …
If anyone dared to look at him that way in Xuanyuan Sect, they would
probably never be able to look at anything for the rest of their life. Wenren
È would’ve dug out those eyes and hung them in Xuanyuan Sect’s main hall
so they could stare at him all they wanted.
Baili Qingmiao was blatant enough that even Qiu Congxue noticed. She
instinctively gauged Wenren È’s reaction and, seeing that he looked
displeased, immediately reached a hand for Baili Qingmiao’s eyes.
Completely oblivious to the danger she was in, Baili Qingmiao lowered her
head and dove toward Qiu Congxue’s chest. “Master Qingxue, I really
really miss shixiong, please?” she begged.
“You can go see him. Seeing as you won’t have a chance in the future,
right?” Qiu Congxue said pleasantly, pulling her back and looking at her
large, sparkling eyes.
That last question was directed at Wenren È, probably asking him for mercy
on behalf of Baili Qingmiao, to let her see the one who was most important
to her before she was blinded forever. It could also be considered one last
favor from master to disciple.
Wenren È looked at Qiu Congxue coldly and said, “There’s no need.”

Though she had been spared, Baili Qingmiao was still unaware of having
been in any danger. She hid behind Qiu Congxue’s back again and said,
“Liu-shijie, Elder Qingxue has given me permission to go see shixiong! You
don’t have the authority to stop me!”
Yet this Venerable has the authority to stop Qiu Congxue gouging your eyes
out, Wenren È thought.
After hearing Wenren È’s words, Qiu Congxue pleasantly patted Baili
Qingmiao’s cheeks and said with a warm smile, “That’s true. There’s not
much difference in you having those eyes or not.”
“Huh?” Baili Qingmiao rubbed at her eyes and gave her master an odd
look. Her eyes were fine.
Qiu Congxue had inadvertently agreed to Baili Qingmiao’s request. As “Liu

Xinye” was just a Core Formation disciple, she couldn’t refuse her elder’s
decisions. She silently followed them as Qiu Congxue opened the barrier
array. Baili Qingmiao shot her rival another smug look before boarding the
flying boat.
After she climbed on, she felt an odd sensation behind her and turned
around to see Elder Qingxue and Liu Xinye both silently following her.
“Why are you coming?” Baili Qingmiao snapped at Liu Xinye.
Hearing her tone, Qiu Congxue took out a small knife and began twirling it
at her fingertips, thinking if Baili Qingmiao didn’t want her tongue she
could cut it out for her; it wasn’t necessary for cultivation anyway.
“This— I also need to depart Frost Peak,” Liu Xinye said, while reaching
out to push down Qiu Congxue’s hand with the knife. Qiu Congxue, seeing
the Venerable didn’t need her help, put away the knife.
Baili Qingmiao, unaware that she had narrowly avoided two disasters,
grumbled to herself as she steered the boat. She’d never liked Liu-shijie.
Liu-shijie bullied her back when she was an outer disciple and always stole
her contribution points, so that she couldn’t earn manuals or elixirs at the
administration hall. If it weren’t for her shixiong’s consideration, she might
still be an ordinary Qi Gathering disciple.
But now that she had Elder Qingxue on her side, Liu-shijie wouldn’t dare
do anything to her. It was also only with the backing of Elder Qingxue that
Baili Qingmiao dared show her resentment to Liu Xinye.
As Baili Qingmiao steered the ship, Wenren È sent a voice transmission to

Qiu Congxue behind her, asking, “How did she pass the inner demon
tribulation for the Nascent Soul stage?”
Baili Qingmiao’s Core Formation stage lightning tribulation had caused her
newly gained awareness of the Path of Indifference to vanish, and Wenren È
guessed that her Nascent Soul stage tribulation would be similar.
Qiu Congxue answered, “After forming her Nascent Soul, she saw Hè
Wenzhao with Protector Shu, this body the Venerable is currently using, and
countless other women, some with blurred faces, all having relations. At the
time she was weeping and sobbing, nearly failed to form her Nascent Soul,
and even her golden core almost dissipated.”
“How did she overcome her inner demons?” Wenren È asked.
Qiu Congxue pulled a face. “When she was on the brink of qi deviation, she
suddenly calmed down, completed the formation of her Nascent Soul, and
the illusion completely vanished. When I asked her afterward, she told me
that in the illusion, her shixiong smiled gently at her and said that he loved
her most in the world, and everyone else was just distractions. At that, she
instantly calmed down, as all that mattered was shixiong loving her.”
Wenren È: …
He had a growing suspicion that some sort of hidden power was interfering
with Baili Qingmiao’s tribulations.
When in the original plot, she gave up the divine will, acting like she’d
been possessed and thinking “shixiong wanted her to protect mortal lives”,
could that have been because something interfered with her actions?
Qiu Congxue saw the grave expression on Wenren È’s face and said
considerately, “Venerable, I may be a wandering immortal now, but I still
know some ghost cultivation tricks. Why don’t I call a few spirits in, scoop
out her brains, and stuff a vengeful ghost who hates men in there?”
Wenren È glanced at his “considerate” subordinate trying to “ease his

burdens” and replied, “Altar Master Qiu, now that you’ve grown a brain
again, you should see Protector Shu sometime and learn how to use it.
Don’t let it go to waste.”
“Understood, Venerable,” Qiu Congxue said obediently.
While they were communicating, Baili Qingmiao had flown the boat to the
main peak. After the Sect Master and his direct disciple were both injured,
they were both housed in the Sect Master’s quarters.
“Liu-shijie, we’re at the main peak,” Baili Qingmiao said rudely. “You can
leave now.”
Wenren È was already used to Baili Qingmiao’s attitude toward Liu Xinye
and paid her no mind as he followed her in silence.
“Why are you following me?” Baili Qingmiao said, furious. If Liu Xinye
tailed her the whole way, how was she supposed to say her farewells to her
shixiong?
“I’m also going to meet Hè Wenzhao,” Wenren È said.
He wanted to personally see how Hè Wenzhao planned to balance two

women’s demands and reassure both Baili Qingmiao and Liu Xinye.
On the main peak, Baili Qingmiao couldn’t deck Liu Xinye to prevent her
from visiting her shixiong, so she could only reluctantly take her two tails,
Elder Qingxue and Liu Xinye, to the place Hè Wenzhao was recuperating.
Upon entering the door and seeing Hè Wenzhao lying weakly on the bed,
Baili Qingmiao’s tears started flowing. “Shixiong…” she sobbed.
“Shimei…” Hè Wenzhao opened his eyes and gazed emotionally at Baili
Qingmiao… as well as “Liu Xinye” standing behind him. “And Liu-
shimei.”
Baili Qingmiao didn’t care about Liu Xinye and threw herself at Hè
Wenzhao. “Shixiong, has the medicinal hall elder told you how your
injuries are yet?”
Hè Wenzhao smiled bitterly and shook his head, reaching out to stroke Baili
Qingmiao’s hair. “Shimei, you’ve already reached Nascent Soul? You’ve
formed your Nascent Soul several years sooner than me. I can rest assured
and leave the future of the sect to you.”
With difficulty, he wiped away Baili Qingmiao’s tears, saying softly, “Don’t
cry, shimei. As a Nascent Soul stage core disciple and a future pillar of
Shangqing Sect, you need to be strong and act as an example to your
juniors.”
Hè Wenzhao’s words made Baili Qingmiao cry harder. The pillar of the sect
was supposed to be Hè Wenzhao. Was shixiong saying this because he had
already given up and wanted to pass his duties onto her?
“Master Qingxue!” Baili Qingmiao lifted her head and looked toward Qiu
Congxue, tears staining her face. “You told me that after I reached Nascent
Soul, there would be a way for me to save shixiong. How do I?”
Qiu Congxue said, “Well, like this. After Nascent Soul stage, there is a
secret technique you can learn, which will put a mark on a person’s soul and
allow you to find them after they reincarnate. After I teach you this
technique, you can use it on Hè Wenzhao, kill him, and then find his
reincarnation and raise him until he grows up. For a cultivator, eighteen
years is the blink of an eye.”
Baili Qingmiao: …
Hè Wenzhao: …
Even Wenren È wanted to applaud Qiu Congxue. Xuanyuan Sect was
certainly overflowing with talent these days.
Baili Qingmiao was speechless for a moment, then hugged Hè Wenzhao

and started bawling. “Shixiong!”
Hè Wenzhao embraced Baili Qingmiao, but his eyes fell on “Liu Xinye”.
He really was good-looking by nature, and his tender eyes seemed to be
able to speak to you. His warm gaze told “Liu Xinye”, “Shimei, I’m no
longer even worth your love, so you don’t need to come visit me again.”
The real Liu Xinye probably would’ve offered her body on the spot. But
Wenren È just looked at him coldly, and after watching him for some time,
furrowed his brows slightly.
While exchanging gazes with Liu Xinye, Hè Wenzhao suddenly acted like
he was listening to a voice, then abruptly paled, looking at Wenren È with
alarm. He opened his mouth, about to yell.
Wenren È strode forward in a step and covered his mouth with one hand.
He pulled Baili Qingmiao off and said, “You step away.”
“Liu Xinye!” Seeing that “Liu Xinye” had the audacity to physically pull
her and shixiong apart, Baili Qingmiao was fuming, but got dragged off by
Elder Qingxue.
“Master!” Baili Qingmiao cried in a mixture of fury and anxiety as she

watched Elder Qingxue seal the door with a wave of her sleeve.
Elder Qingxue grabbed her by the head and held her down. “Shut up.”
The Venerable’s expression just now had said he was facing a dangerous
enemy. Something was wrong with Hè Wenzhao! Qiu Congxue set up a
barrier around the room, preventing anyone outside from listening to the
two’s conversation.
Inside the room, Wenren È noticed Qiu Congxue had taken the care to put
up a barrier, and so released Hè Wenzhao’s mouth, and unleashed his
spiritual awareness to thoroughly examine him.
Hè Wenzhao retreated to the opposite wall, his magic weapon in one hand
and a transmission talisman in the other. If he snapped the jade tally, the
experts of Shangqing Sect would immediately arrive to help him, and
activate the mountain’s array to banish what was possessing Liu Xinye.
Wenren È glanced at the talisman and said, “You can call in backup, but this
Venerable won’t help you hide your own identity.”
Without learning the blood arts, Wenren È would’ve never been able to
notice that there were currently two souls inside Hè Wenzhao’s body. A
wisp of blood qi hid inside him, the same blood art as Wenren È.
Ten thousand years ago, the only blood cultivator in the realms deviated and
became a demon, and was eliminated by the righteous and demonic sects
joining forces. But a blood cultivator was the most difficult being to truly
get rid of, as if a single drop of their blood still existed, they could slowly
recover their strength.
“Who are you?” Hè Wenzhao demanded. “Liu-shimei wasn’t possessed

when I saw her seven days ago. What did you do to her?”
“You aren’t worthy for this Venerable to speak to,” Wenren È said coldly.
“Swap with the person inside you.”
Hè Wenzhao’s expression was unwilling, as his eyes flicked back and forth
wildly and he seemed to be conversing with someone. In a moment, his
expression shifted dramatically, from that of a sentimental and indecisive
righteous disciple to a cruel and merciless blood cultivator.
The blood demon spoke with Hè Wenzhao’s body, “Heheh, over these ten
thousand years of recuperating, this Venerable never thought another blood
cultivator would appear in the cultivation world. This Venerable must
commend you for withstanding the Blood Severing Technique.”
The words “This Venerable” rather grated on Wenren È’s ears. He replied in
the same haughty manner, “This Venerable has never met another person
worthy of calling themselves Venerable.”
“Is that so? You have no idea how strong this Venerable was in the past, and
how much stronger cultivators were ten thousand years ago. The cultivators
of this age are not even worth a mention!” “Hè Wenzhao” sneered.
Wenren È didn’t want to continue arguing with the blood demon. There
wasn’t a point in seeing who could make comebacks quicker. Cultivators
certainly were stronger ten thousand years ago, but ten thousand years ago
the world was filled with suffering, natural disasters were never-ending, and
humans made sacrifices to the gods, but they cared not for humanity. If
things continued down that path, the heavens would cleanse the human
realm and eliminate all life, so that the earth could slowly recuperate, and
give rise to new sentient beings.
Fortunately, one blood cultivator drew the focus of the entire cultivation
world, and in the conflict that followed, countless cultivators died and
allowed the human realm some time of recovery. This had been the great
calamity of the cultivation world ten thousand years ago.
“You’ve possessed Hè Wenzhao but haven’t taken over his body. What’s
your goal? Does he know you’re a blood cultivator?” Wenren È questioned.
He knew that if the blood demon didn’t want Hè Wenzhao to hear their
conversation, Hè Wenzhao would naturally not hear a word.
“Heheh, why do you think? This Venerable advises you not touch Hè
Wenzhao. Otherwise, if the sect’s array is activated, we’ll be like fish in a
net, and neither of us will get out alive.” The blood demon spoke
unconcernedly, knowing Wenren È wouldn’t expose his identity.
“When did you possess him? After the Great Sect War?”
By Wenren È’s calculations, the calamity of ten thousand years ago should
not appear within the same ten-thousand-year period. It must’ve been the
Great Sect War which awoke him from his slumber. And if the blood demon
had been possessing Hè Wenzhao while he was dual cultivating with Shu
Yanyan, she probably wouldn’t have got off unscathed. Since Shu Yanyan
was perfectly fine and also managed to snatch Hè Wenzhao’s Nascent Soul,
he must have encountered the blood demon after his Nascent Soul was
stolen.
Wenren È was puzzled by something in the book. Liu Xinye gave herself to
a righteous disciple, so why did she lose her golden core? The explanation
given in the book was that Hè Wenzhao was in qi deviation and wasn’t in
control of his actions. After recovering, he got over his inner demons and
the Shangqing Sect elders confirmed that he had returned to normal. It was
awkward for them to investigate what Hè Wenzhao did while unaware, so
they just viewed it as Liu Xinye having brought trouble upon herself.
Plus, Hè Wenzhao showed every consideration to Liu Xinye afterward,

searching day and night for a way to restore her golden core. After reaching
Body Unity stage, he even dual cultivated with Liu Xinye, helping her
regain her power and break through to Nascent Soul.
Baili Qingmiao and Hè Wenzhao had many fights over this. He married the
Violet Spirit Master because he had to save the Sect Master’s life, and only
the Violet Spirit Pavilion had the cure. But what was the excuse for dual
cultivating with Liu Xinye so many times? Was dual cultivating the only
way to restore her power?
Wenren È had no interest in reading the male lead make excuses for
himself. Baili Qingmiao would always give in by the end anyway.
The last time he met Hè Wenzhao, he didn’t have any good impression of
him. He saw just a man who was irresolute about his feelings and lusting
after Shu Yanyan. But the Hè Wenzhao in the book, after losing his Nascent
Soul, suddenly became much more shrewd, even managing to take a
wandering immortal like the Violet Spirit Master into his harem.
After meeting this blood demon possessing many thousands of years of

experience, Wenren È felt that several illogical points in the book had now
been explained.
Had the Hè Wenzhao in the latter parts of the book already been replaced by
the blood demon? After thinking it over, Wenren È decided he couldn’t have
been. Just that with the blood demon in his head, helping him plan his every
step, Hè Wenzhao was slowly brainwashed and manipulated from a
righteous disciple to someone who would use any means to achieve his
goals.
As a fellow blood cultivator, Wenren È guessed that the blood demon had
probably taken an interest in the divine nature inside Hè Wenzhao, and
wanted to wait until after he had cultivated into a god, so that he could take
Hè Wenzhao’s body and divinity in one action and become a demonic god.
The plot of Abusive Romance only went up to the main couple ascending
together to the immortal realm and didn’t get to their ascension to godhood.
So Hè Wenzhao was still himself at the conclusion, but who knew how he
fared afterward?
Yet another of his doubts were now cleared. It turned out that Hè Wenzhao
would’ve regained his Nascent Soul no matter what. Even if it hadn’t been
Liu Xinye, it would’ve been someone else. The blood demon cared not
whether his victim was male or female. As long as they had spiritual power,
he could absorb it and transform it into Hè Wenzhao’s own power.
“This Venerable won’t lie to you,” said the cultivator who had once been
called the Blood Demon Elder. “This brat fell into the place of this
Venerable’s seclusion during the Great Sect War. I saw his aptitudes were
quite good and felt like taking a disciple, heheh.”
“Raising him in order to steal his body later?”
The Blood Demon Elder didn’t reply but instead burst into laughter. There
was a vicious glint in his eyes, as if he wished he could kill Wenren È on
the spot.
Wenren È was pleased at his maliciousness. They exchanged a smile, and

Wenren È said in a carefree tone, “After the Great Sect War, this Venerable
rose to the peak of Mahayana, merely one step away from ascension.
However, after learning the Blood Art, there are hardly any opponents left
in the world to challenge this Venerable. Without entering the Blood Hell,
there are few ways for this Venerable to advance further.”
If Wenren È entered the Blood Hell, Yin Hanjiang would have to follow,
and a Void Boundary cultivator like Yin Hanjiang had no possibility of
surviving the Blood Hell.
A blood cultivator’s path had no bottlenecks, and one could gain power at
breakneck speed by endlessly absorbing the qi of the cosmos and the
spiritual essences of others. But the Path of Slaughter was different.
Without an opponent to match him, his mental state would not be able to
keep up with his power. It would be like giving a three-year-old child a
legendary magic weapon. Even if they had it, they couldn’t wield it.
With power but insufficient mental fortitude, sooner or later he would suffer
deviation. The Blood Demon Elder right before his eyes was an example of
just that.
Though Wenren È was now on the path of blood cultivation, he didn’t want
to become a madman with no self-control. He would continue to hone his
mind and carve out a new path for himself through impossible odds.
For that, he needed a worthy opponent.
Thus he said, “You can relax, this Venerable will not hurt Hè Wenzhao.
Raise him well in the meantime. The day you take his body and become a
god is the day this Venerable will kill you.”
“Kill me? Hahahaha!” The Blood Demon Elder seemed to have heard some
incredible joke. “A mere Mahayana stage blood cultivator imagines he can
kill this Venerable? Such arrogance! Fine, this Venerable would like to see
just how you live up to such wild boasts!”
Wenren È could sense the fighting intent that charged the air between them,
allowing him to have a small breakthrough in his mental state.
After they had made their agreement, the blood demon returned to his
slumber. Hè Wenzhao, regaining consciousness and seeing Liu Xinye
smiling eerily at him, cried, “Release Liu-shimei!”
“Don’t worry, this Venerable has no interest in her, nor any interest in you,”
Wenren È said, then turned and walked out of the room.
spiderman meme

Wants to Know
Chapter 21 – Wood carving practice
Sensing that Wenren È had left the room, Qiu Congxue opened the barrier
with perfect timing. Wenren È said to the fuming Baili Qingmiao, “You can
have him back. Continue crying if you want.”
He then transmitted to Qiu Congxue, “Bring Baili Qingmiao to meet me at

the Golden Coast Cliffs. Keep an eye on her, don’t let her offer herself to
Hè Wenzhao.”
In the book, Hè Wenzhao and Baili Qingmiao hadn’t gone all the way in
their relationship even at the end. It was likely that Hè Wenzhao had
genuine feelings for her and didn’t want to take her spiritual root. But they
couldn’t let their guards down because of that. The story had already shown
itself to change. They had to keep a careful eye on Baili Qingmiao, and
prevent her from falling to any deceptions.
Wenren È considered the situation over and concluded that kidnapping

Zhongli Qian would be a necessary action. Even if Baili Qingmiao wouldn’t
necessarily fall in love with him, he could at least act as an obstacle.
Whenever a new love interest showed up in the book, Hè Wenzhao

wouldn’t appear for a while, or sometimes Baili Qingmiao would be woken
up by the new love interest’s words, right up until the male lead talked her
back over.
Now that the plotlines involving Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang were
impossible, Wenren È decided to give love interest number two and number
four’s roles all to Zhongli Qian, and let him distract the female lead for a
bit.
Now that he had made his decision, Wenren È went to the administration
hall and wrote down that Liu Xinye had lost a hairpin while on patrol and
would be right back after finding it.
After descending the mountain, he left Liu Xinye’s body. Liu Xinye woke
up in the small town at the foot of the mountain with a hairpin in her hand
and no idea why she was there. She thought hard but just couldn’t
remember what she had been doing for this period of time. She shook her
head and turned around to return to the mountain. She still had to see her
shixiong!
Wenren È, after watching Liu Xinye leave from afar, found a deserted place
to reform his body and headed to the meeting point he’d decided with Yin
Hanjiang.
He had left Yin Hanjiang in an empty alleyway. When Wenren È used a

thread of spiritual cognition to find him, he discovered him holding his
sword, leaning against a wall, waiting in the exact same pose as when
Wenren È left.
It seemed like if Wenren È never returned, Yin Hanjiang would wait until
the end of the world.
Yet the Yin Hanjiang in the book would never see his master return no
matter how long he waited.
Wenren È materialized before Yin Hanjiang with a frown and said with
some displeasure, “When this Venerable is not around, you can do
something of your own preference.”
Protector Shu was particularly talented at finding amusement for herself;

she could put on an entire performance on her own. If Wenren È had told
Shu Yanyan to wait for him, she probably would’ve found at least three men
in that time.
“Venerable!” Yin Hanjiang’s eyes brightened in an instant upon seeing

Wenren È. Life returned to his entire form, and he no longer seemed like a
discarded puppet.
Seeing his joy, Wenren È’s annoyance faded some. He couldn’t help asking,
“When this Venerable is in seclusion, do you usually stand guard like this
too?”
“When the Venerable is in seclusion is when his subordinate must be most

vigilant,” Yin Hanjiang responded.
Which was to say he was usually even more like a puppet. Back at the
border town, there was still some life in him.
Wenren È didn’t say anything, and let Yin Hanjiang bring him on his sword
to the Golden Coast Cliffs. Baili Qingmiao was merely at Nascent Soul
Stage, and even with Qiu Congxue to carry her their speed would be very
limited. Wenren È wasn’t in any rush.
When they arrived at the cliffs, Baili Qingmiao had, as expected, not yet
arrived.
Wenren È took a glance at the silent Yin Hanjiang and told him to practice
his sword by the ocean. After seeing Yin Hanjiang wordlessly obey and go
practice, Wenren È found a centuries-old tree growing on the cliff face, cut
off its thickest branch, whittled it down to its core, then took out a small
knife and began to carve from memory.
When he was young, Wenren È would practice whittling when he was

bored, mainly to steady his hand for archery in future battles. After his
family was exterminated, in his grief, he would take his knife and carve
their likenesses. Within that decade, he carved innumerable wooden
figurines, and in the end buried them all with his family. While he was
cultivating in the mortal world, he would also carve some horses or swords
when idle, and give them to children living at the border as toys.
After that, it had been many decades since he last picked up his carving
knife.
As Wenren È thought back to their trip to the border town, he swiftly carved
a figure from the wood. He only detailed its body and clothes, and left its
face blank.
The figurine was just the size of his palm. Wenren È approached the shore
and tossed it over to Yin Hanjiang.
Hearing an object fly toward him, Yin Hanjiang turned and caught it. He
saw in his hand a small wooden figurine, its build, clothes, and armor the
perfect likenesses of the statue of General Wenren back at the memorial
shrine, the only difference being the missing facial features.
“This Venerable also doesn’t know how to occupy himself in his spare
time,” Wenren È said. “When I was young, I passed the time like that. You
can keep the figurine and carve a face onto it for practice if you like. If you
don’t want it, just throw it into the sea. I just made it to amuse myself.”
Yin Hanjiang shook his head furiously and put the figurine away in a rush,
like he was afraid Wenren È would grab and toss it. “Any gift from the
Venerable is infinitely precious to this subordinate,” he said. “Your
subordinate will finish this carving to the best of his ability.”
“After you’ve gotten some practice, you can carve your childhood town,”
Wenren È said. “This Venerable would like to see what it looked like in
your memories.”
Yin Hanjiang’s eyes dimmed and he said in a low voice, “This subordinate
doesn’t remember clearly anymore.”
“Then carve what you do remember,” Wenren È said. “It doesn’t need to be
your childhood home. Carve everything you can think of or imagine. You
are currently at the Void Boundary stage. If you want to reach Mahayana
stage, you need to train your mind. You will be unable to face off against a
true expert if you have Mahayana level power but not the mental fortitude
to control it.”
Yin Hanjiang had always fought by risking his life, relying on his tenacity
and the demon sword to unleash explosive strength far beyond his own
realm. But one only had one life, and if he constantly whittled away at it,
eventually it would run out.
“This Venerable has learned the blood arts and will not die easily. In the
future, there’s no need for you to risk your life for this Venerable,” Wenren
È said.
Yin Hanjiang paled upon hearing his words. If the Venerable didn’t need his
life, then what did he have to give?
A chill ran through Yin Hanjiang’s heart. Though a warm sea breeze was
blowing past his face, his whole body felt cold. What was a Yin Hanjiang
who was not needed by his master? What was the vanguard without his
general? What was Alkaid without Polis?
As Yin Hanjiang was on the brink of despair, he heard Wenren È say, “In
the future, this Venerable needs you to treasure your life.”
“Treasure my life?” Yin Hanjiang instinctively replied.
“In the future, this Venerable must enter the Blood Hell. If you do not value
your life and enlighten to your own Dao, how will you be able to follow
this Venerable through heaven and hell?” Wenren È looked at Yin Hanjiang,
a faint smile showing on his face.
Warmth slowly spread through Yin Hanjiang’s body at those words. He

clutched the figurine in his hand and declared quietly, “This subordinate
will not be a burden. This subordinate will follow the Venerable forever,
whether to the divine realm or the underworld!”
“Good,” Wenren È said. “To gain the state of mind of a Mahayana

cultivator requires you to know the ways of heaven and defy them. You’re
stubborn by nature, and your understanding of the ways of heaven is
lacking. Reflecting on the past will help you focus and clear your mind.
This Venerable has high expectations of you.”
“Understood!” Yin Hanjiang responded. He bowed his head and stared for
long at the figurine, and couldn’t help remarking, “The Venerable is
talented at wood carving. Even the details of the armor are clearly visible.”
“After cultivating my mind for long, I’ve developed a good memory, is all.
It’s nothing impressive.” Wenren È waved Yin Hanjiang off, leaving him to
work on it on his own.
Yin Hanjiang didn’t have a carving knife. He made motions toward the
small figurine with his sword for a while, but didn’t dare to do anything. He
frowned down at it with a look of extreme apprehension, as if it were an
insurmountable problem.
Wenren È twirled his knife in his fingers. He’d purposefully not given it to
Yin Hanjiang, wanting him to ask for it on his own.
Yin Hanjiang didn’t ask to borrow it though, and instead used the Chiming
blade to sever another tree branch and cut it into a small block. He couldn’t
bear to do anything to the figurine Wenren È had given him, so created
another few wood blocks in order to practice on, so he could gain some skill
before returning to the tiny carving.
Wenren È thought Yin Hanjiang would take his sword and painstakingly
poke at the wood, but instead he used a hand seal to control the sword, and
with an incantation it split into many small blades. They arranged
themselves around the block of wood, unleashing sword aura on it.
Countless streaks of crimson light shot toward it. Wenren È looked on with
interest, wanting to see how the wood block on the sand would turn out. But
when the light faded, all that was left was a few wood chips. The tiny block
had been reduced to sawdust under the power of the Chiming blade, already
vanishing into the sea and sand.
“Hahahaha!” The deathly serious way Yin Hanjiang had faced the piece of
wood had such a childish air, and now, looking at the outcome, Wenren È
couldn’t help bursting into laughter.
Hearing the Venerable laugh at him, Yin Hanjiang forced himself to not
look over. Stony-faced and wordless, he manipulated Chiming to attack the
next piece of wood.
He was as grim-faced as always, with only his burning red ears revealing
his current embarrassment.
Baili Qingmiao and Qiu Congxue arrived at the coast two days later. In that
time, Yin Hanjiang had butchered an entire cliff face’s worth of trees. He
had gained insight into many new sword techniques, and the precision with
which could control his sword also increased. Now, instead of causing utter
destruction with one strike, he could gouge out a tiny sliver of wood.
Even though his mental state had not made any advancements over these
two days, the will of his sword had become more flexible and he could
control it like an extension of himself.
Wenren È was originally going to give him the knife after amusing himself
for a bit, but Yin Hanjiang proved to be exceedingly stubborn, making
attempt after attempt, and really did make advancements. Seeing his
carvings look more and more proper, Wenren È quietly put away the
carving knife, letting Yin Hanjiang refine his swordplay.
Baili Qingmiao first descended at the shoreline, and seeing the sand around
her littered with palm-sized figurines, all oddly shaped, was frightened into
backing up several steps. Pressing against Qiu Congxue’s side, she brought
out the Moonlit Frost Silk, saying with vigilance, “Elder Qingxue, I suspect
these are curse charms placed here as the focus of some wicked spell!”
Before she had finished speaking, a sword flew over the sand and its aura
smashed all the figurines at once. After the dust settled, a black-robed youth
was revealed standing with sword in hand before Baili Qingmiao, looking
down at her coldly. “It’s just a technique to practice the sword.”
Baili Qingmiao still remembered Yin Hanjiang and relaxed instantly upon
seeing a familiar face. She cupped a fist toward him. “Senior!”
Wenren È also walked out of the cloud of sand, standing by Yin Hanjiang’s
side.
He paid no attention to Baili Qingmiao. He held a small object in his hand

and transmitted to Yin Hanjiang, “This one looked the best. I thought it’d be
a shame to destroy it, so I rescued it as a souvenir.”
Yin Hanjiang looked at the carving that resembled a grade schooler’s work,
and when hearing that the Venerable wanted to keep it, frantically reached
for it, but his hand closed around empty air. He saw Wenren È holding the
figurine high, transmitting to him, “Don’t try to take this Venerable’s
possessions, now.”
Yin Hanjiang’s face flushed in anxiety, finally seeming properly alive.

Wenren È casually tossed the figurine inside his sleeve and, turning his
back on Yin Hanjiang, went to face Baili Qingmiao. “I requested Elder
Qingxue bring you to this place,” he said.
Even now, Baili Qingmiao was blissfully innocent that Wenren È was a
demonic cultivator, and still thought of him as a good-intentioned senior.
She certainly didn’t make the connection between him and the “Liu Xinye”
of a few days ago, and bowed to him with utmost courtesy, the image of a
polite and proper young girl.
Elder Qingxue was pleased and said with a slight smile, “It seems the
problem with your eyes has gone away.”
“Huh?” said Baili Qingmiao. “What was wrong with my eyes?”
Qiu Congxue didn’t explain, leaving Baili Qingmiao to doubt herself.

Wenren È pointed toward the cliffs and said, “It’s said that a spiritual realm
is hidden at the bottom of these cliffs. Have you heard of that before?”
“I have,” Baili Qingmiao said, nodding. “I have once read a record of

spiritual realms in the sect library. It said that spiritual realms were small
worlds in the immortal realm, filled with treasures unknown to the mortal
world. The one I remember best is the Shattered Mountain Meteorite, and I
don’t know the names of any of the others.”
“I am indeed here to retrieve the Shattered Mountain Meteorite,” Wenren È

said, paying particular attention to Baili Qingmiao’s expression. Seeing that
she had no reaction, he was puzzled.
In the book, Baili Qingmiao had retrieved the Shattered Mountain Meteorite
in order to save Hè Wenzhao. How come she had no reaction to hearing its
name?
After thinking things over, Wenren È realized it. Hè Wenzhao’s Nascent

Soul had been damaged in the book, but it was nothing like the current
situation, where it was stolen by Shu Yanyan. Originally, after Shu Yanyan
had sucked away Hè Wenzhao’s essence, he had been able to cultivate a
Nascent Soul using the Snow Flame. Thus, it had no relation to Shu
Yanyan, and she couldn’t entirely steal it. Now, Hè Wenzhao’s Nascent Soul
had been cultivated with Shu Yanyan’s help, and she could simply reach out
and take it with ease. The injury Hè Wenzhao had sustained had been too
severe, and he couldn’t recover just by getting a new bonded weapon. Thus,
Baili Qingmiao didn’t have high expectations for the Shattered Mountain
Meteorite.
In that case, didn’t that mean that Liu Xinye’s golden core also wouldn’t be
enough to restore him?
Who knew how the blood demon planned to heal Hè Wenzhao this time?
“If senior has a request, Baili won’t hesitate,” Baili Qingmiao said. “But…”
She fiddled with her fingers and said awkwardly, “My shixiong sustained
heavy wounds during the Great Sect War. If we were to find an elixir which
can restore a Nascent Soul, can I have some to take back? Just a little?”
She extended her pinky finger and indicated the size of its nail to
demonstrate how little she wanted.
Wenren È nodded. “Fine.” By the time Baili Qingmiao got back, Hè

Wenzhao would’ve probably recovered for the most part anyway.
The four arrived at the top of the cliffs. “Senior,” Baili Qingmiao asked,
“It’s said the spiritual realm at the Golden Coast Cliffs has never been
encountered by anyone except the elder who recorded it in ancient times.
How will we find it?”
“That’s where you’re necessary,” said Wenren È, looking pleasantly at her.
“Me?” Baili Qingmiao pointed at her chest. With her innocent expression
and her yellow robes flapping around her in the breeze, she looked like a
flower growing at the cliff’s edge.
“Exactly.” Wenren È said, smiling, then with a single palm blow, pushed
her off the cliff.
“Wha—? Ahhhhhh!” Baili Qingmiao had been caught entirely off-guard by

her trusted senior pushing her, and started screaming.
A cultivator’s power would be suppressed at the Golden Coast Cliffs, and

more severely the higher their level. Unlike Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang,
who couldn’t use any spiritual energy, Baili Qingmiao managed to use light
step[1] to grab onto a vine on the cliff face. She called up to Qiu Congxue
in a panic, “Master Qingxue, my cultivation has been suppressed to only the
Qi Refining Stage, please help me!”
Qiu Congxue looked down emotionlessly from the top of the cliff as her
disciple struggled. “If this master were to go down there, I would be
suppressed to only the Qi Gathering Stage. You’re stronger than I would be,
so persevere on your own.”
Baili Qingmiao: …
On the brink of despair, she heard Wenren È’s voice. “Encountering the
spiritual realm is in your fate. Only you can summon it into being. We’re all
depending on you.”
So it wasn’t that her senior was trying to harm her, but that he had no other
way. Baili Qingmiao felt a bit of relief. As long as they weren’t trying to kill
her, she would gladly lend her abilities to her seniors.
Having been convinced by one sentence from Wenren È, Baili Qingmiao

started feeling her way along the cliff face with difficulty. Above, a Void
Boundary cultivator, a Mahayana cultivator, and a wandering immortal all
watched her struggles indifferently. Mystified, Qiu Congxue asked, “Will
she really be able to find it?”
“If she cannot, no one will be able to,” Wenren È said.
Yin Hanjiang knew that Wenren È had used his foreknowledge of heavenly
secrets to come here and search for the sake of making him a new spiritual
weapon, and felt troubled. “Venerable, this subordinate…”
Wenren È knew what he was about to say and raised a hand to stop him.
“This Venerable has made his decision.”
Yin Hanjiang pressed his lips together and said nothing more. When Qiu
Congxue realized that the treasure was for forging a sword for Yin
Hanjiang, vicious thoughts surfaced in her heart. Wenren È was already
enough of a problem, and Yin Hanjiang was his trusted lieutenant. If he got
stronger, she might not have any possibility of defeating Wenren È in the
future.
She had to take action, but aside from fighting head-on, what else could she
do? Qiu Congxue thumped her head a few times, but felt like it was filled
with the sound of the sea, and she couldn’t think of anything.
She ought to join forces with Shu Yanyan. She could come up with the
plans, and Qiu Congxue would carry them out. That would simplify
matters.
As for finally learning how to use her brain, Qiu Congxue gave no
consideration to it.
The three of them each considered their own problems, while only Baili
Qingmiao dutifully searched the cliffs. She would sprain an ankle or scrape
her arms from time to time, and suffered every injury that was described in
the book, only this time without Wenren È to tenderly care for her.
Wenren È counted all the times she was injured until she finally got to the
blood bats. He watched from afar as a swarm of blood bats dove at Baili
Qingmiao. After a single scream, Baili Qingmiao fainted from the bats’
poisonous bite, dangling off a vine on the cliff face.
“Is she dead?” Qiu Congxue said with some concern. “I need to refine her
soul before the emissaries of the underworld come to take it.”
Wenren È knocked Qiu Congxue several li away with a palm strike, then
focused his attention on what was happening below. Just as he expected,
soon after Baili Qingmiao lost consciousness, a thick aura of immortals
shrouded the entire cliff face.
1. Qinggong ↩
Wants to Know
Chapter 22 – Spiritual realm
Most cultivators, when encountering a spiritual realm, would treat it as the

great fortune of a lifetime and rush in as quickly as they could, in case the
entrance closed.
Qiu Congxue was the same, and when she felt the immortal aura, she
rushed back over and was about to charge in, when Yin Hanjiang blocked
her way.
“The Venerable has not yet entered,” Yin Hanjiang said. Sword in one hand,
he stood behind Wenren È, preventing Qiu Congxue from taking another
step.
Qiu Congxue’s current strength was far above Yin Hanjiang’s, but she still
remembered how Yin Hanjiang had taken on the experts of Xuanyuan Sect
years ago at only Body Unity stage.
To tell the truth, at the time the high-ranking members of Xuanyuan Sect
were at odds with each other, and no one wanted to reveal the full extent of
their strength lest someone else used it against them. But it was impossible
to deny that Yin Hanjiang’s full strength was truly terrifying. Back then,
Qiu Congxue was at Void Boundary stage, and hadn’t worked up the
resolution to enter the hungry ghost path. After all, she would be cultivating
into an Asura in the end. Back then, Qiu Congxue had her brain and her
flesh, and was in no way willing to feed herself to hungry ghosts.
Then she had met Yin Hanjiang, and after knocking a mouthful of teeth out
of Shu Yanyan, he stuck Qiu Congxue right through the temples with his
sword and left her heavily injured for some time.
After the battle ended and before Wenren È had the chance to sort out the
members of Xuanyuan Sect, Qiu Congxue pitched herself into the hungry
ghost path. After twenty years, she had risen to Mahayana stage, and
brought a swarm of vengeful spirits to challenge Yin Hanjiang. Wenren È,
who had been idle at the time, left her picking up her bones all over the
floor, and so Shu Yanyan made fun of her for quite a while afterward.
So even though Yin Hanjiang was only Void Boundary stage, Qiu Congxue
didn’t dare take him lightly. She held back her greed for the spiritual realm
and waited for Wenren È’s command.
Wenren È crouched at the cliff edge, seeing that the entrance to the spiritual
realm had not only opened but was lightly sucking Baili Qingmiao inside.
He didn’t rush to enter, and instead yanked Baili Qingmiao back from the
entrance. He cut off one of Qiu Congxue’s arms and refined the essence of
the Flesh Mushroom from within her body, then fed it to Baili Qingmiao to
cure the bats’ poison.
Qiu Congxue, now missing an arm: …
In the book, when Wenren È took the mushroom, he had a flesh body and
the essence was completely absorbed by him. But all of Qiu Congxue’s
flesh had been created by the Flesh Mushroom. Before it was completely
absorbed by her, the essence could still be used for medicine.
The Flesh Mushroom worked quickly and Baili Qingmiao soon woke with a
soft cry. The moment she opened her eyes, the spiritual realm vanished.
“Senior?” Baili Qingmiao saw Wenren È standing coldly beside her. She
rubbed her eyes and sat up. “Senior, this one is far too incompetent. I
couldn’t even deal with a few blood bats and needed senior to save me.”
“I didn’t save you.” Wenren È shifted to one side and revealed Qiu
Congxue standing there without an arm.
“Master Qingxue!” Baili Qingmiao hopped to her feet and ran to her
master’s side, looking over her arm with concern. Tears started flowing
down her cheeks. “You sacrificed your own body in order to save me. I…
this disciple has no way to repay you. I can only dedicate the rest of my life
to you, master.”
Qiu Congxue, clutching her arm, said stiffly, “It’ll grow back with enough
spiritual energy. And I wasn’t the one who cut it off, so you don’t need to
thank me.”
The situation was really a mess. It was Wenren È who had acted, but it
wasn’t his own flesh he cut off, and Qiu Congxue hadn’t been willing
either. Neither of them had had any sincerity, and neither felt they deserved
Baili Qingmiao’s thanks.
Wenren È spoke to Baili Qingmiao, who was hugging Qiu Congxue. “Don’t
relax too early. I was just experimenting a little. In order to find the spiritual
realm’s entrance, I’m afraid you’ll have to sustain more injuries.”
After saying that, he took Baili Qingmiao’s Moonlit Frost Silk, and after
tying it around her waist, knocked her out again with a blow to the back of
her neck.
Using the Moonlit Frost Silk as a fishing line, he dangled Baili Qingmiao’s
limp body over the edge of the cliff.
This time, Wenren È dared to veer off the book’s path and do something
different. After treating Baili Qingmiao’s injury, he let the entrance vanish,
then knocked her out again and let her dangle by the cliff face.
It was completely different from the book’s events, yet the spiritual realm
once again materialized.
Even Yin Hanjiang, who rarely thought on his own, asked in confusion,
“Venerable, what is going on?”
A spiritual realm ought to be an opportunity one encountered once in a

thousand years, and it was already incredible for them to witness one
opening. How could it be that after Wenren È passed it up, it now opened
again?
“Let’s talk after we’re in.” Wenren È didn’t explain, instead wrapping the
silk ribbon in his hands around himself and Yin Hanjiang, and jumping in
after Baili Qingmiao.
Qiu Congxue wasn’t about to be left behind and, disregarding her missing
arm, jumped down the cliff. However, after the spiritual realm sucked in the
other three, it paid her no mind and abruptly vanished. Qiu Congxue’s
spiritual powers were suppressed, leaving her unable to fly, and, failing to
grab onto a vine in time, she fell into the sea with a plop.
Inside the spiritual realm, Wenren È tied the unconscious Baili Qingmiao
into a bundle which he slung over his shoulder. He looked at the entrance
now closed behind them and said, “As I expected, Qiu Congxue wasn’t able
to enter.”
“She was right behind us, but the entrance completely passed her over,” Yin
Hanjiang said, mystified.
“The spiritual realm only wanted to accept one person, Baili Qingmiao,”
Wenren È said, indicating the bundle on his back. “If we weren’t tied to her
bonded weapon, we wouldn’t have been able to enter either.”
In the book, Wenren È had been clutching Baili Qingmiao in his arms, so
they couldn’t have been separated. This time, Wenren È had dangled her
down the cliff to test if the spiritual realm had indeed been targeting her.
It seemed all the treasures of the world were attracted to the protagonist.
Maybe they favored her as a primordial goddess, or maybe they wanted to
absorb her power.
This spiritual realm was part of a palace in the immortal realm. The only
areas open to them were a hall shrouded in immortal essence and a scenic
courtyard outside. Beyond the courtyard was a wall of white mist and a
powerful array that prevented them from leaving.
A crimson bird with one leg dozed in the courtyard, perched on a tree
covered with scarlet fruits. In a small stream below, an azure carp
swallowed fallen fruits from time to time, its tail splashing happily. On a
rock formation by the stream sat a yellow turtle, and a white cat came over,
flipped the turtle over, and started sharpening its claws on its shell.
The two watched this scene from a window overlooking the courtyard, not
willing to carelessly leave the room. Yin Hanjiang considered the animals
for a while, then asked hesitantly, “The Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Black
Tortoise, and Vermillion Bird are the four sacred beasts. Though they reside
in the immortal realm, they are the guardians of the four directions and
should be protecting the heavenly pillars. Why would they all appear in this
small courtyard?”
Wenren È brought out Abusive Romance and flipped through it. “The
stranger part is that this doesn’t fit the book’s description of the spiritual
realm.”
What they should’ve entered was a pitch black cavern, guarded by many
monsters and beasts. Baili Qingmiao had still been bleeding from the bite
the blood bat had given her, and the scent drew many of the beasts forward.
Protecting the female lead, Wenren È risked his life in order to slay them.
The two of them stumbled through the darkness and finally came across the
Shattered Mountain Meteorite.
The meteorite glowed with light, preventing them from approaching. Only
after Wenren È used the killing intent of the Seven Killing Halberd to
suppress it could he claim it. Afterward, Baili Qingmiao found detoxifying
herbs to put on her bite. The moment the bleeding stopped, the exit
appeared, and Wenren È carried her through.
After reading through the section again, Wenren È said, “There are two
divergences. One, Baili Qingmiao is currently unconscious, and two, she
isn’t injured or poisoned.”
These two different conditions led to entirely different spiritual realms.
“Is this place the same location as the book, just in a different form, or a
completely different location?” Yin Hanjiang wondered. From a table in the
hall, he picked up a small metal box.
Wenren È smiled and took it from him. “The Shattered Mountain
Meteorite.”
The Shattered Mountain Meteorite that he originally faced a thousand

dangers to reach was now sitting peacefully on a table for anyone to take.
He had already left the unconscious Baili Qingmiao on a bed. Wenren È

glanced at her, wondering if their surroundings would change when she
woke up.
When she was bitten by the blood bats earlier, Wenren È hadn’t noticed
anything strange about her blood, but that didn’t mean nothing else
could’ve. He used his spiritual energy to make a cut on her arm. Her blood
flowed freely, yet nothing changed about their surroundings.
After some consideration, Wenren È waved a hand and dissipated the blood
qi that he had left inside her body. Baili Qingmiao immediately woke up,
rubbing her eyes, and cried out in shock. “Where am I? Why is it so dark?”
In the instant her eyes opened, the spiritual realm had transformed into a
pitch-black cavern.

Wants to Know
Chapter 23 – Xuanyuan Sect’s token
Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang saw the palace transform into a cavern before
their eyes. Yin Hanjiang automatically drew his sword, standing in front of
Wenren È.
The completely oblivious Baili Qingmiao gathered up the silk that had been
binding her and, after examining her surroundings, asked, “These seniors,
where is Master Qingxue? Argh!”
She had felt something cold brush her ankle and jumped to her feet, igniting
a light talisman as she did. By its illumination, she could now see that the
ground by her feet was crawling with snakes, the smallest with the
thickness of a rice bowl and the largest over a meter in width.
The cavern was vast, and a faint breeze blew through it. The serpents were
entwined together, completely covering the ground.
Wenren È held down Yin Hanjiang’s hand before he could unleash his
sword, and said calmly, “Don’t act yet. I feel that… they don’t intend to
attack.”
“Ahh! I’m scared of snakes!” Baili Qingmiao’s cultivation was still

suppressed and she couldn’t fly. She only hopped about on the ground, tears
streaming from her eyes.
In the book, Wenren È slew all the snakes upon seeing them, causing the
blood to attract more beasts and putting the two in a worse situation.
Now that he had seen the spiritual realm transform from a palace to a cave,
Wenren È held back from striking immediately. “Don’t be so frantic,” he
said to Baili Qingmiao. “Stand still in an empty space and the snakes will
probably leave you alone. If you attack them, you’ll bring trouble.”
Baili Qingmiao was obedient and planted her feet on the ground, enduring
her fear. The thickest snake immediately began slithering toward her. Baili
Qingmiao wanted to scream and attack it, but remembering Wenren È’s
words, she controlled herself and stood her ground. Once she calmed, she
saw the huge python rub its head lightly against her leg like a dog, even
wriggling the tip of its tail a bit.
Baili Qingmiao: …
“W—what’s going on?” she said, trembling with her back pressed against a
rock wall.
Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang were standing opposite to her and could clearly
see the wall behind her open a huge yellow eye with a slit pupil. The eye
swiveled about until it saw Baili Qingmiao, at which point it narrowed as if
in a smile.
Wenren È: …
Yin Hanjiang: …
Now that they were calm and refrained from attacking the beasts, they
could clearly see the affection they showed toward Baili Qingmiao.
“Before you entered the spiritual realm, did you have any thoughts of what
it would be like?” Wenren È asked Baili Qingmiao.
“I did fantasize a little,” Baili Qingmiao said, leaning against the wall and
completely unaware that the large eye above her head was now shifting
downward. “If it’s a spiritual realm, it ought to be a grand golden palace, all
the objects within the palace would be rare treasures, the ordinary animals
living in the courtyard would be divine beasts spoken of in legends, like the
Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Black Tortoise, and Vermillion Bird, or
something like that… huh? Why are you looking at me like that?”
Even Yin Hanjiang, who ordinarily only paid attention to his master,
couldn’t help but give Baili Qingmiao an odd look.
The place they had entered was precisely Baili Qingmiao’s fantasy. It also
only appeared when she was unconscious, and when she woke up, all traces
of it would vanish and the environment would become a terrifying
hellscape. Though these beasts clearly liked Baili Qingmiao, and if no one
attacked, all they would do was try to get closer to her.
“A fantasy realm, huh…” Wenren È muttered. Then he said, “Then, if there

was a medicine that could save your shixiong in the palace, what would it
be?”
“A blooming lotus in one of the courtyard’s ponds, I guess, its seven-

colored jade lotus heart would be able to cure shixiong… Senior, how come
it feels like the wall behind me is moving?”
Probably like that one at your feet, it’s trying to rub its head against you,
just its head is kind of big, Wenren È thought.
“Where would the spiritual realm’s exit be?” Wenren È asked.
“I imagined the palace would be surrounded by white fog, and since it’s a
part of the immortal realm, it must have a powerful array surrounding it,
preventing us from leaving, but the mist would be thinner at the back door
of the palace, and it would act as a passage back to the Golden Coast
Cliffs… senior, this is all just my daydream, why— why are you asking all
this? I seem to be stuck on something. What’s on the wall behind me?”
Nothing again, just she seemed to be leaning against a tongue, which was
sticking to her.
“Baili Qingmiao, knock yourself unconscious,” said Wenren È. “After you

open your eyes again, you’ll be at the Golden Coast Cliffs, and Elder
Qingxue will be there.”
“Really?!” Baili Qingmiao hesitated for a moment, then decided, “Since

I’m so weak, I wouldn’t be of any help to these two seniors even on my
feet. Here I go, then.”
Saying that, she stopped her breath and sealed her senses, her consciousness
sinking deep into her dantian, and fell unconscious like flipping a switch.
The minute she lost awareness, their surroundings returned to the scene she
had imagined.
“Venerable, could this spiritual realm actually be created by Baili

Qingmiao’s mind?” Yin Hanjiang asked in astonishment, slinging her over
his shoulder. “Was the cavern real, or this palace? Or are neither real?”
“There’s one more possibility, that both are real,” said Wenren È. This time,
he strode into the courtyard and plucked a lotus that hadn’t existed last time,
extracting its heart.
The four ordinary-looking divine beasts made no move to stop him, still
amusing themselves in their own ways.
“We’ve gotten everything we want. Time to go,” Wenren È said to Yin

Hanjiang. “Let’s find the back door she mentioned.”
They came to the back door and found that the mist was indeed thinner
here, and seemed passable.
Yin Hanjiang tried to rush to the front, to test the route for his master, but
Wenren È held him back.
“We’ll go together, back to back, and carry Baili Qingmiao together,”

Wenren È said.
“Understood!”
Back to back, with one shoulder supporting Baili Qingmiao, and their free
hands holding each other’s, they cautiously walked through the fog.
After walking for an indeterminable length of time, through white fog that
gave them no sense of distance, they suddenly smelled the salt of the sea
breeze. Following the wind for a few more steps, the fog parted and left
them standing on the cliff’s edge, with the golden sea before them.
Now that his vision was filled with something else beside white, Yin
Hanjiang set down Baili Qingmiao and turned to look at Wenren È’s
familiar face. Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief and plop down onto
the ground.
“Protector Yin, why’re you so tense?” Wenren È said, sitting by his side at
the cliff edge. He didn’t get why Yin Hanjiang had relaxed the instant he
saw him, and had never seen him act improperly like this before.
“I was afraid that it wasn’t only Baili Qingmiao’s fantasies that were
realized in the spiritual realm, and that my thoughts would be too. This
subordinate was just overthinking things.”
“What were you thinking?” Wenren È asked.
Yin Hanjiang bowed his head and didn’t answer. He had walked back to
back with Wenren È along the whole path, and could only touch his icy
fingertips. Yin Hanjiang had feared that when they exited and he turned
around, he would find a corpse behind him.
When Yin Hanjiang was five years old, he had woken up in a mass grave,
and fumbled around in it searching for his mother and father. His legs were
broken, and the weights of dead bodies pressed down around him. After
searching for some time, he realized the clothes of the body lying atop him
were patched in a familiar way, and recognized them as his mother’s. Back
then, he didn’t understand death clearly, and only hugged the corpse and
cried. Ignoring the pain of his injuries, he turned the body over, and found a
rotten face crawling with maggots.
Yin Hanjiang roughly shook himself out of his memories. He felt he was
pathetic for thinking of these things. Over a hundred years had already
passed, and ordinary people would’ve lived out their entire lives, yet he still
couldn’t move on from his memories as a five-year-old child.
The Venerable would not become a corpse. Wenren È was the strongest
person in the cultivation world. There wasn’t anyone who could kill him.
Wenren È grabbed one of Yin Hanjiang’s hands and found his palm covered
with sweat. Cultivators had already transcended mortality. They could
sustain themselves without food and escape the cycle of reincarnation, and
would only sweat out of extreme fear. If Yin Hanjiang was unwilling to say,
Wenren È couldn’t guess his thoughts. He only felt that Yin Hanjiang’s later
madness in the book hadn’t come out of nowhere after all.
These days, he paid more and more attention to Yin Hanjiang, and realized
that there seemed to be a bottomless pit in Yin Hanjiang’s heart. If his heart
couldn’t be at peace, Yin Hanjiang would never be able to reach Mahayana.
“It seems when we have free time in the future, I should take you drinking
so you can relax and vent a little,” Wenren È said. “And at that time, you
should tell me what you were thinking. How about it?”
Yin Hanjiang’s expression seemed strained. He didn’t wish for the

Venerable to understand him better.
Wenren È could order Yin Hanjiang to speak, but he had no wish to force
him, and instead said, “In that case, I’ll let you set the time. Whenever you
want to speak, this Venerable will be there to hear it.”
While they spoke, a person climbed up the cliff from the ocean—Qiu
Congxue.
She had been unable to use spiritual energy in the ocean, and it had taken
her a long time to swim back and climb to the top.
Seeing that her arm still hadn’t regrown, Wenren È asked, “How long were
we gone?”
“Less than two hours,” Qiu Congxue replied. “Did the Venerable meet with
any threats while in the spiritual realm?”
Wenren È had no intention of telling her. He slapped Baili Qingmiao, who
seemed to always be losing consciousness one way or another, awake, and
placed both the Seven-Colored Lotus Heart and the Shattered Mountain
Meteorite before her. “I had assumed the Shattered Mountain Meteorite was
fated to me, but it seems that was just wishful thinking. These two both
belong to you, and it’s up to you to decide what to do with them.”
“How can you let me have everything?” Baili Qingmiao said, waving her
hands. “I didn’t do anything and was a burden the entire way. I’m just
grateful that you didn’t give up on me. The Shattered Mountain Meteorite
naturally belongs to you. As for the lotus heart… will you please treat it as
this disciple borrowing it for now? In the future, I will surely repay you.”
“It’s the opposite,” Wenren È said. “Treat it as this Venerable borrowing

this.”
“This Venerable?” Baili Qingmiao said, cocking her head.
Copying the book’s events, Wenren È took out a token of the Xuanyuan
Sect Master and handed it to her. “This is this Venerable’s token. If you are
in need in the future, you can exchange it for one favor from this Venerable,
no matter what it is.”
Baili Qingmiao accepted a token that resembled a tiger tally[1] with both
hands, and couldn’t help but ask, “May I inquire after your name?”
“This Venerable is Wenren È.”
Hearing him, Baili Qingmiao was panicked into dropping the token, and
stammered at Qiu Congxue, “Master Qingxue, this— this senior is the—
the demonic sect leader.”
“Why are you so flustered?” said Qiu Congxue. “You and I together are no
match for him, so don’t think about being a hero.”
Her composure helped Baili Qingmiao calm down as well. If Wenren È had
wanted to kill her, he could do it by lifting a finger.
“Sect Master Wenren, I cannot accept your token,” Baili Qingmiao said
with a shake of her head. “The righteous and demonic sects are in
opposition to one another, and each side inflicted heavy casualties on the
other during the Great Sect War. My sect master was deeply injured by you
and is still unconscious, and my shixiong had his Nascent Soul taken by one
of your subordinates. I will not forget all the aid you’ve given me, and in
the future, if possible, I will be sure to repay you. But from now on, I can
no longer be in contact with you, and even less can I keep your token.”
Baili Qingmiao bowed to Wenren È in farewell and offered the tally back
with both hands.
“Don’t be so hasty. You’ll have use for it.” Wenren È didn’t move to accept
it. “And the righteous and demonic paths are not so black and white as you
were taught. When the day comes that Shangqing Sect turns on you and
tries to harm and imprison you, you can decide whether or not you need it.”
“Why would my sect turn on me?” Baili Qingmiao said, mystified.
Wenren È didn’t answer, only vanished into a streak of crimson light and
flew off with Yin Hanjiang, leaving Qiu Congxue and Baili Qingmiao
staring blankly after them.
Before his departure, Wenren È had transmitted to Qiu Congxue, “Delay

your return by a few days, so that it takes longer to get the medicine to Hè
Wenzhao.”
Now that he gave Hè Wenzhao and the blood demon some time to act, he
wondered what would happen this time around.

1. Tiger tallies are (what wwx had in cql) made in two halves and given to
generals to authorize troop deployment. If the halves fit together, it can be
determined to be genuine. ↩
Wants to Know
Chapter 24 – Side by side
Wenren È’s goal with this trip had been to forge a new sword for Yin
Hanjiang, an immortal weapon if possible, or at least a near-immortal
weapon.
After trading for the meteorite with his token and a promise to help Baili
Qingmiao in the future, he took Yin Hanjiang to the Thousand Mile Ice
Plains.
It should now be named the Thousand Mile Fire Plains. The field of
boundless white from eleven years ago had been transformed into a sea of
magma. Even at Yin Hanjiang or Wenren È’s level, they didn’t get too close
to the surface, just surveying the landscape from high above.
“The wandering immortal of the Violet Spirit Pavilion had been cultivating
using the flames underneath the ice for centuries, yet was never able to find
the Snow Flame. Yet when Baili Qingmiao collapsed in the Ice Plains, it
instantly appeared in her hands. In order to find that immortal’s true body,
this Venerable broke through the ice layer, and now without the ice
suppressing it, the underground fires have transformed the Ice Plains’s
environment,” Wenren È said.
Even though Yin Hanjiang normally paid attention to nothing besides

Wenren È, he couldn’t help but ask, “Why did the spiritual realm change
according to Baili Qingmiao’s wishes? And the things she imagined
actually materialized.”
Yin Hanjiang took out the Shattered Mountain Meteorite. He still had
difficulty believing that this treasure in his hands was real.
“What if it suddenly turns into mist and vanishes?” Yin Hanjiang asked.
Wenren È saw curiosity sparkling in his eyes and couldn’t help but smile
slightly. “In the beginning, heaven and earth were primordial chaos and
everything in existence was formless energy. A primordial god awakened in
the chaos, and used his power to separate heaven and earth, becoming one
with the cosmos and giving rise to all things. This was the one origin from
which everything in existence developed.[1]“
Yin Hanjiang had reached Void Boundary stage over a century of

cultivation and his ability of comprehension was actually quite high. He
thought it over and asked, “Is the Venerable’s meaning that the spiritual
realm was neither a palace nor a cavern, but a gathering of primordial chaos
like the cosmos before the separation of heaven and earth? What we saw
today was a smaller-scale version of the shaping of the cosmos?”
“Perhaps.” Wenren È was unsure of his conjecture himself, and could only
give Yin Hanjiang an indecisive answer.
“Then how come everything became dark when she opened her eyes and
bright when she closed them? It’s almost like the legend of the torch dragon
who brings day when its eyes are open and night when they close. Except
it’s reversed.” Yin Hanjiang rubbed the meteoric iron, still looking at it with
disbelief.
He had remained composed in front of Qiu Congxue and Baili Qingmiao, as

cold and emotionless as always, but alone in front of Wenren È, he had
finally learned to show a bit of curiosity.
“This Venerable does have an idea about that.” Wenren È hadn’t noticed the
indulgent smile that had appeared on his lips. “The book stated that Baili
Qingmiao was a primordial goddess in her previous life, and managed
plagues, disasters, and war. Everywhere her sight landed, disasters would
befall mortal beings, so she wouldn’t have often looked at peaceful
surroundings. If the spiritual realm was a collection of primordial energy
that had been attracted to Baili Qingmiao, it would naturally reflect her
fate.”
Dark and hellish when awake, and only a paradise in her dreams.
The Abusive Romance novel was the same. It was just as one reviewer said
—the author had given the female lead a primordial divine nature, the talent
and luck to overturn fate, and impeccable looks and character. They had
crafted an exceptional protagonist, then let Hè Wenzhao stomp all over her.
Baili Qingmiao could probably only have what she wanted in her dreams.
“In any case, the Shattered Mountain Meteorite is undoubtedly real, and the
Seven-Colored Lotus Heart will also certainly be able to heal Hè Wenzhao.
Who knows if Baili Qingmiao will have the chance to use it, though?”
Wenren È said.
Even though Qiu Congxue was now a wandering immortal, she could still
return to Xuanyuan Sect after stealing a few of Shangqing Sect’s secret
techniques. With Qiu Congxue’s intellect, she wouldn’t have any impact on
Shangqing Sect even if she stayed, let alone become a mole for the
Xuanyuan Sect. Wenren È had no ambitions to unify the entire cultivation
world either, so logically he should’ve brought Qiu Congxue back.
The reason he’d let her return to Shangqing Sect was that he was curious
what kind of changes she would wrought if she stayed by the protagonist’s
side.
Wenren È was also quite amused by the way Qiu Congxue went about
things. What other cultivator would say something like “Obviously a magic
elixir ought to be used on me, who would save a piece of garbage like
you?” to Hè Wenzhao?
After Baili Qingmiao had fainted, Qiu Congxue was so concerned she
wanted to retrieve her soul immediately, which meant she really was
attached to her disciple, even wanting her to become the heir to her ghost
cultivation techniques. With such a “considerate” master by the
protagonist’s side, Wenren È was really looking forward to seeing how the
story would diverge.
For now, though, he had a more important thing than the story to focus on,
namely, to forge Yin Hanjiang’s sword.
With a bonded weapon, a cultivator could access the weapon’s wisdom, and
their understanding of the Dao would grow deeper. Wenren È hoped that
after Yin Hanjiang got his new sword, he could let go of his obsessions and
make actual plans toward his future. That way, if Wenren È truly died
someday as he had in the book, Yin Hanjiang would be able to act
rationally, and wouldn’t become what he had.
The Chiming blade had its own awareness and sensed that Wenren È was
going to refine it. It tried to escape as it was drawn from its sheath, but it
was trapped by a cloud of blood mist.
“Venerable!” Yin Hanjiang cried, not thinking that Wenren È would sever
one of his own arms. The blood mist that made up that arm snatched the
meteoric iron from Yin Hanjiang, and began forcing it to combine with the
Chiming blade.
“In order to craft a legendary weapon from these fires, human blood and
souls must be sacrificed,” Wenren È said calmly. “Demonic cultivators
would usually kidnap a Nascent Soul or above cultivator for their crafts,
sealing the soul inside the weapon in order to make an artifact of
unparalleled power.”
Righteous cultivators would of course not sacrifice their fellows in order to

make weapons, but would capture spiritual beasts.
Spiritual beasts were naturally endowed with spiritual power from the
heavens, such as qilin and other beasts of myth. Righteous cultivators
would take their inner cores, from which they could refine near-immortal
weapons.
Although there were still some near-death cultivators who would offer
themselves to be forged into weapons, in order to gain a new lease on life.
Wenren È wouldn’t be using any of those methods. Whether a Nascent Soul

or a beast core, in the end it was all just spiritual energy, refined into very
dense and pure essence through cultivation. Unlike other cultivators,
Wenren È’s body was made of merged blood and soul, and he no longer had
a Nascent Soul either. His whole body was filled with very highly refined
and pure spiritual essence. A single arm of a Mahayana cultivator was more
than sufficient to make up for the entirety of a Body Unity cultivator’s
power.
Yin Hanjiang wanted to stop Wenren È, but he was held back with a ribbon
of blood. He could break free if he used all his strength, but since it was
formed from Wenren È’s other arm, he would just be hurting his Venerable
more if he struggled.
He could only watch as crimson light engulfed the Chiming blade and the
Shattered Mountain Meteorite and dove down into the flames. Wenren È
began reciting an incantation, and the mist that had been his arm began to
rapidly absorb the power of the flames.
A deep rumble began underneath the plain of fire as the lava boiled madly,
shooting sparks high into the air.
The heavens now sensed the creation of a weapon from power stolen from
the natural order, and clouds gathered over the sky, heralding a heavenly
tribulation.
A burst of lava of frightening temperature spewed into the sky like a geyser,
until it met the clouds above and clashed with the first bolt of lightning,
repelling it.
Within the flash, a pure black sword could be seen, slowly coming into
shape. Wenren È ordered Yin Hanjiang, “Retrieve your sword!”
Yin Hanjiang forced back his anguish and charged into the flash. He
couldn’t let the Venerable’s lifeblood be wasted.
Meeting the second bolt of lightning, he grabbed hold of the sword, and a
current of warm energy flowed from it to his hand. Within the blade, he
could sense a will to protect him.
The intent to kill and the wish to protect combining into one, both in
harmony without any conflict—this was Wenren È’s path!
When a legendary weapon was forged, it must withstand nine bolts of

heavenly lightning, each stronger than the others. The first two were
silvery-white, but the third one was violet. In order to subdue the weapon,
Yin Hanjiang had to take advantage of when it was weakened by the
lightning to make it submit to him while enduring the strikes himself.
In the silver-violet flash of the third bolt, Yin Hanjiang’s silhouette could
faintly be seen, sitting cross-legged in the air as the sword hung before him,
letting out a high-pitched hum of resistance.
There was nothing else Wenren È could do at this point. He remained at a

short distance from the lightning, observing Yin Hanjiang.
Yin Hanjiang would certainly be able to refine the weapon. Wenren È had
unwavering faith in him.
In the light, a barrier slowly formed around Yin Hanjiang and the sword,
protecting both of them. It withstood the fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh
bolts without trembling.
Each of the nine bolts of heavenly lightning was twice the strength of the
previous one. The first one was not hard to endure, but once it came to the
eighth or ninth, the power involved was already enough to destroy the
Thousand Mile Ice Plains.
With the eighth bolt of lightning, a crack ran through the barrier around Yin
Hanjiang. The lava of the Ice Plains churned, and the temperature even high
up in the air rose to a hellish degree. If a chunk of ordinary iron was tossed
up, it would’ve melted in midair, to vanish into the sea of flame below
without a trace.
In order to destroy this new immortal weapon, thunderclouds gathered from

a hundred li around, now glowing violet, gathering power for the ninth
strike.
There was no way Yin Hanjiang’s barrier would be able to withstand this
one. If he could not subdue the sword before then, they both would be
reduced to ash by the bolt of violet light.
Yin Hanjiang did all he could to communicate with the sword, asking it to
become his. He conveyed his good intent to it, his intent to protect his
Venerable, but the sword disregarded him. It only wanted to charge out of
the barrier, and escape the control of heaven.
Why was it unwilling to submit to him? The sword was forged from
Wenren È’s own blood and soul and had inherited a portion of his Path of
Slaughter. When Yin Hanjiang told it he wished to protect Wenren È, why
did it not obey?
Yin Hanjiang couldn’t figure it out, and meanwhile the barrier couldn’t
even withstand the pressure of the next bolt of lightning and shattered
completely, leaving Yin Hanjiang and the disobedient sword undefended
under the stormclouds.
He had no control over the sword, which wanted to charge toward the
clouds and clash head-on with the heavenly lightning!
Yin Hanjiang grabbed the sword and managed to force it down. The will of
the sword flooded his mind. He heard it chant endlessly: battle, battle, it
wanted battle!
The fighting intent led Yin Hanjiang to remember a scene at the border
town, when he was eighteen, watching from a distance as his Venerable,
with all his cultivation suppressed, led his troops into the bloodbath of
battle like a mortal man. Wenren È disregarded his own safety with every
attack, and even if a spear pierced his shoulder, his halberd would never
slow.
Yin Hanjiang naively stood before his Venerable, wanting to be his sword,
wanting to protect him, but Wenren È wielded a halberd. He had said to Yin
Hanjiang, “This Venerable doesn’t need you to protect him.”
What meaning was there in Yin Hanjiang’s life, aside from protecting his
Venerable?
The ninth bolt of lightning became a violet dragon, roaring and coiling
around Yin Hanjiang. As Wenren È watched, he raised a hand slightly, but
eventually lowered it again.
If he were to help, Yin Hanjiang would never be able to overcome his inner
demons.
Wenren È had said before that he didn’t mind Yin Hanjiang dying for him,
but he did mind Yin Hanjiang losing his mind over him.
The Lord of Demons had witnessed death many times, and neither his death
nor his subordinates’ deaths mattered to him. He only wanted to die when
he chose, after expending all his strength and leaving behind no regrets. He
hoped Yin Hanjiang would understand that what he wanted wasn’t an
obedient puppet and a blindly loyal subordinate. He needed a vanguard who
would charge with him into the enemy’s ranks, a sharp blade who would cut
down all opposition.
Yin Hanjiang, will you be able to understand?
The violet lightning had already completely engulfed Yin Hanjiang. Wenren
È saw his silhouette vanish and wondered if this was as far as he could
come.
Suddenly, a metallic sound rang out from within the lightning, and a sword
flash slashed through it, surging toward the heavens, charging into the
storm and resembling a black dragon that thrashed within the clouds. After
a flurry of other sword flashes, the stormclouds dissipated.
Yin Hanjiang’s clothes were tattered and he held a sword in one hand,
raised toward the clouds it had cleaved in one strike. Its blade, hilt, and
tassel were all pure black, blade sparkling with points of light like stars.
Wenren È heard Yin Hanjiang say in a low voice, “Your name is the Army
Crushing Sword.”
Alkaid shone brilliantly in the night sky overhead. The Army Crushing
Sword hummed ceaselessly, and when Wenren È summoned his Seven
Killing Halberd, it began shaking of its own accord.
It was out of happiness.
Happiness that a weapon which understood it completely had been born,

happiness that there was finally a companion that could advance side by
side with it, and surmount the heavens.
There were no shortcuts on the road of cultivation. If they had made it their
resolution to rebel against heaven, then they must abandon their human
bodies and become gods. On this path, no one needed a protector. They
would only need to face battle, to use their own power to cut open the path
to heaven!
Yin Hanjiang slowly flew back to Wenren È’s side, his eyes unreadable. He
didn’t kneel, instead facing Wenren È directly and saying in a clear voice,
“Yin Hanjiang understands.”
No longer “this subordinate”, just “Yin Hanjiang”.
Wenren È laughed out loud in joy, and the Seven Killing Halberd touched
its blade to the Army Crushing Sword, humming non-stop. Wenren È said,
pleased, “This Venerable is glad to have another person in the world who
can fight alongside him.”
Yin Hanjiang also smiled faintly. He had finally managed to live up to his
Venerable’s wishes. Upon subduing the Army Crushing Sword, he had
completed his own sword will.
Wenren È didn’t need Yin Hanjiang to protect him. Wenren È needed

someone who could stand back to back with him, wielding a weapon
alongside him, as they charged down the path of defying heaven, slaying
even gods and Buddhas in their way.
Wenren È released the Seven Killing Halberd and let it and the sword start
fighting and chasing each other. He faced Yin Hanjiang and gripped his
hand in his.
With both their hands wrapped into a fist, an unspoken oath was formed in
their eyes.
They looked up at the sky together, seeing Polis and Alkaid mirror each
other in brilliance, both shining with greater strength than ever before.
However, Dubhe was also radiant, nearly drowning out Polis and Alkaid’s
light.
“Hm?” Wenren È shared a glance with Yin Hanjiang. What had happened to
Shu Yanyan that her fortunes had increased so?
Speaking of, since the Great Sect War, he had now been missing from
Xuanyuan Sect for a whole year. Who knew what state it was in now?
1. That’s the story of Pangu, a Chinese creation myth. ↩

Wants to Know
Chapter 25 – Insubordination
Wenren È had originally planned to go right out and kidnap Zhongli Qian
after finishing the sword, but seeing Dubhe shining in the sky, he was
abruptly reminded that he had a sect to run. Xuanyuan Sect had sustained
heavy losses from the Great Sect War, with many experts having died and
been sent on. Out of the four Altar Masters, three were severely injured and
the fourth had run off to Shangqing Sect to become a wandering immortal.
With the Left Protector and the Sect Master missing, the only person who
was still capable would’ve been the Right Protector.
“Speaking of which, even if this Venerable captured Zhongli Qian, I still

need a place to imprison him,” Wenren È said. “The Right Protector knows
more on matters of love than we do, so the matter of making Zhongli Qian
love Baili Qingmiao must also be assigned to her.”
Now that he’d obtained his sword, Yin Hanjiang recognized that he wasn’t
supposed to be the Venerable’s yes-man, but help him and ease his burdens.
He thought about it hard and said, “The Right Protector has high ambitions.
The Xuanyuan Sect is currently without a leader, so I fear it has fallen into
chaos.”
“It looks to me like she’s living large right now,” Wenren È said, glancing at
Dubhe overhead. “Oh well. There’s still several decades until Baili
Qingmiao and Zhongli Qian are meant to meet. We have plenty of time, so
let’s return to Xuanyuan Sect and sort things out first.”
“Understood,” said Yin Hanjiang.

Before they departed, Wenren È glanced down at the Ice Plains, whose
flames had all but dissipated after the last lightning strike. Originally, the
flames would be covered by ice again after a hundred years or so, forming a
new Ice Plains, but now the strikes of heavenly lightning had expended
much of the underground fires’ power. Mountains had been pulverized into
dirt, slowly burying the fading flames.
The lightning had filled the land with immense spiritual energy, enough to
give rise to new living beings.
Soon, the land beneath them would be transformed into a vast grass plain.
With only a glance, Wenren È left in a flash of crimson light, paying it no

more mind. Yin Hanjiang flew on the Army Crushing Sword and caught up
to him. Wenren È had held back his speed for him, but Yin Hanjiang’s
sword flight had become significantly faster. Wenren È, seeing that Yin
Hanjiang kept up easily, sped up some more.
Yin Hanjiang urged his sword on and was still able to follow at a steady
distance an arm’s length behind Wenren È. It was only until Wenren È
reached twice his original speed that Yin Hanjiang started falling behind.
It had taken them half a day to arrive at the Ice Plains, but this time it only
took an hour to return to the outskirts of Xuanyuan Sect. Wenren È didn’t
arrive directly to the main hall, instead stopping outside. Pleased, he said to
Yin Hanjiang, “You’ve finally understood the true meaning of sword flight,
as opposed to letting swords fly you.”
Yin Hanjiang’s speed had always been slow, not only because of his low
level, but also because the demonic sword didn’t obey his will. He was
always distracted with keeping it under control, which slowed him down.
“Sword cultivators are the strongest among all cultivators. Previously, you
were able to exert power beyond your realm because the demonic sword
was using you, not due to your own strength or sword will. Now that
you’ve bonded to a weapon of your own, this Venerable looks forward to
seeing your true strength as a sword cultivator.” Wenren È looked at Yin
Hanjiang with encouragement.
Yin Hanjiang, however, only looked at Wenren È’s missing arm which had
yet to regrow, his face rather pale.
“Don’t worry.” Wenren È covered his shoulder with one hand. “Since I cut
off a part of my soul, it’ll naturally take a while to recover. A minor injury
like this won’t prevent this Venerable from taking back Xuanyuan Sect.”
Yin Hanjiang gripped his sword tightly, determined not to let the blade his
Venerable had forged with his own soul go to waste. He cupped his hands
and said, “The sect array has been completely changed from before. This
subordinate will break through and open a path for the Venerable!”
“That’s not necessary,” Wenren È said, holding back Yin Hanjiang’s

fighting intent. “I’d like to see what Shu Yanyan has gotten up to these
days. If we barged in directly, someone as shrewd as her would surrender
immediately, which wouldn’t be fun.”
Wenren È used an illusion to hide them both and after making a circuit
around the barrier, found some people entering and leaving. They were all
strangers, and who knew where they had come from.
Wenren È possessed one of them and entered with the group, quickly
learning the new array password. He quietly left that body and returned to
the outside, where he opened a small entrance and beckoned Yin Hanjiang
through.
Xuanyuan Sect had no regulations forbidding flight or duels within its

grounds. Everyone picked fights whenever they wanted, and whoever was
stronger got their way. Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang went directly to Shu
Yanyan’s cultivation grounds, a mountain peak dense in spiritual energy on
which she had built a palace resembling that of a mortal emperor. Its inside
was filled with beds, hot springs, grass fields, and so on, so Shu Yanyan
could cultivate wherever she pleased.
When she wasn’t carrying out orders or out looking for new subordinates to
raise, Shu Yanyan spent most of her time cultivating in her palace. But
today, not only was she nowhere to be seen, but not many of her
subordinates were around either.
Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang entered the palace and found most of the rooms
were empty, with even the beds missing. Hearing someone approach, they
both hid, and saw Shu Yanyan’s most favored subordinate leading a few
underlings with both middling cultivations and looks, directing them, “You
two go to the Moon Embracing Hall, you three to the Star Plucking Hall,
and put everything in storage bags. Make sure you’re careful with the Right
Protector’s beds—you better not knock or bump them. If the Protector were
to get injured in cultivation, the fault would be on your heads!”
He ordered everyone around left and right while sitting in the main hall like
he owned the place, eating from a plate stacked with spiritual fruit.
Yin Hanjiang saw this clearly and knew there was only one tree in the sect
that bore spiritual fruit, which grew in the Venerable’s back garden.
He wanted to charge in, but was held back by Wenren È. While everyone
else was busy moving furniture, Wenren È transformed into blood mist and
entered the body of Shu Yanyan’s subordinate. He said to Yin Hanjiang,
“Disguise yourself, and let’s go have a chat with the Right Protector.”
Yin Hanjiang considered using a disguising technique, but Shu Yanyan was
a high-level cultivator and would be able to see through it easily. He was
worried he would ruin the Venerable’s plan, and so took a black ghost mask
from his storage bag and put it on.
Wenren È’s heart skipped a beat when he saw that mask. He was about to
ask when he saw several of the subordinates returning. “Master Helian,”
they said to him, “we’ve already cleared out everything.”
Wenren È held back his questions and replied, “Come on.”
He glanced at the masked Yin Hanjiang and said, “You too.”
Several of the men shot suspicious glances at Yin Hanjiang. Wenren È said
in a harsher voice, “What are you looking at? The Protector’s new disciple
doesn’t want to be seen. Keep your heads down.”
There were some people who weren’t willing to show their faces when Shu
Yanyan first brought them in. The underlings didn’t dare to question any
further and hurried to follow “Master Helian” as they flew toward the main
peak where Wenren È’s residence was.
They ran into Shu Yanyan right in the sect’s main hall, wearing a set of
lavish red robes and currently talking to another subordinate.
They were in time to hear him say, “My Lady, the four Altar Masters have
all been brought to the main peak. What should be done with them?”
Shu Yanyan considered for a moment, then smiled and said, “Let’s see,
Altar Master Yuan is too ugly. I don’t know why he likes to walk around
with all that fat. I don’t like him, so seal his powers and throw him in the
water prison. Altar Master Miao doesn’t look bad, but who knows if he’s
keeping one or two of his bugs around for emergencies. I don’t want to get
bitten, so throw him in the water prison too. As for Altar Master Ruan and
that new Altar Master Shi… take them to my room for me to enjoy
thoroughly.”
“Understood,” her subordinate said, nodding.
“Oh, wait!” Shu Yanyan called. She held him by the chin and kissed his
handsome face, saying in a soft voice, “I forgot I’m currently moving out.
Take them to Wenren È’s bedroom and stay there yourself too. In a moment
this Protector… no, this Venerable will take good care of you.”
Hearing that she wanted to use the Venerable’s bedroom for such things,
Yin Hanjiang couldn’t hold back anymore and drew his sword, charging at
Shu Yanyan. Shu Yanyan’s red robe was a top-grade defensive item, so she
disregarded the masked man who suddenly appeared, assuming he was one
of the Altar Masters’ underlings. She raised a sleeve to block, but the blade
cleaved through the robe and her arm alike.
“Who are you?” Shu Yanyan demanded, furious, as a spider lily bloomed in
the palm of her hand.
Her subordinate rushed to pick up her severed arm, which she could
reattach after she was done fighting.
“That’s a strong sword will! Are you from Heavenly Sword Sect? How did
you get into the Xuanyuan Sect main hall?” Shu Yanyan circulated her
spiritual essence and spider lilies blossomed across the hall, forming a
blood-red carpet under Yin Hanjiang’s feet. They transformed into twelve
heavenly demons, who seductively approached him.
The heavenly demons could awaken someone’s inner demons and destroy a
cultivator’s dantian. If one let their guard down for even a moment, they
would fall under the demons’ manipulations. Yet Yin Hanjiang treated their
alluring figures as no more than clumps of dirt. He paid attention only to
Shu Yanyan, his current enemy.
The stars of the Big Dipper shone on the Army Crushing Sword’s blade. Its
black light filled the hall, and the twelve heavenly demons were instantly
nailed to the walls, the spider lilies shredded by the sword’s aura and their
petals drifting through the air in a flurry of crimson.
Shu Yanyan saw her adversary face the heavenly demons without wavering
and decided to bring out her full power. After fully absorbing Hè Wenzhao’s
Nascent Soul, she had risen to the fifth level of Mahayana, and could freely
command natural spiritual energy. With a wave of her hand, the flower
petals transformed into red silk, which wrapped around Yin Hanjiang’s
body and immobilized him.
The spider lilies were demonic flowers which would suck away the spiritual
essence of anyone they touched. Yin Hanjiang had been plastered with them
head to toe, and his essence was continuously being drained.
Wenren È sighed inwardly. Even if Yin Hanjiang had awoken to his own
sword will, there was still a realm of difference between Void Boundary and
Mahayana. It seemed his help was still needed…
Right when Wenren È was about to jump in, the twelve swords that had
pinned the heavenly demons to the walls flew to Yin Hanjiang, forming a
sword array around him, ringing in unison and making the flower petals
tremble. Within them, Yin Hanjiang made a hand seal, and the swords split
into innumerable small blades, blasting the flowers away with their aura.
The masked man leapt out of the flower petals, the tip of his blade aimed
for Shu Yanyan’s heart.
Shu Yanyan didn’t have enough time to avoid, and even though she dodged
a vital blow, the sword still impaled her through her left shoulder.
Gritting her teeth, she called to her subordinate, “What are you waiting for?
Set up an array!”
Yet a cloud of blood mist suddenly emerged from Helian’s body, and
solidified into the shape of a one-armed figure, standing behind the masked
man. Calmly, he said to Shu Yanyan, “Right Protector, did you have any
problems managing the sect in this Venerable’s absence?”
Seeing he had shown himself, the other also removed his mask, revealing
Yin Hanjiang’s frosty expression.
Upon seeing the two, Shu Yanyan fell to her knees on the spot. “Venerable,
you’ve returned at last!” she cried. “The four Altar Masters were conspiring
together, and only with great difficulty did this subordinate manage to bring
them in line!”

Wants to Know
Chapter 26 – Tidying up the sect
“Well, start explaining.”
In Xuanyuan Sect’s main hall, a black-robed man with one arm sat in the
highest seat, his bodyguard holding a sword and standing at his left side.
Several rows of people knelt below him, with the four Altar Masters and
one Sect Protector in the front line, and their subordinates behind them.
Each of them had distanced themselves from the other four, the lines in the
sand clearly drawn.
Hearing the black-robed man’s command, a tremble went through all five,
but none dared to speak first.
“This Venerable isn’t mad at you,” Wenren È said, his remaining hand
resting on an arm of the chair, as he surveyed them languidly. He continued
at an easy pace, “This Venerable is just curious. How were two cultivators
at the seventh level of Mahayana and two cultivators at the last level of
Void Boundary all subdued by an average Sect Protector at the fifth level of
Mahayana?”
Seeing that still no one dared to talk, Wenren È continued, “Seeing as it’s
been over a hundred years, you should understand this Venerable by now. I
don’t mind if my subordinates are disloyal. Xuanyuan Sect is a demonic
sect, open to all paths of cultivation, and everyone has always done as they
please. I don’t care if you cultivate gu parasites, seduction, ghosts, tortoise
shells, or the pursuit of power. All your pathetic ambitions can coexist in
this sect. The only thing that can’t be permitted is incompetence.”
Hearing this, Shu Yanyan perked up. She still knelt as properly as ever, but
her back straightened a bit. However you told it, she had come out ahead of
everyone else at the end of this struggle, so she could be considered the
most competent, much more so than the four kneeling beside her.
Seeing her straighten up, Wenren È said, “Protector Shu, you seem to have
something to say.”
“Venerable,” Shu Yanyan said, loud and clearly. “From the beginning, this
matter can’t be considered this subordinate’s fault. Your subordinate only
wished to stop the infighting caused by the Altar Masters. Venerable,
you’ve given the order before that when you aren’t here, your Protectors
can be your deputies. When I saw the Altar Masters fighting amongst
themselves, imagine how disappointed I was! How could I not stop them?
And as for bringing Altar Masters Ruan and Shi to my rooms… Venerable,
you understand this subordinate. How could I not keep a little bonus for
myself?”
Wenren È nodded in satisfaction and said to Yin Hanjiang, “Remember

what I said, Protector Yin? If we had charged straight into Xuanyuan Sect,
Protector Shu would’ve deferred to me immediately, and we wouldn’t get
this show.”
Yin Hanjiang had never seen Wenren È act so mischievous before and
smiled inwardly, though he kept his face emotionless and said, “The
Venerable is right.”
Shu Yanyan’s bluff faltered at his words, and she could only try to change
the subject. “Well, about this, you should probably ask Altar Master Ruan.
If he hadn’t supported Altar Master Shi in getting his position so they could
join forces against Altar Master Miao, how could someone like me, who
had just risen to Mahayana with average abilities and some seduction and
charms, take out all four of the others?”
“Shu Yanyan, you watch your fucking mouth!” Altar Master Ruan
exploded. He slammed a hand onto the floorboards. “I backed Altar Master
Shi? Why don’t you say that one more time—who exactly backed him? I
must’ve been blind to work with this backstabbing pretty boy. When I get
the chance, I’ll fuck him dead!”
Altar Master Shi was a pale and sickly-looking young man who looked like
a scrawny intellectual-type. Hearing Altar Master Ruan, he put a hand to his
mouth and after coughing a few times, said weakly, “Altar Master Ruan, I
can’t accept being called a backstabber. I never planned on working with
you from the start. You’re the one who ran to me and started yapping about
how you needed to teach Altar Master Miao a lesson, and needed to borrow
my sickness qi in order to weaken his bugs. Faced with something like that,
how could I not go discuss with Altar Master Yuan in the Venerable’s
place?”
After Altar Master Shi had finished talking, Altar Master Miao raised his
soft voice. “You still ended up going along with Altar Master Ruan’s plan
afterward. You made all my bugs sick and let Altar Master Ruan smash me
with his hammer over a thousand times.”
Altar Master Shi coughed until a tinge of red appeared on his pale face. He
said reedily, “Didn’t Altar Master Ruan fall sick too? I was just following
Altar Master Yuan’s plan. He said in order to stop you two from destroying
the unity of Xuanyuan Sect, the best way was to let you cool your heads for
a bit.”
The rotund Altar Master Yuan also had to cut in at this point. Squinting his
eyes, he said, “But Altar Master Shi, you weren’t supposed to tell them that
I told you to do it. And you weren’t supposed to let Altar Master Miao have
the opportunity to have his bugs bite me!”
“So what if they bit you?” said Altar Master Miao. “If I hadn’t been hit by
some idiot a thousand times and low on spiritual energy, I would’ve used all
that fat on you to raise a new nest of bugs. With your spiritual energy, I
could probably grow a king parasite!”
“Altar Master Yuan, why don’t you mention how you used your techniques
on me to force me to sicken them?” said Altar Master Shi. “You’re the one
who secretly appointed me to the position of Altar Master, and also made a
private agreement with me, that since Wenren È was dead, when you
became Sect Master, I would be a Sect Protector. You also said that you
stole a piece of my soul that you placed into a tablet, and that if you
shattered it, my soul would be damaged and I would never be able to reach
Mahayana. I had to work with Altar Master Miao in order to get the tablet
back, out of self-defense!”
“You see, Venerable?” said Shu Yanyan. “Is any of this my fault?” She
pointed a slim jade finger at the other four, her face full of innocence. “By
the time I arrived, Altar Master Miao had been smashed into a pancake,
Altar Master Shi was trying to take Altar Master Yuan’s soul to refine it,
Altar Master Ruan was hugging his tortoise shell and cursing out Altar
Master Shi, hitting him while coughing blood. As an acting Sect Master,
how could I let them behave in such a manner in the main hall? Naturally, I
had to punish them all equally, and make sure they were all disciplined!”
Wenren È nodded slowly. “Mm, Protector Shu’s words are reasonable. But
this Venerable must still request Protector Shu remove the hundred-meter-
long bed from his quarters and burn it. This Venerable doesn’t generally
need such a large bed.”
Shu Yanyan’s face stiffened, and her back sank again. She said in a fearful
voice, “Venerable, that’s the Thousand Year Frost Jade Bed. It took me
many decades to collect the materials to make it. I can’t— I can’t burn it!”
“Then smash it,” Wenren È said indifferently. “Do it personally, and take it
out in pieces while this Venerable watches.”
“Understood.” Shu Yanyan didn’t dare to speak more. Her severed arm was
still lying by her feet, and she still hadn’t worked up the courage to reattach
it yet.
Now that the Venerable had started assigning punishments to them in turn,
the Altar Masters also zipped their lips, no longer daring to squabble
amongst each other, waiting for Wenren È’s verdict.
“Protector Yin, what would you say they’re all guilty of?” Wenren È said,
turning to Yin Hanjiang instead.
After hearing that these people hadn’t rushed to find their injured lord and
instead started making grabs for power, Yin Hanjiang was already burning
with rage. He responded decisively, “Right Protector Shu Yanyan showed
arrogance beyond belief, taking over the Venerable’s residence and framing
herself as Venerable. She ought to have her cultivation grounds leveled, her
subordinates dismissed, her mouth sealed, and be forced to practice
asceticism for a hundred years.”
“That’s too harsh!” Shu Yanyan cried, her head whipping up to look at Yin
Hanjiang. She couldn’t help but feel he was a bit different to how he was in
the past.
Yin Hanjiang ignored her and continued. “When it comes to the Altar
Masters, as the Venerable has said, their greatest crime is not
insubordination but incompetence. Seeing as how they were so focused on
their internal strife that Protector Shu could overpower them all in one fell
swoop, they are clearly unfit for their positions. However, Altar Master
Ruan single-handedly incapacitating Altar Masters Miao and Shi is
somewhat commendable, and may merit a lighter punishment.”
Wenren È was a bit surprised. He glanced at Yin Hanjiang and said, “This
Venerable had assumed you had no opinions on anyone other than I. I didn’t
know you got along with Altar Master Ruan.”
Yin Hanjiang pursed his lips and didn’t reply. He and Altar Master Ruan
hardly got along, it was merely that they had fought side by side in the
Great Sect War.
“Then let it be as Protector Yin has said,” Wenren È said, tapping his fingers
on the arm of the chair.
Since Shu Yanyan’s mouth could still be of use, Wenren È didn’t seal her
speech, but ordered her to smash all her beds personally and burn her
grandiose rooms within her palace. He also reassigned all her subordinates
to run errands at the main hall, and got Altar Master Miao to plant a gu
insect in each of them, so that if they felt any desire for Shu Yanyan, Altar
Master Miao would know instantly.
As for the four Altar Masters, Wenren È decided that the incompetent
should be judged by the incompetent and let them all decide punishments
for each other, and have the results reported to him later. Seeing as Yin
Hanjiang had vouched for Altar Master Ruan, he let him off the hook.
In one short day, Wenren È had tidied up the Xuanyuan Sect, put everyone
in their places, and ensured everyone’s loyalty once again.
After observing three of the Altar Masters release insects and sickness qi
and so on upon each other for a bit, Wenren È got bored and returned to his
quarters with Yin Hanjiang. Shu Yanyan had already tearfully smashed up
the bed that was placed there and cast all the pieces into the mortal world,
which would form a rich jade mine in a few hundred years. She swore that
the bed had just been moved in, and she hadn’t had the chance to do
anything on it yet.
Her face had been filled with regret while saying this—regret that she
hadn’t taken the chance to properly enjoy it before Wenren È returned.
Upon entering, Yin Hanjiang was hit by a faceful of Shu Yanyan’s perfume,
which had been on the bed. He scowled, unsheathing his sword, and the
force of its swing swept through the entire room, clearing out the scent.
“No need to go to so much trouble,” Wenren È said. “I’ll just have Shu
Yanyan personally renovate this place.”
“She’s not necessary,” Yin Hanjiang said, fuming. “This subordinate will do
it.”
Instead of preventing him, Wenren È began inquiring on his experiences

with Altar Master Ruan.
Yin Hanjiang went over the full account, even including the exact insults
Altar Master Ruan had hurled at him. Wenren È raised an eyebrow and said,
“Oh? I didn’t know Altar Master Ruan had these preferences. I suppose we
must satisfy him.”
“Satisfy him?” Yin Hanjiang yelped, his voice hoarse. Satisfy him how?
Wenren È saw his shock and quickly said, “Doesn’t he want to fuck
grandmas? This Venerable would like to pick a maggot-filled corpse from
among Qiu Congxue’s ghost cultivators for him and see just how much he
likes it.”
Yin Hanjiang relaxed upon hearing this. “Altar Master Ruan has a sharp
tongue, is all,” he said quietly.
“And this Venerable is just going to scare him a little,” Wenren È said. “My
order that the Sect Protectors should represent me when I’m absent was
aimed at you. In the Great Sect War, you didn’t just save this Venerable, but
changed the course of the entire battle. It was Ruan Weiyi’s duty to help
you, so there’s no need to feel gratitude. This Venerable simply wants him
to know, that he can’t say whatever he wants to just anyone!”
Hearing Wenren È back him, Yin Hanjiang felt a faint warmth in his heart.
He stood behind Wenren È, watching him vent on his behalf.
Qiu Congxue’s ghost cultivators had been taken in by Altar Master Shi, and
when he heard he could personally pick one as Altar Master Ruan’s
punishment, he half-coughed, half-proclaimed that he would of course put
every care into picking a suitable dual cultivation partner, and even went to
Shu Yanyan to borrow a manual. The corporeal ghost cultivators under his
command, hearing that they could dual cultivate with Altar Master Ruan,
put their names down one after another, and enthusiasm was sky-high.
Yin Hanjiang: …
He felt like Altar Master Shi’s subordinates wouldn’t leave it at just scaring
him.
Wenren È was pleased upon seeing that the members of Xuanyuan Sect had
returned to their usual semblance of “peace”, and were focusing their
energies internally instead of going around causing trouble in the mortal
realm. He returned to his room in order to focus on his readings.
The book he was reading was, of course, Abusive Romance.

It had been about a month since they and Baili Qingmiao had parted, and
even with Qiu Congxue delaying the journey, they should’ve returned to
Shangqing Sect by now. He was interested to see how Hè Wenzhao was
doing, and whether or not he’d restored his Nascent Soul.
As expected, the revisions had continued, recording from Baili Qingmiao’s

perspective the entire sequence of events from when she had left her sect up
through the treasure hunt in the spiritual realm. The discussion page was
particularly heated this time, even longer than it had been in the original
work.
[Hold on, hold your horses! WHAT did Baili Qingmiao’s senior say his
name was? Wenren È?! How come my badass second male lead is now
Baili Qingmiao’s senior?]
[Honestly, at that black-robed senior’s debut, when he gave Baili Qingmiao

the Flame Feather Cloak, and told her to go to the Thousand Mile Ice
Plains, he hadn’t gotten any in-depth description, so I assumed he was an
old man.]
[He IS an old man, Wenren È is over three hundred years old, he’s just got a
pretty face. Age doesn’t matter for cultivators—the Violet Spirit Master was
over a thousand but Hè Wenzhao still married her. Three hundred years is
still pretty young in the cultivation world, ok?]
[If the black-robed senior is Wenren È, then is the person who was always
with him, who was given the Snow Flame, Yin Hanjiang? Oh god, the
trauma, someone light a lamp for me.]
[In the revision, didn’t Wenren È say he was giving the Shattered Mountain
Meteorite to Yin Hanjiang as a sword material? Hold on, let me see. Wenren
È helped Baili Qingmiao retrieve the Snow Flame for Yin Hanjiang, he
obtained the Shattered Mountain Meteorite for Yin Hanjiang, and he gave
MC his token for Yin Hanjiang… guys, I think I’ve discovered something
big.]
[What’s inspired the author lately? Baili Qingmiao and Wenren È’s plotlines
were all given to Yin Hanjiang, and Wenren È being saved by the MC was
given to… some Elder Qingxue who came out of nowhere and clearly has
something wrong with her head?]
[Speaking of Qingxue, I actually quite like her. She’s taken care of the MC
all along and gives no shits about Hè Wenzhao. With her there to protect
Baili Qingmiao, the later plotline where Hè Wenzhao gets married and
imprisons Baili Qingmiao should also change, right?]
[But the imprisonment plotline was her meeting with Zhongli Qian! If Elder
Qingxue protects Baili Qingmiao, then how will Zhongli Qian get his
debut? My Young Master Zhongli, you’re my number one, sob…]
[Oh no, I’m getting more and more excited to read. The author hasn’t
continued after Baili Qingmiao returning to the sect, we don’t know if he’s
slept with Liu-shimei. If he has… well, I’m looking forward to Elder
Qingxue.]
[Also looking forward to Elder Qingxue +10086, that method of killing Hè

Wenzhao and waiting for his reincarnation to grow up was wild. I stan
Qingxue!]
The story had only gotten to Baili Qingmiao and Qiu Congxue returning to
Shangqing Sect. Wenren È closed the book and started considering how he
should capture Zhongli Qian.
“Call in the Right Protector. I have a way for her to lighten her
punishment,” Wenren È said.
i assure you wenren e you may want a hundred meter long bed in the future

Wants to Know
Chapter 27 – Sleeping through the literature conference
Azure Sky Mountain, outside Five Willow Manor
Just like in old days, the Lord of Demons was accompanied by his two
Protectors. His Left Protector stood at the side of his missing arm, while the
Right Protector held a pipa, a silk veil over her face. She wore a thin blue
robe which accentuated her figure, and was playing the pipa for Wenren È.
Inadvertently, she let the scar on her right arm show. It stood out starkly
against her fair skin and must’ve been caused by some terrible injury,
garnering the pity of anyone who saw it.
They were at a library just outside Five Willow Manor, which was a favored
place for mortal scholars to gather and read poetry or discuss literature. It
was also a place where the Zhongli cultivation clan recruited disciples.
The greatest difference between a cultivation clan and a sect was that a sect
was situated apart from the mortal world, while a cultivation clan
participated in it. The Zhongli were a clan of learned scholars, situated in
Five Willow Manor, and the main family were cultivators. The branch
family would enter the court through the imperial exams, dedicating their
lives to serving the emperor.
This was the path of a cultivation clan. Just like Wenren È had sought the
Dao on the battlefield, the Zhongli clan took the path of sages, writing
poetry or books to gain the acclaim of mortal academics, and using that to
advance in cultivation. In ancient times, the one known as the Poet Sage,
the Azure Lotus Immortal, of “Killing one man in ten steps, unstoppable in
a thousand li”[1] fame, had also walked this path.
Therefore, each of the four major cultivation clans would accept disciples
from the general public, and each generation the clan head and successor
would build up their own reputation. Their admirers and fame served as the
foundations of their cultivation. The more people read books in the mortal
world, the further their works would spread, and the greater the power of
the Zhongli clan would be.
They were split into the same ranks as the righteous and demonic
cultivators, but their strength could be drastically different. Those disciples
of cultivator clans with many fans could become more powerful the more
highly they were thought of in the world, but if they didn’t have fans, they
might not even be able to defeat a Body Unity stage at Mahayana.
The cultivation clans had originally been little-known, but the Great Sect
War, while causing the cultivation world heavy losses, ushered in a
prosperous age for the mortal realm. More and more people had the chance
to read books, and even the lower class could learn a few words, recite a
few lines of poetry, and remember the names of some sages. Thus, the
cultivation clans had now grown in influence. After the fifty years of
prosperity won by the war, Zhongli Qian had the clout to steal Baili
Qingmiao away from Shangqing Sect.
This time around, because of Wenren È’s personal interference in the Great
Sect War, even more spiritual energy had been returned to the mortal realm,
and the Zhongli family had grown influential and powerful in just twenty
years. The library at Five Willow Manor was bustling, and the fact that
Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang were able to get a window seat was only thanks
to Shu Yanyan forking over money.
They had come because this was the day several young masters from the
Zhongli family would discuss literature here. Scholars came from far and
wide to attend, and no one could get in without an invitation.
It was easy enough for them to bluff their way in with an illusion, but the
seating was more trouble. Shu Yanyan had pressed a silver into the
doorman’s hand, and let her hand brush against his a little. He was only a
Foundation Establishment cultivator and no match for Shu Yanyan’s
seduction, so pocketed the silver in a daze and showed them to an out-of-
the-way position.
The Zhongli clan young masters had not yet arrived, but the seats were
already filled. A few people, seeing how Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang were
dressed like martial artists and not even wearing scholarly robes, yet had
gotten such good seats, came over to pick a fight.
They obviously weren’t going to throw fists, but challenge them to recite
poetry.
Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang could beat people in a fight perfectly fine, but
they both frowned simultaneously when poetry was brought up. All the
reciting sounded like the buzzing of flies beside their ears, and they thought
that Shu Yanyan’s twelve heavenly demons would be easier to deal with.
Fortunately, Shu Yanyan was more cultured than they and, strumming her
pipa, sang a few poems, the music and verse matching perfectly. She
shamed the scholars into silence, and they bowed and bid farewell, leaving
the group alone.
Shu Yanyan returned to her seat and gave Wenren È a fawning smile,
transmitting, “Venerable, I did well, right?”
Wenren È nodded slightly and raised one finger.
Shu Yanyan’s eyes brightened. “My punishment can be reduced by ten

years?” she said excitedly.
Wenren È shook his head.
“One— one year?” Shu Yanyan pressed her lips together.
“One month,” Wenren È said.
“Only one month?” Shu Yanyan cried, feeling frantic. “Venerable, you said
if I showed good results, my punishment would be decreased.”
“Capturing Zhongli Qian can be considered results,” Wenren È said. “You
haven’t done anything at all yet.”
Shu Yanyan didn’t dare argue anymore with the Venerable and shrank back,
tears filling her eyes. She looked so pitiful that the scholars watching nearly
got up and started berating Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang’s lack of
consideration for the fairer sex.
Fortunately, the Zhongli clan’s arrival spared the gathering from being
massacred by the Lord of Demons.
The current generation of the Zhongli family had three distinguished young
masters. The highest ranking was Zhongli Qian, looking cultured and
refined as he entered slowly, wearing white robes with a bamboo scroll in
hand. He took the main seat, his bearing distinguished, each motion calm
and at ease.
“In cloud-like dress, he raises a bow and takes aim at Sirius[2],” Shu
Yanyan said, her eyes fixed to Zhongli Qian from the moment he had
entered.
She transmitted to Wenren È, “Venerable, do you know how much time I

once spent studying poetry in order to foster the image of a cultured
woman? It was just so I could hook up with young scholars like Zhongli
Qian. Ah… he’s amazing!”
Zhongli Qian was the most favored heir to the Zhongli clan. He had
recently broken through to Void Boundary stage and naturally could sense
Shu Yanyan’s gaze on him. He gave her a slight nod, then moved his gaze
away and didn’t look back.
“Venerable!” Shu Yanyan transmitted in excitement. “The one we’re

supposed to lure in is him, right? He’s the best! Back then, I used my
seduction when he looked at me, but he wasn’t affected at all. Have I
actually found a true gentleman?”
“If you can get him, he’s yours,” Wenren È transmitted back.
If Zhongli Qian could be charmed by Shu Yanyan, then there was no point
in setting him up with the female lead. Wenren È didn’t want to create
another Hè Wenzhao. He might as well wait for that ghost cultivator to
grow up—it should only be eight more years or so.
No reason to not let Shu Yanyan test Zhongli Qian to see whether he really
was a true gentleman.
The two young masters accompanying Zhongli Qian were Zhongli Heng
and Zhongli Kuang. Zhongli Heng wore a plain green robe and looked very
dignified as he followed Zhongli Qian. Zhongli Kuang wore brocade and
had a willful and frivolous look in his eyes. When Shu Yanyan accidentally
met his gaze, he raised his wine dish and made a toast to her in midair.
Shu Yanyan showed no reaction, turning away and ignoring him completely
to sip at her tea.
Without waiting for Wenren È to ask, she answered his question on her
own. “I’ve seen too many self-important men like Zhongli Kuang, always
after women and liquor. Normally I could fool around with him for a bit
seeing as his looks are okay, but now that I’ve caught sight of Zhongli Qian,
my appetite’s been whetted and I can’t spare a glance for anyone else.”
Zhongli Kuang, upon seeing Shu Yanyan ignore him, bared a malicious
smile, excitement in his eyes.
If Zhongli Heng hadn’t quietly grabbed his robes, Zhongli Kuang might’ve
charged right up to Shu Yanyan to toast her.
After the three Zhongli young masters sat, the meeting began. Zhongli
Heng would first bring up a topic, and everyone would give their own view.
Then Zhongli Kuang would interrupt and shoot down a few people’s ideas,
which the majority would applaud for. Everyone was cursing each other out
with polite language, and as the debates grew heated, Zhongli Qian rapped
his bamboo scroll on his desk and said something that Wenren È didn’t
understand. The room suddenly went quiet and respectful, all following
Zhongli Qian’s lead.
Wenren È’s eyelids were drooping as he listened. Seeing Shu Yanyan pick
up a pen and start scribbling down notes, he scrubbed a hand over his face
with some difficulty, and suddenly felt someone’s head bump his shoulder.
He glanced over to see that Yin Hanjiang had dozed off.
Realizing that he had neglected propriety and invaded the Venerable’s

personal space, Yin Hanjiang bit his bottom lip, his ears burning red.
“Venerable, this subordinate must’ve fallen under the Zhongli clan’s
enchantment,” he transmitted. “This subordinate’s abilities are too low, and
has brought shame to the Venerable.”
Wenren È held back a smile and transmitted back, “If you hadn’t hit this
Venerable, I probably would’ve also fallen asleep. Ever since I was young, I
always started dozing off the minute I heard poetry recitals. Who would’ve
thought that even after becoming a cultivator, I’d be powerless to escape
this curse.”
“This subordinate is the same,” Yin Hanjiang said awkwardly.
The two were a bit reinvigorated by their private conversation, but they
couldn’t resist in the end. As the meeting went on and Zhongli Kuang began
asserting his own opinion again, Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang had already
stopped paying attention. Though their eyes were open, their heads were
tipping toward each other’s again, and they knocked each other awake a
second time.
Zhongli Kuang, who had kept glancing over at Shu Yanyan, obviously
noticed that the two men accompanying her were nodding off with their
eyes open. Furiously, he addressed them, “Do these two sirs have anything
to add?”
In this literature meeting, everyone besides the three Zhongli young masters
was all referred to as sir. Wenren È never expected someone to use “sir” to
refer to him, and since he was half-asleep, it took him a while to realize that
Zhongli Kuang was talking to him.
Zhongli Kuang was incensed at this and stood up. “May I inquire as to these
two’s names, places of origin, and who they got recommendations from?”
Everyone’s eyes turned to Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang and, seeing that they
weren’t dressed like scholars, a hubbub immediately broke out.
Zhongli Kuang’s attitude was unacceptably rude for Yin Hanjiang, and after
gaining Wenren È’s approval, he said in a clear voice, “It was not that we
came here specifically, but simply caught wind that there would be a
literature meeting today. My master and I have been troubled by insomnia
for some days, and since we were already dozing off just listening from
outside, we were very eager to attend. Indeed, we’ve been able to sleep very
soundly, and must thank the honored people here.”
Yin Hanjiang managed to offend everyone in the library all at once, and in
particular, Zhongli Kuang’s face darkened further. He gripped a brush in
one hand, secretly circulating his spiritual energy, planning to teach the two
a lesson.
However, Zhongli Qian stood up. “The purpose of the Zhongli family’s
literature conferences is to offer knowledge and aid to all members of
society. Even if these two sirs are not interested in literature, Qian is still
grateful that this conference could relieve your insomnia.”
His response was so excessively lenient that even Yin Hanjiang couldn’t
stay angry. With just a few words, he managed to dissipate the tension in
the room, and even if Zhongli Kuang wanted to throw a tantrum, he no
longer had an excuse.
Wenren È looked at him appreciatively. Cupping his hands, he said, “Many

thanks to Young Master Zhongli. We have indeed gained much from this
visit.”
After Zhongli Qian smoothed out the situation, the conference continued,
with no one minding when Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang fell asleep again.
After all, Young Master Zhongli had said that books could heal the mind,
and insomnia was a disorder of the mind. If the two sleeping men’s ailment
had been cured, then at least they had gained some results.
“Protector Shu, I’m afraid you won’t be able to get this man,” Wenren È
transmitted to Shu Yanyan.
“I didn’t know real gentlemen still existed in this world,” Shu Yanyan said,
propping her chin in her hand as she watched Zhongli Qian. “Now that I
think about it, even if I can’t get him in my hands, that’ll just further prove
his integrity. Just looking at someone like that from afar is good too.”
Everyone in attendance approved of Zhongli Qian. Only Zhongli Kuang,

sitting to his left, had a malicious look in his eyes.
Wenren È picked up on his ill intent and was watching him, trying to
remember what importance he had to the story, when he felt an odd
difference in the space above Zhongli Kuang’s head, in which he saw the
faint shape of a book.
He was suddenly reminded of how he had obtained Abusive Romance. He

had also felt a spatial disturbance above his head, and when he reached out,
his hand had closed around the book.
Seeing that the book was about to fall into Zhongli Kuang’s lap, Wenren È
picked up a book on his table and threw it at his head, just managing to
knock the other one off course.
“What are you doing?!” Zhongli Kuang couldn’t take it anymore and rose
with a slap of his hand against his desk.
“My hand slipped and I accidentally threw over two books,” Wenren È
replied casually. He turned to Shu Yanyan. “Can you go pick up those two
books?”
Shu Yanyan, who was still under punishment, couldn’t disobey the
Venerable’s order. She hurried over to Zhongli Kuang and, seeing that he
was stepping on two books, said awkwardly, “Young Master, I beg you to
step aside.”
Her eyes were pitiful and sparkling with tears. Zhongli Kuang, with
everyone looking at him, couldn’t trouble an innocent girl. Seeing that
Zhongli Qian’s eyes were on him, he reluctantly moved his foot, allowing
Shu Yanyan to retrieve the books.
After thanking him, Shu Yanyan bent gracefully to pick them up. She saw
that one of them was a book of poems she had brought, but the other was a
tome as thick as a brick.
Handing them back to Wenren È, she saw out of the corner of her eye the
title in bold characters across the cover—God of Annihilation: Volume 1.
hey guys if I ever mix up zhongli kuang and zhongli qian please tell me
1. This is a reference to Li Bai. He was known as the Householder of Azure

Lotus or the Poetry Immortal. The quote is from his poem Ode to Gallantry,
which I couldn’t find a translation of anywhere. It illustrates a Chinese
wandering hero. ↩
2. It’s Lord of the East from the Chuci Nine Songs by Qu Yuan. This is a
poem praising a sun god. Once again my translation – I did find a
professional translation but it did not put these two lines together. Woe is
me. ↩
Wants to Know
Chapter 28 – A pile of rubbish
When he tossed the book, Wenren È had put up an illusion, making it look
like two books had flown over. As a Mahayana stage cultivator, it was easy
for him to fool some mortals, and even Zhongli Kuang hadn’t realized that
there was only one book. Only Zhongli Qian swept over a suspicious
glance. He had also caught a glimpse of the cover, and knew it didn’t
belong to the library. But in that case, where had it come from?
The Lord of Demons had no intention of explaining. Right when he saw the
second book appear, he no longer had any interest in staying at the
conference. He transmitted to Shu Yanyan, “Use whatever method you can
to separate Zhongli Qian from the Zhongli clan. If you can do that, your
punishment will be decreased by ninety-nine years.”
The last year could be for the two Altar Masters who had been locked in the
water prison and the two who had been dragged to her bed. A year was
nothing for Shu Yanyan, anyway. Hearing that her sentence could be
lightened so much, her eyes brightened and she immediately replied, “Your
subordinate won’t disappoint you!”
After issuing his command, Wenren È nodded to Zhongli Qian, then leapt
out of the window, so quickly that none of the ordinary people in attendance
knew what happened.
The three Zhongli young masters had noticed, however. Wenren È, after
taking his leave of Zhongli Qian, had shown that he was a high-level
cultivator. Not wanting to cause any trouble, Zhongli Qian turned his
attention to the conference instead. Zhongli Kuang was fuming and on the
verge of flipping a table. Zhongli Qian smoothly took the brush out of his
hand, turned around, and wrote a poem across a wall.
His bearing was dignified, his brush strokes free and graceful. Flecks of ink
landed on his white sleeve, blossoming through the fabric. His literacy and
bearing both stopped people in their tracks. Zhongli Kuang, after having his
pen taken, knew Zhongli Qian wouldn’t permit him to make a fuss
anymore, and could only suppress his anger. He returned to his seat and
gulped down a mouthful of wine.
After the conference ended, the scholars all gathered around Zhongli Qian
with praise, unwilling to leave. Zhongli Qian reassured them that Five
Willow Manor was open to all with a love for learning, and they were
welcome to come back for the next discussion.
Only then did they all leave happily. Shu Yanyan kept making eyes at
Zhongli Qian, only waiting until the end to get up. Seeing that Zhongli Qian
really didn’t pay any attention to her, she dejectedly walked out of the
library.
After going a few steps, she heard a voice call to her from behind. “Could
this lady please wait?”
Shu Yanyan put on a soft smile and when she turned around to see Zhongli
Kuang, she thought that even if she couldn’t get the shark fin soup, she
could still make do. The important part was that Zhongli Kuang could be
used to lure out Zhongli Qian. If she could get ahold of Zhongli Qian, the
Venerable would return her darlings to her!
Shu Yanyan was willing to occasionally pick a weed from the roadside for
the sake of a forest.
Meanwhile, after getting the book, Wenren È immediately flew to a faraway

mountain range with Yin Hanjiang. Only after setting up an array and
having Yin Hanjiang stand guard outside was he finally willing to start
reading.
Just the first volume of God of Annihilation was about equal to Abusive
Romance in thickness, another doorstopper of over a million words. Wenren
È created a table and chair and sat down to study it.
He spent three days and nights reading it non-stop. After finishing, Wenren
È was left with some troubling thoughts.
Objectively speaking, if this book had been an ordinary story, he would’ve

enjoyed it. Some of the plot points were genuinely exciting, and he had
wanted to applaud the protagonist several times.
The protagonist of the story was a male, who had lived in an unremarkable
small town in his youth. His father was never mentioned, and he took
painstaking care of his ill mother. He was a ringleader of the other penniless
kids, but the rich children next door would often bully him, and even their
servants would look down on him. But the protagonist told himself that he
would prove them wrong someday, and make his way up in the world.
One winter, he left to gather firewood in the mountains. When he returned,

he found the entire village silent. Running in, he discovered that everyone
had been slaughtered. The boy fell to his knees, crying, and the sound drew
the attention of a passing cultivator. The boy returned with him to his sect
and was found to have a rare spiritual root. His path of cultivation was
opened up before him.
In his sect, he became the shixiong everyone looked up to, but there was a
dark shadow in his heart. He was still focused on finding the assailant who
had murdered his family and friends. His master had told him that the
village might’ve been massacred by demonic cultivators as part of some
evil technique, so he vowed to destroy the demonic sects and dedicated
himself to cultivation. After reaching Foundation Establishment, he left the
sect and, meeting the family that had once bullied him, which had moved
away and avoided the massacre, he took vengeance on them viciously.
Later, he became the Sect Master and took in many supporters. Among
them was a bastard son of a cultivation clan, a good-hearted demonic
cultivator, a wandering cultivator who had gone down the wrong path, and
elders who treated him as their equals. He was also fortunate enough to
meet an ancient deity who became his master, helping him through many
dangers and earning his deepest gratitude.
He had also met many and varied female companions, who were all willing
to share him between them. His main wife, whom he respected highly, kept
everyone in line.
At the end of the first volume, he had, with the help of his master, finally
entrapped and killed the number one demonic cultivator and the one he had
suspected of killing his family. However, he subsequently found new clues
that pointed to the murderer being someone else, an immortal from the
upper realms.
In order to find his nemesis, the male lead took his most talented little
shimei and ascended to the immortal realm, ending the first volume. At the
end was a message that those who wished to know how the story continued
in the immortal realm should pick up God of Annihilation: Volume 2.
There was nothing wrong with the story itself, per say. But if one mentioned
the names of the characters, the matter would be different.
The main character of God of Annihilation was Hè Wenzhao. His main wife
was the Violet Spirit Pavilion Master. His headstrong and disobedient
shimei was Baili Qingmiao, one of his friends was Zhongli Kuang, and the
demonic cultivator he had killed at the end was Wenren È.
By taking another point of view, this book had turned the plot of Abusive
Romance completely on its head. The events were the same between the
two, but Baili Qingmiao had one perspective in Abusive Romance, and Hè
Wenzhao had a different one in God of Annihilation.
For example, when Baili Qingmiao was imprisoned, it was because the
Violet Spirit Pavilion Master had pointed out, right before her wedding to
Hè Wenzhao, that her fate was governed by Polis, and she would always be
followed by death and disaster. In order to protect his beloved shimei, Hè
Wenzhao had her locked up in the mountains to prevent anyone from
getting to her.
From Baili Qingmiao’s point of view, it was because Hè Wenzhao had

heard that the Violet Spirit Pavilion Master had medicine that could save the
Sect Master, and when he went to ask for it, the Pavilion Master took a
liking to him and made it a condition to marry her. Hè Wenzhao had told
Baili Qingmiao to be patient and not make a fuss, then locked her up in
order to prevent her from disrupting the wedding.
Wenren È: …
And as for the part where Zhongli Qian ran into Baili Qingmiao and
rescued her, from Baili Qingmiao’s point of view, she was grateful to have
been saved from a place that had hurt her, but for Hè Wenzhao it was: bad
news, someone stole the protagonist’s wife, better hurry and go kill that
two-faced bastard.
Wenren È: …
If he hadn’t been the villainous mastermind who died at the end, Wenren È
might’ve really believed the twisted facts of God of Annihilation.
The first page of God of Annihilation had a passage similar to what Abusive
Romance had, but where Abusive Romance had said, “Due to an
overabundance of plot holes, this story has been rejected by its readers.
Thus, the most popular character among the readers has been selected to
personally verify the story’s consistency, and make suitable changes,” God
of Annihilation‘s message read, “Due to the story deviating from its original
form, it has been rejected by its readers. Thus, the most loyal character to
the protagonist has been selected in order to correct inconsistencies with the
original work.”
God of Annihilation had appeared above Zhongli Kuang’s head, so he must

be the “most loyal character to the protagonist”. He was a supporting
character in the story, just like Wenren È.
Wenren È placed both books on the table and considered them deeply. The
appearance of God of Annihilation confirmed further for him that the world
he lived in was real. The characters in it had their own thoughts and
intentions, and were not subject to any outside control.
One of the books was merely the female lead, Baili Qingmiao’s, view on
the world, whereas the other was the view of the male lead, Hè Wenzhao.
They showed the same world filtered through two different lenses. If
Wenren È had become the protagonist, it would probably lead to another,
completely different book.
To Baili Qingmiao, Wenren È was her savior who sacrificed himself in the
Blood Hell for her sake, but for Hè Wenzhao, Wenren È was his sworn
enemy who had killed his family and taken his girl. His strength couldn’t
match up to Wenren È, so in order to take down the villain who had
singlehandedly masterminded the Great Sect War, he asked for help from
the master who lived in his body. Wenren È was surrounded and killed at
the Blood Hell, and Hè Wenzhao managed to rescue his poor shimei from
his clutches.
The story of God of Annihilation seemed to be more logical than Abusive

Romance, or at least all the readers could follow the protagonist’s actions.
But if you asked Wenren È, it was a pile of rubbish.
Wenren È placed a hand on the cover and said coldly. “Planning to use the
Blood Hell to do away with this Venerable? This Venerable would like to
see if you have what it takes.”
He put away the books and took down the array. Seeing Yin Hanjiang
standing guard outside, he asked, “Has the Right Protector reported any
news?”
“The Right Protector sent word yesterday that she had already gotten her
hands on Zhongli Kuang, and was going to use him as bait for Zhongli
Qian. According to Zhongli Kuang, Zhongli Qian is powerful and has an
immortal artifact on him, so may be a tough opponent. The Right Protector
hopes the Venerable will lend a hand, in order to ensure Zhongli Qian’s
capture,” Yin Hanjiang replied.
Wenren È didn’t respond, just turned into a streak of crimson light, picked
up Yin Hanjiang, and returned to Azure Sky Mountain in scarcely the blink
of an eye.
Zhongli Kuang’s house was outside Five Willow Manor, and Shu Yanyan
was currently living in the courtyard, having daily dalliances with Zhongli
Kuang. After they were done she would also recite poetry or paint with him,
not enjoying herself in the least.
When Wenren È barged in, Zhongli Kuang was in the sheets with Shu
Yanyan. Seeing two people suddenly appear in his room, he was shocked
and prepared to attack when a blood-red flower bloomed before his eyes,
and he lost consciousness.
“Right Protector,” Wenren È said coldly, a book in one hand. “Steal his
Nascent Soul, turn him into a puppet, and use his soul as bait for Zhongli
Qian!”
“Sweet!” Shu Yanyan said, her eyes brightening. She immediately put a
palm against Zhongli Kuang’s dantian and extracted his Nascent Soul in no
time, a task she was quite practiced in.
“Y—you people…” Zhongli Kuang could only manage these two words,
before the wicked woman by his side destroyed his foundation forever.
if Wenren È read the comments on his own book, he would find a lot of
people thirsty for YHJ to top.

Wants to Know
Chapter 29 – Poisonous woman
“Venerable.” Shu Yanyan presented Zhongli Kuang’s Nascent Soul to

Wenren È with both hands.
“It’s yours,” Wenren È said, not sparing her a glance. “Put your clothes on.”
He had underestimated Shu Yanyan’s ruthlessness. He’d thought that Shu

Yanyan would at least put on her clothes and fight Zhongli Kuang head-on,
but instead she had taken action immediately with only a thin blanket
wrapped around her. Forget Zhongli Kuang, Wenren È had been taken by
surprise after giving the order himself.
Zhongli Kuang was also a decisive person, and seeing that Shu Yanyan had
wasted no time in turning on him, also immediately abandoned his body
and Nascent Soul, trying to escape as a spirit. However, the black-robed
youth standing near him was prepared for anything, and drew his sword to
cut off the fleeing soul’s path.
“Who are you people? If you kill me, the Zhongli clan won’t forgive you!”
Zhongli Kuang’s soul stammered out.
“Really?” said Wenren È. “Didn’t you always believe that the Zhongli clan
didn’t recognize you, and was willing to dispose of you at any time to
further Zhongli Qian’s interests?”
Zhongli Kuang’s soul wavered at having his deepest thoughts be guessed.

People might be able to lie, but it was difficult for a soul to do so, and
Wenren È noticed immediately that his words had struck home.
As they spoke, Shu Yanyan had already put on her clothes. She climbed off
the bed with perfect grace, and, if she wasn’t still holding Zhongli Kuang’s
corpse-like body, she would’ve looked like a painting.
Her fingers were like claws, digging into Zhongli Kuang’s head as she
dragged his body onto the floor. Yet a warm smile graced her face—
poisonous woman was certainly a fitting descriptor for her.
“Venerable, Zhongli Kuang leaked a lot of intel in these last few days,” Shu
Yanyan said. “Any time I said something good about Zhongli Qian, he
would call him a self-righteous fake, power-hungry and always mistreating
branch family members and bastard children like him. Seeing how deep his
resentment for Zhongli Qian is, if you ask this subordinate, the Venerable
got it in one.”
“You seductress!” Resentment suffused Zhongli Kuang’s soul, pouring out

as black smoke.
Shu Yanyan smiled. “What if I’m a seductress? You really think

seductresses have no standards? I originally had eyes for Zhongli Qian, not
you, and I can’t believe how much of a self-important loser you are either. I
don’t even want to absorb your Nascent Soul. If I refined it into elixir and
rewarded my subordinates with it, they would at least have some sweet
words for me in exchange.”
“This Venerable seems to recall that Protector Shu no longer has

subordinates,” Wenren È said, giving Shu Yanyan a sideways glance.
Shu Yanyan’s face fell and her carefree posture slumped. She said
obediently, “The entire Xuanyuan Sect belongs to the Venerable. This
subordinate is your vanguard and will— ow! Why’re you kicking me?”
Yin Hanjiang, upon hearing “vanguard”, couldn’t help but give her a kick in
the kneecap.
“Alkaid is not this Venerable’s vanguard,” Wenren È said. “You are my

right arm.”
Yin Hanjiang pulled back his foot and gave Shu Yanyan a nod. “Vanguard.”
Shu Yanyan: …
If she’d known earlier that Wenren È had actually survived battling twenty-
one righteous sect experts, she would’ve let go of her concern for Qiu
Congxue and went after him while he was down!
There was nothing she could do about it now. She made a misplay, and now
she was a fish for Wenren È to gut in any way he liked.
The ever-flexible Right Protector said, “Venerable, I’ll refine Zhongli

Kuang’s body into a puppet right now.”
“No!” Zhongli Kuang’s soul cried. “A—aren’t you after Zhongli Qian? I
hate him! I want him dead! If you give me my body back, I’ll trick him for
you! I don’t care what you want to do to him!”
Even if his Nascent Soul was taken, he could use some sort of elixir to
restore it, but if his body was refined, he could only become a ghost
cultivator.
“You sure say what you think,” Wenren È said.
Zhongli Kuang had been this kind of person in God of Annihilation too,
openly proclaiming his hate for Zhongli Qian in front of Hè Wenzhao,
swearing that he would kill him and take over the Zhongli clan. Hè
Wenzhao resented Zhongli Qian at the time for taking his beloved shimei
away, and bonded with Zhongli Kuang over their shared nemesis. He also
transferred the resentment he held from being bullied by rich children to
Zhongli Qian, believing that rich heirs who grew up pampered like him
were all just scumbags and womanizers.
Thus Hè Wenzhao and his secret master helped Zhongli Kuang plot against
Zhongli Qian, destroying his reputation and power along with it. Zhongli
Kuang, who had stolen his good name, eventually killed him.
These events were never mentioned in Abusive Romance, where Zhongli
Qian never showed up again after Baili Qingmiao rejected his offer, still
insisting on staying with her shixiong. Zhongli Qian was a true gentleman,
and he left quietly after telling Baili Qingmiao that she could come to Five
Willow Manor any time she was in trouble. Who knew that after he let Baili
Qingmiao go, he was killed by Hè Wenzhao and Zhongli Kuang?
The most interesting part was that, in the reviews of Abusive Romance, the
ones regarding Zhongli Qian were mostly:
[Sob, Zhongli Qian is too good, really a true gentleman, respecting and
protecting the MC and wanting to spend his life with her. And yet when
Baili Qingmiao chose Hè Wenzhao again, he let her go, and told her ‘I can
forever be your second option.’ I love him so much!]
[If Baili Qingmiao doesn’t plan on using her eyeballs, she can donate them
to someone in need. Don’t let that pair of ‘big sparkling eyes’ go to waste.
Every time she looks at Wenren È, Zhongli Qian, Yin Hanjiang, her eyes are
always ‘sparkling’. The word ‘sparkling’ is triggering me by now!]
[Cross out Yin Hanjiang up there, we don’t want him.]
[No one wants Yin Hanjiang? I think the murderous psycho type is kind of
hot.]
[With two hotties like Zhongli Qian and Wenren È right in front of her, each
with their own qualifications, Baili Qingmiao has to go choose someone
like Hè Wenzhao… this bitch is seriously blind. At least when she gets
tortured to death by Hè Wenzhao, her organs can go to someone in need.]
But the reviews regarding Zhongli Qian in God of Annihilation were

completely different.
[He should die for stealing the MC’s girl!]
[Zhongli Qian disgusts me. What do you mean ‘If I can’t give you
happiness then better I let go’? Where do you get off sounding so self-
righteous after stealing someone’s girl? Don’t you know every woman in
the world belongs to my Zhao-ge[1]?]
[Yes! Zhao-ge finally killed off Zhongli Qian!]
[Shimei is way too rebellious. Just think, among all his wives, Zhao-ge
loves little shimei the most. Every time he gets into danger, it’s for shimei.
Yet she’s not faithful at all and runs off with other men every chance she
gets. She even attacked Liu Xinye! Liu Xinye is so cute, always dedicated
to Zhao-ge, offering her own body and golden core to save Zhao-ge—that’s
my kind of girl! Yet Zhao-ge tosses Liu Xinye aside to save little shimei
who’s always going after some other guy? I can’t stand women like that!]
[How does Baili Qingmiao have the nerve to say to Zhao-ge ‘Zhongli Qian
has also been good to me’, ‘Wenren È may be the Lord of Demons, but he
is honest in his words and actions and worthy of respect’? Don’t make me
barf!]
[Is the author reading this? Don’t give such a fickle woman to our Zhao-ge.
She can’t hold a candle to the Violet Spirit Master.]
Wenren È decided to do everything he could to hide God of Annihilation. If

Yin Hanjiang read it, he would have a qi deviation out of anger.
Zhongli Kuang’s soul knelt in midair, begging Wenren È to spare his life.
Wenren È smiled, then ordered Shu Yanyan, “Refine it!”
“I’ve already started,” Shu Yanyan said with a glance at the soul, as she
started reciting an incantation and refining his body into a puppet. “What
should we do with his soul? Ah, if Qiu Congxue was here, we could just
give it to her for her Heart Devouring Ghost Mother technique.”
Wenren È hadn’t revealed the fact that Qiu Congxue was undercover at
Shangqing Sect yet, so Shu Yanyan still thought her soul had been
sublimated by the Great Peacock Wisdom King, and looked a bit gloomy as
she mentioned her name.
“Take one of his earthly souls and turn it into a talisman to send to Zhongli
Qian,” Wenren È said. “Tell him to leave the mountain by himself and not
let anyone accompany him, or Zhongli Kuang’s soul will be thrown to
hungry ghosts, never to enter reincarnation.”
“N—no, please!” Zhongli Kuang said, crying and wailing. “I can use a
secret password of the Zhongli clan to get Zhongli Qian down the
mountain! Don’t take any of my souls, I’m begging you!”
Humans had three divine souls and seven earthly souls[2]. If they lost any
earthly souls, they would be mentally disabled in their next life. If they lost
any divine souls, they could only reincarnate as an animal, and could never
become a human again. Zhongli Kuang would rather enter reincarnation
right now than lose one of his souls.
Unfortunately, the three heartless demonic cultivators paid no heed to his

pitiful cries. Shu Yanyan yanked out one of his earthly souls and made it
into a talisman, and Zhongli Kuang immediately became listless, his
weeping turning faint.
The earthly souls governed emotions—love, hate, desire, sadness, anguish,

rage, and joy. Shu Yanyan had removed the soul governing hate, which had
the most clear target and would be able to find Zhongli Qian easily,
ignoring everyone else in his family to deliver itself right into his hands.
“What’re you crying for?” Shu Yanyan said after sending out the talisman,
flicking Zhongli Kuang’s spirit. “The Venerable is letting you see with your
own eyes whether or not Zhongli Qian is a real gentleman.”
She had used a very gentle method to take his earthly soul, and even though
it had been turned into a talisman, it could be rejoined to his spirit later.
Zhongli Qian would realize that Zhongli Kuang could still be saved upon
seeing the talisman, and if he was really willing to risk his life to save him,
that would prove he was a good elder brother who protected his juniors.
Wenren È and his companions set up a trap over a mountain for Zhongli
Qian, as Zhongli Kuang’s spirit sobbed all the while. “He won’t come for
me, he’d be happy to see a bastard like me die, he’s a hypocrite who’d take
any chance to get rid of me.”
They waited until midnight, whereupon a white-robed figure came to the

designated location under the bright moonlight. Standing before Wenren È’s
array, Zhongli Qian said, “Qian has arrived as promised. If I am your target,
I hope you honorable individuals can release my little brother’s soul to be
reincarnated.”
Shu Yanyan appeared before him, holding Zhongli Kuang’s soul. “Zhongli
Qian, it should be clear to you that our target is you. As the heir to the
Zhongli clan, your importance far outweighs a bastard son like Zhongli
Kuang. Why would you risk your life for him?”
“It’s not Qian that’s important, but the Zhongli clan,” Zhongli Qian said
calmly. “The reason I am placed above others is not because my cultivation
is strong, but because the reputation of the Zhongli clan that had been built
up over many years rests on my shoulders. Without the Zhongli clan, I am
just an ordinary cultivator. It doesn’t matter if Zhongli Qian dies, but the
Zhongli clan cannot abandon a single one of its members. Each of them
make up the foundation of the Zhongli clan.”
Shu Yanyan secretly approved of Zhongli Qian, but her expression didn’t
show it. “I removed Zhongli Kuang’s hatred soul. You should’ve been able
to read from it his resentment of you. He wants you to fall from grace,
wants to kill you and dismember your corpse. Knowing that, why did you
come save him? Even saints ought to have their limits! This Protector has
taken a liking to you, but I like saints with true intentions, not idiots!”
“I know,” Zhongli Qian said, cupping his hands. “To tell the truth, I also
dislike this little brother of mine. He is arrogant, thoughtless, and
unreliable.”
“Yet you still want to save him?” Wenren È revealed himself. He looked
over Zhongli Qian, mystified as to his thought process.
Wenren È had unleashed the pressure of a Mahayana-level expert, and

Zhongli Qian paled, realizing that he had met with real trouble. He let out a
long sigh. “I still want to save him. I, Zhongli Qian, can die, but the Dao of
the Zhongli clan cannot crumble!”
The Zhongli clan’s heritage was the path of gentlemen. Zhongli Qian
upheld the clan’s entire path, and if he failed to abide by it, the Zhongli clan
would fall. Coming out tonight to save Zhongli Kuang, the worst outcome
could be that he died without accomplishing anything, but the Zhongli
clan’s Dao would stand regardless. The clan had many branches, from
which they could simply pick the most outstanding candidate to inherit their
Dao.
But if at this point, Zhongli Qian didn’t come to save Zhongli Kuang, the
entire Zhongli clan and their Dao would all crumble.
Even if one was cheating the heavens, one still had to do it properly. You
could only accomplish it if you bluffed until you yourself believed it and
actually became what you said you were.
In Abusive Romance, Baili Qingmiao often said that Zhongli Qian always
looked tired, and that she wished he would relax a bit, smile a little easier.
Zhongli Qian always answered that he had a responsibility, and though it
was tiring, it was worthwhile.
In his life, the only time he had let go of his responsibilities and path was
when he asked Baili Qingmiao if she would leave with him and wander the
world. He could select someone else in the clan to take up his position, and
they could accompany each other to the ends of the earth, as true cultivation
partners.
Sadly, Baili Qingmiao refused him.
Looking at Zhongli Qian, Shu Yanyan sighed inwardly and transmitted to

Wenren È, “Venerable, your subordinate is powerless against this man.”
Wenren È didn’t speak, and Shu Yanyan continued. “If I wanted to get this
man, I would have to give up the whole forest. Too bad I’m greedy by
nature, and will never dedicate myself to one person.”
She ordered the puppet made from Zhongli Kuang’s corpse to take his soul
and step before Zhongli Qian. “Be quiet, close your eyes, and don’t move,”
she said gently. “I’ll return this trash to you.”
Zhongli Qian obeyed and closed his eyes. Shu Yanyan stroked his face, then
gave him a quick peck on the cheek.
She drew back and turned to Wenren È, saying coldly, “Venerable, should I
cripple him too?”
Even Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang were surprised by how two-faced Shu
Yanyan could be.
Refocusing, Wenren È said, “No need. Bring him back to Xuanyuan Sect.
As for Zhongli Kuang… let his soul and body return to the Zhongli clan,
and force him to reveal all his thoughts when he gets there. Let his own clan
clean up the mess.”
1. ge is big brother, which can be used to refer to an older male unrelated to

you. It shows some familiarity and some respect but it’s still pretty casual.
↩
2. I just decided this was a good way to translate hun and po. The three hun
go to the afterlife after death while the seven po remain in the body. ↩
Wants to Know
Chapter 30 – Deep in its clutches
After Zhongli Qian watched Zhongli Kuang’s soul and puppeted body
depart, his tense expression relaxed slightly.
The fact that he didn’t like his younger brother had nothing to do with his
parentage, but was purely because of his behavior. Now that he was
returned, whether the Zhongli clan wanted to save him or send him on to his
next life was no longer Zhongli Qian’s business.
“Seeing as you’re a magnanimous person, this Venerable won’t try to

deceive you,” said Wenren È. “This Venerable is Wenren È of Xuanyuan
Sect.”
“So it is Sir Wenren,” Zhongli Qian said in shock, and quickly cupped his
hands in greeting. “After Sir Wenren’s battle with twenty-one experts of the
righteous sects twelve years ago, you can be considered the strongest in the
cultivation world. Though we walk different paths, I have deep admiration
for you, and wish to offer thanks on the behalf of all mortal lives.”
The Zhongli clan wasn’t sided with the righteous or demonic sects and was
considered a neutral party. A major event like the Great Sect War had of
course been much talked about among the four great cultivation clans.
Those who understood the ways of heaven naturally realized that both the
righteous and demonic side’s goal was to avoid a ten-thousand-year great
calamity. And the ease with which the demonic cultivators had broken the
Spirit Severing Array two years ago allowed many to guess Wenren È’s true
intentions.
The rise of the cultivation clans was related to Wenren È’s actions, and
since they weren’t affiliated with the righteous sects, they were grateful to
him.
Zhongli Qian spoke with sincerity, not a hint of pretense in his words, and
Shu Yanyan couldn’t help but glance at Wenren È. She couldn’t understand
why he was interested in Zhongli Qian. Xuanyuan Sect had no connections
to the cultivation clans, nor any grudge, and Wenren È wasn’t someone who
would mistreat innocents. He may not be intending to kill Zhongli Qian, but
holding some deeper intentions.
“You have a good character, and this Venerable doesn’t intend to harm
you,” Wenren È said. “This Venerable just wants to keep you as a guest at
Xuanyuan Sect for a few days. I am a reasonable man, who does not wish to
pressure others. You can choose to be our guest standing up, or lying
down.”
Zhongli Qian stared for a moment. Knowing that the three before him were
demonic cultivators, and seeing how mercilessly they had treated Zhongli
Kuang, he had never expected he would be allowed to live. If there was
even a single ray of hope, Zhongli Qian would fight with all his strength,
but facing Wenren È, the combined strength of the Zhongli clan might not
be enough, let alone Zhongli Qian himself.
“This one of course hopes to be Xuanyuan Sect’s guest in good health,”

Zhongli Qian answered.
“Mm, well spoken.” Wenren È nodded, satisfied. “Come then. Right

Protector, watch over Young Master Zhongli along the way. If he isn’t the
one who arrives to Xuanyuan Sect, this Venerable will feed your Nascent
Soul to the beasts living on the mountain.”
He spoke without a hint of jest, then left with Yin Hanjiang to Xuanyuan
Sect, not concerned at all about Zhongli Qian escaping.
Tears flowed down Shu Yanyan’s face as she spoke to Zhongli Qian.
“Young Master Zhongli, you don’t need to worry. I’m still the Xuanyuan
Sect’s Right Protector. Even if there are mountains of people who can
replace me, the Venerable… he might not necessarily turn me into dog
food.”
She cried like a rain-drenched flower, as she continued, “I’m also reluctant
to bring an upstanding young man like you to Xuanyuan Sect to be
tormented by that devil. If you were to escape along the way, I’ll make sure
to turn a blind eye. Even if he feeds me to dogs later, you mustn’t blame
yourself.”
Zhongli Qian: …
He was a gentleman, not a stupid man. Wenren È had spoken to Shu Yanyan
for his benefit, to prevent him from escaping. He also understood that
Wenren È wouldn’t speak empty words. The Lord of Demons held no
mercy in his eyes, and though he looked upon his Left Protector Yin
Hanjiang with endless lenience, he really would feed Shu Yanyan to beasts.
“There’s no need for Protector Shu to worry,” said Zhongli Qian. “I won’t
try to escape. Since Sir Wenren genuinely wishes for me to be his guest,
escaping could bring trouble to the entire Five Willow Manor. As he doesn’t
intend to kill me immediately, I imagine he needs me to do something.”
As for what it was, or whether it would violate Zhongli Qian’s principles,

he decided to not think about it for now and deal with everything as it came.
Shu Yanyan’s tears stopped at once. She wiped them away with a
handkerchief and said seriously, “I thought scholars were all brain-dead, but
you’re actually pretty sharp.”
Zhongli Qian bowed and said, “This one also thanks Protector Shu for her
trust.”
“Huh? What for?” Shu Yanyan raised an eyebrow.
“Protector Shu may have been putting on an act, but you didn’t try to hide
it. The fact that you trusted I wouldn’t try to escape meant you trusted my
character. Naturally, this one should thank you.”
Shu Yanyan stared at him, and shook her head with a sigh. “Best I can’t get
you.”
Zhongli Qian: …
After their conversation, they made their way smoothly back to Xuanyuan
Sect. Currently, all the workers at the main hall were Shu Yanyan’s
subordinates, and all manner of beautiful men were tidying up around the
place, not allowed to use spiritual energy. Upon seeing Shu Yanyan bringing
home an even-better looking man, and not a type she’d ever had dealings
with before, they were all anxious.
Helian approached and threw an arm around her waist, gazing at her
tenderly. “Protector, it’s been so long. Your subordinate has missed you.”
Shu Yanyan took a book from her lapel and pressed it to his chest. “Go read
some books and cultivate your character.”
After bringing Zhongli Qian to a guest room, she went to see Wenren È. By
now, Wenren È had explained Zhongli Qian’s relationship to Baili
Qingmiao in the book to Yin Hanjiang.
He explained, “This Venerable was thinking of, after having Baili Qingmiao
owe enough debts of gratitude to Zhongli Qian to cancel out the karma from
her divine tribulation, killing her, then having Zhongli Qian find her
reincarnation and raise her. That way, she should forget about Hè Wenzhao
for good.”
Yin Hanjiang didn’t think there was anything wrong with this plan, and
praised, “The Venerable is wise.”
It wasn’t his idea, and Wenren È didn’t like taking credit for other people’s
work. He waved a hand and said, “This Venerable thought of it from Altar
Masters Yuan and Qiu’s words. Altar Master Yuan wanted to change the
object of her affections, and Altar Master Qiu once told Baili Qingmiao to
kill Hè Wenzhao and wait for his reincarnation. This Venerable believes
Baili Qingmiao may be beyond saving in this life, so we’ll just put our
hopes on the next one.”
Hearing “change the object of her affections” gave Yin Hanjiang pause, and
after some thought, he said, “Affections that run deep enough can persist
after reincarnation. It’s possible even Meng Po’s soup[1] won’t be able to
erase Baili Qingmiao’s obsession.”
“Is that true?” Wenren È glanced at Yin Hanjiang.
“It would be for me,” Yin Hanjiang said resolutely.
After some thought, Wenren È said, “Well, this is troublesome. But we

should still try it. Let’s start from planning out Zhongli Qian and Baili
Qingmiao’s meeting.”
Yin Hanjiang was still doing all he could to make Wenren È’s job easier. In
order to confirm the plan with him, he asked, “Because of the Venerable’s
actions, Baili Qingmiao and Zhongli Qian’s first meeting will now be far
different than what was destined. Will Zhongli Qian really fall for her
again?”
An awkward silence suddenly fell over the room.
After some time, Wenren È slowly spoke, “This Venerable seems to have
overlooked that.”
Right then, Shu Yanyan arrived to ask what she should do with the newly
settled-in Zhongli Qian.
Wenren È ordered her to come to the meeting room and immediately asked
upon seeing her, “Protector Shu is well versed in matters of love. Do you
know how to make a man fall in love with a woman?”
“It depends on the man,” Shu Yanyan replied.
Wenren È didn’t beat around the bush. “Zhongli Qian.” Since Shu Yanyan
was going to be involved in the whole plan, there was no point hiding
anything from her.
Hearing his name, Shu Yanyan brightened up and raised her head.
“Venerable, Zhongli Qian is a rare man with brains, even sharper than I
assumed. Tricks won’t work against him, so we can only be overt. Have
him know very well what he’s getting into, but have no other choice. For
example, if the Venerable were to have this subordinate seduce him, and
also let him know I would be punished if I failed, that could work as long as
he doesn’t already have a person in his heart. He wouldn’t fall in love with
me, though. And if he does already have someone, then no plots are going
to work.”
“This Venerable didn’t say you were the woman,” Wenren È said coldly.
Shu Yanyan lost interest in a flash. She said lazily, “This subordinate has
never wished for love, only for pleasure. This subordinate doesn’t
understand that kind of deep-seated emotion.”
“Does anyone in Xuanyuan Sect?” asked Wenren È.
He got no answer. Very few in Xuanyuan Sect cared for matters of love.
After dismissing Shu Yanyan, Wenren È opened Abusive Romance and

reread Baili Qingmiao’s meeting with Zhongli Qian several times, hoping to
find some inspiration. Yin Hanjiang stood quietly behind him, not looking
at the book’s contents, instead focusing all his attention on Wenren È.
Yin Hanjiang didn’t understand love either. The only strong emotions he’d
felt in his life were for Wenren È. It wasn’t just because Wenren È had once
saved him, but that Wenren È represented all of Yin Hanjiang’s hopes and
dreams.
“Venerable, does the book say what love is?” Yin Hanjiang asked.
“It mentions a few things,” Wenren È said, flipping through the pages to
find the part where Baili Qingmiao analyzed her feelings for Hè Wenzhao.
It was when Zhongli Qian had told Baili Qingmiao of his wishes, asking her
to abandon Shangqing Sect and stay by his side. She had said—
“I don’t know what’s so good about shixiong. I just know that if he was in a
crowd, my eyes would pick him out instantly. If he’s happy, I’m happy. If
he’s unhappy, then I can’t bear it. I would be willing to give up everything
for him to live a blissful life. I don’t know when I started liking him either. I
suppose… it’s one of those loves that takes you unawares, and before you
know it, you’re deep in its clutches.”
Baili Qingmiao smiled bitterly. “I’ve tried to forget shixiong before. If I

didn’t love him, then I wouldn’t need to suffer. But I couldn’t do it. This is
probably just my fate.”
Wenren È pointed out the passage to Yin Hanjiang. “This is what we need.
If we can accomplish these three things, Zhongli Qian should fall in love
with her.”
He wrote them down and carefully considered each of them.
The first was to pick the other person instantly out of a crowd. He could put
the tracking spell on Zhongli Qian and Baili Qingmiao. If each had the
other’s blood dripped into their eyes, they would only be able to see each
other.
The second was being happy when the other person was happy, and sad
when they were sad. He could have Altar Master Miao put heart-linking
parasites in them, so that wherever they were, they would always feel each
other’s emotions.
The third one—love takes you unawares, and before you know it, you’re
deep in its clutches—was a bit harder. He wasn’t quite clear on the
meaning. For now, he decided to focus on the first two, and consider the
third some other time.
Having finally come up with a plan, Wenren È let out a breath. After doing
this, the rest was up to heaven’s will. If Baili Qingmiao still couldn’t
change, then he could always kill her and try again in her next life.
He sent word to Altar Masters Shi and Miao to tell them to prepare the spell
and parasite, then messaged Qiu Congxue, telling her to get Baili Qingmiao
to Xuanyuan Sect sometime soon.
Yin Hanjiang picked up the piece of paper with Wenren È’s notes, and after
reading it, his fingertips began to tremble.
He stole a glance at Wenren È’s back and read to himself the final line
—”love takes you unawares, and before you know it, you’re deep in its
clutches.”
1. Meng Po is an old woman who serves the soup of forgetfulness to souls

awaiting reincarnation in the afterlife. ↩
Wants to Know
Chapter 31 – Happy marriage
CW: attempted suicide
Zhongli Qian was prepared to be tortured every which way by Xuanyuan

Sect, to be forced to do things that violated his morals, and maybe even lose
his life and soul. He had already decided that, no matter what Wenren È did
to him, he’d choose a path that would not violate his Dao.
On his second day at Xuanyuan Sect, though, he was taken to the Hellfire
Pavilion, without having seen Wenren È once in that time. Shu Yanyan
handed him over to a pale and sickly-looking man, who she called Altar
Master Shi. He was apparently the new master of the Hellfire Pavilion.
“He needs to be taken to my place?” said Altar Master Shi, coughing

harshly. “Cough, cough, the Hellfire Pavilion is under Ghost Peak, and I’m
too scared to go there myself. You want me to take him there? There’s no
way.”
“You’re the master of Hellfire Pavilion. You can’t even handle your own
estate, yet you tried to compete for the position of Sect Master with the
other Altar Masters? What were you thinking?” Shu Yanyan was
experienced at reading people, but she now realized that she still hadn’t
figured out this previously unknown subordinate of Qiu Congxue’s.
“Cough, cough, it’s because I’m scared to go back there that I went with
Altar Master Yuan’s plan to sabotage Altar Masters Miao and Ruan.” Altar
Master Shi’s face turned paler. “With my power and status, how could I
become the Lord of Demons? I just have a tiny wish, just to change altars—
I didn’t think it would turn out to be such a mess! Cough, cough, cough!“
He hacked out a couple of bugs. They were Altar Master Miao’s gu insects,
which had been put in him as punishment.
“You even killed Altar Master Miao’s bugs with your sickness, so how can
you be scared of the Hellfire Pavilion?” Shu Yanyan said, backing away a
few steps. She was quietly glad that Wenren È had showed up before she
could enjoy Altar Masters Ruan and Shi. She might’ve ended up catching
some sort of illness.
Altar Master Shi gave her a sullen glance. “Protector Shu, I heard you got
along well with Altar Master Qiu. In that case, you should know what kind
of subordinates she kept at the Hellfire Pavilion.”
“Who says I got along with Qiu Congxue? She was a ghost cultivator, so of
course all her subordinates are ghost cultivators, aside from you…” At that
point, Shu Yanyan understood Altar Master Shi’s problem.
Altar Master Shi was at Void Boundary but could even sicken Mahayana
stage cultivators, so he wasn’t to be underestimated. No Altar Master would
feel secure with him as a subordinate. But at the Hellfire Pavilion, everyone
was either dead bodies or ghosts, and the one with the best-preserved body
was a thousand-year-old drought zombie, so who could Altar Master Shi
sicken? How could he bring his subordinates in line?
“Back when the Venerable took control of Xuanyuan Sect, he visited me

just once, and Protector Yin came down with illness because of that. After
that, he sent me to Hellfire Pavilion, for the ‘unity’ of the sect…” Altar
Master Shi wiped away some fake tears. “After becoming Altar Master, I
went through a lot of trouble to force a couple of injured ghost cultivators
who were Body Unity and under into obedience, and now, for the
Venerable’s orders, I had to send off some to dual cultivate with Altar
Master Ruan. Protector Shu, does my job sound easy?”
Shu Yanyan didn’t speak. Altar Master Shi looked at Zhongli Qian and said,
“Young Master Zhongli, you’re an upstanding man, and you know how they
say, ‘If you don’t do crooked deeds during the day, you won’t fear ghosts
knocking at night’. This one is counting on you to protect him in the
Hellfire Pavilion, okay?”
Zhongli Qian: …
Like that, he followed Altar Master Shi Congxin to the Hellfire Pavilion
under Ghost Peak. Altar Master Shi managed to find a non-haunted room to
tidy up for him. Zhongli Qian couldn’t tell how old the building was, but
the pillars had oracle bone script[1] written on them. Altar Master Shi had
heard Zhongli Qian liked literature, so had somehow gotten a pile of
bamboo scrolls to send to him.
An ominous aura surrounded the scrolls and some had suspicious

bloodstains on them. On a few of them, when the date and manner of
someone’s death was recorded, there would be a note in the margins along
the lines of “Bullshit, I clearly didn’t die that way”, or “Turns out I’m only
worth one line in the history books”, or “History is a bunch of lies, I can’t
believe they wrote that I died while screwing. I’m so mad I could come
back to life.” Zhongli Qian decided not to think too deep about who had
written them.
Aside from those few points, the situation wasn’t too bad. Though Altar
Master Shi had taken two drops of blood from Zhongli Qian’s finger, which
made him kind of worried.
At the time, he had said, “The four great cultivation clans can spread
prolifically without fear of their bloodline being used to curse their core
members because they all have techniques for blocking bloodline curses.
You won’t be able to use my blood against the Zhongli clan in any way.”
Altar Master Shi let out a long sigh, an anxious look on his face. Along with
his sickly appearance, he looked so miserable that even with all of Zhongli
Qian’s resolution, he couldn’t help but ask, “Altar Master, what is troubling
you?”
“Ah, nothing much. Just a certain person is about to return.” Altar Master
Shi gave Zhongli Qian a serious sideways glance. “She’s human! How
could she be human?”
Zhongli Qian: …
The people at Xuanyuan Sect were all eccentric, constantly saying things he
didn’t understand and didn’t want to think too deeply about.
Knowing his blood wouldn’t harm the Zhongli clan, Zhongli Qian could
relax and read books at the Hellfire Pavilion. Three months passed like that.
In that time, his only visitor was Altar Master Shi, who dropped by
occasionally for chats, saying that he wanted to hang out with a human
being.
Wenren È hadn’t actually wanted to abandon Zhongli Qian for three

months. The Zhongli clan had already sent many requests to meet with him,
which he all turned down. He didn’t care to see any of them before he had
accomplished his goal.
Qiu Congxue hadn’t been able to bring Baili Qingmiao to the Hellfire
Pavilion for three months because a major event had happened in
Shangqing Sect. Wenren È had read about it too, from both books, in both
points of view.
Abusive Romance (Revised Edition) recorded how Baili Qingmiao returned

cheerfully to her sect with the lotus heart, looking forward to her shixiong
finally being healed. However, upon returning, she heard disastrous news.
Like in the original work, Hè Wenzhao had had relations with Liu Xinye.
Liu Xinye’s spiritual root had been mostly drained and she’d nearly lost her
life, having to be sent to the medicinal hall to recover. Hè Wenzhao’s injury
was too severe and couldn’t be restored even by Liu Xinye’s sacrifice, but
he did recover to Foundation Establishment stage.
He knew that he had disrespected Liu Xinye while injured and unconscious,
and was filled with turmoil, so left alone in order to find a cure for her,
returning just before Baili Qingmiao’s return. He didn’t find any cure, but
did manage to raise his own realm to Deity Transformation. He said that he
had found a cave where a great immortal dwelled, and had raised his level
using an elixir he had been gifted.
Hè Wenzhao promised that since he had risen in strength, he would surely

be able to find a way to heal Liu Xinye in the future, and so begged for
another chance from the sect elders.
Shangqing Sect didn’t have many powerful elders left and being Deity
Transformation already put Hè Wenzhao among the top ranks of the
cultivation world. Faced with such a rare talent, they naturally couldn’t put
any blame on him, and overlooked justice for Liu Xinye.
While Hè Wenzhao was in high spirits, Baili Qingmiao returned to the sect
and hadn’t even managed to bring him the lotus heart when she heard what
happened in the administration hall. She started weeping on the spot and
cried so hard she was nearly overcome by inner demons, right until her
Master Qingrong and the Administration Hall Elder, Qingyue, came
running to comfort her.
Hè Wenzhao had also rushed over and started explaining himself just as he
had in the original story, telling her with full honesty that he had been
unaware at the time, that he didn’t like Liu-shimei, that he hoped for Baili
Qingmiao’s forgiveness. He said he was ashamed to face Liu-shimei, and
wished for Baili Qingmiao to join him in finding a way to heal her.
He was an expert at sweet-talking people, and Baili Qingmiao was on the

verge of falling for it like she originally had. She not only forgave Hè
Wenzhao, but ran over to the room where Liu Xinye was recuperating,
wanting to give her the Seven-Colored Lotus Heart to repay shixiong’s debt
to her.
Right when she was about to mention it, Elder Qingxue, who had been
flipping through Shangqing Sect’s rules with a frown on her face, said some
words that changed everything. “Why doesn’t Hè Wenzhao marry Liu
Xinye?”
Everyone: …
She held up the rulebook and pointed out a line. “It says right here that if
two disciples of Shangqing Sect both agree, they can ask the sect master for
permission to become cultivation partners.”
Hearing this, Liu Xinye’s watery eyes fell on Hè Wenzhao, waiting for his
answer.
Baili Qingmiao never imagined her master would say something like this.
This would destroy her future with her shixiong. How could she accept it?
“Well…” said Elder Qingyue. “Look at the specifications, Qingxue. Both

parties need to be at Nascent Soul stage to become cultivation partners. Liu
Xinye still hasn’t reached Nascent Soul stage.”
“Is she still capable of it?” asked Qingxue.
Everyone: …
Qingxue struck deep with that one comment. Liu Xinye slumped against the
wall, sobbing, “It’s true, I’m useless now. I’m just a burden if I remain here,
so I might as well end it all.”
Saying that, she attempted to strike her head against the wall, but with so
many people in the room, they all rushed to stop her. Hè Wenzhao managed
to throw his arms around her first. With an uncomfortable look on his face,
he said, “But… but I love…”
He had just promised Baili Qingmiao he would love her and only her, but
now couldn’t spit out the words in front of Liu Xinye. He could only give
Baili Qingmiao a helpless look, asking her to beg Elder Qingxue to
reconsider.
Seeing his expression, Baili Qingmiao seemed to lose her mind, throwing
her arms around Qingxue’s waist and sobbing, “Master Qingxue, I— I love
shixiong! If he gets married, then what about me?”
“It’s not like it’s hopeless,” Qingxue said, sweetly patting Baili Qingmiao
on the head. She pointed a finger at Liu Xinye. “Look at her. She’s not
going to last for more than ten years. You can just take her spot after she
dies.”
Baili Qingmiao: …
Qingxue’s words may have been crude, but her reasoning was solid. Her
exceedingly straightforward manner of thinking actually convinced the
Shangqing Sect elders.
Since Liu Xinye had saved Hè Wenzhao, he owed the rest of his life to her,
and if he didn’t repay her, he would eventually suffer consequences from
heaven. He might as well just marry Liu Xinye to absolve his debt and
guilt. As for Baili Qingmiao… it was as Elder Qingxue had said.
Cultivators were ageless and could live for millennia, so they could wait for
Liu Xinye to die to get married if they had to.
After the elders discussed this between themselves, they agreed to the
wedding.
Baili Qingmiao had wanted to bring out the lotus heart to give to Liu Xinye,
so she wouldn’t need to marry shixiong, but Qingxue reminded her, “The
Lotus Heart will bring her right to Deity Transformation stage. She’ll be
even more qualified to marry Hè Wenzhao.”
After crying for a whole night, Baili Qingmiao begged her master to let her
leave, so she could avoid the wedding.
She felt like she was possessed. The miracle elixir which could save Liu-
shijie was right in her storage bag, but she didn’t want to hand it over. She
thought about spending a decade wandering the world and forgetting her
troubles, and after ten years, if Liu Xinye was still alive, she would return
and give the lotus heart to her, and at the same time finally let go of her
shixiong. Right now, she couldn’t bring herself to do it, so better she let fate
decide.
Qingxue was very much in favor of her decision, and several days before
Hè Wenzhao and Liu Xinye were set to get married, they left Shangqing
Sect together.
At the foot of the mountain, Baili Qingmiao turned back to look at its lofty
peaks and, remembering that in five days her shixiong would be married,
was happy that at least Master Qingxue would stay by her side.
The revisions stopped here, so Wenren È flipped to the comments in the
back.
[I approve of this marriage! Congratulations to the new couple!]
[Hahahahaha Qingxue’s thought process is killing me! How can she say
‘Liu Xinye is only gonna live ten years’ with a straight face? Masterfully
done!]
[Now that he’s married to Liu Xinye, we’ll see if Hè Wenzhao has the face
to marry the Violet Spirit Master. In the original he had the right to because
he was single as well as the future sect master of Shangqing Sect, but now,
well, I’m looking forward to what happens.]
[He can have them both and make one his concubine, hahahahahaha]
[Keep revising, author, I’m rooting for you. Never thought I’d follow a
revision of this old trashy story so intensely. I believe you can strike gold
again, author.]
Pleased, Wenren È set the book down and picked up God of Annihilation.
The events were about the same as Abusive Romance, just expanding on
how, when Hè Wenzhao had left the mountain, he had found with the help
of his portable master (the Blood Demon Elder) a powerful relic, and raised
his realm with it. The events after he returned to the sect were the same, but
the reviews were wildly different.
[Why is this being revised? It was perfectly good as it was, so why does it
need a revision? I’m so confused.]
[Probably censorship, they won’t let the MC have a harem. A lot of other
authors have revised. That’s all understandable, but… what’s with this
plotline?]
[If Zhao-ge can have all the beauties, then I quite like Liu Xinye. But if it’s
only her, then she’s just too mediocre. Not as talented as little shimei, not as
smart as the Violet Spirit Master, average looks.]
[Even if he can have all of them, his main wife shouldn’t be Liu Xinye. She
just can’t compare, she’s not worth the MC at all! Is that new wandering
immortal Elder Qingxue a villain? Back then I thought she was Zhao-ge’s
new wife!]
[I hate Qingxue the most out of the female characters, aside from demonic
cultivator Shu Yanyan. The author is really talented to be able to make these
two beautiful girls this vicious.]
The difference in the reviews was like night and day. Considering them,
Wenren È decided he rather preferred Abusive Romance‘s discussion page.
The comments seemed more normal there.
“Venerable, Qiu Congxue has returned,” Yin Hanjiang said outside the door.
Yin Hanjiang hadn’t been sticking as close to Wenren È lately. Typically, if

Wenren È didn’t shoo him away, he’d always stand behind him, even in his
room. He didn’t know when Yin Hanjiang had started staying outside his
room and standing guard by the door instead.
“What about Baili Qingmiao?” Wenren È asked.
“Her blood’s been taken and she’s been sent to the Hellfire Pavilion,” Yin
Hanjiang said outside. “Altar Master Qiu and Protector Shu have started
fighting in the main hall. Should something be done?”
Wenren È opened the door. Yin Hanjiang, who had been standing right next
to it, lurched back several steps to put distance between them.
Wenren È gave him an odd look, but before he could ask, he heard the
sound of smashing rocks outside. His expression immediately turned cold
and he said, “Come with this Venerable.”
the future update schedule should be every other day
1. This writing system was used in Bronze Age China from 1200 to 1050
BC. ↩
Wants to Know
Chapter 32 – Shi Congxin’s god
Shu Yanyan and Qiu Congxue had a simple reason for fighting. Qiu
Congxue had reported to the main hall after dropping Baili Qingmiao off at
the Hellfire Pavilion, where she bumped into Shu Yanyan. Shu Yanyan
hadn’t known Qiu Congxue was still alive and stared at her for a time,
unable to take her eyes away.
Now that Qiu Congxue was a wandering immortal, she had a full body
under the black robe and had lost her eerie rack of white bones and the
bloodthirsty ghosts she’d kept around, so she was a little self-conscious.
She had avoided all her subordinates at the Hellfire Pavilion, afraid her
reputation as a ghost cultivator would be damaged.
Seeing Shu Yanyan stare at her, she immediately assumed she was being
mocked. “What right do you have to look at me?” she said in annoyance.
“Why can’t I look at you?” said Shu Yanyan, raising her head proudly. “It’s
your honor to have this Protector look your way.”
Thus the two had started fighting. There was really nothing else to it.
When Wenren È arrived with Yin Hanjiang, Qiu Congxue was chasing Shu
Yanyan around the mountainside, while Altar Master Ruan snuck in an
attack every once in a while, yelling, “I’ll teach you to take in such
disgusting subordinates! I’ll fuck— I’ll kill you!”
In this short time, Altar Master Ruan had learned to fix his language.
Wenren È nodded in satisfaction. His Xuanyuan Sect was finally shaping
up.
“Stop.” Wenren È raised his voice, the Seven Killing Halberd in one hand.
The three felt a pressure far surpassing that of a Mahayana stage cultivator,
and were unable to determine just what level Wenren È was at now. They
immediately stopped fighting and knelt before him.
“Venerable, this subordinate—” Qiu Congxue blurted out first.
“This Venerable knows,” Wenren È said. “You can stay in the main hall for
now. When the task is finished, bring Baili Qingmiao back to Shangqing
Sect.”
“Venerable, how about my Hellfire Pavilion…” Qiu Congxue showed some

rare hesitation. “Nevermind, Shi Congxin can have it.”
Her current position in Xuanyuan Sect was a bit awkward. Qiu Congxue
had been beating Shu Yanyan handily in their battle, and was possibly the
strongest person in Xuanyuan Sect aside from Wenren È. But the positions
of the Altar Masters and the two Protectors were all filled. Qiu Congxue
glanced over to Altar Masters Yuan and Ruan, racking her brains to
consider who she should kill to steal their domain.
Altar Master Yuan felt his hair stand on end from her gaze and quickly said,
“Venerable, the main hall must handle many different affairs and cooperate
with the other Altar Masters. Altar Master Qiu’s brains, er, I mean
temperament, isn’t suited to managing it. If you ask me, Altar Master
Ruan’s Tortoise Shell Pavilion is more suitable.”
“You’re quite the schemer, aren’t you?” Altar Master Ruan spat.
“No need for concern,” Wenren È said. “This Venerable has already made a
decision. Altar Master Qiu has offered great services and can be promoted
to Sect Protector, ranking above the four Altar Masters.”
Shu Yanyan’s expression froze. She didn’t dare to defy Wenren È, and
instead glanced over at Altar Master Yuan, her eyes venomous. If she
couldn’t be Sect Protector, she could at least be the Main Hall Master.
Sweat dripped down Altar Master Yuan’s face. He could dodge Qiu
Congxue by saying that she wasn’t smart enough, but how was he supposed
to get past Shu Yanyan?
“This Venerable was referring to the position of Left Protector,” Wenren È

said.
Shu Yanyan and the Altar Masters all let out a breath. Now that Qiu
Congxue was raised to the same position as Shu Yanyan, she was pleased
enough that her inferiority complex faded some.
Yin Hanjiang watched Wenren È, without a hint of concern at losing his

position. Power and status never mattered to him. The things that Shu
Yanyan and the Altar Masters fought over so viciously were things the
Venerable would toss him without a thought.
Feeling Yin Hanjiang’s gaze, Wenren È said, “Former Left Protector Yin
Hanjiang will now be the Deputy Sect Leader of Xuanyuan Sect. From now
on, his words can be considered my words.”
Just as expected. Yin Hanjiang lowered his head calmly. This was the kind
of person his Venerable was.
Shu Yanyan furrowed her brows, feeling that something was off. Only until
Wenren È left for the Hellfire Pavilion with Sect Leader Yin and Altar
Master Miao did she realize. Yin Hanjiang, who used to be at the same
position as her, now stood higher, and Qiu Congxue was now equal to her,
so her position in the sect had actually fallen.
She’d initially been happy to find out Qiu Congxue had survived, but
now…
The Left and Right Protectors shared a glance, enmity obvious in each
other’s eyes.
Wenren È didn’t care how well his new Protector got along with the old.
Ditching Altar Master Miao, whose light flash was slower, he flew Yin
Hanjiang to Hellfire Pavilion. Landing, he asked, “Protector Yin— no, Sect
Leader Yin, you’ve seemed dispirited as of late. Are you unsatisfied with
this Venerable’s arrangements?”
Shu Yanyan would’ve started picking apart what he could’ve meant by this
line, whether or not he was dissatisfied with her, how she should reply. Yin
Hanjiang didn’t consider any of that and answered honestly. “Now that he
stands one step closer to the Venerable, this subordinate hardly knows how
to express his joy, so how can he be unsatisfied?”
“Why do I feel like you’re further from me these days?” Wenren È looked
closely at Yin Hanjiang, but he had his head bowed, not showing his face.
With some displeasure, Wenren È said, “This Venerable doesn’t like it when
you kneel, and doesn’t like it when you lower your head. This Venerable
doesn’t like not being able to see your face.”
Obediently, Yin Hanjiang raised his head and looked directly at Wenren È.
His eyes were filled with complicated emotions. It seemed to be admiration,
but other things Wenren È couldn’t recognize were mixed in.
“That’s better,” he said. “You’re now the Deputy Sect Leader. Your words
and actions represent this Venerable. Show some spirit.”
“Understood.” Yin Hanjiang’s expression gradually became more firm.
His feelings toward his Venerable would not affect their relationship. The
fact that the most important person to Yin Hanjiang was Wenren È hadn’t
changed. That alone was sufficient.
Wenren È was very concerned with what would happen between Baili
Qingmiao and Zhongli Qian, so concealed himself and Yin Hanjiang, and
headed to Baili Qingmiao’s cell.
Baili Qingmiao had been blindfolded and tied to a wooden bed. Sitting in a
chair by the bed was Altar Master Shi.
The Hellfire Pavilion was constantly shrouded in yin energy and sunlight
couldn’t shine directly in, so gloom filled it even at midday. Altar Master
Shi placed an oil lamp on the desk, coughed lightly twice, and took out a
needle, heating the point over the lamp’s flame.
“Who are you?” Baili Qingmiao said, her voice trembling slightly. Her
chest heaved up and down in fear, but she still steadied her voice and said,
“Where’s my master? What have you done to her? If you harm even a hair
on her head, I’ll pay you back ten times! A hundred times!”
“Cough, cough, cough!” Shi Congxin broke into a fit of coughing before he
could speak. After it subsided, he said, “No one dares to touch her. You
should be worrying about yourself right now.”
With two needles in his hands, he pricked the tip of Baili Qingmiao’s
middle finger with one, extracting two drops of blood. After setting it aside,
he brought over the next one, with Zhongli Qian’s blood on it, and took off
Baili Qingmiao’s blindfold.
Opening her eyes, Baili Qingmiao found herself in a shadowy room, a

sickly man sitting beside her. He looked young, not more than his twenties,
and his skin was so pale that his fingertips appeared a bit translucent in the
lamp light.
He wore a thin white single robe with a black overcoat thrown over, its dark
brown fur collar making his face look even paler by contrast. His long
eyelashes were lowered as he focused on the needle in his hand. Mentally
reciting a spell, he rapidly made several hand signs with his free hand, at a
speed Baili Qingmiao had never seen before, such that his movements were
just a blur.
“Set!” Shi Congxin barked, his index and middle finger pointing to the
needle. The curse was now complete.
Now he would just need to drip both drops of blood into Baili Qingmiao’s
eyes, and from then on, no matter where she was, the first thing in her sight
would always be Zhongli Qian.
“Thinking about it, in all my years of laying down curses, I’ve never gotten
such a strange curse request,” Shi Congxue said as he began dripping the
blood. “The Venerable sure is a mysterious man.”
He first did her left eye. When moving to her right, his hand suddenly
jolted, causing the second drop to miss her eye and slide down her nose.
“What’s this?” Altar Master Shi raised his emaciated hand, looking it over
front and back. “Strange. Why did it shake?”
“What’d you do to me? What’d you put in my eye?!” Baili Qingmiao said
through gritted teeth, just managing to hold back tears.
Her tears were for the people who loved her, not for her enemies to see her
weakness. Baili Qingmiao might cry a lot, but she wouldn’t do something
so pointless at a time like this.
“Something’s not right.” Altar Master Shi’s eyes fell on Baili Qingmiao’s
face, and he suddenly froze.
Wenren È, watching from outside, also felt that something was wrong with
Shi Congxin. He quickly flipped through Abusive Romance, finding that the
words in it were changing furiously.
Originally, on the day of Hè Wenzhao’s marriage to the Violet Spirit Master,

Baili Qingmiao had escaped with the help of Zhongli Qian, and separated
from him after exchanging names. The night after the wedding, she also ran
into Wenren È, who had been looking out for her. Wenren È had sat with
her though that torturous night, and promised her he would bring the
Cowherd and Weaver Girl stars together.
Today just happened to be the wedding of Hè Wenzhao and Liu Xinye.

Love interest numbers two and three weren’t there for Baili Qingmiao.
There was only Shi Congxin, who was busy cursing her.
Wenren È watched the words on the page become: “Shi Congxin looked at
Baili Qingmiao’s tearstained face, captivated by her frail yet resolute
expression. In the firelight, Baili Qingmiao’s body seemed to be shrouded
in a thin layer of divine light. Shi Congxin’s heart was moved.”
Wenren È: …
The divine light again. Shi Congxin could also see the divine light? And
this passage had clearly been intended for Wenren È, with just the name
changed.
That passage had appeared in Shi Congxin’s mind too. He raised the lamp,
closely examining Baili Qingmiao’s face, then felt her fingers to read her
fortune. When he got his answer, he started coughing violently.
He coughed so hard it seemed he was about to hack up a lung. Even the

sound chilled Baili Qingmiao’s blood. She thought the person next to her
might drop dead at any second.
Wenren È frowned. Yin Hanjiang put on the ghost mask and flashed inside
the room. He picked up Shi Congxin in one hand and hauled him out,
leaving Baili Qingmiao alone and bewildered inside.
“Venerable, cough cough cough…” Shi Congxin coughed for ages before he
managed to recover. Gasping for breath, he said, “It seems this subordinate
can’t act against her.”
“Why?”
“This subordinate cultivates illness among the seven forms of human

suffering—birth, old age, illness, death, resentment, parting, and desire.
This is a principle that originates from Buddhism, and those who cultivate it
must allow their body to be plagued by all kinds of illnesses and ailments,
and experience the depths of human suffering in order to awaken to the
greater Dao. Back then, when I looked at that girl, I felt the might of a god.
“It felt like she was meant to be this subordinate’s superior, higher than
Altar Master Qiu or the Venerable— no no no, not higher than the
Venerable. When this subordinate looked at her, it felt like… when Altar
Master Miao’s gu insects look at their queen. It felt like I was possessed,
wanting to live and die for her and give up everything for her.”
Wenren È: …
In Baili Qingmiao’s previous life, she had ruled disasters, plagues, and
wars, and was the source of Shi Congxin’s Dao. Even if he ascended to
godhood later, he would be one of her servants.
anyone notice that Wenren È has never gotten as much of a description as

shi congxin did in this chapter

Wants to Know
Chapter 33 – A deviation from the plan
Wenren È wasn’t angry. He had long since gotten used to the plot’s habits.
It was normal enough that reality, from time to time, needed to conform
with the events of the original plot.
He was twisting the story’s events, trying to defy heaven and change fate,
but the original fate still offered resistance. Under these circumstances, it
was fully expected that the original story, from time to time, would manifest
itself on some originally unrelated character.
“Then, do you feel loyalty toward Baili Qingmiao?” Wenren È asked.
It had suddenly occurred to him that Zhongli Qian was no longer the only
choice. Shi Congxin… Wenren È sized him up carefully. Aside from his
sickly complexion, his looks weren’t bad. With Shi Congxin’s condition,
before he could freely control his sickness qi, anyone who dual cultivated
with him would’ve died from his illnesses, and only ghost cultivators could
be around him safely. That was why Wenren È had sent him to Hellfire
Pavilion.
It was possible that only the female lead would be immune to Shi Congxin’s
sickness qi. Didn’t that mean they were suited for each other?
Wenren È looked pleasantly at the “spare” he had chosen for Baili

Qingmiao. Shi Congxin, feeling his expectant gaze, shook his head
furiously and said, “Cough, cough, how could this subordinate? This
subordinate is only loyal to the Venerable.”
Meaning that since Wenren È was Lord of Demons today, Shi Congxin was
loyal to Wenren È. If tomorrow Shu Yanyan pulled off a coup, Shi
Congxin’s loyalty to the Lord of Demons wouldn’t waver. He had the same
kind of loyalty as everyone else in Xuanyuan Sect.
Wenren È immediately lost interest and waved him off. “Since you can’t do
anything to her, just leave Baili Qingmiao for now. Go cast the curse on
Zhongli Qian.”
Shi Congxin hurried off. He took a glance at Baili Qingmiao through the
window of her room, and shook his head slightly. Deep inside, he did want
to help this girl… but the Venerable had given his orders. In the future, he
could help her on some less important matter.
Seeing his expression, Wenren È was greatly disappointed and shook his
head. “He can’t even defy this Venerable’s orders and save someone behind
my back. Completely undependable!”
Altar Master Miao, just arriving: …
Did the Venerable consider defying his orders “dependable”? In that case, it
made sense how Protector Shu had maintained her position. When it came
to acting behind Wenren È’s back, he, Miao Qiuqing, really could not hold a
candle.
Altar Master Miao entered the room, blindfolded Baili Qingmiao again, fed
the gu insect to her, then left to go put it in Zhongli Qian.
Throughout the whole process of being cursed by Shi Congxin and having a
parasite placed in him by Altar Master Miao, Zhongli Qian had been awake
and aware that they’d done something concerning to him. He wasn’t afraid
though, and in fact relaxed a little. He’d been anxious Wenren È would use
him against the Zhongli clan, or use his reputation in the mortal world to
lead scholars astray and set up an evil cult so as to increase his own power.
Neither of those things had happened by now. Zhongli Qian was widely
read and had more practical knowledge than Baili Qingmiao. When the
drops of blood were placed into his eyes, he recognized it as a curse for
tracking the person the blood belonged to, not something that would affect
his consciousness at all. When Altar Master Miao forced him to swallow the
gu insect, he recognized it as the heart-linking parasite, which could link
two people’s emotions. It was a type of love gu, often used by Miao women
to know their husbands’ feelings.
It was said that the Miao had created the heart-linking parasite because
Miao women discovered that even though their husbands would fall in love
with them under the influence of a love parasite, it wouldn’t stop them from
sleeping around. Some men made a distinction between love and lust and
could love one woman and be in bed with another at the same time, then act
like he didn’t know her afterward.
In order to completely control their husbands, Miao women had created the
heart-linking parasite, so that the moment he felt desire for another woman,
she would know.
Zhongli Qian recognized that this parasite would also not affect his
consciousness. They were not subject to the queen parasite, and though they
were influenced by each other, it was two-way. If one’s will was strong, one
could avoid being influenced by the other party, and could even suppress
the other’s emotions.
“Sir Wenren should be aware that these two things cannot control me, so
what is his purpose? Could he possibly want me to track someone for him?”
Zhongli Qian asked. “I have no particular skills in tracking. He could’ve
found an expert instead of me.”
Zhongli Qian was sharp and had been considering Wenren È’s plans and
intentions for these past months. During his time at the Hellfire Pavilion, he
had played out multiple chess games against himself, thinking of countless
possibilities, but they were all proven wrong at this point.
“The Venerable’s decisions are profound and we couldn’t possibly guess at

them,” said Altar Master Shi. “Young Master Zhongli should just obey his
orders, cough cough cough.“
Altar Master Miao, having more seniority than Altar Master Shi, knew a bit
more. He was aware that Baili Qingmiao was Wenren È’s favored disciple,
who had been stolen by Qiu Congxue. He also knew what the heart-linking
parasite did, and he had just heard Wenren È call Altar Master Shi
“undependable”. Putting the pieces together, he figured the Venerable was
intending to use Zhongli Qian to dispose of Qiu Congxue, so he could take
back his disciple.
Obviously, he wouldn’t tell his conjecture to Zhongli Qian, and left right
after completing his task. He had already told Wenren È how to remove the
heart-linking parasites, so now he could leave everything else to Wenren È.
After the two Altar Masters left, Baili Qingmiao struggled out of her ropes.
She snuck out of the room, looking carefully around and seeing nobody in
the area. Instead of escaping, she went deeper into the compound in search
of Master Qingxue.
Baili Qingmiao wasn’t an idiot. The two people who had come to her cell
were much higher level than her, so there was no way a mere Nascent Soul
stage could’ve escaped on her own. They had to have some scheme and
were planning for her to escape. Instead of running face-first into a trap,
better she go find her master. Master Qingxue was a wandering immortal,
and with her, Baili Qingmiao would have a much better chance of escape.
Wenren È had expected Baili Qingmiao to make a break for the exit. There
was an illusion array set outside, and if she went that way, she would run
into a phantom wall that would lead her to Zhongli Qian’s room no matter
which way she walked. Somehow, she had outsmarted him.
“Odd. Was Baili Qingmiao this perceptive?” Wenren È frowned, feeling

that something somewhere had deviated from his plan.
If Baili Qingmiao went toward the exit, she would be led smoothly to
Zhongli Qian. But she was heading deeper into the Hellfire Pavilion, which
was crawling with ghost cultivators.
She’d only taken a few steps when she heard the sound of sobbing. She
hurried over and found someone in a red robe and loose hair, crouching in
the corner of a room and weeping pitifully.
Baili Qingmiao walked over and placed a hand gently on that person’s
shoulder, asking, “Miss, were you captured too?”
The red-robed person continued to sob, their whole body trembling, as if

they’d had their heart broken.
Baili Qingmiao felt sympathy, wondering what awful thing could have
happened to this maiden, and became even more anxious about Master
Qingxue.
“They— they chose me for him. Why me…?” the red-robed person sobbed.
“There were so many others who wanted to get closer to Altar Master Ruan.
They could’ve gone! I didn’t want to!”
“What did they make you do?” Baili Qingmiao asked carefully, worried
about digging up any trauma.
“They— they made me…” The person cried so hard they couldn’t speak.
Slowly, they turned around and lifted their head. “They said I was the
ugliest, so they made me go kiss Altar Master Ruan.”
“Ahhhh!” Baili Qingmiao couldn’t help but let out a yelp when she saw the
other’s face. The eyeballs were dangling from their sockets, the flesh was
rotting off, and the tongue had maggots crawling around in it. Most
importantly, this person… seemed to be a man.
The red-robed person grabbed Baili Qingmiao by the arm and crawled
toward her. He pointed at his face. “I— I wasn’t really unwilling to be with
Altar Master Ruan, but he insulted me and said I got my bugs on him. Look
at my cute babies! Do you think they’re ugly? See how chubby they are!
They’re lovely!”
“Argh! Get away from me!” Baili Qingmiao shoved him away with her
spiritual energy. Despite using the full strength of a Nascent Soul cultivator,
she only managed to toss him back half a meter.
The Moonlit Frost Silk twisted wildly in the air in fear. When coming into
contact with one of the red-robed man’s bugs, it shuddered and flung it off.
Baili Qingmiao ran away as the red-robed man staggered after her,
shouting, “How come Altar Master Shi and Altar Master Ruan think I’m
ugly? Things were better when Altar Master Qiu was here. Altar Master Qiu
liked me and often praised me. I miss her so much. Hey, why do you smell
like Altar Master Qiu? Wait up! Don’t run away!”
Baili Qingmiao didn’t know who Altar Masters Shi and Qiu, but she did
feel bad for Altar Master Ruan. She ran with all her might, her heart in her
throat, but was unable to shake the red-robed man. It was less that she
couldn’t fight him, and more that she didn’t want to.
On the verge of desperation, she saw out of her left eye light streaming out
from a room. She rushed in, locking the door behind her. A hand on her
heart, she held her breath, hoping the other person wouldn’t find her.
The red-robed man stood outside the door and cocked his head at it for a
moment. Sobbing a few times, he said, “This room is for Altar Master Shi’s
guest. I’m not allowed to disturb him, so I’ll go now.”
He staggered off miserably, missing Altar Master Qiu.
Hearing his footsteps grow fainter, Baili Qingmiao patted her chest, her fear
finally fading. She glanced around the room, but her left eye instantly
landed on a white-robed young man with a book in his hand. He was also
looking at her, and her left eye locked gazes with him, unable to be moved
away.
Zhongli Qian: …
Earlier, his heart had been racing in a kind of terror that he hadn’t felt for a
long time, which he knew was the work of the heart-linking parasite. He
was trying to calm his emotions when a girl barged into his room. At that
moment, Zhongli Qian could not tear his eyes away from her. Her image
seemed to be glued to the front of his eyeballs.
Her face felt like it was burned into his sight. Her body let off rays of light,
which soon made his eyes ache, yet he couldn’t look away.
Zhongli Qian, with Baili Qingmiao’s face filling his mind, wondered what
kind of new torture method this was.
Baili Qingmiao was doing a bit better. Her left eye couldn’t see anything
but Zhongli Qian’s face, but she could move her right eye to check her
surroundings. However, it was too uncomfortable to look at different things
with both her eyes, causing overlapping images to appear in her vision.
When Zhongli Qian moved, Baili Qingmiao became so nauseous she nearly
vomited.
Thinking there was nothing to do but cover his eyes, Zhongli Qian took out
a piece of cloth and tied it over them. As a cultivator, he could use his
spiritual cognition to sense his surroundings, so being blinded wouldn’t
really bother him.
His action reminded Baili Qingmiao, who tore off a strip from one of her
sleeves and tied it over her left eye, so that she could only see out of the
right. She instantly felt much better.
With her right eye, she could see Zhongli Qian properly, and found he was
an upstanding young man. Seeing him move, she pressed her back against
the wall, the Moonlit Frost Silk twirling wildly in the air before her. “Don’t
move!” she cried. “Stay like that! Don’t bring any bugs near me!”
Feeling her fear, Zhongli Qian began reciting poetry in his mind, trying to
calm down both himself and Baili Qingmiao. “Miss, relax,” he said with a
slight smile. “This is my true form. I’m not going to transform into
anything. This one’s name is Zhongli Qian. May I have your name?”
“Zhongli Qian? Of the Zhongli clan?” Baili Qingmiao did have some
general knowledge of the cultivation world. Discovering she was now calm,
she asked, “Are you also being imprisoned here?”
“Pretty much.”
Zhongli Qian’s levelheaded attitude helped Baili Qingmiao relax quite a bit.
Retrieving her bonded weapon, she greeted him respectfully. “I am Baili
Qingmiao of Shangqing Sect. While traveling with my master, we passed
by Ghost Peak and were captured. I don’t know where my master has ended
up, so I’m currently searching for her. Does Young Master Zhongli know
what this place is?”
“The Hellfire Pavilion in Xuanyuan Sect,” Zhongli Qian answered.
His doubts returned. Why would Wenren È bind him to this ordinary
righteous disciple, who seemed to have no idea what was going on?
“Xuanyuan Sect?” Baili Qingmiao said, now even more puzzled. When she
had encountered Wenren È before, he was a good senior to her, and he and
Master Qingxue had also met. He wouldn’t hurt them, would he?
Perhaps something had happened to Wenren È and the leadership of

Xuanyuan Sect now rested with someone else? No, there was also the
possibility of people in Hellfire Pavilion acting on their own.
Baili Qingmiao took out the token Wenren È had given her from her storage
belt. She had originally planned to never use it, but for the sake of her
master, it was worth a shot.
Wenren È, observing in secret, winced when he saw it. He couldn’t let Baili
Qingmiao use it to summon him. If he was there, how could Baili Qingmiao
and Zhongli Qian have their private first meeting?
Yin Hanjiang, seeing the awkward look on his Venerable’s face, put the
ghost mask on. His bearing changed in an instant. He entered the room in a
streak of shadow and snatched the token out of Baili Qingmiao’s hand.
“Who are you?” Baili Qingmiao cried, backing up against Zhongli Qian.
They could sense Yin Hanjiang’s power, and through their linked emotions,
they made a decision to fight him together.
The masked man ran a finger over the diagram of Polis on the token. In a
deep voice, he said, “You’re not worthy of this.”
While wearing the ghost mask, Yin Hanjiang didn’t need to hide his
emotions. He had been suppressing his emotions over the last few days, and
only now, under the mask, could he let them show on his face. For the first
time in days, he relaxed a bit.
He looked sullenly at Baili Qingmiao and Zhongli Qian, thinking back to

that phrase—love takes you unawares, and before you know it, you’re deep
in its clutches. A pang shot through his heart.
Were it not for these two, he would never have realized the intentions of his
own heart, and he wouldn’t have to bear this kind of agony.
Wouldn’t it have been better if he’d never known?
Yin Hanjiang carefully placed the token in the lapel of his robes, near his
heart. Without harming either of them, he left and returned to Wenren È’s
side. He took off the mask, revealing his usual expression of quiet devotion.

Wants to Know
Chapter 34 – High spirits
“Venerable.” Yin Hanjiang offered the token to Wenren È with both hands.
Wenren È: …
He had given this token to Baili Qingmiao in exchange for the Shattered
Mountain Meteorite. Both the workings of karma and Wenren È’s own
character would not allow him to simply take it back. He had felt a bit
nervous when Baili Qingmiao first took it out, but if she actually used it,
then he would’ve stepped in.
If he escorted the two out of the Hellfire Pavilion, they would part ways
outside, and all his work would’ve been for nothing.
This was also the first time Yin Hanjiang had taken initiative without
Wenren È’s orders. Just seeing his troubled expression, he had rushed in,
still doing his best to ease Wenren È’s job for him.
After he put on the mask, he seemed to become a completely different

person. Forget Baili Qingmiao and Zhongli Qian, even Wenren È himself
hardly recognized him. No wonder why neither the characters nor the
readers had figured out, right up until Baili Qingmiao had seen the mask in
his bag, that the Ghost Mask was actually the faithful and deferent Yin
Hanjiang.
Speaking of that, Wenren È guessed that Yin Hanjiang had purposefully let
Baili Qingmiao see that mask. He had probably wanted her to fall into
despair and give up on survival. Unfortunately, it hadn’t worked.
“This Venerable cannot take back a token he has given out,” Wenren È said.
“You can keep it. I’ll just give her a messaging talisman in the future.”
A faint smile appeared on Yin Hanjiang’s face. He replaced the token

securely near his heart. Wenren È felt like if he didn’t stop him, Yin
Hanjiang would try to shove it into his own chest.
It was just a little token that he had made out of the leftover material the
Seven Killing Halberd was made from. It wasn’t actually good for much. Its
only use was that if someone sent their own spiritual energy into it, Wenren
È would be able to sense it.
Oh well. If Yin Hanjiang liked it, he could have it.
Seeing Yin Hanjiang act so meek, Wenren È was puzzled. When he

completed the Army Crushing Sword, Yin Hanjiang should’ve already
cleared his psychological blocks and stopped restricting himself. How come
he seemed to have regressed?
Was it because of the ghost mask?
“Let me see the mask.” Wenren È held out a hand.
Yin Hanjiang didn’t offer it, instead clutching it tighter in his hand. Wenren
È reached out and casually grabbed it, but felt some resistance. Only when
he yanked harder, the second time, did Yin Hanjiang release it.
He examined it closely, but found it to be an ordinary mask from the mortal

world, made from ordinary materials. Yin Hanjiang might’ve picked it up
on a whim from a shop in the little border town. It shouldn’t have any
ability to influence a person’s mind. Why wasn’t Yin Hanjiang willing to let
him have it?
Wenren È stuck it on his own face. Through it, he saw a faint tinge of red
color Yin Hanjiang’s face, as he showed an expression Wenren È had never
seen before. He quickly took it off, but saw that Yin Hanjiang’s expression
had returned to normal, looking as calm and unperturbed as always.
Wenren È wondered if he was seeing things. He turned the mask back and
forth in his hand, but couldn’t discover a trick to it.
“Give me your hand,” he ordered.
Yin Hanjiang extended his hand to Wenren È. Wenren È felt his pulse, then
sent his own spiritual energy into Yin Hanjiang’s body. His meridians were
unobstructed and there was no problem with his cultivation. He showed no
signs of qi deviation.
Wenren È withdrew his hand, letting it rest on the mask. He still felt
puzzled. Ever since he had picked up that first book, many questions had
arisen in his mind, and when he answered one, another appeared. Maybe
this was just fate. Maybe he would never be able to fully understand
everything.
“Does the Venerable like this mask?” Yin Hanjiang asked, seeing how
Wenren È had held onto it for all this time.
“Not really.” Wenren È gave it back to Yin Hanjiang, watching as he

replaced it in his storage pouch, his face still expressionless.
Something just wasn’t right. Yet he couldn’t put his finger on it.
Wenren È trusted that Yin Hanjiang wouldn’t lie to him or conceal anything
from him. They had already confided in each other and always acted openly
toward each other. How come when Yin Hanjiang put on the mask, Wenren
È was completely unable to read him?
“From now on, if it’s just you and me, don’t wear that mask,” Wenren È
said. “And don’t wear it when it’s not necessary, either.”
“Understood,” Yin Hanjiang answered, very lightly. He showed none of the

resolution he had in the past.
Wenren È wanted to keep interrogating Yin Hanjiang about the mask, but
Baili Qingmiao and Zhongli Qian had started holding hands, so Wenren È
had to turn his attention over to the developments on their side.
They were holding hands because Zhongli Qian had stumbled and nearly
fell, so Baili Qingmiao reached out and grabbed him. “Young Master
Zhongli,” she said, “you can’t see anything, so let’s help each other out
right now.”
Zhongli Qian shook his head. “I think it’s odd. Even if I can’t see, with my
spiritual cognition, I should be able to sense everything around me. How
come I didn’t notice whatever I tripped on? Miss Baili, can you check what
it was for me?”
Baili Qingmiao glanced back. “It’s a femur. It’s been rolling around by
itself, trying to trip you up.”
Zhongli Qian released Baili Qingmiao’s hand. “Miss Baili, why don’t you
use your bonded weapon to tie our hands together? Men and women
shouldn’t touch casually. I don’t wish to be improper with you.”
He wasn’t usually that stuffy, but he was nervous about the fact that his eyes
had been cursed to only see Baili Qingmiao. He trusted that Baili Qingmiao
was a member of a righteous sect and had good character, and wasn’t afraid
of her harming him. But a person like her could easily be manipulated, so
better he play it safe.
Baili Qingmiao didn’t mind and thought this idea was better. This way, if
Zhongli Qian were to fall or be thrown by something, she could just loosen
the silk and not be dragged along with him. Then, after getting better
footing, she could pull him back using it.
Thus they swapped from holding hands to holding a silk tied between them.
Baili Qingmiao looked like a guide for the blind.
Wenren È: …
This wasn’t what he had expected to happen. He had accomplished “picking

the other person instantly out of a crowd” and “sharing their emotions”, so
how come they were still so stiff and polite with each other? He hadn’t
expected them to blindfold their eyes!
Was it really because he couldn’t understand the last line—”love takes you
unawares, and before you know it, you’re deep in its clutches”? But what
kind of a feeling was that referring to, exactly?
“What does ‘love takes you unawares, and before you know it, you’re deep
in its clutches’ mean?” Wenren È asked.
“When you realize it’s happening, it’s already too late to break free,” Yin
Hanjiang replied behind him. His voice shook slightly. He probably also
thought this line was rather silly.
“I know what it means literally,” Wenren È said. “But how is it supposed to

be accomplished? Cultivators cultivate their minds. How can anyone be so
oblivious of their own intentions that they cannot discover them until
they’re in too deep? If someone is really so confused, then how can they
cultivate? How can they enlighten to the Dao? Enlightenment happens in a
flash. It never comes before you realize it’s happening.”
“Who knows?” Yin Hanjiang’s tone was a bit cold. “Probably only the
people deep in its clutches can understand it.”
Then what was he supposed to do? Wenren È was aware that it wouldn’t be
easy to make Baili Qingmiao forget about Hè Wenzhao. He didn’t try to
control Baili Qingmiao either. But wasn’t it natural for Zhongli Qian to fall
in love with the female lead? Why didn’t he feel anything?
The Lord of Demons knew far too little about matters of love.
He could only reference the original book. He opened Abusive Romance,

wanting to revisit every word and action of Baili Qingmiao and Zhongli
Qian’s meeting. But the words on the page were currently changing madly.
Wenren È could only read through it once before it was revised to
something completely different.
Baili Qingmiao and Zhongli Qian supported each other as they tried to
escape the Hellfire Pavilion, with only one eye between them. The sun had
set by now, and Baili Qingmiao was afraid to run into someone like the red-
robed man again, so struck up a conversation with Zhongli Qian. “I don’t
know who captured me. My master is a really powerful wandering
immortal, and we were walking together when it happened. My vision
suddenly went black and I lost consciousness. When I woke up, my master
was gone and I was trapped in here. Some sickly but still good-looking man
put a drop of blood in my left eye, and also extracted some of my blood. A
bit later, a pretty and delicate-looking man made me eat something that
made my chest hurt for a moment. I have no idea what they did to me.”
Hearing all this, Zhongli Qian pursed his lips. “Why only your left eye?”
“I don’t know. It looked like he was planning to do both, but when he got to
my right eye, he suddenly had a fit of coughing and couldn’t manage it.
Maybe his sickness flared up?”
“That man was the master of the Hellfire Pavilion of Xuanyuan Sect, Shi
Congxin. He cultivates the seven human sufferings, and in order to inflict
suffering on others, he must first inflict it on himself. He’s always sickly,
and he couldn’t possibly have a sudden flare-up. He is a walking illness.”
Baili Qingmiao suddenly turned her head, looking at Zhongli Qian closely
with her right eye. She squinted a little and rubbed her chest. “Strange, why
do I suddenly feel so suspicious of you?”
Zhongli Qian: …
That would be because he was suspecting Baili Qingmiao, and under the
influence of the heart-linking parasites, she felt it too.
Zhongli Qian had held out hopes that only the tracking spell on their eyes
would be linked, and the heart-linking parasite would be for someone else.
Now that she had shared his emotions, his hopes fell.
With the heart-linking parasite, one could not hide any of their emotions.
He and Baili Qingmiao had to cooperate, or they would never escape the
Hellfire Pavilion. Zhongli Qian originally hadn’t planned to resist, but
Wenren È’s recent actions made him wary. He was the heir to the Zhongli
clan. If, in the future, there was a possibility he would do something wrong
under the influence of the heart-linking parasite, then it was better he give
up his position now and become a wandering cultivator.
“Miss Baili, let me undo your silk and conceal myself somewhere. Then
take off the cloth over your left eye and look for me. I want to confirm how
strong the curse is,” Zhongli Qian said.
Only after obtaining all relevant information could they determine their
next steps.
Baili Qingmiao readily agreed. She also wanted to know how bad her eye
was. After Zhongli Qian hid, she took off her blindfold, and saw a thin
thread with her left eye. She followed it, turning around, and saw Zhongli
Qian through a door. Her vision could even penetrate through solid
surfaces.
“I can see you, Young Master Zhongli,” Baili Qingmiao said.
When Zhongli Qian opened the door and walked out, Baili Qingmiao’s
vision was filled with his face again. She quickly covered her eye up, and
described what she had just seen.
“This tracking curse truly is strong,” said Zhongli Qian with a sigh. “Even
if the one whose blood was taken runs to the ends of the earth, they won’t
be able to escape the other’s sight. Distance has no effect on it.”
“So the blood in my eyes was Young Master Zhongli’s? Then who got my
blood?”
“Me,” Zhongli Qian said, knowing that he couldn’t hide it from Baili
Qingmiao. “I had to blindfold my eyes because my eyes can only see Miss
Baili’s face. There’s basically no difference between having these eyes and
not.”
Baili Qingmiao knew the sensation and felt sympathy for him. She at the
very least had one working eye, while Zhongli Qian couldn’t use either.
Zhongli Qian could feel Baili Qingmiao’s pity and sighed. “Miss Baili, we
have to test one more thing. Try to think of something that makes you really
emotional.”
Baili Qingmiao’s thoughts immediately turned to Hè Wenzhao, and her

heart sank. She remembered that her shixiong was to marry Liu Xinye
today, and they might be in bed together by now. It was so painful… huh?
She wasn’t actually sad at all?
Baili Qingmiao rubbed her chest. One moment, it had felt like a knife had
been stuck into her heart and was being twisted, and the next moment, it
was gone.
“Try thinking of something happy now,” Zhongli Qian said.
Baili Qingmiao thought of growing up together with shixiong and how well
shixiong had treated her. It made her so happy… No, she wasn’t happy at
all. Her heart was as calm as still water.
“Miss Baili, the things you just thought of were what make you most sad
and most happy, right?” Zhongli Qian asked.
“Yes,” Baili Qingmiao said firmly. “I love shixiong. He’s the one who can
stir my feelings the most.”
“That puts me at ease,” Zhongli Qian said. “What we both swallowed was
the heart-linking parasite. Both parties who have it can feel each other’s
emotions and be controlled by the other. The one with the firmer will would
be in control.”
“So you suppressed my feelings just now?”
“Yes.” Zhongli Qian smiled in relief. “When I felt your sorrow, I stilled my
heart and was able to suppress it quickly. When I felt your joy, I was also
able to suppress it. I’m new to it now, but after getting some practice, I
should be able to steady my emotions easily.”
Baili Qingmiao: …
Didn’t this mean that she was the one being controlled?
Young Master Zhongli might be relieved, but what about her? Baili
Qingmiao didn’t know how to feel about this.
“You also don’t need to worry,” Zhongli Qian said. “I’ll do my best to find
a way to rid us of the curse and the bugs. What I was just testing was how
badly we’re going to be affected for now. We can temporarily cover our
eyes. It may be a bother, but not much of one. As for our emotions, I’ll do
my best to maintain a calm state of mind. I know this might be inconvenient
for you, but it’s all we can do for now. We just have to stay calm and act
rationally. It’s at least better than being ruled by emotions.”
“No, I’m fine with this.” Baili Qingmiao shook her head with a relieved
expression. She smiled at Zhongli Qian. “My shixiong is getting married
today.”
Zhongli Qian’s expression stiffened. He felt Baili Qingmiao’s grief and

smoothly recited a few poems in his mind—”Stars hang over the broad
plains, the moon’s reflection ripples in river waters”[1], “Savour the joys of
life, do not raise to the moon an empty goblet”[2]. The verses raised his
spirits greatly.
Baili Qingmiao also felt the same. Her mood suddenly changed from that of
a resentful young girl’s. “With your help, I can let go of shixiong and no
longer agonize over him, so this could be a blessing in disguise. From now
on, I can travel the world, seeing all the sights it has to offer, and put my
efforts toward ascending and becoming a god! Hahahaha!”
Her laughter was bright and open, and Zhongli Qian couldn’t help but feel
her optimism.
Wenren È: …
Wasn’t this kind of development still good?
how many of my fellow aces here to vibe with WRE

1. Thoughts on a Traveling Night, Du Fu ↩
2. Invitation to Wine, Li Bai ↩

Wants to Know
Chapter 35 – Truth revealed
Zhongli Qian was afraid if he kept reciting poems, the girl in front of him
might swear brotherhood and sisterhood with him. He quickly switched to,
“Picking a chrysanthemum under the fence, I look leisurely toward the
southern mountains”[1] and some other poetry of the type. Seeing Baili
Qingmiao go from spirited to relaxed and carefree, he realized what was
going on and had to chuckle at himself.
“What is it, Young Master Zhongli?” Baili Qingmiao said, sensing Zhongli
Qian’s mood.
“I just thought of something that made me realize I was wrong,” Zhongli

Qian said with a self-deprecating smile. “I was afraid my emotions would
be influenced by you and I would act out of order, so forcibly suppressed
those emotions. But it’s not that my will was stronger than yours, but that
Miss Baili is more considerate than I. When our emotions influence each
other, you don’t immediately try to change your feelings to suppress mine,
but instead go along with me. If we were to struggle against each other, we
might both lose control of ourselves and suffer qi deviation.”
Baili Qingmiao felt self-conscious and waved her hands. “It’s not that. It’s
just that I feel like I can’t be miserable and blaming myself all the time.
You’re actually doing me a big favor.”
“Then let’s make a deal,” said Zhongli Qian. “Until we get rid of these
parasites, if either of us gets overly emotional, the other should help them
calm down. Not influencing them with any other emotions, just allowing
them to calm down and gain perspective.”
“That sounds good!” Baili Qingmiao said, cupping her fists to him. “The
rumors don’t do you justice. I often heard rumors about the Zhongli clan at
Shangqing Sect. I feel ashamed to say that, since most sects seclude
themselves from the mortal world, they have some prejudice towards
cultivation clans who intermingle with ordinary society, and some even
accuse them of only seeking status and prestige. Meeting Young Master
Zhongli today, I have understood the meaning of nobility.”
“You’re overstating,” Zhongli Qian said quietly. “It’s not easy to live this
way. Since I can’t hide my feelings from you, I might as well confess that I
also want to gallop around on a horse, indulging in wine and doing
whatever I please. I wish I didn’t have to force myself to save someone I
didn’t even like for the sake of the Zhongli clan’s heritage and reputation.”
Zhongli Qian’s responsibilities were the source of his strength, but also
fetters for him. He didn’t even know if it would be better to let go or
continue bearing them.
The two wandered in circles throughout the Hellfire Pavilion several times,
running into a few ghost cultivators Wenren È had sent to scare them.
Wenren È was still holding onto the hope that being in danger would reveal
their true feelings and spark something between them.
But as the two became closer together, they treated each other more like
siblings, no spark of romance between them. Instead, Zhongli Qian became
more vigilant.
After they repelled another wave of ghost cultivators, Zhongli Qian stood in
place, bamboo scroll in hand, and looked up to the stars in the sky. Venus
shone bright, heralding the coming of dawn.
He slapped the scroll against the palm of his hand. “I get it now.”
“Get what?” Baili Qingmiao said, cocking her head.
Zhongli Qian put away the scroll and said into the distance, “Sir Wenren, I
have still not developed any feelings for Miss Baili. There’s no point in
dragging this out any further. Why don’t you reveal yourself to us?”
Wenren È stared blankly. It wouldn’t be hard for Zhongli Qian to guess that
everything was part of his plan, but how did he realize that he intended for
Zhongli Qian and Baili Qingmiao to fall in love?
He appeared before the two with Yin Hanjiang, saying coldly, “How did
you figure out?”
“Ah! Senior Wenren, I’m so glad you’re okay!” Baili Qingmiao said, her
face lighting up with joy. “I thought something had happened at Xuanyuan
Sect and the man in the mask harmed you!”
“No one can harm the Venerable,” Yin Hanjiang said in a frosty tone.
“The masked man naturally wouldn’t harm Sir Wenren, because the masked
man is Sect Leader Yin,” said Zhongli Qian.
Wenren È finally sized up Zhongli Qian properly. The third love interest
was far more perceptive than he had expected. With that kind of foresight,
how did he fall for Baili Qingmiao in the original book?
The way Zhongli Qian had guessed that Wenren È was trying to matchmake
him and Baili Qingmiao was simple. While wandering around the Hellfire
Pavilion with Baili Qingmiao, he had asked about her meetings with
Wenren È in detail and learned about their three encounters at the Thousand
Mile Ice Plains, after Miss Shu’s death, and at the Golden Coast Cliffs. Baili
Qingmiao wasn’t a very shrewd person and trusted Zhongli Qian by now, so
told him every detail. Cultivators had strong memories, and under Zhongli
Qian’s directed questioning, she relayed everything accurately.
Going by Baili Qingmiao’s descriptions, Zhongli Qian determined that Miss

Shu Lian was actually the Right Protector whom he had met once, Shu
Yanyan. Since Hè Wenzhao was an anchor for the Spirit Severing Array,
Wenren È had ordered her to seduce him many years in advance. Thus, he
could break the Spirit Severing Array with no difficulty, yet purposefully
dragged things out for ten years, until cultivators on both sides were too
weak to make use of natural spiritual energy.
“As Qian admires what Sir Wenren has done for all human lives, it was
difficult to attribute malice to your intentions. I could only consider what
was most logical.” Without any subtlety for Baili Qingmiao’s sake, Zhongli
Qian explained his conjectures to everyone.
Baili Qingmiao was dumbstruck, seemingly shaken to her core.
“Senior Wenren, was Miss Shu really the Xuanyuan Sect Right Protector?
Sh—she’s not dead?” Baili Qingmiao grabbed Wenren È’s sleeve without
thinking, gazing up at him with her right eye.
“This Venerable can summon her right now,” Wenren È said.
A searing glare landed on Baili Qingmiao’s hand. Wenren È didn’t look

toward where it had come from, just casually pulled his sleeve out of her
grasp. After he was no longer in contact with her, Yin Hanjiang’s glare
vanished.
Did Yin Hanjiang bear hostility toward Baili Qingmiao? But Wenren È had
already explained part of the plot of Abusive Romance to him, as well as
Baili Qingmiao’s relationship to him as half his master. Yin Hanjiang
shouldn’t be misunderstanding like he had in the book, so why was he
acting this way?
After some thought, Wenren È couldn’t figure it out, and didn’t want to
discuss it in front of Zhongli Qian either. He could only set aside his doubts
for now and send Shu Yanyan a message talisman, ordering her to come
immediately to the Hellfire Pavilion.
“In the three times Sir Wenren and Miss Baili have met, though the methods
were harsh, I have noticed an intention to guide her,” Zhongli Qian said.
“Miss Baili has good aptitudes, and it’s my conjecture that Sir Wenren felt
the desire to mentor her, subsequently becoming frustrated with how her
heart was stuck on Hè Wenzhao, after watching Hè Wenzhao involve
himself with Miss Shu and Liu-shimei, at the same time professing love for
her at every turn.”
He smiled faintly. “Plus, you put the heart-linking parasite inside us. The
heart-linking parasite is often used by Miao women to know the feelings of
their husbands. Putting all these points together, it’s not hard to guess that
Sir Wenren wishes to use me to help Baili Qingmiao escape the turmoils of
her love.”
His explanation led everyone to see him in a new light. Zhongli Qian had
been an outsider to the situation, with all his information coming from Baili
Qingmiao, who was not a particularly self-aware person. With his
information so limited, he managed to see through a situation that even Shu
Yanyan and the other members of the Xuanyuan Sect still hadn’t figured
out, which was undoubtedly impressive.
“How did you know I was the masked man?” Yin Hanjiang took out the
mask and put it on. Baili Qingmiao involuntarily shuddered upon seeing it.
The mask filled her with dread from a place deep within her.
“Don’t be scared,” Zhongli Qian said comfortingly to Baili Qingmiao. “Sect

Leader Yin’s disguise is very good, but he said one thing that exposed him
—that we weren’t worthy of Sir Wenren’s token. This is something that
would be said by one with a great deal of veneration toward him. In that
case, the masked man couldn’t have harmed Sir Wenren.
“Additionally, since the masked man holds him in such respect, if

something had happened to him, the masked man wouldn’t be bothering
with us. Therefore, Sir Wenren must’ve been safe and sound. Of the
members of Xuanyuan Sect that I’ve met these past few days, only Sect
Leader Yin met these qualifications, so I made a guess. I was simply
fortunate that it turned out to be right.”
Venus[2] shone above Zhongli Qian’s head, the only light remaining in the
night sky. He had a slight smile that put people at ease, and truly fit the
expression of a gentleman being unparalleled in the world.
Wenren È clapped three times, saying appreciatively, “Zhongli Qian fits his
reputation of a prodigy.”
And he also fit his role as a major love interest. Only someone like him was
worthy of ranking as third love interest, directly below Wenren È.
“Sir Wenren is overstating,” Zhongli Qian said evenly. “There’s just one
thing that I don’t understand. Why did Sir Wenren believe Baili Qingmiao
and I would develop feelings? Baili Qingmiao has a kind nature and I
admire her greatly, but to fall for her isn’t such a light matter.”
“This Venerable also doesn’t understand, and was hoping Young Master
Zhongli could explain,” Wenren È said.
Zhongli Qian raised his eyebrows, his doubt showing even through his
blindfold as he waited for Wenren È to elaborate.
Wenren È considered his wording for a moment, then said, “This Venerable
has glimpsed the workings of heaven, and seen that Young Master Zhongli
and Baili Qingmiao might have a fated connection.”
“Can you clarify? I would also like to know under what conditions I fall for
Miss Baili,” said Zhongli Qian.
As their exchange went speedily back and forth, Baili Qingmiao looked
between the two of them, her head spinning. They were talking about her,
but their wording was carefully chosen to avoid putting her on the spot.
Baili Qingmiao looked at Zhongli Qian, wondering how he could’ve fallen

in love. He was such a level-headed person, not obsessive like her.
Before she could wonder more, Wenren È knocked her unconscious in one
strike. Abusive Romance‘s revision was written from Baili Qingmiao’s
perspective. Wenren È didn’t want the fact that he had obtained the book to
show up in the story, so had to resort to crude methods.
“According to fate, you would’ve attended Hè Wenzhao’s wedding and

discovered Baili Qingmiao imprisoned in the back mountains. Pitying her,
you helped her escape. On your next meeting, seeing that she was entangled
helplessly in love, you helped her again. As this went on, you came to love
her, eventually promising to abandon the Zhongli clan to travel the world
with her. This Venerable also wants to know why.”
Zhongli Qian had never heard of anyone being able to divine fate with such
specificity, as if they’d seen it with their own eyes. If anyone else had told
this to him, he wouldn’t have believed them, but Wenren È wasn’t someone
who would make up such a wild story. Seeing how serious he was, Zhongli
Qian fell into deep thought.
He thought until Venus faded from the sky and faint sunlight illuminated
Ghost Peak, then said abruptly, “Since it never happened, it’s difficult to
guess my thoughts at the time. After considering it carefully and imagining
the circumstances Sir Wenren has proposed, I’ve come upon an explanation
which I can deeply sympathize with.”
“What?”
Zhongli Qian said with a bitter smile, “I should not say this, but the
relationship between Hè Wenzhao and Baili Qingmiao is a lot like the
relationship between the Zhongli clan and me. They can both be considered
our shackles. I carry the fortunes of the Zhongli clan, and must obey its
principles in every word and action. I cannot slip up for even a moment,
cannot act for my own sake and defy the Zhongli clan’s traditions. Miss
Baili is bound by a cruel fate, wanting to break free from Hè Wenzhao yet
infatuated with him. I am shackled by my clan, and she by her heart.
“If the fate you described is true, then there is only one reason I would
abandon the Zhongli clan. Not loving Miss Baili, but wanting to draw
courage from her. If she could abandon her feelings, then maybe I could
live for myself.”
“I see,” Wenren È said.
Zhongli Qian had never confessed any love to Baili Qingmiao. The readers
had simply misinterpreted his words and intentions. It was a romance novel,
after all, so when a good-looking young man appeared who looked after the
protagonist and offered to give up his clan position for her, the readers
would naturally understand it as love.
Just like Wenren È’s love tribulation and previous debt, Zhongli Qian’s
feelings also had hidden reasons.
Baili Qingmiao was pitiful too. She had so many entangled relationships
with so many men, yet not a single one truly loved her.
“Everyone wishes to obtain someone who will be true to them for their
entire life,” said Wenren È to the still unconscious Baili Qingmiao. “It
seems that one never existed for you.”
Too bad that she couldn’t hear it.
“Even if you figured everything out, this Venerable won’t undo the heart-
linking parasites and tracking curse,” Wenren È said to Zhongli Qian. “If
you don’t want to become infatuated with Hè Wenzhao alongside Baili
Qingmiao, then you’d better work with this Venerable.”
Zhongli Qian wasn’t annoyed and even had a hint of relief in his voice.
“The Zhongli clan won’t allow someone who cannot use his eyes and has a
heart-linking parasite in him as their heir. Your actions have actually given
me a new possibility.”
“The reputation and prestige of the Zhongli clan gives you the ability to
surpass Mahayana at Body Unity stage. Will you not regret giving it up?”
“I can cultivate to Mahayana someday on my own,” said Zhongli Qian. “I

plan on returning to the clan to pass on my responsibilities, then traveling
the world with Baili Qingmiao. After a few decades, perhaps I can find my
own Dao.”
Indeed, Wenren È’s actions had opened up a new opportunity for Zhongli
Qian, and Zhongli Qian was willing to face it.
“After you reach Mahayana, this Venerable looks forward to facing you in
battle!”
“Qian thanks the Sect Master for his recognition,” said Zhongli Qian.
As they spoke, Shu Yanyan had arrived at Ghost Peak, looking annoyed.
She landed at Wenren È’s side and said, “It stinks here! And Qiu Congxue
asked me to bring her back an unowned bone so she can have a memento. I
wish I could beat her to death! Too bad she’s stronger.”
“Protector Shu,” greeted Zhongli Qian.
“What happened to your eyes?” Shu Yanyan asked, her expression filled
with concern. “Can you not see? Did the Venerable gouge your eyes out?”
“No—”
Zhongli Qian hadn’t finished talking when Shu Yanyan turned to Wenren È.
“Venerable, if you were going to take his eyes, why didn’t you let this
subordinate do it? This subordinate is capable of it! Thinking of how the
last thing he’ll ever see is my face… it makes me very happy!”
Baili Qingmiao drifted back to consciousness. The first thing she saw was
Miss Shu’s face, and the first thing she heard was those words. She nearly
fainted again from shock.
“You’re still alive, Miss Shu?” Baili Qingmiao said, getting to her feet.
“Oh, it’s you, little fool.” Noticing another woman, Shu Yanyan instantly
took up the attitude of a Demonic Sect Protector. She said calmly and
boldly, “You’ve got a problem with me being alive? Are you happy that the
two of you got tricked into running around in circles because of me? If
you’re not, that’s good. I love it best when people are unhappy.”
“No, I’m happy,” Baili Qingmiao said, a single tear flowing from her
exposed eye. “I’m really glad you’re alive.”
Even though she had been tricked, her first thought upon learning it was,
thank god she didn’t really drive someone toward death. She didn’t think
anything along the lines of how despicable the demonic sects were, taking
advantage of righteous cultivators.
Shu Yanyan, on the other hand, felt uneasy at Baili Qingmiao’s words. She
stiffened her expression and said, “Being happy is right too. You should
thank this Protector for exposing Hè Wenzhao’s true face for you.”
Shu Yanyan wiped away Baili Qingmiao’s tear with one hand, saying
gently, “I’ll only tell you this once. Take it as repayment for deceiving you.
I’ve seen too many men like Hè Wenzhao. He was fully willing to be with
me, but would be happy to turn around and say it was seduction. He goes
after anyone who catches his eye, yet constantly tells you you’re the only
one in his heart. He puts all the responsibility on the woman. Men like that
are good for nothing!
“You deserve better than him, silly girl.”
1. Drinking Wine by Tao Yuanming ↩
2. It has associations with wisdom in Chinese culture ↩

Wants to Know
Chapter 36 – Seclusion
“Miss Baili,” Zhongli Qian said gently to Baili Qingmiao, “No matter what
you feel now, I won’t obstruct you. Whether it’s joy or grief, I’ll bear it with
you.”
Zhongli Qian was prepared for the depths of heartbreak, but after a
moment, his heart was still calm. He looked questioningly at Baili
Qingmiao.
“It’s strange…” Baili Qingmiao said, hand over her heart. “I should be sad,
so why don’t I feel anything? I’ve long since had suspicions about Miss
Shu, and even decided me and shixiong should go our own ways after that.
Just, when I saw him injured in the aftermath of the Great Sect War, I forgot
about everything else. When shixiong married Liu-shijie, I wanted to let go
again, but right now I feel like if I returned to the sect and saw him, I’d fall
back into my old habits.”
“That’s indeed pretty odd,” Shu Yanyan said. She withdrew her hand, the
tenderness vanishing from her face as she returned to being the uncaring
Demonic Sect Protector.
“Did the Venerable have orders for his subordinate?” Shu Yanyan said,
looking at Wenren È.
“Nothing anymore.” Wenren È gave Shu Yanyan a look that said “you can
scram now”.
He’d just called over Shu Yanyan in order to let Baili Qingmiao know of Hè
Wenzhao’s actions. That goal was accomplished, so he didn’t need her here.
Shu Yanyan, who had dropped everything to rush over: …
Even if she was annoyed, she had to hide it in front of the Lord of Demons.
She might as well go look for a bone.
“You also want to break free?” Zhongli Qian asked Baili Qingmiao.
“Of course. I… don’t want to become a person I would despise. But how
can I make sure I don’t make a mistake again?” Baili Qingmiao said, at a
loss.
She wasn’t stupid, just ruled by her emotions. Everyone could understand
things logically, but few people could carry it out.
“Letting go is difficult, not something you can do overnight,” said Zhongli

Qian. “I’m willing to help you along the way. In return, I hope Miss Baili
will help me find a new direction.”
No one was forcing Baili Qingmiao to let go immediately. They were all
encouraging her, helping her, giving her time. Gradually, she felt less
troubled, and was reminded of something. “I was planning to return to the
sect after traveling for ten years, but rethinking it, this was a selfish thought.
Young Master Zhongli, I need to return in order to complete an unfinished
task. Would you be willing to accompany me, and prevent me from making
a mistake again?”
“I also hope Miss Baili can accompany me back to the Zhongli manor. If
they see you, the clan elders will be more willing to find a new heir,”
Zhongli Qian said.
Baili Qingmiao: ?
Why would they be more willing to let go of Zhongli Qian upon seeing her?
Wenren È silently watched their exchange, which was friendly without any
hint of deeper feelings. He felt like the next minute, they would swear
brotherhood and sisterhood, but there were no romantic intentions there.
But this was still fine. Instead of changing Baili Qingmiao’s affections,
Wenren È preferred she didn’t love anyone, so as to cultivate the Path of
Indifference. The Path of Indifference was the best way for her to merge
with her divine nature.
“Oh yeah!” Baili Qingmiao slapped her thigh. “Senior Wenren, where’s my
master? Is she okay…?”
Her right eye was filled with hope. Since Senior Wenren’s purpose in all of
this was to help her overcome temptation, then the disappearance of her
master must’ve also been part of the plan. Certainly nothing bad had
happened to her.
“She might not necessarily be,” Wenren È said casually.
Upon just returning, she had picked a fight with Shu Yanyan, and the main
hall was only still standing because Wenren È had stopped her. Right now,
the Lord of Demons, his deputy, and the Right Protector were all away from
the main hall, so there was no one who could keep her in check. Anything
could’ve happened by this point.
“When I left, she was letting Altar Master Miao’s bugs bite her.” Shu
Yanyan had returned after picking up a bone, and hearing mention of Qiu
Congxue, barged into the conversation.
“Bugs?” Zhongli Qian said.
After hearing Baili Qingmiao’s description of Elder Qingxue’s actions, he

was very curious who this person was before the Great Sect War. The
events Baili Qingmiao had related became more concerning the more he
thought about them. He really hoped his guess wasn’t correct.
Shu Yanyan rolled her eyes. She transmitted to everyone except Baili
Qingmiao, “She used to be a ghost cultivator with no flesh, so she had no
reason to fear Altar Master Miao’s bugs. Now that she’s a wandering
immortal, Altar Master Miao threatened that he had a king gu that could
even harm wandering immortals, and she didn’t believe him and wanted
him to try. I was waiting for her to croak.”
Zhongli Qian: …
He had basically guessed who Elder Qingxue was. The people of Xuanyuan
Sect really were true to their natures and could make themselves at home in
any situation.
Knowing Protector Shu, Sect Master Wenren, and now Protector Qiu,
Zhongli Qian couldn’t help but think that he had restricted himself too
much in the past. He had never been able to express his true nature, and
didn’t know what kind of a person he would become after letting go of his
responsibilities.
Everyone in the demonic sect acted according to their desires, each living
their own way. Though there was one person who drew Zhongli Qian’s
attention.
He cast his senses toward Yin Hanjiang. The newly appointed Deputy Sect
Leader had his eyes half lidded, looking at the train of Wenren È’s robes.
Zhongli Qian couldn’t help but transmit to him, “Sect Leader Yin, of the
seven human sufferings, birth, old age, illness, and death are certainties, but
the last three, resentment, parting, and desire, can be avoided.”
Yin Hanjiang shifted his gaze to Zhongli Qian with difficulty. Even though
the young man had his eyes covered, his perceptive gaze seemed to pierce
through his blindfold.
“Sect Master Wenren is an extraordinary person,” Zhongli Qian said. “He is

powerful and decisive in his actions, and few things in the world are able to
capture his attention and his heart. A desire too strong might give birth to
resentment down the road. Better for Sect Leader Yin to let go early and not
invest your heart, lest it lead to deviation in your future cultivation.”
Yin Hanjiang understood this rationally. But just like Baili Qingmiao was
fated to be trapped by Hè Wenzhao, he was unable to let go of his
admiration toward Wenren È.
Of course he wanted to step away. He had tried, but just ended up sinking
deeper. When his Venerable inadvertently showed tenderness and concern
for him, it was like a blow to his heart.
Baili Qingmiao wanted to let go, but he only wanted to hold on tighter.
“If there is no desire, there will be no suffering,” said Yin Hanjiang. “If
there is only love, there will never be resentment.”
He wouldn’t hold any expectations for his Venerable to return his feelings,
and he wouldn’t pursue something that was impossible. He would be happy
just staying by his Venerable’s side, keeping his tiny wish hidden.
Zhongli Qian shook his head. Sect Leader Yin was more stubborn than he
had expected. This situation would lead to tragedy if it went on.
Since they had said all they needed to, the four returned to the main hall.
Zhongli Qian and Baili Qingmiao remained outside its array, with Wenren È
reassuring her that he would return Elder Qingxue in one piece.
Baili Qingmiao sat obediently in a guest room, waiting. Zhongli Qian

thought back to what Shu Yanyan had said and felt Wenren È might have
some difficulty keeping his promise.
Indeed, the moment Wenren È entered the main hall, he saw Qiu Congxue,
who had had half her body eaten by bugs, stepping on a badly battered Altar
Master Miao and laughing. “Hahahahaha! What did this Protector say?
Even if I have a body, you still can’t do anything to me!”
Wenren È saw that she only had half her face, half her flesh, and half her
organs and thought back to how he’d told Baili Qingmiao he’d return her in
one piece. It turned out Qiu Congxue was willing to use her own life to
spite him.
Seeing Wenren È’s displeasure, Yin Hanjiang blasted Qiu Congxue away
with a swing of his sword. Qiu Congxue had already expended all her
energy against Altar Master Miao and was unable to resist. She slammed
into the opposite wall, spitting up a mouthful of blood.
Wenren È sighed heavily. Holding back his anger, he said, “I don’t care how
you do it, but make yourself presentable to others. You can heal your
injuries later.”
Qiu Congxue didn’t dare backtalk and shifted the flesh from the intact parts
of her body to her face. She wrapped her black robe tightly around her,
making it so her head looked undamaged while blood still dripped from her
body underneath.
Looking at her current state, Shu Yanyan laughed her ass off. She tossed the
bone to Qiu Congxue and said, “Here, your bone. Take it back and have fun
reminiscing over it.”
Wenren È flew to the main seat and sat down, with Yin Hanjiang following
close behind, standing next to the throne. Qiu Congxue and Shu Yanyan
rushed to take their places as Left and Right Protectors. Four battered and
beaten Altar Masters also managed to stand with each other’s help.
Wenren È swept his gaze over all of them. “After the Great Sect War, this
Venerable was occupied with other matters and overlooked Xuanyuan
Sect[1]. Each of you also seem to have forgotten your positions, constantly
fighting amongst each other. If this continues, the Xuanyuan Sect cannot
stand.”
“This subordinate was wrong,” the six said simultaneously.
“From today forward, the Xuanyuan Sect’s array will be closed and no one
will be allowed to exit. The four Altar Masters are to return to their own
domains and recuperate, so that in a hundred years’ time, you can return to
your power from before the Great Sect War.”
“Understood!”
“Protector Shu, for not knowing her place and trying to steal this
Venerable’s position, has already been assigned a punishment of a hundred
years. However, this Venerable previously agreed to let her cultivate on the
Burning Sky Drum before the war. Therefore, during our seclusion,
Protector Shu is permitted to cultivate on the Burning Sky Drum for the
duration of her punishment,” Wenren È said.
“I can cultivate for a hundred years?” Shu Yanyan said, her eyes lighting
up.
“Venerable!” Altar Master Yuan said frantically. “If she cultivated on it for a
hundred years, she could ascend on the spot, and probably become a Great
Golden Immortal on top of that! This is clearly a reward, not a
punishment!”
The other Altar Masters and Qiu Congxue also looked dissatisfied.
“Thus, this Venerable has decided Protector Shu’s punishment will be

shortened by ninety-nine years. That leaves only one year. Is everyone
satisfied with this?” This was the reward he had previously offered Shu
Yanyan, but it was in return for something she had done for him, not for the
Xuanyuan Sect. If he wanted to reduce the punishment, other people still
needed to be appeased. After all, Altar Masters Ruan and Shi had been sent
to Shu Yanyan’s bed.
“Yes, of course.” Everyone nodded their heads in succession.
Shu Yanyan also felt it was reasonable. After all, she preferred a good work-
life balance, and would get tired of cultivating for a hundred years straight.
“Protector Qiu will leave and remain undercover in Shangqing Sect,”

Wenren È said.
“Should this subordinate relay information about Shangqing Sect?” Qiu

Congxue asked earnestly.
“…That won’t be necessary,” said Wenren È. “Just act according to your

own judgment. If you put your efforts toward helping Shangqing Sect,
that’ll be its own form of interference.”
Qiu Congxue: …
Was the Venerable praising her? She’ll just take it as praise.

Shu Yanyan covered her mouth. Were it not for how serious this situation
was, she would be laughing her head off.
“Altar Master Shi will be presented with the Hundred Ghost Flag, which
can prevent ghosts of Void Boundary and below from approaching,”
Wenren È said, glancing at Shi Congxin.
Shi Congxin was so happy he nearly spat up blood. After receiving the flag,
he returned contentedly to the Hellfire Pavilion.
The other three Altar Masters all earned their own rewards. Even the deeply
traumatized Altar Master Ruan had received a Forgetfulness Potion which
could erase some memories he didn’t like.
The Xuanyuan Sect had fallen into disorder after the Great Sect War. With
both rewards and force, Wenren È beat it back into shape, sorting out the
place near-effortlessly. His subordinates probably wouldn’t think of stirring
any more trouble for the next few decades.
After receiving their orders, each of the Altar Masters left, Qiu Congxue
going with Baili Qingmiao and Zhongli Qian. Xuanyuan Sect sent out word
that it would be in seclusion for thirty years, not engaging with the outside
world. Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang then each entered seclusion on their
own, to work on their new techniques or new weapon respectively.
Wenren È’s cultivation grounds consisted of an indoors and outdoors space.

The room was very big, enough to comfortably hold Shu Yanyan’s hundred-
meter-long Frost Jade Bed. That was because if Wenren È released his
power in a smaller room, it would probably need to be rebuilt every day.
Both the inside and outside spaces were surrounded by arrays. He and Yin
Hanjiang could cultivate alongside each other without interfering with each
other.
After he was finally alone, Wenren È placed a hand on his left arm. The
illusion he’d made out of blood mist vanished.
Everyone, including Yin Hanjiang, thought that the arm Wenren È had used
to forge the Army Crushing Sword was quickly restored. Only Wenren È
knew that this arm was a fake created out of spiritual essence, which he
couldn’t use for anything.
Over the past days, he’d taken many elixirs for restoring the body and soul,
all to no use.
Blood had to be restored with blood, and soul with soul. What he needed
was not legendary treasures or spiritual medicines, but the blood and soul of
a cultivator.
No wonder the Blood Demon Elder had become the target of the entire
cultivation world ten thousand years ago, and people saw blood cultivators
as destined to become demons. Only after becoming a blood cultivator did
Wenren È realized that his body no longer had meridians or a dantian, and
he could no longer cultivate by his previous methods. The only thing he
could do to advance or restore his body was devouring others’ souls.
His power had no bottlenecks and, being above Mahayana, he no longer

needed to face heavenly tribulations. Just by absorbing souls, he could
become strong enough to fight the immortals of the upper realms. But if he
kept increasing his power without strengthening his mind, then sooner or
later he would be enslaved by it, and become a heartless monster who only
knew to consume.
Blood cultivators were destined to become demons. There was no return

after going down this route.
Wenren È clamped a hand on his arm, blood qi roiling within his body. He
didn’t care about the lives of other cultivators, and had killed several
experts of the righteous sects during the war. He was willing to kill, but he
would not absorb anyone’s soul. Some people might think that there was
nothing wrong with taking the soul of an enemy. They could eliminate
opposition and increase their power at the same time. But this was a
slippery slope, and human desire was a bottomless abyss which would
never be satisfied. Someday, he would have no more compunctions about
devouring human souls. At that point, he would turn on the people most
important to him.[2]
He would never go down that path, even if he could never advance, and
would waste away and eventually die.
He had closed the gates of Xuanyuan Sect for thirty years in order to figure
something out in that time. Even if he didn’t find a solution for thirty years,
Yin Hanjiang was sure to make significant advances, and would be able to
help him manage Xuanyuan Sect.
He at least had to be strong enough that, if the day came when Wenren È
was desperate enough to enter the Blood Hell, Yin Hanjiang would be able
to follow him.
Wenren È put up another array inside and took out his two books. He
needed to use them to keep an eye on outside happenings from time to time.
He couldn’t be completely ignorant for thirty years.
1. oh my god you were on a date with your boyfriend ↩
2. Ok, there is no plural conjugation in Chinese but… there’s only one

person… but I don’t think he’s realized that yet, I think he’s speaking
generally ↩
Wants to Know
Chapter 37 – Thirty years later
In this time, nothing much happened in God of Annihilation. Hè Wenzhao

and Liu Xinye’s wedding was passed over in a few lines. Afterward, Hè
Wenzhao made progress in cultivation with the help of his mental master,
working on revitalizing his sect and continuing to investigate his village’s
massacre. On occasion, he would miss Baili Qingmiao, but never
mentioned Liu Xinye—his new wife seemed to have become invisible. The
female character all the readers of Abusive Romance hated so much had
been reduced to a shadow.
This was how God of Annihilation operated. Hè Wenzhao would get

involved with many girls over the course of the story, having short flings
with some, all of whom never got mentioned again. Only Baili Qingmiao
and the Violet Spirit Master were female characters who consistently
showed up in volume one. The Violet Spirit Master was a “good wife” who
helped Hè Wenzhao manage his harem, and was perfect in the readers’ eyes.
Baili Qingmiao was a plot device. Whenever Hè Wenzhao needed to go

somewhere else or fight a new enemy, Baili Qingmiao would be “stolen” by
a new man. Hè Wenzhao would search for her, kill the man, and level up.
Then Baili Qingmiao would be “stolen” again and Hè Wenzhao would go
after her again, killing his way from Zhongli Qian to Wenren È. Yin
Hanjiang had never been mentioned though, and it was unclear why there
was no sign of him in God of Annihilation.
Abusive Romance‘s plot was much more exciting that God of

Annihilation‘s. Baili Qingmiao had left Shangqing Sect in deep anguish,
met Zhongli Qian in the Hellfire Pavilion, he had seen through Wenren È’s
plan and Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang had shown themselves—even the
Ghost Mask’s identity had been revealed several hundred thousand words in
advance. The comment section was on fire, seemingly longer than the
chapters themselves, enough to make Wenren È’s eyes blur.
[Extra, extra, Abusive Romance (Revised Edition) has made the charts
again. Never thought this trashy work would make a comeback in my
lifetime. Cheers to the author, it was worth following the revision since the
beginning.]
[Not surprising, the author has written so many plot twists I can’t keep up. I
can’t guess at all what she’s going to write next. All the melodrama in the
original has become perfectly reasonable and logical, some people have
even put up side by side comparisons in the discussion pages. It’s really
impressive that the author has managed to change the story so much
without contradicting the old characters.]
[As a new reader who’s only seen the revision, how come someone as
loveable as Shu Yanyan had no fans before?]
[Because Shu Yanyan originally only showed up once and slept with an
unconscious Hè Wenzhao in front of Baili Qingmiao, making him a cripple.
She was awful to the protagonist and brought her a lot of suffering.]
[Forget the old Shu Yanyan, now we have our Sister Yanyan who’ll lovingly
wipe the tears off your face while calling you ‘silly girl’. Oh, that was
incredible.]
[Everyone stans Shu Yanyan? I stan Qingxue. I fell in love with her back
when she set up Hè Wenzhao and Liu Xinye. What a unique woman!]
[Oh come on, why are you all discussing girls? Isn’t Zhongli Qian smart?
Isn’t Wenren È badass? My god, his badassery has increased in the revision.
I’ve never seen the number 2 love interest pair the MC with the number 3 to
get her away from the ML. That man has some unique ideas.]
[Let me summarize the previous post. Why does Wenren È want his girl to
get stolen?]
[I get the feeling that this time around Wenren È is treating the MC as a
daughter, and now he wants to pick a good husband for his silly girl.]
[Zhongli Qian didn’t steal his girl, he sees her as a sister… no, actually, as a
little brother. I feel like the next moment, Zhongli Qian will find another
girl to introduce the MC to.]
[Baili Qingmiao laughing boldly was hilarious. I never imagined Baili

Qingmiao could be described as bold. Wenren È was a genius for coming
up with the heart-linking parasites.]
[Looking forward to future developments. I’m eager to see what kind of

high literature the author can revise this novel into.]
Seeing that most of the reviews were positive, with only a few fans of the
original story trashing the author, Wenren È nodded to himself, feeling an
uncommon sense of accomplishment.
Closing the book, he rubbed his missing arm and took out several manuals
from his sleeves. He had stolen them while unifying the demonic sects
some years back. Along with techniques from sects he had eliminated, he
even had the methods of the two Protectors and four Altar Masters.
He knew that what he’d gotten from his subordinates wasn’t complete.
Some crucial points could’ve been hidden or revised. But Wenren È didn’t
mind. He didn’t intend to actually practice them, and just collected them for
intimidation.
He looked through one jade slip scroll after another, studying them
carefully for a whole month. There were hardly any references to blood
cultivation to be found. Ten thousand years was a long time even in the
cultivation world, and most records of the blood arts had already been lost.
Wenren È had learned the Blood Severing Technique when he obtained the
Chiming blade.
Chiming was a demonic sword born in the Blood Hell, even older than the
Blood Demon Elder, so the Blood Severing Technique Wenren È had used
didn’t originate from the Blood Demon Elder. However, there was a line
written in the surviving records of the war against the Blood Demon ten
thousand years ago. The leader of the righteous sects at the time, the Sword
Immortal, had said that if a blood cultivator wanted to walk the righteous
path, then they must rise from their own ashes. The Blood Demon Elder had
shown himself to not have such a resolution, and thus was slain by the
cultivation world.
Rise from one’s own ashes?
Wenren È wasn’t incapable of such resolve. He just needed to make some

prior arrangements. If he wasn’t able to succeed, he had to make sure
someone he left behind wouldn’t be lost without him.
Wenren È had wished to be alone in life and death, to have no connections

to anyone.
Yet…
He looked into the distance, toward the direction where Yin Hanjiang
dedicated himself to cultivation, hoping to become stronger to serve his
lord.
Wenren È also settled down and focused on investigating the state of his
body, trying to find a way to absorb natural spiritual energy. At the very
least, he wanted to restore his arm.
Cultivators were untouched by time. A year passed in the blink of an eye,

and Shu Yanyan completed her seclusion on the Burning Sky Drum. She
giddily took her subordinates who had been sent to the main hall back to
her palace, where she had a satisfying session of cultivation. She had
increased her power in this past year, and her subordinates received greater
benefits in return. Their loyalty to Shu Yanyan grew and they served her
more faithfully.
There was just one point of concern. The Right Protector had her
subordinates buy many books and ordered them all to read them, hoping to
raise a cultured gentleman to satisfy some craving of hers. After three
months, though, she gave up. It was easy to raise snobs but hard to find real
gentlemen. She wasn’t one to force people to do things, and she still liked
how her subordinates were direct with their intentions and wishes.
The gentleman who Shu Yanyan had been hung up on for all of three
months before forgetting about had accompanied Baili Qingmiao to
Shangqing Sect, after leaving the Hellfire Pavilion.
Since Hè Wenzhao was currently traveling, Baili Qingmiao greeted several

of her elders, then called over Liu Xinye to give the Seven-Colored Jade
Lotus Heart to her.
“Wh—where did you get such a mystical item?” said her master, Elder
Qingrong.
“With the help of Immortal Qingxue, I obtained it at the Golden Coast

Cliffs,” Baili Qingmiao said. “I wish to give it to Liu-shijie to aid in her
recovery.”
In front of the rest of the elders, Qingrong couldn’t scold her disciple, but
she was frantic. If Baili Qingmiao had gained such an amazing treasure,
why wasn’t she using it to raise her own realm, and instead giving it to Liu
Xinye? Her disciple had only one fault, which was that she didn’t use her
brains enough. After becoming the nominal disciple of Immortal Qingxue,
this habit had only gotten worse.
“Silly child, all you’re thinking about is your Liu-shijie?” said Elder
Qingrong, blinking desperately at Baili Qingmiao. “Don’t you ever consider
yourself? Look at your eyes. You’ve had your left eye covered all this time
—has it been injured? You ought to have the medicinal hall elder take a
look at it. The Seven-Colored Lotus Heart might be able to cure it.”
Baili Qingmiao’s remaining eye shone clear and bright as she held the lotus
heart in both hands. “Don’t worry, master,” she said. “Your disciple also has
desires for herself.”
She turned to Liu Xinye. Thinking back to the words Zhongli Qian had
helped her rehearse, she said resolutely, “Liu-shijie, we’ve always disagreed
with each other. Everyone at Shangqing Sect knows this, and I don’t wish to
hide my thoughts from you. I don’t like you, and I’m not giving this lotus
heart to you for your sake, but in order to let go of my fantasies.”
Hearing “fantasies”, Elder Qingrong sighed deeply. Hè Wenzhao had good

aptitudes and was a beloved disciple of Shangqing Sect, so even if he had
some improper relations with women, the sect elders could look the other
way. As long as he didn’t cause major trouble or deviate, they would leave
him be.
But when it came to Baili Qingmiao, who had been infatuated with him for
many years, Hè Wenzhao really hadn’t treated her right. For each day that
Liu Xinye went unhealed, Baili Qingmiao’s mind would be stuck on Hè
Wenzhao for one more day, thinking dark thoughts like “I wish Liu-shijie
would die already”. Her cultivation would eventually be affected. In this
way, her choice could be considered as opening a new path for herself. It
wasn’t out of thoughtless altruism.
Of course Liu Xinye wanted the elixir. She was tired of the way Hè
Wenzhao looked at her. She had sacrificed her spiritual root for him, but
after their marriage, every time Hè Wenzhao looked at her, he would sigh.
He was a kind person and obviously wouldn’t say anything like “You’re the
reason I can’t have Baili Qingmiao”. But Liu Xinye kept thinking—if she
was stronger, would shixiong like her more?
She reached out a hand for it, but Baili Qingmiao stepped away.
“Baili Qingmiao!” Anxiety rose in Liu Xinye’s heart as she glared at Baili
Qingmiao.
“I’m happy to give you the Seven-Colored Lotus Heart, and I don’t need
anything in return,” said Baili Qingmiao. “But I didn’t get this alone. I was
only able to because of Master Qingxue’s help, so Liu-shijie ought to thank
Master Qingxue first.”
She handed the lotus heart to Qiu Congxue.
“Huh?” said Qiu Congxue, who’d been dozing off this whole time. With
some effort, she lifted her eyelids and stuck an intact hand out of her robe to
accept it. She was currently missing most of her body, and had to focus on
maintaining the flesh on her face, so even making that motion wasn’t easy.
“Immortal Qingxue,” said Liu Xinye, gazing at Qiu Congxue. She could be
angry to Baili Qingmiao, but she had no will to defy a wandering immortal.
The Seven-Colored Lotus Heart was an elixir for restoring spiritual roots
and spiritual power, and didn’t have much use for restoring flesh, so Qiu
Congxue wasn’t particularly interested. She was a demonic cultivator,
though, and wouldn’t give something valuable to someone else even if she
had no use for it.
She tossed the glowing treasure in her hand a few times. Liu Xinye’s gaze
followed it up and down, frightened that she would drop it and dirty it on
the floor.
“Why do you want to give something this good to her?” With effort, Qiu
Congxue recalled the events at the Golden Coast Cliffs. “While getting this
thing, I crawled in the ocean with no spiritual energy for hours,” she said
unhappily.
After her lord dropped her into the ocean, she had to swim back to the
cliffs.
Bitterly, Liu Xinye got to her knees. “Immortal Qingxue, the lotus heart is
useless to you. Will you please let this disciple have it? I swear I’ll return
the favor to you in the future.”
“In the future?” Qiu Congxue furrowed her brows, a scornful look on her
face. “What good is that? What if I ascend in the future? What if you die in
the future?”
Liu Xinye: …
Her master, Elder Qingyi, quickly stepped in for her. “Isn’t this because
Xinye currently has no spiritual root and is as good as an ordinary person?
Even if she swore to do something for you, she couldn’t. That’s why she has
to promise to repay you in the future.”
“I don’t believe in the future,” Qiu Congxue said flatly. “I’ll take payment
now. Make a spirit vow that you’ll pay me back with a treasure of twice the
value. If you can’t, your spirit and Nascent Soul will be mine.”
Liu Xinye: …
“Immortal Qingxue, this… this demand of yours is too heavy,” said Elder
Qingyi. “It’s hard to find another treasure like the Seven-Colored Lotus
Heart, let alone one twice the value. If you make her take this vow, won’t
you really be taking her spirit and Nascent Soul in the future?”
“Of course. It can have some use in refining elixirs or magic items,” Qiu
Congxue said, unconcerned. “Or I can eat it myself, or send word out to
anyone interested in buying it. I’m sure to find someone willing to pay good
money.”
Liu Xinye, gritting her teeth, made the vow on her knees. Qiu Congxue
roughly extracted a wisp of her soul, then finally gave the lotus heart to her.
The whole time, Liu Xinye glared at Baili Qingmiao.
Baili Qingmiao only thought back to Zhongli Qian’s words. “Miss Baili, I
want you to turn the final decision over to Elder Qingxue. Not to make
things difficult for Liu Xinye, but to test Hè Wenzhao. If Liu Xinye can’t
pay her debt, will Hè Wenzhao help her? He owes his life to Liu Xinye, so
it’s the proper thing for him to do. If he’s willing to watch his wife lose her
soul to a pact without lifting a hand to help her, then you’ll know you were
mistaken about him.”
Therefore, Baili Qingmiao didn’t immediately leave Shangqing Sect and

stuck around for a few days for Hè Wenzhao’s return. When Hè Wenzhao
heard that his little shimei was back, he ignored his wife and ran to Baili
Qingmiao.
Baili Qingmiao looked at Hè Wenzhao with one eye, the other covered with
a band the same black as Qiu Congxue’s robes. Hè Wenzhao stopped short.
Taking a deep breath, he said, “Shimei, your eye… were you injured?”
“It’s nothing,” Baili Qingmiao said. She put a hand on her heart and found
it calm. Silently, she exchanged a thankful gaze with Zhongli Qian before
continuing, “Shixiong, don’t you want to see Liu-shijie? She’s in seclusion
right now, and her spiritual root will be restored in a few more days.”
“Shimei!” Hè Wenzhao grasped Baili Qingmiao’s hand. With a soulful look,

he said, “You know who the person I truly love is.”
“But aside from love, duty and debt are also important.” Baili Qingmiao
pulled her hand away firmly. “Shixiong,” she said coolly, “if you’re
someone who values his responsibilities, then while you’re in no position to
marry me, please keep your own wishes hidden. Don’t betray the two
women in your life. If you can’t even manage this, then how can you handle
the leadership of the Shangqing Sect in the future? How can someone who
can’t deal with his own problems make the world a better place?”
She turned away decisively, reporting to the administration hall master that
she wished to travel the world for a few decades, to return after she made
peace with her emotions.
Elder Qingrong tearfully accepted.
At the foot of the mountain, Zhongli Qian held a walking cane, waiting for
her with a faint smile.
The single-eyed team greeted each other with a smile, about to head off
together, but Elder Qingxue came after them. She said haughtily, “I’m
bored at Shangqing Sect. I’ve decided to leave and steal— find some
opportunities to raise my cultivation.”
“I’m so glad master can accompany us!” Baili Qingmiao said, throwing her
arms around Qiu Congxue. She felt her sleeves. “Eh? Master, what
happened to your body?”
Zhongli Qian: …
Altar Master Qiu truly was exceptional.

Thus, the three traveled the world together for thirty years. Zhongli Qian
rose to Mahayana, while Baili Qingmiao came across many opportunities
and managed to rise to Body Unity, entering the top ranks of the cultivation
world.
The comment section wasn’t altogether pleased at this development.
[Aw come on, if Baili Qingmiao and Zhongli Qian want to travel the world,
what does that have to do with you, Immortal Qingxue?]
[Aw come on, if Baili Qingmiao wants to travel the world with her Master
Qingxue, what does that have to do with you, Zhongli Qian?]
It was all this type of complaint.
After glancing through the comments, Wenren È closed the book. He

created a new illusory arm from blood mist, opened the array, and left the
room.
Yin Hanjiang had already exited seclusion and was waiting outside. Seeing
Wenren È exit, he immediately went forward to pay respects to him. His
Venerable swept an odd, hungry look over him, then looked away quickly.
“Top level of Void Boundary, on the threshold of Mahayana,” he said
lightly. “Sect Leader Yin has shown incredible progress in just thirty years.”
“It’s thanks to the Spirit Gathering Array the Venerable set,” Yin Hanjiang
said.
“Since you are a high-level cultivator in your own right, this Venerable is
assigning you a task,” said Wenren È, a hand on his sleeve. “There is a
traitor in Xuanyuan Sect, who will join forces against us with Hè Wenzhao
in the future. His name is Cen Zhengqi. I’m uncertain whether or not he has
already joined the sect at this point, or whether or not he has changed his
name. Find this man for me.”
Yin Hanjiang stared for a moment. He wasn’t surprised there was a traitor
in the sect. Strictly speaking, Xuanyuan Sect was all traitors except Yin
Hanjiang. If Wenren È showed the slightest weakness, anyone might turn on
him.
Wenren È didn’t mind disloyalty in his subordinates. He had said before

that he only minded incompetence.
Thirty years ago, Wenren È had never brought up looking for a traitor,
whether during the Great Sect War or while sorting out the sect afterward.
How come after thirty years, he suddenly cared about insubordination
within his own ranks?
Yin Hanjiang looked up doubtfully, but saw that Wenren È wasn’t looking
at him. He couldn’t meet his Venerable’s warm gaze.

Wants to Know
Chapter 38 – Crane-Haired Wanderer
Wenren È had sealed his sense of smell, and did his best to not look at Yin
Hanjiang.
In the last thirty years, he had not only failed to find a method to restore his
body, but his desire for blood had grown over time.
While he was cultivating, he had awakened to how to use the blood art on
his own. One just needed to use the blood mist that composed their body to
envelop the target and dissolve them, then direct the blood to flow into the
patterns engraved on one’s soul. After circulating it through the body thirty-
six times, the victim would be completely absorbed without a trace, and the
entirety of their spiritual essence preserved.
A Mahayana cultivator, even if they had unparalleled aptitudes and

boundless opportunities, would’ve taken at least a century to cultivate to
that stage. Yet a blood cultivator could gain that power in just three days.
If someone practiced the blood art from Foundation Establishment and

managed to consume enough cultivators, then before the year was out, they
could become a Great Golden Immortal. In a decade, they could surpass the
immortal realm and ascend to godhood.
Wenren È had said before that the “demon” in “demonic path” was distinct
from true demons. What was truly a demon? If there was a single demon in
a world, then all life within it would go extinct and the land would become
barren. That was a demon.
In the myriad ways of cultivation, countless worlds had developed countless

demons. During primordial times, the gods worked together to seal 180
thousand demonic gods. After sustaining losses that more than halved their
numbers, they sealed them within the demonic realm, only connected to
other worlds via the Blood Hell. No one could enter the Blood Hell and
return.
Following Wenren È’s command, Yin Hanjiang left to verify Xuanyuan

Sect’s roster with Altar Master Yuan. Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang usually
didn’t pay attention to these unimportant masters and left managing
personnel to the rather more shrewd Altar Master Yuan. Yin Hanjiang would
need his help to find Cen Zhengqi.
After he left, Wenren È slowly turned around.
In these thirty years, he had hoped Yin Hanjiang would reach Mahayana
and let go of attachments to the self and others, so he wouldn’t lose his
mind if Wenren È died. That way, Wenren È could enter the Blood Hell
without concern.
In the first volume of God of Annihilation, Hè Wenzhao plotted with the

Blood Demon Elder and Cen Zhengqi. Together, they lured Wenren È to the
Blood Hell with the news that Baili Qingmiao was in danger, and after a
round of fighting, managed to knock him into the sea of blood.
It seemed some things were predestined. Wenren È was meant to enter the
Blood Hell, and the Blood Hell was meant to be his grave.
He had avoided his destiny to be saved by Baili Qingmiao in the Great Sect
War, and Baili Qingmiao had let go of Hè Wenzhao with the help of
Zhongli Qian. Wenren È thought that after he had accomplished so much,
fate would’ve been diverted a little. But he had made no progress in thirty
years. It seemed he had no choice but to enter the Blood Hell.
Then was Yin Hanjiang’s madness predetermined too?
No, it couldn’t be. Wenren È looked down at his remaining hand and
clenched his fist.
Polis would not fall, and Alkaid would not go mad. He would only allow
Alkaid to fall with him. He had already told Yin Hanjiang he could
accompany him after he died.
He had already prepared for the worst. Now he just needed to resolve some
other problems before he left for the Blood Hell.
When he obtained God of Annihilation thirty years ago, he hadn’t paid

much mind to the demonic sect traitor, Cen Zhengqi. He couldn’t remember
this name no matter how much he thought. Xuanyuan Sect was big, with
each of the Altar Masters and Protectors managing their own territory.
Wenren È didn’t even know Shu Yanyan had a subordinate named Helian,
so how would he remember a Cen Zhengqi?
He had sent Yin Hanjiang to search so he would be relatively nearby while

not being by Wenren È’s side. That way, he could resist the blood arts’
temptation while making sure Yin Hanjiang didn’t feel abandoned.
Wenren È didn’t mind his subordinates being disloyal. Members of

Xuanyuan Sect who didn’t want to become the Lord of Demons themselves
weren’t worth much. But Cen Zhengqi had committed three unforgivable
acts in the original story. First, he had helped Hè Wenzhao kill Shu Yanyan.
Hè Wenzhao hated Shu Yanyan, and joining forces with the perfectly
average-looking Cen Zhengqi, set a trap to do away with her. Second, he
helped Hè Wenzhao eliminate opposition within the righteous sects, and put
all the blame on Wenren È. Third, he killed Wenren È with Hè Wenzhao.
After Wenren È’s death, Cen Zhengqi took control of Xuanyuan Sect, while
Baili Qingmiao and Hè Wenzhao ascended together. Who knew if the
second volume would touch on the Xuanyuan Sect again, or how many of
the Protectors and Altar Masters had ended up surviving?
Even if Wenren È wanted to go to the Blood Hell, he would enter it on his

own terms, and not be pushed in by a backstabber.
The one in Xuanyuan Sect most suited to finding Cen Zhengqi, who
wouldn’t let information leak, was Yin Hanjiang.
Yin Hanjiang visited Altar Master Yuan and obtained several ledgers of
names. They were very thorough, even listing people who had already died
when the old sect master was in power. Altar Master Yuan had also
painstakingly recorded when they entered Xuanyuan Sect, who recruited
them, and any changes in position in the intervening time.
“This old man entered Xuanyuan Sect three hundred years ago and became
the Main Hall Master two hundred years ago. The records since then are all
complete. From two hundred to three hundred years ago, everything’s
recorded from memory and they can’t exactly be considered complete.
Further back than three hundred years, there’s nothing.” Altar Master Yuan
might’ve referred to himself as an old man, but in actuality he wasn’t old,
just plump. He looked like a typical middle-aged man.
Yin Hanjiang carefully looked over the names and found no Cen Zhengqi.
He returned the records from two hundred years ago to Altar Master Yuan
and kept the incomplete register from three hundred years ago. He planned
to check every name who had entered Xuanyuan Sect three hundred years
ago and was still alive now.
“What does the Venerable need the register for? Can this old man lend a
hand?” Altar Master Yuan said with a fawning smile.
“No need,” said Yin Hanjiang, rolling up the list. He had not, at any point,
mentioned Cen Zhengqi.
If he was a traitor and had changed his name, then he would increase his
vigilance if he heard it.
Yin Hanjiang first eliminated all the Nascent Soul and below names from
the list. If your level was too low, you wouldn’t even have the chance to
backstab in Xuanyuan Sect. Those who were still alive after more than two
hundred years only consisted of the Altar Masters, the Sect Protectors, and
some of their most trusted subordinates.
Qiu Congxue had been a ghost cultivator of the Hellfire Pavilion three
hundred years ago. She didn’t have brains and couldn’t be much of a traitor,
so could be crossed off the list. Shu Yanyan had joined a hundred and fifty
years ago. Having been close to the old sect master, she was immediately
made Right Protector, so she could be crossed off. Though, she had a
subordinate called Helian Yi who had remained at Body Unity stage for
many years. He had joined Xuanyuan Sect three hundred years ago and his
record wasn’t very detailed. It was a bit odd that he had been content to be
Shu Yanyan’s boytoy all this time.
The final candidates were Helian Yi and Altar Masters Miao, Ruan, and
Yuan. None of them were convenient to investigate.
Yin Hanjiang returned to Wenren È and reported his findings. Wenren È

was seated, reading Abusive Romance in one hand, and nodded slightly in
approval.
Cen Zhengqi had made his debut a hundred years into the story, so it was
possible he was yet to join. But these four suspects Yin Hanjiang had found
couldn’t be overlooked either. They needed to be quietly monitored.
Aside from the traitor business, Wenren È also paid attention to Baili
Qingmiao’s side of things.
Baili Qingmiao, Immortal Qingxue, and Zhongli Qian had wandered

together for thirty years. From the book’s description, Qiu Congxue had
dropped her cover multiple times, only remaining unnoticed because of
Zhongli Qian covering for her and Baili Qingmiao being gullible. The plot
had had no changes in thirty years, with the author only writing several
chapters of slice of life. Even just reading, Wenren È broke into a sweat for
Qiu Congxue’s sake. Zhongli Qian, on the other hand, was right there with
her.
It seemed that his hair had turned white overnight twenty-two years ago.
With white hair and a young appearance, he appeared even more like an
immortal now.
Why did his hair turn white? The reason had to do with the “young”,
“innocent”, “playful”, and “good-natured” new disciple of eighteen years
old that Baili Qingmiao had taken in. Baili Qingmiao also had a fate with
this disciple. Eighteen years ago, she’d passed by a village haunted by
ghosts on her first outing from Shangqing Sect. She had helped exorcise the
ghosts and thus delayed her arrival to the Thousand Mile Ice Plains for a
few days, making Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang wait for her.
Eighteen years later, Baili Qingmiao coincidentally returned to the village

and found a youth with a passion for practicing martial arts, who had
managed to make it to Qi Refining stage without being taught, just a step
away from Foundation Establishment. Baili Qingmiao, who had reached
Deity Transformation by then, decided to take him as disciple upon seeing
such incredible aptitude. While Zhongli Qian was busy helping Immortal
Qingxue escape the righteous cultivators that had been chasing them down
all this time, she helped the boy establish his foundation, and by the time
Zhongli Qian returned, the boy had already kowtowed to her as master.
Baili Qingmiao dragged him over to introduce him to Zhongli Qian and
Immortal Qingxue.
With his spiritual cognition, Zhongli Qian could see that the boy was
cheerful to Baili Qingmiao’s face, but behind her back, his expression
turned dark and his eyes vicious. When Immortal Qingxue loudly praised
the boy for being nice and obedient, immediately getting along with him,
Zhongli Qian started getting a headache.
Baili Qingmiao had said, smiling, “Brother Zhongli, Su Huai was born the
day I exorcised ghosts here. Maybe destiny is connecting us?”
Zhongli Qian instantly had misgivings and wanted to prevent her from
accepting the boy, but he couldn’t go against Immortal Qingxue. He only
sat meditating for a night, and the next day, the sun shone on his white hair.
Baili Qingmiao: …
“Brother Zhongli, was it that last night I was anxious about not being able
to teach a disciple properly and stayed up the whole night? Did I make your
hair turn white?”
Zhongli Qian slowly shook his head. After Baili Qingmiao had taken her
disciple, she was only happily looking forward to their time together. She
had stayed up worrying a whole night because Zhongli Qian had stayed up,
looking up at the stars and thinking that he’d never be able to correct Baili
Qingmiao’s ways. Baili Qingmiao was only anxious because he was
anxious.
“Cultivators can change their own bodies after reaching Nascent Soul,”
Zhongli Qian said. “Even if I was worried, my hair wouldn’t turn white
from it.” He tied up his hair, fixing up his appearance.
The meaning of his words being that he’d made his hair white himself, and
wasn’t planning to restore it for now.
Baili Qingmiao didn’t get it, and neither did the readers of Abusive
Romance.
[This journey has been wild. Three people only have three eyes between
them, so that’s at least one for each. But how come they collectively only
have one brain? Isn’t Zhongli Qian overworked carrying the whole team?]
[Man, I was mistaken. I thought Qingxue was a good counterpart for the
idiot protagonist with how domineering she was, but I didn’t know she’d
take it this far. If they didn’t have Zhongli Qian with them, nothing would
be standing in these two’s wake. The only thing keeping Qingxue from
murdering everyone they meet or the two from being murdered is Zhongli
Qian.]
[The more I read, the more I feel like something’s wrong with Qingxue?
When the Nanguo clan sent out invitations to their newborn’s celebration,
she toppled the Ghost Suppressing Stele in their back courtyard, exposing
how the Nanguo clan extracted the spiritual roots of their bastard and
branch children in order to give birth to an heir with a pure spiritual root,
and letting loose a bunch of resentful child ghosts.]
[Isn’t that a good thing? Immortal Qingxue is such a charitable wandering

immortal!]
[The problem is that she didn’t denounce the Nanguo clan alongside the
righteous cultivators, but instead grabbed the clan head full of enthusiasm
and asked how they raised such splendid resentful ghosts, and also whether
or not he could give them to her. If Zhongli Qian hadn’t explained that she
was joking, the righteous cultivators would’ve exorcised her along with the
ghosts.]
[After hearing about the evil technique, she also looked at Baili Qingmiao
with her eyes shining. That gave me chills at the moment. I was scared Baili
Qingmiao would wake up one day with her spiritual root stolen.]
[I don’t believe it. Immortal Qingxue takes care of Baili Qingmiao the best.
She had to have been trying to save those suffering children.]
[Are you as braindead as Baili Qingmiao? Even Zhongli Qian can see the
problems with Qingxue and he’s blind. Can Baili Qingmiao donate her eye
to him? Let my Qian see the light again!]
[I don’t care about Zhongli Qian and Qingxue fighting over Baili Qingmiao.
There’s just one thing that’s been bothering me. Author, look up at your
own title. ‘Abusive Romance: You Are the Unchanging One in My Heart’.
How does this story fit this title anymore?]
[It’s a good thing that it doesn’t fit the title.]
[Yeah, it’s a good thing.]
Baili Qingmiao might’ve been mystified as to why Zhongli Qian’s hair was
white, but Wenren È knew. He had used a technique for suppressing ghosts
—Wordless Child.
This could only be learned by the four great clans, who studied
Confucianism deeply. Those who used it would experience the vicissitudes
of human society in a single night, their hair turning white as a result. After
completing the technique, ghost cultivators would be scared to approach,
suppressed by great virtues.
And indeed, after Zhongli Qian’s hair went white, Qingxue and Su Huai
settled down a lot. Qiu Congxue, at least, was a flexible person who had
learned from Zhongli Qian to think before she acted, and now first
discussed with Zhongli Qian when anything came up. They wouldn’t end
up pursued by dozens of righteous cultivators anymore.
After completing Wordless Child, Zhongli Qian decided to spread

philosophy in his wanderings, teaching countryside children how to read
and write. The three separate generations of Qingxue, Baili Qingmiao, and
Su Huai also quietly obeyed him and helped him run his schools. After
twenty years, Zhongli Qian awakened to his own Dao—to learn by teaching
the people. He had managed to completely break free of the Zhongli clan’s
fetters, ascending to Mahayana under his own power.
At Mahayana, he could easily will his hair to become black. But Zhongli
Qian felt he looked more like a teacher this way, so kept his hair the way it
was. He took the name Crane-Haired Wanderer[1], leaving his legacy in the
cultivation world.
Over thirty years, the three had each made progress in their own way. Even
Baili Qingmiao managed to become calmer after years of teaching. At last,
the author seemed to remember that her novel was called Abusive Romance,
and Baili Qingmiao received a message from her sect.
Elder Qingrong told her that the Sect Master, who had lain unconscious for
many years, now only needed an elixir made of the Lockheart Herb to be
cured. Shangqing Sect had learned that the Violet Spirit Pavilion, which had
secluded itself from the world for many years, was in possession of this
herb. Hè Wenzhao had gone to ask for it and had been given a lot of trouble
by the Pavilion Master. It was feared that Hè Wenzhao would be rejected, so
if Baili Qingmiao was willing, Elder Qingrong hoped she could go to help
him.
Seeing the words “Hè Wenzhao”, Baili Qingmiao felt a pang through her
heart which had been at peace for so many years.
Zhongli Qian sensed Baili Qingmiao’s pain and said calmly, “We can go
together. You have to repay your masters and overcome your own trials.
One can’t avoid their problems forever. After all this traveling, you might as
well see if your mental state has matured.”
Since Zhongli Qian was already seen as the leader of the group, they all set
off for the Violet Spirit Pavilion.
The Pavilion lay in the far north on True Yin Mountain, a neutral sect which
hid itself from the world. They were a sect shrouded in mystery, who didn’t
even join the Great Sect War.
The revision abruptly stopped here. Wenren È still remembered that

wandering immortal of the Violet Spirit Pavilion whom he had beaten up
once, and her possession technique.
Wandering immortals actually arrived at the same state as blood cultivators

through different means. They discarded their flesh body for a purely
spiritual existence and were not limited by the mortal world. Perhaps the
possession technique of a wandering immortal could help him deal with a
blood cultivator’s desire for blood.
Wenren È closed the book, deciding he should also set off for the Violet
Spirit Pavilion.
1. This just means white hair ↩

Wants to Know
Chapter 39 – Rod of Heartbreak
Wenren È couldn’t leave Xuanyuan Sect without a word to anyone.

Appropriately speaking, if the Sect Master wasn’t around, the new Deputy
Sect Leader, Yin Hanjiang, who had been in his position for just thirty
years, should handle his duties in his place.
Wenren È was planning to leave Yin Hanjiang at Xuanyuan Sect and set off
for the Violet Spirit Pavilion alone. Xuanyuan Sect didn’t have any
important affairs he needed to manage, and it hardly mattered if his
subordinates rebelled after he left, since they’d surrender when he returned
anyway. Yin Hanjiang was always too close to Wenren È, and his power
was at the peak of Void Boundary. He never showed any wariness toward
Wenren È. If Wenren È were to say to him, “This Venerable needs to
consume souls”, he was afraid Yin Hanjiang might offer his own up in a
heartbeat.
It was too dangerous to travel together with him. He would have more ease
in restraining himself if he was alone.
Thus, before departing, Wenren È called over Yin Hanjiang and told him he
was heading to True Yin Mountain.
Yin Hanjiang completely failed to clue in onto the fact that Wenren È was
trying to ditch him. He quietly followed behind, ready to leave with him.
Seeing his behavior, Wenren È stopped walking, carefully considering what

he was about to say. He slowly opened his mouth. “Sect Leader Yin, about
the sect leadership while this Venerable is gone, and the search for the
traitor…”
Yin Hanjiang’s expression turned blank. He stared silently at Wenren È,
seeming to think nothing of his own, simply awaiting his Venerable’s next
order.
If Wenren È commanded it, Yin Hanjiang would carry it out to perfection,

even if he was unwilling.
Wenren È couldn’t continue. Yin Hanjiang maintained his attentive posture,

waiting for his Venerable to finish his command.
“…it can be left to Protector Shu. She’s gotten a lot of practice, anyway.
Since the other Altar Masters were overcome by her before, they’ll be more
wary and less willing to disturb the peace. The matter of the traitor isn’t
urgent. We don’t even have any clues now, but it’s possible that if we both
leave, Cen Zhengqi will let something slip.” Looking at Yin Hanjiang’s
expression, Wenren È finally completed his sentence this way.
Yin Hanjiang’s face finally gained some life. He dipped his head low and
said, “Your subordinate understands.”
Wenren È furrowed his brows. It wasn’t like he and Yin Hanjiang had never
left each other’s sides before. The Lord of Demons came and went when he
pleased, and he hardly needed to report it all to Yin Hanjiang. Yin Hanjiang
had never asked, either. It was just that after reading Abusive Romance,
Wenren È was worried about Yin Hanjiang’s psyche and tried to avoid
leaving him alone. Now he wanted to leave him, but felt misgivings.
This wasn’t right.
He had originally hoped to settle Yin Hanjiang down and avoid him taking
some actions that would displease him if he died, so he paid more attention
to him. But now he felt less comfortable about leaving Yin Hanjiang alone.
When Wenren È wanted to go somewhere, since when had he paid attention

to how dejected Yin Hanjiang looked? And since when had it softened his
heart?
“Yin Hanjiang,” Wenren È said, switching to using his name. “This
Venerable is not a god. He is the same as you, just another cultivator
journeying on the path to divinity.”
“This subordinate understands,” Yin Hanjiang said, still bowing his head.
“Admiration is all well and good, but you need to walk your own path. Do
you understand this?” Wenren È took a step closer. He put a hand on the
back of Yin Hanjiang’s neck, his thumb by his ear, applying pressure and
forcing him to raise his head.
The distance tinged both their faces slightly red. Wenren È sensed the
essence of a sword cultivator that surrounded Yin Hanjiang, which was top-
quality spiritual essence to a blood cultivator. Wenren È had not been able
to absorb spiritual energy for thirty years, and he felt dizzy. The pressure of
his hand on Yin Hanjiang’s neck strengthened, as the incantation for
absorbing blood surfaced in his mind. With just slightly more force from his
hand, he could dissolve Yin Hanjiang into blood, and his soul and all his
spiritual essence would belong to Wenren È.
Blood qi tinged Wenren È’s face red, but for some reason, Yin Hanjiang
was blushing too. He struggled out of Wenren È’s grab and said, cupping
his hands, “This subordinate understands. This subordinate will put every
effort toward ascending to Mahayana to help his Venerable.”
Yin Hanjiang backing away returned some control to Wenren È. He

suppressed his surging blood qi and turned away. “Message Shu Yanyan
and tell her she’s the acting sect leader.”
After Yin Hanjiang sent the message talisman, Wenren È didn’t turn around,
just departing in a streak of light. Yin Hanjiang frantically brought out his
sword to chase him.
He gnawed on his lip. What did his Venerable mean by those words? Did he
notice Yin Hanjiang’s intentions? While they were talking, had Yin
Hanjiang let something show in his expression?
Yin Hanjiang continually berated himself that in the future, he had to be
more vigilant around his Venerable. He was the Deputy Sect Leader, and
ought to manage Xuanyuan Sect in the Sect Master’s absence. He should
not be disheartened because he couldn’t follow his Venerable around. Even
if he felt pained, he couldn’t let any of it show.
The two arrived at True Yin Mountain, both dwelling on their own
problems. Wenren È landed outside the Pavilion’s array, avoiding the
patrolling disciples, and opened his book to check on how events had
developed. He would be deciding right now whether to barge directly into
the Violet Spirit Pavilion, or order their gates open for him.
Baili Qingmiao’s group had arrived at True Yin Mountain three days ago.
Baili Qingmiao had paced back and forth in front of their Misty Dawn Bell,
unsure of whether or not she should ring it.
From what Elder Qingrong had said, the Violet Spirit Pavilion had told Hè
Wenzhao that since they only had one stalk of the Lockheart Herb, it truly
was difficult for them to give it to him. They could only let him have it if he
could find a way to make a new stalk mature. The Lockheart sprouts needed
the lava of True Yin Mountain in order to grow, but the eruption could not
be such that it destroyed the Violet Spirit Pavilion. He had to make the
mountain erupt while keeping it in check. This was an unreasonable task.
Hè Wenzhao’s party had been staying at the Violet Spirit Pavilion all this
time, hanging around the crater and trying to come up with a way to make a
volcano that had erupted only once in the last three thousand years do so
again. Over half a month had passed, and they had made no progress.
Elder Qingrong hadn’t contacted Baili Qingmiao hoping that she could
complete this impossible task. She had wanted Baili Qingmiao to convince
Immortal Qingxue and the Crane-Haired Wanderer to act. Qingxue was an
honorary elder of Shangqing Sect and ought to help in sect business
anyway, just her personality was a bit problematic. It was said that the
Nanguo clan was still after her life. Shangqing Sect knew Qingxue favored
Baili Qingmiao, so they hoped Baili Qingmiao could bring her around.
Also, in these few years, the name of the Crane-Haired Wanderer had
already become renowned across the cultivation world, filling the Zhongli
clan with regret for passing him up. The Shangqing Sect knew that Baili
Qingmiao and the Crane-Haired Wanderer had a heart-linking parasite, so
thought she could convince him.
With the Crane-Haired Wanderer’s help, they were sure they could satisfy
the Violet Spirit Pavilion’s demands.
As for Su Huai, he was just a Core Formation disciple. No one expected

him to do anything, and Baili Qingmiao just brought him along so he could
go new places and gain experience.
The gloomy and brooding Su Huai was actually the wildest one in the
group. He had originally planned to kill Baili Qingmiao in revenge for once
having been exorcised by her. If there hadn’t happened to be a stillborn
which he could hide in, he would’ve been destroyed that day, so he truly
had it out for her.
Therefore, when Baili Qingmiao returned to the village and decided to take
him as disciple, he instantly agreed. He planned to be a good and obedient
disciple, to put Baili Qingmiao on a pedestal and make her think of him as
unfailingly loyal and considerate. That way, when he betrayed her later on,
he would get to witness her expression twisted in shock and heartbreak.
With these thoughts, Su Huai accepted her as master, then felt a gaze on
him that made his hair stand on end.
He followed the gaze and found his nominal marital ancestor licking her
lips while looking at him. He broke out in a cold sweat.
That night, while Baili Qingmiao meditated, Immortal Qingxue kidnapped

Su Huai into her hut. Su Huai was unable to resist the power of a wandering
immortal, and the array she casually set up was impossible for him to
break. Even if he screamed, no one outside would hear him.
“Help!” the eighteen-year-old boy cried, pounding on the door, but the
woman behind him heartlessly yanked him back.
“Stop moving. Let me take a look at you,” Immortal Qingxue said, her eyes
gleaming. She held Su Huai down against the ground and put a hand against
his chest. Her eyes brightened. “A heartbeat! You’re a living ghost
cultivator!”
“You know I’m a ghost cultivator?” Su Huai exclaimed.
He thought his disguise was perfect! He had tricked Baili Qingmiao, but
didn’t expect Immortal Qingxue to see through him at a glance.
“How did you manage to cultivate the hungry ghost path while retaining a
body?” Qingxue fixed her eyes on Su Huai’s chest. “If I removed your
heart, would you survive?”
“I don’t know!” Su Huai cried, crumbling under Qingxue’s predatory gaze.

“When my spirit was about to dissipate, I sensed a stillborn being born. It
was a rare kind of infant, where the soul that should’ve occupied it had left
but it was still breathing. I possessed it, and that’s how I became like this,
between a living person and a ghost cultivator.”
Su Huai had reached Qi Refining stage without any instruction because he

ate the ghosts around the village. Only a ghost cultivator should be able to
consume ghosts, but with Su Huai’s unique constitution, he could do it
while still alive and increase his spiritual essence.
Hearing his explanation, Qingxue fell into deep thought and finally said, “It
seems it’s the matter of this body of yours. If I devoured your soul and took
your body, I could probably go back to being a ghost cultivator!”
She seemed like such an enlightened master! After thinking for a whole
night, all she came up with was this? Was her head for decoration?
Su Huai tried pitifully to escape. When Immortal Qingxue had him pinned
down and was about to eat his soul, Baili Qingmiao’s voice came from
outside the hut. “Master Qingxue? Disciple? Where are you guys? The
sun’s up, so it’s about time to head out.”
“Probably inside that hut,” came the man in the blindfold’s warm voice. “It
seems Immortal Qingxue is helping you discipline your new disciple.”
“Really? I’ll go check.” Baili Qingmiao opened the door with a smile.
In that moment, Qingxue let go of Su Huai and took down her array, so that
Baili Qingmiao instantly caught sight of them.
“Master!” For the first time, Su Huai realized that Baili Qingmiao was truly
a kind and righteous person. He leapt at her and threw his arms around her
waist, swearing to himself that he would treat Baili Qingmiao good in the
future and never leave his master’s side. He had to make sure he was never
alone with Immortal Qingxue.
“Elder Qingxue must’ve felt this child was rebellious and took the
opportunity to teach him to obey his masters, eh?” Zhongli Qian put weight
into that last word, and Su Huai and Qingxue both shuddered.
Qingxue may have been stronger than Zhongli Qian, but every time she met
his blindfolded gaze, she felt uneasy. Unlike Wenren È’s direct and
oppressive manner, Zhongli Qian was gentle and never forced anyone,
putting everyone around him at ease instead. Yet something about his
perceptive gaze that seemed to see through everything made him
intimidating.
After that experience, Su Huai discarded his grudge and dedicated himself
to Baili Qingmiao, treating her sincerely and considerately.
Seeing Baili Qingmiao pace in front of the bell at this moment, Su Huai
squinted and said, “Master, are you nervous?”
Baili Qingmiao flushed. “It’s not like I’ll fall for shixiong again. Shixiong is
married to Liu-shijie, and I couldn’t come between them. I’m just worried
that since we haven’t seen each other in thirty years, my emotions will be
stirred and I’ll affect Brother Zhongli.”
Su Huai was originally scared of Qingxue, but after Zhongli Qian learned
Wordless Child, Su Huai and Qingxue became close instead. Su Huai also
learned that Immortal Qingxue was once a ghost cultivator, and the master
of the Hellfire Pavilion at Xuanyuan Sect.
The Hellfire Pavilion! A small-time ghost cultivator like him didn’t have a
hope of getting close to a place like that. From then on, Su Huai had started
studying under Qingxue. Gradually, his actions became influenced by Qiu
Congxue.
“Don’t worry, master. If you become muddleheaded again, I’ll knock you
out and drag you away. Senior Zhongli won’t be affected at all,” Su Huai
said. He rang the Misty Dawn Bell for Baili Qingmiao.
Baili Qingmiao: …
Were they kin of different generations? Her disciple was becoming more
and more like Master Qingxue.
After the sounding of the bell, Baili Qingmiao showed the Violet Spirit
Pavilion’s disciples a greeting slip that could only be created by the
Shangqing Sect to verify her identity, and they invited her group in to meet
Hè Wenzhao. There was no sign of the Pavilion Master.
Hè Wenzhao had come with Liu Xinye and a few other disciples he was
friends with. Upon seeing his little shimei for the first time in thirty years,
he stopped dead in his tracks. He gazed at her from afar, unable to look
away, not even feeling Liu Xinye when she tugged on his arm.
Baili Qingmiao was the same. Over these past years, she had undergone two
heavenly tribulations, for the Deity Transformation and Body Unity stages,
and each time she had wanted to let go of her resolve and return to her
shixiong’s side. She would be happy just looking at him from a distance.
If it weren’t for Zhongli Qian, who knew Baili Qingmiao’s emotions at all
times and could quickly help her reconsider, and the much more powerful
Immortal Qingxue keeping an eye on her, Baili Qingmiao would’ve already
snuck off.
Now that she was looking at Hè Wenzhao, Zhongli Qian could feel his heart
pound wildly. Even though he couldn’t see, he could sense how
distinguished and tender that distant silhouette was.
The built-up emotions of thirty years were too intense, and for a moment,
Zhongli Qian was unable to suppress Baili Qingmiao.
Fortunately, Baili Qingmiao had only taken half a step forward when she
felt a cold gust at her back. She pulled her head out of the way, and, looking
back, saw that Su Huai was swinging his bonded weapon at her—the Rod
of Heartbreak.
The Rod of Heartbreak was forty meters long and as thick as Baili
Qingmiao’s waist. Zhongli Qian and Qiu Congxue’s help had been needed
to refine it. It was capable of changing size to the wielder’s will.
Su Huai had made it the maximum size, and though Baili Qingmiao
managed to avoid it, Hè Wenzhao, who was standing in a daze thirty-nine
meters away, took a blow right to the head. Even if he was a Void Boundary
cultivator, he would feel a metal stick with the thickness of a human’s waist
hitting him in the skull.
Su Huai, having missed Baili Qingmiao, spun the rod in his hand and
transformed it into two thin sticks, about to whack her again. Baili
Qingmiao was already calm with the help of Zhongli Qian, and quickly
reached out to stop her disciple’s weapon. “Disciple, stop swinging that
thing! I’m okay!”
Zhongli Qian showed a faint smile. “Su Huai sure has Immortal Qingxue to
thank for his magic weapon. It was forged with the resentment of thousands
of vengeful spirits before they were exorcised, all female ghosts who had
been abandoned or harmed by men. It may not be a near-immortal artifact,
but it has unique powers.
“If a woman is hit by it, her love will turn to hate. The more she loves
someone, the more she’ll want to kill him. If a man were to be hit by it, his
body would be invaded with yin energy[1], and he will lose capabilities in a
certain area.” It wasn’t really convenient for Zhongli Qian to explain
further, so Qiu Congxue gleefully continued for him. She was quite proud
of what she’d made for her little disciple, after all.
Hè Wenzhao had been hit in the head, yet he felt agony in some other part
of his body. He couldn’t check in front of a bunch of other disciples, so he
could only grit his teeth and say, “Shimei, who is that kid behind you? Why
is he trying to hit you?”
the rod of bonk go to horny jail
1. Yin is associated with the feminine ↩

Wants to Know
Chapter 40 – Who are you, handsome?
While speaking, Hè Wenzhao used his spiritual essence to force out the yin
energy inside his body. He was a Void Boundary cultivator, and Su Huai’s
level was too low in comparison, so any effect he had could only be
temporary. After the yin energy was gone, Hè Wenzhao would be fine.
But Su Huai had humiliated him in front of his fellow disciples and his
wife, so his expression was rather strained. If Baili Qingmiao wasn’t
shielding Su Huai, Hè Wenzhao would’ve taught the Core Formation brat a
lesson.
“This is my disciple, Su Huai,” said Baili Qingmiao. Now that she had
come back to her senses and her emotions were being suppressed by
Zhongli Qian, she could speak casually with her shixiong. She put a hand
on Su Huai’s shoulder as she introduced him.
“Shouldn’t he greet his elders, then?” Liu Xinye said at Hè Wenzhao’s side,
an unpleasant look on her face.
Su Huai pulled a face. He had only reluctantly accepted Baili Qingmiao. As

a ghost cultivator, he had no loyalty to the Shangqing Sect, and in fact, now
that he and Qiu Congxue got along, she had promised to recommend him
into the Hellfire Pavilion. If he did good, she said she would even help him
get rid of the current Altar Master Shi and gain the position of master of
Hellfire Pavilion.
Su Huai had no wish to show respect to these strangers in front of him.
Baili Qingmiao had been taught manners by Shangqing Sect since youth
and was about to order him to, when Immortal Qingxue said, “Huh? I’m an
elder. Why don’t you greet me?”
Su Huai immediately bowed deeply to Qingxue. “This disciple greets

Master Qingxue.”
The assembled members of Shangqing Sect were speechless.
“Oh, and you.” Qingxue took out a jade with the piece of Liu Xinye’s soul
sealed inside. “When are you going to repay me my elixir? You’re only at
Deity Transformation? A Deity Transformation Nascent Soul isn’t worth the
Seven-Colored Lotus Heart. It’ll probably even out if you add in your
cultivation partner.
Liu Xinye: …
Hè Wenzhao: …
Hè Wenzhao quickly grabbed Liu Xinye’s hand and led the rest of the
disciples to bow to Qingxue. “Greetings to Elder Qingxue.”
At the same time, Su Huai also bowed, following Zhongli Qian’s

instructions. That way, neither side was insulted.
“Elder, for the past thirty years, we have been searching for a cure for the
Sect Master and unable to find you an elixir. Fortunately, the Lockheart
Herb is the last thing he needs, and after he wakes, this disciple can leave
his duties and accompany his wife to find a treasure for you. We beg for
your forgiveness,” Hè Wenzhao said. Even though he had been
embarrassed, he suppressed his emotions and was willing to plead on his
wife’s behalf.
Her shixiong was such a good husband, Baili Qingmiao thought, and she
couldn’t help but fall back into her old infatuation.
Zhongli Qian slapped his bamboo scroll against his palm and Su Huai
immediately drew the Rod of Heartbreak. Baili Qingmiao frantically said,
“Don’t hit me! I’m calm!”
Seeing the giant weapon brought out again, Hè Wenzhao quickly dodged
out of the way with Liu Xinye. With no one to hit, Su Huai curled his lip
and put away his weapon.
Since both sides were tense, Zhongli Qian announced, “Let’s go check out
the volcano. Curing the Sect Master is what’s most important.”
The standoff was resolved, with everyone heading toward the crater.
From Hè Wenzhao’s words, when they had arrived at the Violet Spirit
Pavilion, the Pavilion Master had glanced at them through a curtain and
sent them all to the crater to come up with a solution on their own, saying
that they could have any sprouts they managed to ripen. Everyone had been
spending this time racking their brains at the top of the volcano, but had not
found a way to restrict the lava to a suitable area.
Baili Qingmiao’s group didn’t even enter the main hall, directly being taken
to the crater.
No one dared to criticize the Violet Spirit Pavilion. After all, the Pavilion
had been secluded with no contact with the rest of the cultivation world for
years, and they were here to beg their favor. It was already great that they
were allowed up to the crater.
Hearing that it had been dormant for three thousand years and was
completely safe, Baili Qingmiao’s group approached it confidently. Zhongli
Qian, Qingxue, and Su Huai didn’t discover anything out of the ordinary,
but when Baili Qingmiao stuck her head over the edge, a streak of flame
shot toward the sky, aimed right at her face.
She pulled back with a cry of shock and barely managed to avoid the fire.
The black cloth around her eye had been burned off, though, and fell into
the crater.
“Shimei, are you okay?” Hè Wenzhao shook off Liu Xinye and charged
over to see whether or not Baili Qingmiao’s face had been burned.
Baili Qingmiao opened her eyes and saw her shixiong’s concerned face in
her right eye, but before she could feel touched, Zhongli Qian’s giant face
was plastered in her left eye. Looking at Zhongli Qian with one eye and Hè
Wenzhao with the other, she nearly went cross-eyed.
She shoved Hè Wenzhao off and closed her eyes, turning her head away.
“Give me a blindfold.”
Su Huai handed her a black cloth. After she tied it around her eye, Baili
Qingmiao finally let out a breath. Now she could see Hè Wenzhao’s hurt
expression properly. Wanting to explain, she took a step forward, but Liu
Xinye came over to help Hè Wenzhao off the ground, shooting Baili
Qingmiao a glare.
Baili Qingmiao retreated her step, thinking that this was for the best.
“After all this time, the volcano has finally reacted!” Yao Wendan said,
ignoring the atmosphere. “Shimei, what did you do just now to get it to
erupt? It was so precise too, just aimed at one area.”
“I didn’t do anything…” Baili Qingmiao was also confused. She had only
stuck her head over slightly, and flames had spewed out. Yet after she
backed away, the flames vanished.
It was like it was targeting Baili Qingmiao, Zhongli Qian thought, standing
at one side.
After being with Baili Qingmiao for thirty years, he had gotten the sense
that legendary treasures were plentiful around her. He had managed to reach
Mahayana after only thirty years, not only because of learning Wordless
Child and awakening to the path of teaching, but also thanks to the treasures
he kept running into which could increase his spiritual essence.
He suddenly remembered Wenren È. Baili Qingmiao had told him that

she’d twice met Wenren È when he told her that a certain item was fated to
her, and wanted her help in retrieving it.
Had Wenren È long since discovered Baili Qingmiao’s quirk? Zhongli Qian
frowned, deep in thought.
While everyone discussed how they should awaken the volcano, a scent
drifted past on the wind.
“This incense… I smelled it back when we met the Pavilion Master,” Yao
Wendan said. “Is the Pavilion Master here to check on the activity at the
crater?”
As he spoke, several purple-robed women flew towards them, a few of

them carrying a radiant carriage. A curtain shrouded the person inside from
sight.
Approaching the crater, they landed on it, and the four servant girls set
down the carriage. The leading disciple said, “Who was it who made the
volcano react?”
The crowd backed away, leaving behind Baili Qingmiao. A deep voice
came from inside the carriage, “Indeed it was you.”
Baili Qingmiao cocked her head, then cupped her fist respectfully. “This
one is Baili Qingmiao. Is the Pavilion Master implying that we have met
before?”
“Who knows?” A single hand pushed aside the curtain, and a young man in
lavish silver robes emerged. He swept his gaze over Baili Qingmiao’s face
and said, “Perhaps we met in another life.”
His black hair was gathered together by a silver band, with a few loose
strands draped over his shoulders. He had cold elegant eyes and colorless
lips, and upon catching sight of Baili Qingmiao, had shown a smile without
any hint of warmth.
“The Shangqing Sect is certainly the leader of the righteous sects. Since so
many eminent persons have gathered here, the Violet Spirit Pavilion dares
not be discourteous. Why don’t you all stay in the Pavilion as guests, while
we work together to think of a way to grow the Lockheart Herb? There’s no
problem if we can’t. Isn’t there one ready? As long as Shangqing Sect offers
something of equal value in exchange, we aren’t unwilling to give it.”
Everyone: …
Hey now, you weren’t saying these things several days ago.
Not only were the people there confused, Wenren È also was. The readers
of Abusive Romance and God of Annihilation were also dumbstruck.
For once, the comment sections of both books were aligned, all filled with
people saying, “Who are you, handsome?” Even Wenren È had trouble
believing his eyes.
The Violet Spirit Pavilion Master, the main wife in God of Annihilation, the
top female villain in Abusive Romance, the wandering immortal who
Wenren È had found underneath the Ice Plains and beaten up, was now a
man?
Yin Hanjiang watched as Wenren È stood in front of the Misty Dawn Bell,
reading for two hours straight, then suddenly stopping. He had a strained
look on his face, seemingly having run into some problem.
“Venerable?” Yin Hanjiang looked at him in confusion. He couldn’t

imagine what could stump Wenren È.
“Nothing.” Both revisions stopped there, so Wenren È put his books away.
After thinking for a time in front of the bell, he said, “Sect Leader Yin, it
seems we need a change of plans.”
Wenren È had come to the Violet Spirit Pavilion with two plans. The first
was destroying the array, fighting his way in, and forcing the wandering
immortal to give out her possession technique. The second was demolishing
half of True Yin Mountain, then communicating his request to the Pavilion
Master, making her offer it freely.
But now that this unprecedented development had occurred, Wenren È

decided on a different plan, to enter the Pavilion “courteously” under
different identities.
“We need to change our appearances. Let’s say we’re… guest cultivators of
the Zhongli clan. We’ll hand over greeting slips and follow the regulations.
Zhongli Qian should be able to figure out the situation and help cover for
us.” Wenren È thought up a new plan on the spot, relaying it to Yin
Hanjiang.
He had met the Pavilion Master before, and without a disguise, he would be
recognized. He might never be able to figure out why the story had taken
such a turn.
If the Pavilion Master, as a major female character, changed her fate and
avoided marrying Hè Wenzhao, then didn’t that mean that as two major
male characters, Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang’s fates could also be changed?
Xuanyuan Sect was naturally rich in disguising techniques. Yin Hanjiang

took out two masks. These weren’t like the skin masks used in the Jianghu,
and appeared like two lumps of dough. Once stuck on one’s face, it could
be kneaded to one’s liking. This was a very low-level magic item without
much spiritual energy, and couldn’t do anything other than change one’s
appearance. However, as long as no one touched your face, you were
certain to not be discovered.
“Sect Leader Yin, why don’t you make a face for this Venerable?” Wenren
È said.
Yin Hanjiang stuck the dough on Wenren È’s face, carefully smoothing it
with his fingers. “What would the Venerable want to look like?”
“Anything you want,” Wenren È said. He had faith in Zhongli Qian’s

intelligence. Whatever his disguise looked like, Zhongli Qian could see
through it and help cover for him.
Yin Hanjiang was quite tall, just an inch shorter than Wenren È. He gazed
intently at Wenren È’s face, shaping it carefully. After he created a face, he
hesitated, and was about to wipe it out and start over when Wenren È said,
“Are you done yet? Let me see.”
With a flick of a finger, a mirror of ice appeared before him. Wenren È
stared silently at the face in the reflection.
This was exactly the same as his face. Only the eyes were slightly different,
looking a bit more relaxed and resembling the General Wenren stationed at
the border town one hundred years ago.
“Is this how I’ve always looked in your eyes?” Wenren È felt a spark of
annoyance, though he didn’t know why. “General Wenren was just this
Venerable’s identity when he walked the mortal world. This Venerable has
long since progressed past that. If you remain stuck in that time, you will
never reach Mahayana.”
“It’s not that,” Yin Hanjiang said. “It’s just…” He himself didn’t know how
to explain it. His Venerable had looked at him with such a warm and
attentive expression. His hands had moved on their own at the time.
“This subordinate will make the Venerable a new one,” Yin Hanjiang said
quickly.
“No need.” Wenren È waved a hand and the mask became a completely
unremarkable face, his black robes also transforming to the grey robes of
the Zhongli clan’s guest cultivators.
Yin Hanjiang stuck the dough on his face and was about to sculpt an
ordinary appearance for himself when Wenren È said, “Let me do it.”
A forceful hand landed on Yin Hanjiang’s face. Yin Hanjiang stiffened, his
whole body freezing up, not even daring to breathe.
After creating an average face for Yin Hanjiang, Wenren È withdrew his
hand and said, “Sect Leader Yin, you mustn’t always live chasing this
Venerable’s shadow.”
“This subordinate hasn’t…” Yin Hanjiang was unable to continue. He had

once told Zhongli Qian that he wouldn’t desire, would only watch from a
distance, and therefore he would never feel resentment. But fantasies were
difficult to do away with once they arose.
He wanted to be General Wenren’s most loyal subordinate. Even if they
were both mortals, he would be happy just fighting alongside him, even
dying alongside him.
The Lord of Demons was too powerful and too impossible to pursue. Yin
Hanjiang only dared to hold this small wish, hoping that he would have
such a chance in his next life.
Wenren È looked at him and sighed quietly.
When the Army Crushing Sword was forged, he had felt Yin Hanjiang
begin to dissolve his psychological blocks and move past the thoughtlessly
loyal Left Protector he had been. Everything was going well then, so why
had he regressed and gotten even worse than before?
“Sect Leader Yin, is there something important that you’ve been hiding
from this Venerable?”
“No…” Yin Hanjiang trailed off again. He really was hiding something
from his Venerable, something he could never admit. Even if after he died,
someone interrogated his soul, he wouldn’t let a word slip.
He lifted his head and looked at Wenren È, his eyes filled with resolution. It
was the resolution to take his secret to the grave. “This subordinate does
have something on his mind. However, it is unrelated to the Venerable. The
Venerable need not concern himself, as this subordinate will carry out his
duties regardless.”
“You—” Wenren È reached out, and his hand froze the instant before it
grabbed hold of Yin Hanjiang’s throat.
Yin Hanjiang didn’t avoid him, instead raising his head and making it easier
for Wenren È to grab him.
“After we return to Xuanyuan Sect, go to the forbidden grounds and reflect

for fifty years. If after fifty years, you cannot resolve your concern…”
Wenren È stopped. He couldn’t think of a punishment, and at last said,
“We’ll talk again after fifty years.”
Reflect for fifty years… that was just as well. Yin Hanjiang lowered his
head with a bitter smile.
Seeing nothing he said could make Yin Hanjiang listen, Wenren È felt oddly
powerless. He raised a hand and sounded the Misty Dawn Bell, announcing
with the bell’s sound. “We guests of the Zhongli clan under Zhongli Qian,
Wenzun and Yinjiang, are here to call upon Young Master Zhongli. Hoping
the Violet Spirit Pavilion will relay him this message.”
Zhongli Qian, hearing this: …
Wenzun[1] and Yinjiang… was Wenren È worried that people wouldn’t

know who they were?
yao wendan, why are you here? why does hwz even like you anymore?
I went through, checked my footnotes, and found out most of them were
broken. They’re fixed now. From 1-39 that is, no guarantees here or here on
1. That’s the zun in this Venerable ↩

Wants to Know
Chapter 41 – The second book
Zhongli Qian could only awkwardly explain, “It’s Zhongli Wenzun and
Zhongli Yinjiang[1] of the Zhongli clan, who were members of a branch
family two hundred years ago, later joining the clan as guest cultivators and
becoming my advisors. After hearing about the volcano, I sent word to
them, hoping they could lend a hand. Could they be permitted to enter?”
He was courteous and as a Mahayana cultivator, his words held weight. The
Pavilion’s disciples took him to see the Pavilion Master, to report the news.
“Zhongli Wenzun and Zhongli Yinjiang? Those names are…” The Pavilion
Master rested his forehead on his fist as he read the greeting slips Zhongli
Qian had written.
Zhongli Qian had offered his apologies that the two guest cultivators had
neglected to give greeting slips, and thus he had written some up with their
names on them, hoping for the Pavilion Master’s forgiveness.
The Violet Spirit Pavilion Master’s eyes were stuck on those two words
“Wenzun” and “Yinjiang”, so Zhongli Qian stepped in and said with a faint
smile, “The Pavilion Master may not know that the Zhongli clan cultivates
the path of sages. Each disciple chooses a branch of learning as their
foundation. Each of the six arts of gentlemen—rites, music, archery,
charioteering, literature, and arithmetic—are included. Zhongli Wenzun
cultivates rites, while Zhongli Yinjiang cultivates music. These two have
some scholarly whims and wanted to make sure others knew what they
studied, so took the courtesy names Wenzun[2] and Yinjiang[3]. Their birth
names are Zhongli Wen and Zhongli Yin.
“As their manner of greeting truly was improper, Qian would like to
apologize in their stead.”
He cupped his hands before him, his arms extended straight as he bent at
the waist, manner extremely proper and polite.
The Pavilion Master straightened up and, after glancing at Zhongli Qian,

said, “For these thirty years, news has been flying that the Zhongli clan
embarrassed themselves and passed up on a great treasure when expelling
Zhongli Qian. I thought it was an exaggerated rumor, but after meeting the
Crane-Haired Wanderer in person, I have realized what a true gentleman
should be.”
“The Pavilion Master is overstating,” Zhongli Qian said with a faint smile.
“The Violet Spirit Pavilion has always secluded itself from the outside
world, and today we have received too many guests. Since the volcano has
erupted with no warning, I originally wished to seal the mountain and allow
no other outsiders, but at Young Master Zhongli’s request, they can be
allowed to stay a few days.”
“Many thanks to the Pavilion Master.” Seeing the Pavilion Master put down
the greeting slips, a weight vanished from Zhongli Qian’s chest.
He went to the Misty Dawn Bell with a few other Pavilion disciples. The
group of female disciples had blushed upon seeing Zhongli Qian and
bombarded him with questions along the way, asking why his hair was
white and what relationship he had with Baili Qingmiao. Zhongli Qian
answered straightforwardly, and when he said that he and Baili Qingmiao
had only treated each other as siblings over these past thirty years, the girls’
eyes brightened.
Within the Violet Spirit Pavilion’s array, no one could fly except using the
Pavilion Master’s carriage and flying boats, and the boats traveled much
slower than Zhongli Qian could. Sitting with a group of beautiful women,
Zhongli Qian was uncomfortable the whole way, and at last managed to
make it to the Misty Dawn Bell. As the disciples opened the barrier,
Zhongli Qian sensed Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang enter. He made sure to
speak first. “It’s been a while, brothers.”
He rushed before the disciples to grab the two’s hands, trying to signal to
them. The moment he touched Wenren È’s hand, he hesitated.
He turned toward Wenren È, and though his eyes were blindfolded,

confusion was clear on his face.
“Thanks for your greeting, Young Master Zhongli,” Wenren È said coldly.
“Why don’t we talk inside?”
Wenren È hadn’t predicted that Zhongli Qian would rush over to grab his
hand and wasn’t able to avoid him in time. Zhongli Qian, touching his fake
arm, had instantly sensed something was off about it.
Zhongli Qian also knew they couldn’t discuss this right now and quickly
introduced Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang to the rest of the disciples. Seeing
the two looked plain and unremarkable, incomparable to Zhongli Qian, and
they also acted rather uncaring, the girls stuck by Zhongli Qian the entire
way back.
Upon returning to their rooms, Zhongli Qian immediately transmitted, “Sect

Master Wenren, what happened to your arm?”
“We can discuss that later. Tell me about the Pavilion Master,” Wenren È
replied just as quickly.
Zhongli Qian could only let the subject drop. Seeing that Yin Hanjiang had
already put up a soundproofing array, he spoke without concern. “I have
three doubts about the Pavilion Master. First, each disciple of the Violet
Spirit Pavilion is female, except for the Pavilion Master.
“Second, the eruption was completely unpredictable, and the Pavilion

Master appeared too quickly. He arrived when the flames had barely
subsided. Considering the speed of his carriage, he must’ve set out before
the eruption. According to my calculations, if he had started preparing to set
off for the crater from the time of Baili Qingmiao’s arrival, then the timing
would be perfect.
“Third, our guest arrangements.”
Zhongli Qian drew a map of the Violet Spirit Pavilion on the table out of
spilled tea. He tapped one of the rooms and said, “This is where Baili
Qingmiao is staying.”
“They have a guest house right next to the Pavilion Master’s residence?”
Wenren È said. He squinted at the map and felt reminded of someone[4].
“I suspect that his goal is Miss Baili,” said Zhongli Qian. “Has Sir Wenren
also noticed that Miss Baili has particularly good luck?”
“This Venerable knows.” Wenren È waved a hand and had the tea traces on
the table evaporate without a trace. “Not only me, but one other person.”
He quickly went over his encounter with the Violet Spirit Pavilion Supreme
Elder in the Thousand Mile Ice Plains over forty years back. After some
thought, Zhongli Qian said, “This makes sense. I suspect the Pavilion
Master is a woman disguised as a man.”
“…If she’s the wandering immortal this Venerable defeated forty years ago,
why would she possess a man?” Wenren È said.
“I believe we’ll find out over the next few days,” Zhongli Qian said, his
bamboo scroll in hand.
Only two days had passed when the Pavilion Master took out his precious
Lockheart Herb, gathering the Shangqing Sect disciples and the three
Zhongli clan visitors and announcing, “I’ve already brought out the herb
and am willing to give it to Shangqing Sect, under one condition.”
“If it doesn’t violate our principles, the Shangqing Sect will gladly accept,”
said Hè Wenzhao, standing.
These lines were exactly the same as the book. In the book, what followed
would be the Pavilion Master demanding Hè Wenzhao’s hand in marriage.
Now that she was a man, what would happen? Wenren È watched intently.
“It’s very simple. I just want Baili Qingmiao to marry into the Violet Spirit
Pavilion.” The Pavilion Master looked at Baili Qingmiao, seated the nearest
to him, and smiled warmly with a tender look in his eyes.
“No way!”
“Okay!”
Two voices spoke at once, belonging to Hè Wenzhao and Liu Xinye.
Naturally, Hè Wenzhao had said “no way”. Hearing his wife say “okay”, he
glared at her. He couldn’t squabble with her in public though, and after only
a glance, suppressed his anger and turned to the Pavilion Master. “Even if
this doesn’t violate common principles, it is a major decision in my shimei’s
life. I cannot make it for her.”
“I don’t believe the decision is yours.” The Pavilion Master ignored Hè

Wenzhao, only looking toward Baili Qingmiao. He extended the Lockheart
Herb to her and said, “If you just agree and form a soul bond with me, this
can be yours.”
Marry him and also form a soul bond! Cultivation partners rarely made soul
bonds. With a soul bond, they would truly be together in life and death, as if
one died, so would the other. Even Hè Wenzhao and Liu Xinye hadn’t taken
one. At the end of Abusive Romance, Hè Wenzhao hadn’t formed one with
Baili Qingmiao either. In God of Annihilation, the Blood Demon Elder had
warned Hè Wenzhao to never make a soul bond and let his life depend on
another person. This was nothing more than a burden.
“Shixiong, this is for master’s life,” Liu Xinye said word by word, staring at
her husband. “The Pavilion Master is a Mahayana stage cultivator, so Baili
Qingmiao will only be benefitted by forming a soul bond with him. And
with a soul bond, they won’t be able to betray each other. Since the Pavilion
Master made this request, he’s certainly not planning to steal Baili-shimei’s
essence. His intent must be genuine. Shimei hasn’t refused, so why are you
so agitated?”
“You!” Hè Wenzhao pointed a finger at his wife. He nearly slapped her
across the face.
He forcefully pushed down his anger and ran to Baili Qingmiao’s side.
“Shimei, think clearly! Don’t dishonor yourself!”
In the original story, Baili Qingmiao was heartbroken upon hearing the
Pavilion Master wanted to marry Hè Wenzhao, begging him to reconsider in
tears.
Hè Wenzhao had said pretty much the same thing Liu Xinye did. “Shimei,
this is master’s life!”
Now that the Pavilion Master had swapped genders, Hè Wenzhao was
saying the complete opposite.
Wenren È had already figured out most everything. He didn’t speak, just
narrowed his eyes at Baili Qingmiao and waited for her decision.
Su Huai was a junior and it wasn’t his place to speak in this situation. He
knew his master was an idiot. When he broke through to the Core
Formation stage, because he was a ghost cultivator, he had gotten a Deity
Transformation stage tribulation and sustained serious injuries. His master
had carried him to Reminiscence Valley in search of a wandering immortal
healer. The healer put her through all sorts of trouble, separating her from
Zhongli Qian and Immortal Qingxue with an array, then demanding her
Nascent Soul as payment. Su Huai’s idiot master really offered up her
Nascent Soul.
Fortunately, Zhongli Qian was sharp and broke the array in time. Master
Qingxue gave the wandering immortal a beating, then threatened to turn
him into a ghost and eat him. The healer finally agreed to treat Su Huai.
That was when Su Huai truly recognized Baili Qingmiao as his master. It
was also for his master’s sake that he let Qingxue mess with his bonded
weapon. Otherwise, what cultivator would want to use a weapon like that?
But he was willing to for his master.
Su Huai was afraid his master would agree, so he seized Qingxue’s hand.
She was the strongest and most senior person here, and the only one with
the right to refuse for Baili Qingmiao.
“What are you grabbing me for?” Qingxue gave Su Huai a look. “If you
want something, just say it.”
Su Huai: …
Fortunately, Zhongli Qian was long since familiar with his companions’
habits. He quickly rose and said, “Perhaps the Pavilion Master doesn’t
know this, but Baili Qingmiao cannot become someone’s cultivation
partner.”
“Huh? Why?” The Pavilion Master reclined on his chair, looking attentively
at Zhongli Qian. His gaze was warmer than when he had looked at Baili
Qingmiao.
Baili Qingmiao also rose. “Pavilion Master, because of a previous accident,

Brother Zhongli and I have had heart-linking parasites placed in us. They
are very powerful parasites, and though Brother Zhongli has reached
Mahayana over these thirty years, he has not figured out how to remove
them. To tell the truth, Young Master Zhongli is just a step away from
ascending, yet he has been holding himself back because of me.”
Hearing Baili Qingmiao refuse, Su Huai sighed in relief.
“Oh? Let me see your parasites,” said the Pavilion Master.
He reached out and took their wrists in both hands, sending his spiritual
essence into their meridians. He found there really were resonating gu
insects inside them, which he was unable to eliminate with his power.
“This shouldn’t be,” he muttered. “How did this happen? It wasn’t like
this.”
Wenren È heard these words and his expression froze. He watched him
closely.
The man looked somewhat like the wandering immortal he had taught a
lesson to years ago, but not exactly the same. And that wandering immortal
had recognized Baili Qingmiao’s divinity over forty years ago, but never
acted and stayed hidden until now. Had something changed?
After considering things over, Wenren È came up with a wild idea.
“Zhongli Wenzun” stretched languidly and, acting as if he was bored by the

internal affairs of Shangqing Sect, took a book out of his sleeve.
Seeing him, the people around felt he was a bit rude, but weren’t in any
position to criticize him. After all, he did have nothing to contribute to the
matter of this wedding, and just watching the drama unfold wasn’t too
proper either. The Zhongli clan’s members always had their noses in books,
and Zhongli Qian’s bonded weapon was a bamboo scroll. Maybe this book
was Zhongli Wenzun’s weapon.
It was quite an odd book. A young man was drawn on the cover, a colored
picture as opposed to the ink wash paintings currently popular in the mortal
world. The man’s facial proportions were a bit exaggerated, but he looked
handsome nonetheless.
In large characters across the cover was God of Annihilation: Volume 1.
Seeing that book, the Pavilion Master immediately let go of Baili Qingmiao
and Zhongli Qian and stood up, eyes pinned on the book in Wenren È’s
hand.
“How did you get—” He cut himself off. Turning a cold look over the
assembled group, he said, “If you won’t agree to this marriage, then we
have nothing to discuss. Come to me when you change your mind.”
He turned and walked away, leaving everyone else looking at each other
helplessly.
Wenren È transmitted separately to Zhongli Qian and Yin Hanjiang, who

had both noticed something was odd, “Don’t come to my room later. Give
him time to reveal his plan.”
Putting away the book, he returned alone to his room. After lying on the bed
reading for a while, he heard a knock at the door. Opening it, he saw a girl
on the other side, saying the Pavilion Master needed to meet with him, and
requesting Sir Zhongli Wenzun go to the Pavilion Master’s quarters alone.
Without any hesitation, Wenren È took the book and set off alone.
After he entered the Pavilion Master’s room, the Pavilion Master locked the
doors and set up several arrays. He finally said coldly, “Where’d you get the
book? You brought it out on purpose, didn’t you? What did you figure out?”
“I seem to not understand what the Pavilion Master is asking,” Wenren È

said. “I just picked up a book for idle reading, and its contents turned out to
be rather intriguing. Since I was bored, I took it out to read.”
“Since you got this book, your name can’t be Zhongli Wenzun. Zhongli
Kuang, Cen Zhengqi, Yao Jiaping… You’re Zhongli Kuang!” the Pavilion
Master exclaimed. “I heard you were done away with by the Zhongli clan.
Did you possess this Zhongli Wenzun’s body to come back to life? Right,
since you have this book, you’ve probably learned techniques to revive
yourself.”
“Since you think I’m Zhongli Kuang, let’s just say I am,” said Wenren È,
flipping through the book. “However, there’s one part of this book that’s
particularly intriguing. Right here, it says the Violet Spirit Pavilion Master
is a renowned beauty, Hè Wenzhao’s wife, a gentle and dedicated woman.
Upon coming to the Pavilion, I was rather surprised to find the Pavilion
Master was a man.”
“Give me that book!” the Pavilion Master yelled, reaching for it.
Wenren È flashed away. “At this point, there’s no use in you hiding it. I’ve
obtained Volume 1 of God of Annihilation. Have you obtained one of the
other volumes? Why don’t we exchange reading material?”
Having been seen through, the Pavilion Master was silent for a moment. “I
have the third volume, the end of the story. Do you want to know why this
story is called God of Annihilation?[5] The third volume will tell you. If
you want to know, then hand over the first volume to me.”
1. He exchanged the written characters in the names for different ones with
the same pronunciation ↩
2. to ask + to obey ↩
3. music + general ↩
4. who is he talking about? ↩
5. A more literal translation of the title would be “god of ending the world”
↩
Wants to Know
Chapter 42 – Reencounter on the battlefield
Wenren È absolutely could not accept an exchange, not in this life or the
next. All he needed to do was confirm that the Pavilion Master possessed
the third volume of God of Annihilation. Where it was, whether or not it
was fake, and whether or not the Pavilion Master was willing to hand it
over didn’t matter. After all, he would hand it over eventually.
Wenren È spread his hands casually. “In that case, why don’t you let me
have a look at the third volume?”
“What? Hahahaha, ridiculous!” The Pavilion Master shook his head.

“Zhongli Kuang, your name suits you![1] Do you know exactly who you’re
facing?”
He raised his hands, ringing a pair of golden bells tied to his wrists. Their
crisp sound brought forth a wave of spiritual energy and pressure, making
the surrounding array resonate with it. The four spiritual stones that acted as
the focuses of the array sat in the corners of the room, carved with patterns
unique to the Violet Spirit Pavilion, and the bells caused the engravings to
activate. Countless golden threads formed in the air, surrounding Wenren È.
With a turn of the Pavilion Master’s wrists, the golden threads wrapped
tight and bound Wenren È in their midst. This array affected both the body
and soul. The Pavilion Master had set it up long before “Zhongli Kuang”
entered. Even if Zhongli Kuang had used the first volume to obtain the
locations of heavenly treasures and risen to the peak of Mahayana over
these past years, he was still within the cultivation world. This array from
the third volume was a divine array. Even if the Pavilion Master wasn’t
strong enough to use it at its full power, as long as he made the
preparations, he could restrain an immortal of the upper realms.
Seeing that Zhongli Kuang was trapped, the Pavilion Master lowered his
arms, letting his sleeves fall over the bells. “Zhongli Kuang, we don’t have
any conflict of interests. All I want is to take a look at the first volume, so
why are you being so stubborn?”
“This Venerable isn’t being stubborn,” Wenren È said from within the array.
“This Venerable is trying to figure something out.”
“This Venerable?” The Pavilion Master frowned. That title brought back
unpleasant memories for him, but it was of no matter. Even if he did meet
that person today, he had no more need to fear him. “Even you can call
yourself Venerable?”
Wenren È put away his book and sighed. “Ever since you acted, this
Venerable has been considering how to take you prisoner without alerting
anyone else. As this Venerable’s powers are immense, it is quite a hard
task.”
“Such arrogance!” the Pavilion Master said, but he raised his golden bells
again, watching Zhongli Kuang vigilantly. Zhongli Kuang might’ve learned
some secret technique from within the pages of volume one.
“This Venerable truly doesn’t wish to expose his identity… ah, but now that
I already know why you’re a man, I suppose it doesn’t really matter.”
Wenren È stood up, an unseen wind stirring his robes. They changed from
scholarly clothes to his own black robes embroidered with gold threads, as a
halberd of the same colors appeared in his hand.
“You’re not Zhongli Kuang! You’re Wenren È!” the Pavilion Master cried.
His pupils shrank, and he seemed to be remembering something painful.
“Forty-two years ago, this Venerable made an agreement with you, hoping
that within a hundred years you would be worth fighting,” Wenren È said
with a cold smile. “From what I see, it would be useless to give you a
thousand years. This Venerable has grown tired of waiting.”
Blinding light radiated from the Seven-Killing Halberd as it channeled the
power of its star. The entire mountain began to shake.
The Shangqing Sect disciples who were currently discussing amongst

themselves in Baili Qingmiao’s room felt a tremor under their feet. “What’s
going on?”
“Is the volcano going to erupt?” said Yao Wendan doubtfully.
Qiu Congxue’s body reacted before her mind caught up. She picked up Su
Huai in one hand and Baili Qingmiao in the other, yelling, “Run! Get as far
away from True Yin Mountain as possible!”
She didn’t say that for the sake of the Shangqing Sect disciples, but for
Zhongli Qian.
When the ground started shaking, Zhongli Qian pretty much guessed what
had happened. Hearing Qiu Congxue, he didn’t hesitate and followed
directly after her.
Not more than a second had passed from when the ground began shaking to
when Qiu Congxue and Zhongli Qian ran out of the room, when the Misty
Dawn Bell shattered. The array surrounding the Violet Spirit Pavilion broke
with it, and without its restriction, the group could fly. Qiu Congxue and
Zhongli Qian flew up without pause, stopping nearly a kilometer above the
volcano.
“Elder, what happened?” Su Huai said frantically. He had never met Wenren
È.
Qiu Congxue set Baili Qingmiao and Su Huai down and said coldly, “Just
look at the sky. I’ve only seen these celestial signs once, thirty-one years
ago.”
Su Huai looked up and found the night sky dark, with only two stars shining
brighter than the moon. They were Polis and Alkaid.
Thirty-one years ago, at the conclusion of Wenren È’s clash with twenty-
one experts of the righteous sects, Polis had shown such radiance above.
With a rumble, the entirety of the Violet Spirit Pavilion atop the mountain
peak crumbled. Lava spewed from the volcano’s mouth, at a hellish
temperature that would destroy any Deity Transformation or below
cultivator who touched it, body and soul. Hè Wenzhao led several Deity
Transformation and above cultivators to rescue everyone else, and managed
to arrive at Qiu Congxue’s group, covered with ash, before the lava could
reach them.
In less than five minutes, the snowy mountain peak was covered with lava,
the heat causing the air to ripple above it. The Violet Spirit Pavilion had
been transformed into hell on earth.
“What happened?” Hè Wenzhao said, still panicked, holding a crying Liu

Xinye in one arm. “Why did the volcano suddenly erupt? Where are
Zhongli Wenzun and Zhongli Yinjiang?”
Qiu Congxue gave him a cold look. She lifted a finger slightly and pointed
to the center of the field of magma.
Hè Wenzhao only saw a man in a black and gold robe with a halberd in
hand, hovering above the flames. Behind him was a streak of frosty sword
light.
When the eruption happened, everyone had fled for the sky. Only Yin
Hanjiang faced the spurting magma to search for Wenren È, joining the
battle against the Pavilion Master.
“It’s— it’s you people! You people again! Of course it’s you!” The Pavilion
Master pointed a finger at them, having flashbacks to being beaten black
and blue forty-two years ago.
It was like the scene from forty-two years ago had returned. Once again,
frost and snow were replaced by raging flames, as the two stood before him,
wielding a halberd and a sword, utterly crushing him.
“Your guess was correct,” Wenren È said. “This book did belong to Zhongli
Kuang. This Venerable killed him, so obviously, this Venerable has taken
possession of his book. The same will happen to you.”
Wenren È grabbed the Pavilion Master’s arm in one hand. Before the
Pavilion Master could resist, he felt an unspeakable agony in his arm, not
the pain of his body being damaged but of his soul being shredded and
dissolved. He quickly severed his own arm with spiritual energy, but was
unable to stop the corrosion of his soul. He had to grit his teeth and tear off
part of his soul as well. Breathing hard, he watched his arm and soul
dissolve into blood, gathering in Wenren È’s palm.
The sweet scent of blood hit Wenren È’s nose. He stared at the orb of blood
floating in his palm. All he needed to do was absorb it, and all the spiritual
essence he’d used up in this battle, as well as his arm, would be restored.
This was the soul of a wandering immortal, after all.
After quite some time, he smiled slightly and opened his hand. The blood
fell and vanished into the lava below.
The lava took in the Pavilion Master’s soul, letting out puffs of smoke as
the Pavilion Master watched. His body shouldn’t hurt anymore, but deep
inside, he felt the pain of being burned. It was as if someone was roasting
his arm over a flame. He could nearly hear the sizzle of his flesh.
“You’re a blood cultivator!” the Pavilion Master cried. “How?”
He wanted to ask more questions, but Yin Hanjiang didn’t give him the
chance. A thrust of the Army Crushing Sword pierced through the Pavilion
Master’s throat.
“The Venerable wants your book. Your only choices are to give it or
refuse,” Yin Hanjiang said coldly.
Meeting the heartless gazes of the two demonic cultivators, the Pavilion
Master realized that he had no qualifications to negotiate with them. If he
handed over the book, he might survive. If he didn’t, he would certainly die.
“The two of you are powerful. Probably, no one in the cultivation world is
stronger than you, Wenren È. I acknowledge this.” The Pavilion Master
smiled bitterly. He couldn’t speak, so he transmitted his words to Wenren È
alone. “But you’ll die someday, Lord of Demons. Everyone will die. Only
one person can survive in the end. I’ll say it again—trade your volume for
mine!”
“Do you think that if you refuse to give it up, this Venerable will be afraid
to act against you for fear of losing it?” Wenren È said. “You don’t know
how we in the demonic sects do business. We can take apart your soul, turn
you into a puppet, or put parasites in you. We’re not lacking in options. Sect
Leader Yin, take him back to the Xuanyuan Sect!”
Yin Hanjiang picked up the limp body of the Pavilion Master and was about
to leave when Hè Wenzhao came charging up. “Who are you people? What
do you want with the Pavilion Master? I, Hè Wenzhao of Shangqing Sect,
will not allow you to take action against the Violet Spirit Pavilion while I’m
still standing!”
No matter how much Wenren È and the readers of Abusive Romance

despised Hè Wenzhao, he was the protagonist of two novels and his
appearance was without faults. He didn’t have Wenren È’s domineering
aura that could not be overlooked, and he wasn’t as polite and perceptive as
Zhongli Qian, or silently devoted as Yin Hanjiang. He wasn’t even as
youthful and lively as Su Huai. But he was handsome, and his appearance
overflowed with righteousness.
The author had given him a perfect face that showed at a glance that he was
a hero of the righteous sects, the future pillar of the cultivation world. He
had sharp brows and bright eyes, which now eloquently expressed his
anguish for the Violet Spirit Pavilion, his determination to stake his life in
defense of the Pavilion Master, even if Wenren È was impossible for him to
beat.
Wenren È knew that Hè Wenzhao truly was this kind of person. Both novels
acknowledged that he was a righteous man, capable of sacrificing his life
for his sect members. He would even sacrifice the one he loved to save his
fellow disciples and sect elders. Even when he did something wrong in the
books, it wasn’t his fault, and he turned out to have been tricked by
someone else.
Several reviews in God of Annihilation had said it followed in the footsteps

of traditional literature. The male lead was overflowing with righteousness
and had close bonds with his friends. Just that he didn’t have proper
relations with women, and his worldview was a bit lowly.
At this moment, Hè Wenzhao genuinely wanted to protect the Violet Spirit

Pavilion. This was also the first time he’d seen Wenren È’s face and the first
time he faced down the unleashed power of the Lord of Demons. His
mental master warned him incessantly to run, saying that he had no hope of
beating Wenren È at this time, but Hè Wenzhao didn’t back down a single
step. Even if he died today, he was determined to save the Pavilion Master.
Baili Qingmiao and her group had followed behind him. She stared, frozen,
at her shixiong facing down a hostile Wenren È, and opened her mouth to
beg for mercy.
“Baili Qingmiao,” Wenren È said, “if you say one word, this Venerable will
kill one of your Shangqing Sect’s people. This Venerable doesn’t like to
hear people prattle on. Let’s see how many people in your sect you’re
willing to beg for.”
Baili Qingmiao covered her mouth, too afraid to say a single word.
A daring disciple of Shangqing Sect shouted, “Shimei, don’t be scared!

Let’s attack him together! Who cares if he’s strong? We can’t let him take
away the—”
He turned to the strongest person on his side, Immortal Qingxue, for

reassurance, but before he could finish speaking, a skeletal hand pierced
through his chest. He turned his head with difficulty and saw that his
attacker was that very Immortal Qingxue he had looked up to.
“The Xuanyuan Sect will not betray its own.” Qiu Congxue withdrew her
hand, yanking out that disciple’s soul. “Boast according to your own ability.
Instead of praying to the heavens or the earth, better to rely on yourself.”
Hot winds stirred her black robe, revealing her body which was half flesh
and half bone.
Over these last thirty years, Qiu Congxue could’ve regrown her flesh, but
she was quite satisfied with how she looked right now. She had been
investigating how to use the powers of a wandering immortal with half her
body and a ghost cultivator with the other, determined to continue
cultivating the Asura Path. Su Huai had given her the inspiration. He was a
unique existence, his soul being a ghost cultivator while the methods of the
Shangqing Sect existed in his body. If he hadn’t died in the book, who knew
what cultivation path he could’ve created?
Qiu Congxue dropped the body of the disciple into the flames. Hè Wenzhao
dove for it and managed to grab it at the last second, burning his arm.
“Why are you doing this, Elder Qingxue?” he cried.
“I am the Left Protector of Xuanyuan Sect, Qiu Congxue.” Half of Qiu

Congxue’s face slowly turned into a skull. She gave Baili Qingmiao a half
warm, half horrifying smile. “This Protector has to thank Baili Qingmiao’s
assistance thirty-one years ago, or she already would’ve been sent on.”
“Master Qingxue, you…” Tears flowed down Baili Qingmiao’s face. She
was unable to believe that her master was a demonic cultivator, and such a
heartless person.
“Have this back.” Qiu Congxue tossed the disciple’s soul at Baili Qingmiao.
“I owe you for saving my life. In the future, if you need help, just come find
me.”
Baili Qingmiao caught her fellow disciple’s soul, with an expression as if

she’d been struck by lightning. The person she had risked her life to save
back then was actually a demonic cultivator who had killed countless
members of her sect. The master she had looked up to had backstabbed one
of her shixiongs without mercy.
Zhongli Qian, feeling her anguish, sighed lightly. He had matured over the
years and understood many things, but he still couldn’t figure out what
Wenren È was thinking, or what he planned.
He approached the Pavilion Master and said, “Pavilion Master, whatever it

is that Sir Wenren wants, I urge you to just give it to him. From what I
know of Sir Wenren, if he agrees to not harm you, he will never go back on
his word.”
“What do you understand?” The hole through the Pavilion Master’s throat
buzzed as he spoke. “I don’t want to live like that. I’d rather die than live
like that.”
He grabbed the Army Crushing Sword and yanked it out. Glaring at Wenren
È, he reversed the circulation of his qi and prepared to destroy his Nascent
Soul.
Wenren È lifted a hand and a wisp of blood qi entered his body, instantly
taking control of it. The Pavilion Master couldn’t die if he tried.
“Now this Venerable is curious,” Wenren È transmitted to him. “What

exactly is written in the last volume, that you’d rather die than hand it
over?”
1. It means out of control ↩

Wants to Know
Chapter 43 – Burning Sky Immortal
Wenren È planned to take the Pavilion Master no matter what. It was no

concern of his that the Shangqing disciples wouldn’t be able to save their
Sect Master without the Lockheart Herb. After all, he was the one who had
injured their Sect Master. The idea that he would help him recover was
laughable.
Seeing Yin Hanjiang was about to leave with the Pavilion Master, Hè
Wenzhao tried to charge him, but was held back by his fellow disciples.
“Shixiong, even Immortal Qingxue was a Xuanyuan Sect mole, so what

chance do we have left?” Liu Xinye said, holding his waist. “Just… bear it,
okay?”
Hè Wenzhao’s body relaxed, though his fists stayed clenched, as he berated

himself for his own powerlessness.
If they didn’t make a fuss, Wenren È naturally wouldn’t exterminate all of

them. Also, Hè Wenzhao was still important to the events of the third
volume of God of Annihilation. Before reading the third volume, Wenren È
decided to leave him alone for the time being.
Before they departed, Wenren È glanced back at the heartbroken Baili

Qingmiao and transmitted to her, “You can follow this Venerable back to
Xuanyuan Sect.”
Wenren È didn’t mind that Qiu Congxue had exposed her identity to avoid
being pushed forward to fight him. He’d never expected Qiu Congxue’s
undercover work to amount to anything. Getting between Baili Qingmiao
and Hè Wenzhao was already far beyond his expectations. But her identity
put Baili Qingmiao in a bad position. It was uncertain what would happen
to Baili Qingmiao if she returned to Shangqing Sect, so Wenren È made his
offer, letting Baili Qingmiao choose for herself.
Baili Qingmiao shook her head wordlessly. She had sustained too heavy a
shock, and if it weren’t for Zhongli Qian forcibly suppressing her emotions,
she would’ve started sobbing on the spot.
Qiu Congxue extended a hand toward Su Huai. She had been planning to
raise Su Huai as the next Master of the Hellfire Pavilion—to hell with Shi
Congxin.
Su Huai also silently declined. His master was such an idiot; he had to stay.
Zhongli Qian gave Wenren È a nod. With the influence of the Heart-Linking
Parasite, he had to return to Shangqing Sect with Baili Qingmiao. With him
there, Baili Qingmiao wouldn’t face any threats to her life.
The Shangqing Sect disciples could only watch helplessly as Wenren È and
Yin Hanjiang left. After spending a moment in a daze, Baili Qingmiao
brought out the Moonlit Frost Silk and dashed toward the sea of flames.
“Shimei, what are you doing?” Hè Wenzhao cried.
“Rescuing people!” Baili Qingmiao wiped away her tears. Zhongli Qian’s
calm let her realize what she must do at this moment.
She couldn’t just remain heartbroken at Master Qingxue’s betrayal or

shocked at Wenren È’s ruthlessness. She had to search the field of lava for
survivors. Each life she saved counted.
Sensing Baili Qingmiao’s feelings, Zhongli Qian sighed. He said to Su

Huai, “Do you know why, knowing Baili Qingmiao is this foolish, I keep
helping her overcome her infatuation?”
Su Huai shook his head.
“Because Baili Qingmiao is compassionate.” Zhongli Qian took off his

blindfold, looking at the sea of flames below him. “Even though she knows
that Qiu Congxue was a demonic sect member, that she once saved the
wrong person, she holds no regrets for her actions and still tries to save
others now.”
In their twenty-two years of travelling together, this was the first time Su
Huai had seen Zhongli Qian’s eyes. They were stunningly bright and
perceptive eyes, calm and penetrating.
Using the tracking curse, Zhongli Qian could see what no one else could.
He saw how, as Baili Qingmiao charged into the flames, they parted for her
and opened up a path. The flames feared her, yet wished to harm her. She
sustained burns one after another, but she didn’t flinch, continuing her
search.
None of the Shangqing Sect disciples followed her. Hè Wenzhao had

wanted to dive into the flames with her, but Liu Xinye was clutching his
waist tightly, in a way that said, if you follow her, I’ll go with you to die. Hè
Wenzhao was furious, but in the end couldn’t bring himself to push Liu
Xinye away.
After watching for a minute, Zhongli Qian closed his eyes and tied the
blindfold back around them. There was nothing more to see.
“Mister Zhongli?” Su Huai said uncertainly.
“Look for yourself,” Zhongli Qian said to the Shangqing Sect members.
A figure covered head to toe with soot charged out of the sea of flames. She
held a silver silk sash, the other end tied around several dozen unconscious
Violet Spirit Pavilion disciples. One of them carried a mature stalk of the
Lockheart Herb.
Baili Qingmiao’s legs had been burned and she could only stand by leaning
against Su Huai. She wiped at the ash on her face and said, “None of the
Pavilion disciples died. Someone transferred them to the place where the
Lockheart Herb grew. When it matured because of the flames, the power it
gave off protected them.”
She saw that Hè Wenzhao had already replaced the soul of the disciple Qiu
Congxue had attacked into his body. Wenren È had overturned heaven and
earth when he acted, yet not a single person had died. He’d only taken the
Pavilion Master.
Baili Qingmiao glanced over at Zhongli Qian, then fainted. Her spiritual
essence had been expended battling the flames.
The Shangqing Sect finally got their Lockheart Herb. They departed,
bringing the Violet Spirit Pavilion disciples with them. Along the journey,
no one spoke, their thoughts troubled.
Hè Wenzhao clenched his fists and said to his mental master, “Master, the
demonic sects have grown too arrogant. Just a few years ago, they seduced
me and broke the Spirit Severing Array. Now they’ve endangered the
disciples of the Shangqing Sect and Violet Spirit Pavilion. How can I
become stronger? How can I get rid of that demonic mastermind Wenren
È?”
“Let’s see…” the Blood Demon Elder said in his mind. “There is a way.”
“How?” Hè Wenzhao said, his eyes brightening.
“As an ancient cultivator, I can tell that Wenren È is cultivating a path that
can easily lead to deviation. He has already encountered a problem in his
cultivation, so he won’t be hard to deal with. We just need some help.”
He was the first blood cultivator, so of course he could tell that Wenren È
hadn’t consumed any souls, and was already at his limit.
“What kind of help?” Hè Wenzhao asked.
“Let’s see… I’m not too familiar with the cultivators of this age. But a few
days ago, didn’t you meet an unnamed cultivator? I felt that something was
off about him. He gave you his message talisman, no?”
“Yeah. He had one foot in the righteous and demonic paths, but he valued
loyalty, so I thought he was worth getting along with.”
The Blood Demon Elder chuckled. “Well, I thought his techniques felt like
those of a demonic cultivator.”
While the Shangqing Sect journeyed back, Wenren È had already brought
the Pavilion Master to Xuanyuan Sect. He immediately called over Altar
Master Miao and tossed the Pavilion Master to him. “This Venerable wants
two things. First, this person needs to willingly hand over a book. Secondly,
for the time being, his soul must not be harmed. Use some gentler
methods.”
Hearing Wenren È’s orders, an eager smile appeared on Altar Master Miao’s
face. “Understood.”
Altar Master Ruan, standing to one side, couldn’t help but shudder.
Everyone knew that in Xuanyuan Sect, Protector Qiu liked dead people the
best, and Altar Master Miao hated killing people the most. In the ten years
of the Great Sect War, Altar Master Miao kept complaining about how it
was such a shame so many righteous cultivators died. One or two could’ve
been left alive for him to raise bugs in.
Wenren È had been controlling the demonic sect members for all these
years, forbidding them from harming ordinary people. And even if they
harmed cultivators, they had to pay attention to the laws of reincarnation
and the cycle of karma. They couldn’t act against whoever they wanted.
Altar Master Miao had been stifled for many years at this point, unable to
raise new insects without people as materials. He could only use his own
body to feed them, but he was immune to all kinds of poisons and couldn’t
see the effects of his insects on his own body. He had made hundreds of
bugs, but had no one to test them on. Over the years, he had grown more
and more off-putting.
Now that he had someone to stick bugs in, he was giddy with joy. He
promised over and over that he certainly wouldn’t let the Pavilion Master
die, and would let him live very healthily.
Seeing how happy Altar Master Miao was, Altar Master Ruan brought out
his tortoise shell, shrank inside it, and rolled as far away from him as he
could.
After handing off the Pavilion Master, Wenren È stopped caring. Only
results mattered to him, not how they came about.
Wenren È shooed away everyone at the Main Hall and slowly walked
towards his room. Yin Hanjiang followed as always, without any question
as to Wenren È’s actions.
In his room, Wenren È spoke with his hands behind his back, looking away.
“You can go now.”
“Understood.” Yin Hanjiang turned around, about to shut the doors behind
him, when he was yanked back into the room.
He saw Wenren È’s eyes reddened, his hand around Yin Hanjiang’s neck,
thumb pressing his chin down. Wenren È examined his face closely, as if
deciding where to bite.
“Venerable?” Yin Hanjiang watched Wenren È without any fear. The sword
in his hand clattered in warning.
As a magic weapon, it had a will to protect its master. If it ever sensed

danger, it would warn its master.
Yin Hanjiang never stored his weapon inside his body. Now the Army
Crushing Sword shook itself free of its sheath, pointing its blade at Wenren
È.
The Seven Killing Halberd within Wenren È’s body sensed the Army
Crushing Sword’s hostility and also trembled, bringing Wenren È back to
awareness.
Wenren È licked his cracked lips and shut his eyes. He let go of Yin
Hanjiang.
“Venerable?” Yin Hanjiang said, trying to quiet his wildly beating heart. He
wanted to put his arms around his Venerable, but held them back, grabbing
his arms with his hands. “Does the Venerable have any orders?” he said
with forced calm.
“Sect Leader Yin, in a few days, this Venerable must go to the Blood Hell.
You must stay at Xuanyuan Sect and take on my duties. Before then, this
Venerable hopes you can reach Mahayana, so as to take leadership.”
Wenren È spoke with his back turned, not looking at Yin Hanjiang.
Yin Hanjiang’s eyes dulled for a moment. He knew Wenren È as a blood

cultivator must cultivate in the Blood Hell in the future. He also knew his
own power was too weak and he would never survive there. It was better he
stay at Xuanyuan Sect to keep everything in order for his Venerable.
But…
He bowed his head and said quietly, “This subordinate understands.”
Upon leaving Wenren È’s room, he immediately felt an array go up behind

him, preventing him from feeling Wenren È’s presence.
He looked down at his faintly trembling hands, then took a ghost mask out
of his robes and put it on.
With the mask on, Yin Hanjiang miraculously calmed. A voice seemed to
say in his mind, “There’s no problem. After the Venerable leaves, just
follow him secretly.”
Yin Hanjiang took off the mask. He thought, “But if the Venerable is gone
for so long, what will happen to Xuanyuan Sect?”
He put the mask back on and the voice said, “Isn’t it easy to keep the sect
under control? Protector Shu and Protector Qiu don’t get along, Protector
Qiu wants to kill Altar Master Shi and find someone to replace him, Altar
Master Ruan hates Altar Master Miao, Altar Master Shi is the natural enemy
to Altar Master Miao’s bugs, Altar Master Yuan is worried about Protector
Shu doing away with him and installing someone else. Just get them to fight
and kill each other for a hundred years, and the Venerable should be back
by then.”
Yin Hanjiang took off the mask, his eyes expressionless. After a moment,
his head turned stiffly, like a puppet’s, and a brilliant smile appeared on his
face.
Inside his room, Wenren È called out the Seven Killing Halberd, gripping it
hard as it tried to escape. It was a part of him, yet when his blood qi raged
out of control, it didn’t recognize him as its master and tried to leave his
body. As Wenren È stared at it, a technique to dissolve and absorb it
appeared in his mind.
He smacked himself forcefully in the forehead and managed to regain some

rationality.
He couldn’t become a demon. At least, not right now.
Wenren È had thought that since Hè Wenzhao ascended to the immortal

realm at the end of Volume 1, Volumes 2 and 3 wouldn’t appear in the
cultivation world. He should only be able to find Volume 2 in the immortal
realm. Yet Volume 3 had already appeared, and judging from the timing, it
was around the same time as the first.
Wasn’t it possible that all three volumes had appeared simultaneously? That
he had been lucky enough to get the first volume, while the other two had
already been picked up by others and read cover to cover?
Abusive Romance had chosen the major male character Wenren È, while
God of Annihilation: Volume 1 had chosen the protagonist’s good friend,
Zhongli Kuang, and the third volume had chosen the main wife, the Violet
Spirit Pavilion Master. They were all supporting characters, so the recipient
of the second volume should be one as well.
All the targets of the books were the closest people to the male or female
lead, so judging from that, the recipient of the second volume was most
likely to be the demonic cultivator Cen Zhengqi, or the wandering healer
Yao Jiaping.
He had already started searching for Cen Zhengqi. Yao Jiaping was a
wandering immortal whose travels were unpredictable, so he was difficult
to find.
Actually, it would be best if Yao Jiaping had the book. He was a wandering
immortal, so it would be difficult for him to take action against big sects
like Xuanyuan or Shangqing. The worst-case was Cen Zhengqi having it. If
the demonic sect traitor had the information of the second volume and
managed to deduce from it some contents of the first volume, their enemies
would have the advantage over them.
Thus he needed to acquire the third volume. He’d skin the Pavilion Master
and pull out his tendons if he had to.
While Altar Master Miao interrogated the Pavilion Master, Wenren È

meditated, reciting a Clear Mind Spell. Spending time alone in tranquil
surroundings improved his condition by a lot. After seven days, Altar
Master Miao sent word that the Pavilion Master had given in and wanted to
speak to Wenren È.
To reduce temptation, Wenren È had sealed his senses of smell, taste, and
touch, leaving only his hearing and sight. Yin Hanjiang followed him with a
calm expression as he went to find Altar Master Miao.
Altar Master Miao had the Pavilion Master in a brightly-lit room, lying on
the floor like a corpse. He was uninjured, but from time to time, a bump
would appear under the skin of his face before disappearing. Who knew
how many bugs were in his body?
Wenren È made everyone else wait outside and remained alone in the room
with the Pavilion Master. Since his smell and taste were sealed, he couldn’t
speak. He transmitted to him, “Have you made your decision?”
“Heh…” the Pavilion Master said with difficulty. “They don’t call you…
the Lord of Demons for nothing. So many ways to make someone wish for
death, ways I couldn’t even imagine. Tell Altar Master Miao to take the
bugs out of my body, and I’ll give the book to you.”
“This Venerable already gave you a chance,” Wenren È transmitted. “Since
you refused then, you don’t have the right to negotiate now. Hand over the
third volume. After reading it, this Venerable will decide whether or not to
remove your parasites. You can continue to refuse. This Venerable isn’t in a
rush.”
The Pavilion Master didn’t want to endure the agony for one more day.
After a moment of hesitation, he gave up on resistance, reaching into his
lapel and withdrawing a book. Who knew where his storage item was
hidden.
Wenren È wasn’t concerned he was plotting something. He was at their

mercy and didn’t have the guts.
Wenren È took the third volume. On the cover was a ruined temple with a
silhouetted figure standing before it. That figure seemed indescribably
lonely and defeated.
He opened it and saw on the title page: “Because of a large plot hole
appearing in the story, the closest character to the protagonist has been
chosen to help him form a soul bond with Baili Qingmiao.”
The mission of this volume was to pair up the male and female leads? What
for?
Once he flipped to the second page, he found a difference from the first
volume. There was a summary, describing not the first volume, but the
second.
The summary said: “After many battles, Hè Wenzhao defeated the Burning
Sky Immortal. Bringing his wives the Violet Spirit Immortal and Baili
Qingmiao with him, he ascended to the divine realm.”
The Burning Sky Immortal? Probably, like Wenren È, he was the

mastermind of the second volume, the enemy Hè Wenzhao had to defeat at
the end. The readers would call him the final boss.
Burning Sky… seeing these words, Wenren È was reminded of the first-
grade immortal artifact sitting in the Xuanyuan Sect forbidden grounds, the
Burning Sky Drum.
just when you think wre is not ok yhj is even more not ok. hanjiang it’s not
a competition

Wants to Know
Chapter 44 – Primordial divinity
He set aside his questions for now and continued to read, hoping the third
volume would contain more information about the Burning Sky Immortal.
Unfortunately, aside from the protagonists mentioning his name twice,

nothing more was written about him. Wenren È quickly skimmed the third
volume. A general overview of the story was that, after entering the divine
realm, Hè Wenzhao was recognized by one of the gods as the reincarnation
of a previous god. He made friends with the people he knew in his previous
life, continuing to power up and beating up ascended gods. Everyone in the
divine realm was now ascended gods, with the primordial gods all having
long since fallen.
The first two-thirds of the story was fairly peaceful. Hè Wenzhao’s old
friends and wives ascended to the divine realm one after another, while Hè
Wenzhao continued to make new friends and take new wives. Baili
Qingmiao, who had made plenty of appearances in the first volume, seemed
to have all but vanished in this one. It was the Violet Spirit Master who
followed Hè Wenzhao the whole way, getting along perfectly with his new
wives.
In the last third, things went downhill quick . First, one of Hè Wenzhao’s
friends suddenly deviated and became a demon, so everyone was forced to
kill their own good friend. At the same time, the news came that the barrier
in the Blood Hell had been broken. The 180 thousand demonic gods that
had been sealed in ancient times had escaped and lain waste to the human
realm.
Their friend who had gone mad had relatives in the human world and had
been cursed using his bloodline, becoming corrupted.
First the cultivation world fell, then the immortal realm. The ascended gods
put up their best fight, but the destructive power and corruptive influence of
the demonic gods were too strong. Anyone who faced them were either
killed and consumed, or deviated. In order to hold off the demonic gods’
invasion of the divine realm, Hè Wenzhao’s friends went to the immortal
realm one after another to do battle. Hè Wenzhao, now the leader of the
gods, also wanted to go, but at this moment, the master he had always
trusted turned on him.
It turned out his master was a demon, the blood demon. He had taken so
much care in guiding Hè Wenzhao in the past in order to steal his body
someday. The Blood Demon Elder had waited patiently for all this time,
until the worlds were in chaos. With the help of the demonic energy all
around, he tried to take Hè Wenzhao’s body in one fell swoop.
When Hè Wenzhao was on the brink of succumbing, Baili Qingmiao, who

had been hidden for over 800,000 words at this point, finally appeared. In
order to protect Hè Wenzhao, she formed a soul bond with him. They joined
forces to destroy the Blood Demon Elder once and for all.
But Baili Qingmiao had been heavily injured by the Blood Demon Elder.
When she died, Hè Wenzhao, whose soul was bound to hers, should’ve
followed. But Baili Qingmiao had done something at the moment before
her death to protect him, so that he survived while she didn’t.
After Baili Qingmiao died, as Hè Wenzhao sat there weeping, the cosmos
shifted and the three worlds crumbled. The human, immortal, and divine
realms all became one. Most of the lives in the three worlds and the
ascended gods were wiped out in an instant.
It was only now that they realized that Baili Qingmiao, in her past life, had
been the last primordial god, born with heaven and earth. She had managed
disasters, sending cataclysms to the human world, balancing the
overpopulation of life and maintaining the equilibrium of creation and
destruction. Such was Baili Qingmiao’s purpose.
She had already obtained her divine nature in the human world and could
ascend, but because of her love for Hè Wenzhao, she had given it up.
Without Baili Qingmiao controlling it, the divine nature had begun
indiscriminately unleashing disasters. Because of the hate and blame of
countless mortals, it was tainted by evil, eventually releasing the 180
thousand demonic gods from the Blood Hell.
Even so, Baili Qingmiao was still connected to the divine nature. Her
existence maintained the order of the three realms. The instant she died for
Hè Wenzhao and the last primordial god in existence fell, the divine nature
broke free of all restraints. Following its original nature, it wanted to return
the cosmos to chaos. It merged the three realms, using the demonic gods to
absorb all the energy in the realms, aiming to transform the demonic energy
into primordial chaos and return all existence to nothingness.
After understanding everything, Hè Wenzhao led all his wives and friends
into battle. In the end, they all died, and even all of the demonic gods were
consumed.
After the death of his last wife, the Violet Spirit Master, Hè Wenzhao was
the only one left in the world. He stood in front of the ruined imperial
temple, gazing at his surroundings filled with devastation. Alone, he
charged into the mass of demonic energy which was being transformed into
primordial chaos.
At the last moment before his body was dissolved into chaos, Hè Wenzhao’s
soul bond with Baili Qingmiao took effect. He merged with Baili
Qingmiao’s divine essence, gaining the ability to control the most primal
force of the universe. In an instant, he became the divine emperor.
Nearly all of creation had already been reduced to nothingness. As the

divine emperor, Hè Wenzhao had the power of creation and destruction.
Following his memories, he split the cosmos back into the three realms, and
recreated his friends and wives. The Violet Spirit Master and Baili
Qingmiao were also resurrected. Everyone celebrated together and lived
happily forever. The end.
Wenren È: …
This ending seemed satisfying. But the more you thought about it, the more
terrifying it was.
Each person saw the world differently. Having read both Abusive Romance
and God of Annihilation, Wenren È was especially clear on this fact. Hè
Wenzhao’s memories of his friends and the three realms couldn’t possibly
be the real realms and his real friends.
If at the conclusion, Hè Wenzhao had chosen to accept everything and allow

the merged world to recreate itself and give birth to new life, it would’ve
been a new start. But was this world that he had resurrected from his
memories a happy ending, or Hè Wenzhao dreaming for uncountable eons,
alone aside from his fantasies? Was his choice the beginning of a world, or
the end of one?
Wenren È wasn’t the only one with these doubts. Even the readers of God of
Annihilation questioned this ending.
[I don’t care how many girls the MC gets. I’ll follow as long as the plot’s
good and the MC is strong and kicks ass. But this conclusion… are you sure
it’s a happy ending?]
[Flipping to the cover and reading the words ‘God of Annihilation’, then
flipping back to the conclusion, I got a chill.]
[Not gonna beat around the bush here. I like harems, I like watching the
MC get all the girls. But I prefer the wives to be real people, not imaginary!
Even if Hè Wenzhao has the power to create life, isn’t he just creating his
fantasies?]
[I’ve been thinking about the ending for a long time. Is it incomplete? It
doesn’t seem that way, everyone came back to life and all. But… how come
it just doesn’t feel right?]
Of course, there were also people praising the author for writing a satisfying
ending, and tying in the title perfectly. But mostly, the reviews expressed
doubt and confusion.
Wenren È also wondered—would the divine emperor’s mind remain intact
after spending thousands of years with his false creations? Would he not
deviate? The story could end there, but would the people in it really be
happy forever?
At the very least, the Violet Spirit Master didn’t think so.
Wenren È was now practiced in reading long novels and didn’t need to
spend seven days and nights studying it, as he had with Abusive Romance.
He had learned to read several lines at a time and quickly grasp the main
points. With his powerful cognition, he finished skimming through the third
volume in a few hours, with the Pavilion Master still lying on the floor in
front of him.
Seeing Wenren È lower the book and look at him, he said, “This book
mentioned that in the cultivation world, you were killed by Hè Wenzhao,
and I also had a hand in it. I didn’t want you to know, so I didn’t dare hand
the book to you.
“This Venerable knows that. If you’re trying to provoke this Venerable with
that, you can forget it,” Wenren È said.
Ever since reading Abusive Romance, he had known his fate—that is, the
conclusion the authors had written for the Lord of Demons. He hadn’t
minded in the least.
Wenren È fought his way down the Path of Slaughter and had already let go
of life and death. In life, he would struggle with all his strength. Meeting
death, he would calmly accept his fate. If it was possible for him to change
destiny, then he would set out to accomplish it. But if his death was
predestined, then there was no need to worry over it too much.
“Is that so?” the Pavilion Master said, seeing Wenren È’s expression. He
smiled bitterly. “But I’m not like you. I fear death. I especially fear being
‘recreated’ by someone after my death, living out someone else’s notions.
Main wife? I understand myself. If I married Hè Wenzhao, it’d be because I
noticed Baili Qingmiao’s obsession with him, and was trying to manipulate
her feelings and kill her to steal her divine nature.”
Too bad the divine nature was bound to Baili Qingmiao and could not be
taken. No matter how the Pavilion Master harmed Baili Qingmiao in the
book, she couldn’t kill her. And Hè Wenzhao, who she’d once had in the
palm of her hand, grew stronger and stronger until he surpassed her. She
was forced to keep up the act, continuing to be the kind and forgiving main
wife. At least, she could follow Hè Wenzhao and benefit from the things he
got, and was able to gain power quickly, so she managed to bear it.
“But forget about all that now. If I’d already known there were so many
upsides to forming a soul bond with Baili Qingmiao, I never would’ve
clinged to Hè Wenzhao. I might as well possess a man’s body and marry
Baili Qingmiao myself. At least I won’t be like Hè Wenzhao, taking dozens
of wives. I’ll dedicate myself to Baili Qingmiao alone, so in what way am I
not an improvement over Hè Wenzhao? And then when the time comes, the
divine nature will belong to me, I’ll become the divine emperor, and the one
who survives in the end will be me!” The Pavilion Master’s handsome face
twisted. With his agitation, the gu parasites in his body became more active,
making him twitch all over in pain.
“You’re actually pretty rational, coming up with a plan like that,” Wenren È
said.
The Pavilion Master was quite a ruthless person, willing to change sexes in
an instant. It was too bad that the woman described in God of Annihilation
had been a false identity all along. Yet the readers had all thought she was a
considerate wife with no complaints, much better than the rebellious Baili
Qingmiao.
Of course she held no resentment. She never held any love in the first place.
She was just at Hè Wenzhao’s side to benefit from him. She was actually
happy for Hè Wenzhao to take more wives, so he would bother her less.
Baili Qingmiao had been the one with pure intentions, yet the readers had
called her a naughty child.
Things were rarely as simple as they appeared. The surface of a still pool
hid innumerable secrets, and few people were able to see through to its
depths.
Wenren È put away the book. With a glance at the pitiful Pavilion Master,
he said, “This Venerable never goes back on his word. Since you handed
over the book, you won’t be killed. But this Venerable has another request.
I’m rather interested in this possession technique of yours that can take
anyone’s body, male or female.”
Since the Pavilion Master had already revealed his biggest secret, he gave
up on resisting and easily gave over the technique. Wenren È, upon hearing
it, knew it wasn’t suitable for him. A wandering immortal’s possession
technique involved transforming one’s own body into immortal energy, then
driving out the target’s soul and entering their body through the Baihui
acupuncture point[1]. That way, one could obtain a flesh body while
keeping all the power of a wandering immortal.
It was a fine technique, but it only worked for wandering immortals and had
no use to Wenren È.
He sighed to himself, then called in Altar Master Miao and told him to
remove the Pavilion Master’s parasites.
Altar Master Miao looked devastated. He bitterly walked over to the

Pavilion Master, grumbling quietly, “Can’t you be a little more stubborn?
Can’t you hold out for a few more days?”
The Pavilion Master: …
What was wrong with everyone in Xuanyuan Sect?
“Venerable, should this person be killed or crippled?” Altar Master Miao

said, acting like an eager subordinate.
The Pavilion Master gritted his teeth. “Wenren È, you said you’d let me go
after I handed over the book!”
“This Venerable is true to his word, but this Venerable agreed to leave you
alive, not let you go,” Wenren È said coldly.
The Pavilion Master could keep her act up until the divine realm in the
book, and could instantly swap genders after knowing the plot. Wenren È
himself was impressed by such fortitude, but that meant he couldn’t let her
go easily.
After some thought, he said, “Give him to Protector Qiu. In her time
undercover at Shangqing Sect, she has… maybe not shown any results, but
certainly some effort. Since she’s lost her subordinates in the Hellfire Altar,
this Venerable might as well give her a bonus.”
The Pavilion Master: …
After the Pavilion Master was handed over to Protector Qiu, it was none of
Wenren È’s business whether she killed him, turned him into a ghost
immortal, or made an agreement with him to assassinate the Lord of
Demons.
Altar Master Miao was dejected, but he didn’t dare go against Wenren È’s
orders, and took the Pavilion Master to Qiu Congxue.
Wenren È led an even more silent Yin Hanjiang than usual back to his
room, considering his next move.
The third volume’s events had told him that Baili Qingmiao could not be
allowed to die, and also had to successfully merge with the divine nature
and be strong enough to control it. Otherwise, all life would be wiped out
and the three realms would return to chaos.
Baili Qingmiao had to cultivate the Path of Indifference.
Yet, there was some hidden force that constantly obstructed Baili
Qingmiao’s enlightenment. Each time she underwent a heavenly tribulation,
she was totally brainwashed, her obsession toward Hè Wenzhao the only
thing remaining in her head. What was doing this? Heavenly law, or Hè
Wenzhao’s previous incarnation?
It couldn’t be either.
It was impossible for Wenren È, unable to understand love, to answer this
question. He couldn’t help asking the one next to him, “Sect Leader Yin,
how can someone tell themselves to forget a person over and over, yet fail
to do so? How can they resolve to do so every time, yet keep making the
same mistakes, keep being trapped again?”
He was just asking a casual question. After all, Yin Hanjiang didn’t
understand love either.
He didn’t have any expectations for a response, yet Yin Hanjiang answered.
“They themselves don’t want to forget[2].”
Wenren È turned around in surprise, seeing Yin Hanjiang’s gaze focused on

him. As their eyes met, Yin Hanjiang pressed his lips together. “This
subordinate…”
“You’re right, Sect Leader Yin!” Wenren È said with a clap of his hands.
“You reminded me!”
The only one who could control Baili Qingmiao was she herself. The divine
nature had always been part of her, and after separating from the primordial
goddess, it retained its own consciousness. It was born of the cosmos and
shared its nature, and could use the power unleashed by heavenly
tribulations to affect Baili Qingmiao’s mind, forcibly filling her with love
toward Hè Wenzhao.
The nature of the cosmos was emotionless and without love, and the
primordial goddess had been the same. If all of Baili Qingmiao’s affection
was focused on one man, there was no way she would be able to merge with
the divine nature.
At the end of Abusive Romance, Baili Qingmiao had already obtained the
divine nature, yet suddenly thoughts like “Shixiong doesn’t want me to
kill”, “The sect taught me to consider the common people” appeared in her
head. This was actually proof she wasn’t able to subdue the divine nature.
She needed an unwavering will, the pure Path of Indifference, and a true
compassion that viewed all life the same, in order to truly merge with the
divine nature. Baili Qingmiao had tried to forcefully take it in before she
was ready and failed, thus bringing about everything that had happened
next.
No one was affecting her. The one holding Baili Qingmiao back had always
been herself. Or it could be said that it was the cosmos.
Baili Qingmiao must cultivate the Path of Indifference. If she couldn’t

merge with the divine nature, it was better to kill her immediately, not
letting her form a soul bond with anyone. Better the cosmos be recreated,
than the conclusion of the book come to pass, where a single person dreamt
up the world, alone.
1. at the top of the head ↩
2. He used the he pronoun. However in Chinese he and she sound the same,
they’re only written differently. ↩
Wants to Know
Chapter 45 – This disciple is unwilling
Having figured out his problem, Wenren È took out Abusive Romance,
wanting to see how Baili Qingmiao was doing at Shangqing Sect. The
Shangqing Sect would have to do something about the matter of Qiu
Congxue’s true identity. Wenren È had read this book in front of Yin
Hanjiang many times by now, with no intention to hide it, and Yin Hanjiang
never tried to look at its contents either. He only stared attentively at
Wenren È, watching him read.
The comments were full of heated discussion about the developments at the
Violet Spirit Pavilion.
[Wait a minute wait a minute, what just happened? The male lead’s wife,
the big female villain, is now a man and wants to marry the MC? Author,
what are you thinking?]
[Who knows, but this story’s hits have been shooting straight up, and it’s
already in the top rankings.]
[Let’s discuss whether or not the Violet Spirit Master is still the same
person. What if he hurt the MC in the original story because he loved her,
and wanted her to see what a scumbag Hè Wenzhao is?]
[I don’t think he’s the original Pavilion Master. Maybe something

happened, the original Pavilion Master died, and this guy replaced her. He
treats her with love and care, leading to all the badass love interests fighting
over her. I’m excited just thinking about it.]
[Wake up, previous poster. The true badass Wenren È didn’t approve. He
infiltrated the Pavilion, slapped the Pavilion Master down, and wrecked half
of True Yin Mountain. My god the Demon Lord is so cool!]
[This book feels like a roller coaster right now. One minute I’m touched by
the Pavilion Master wanting to marry the MC, the next page Wenren È is
carrying his body like a dead dog. You can’t get attached to characters here.
If you feel something for them, the next moment they’ll betray your
expectations.]
[Exactly! I’ve been betrayed by my Immortal Qingxue! She, she, she’s

actually the Demonic Left Protector Qiu Congxue, instantly turning on Baili
Qingmiao’s shixiong, even more vicious than Sister Shu! At least my Sister
Shu snatches Nascent Souls. Qiu Congxue took his actual soul! Do both the
Xuanyuan Sect Protectors practice the Nine Yin Bone Claw technique[1]?
Are their signature moves backstabbing?]
[My XueMiao ship is gone, it’s melted, it’s evaporated. Seeing how sad MC
is at her betrayal, it’s like she was just broken. My sweet innocent flower
needs a hug.]
[I have a question. How come in the original story when the MC kept being
abused I just wanted to beat up both the scumbag and the dumb bitch, but
now when Qiu Congxue betrays Baili Qingmiao, I just want to hug her? I
don’t even hate Sister Qingxue, facepalm…]
[Because the situation is different, it’s the fault of society, not the MC or
Qingxue. And it seems like Qingxue never actually tried to hide her true
identity, we were just all blind and selectively ignored her questionable
points. I guess… she was too straightforward?]
[Wenren È dragged the Pavilion Master away, but left Zhongli Qian, so
what was his purpose? Daddy doesn’t approve of him marrying his
daughter, he’s only happy with his own choice Zhongli Qian, so he came to
beat him off her?]
[The previous poster’s reasoning is kind of strange, but it’s still a valid
explanation.]
[Little Baili managed to pull herself together, she charged into the flames
and saved a dozen Pavilion disciples, and even retrieved another Lockheart
Herb. Sob, I was wrong, I don’t hate saintly white lotuses[2], as long as
they truly are good and selfless.]
[I like saints, but I’m scared Baili Qingmiao will get mistreated once she
gets back to her sect. I’ll keep reading though!]
[She shouldn’t be. She got the Lockheart Herb for the Shangqing Sect, so
they couldn’t possibly do anything too bad to her.]
Just as the readers guessed, the Shangqing Sect was currently hotly
disputing how they should handle Baili Qingmiao and her master.
After they returned to the sect with the Lockheart Herb, Hè Wenzhao left to
find the renowned healer immortal Yao Jiaping. He was the one who had
written the Sect Master’s prescription. Hè Wenzhao had met him while
searching for a doctor and, after fighting a round, became good friends with
him.
Baili Qingmiao was temporarily being held in the administration hall,

waiting for the Sect Master to wake so he could decide how to deal with
her.
As for the Violet Spirit Pavilion disciples, Shangqing Sect offered them a
residence in an outer courtyard, allowing them some time to accept the
destruction of their sect before they decided what to do next. If they were
willing to join Shangqing Sect, they would be welcomed, since Shangqing
Sect was still recovering from the Great Sect War, though they needed to
hand over the secret techniques of the Violet Spirit Pavilion first.
In the original book, after the Violet Spirit Master married Hè Wenzhao, the
two sects merged and exchanged techniques, so this wasn’t a big change.
Hè Wenzhao came back with Yao Jiaping after just one day. Yao Jiaping
was very thin and wore blue robes. As he was a wandering immortal, he had
a youthful appearance and was quite handsome. Put alongside the male lead
and love interests in Abusive Romance, he fell short a bit, but could still be
considered within the upper ranks.
He refined an elixir very quickly and, after he gave it to the Sect Master, the
Sect Master soon woke. Baili Qingmiao had done the Shangqing Sect a
great service, so their hands were now even more tied in punishing her.
After the Sect Master woke up and heard about all that had happened in
these past thirty years, he sighed weakly and said, “The Great Sect War was
a major event. I can’t make this decision alone. How about the
Administration Hall Elder calls in all sect members at Deity Transformation
or above to discuss this matter?”
Thus, everyone assembled in the main meeting room of the administration

hall. Baili Qingmiao and her disciple Su Huai sat in the middle, with over
twenty Deity Transformation cultivators seated around them. Since Zhongli
Qian’s position was special, the Shangqing Sect let him sit in on the
proceedings as a guest, and he could also make proposals, though whether
or not they would be accepted would be decided by Shangqing Sect.
Baili Qingmiao was pale with everyone’s gaze on her, but she still patted Su
Huai’s hand comfortingly. Her gaze was firm, and she had already made
mental preparations.
Elder Qingrong cared about her disciple despite everything and spoke first.
“Baili Qingmiao had been unaware that Qiu Congxue was a member of a
demonic sect. She was part of the relief team at the time, and there’s no
crime in saving a person. Also, it wasn’t Baili Qingmiao’s decision to allow
Qiu Congxue to join the Shangqing Sect; it was by the unanimous
agreement of all the elders. Qingmiao also risked her life to pluck the
Lockheart Herb from within the sea of flames. I swear upon my soul that
Qingmiao has never betrayed Shangqing Sect. She’s a good, obedient
disciple.”
Hearing her master’s words, Baili Qingmiao blushed faintly, and a slight
smile appeared on her face.
“But my soul is in Qiu Congxue’s hands,” Liu Xinye said gloomily. “Baili
Qingmiao gave the Seven-Colored Lotus Heart to Qiu Congxue, letting her
manipulate me with it.”
There were two main parties in this debate. One was Elder Qingrong, who
cared about her disciple and believed she was innocent. The other was Liu
Xinye, who thought that Qiu Congxue had been plotting in the shadows.
Baili Qingmiao had traveled with Qiu Congxue for thirty years, so she
might’ve already entered the demonic sect, and was returning to Shangqing
Sect to continue being an undercover agent. She might’ve saved the Sect
Master for show. Maybe that Lockheart Herb she had gotten wasn’t a newly
mature one at all, but the previous one that Wenren È had taken from the
Pavilion Master and given to Baili Qingmiao.
This entire time, Zhongli Qian didn’t speak, acting like Baili Qingmiao’s
fate didn’t matter to him.
Hè Wenzhao also stayed silent. After all, the one accusing Baili Qingmiao
was his wife. He gazed at Baili Qingmiao’s pale face, but his shimei never
looked at him once.
Finally, he couldn’t bear it anymore. Ignoring Liu Xinye’s pleading gaze, he

came forward and stood by Baili Qingmiao’s side. “Master, martial uncles,
fellow cultivators. Wenzhao remembers all you have said, so I hope
everyone will be willing to listen to a few of my words.”
Hè Wenzhao had gained a solid position at Shangqing Sect over these past
thirty years. Though he was a junior, his cultivation was higher than many
of his elders, so his words held much weight. With everyone’s gaze on him,
he said, “There is no doubt that Baili-shimei obtained the Lockheart Herb.
This proves her loyalty to the sect. What everyone’s debating is whether
during her thirty years of travel, she came under Qiu Congxue’s control.
This is also easy to answer. To repay her life debt to Baili-shimei, Qiu
Congxue gave her a token. All we need to do is have Baili-shimei call over
Qiu Congxue, while we set up a trap to kill her. That way, we can break Liu
Xinye’s spirit vow, as well as strike a blow against a Demonic Sect
Protector!”
His idea could save Baili Qingmiao and also free Liu Xinye from danger, so
for him and Shangqing Sect, it could be considered killing two birds with
one stone. The sect elders discussed amongst each other and found nothing
wrong with it, while Liu Xinye also had no reason to object.
“Baili Qingmiao, are you willing?” said the Administration Hall Elder,
Qingyue.
Baili Qingmiao, under everyone’s gaze, stood up. She got to her knees,
placed both hands against the ground, and bowed her head deeply. “This
disciple is unwilling.”
“Why?” Elder Qingrong and Hè Wenzhao cried at the same time.
When she found out that Qiu Congxue was a demonic cultivator, she was
clearly heartbroken to be tricked!
Baili Qingmiao had hit her head too hard against the floor, and when she
looked up, there was a red spot on her forehead. She shook her head. “After
coming to Shangqing Sect, Master Qingxue never did anything to harm the
sect. The Shangqing Sect had sustained heavy losses in the Great Sect War
and its position as the leader of the righteous sects was shaky. When word
spread that a wandering immortal had joined as a guest elder, the other sects
stopped challenging our position, allowing us thirty years of recovery.
“During our thirty years of travel, Master Qingxue exposed the Nanguo
clan using evil arts to raise their heirs, the disciples of Biluo Valley
capturing innocent ghosts to refine near-immortal artifacts, a Buddhist sect
kidnapping women to cultivate the way of the Buddha of Joy, and various
other matters. I have followed Master Qingxue for those thirty years and
witnessed each and every thing with my own eyes, remembering them in
my heart.”
“She may be a demonic cultivator, but she has never deceived me. She has
never said she was of the righteous path. It was I who stubbornly tried to
save everyone. It’s true that the righteous and demonic paths cannot coexist
peacefully, and if conflict starts again and we find ourselves on opposite
sides of the battlefield, I will show no hesitance.
“But when it comes to using Master Qingxue’s debt of gratitude, using her
trust towards me to harm her, Baili Qingmiao is unwilling!”
She looked directly at the elders seated above her, her gaze unwavering. “I
have not committed a crime by being friends with a person. Causing my
shixiong to get injured at Master Qingxue’s hands and allowing the
demonic sect to have control over Liu-shijie’s spirit vow were crimes, and I
am willing to accept any and all punishment for them.”
Her back was straight, and it seemed her tiny shoulders could hold up the
weight of the world.
Zhongli Qian clapped softly. Addressing the crowd, he said, “Miss Baili has
my deepest admiration. I will not plead for mercy for her, and will not stand
in the way of her decision.”
He spoke no more, and it seemed Baili Qingmiao’s life was of no matter to

him. But everyone knew Baili Qingmiao was connected to the Crane-
Haired Wanderer with a heart-linking parasite. There was no way he would
let Baili Qingmiao die if things really came down to it.
“Shimei!” Hè Wenzhao fell to his knees and grabbed Baili Qingmiao by her
shoulders. “Why are you being so foolish?”
“Don’t touch my master!” Su Huai brought out a thin iron rod. The moment
Hè Wenzhao saw it, he felt an ache in some part of his body, and quickly let
go of Baili Qingmiao.
Liu Xinye was furious to see Hè Wenzhao touch Baili Qingmiao right in
front of her. With a dark look on her face, she shrieked, “Baili Qingmiao
has been brainwashed by the demonic sect! This disciple hopes the elders
will decide in her favor!”
Shangqing Sect was in a difficult position. With Zhongli Qian there, they
couldn’t easily punish Baili Qingmiao. After some discussion, Qingyue
said, “Baili Qingmiao, we have decided to confine you and Su Huai to the
Cliff of Self-Reflection in the back mountains, and give you some time to
think. We hope you will come to the right decision soon. If you insist on
being foolish, then we’ll have to take action.”
“I understand,” Baili Qingmiao said. Her expression was calm as she

accepted her punishment.
She and Su Huai were confined to the forbidden ground in the back
mountains, placed under house arrest like in the original story.
Originally, it was because the Violet Spirit Master, wanting to marry Hè

Wenzhao, had said that Baili Qingmiao was surrounded by disasters and
had to be locked up, or she would endanger the entire sect. The Shangqing
Sect hadn’t believed her, assuming she was just jealous of Baili Qingmiao’s
relationship with Hè Wenzhao. But when they brought in a fortune teller,
they found that Baili Qingmiao’s fate was an expanse of crimson, and not
even celestial signs of disaster were as ominous as the signs on her. She
must’ve been the reincarnation of some demonic god.
The readers all thought that this was a trick by the Violet Spirit Master, but
Wenren È knew the fortune teller was right. Baili Qingmiao was disaster
incarnate, and her fate indeed looked like that.
Baili Qingmiao hadn’t believed that her fate was such and had rebelled
against her sect’s orders, so her scapula had been locked. She was as pitiful
as could be.
But now, she was different. Baili Qingmiao was resolute in her decision,
and had Zhongli Qian protecting her. Despite being under house arrest, her
heart was calm and steady.
That very night, Hè Wenzhao came to beg her to reconsider. She had said,
“Shixiong, don’t ask me to betray my principles, and don’t act so close with
another woman when you are already married. Don’t destroy the image I
have of you in my heart.”
Hè Wenzhao could only return defeated. He didn’t spend that night with Liu
Xinye. Gritting his teeth, he said to his master, “Wenren È and Qiu
Congxue must’ve used some evil technique to control shimei. What can I
do to save her?”
“Let’s see…” said the Blood Demon Elder with a dark chuckle. “I have an
idea. But you’ll have to give your body to me temporarily.”
After a moment of hesitation, Hè Wenzhao agreed. Neither book had

progressed past this point. Both books were written from their protagonists’
point of view, so God of Annihilation would be deliberately leaving out
what the Blood Demon Elder was doing right now, in order to raise
suspense.
After finishing reading the revisions, Wenren È faintly got a bad feeling. He
had three books in his possession and could check on the progression of the
plot at any time, but now that Hè Wenzhao was taking action against him,
the book was leaving it out.
Wenren È was aware that the book couldn’t show everything. What could
be included in it was only the tip of an iceberg, but now that it was precisely
leaving out action taken against the Xuanyuan Sect, Wenren È was wary.
Could it be…?
He still hadn’t discovered the whereabouts of the second volume. Was the
second volume different from the other two books? Or was this recipient
much smarter than the others, and had figured out how to conceal his
actions?
Wenren È flipped through all the revised portions. One person’s name
hadn’t shown up at all.
That person was Cen Zhengqi.

1. It’s a famous evil technique from the popular wuxia novel Legend of the
Condor Heroes. A character in it, Mei Chaofeng, created the technique after
she betrayed her master, stole a cultivation manual from him, and ran away
to elope with another student. ↩
2. Refers to a female character who’s very sweet and innocent and kind of
naive. ↩
Wants to Know
Chapter 46 – Baiting the serpent
After his clan had been wiped out, Wenren È had picked up the habit of
always preparing for the worst-case scenario, never hoping for a fluke.
He didn’t think, “Maybe it isn’t Cen Zhengqi, or even if it is him, maybe he

doesn’t know the plot has changed.” He only cared about the worst possible
outcome.
He knew that the Violet Spirit Master hadn’t known who obtained the first
and second volumes. Similarly, the holder of the second volume wouldn’t
know about Baili Qingmiao’s connection with the divine nature. With the
two volumes he had, he could assume the second volume told of the events
after Hè Wenzhao and Baili Qingmiao ascended to the immortal realm. In
the first volume, Hè Wenzhao’s friends also ascended one after another. The
most likely pieces of information for the second volume’s possessor to
know were Wenren È’s death, from the summary of the previous volume,
and the fact that the second volume’s main villain was the Burning Sky
Immortal.
After obtaining the book, Cen Zhengqi had two choices. One was to accept
Hè Wenzhao as the protagonist and follow him faithfully to ride his
coattails. The second was to reject him and wait for a good time to steal his
opportunities and become the strongest.
Judging from when the first and third volumes had shown up, the second
volume would’ve also appeared thirty years ago. In these thirty years, Cen
Zhengqi’s name hadn’t shown up once in the revised first volume. If a
person decided to curry favor with someone, they would’ve appeared much
earlier, doing everything they could to help that person. Wenren È, even
though he didn’t want to win over Baili Qingmiao, had shown up several
decades in advance because he needed to help her and had no malicious
intent toward her. Even the readers had expressed surprise at his early
debut.
Since Cen Zhengqi hadn’t done that, the chances that he wanted to support
Hè Wenzhao were low. He had probably chosen the second option.
He must be a person with ambition and brains, so what would he be doing

now? Wenren È wasn’t a particularly ambitious person and didn’t really
understand the thoughts of his subordinates in Xuanyuan Sect. But he could
ask.
Cen Zhengqi was a man, so none of the Altar Masters could be trusted. Out
of the Sect Protectors, Qiu Congxue didn’t need to be considered, and Shu
Yanyan had been killed by Hè Wenzhao and Cen Zhengqi in the book, so
there was no way she could be him.
“Call over the Right Protector,” Wenren È said.
Yin Hanjiang sent a message talisman and soon Shu Yanyan rushed into the
Main Hall. She was actually dressed properly, though a flush tinged her
face. She must’ve just been cultivating.
“Protector Shu, this Venerable can’t figure something out and needs your
help,” Wenren È said.
“Ask away,” Shu Yanyan said humbly. “This subordinate will say all that
she knows.”
“Let’s say, one day, you obtained a divine book which foretold the future,”
Wenren È said. “In it, it said, without a doubt, that Wenren È would die and
you would become the new master of Xuanyuan Sect. Afterwards, you
would ascend to the immortal realm and become someone’s subordinate,
helping him kill the ruler of the immortal realm. With this book, you can
predict the future. How would you act?”
Shu Yanyan: …
Her heart beat wildly. Was her lord asking this because he knew that she
wanted to assassinate him at the right opportunity, become the Lord of
Demons, then ascend with her subordinates and lay low in the immortal
realm until she had the chance to kill the leader of the immortals?
After further thought, she didn’t think that was likely. Who didn’t know that
she wanted to replace Wenren È? Who bothered hiding that fact? No, the
Venerable wasn’t so paranoid; he encouraged the ambitions of the members
of Xuanyuan Sect. What he said had to have some deeper meaning.
Shu Yanyan smiled. “The Venerable is telling a joke. If this subordinate

really obtained such a book, she wouldn’t let the Venerable die. The
Venerable’s powers are great, so this subordinate couldn’t bear to kill him,
if she could…”
She lifted her head to look at Wenren È, but before she could, she was
pinned by Yin Hanjiang’s murderous gaze.
Shu Yanyan looked at Yin Hanjiang and saw that, at some point, he had put
on a ghost mask. Underneath it, his eyes burned, making him seem like a
completely different person.
“Venerable…” She pointed at Yin Hanjiang.
“What?” Wenren È turned his head and saw Yin Hanjiang standing behind
him, sword in hand, as if nothing was out of the ordinary. Though his
fingertips on the sword were white, and he seemed to be in pain.
Wenren È took his hand, saying gently, “There’s no need for Sect Leader
Yin to be worried. This Venerable won’t die easily. And this Venerable has
already allowed you to follow him to the afterlife.”
Yin Hanjiang revealed a smile like a puppet’s, like he had forced each
muscle of his face to move with his spiritual energy. There was no emotion
in his voice. “This subordinate understands.”
With that order, Yin Hanjiang would probably be fine. Wenren È nodded
and turned back to Shu Yanyan.
Shu Yanyan: …
No way, Venerable, Yin Hanjiang doesn’t look like he has any intention of
obeying your orders. He has his mask back on; he looks like he’s going to
commit murder.
Shu Yanyan had been part of a demonic sect for years, previously having
followed the old Sect Master. She had seen all sorts of demonic cultivators,
but she had never witnessed anyone like Yin Hanjiang, who looked like he
had crawled out of the pits of hell.
She was near the peak of Mahayana, yet was being intimidated into backing
away by a mere Void Boundary cultivator. Yin Hanjiang’s power wasn’t
reasonable!
“Protector Shu?” Wenren È said, impatience in his voice. He was still

waiting for her answer.
Shu Yanyan calmed her heart. She felt like there was no right answer here.
If she lied and flattered Wenren È, he would be annoyed. If she told the
truth, she got the feeling that right now, she couldn’t take Yin Hanjiang in a
fight.
Trapped between them, Shu Yanyan finally answered, “If it were the other
Protector or one of the Altar Masters, they would probably use their
foreknowledge and stay hidden for the proper time to kill the Venerable and
eliminate opposition. In the immortal realm… they would probably kill the
immortal lord as well as the person they were following, stealing both their
opportunities and ascending to godhood. But that’s what other people would
do. If it were this subordinate, I would give the book to you, and never let
you meet with any danger.”
Looking at Yin Hanjiang’s mask, she said, “This subordinate is forever

loyal to the Venerable.”
Finally, Yin Hanjiang slowly took off the mask. He cocked his head at her,
and his face gradually pulled into a smile.
Shu Yanyan: …
She suddenly thought that the Venerable had to live a nice long life. If he
were to really die, probably no one would be able to control this rabid beast
Yin Hanjiang.
With Shu Yanyan’s answer, Wenren È now sufficiently understood Cen

Zhengqi’s plan. First, join forces with the Blood Demon Elder and kill
Wenren È, taking control of Xuanyuan Sect. Second, gather information on
the Burning Sky Immortal and kill him. All the while, act loyal to Hè
Wenzhao, while waiting for a chance to strike. Third, kill Hè Wenzhao.
Since he was acting in the shadows, they might as well use his own tricks
against him and put on an act to lure him out of hiding.
Having made his decision, Wenren È said to Shu Yanyan, “Call the Left
Protector and the Altar Masters to the Main Hall. This Venerable needs to
discuss something with them. Also, about that question…”
“What question?” Shu Yanyan said blankly. “The one you just asked me?”
“You answered well,” Wenren È said with a slight smile.
The Right Protector was efficient and got everyone assembled at the Main
Hall in less than two hours. The last time everyone had been gathered like
this, it was for the sect entering seclusion, and the time before that, it was
for the Great Sect War. Everyone wondered what important matter it was
now.
Wenren È swept his gaze over the crowd. Aside from Shi Congxin looking
timid, everyone was full of schemes, coveting the position of Sect Master.
Qiu Congxue was the one who hid it the least.
“I believe everyone already knows that a disciple has caught this

Venerable’s eye, Baili Qingmiao of Shangqing Sect,” Wenren È said. “She
has particularly high aptitudes, so this Venerable wants to raise her to be his
opponent. She’s very valuable to me. But now, because of Protector Qiu,
she has been condemned by Shangqing Sect. This Venerable fears the
disciple he’s chosen will have her spiritual root destroyed by Shangqing
Sect, so wants to hear everyone’s ideas.”
Qiu Congxue wanted to speak, but Shu Yanyan pulled her back. She
transmitted, “I know you have no brains, but just listen to me this once, and
don’t say anything.”
Qiu Congxue stared blankly at her, and with her hesitation, Altar Master
Ruan got to speak first.
“Shangqing Sect is weakened, so we can just pressure them to hand over

Baili Qingmiao,” said Altar Master Ruan.
“This Venerable fears they will refuse. They can’t be allowed to harm
Qingm— my disciple.”
Shu Yanyan: ?
She wasn’t hearing things, right? Had the Venerable just shown some
concern toward Baili Qingmiao in those words? No, he was purposefully
giving people the impression that he had developed feelings for Baili
Qingmiao and was trying to hide it. He was using Baili Qingmiao as bait!
She clamped her mouth shut, not daring to say a word.
“You can make her a ghost cultivator,” Qiu Congxue offered helpfully.
“This Venerable doesn’t want her the least bit harmed,” Wenren È said with
a glare at her. “Protector Qiu, as Baili Qingmiao’s master, have you no
concern towards her at all? Huh?”
That last word held a rage they had never before heard from him.
Qiu Congxue was stunned. Didn’t offering to make Baili Qingmiao a ghost
cultivator demonstrate her concern and favor towards her disciple? She had
prepared everything for her! She had already refined the Violet Spirit
Master’s soul, and once Baili Qingmiao became a ghost cultivator, she
could devour him and rise to Mahayana on the spot. She was thinking of her
disciple!
“Venerable, I—”
Before she could finish, Wenren È waved a sleeve and sent her flying,
spitting up a mouthful of blood.
“That’s enough. You’re all a pack of useless fools! This Venerable will
figure it out himself!” “Fuming”, Wenren È stood up. Before leaving, he
gave Shu Yanyan a meaningful look.
The smartest woman in Xuanyuan Sect: …
“Cough, cough, what’s with the Venerable? Why is he so mad?” Shi

Congxin said, trembling. Relying on his looks, he leaned against Shu
Yanyan’s side. “Protector Shu, I haven’t been an Altar Master for long and
have only met the Venerable a few times, so I don’t know him very well.
Can you give me some advice? Cough, cough!“
Shu Yanyan understood the task Wenren È had given her. She had been
worried she wouldn’t have a chance to say anything, before Shi Congxin
had asked her. Pleased, she stroked his chin and said, “You’ve asked the
right person. As I see it, the Venerable’s love tribulation has arrived.”
“You mean…” Everyone’s eyes lit up except Qiu Congxue’s.
“Who could’ve guessed that such a hard-hearted man as our lord would’ve
fallen in love with such a pure, innocent girl? Ah, if I’d known that was his
type, I would’ve played the role,” Shu Yanyan said, acting regretful. “I’ve
known many men over the years. When it comes to someone like Wenren È,
whose heart has never moved in centuries and who’s oblivious to romance,
once he does encounter love, he’ll fall head over heels in a heartbeat. If it
were me he liked, he would really be willing to die for me.”
“Who does he like?” Qiu Congxue finally got back to her feet.
Shu Yanyan’s smile vanished the instant she saw her. “Not you,” she said
coldly.
“So anyways, Baili Qingmiao is precious to Wenren È. No one better mess
with her.” With a sly smile and those words, Shu Yanyan left.
That night, a person sat alone in a room, flipping through a book and
rereading several lines. He said to himself, “When this book said that
Wenren È had fallen for Baili Qingmiao, fighting Hè Wenzhao for her, I
thought it was a lie. How could a cold-hearted man like him fall for a girl?
But it turns out it was a love tribulation?”
His appearance was indistinguishable in the dark. He kept flipping through

the book, muttering, “But Wenren È ought to have books too. How could he
not know how he died? Is this an opportunity, or a trap?”
He took out a message talisman, which the Blood Demon Elder had
borrowed Hè Wenzhao’s body to send him. As he predicted it, what the
Blood Demon did after taking over Hè Wenzhao’s body shouldn’t be
recorded in the book. Therefore, he hadn’t given out his name when
meeting Hè Wenzhao, and only revealed his true identity when the Blood
Demon was in charge of Hè Wenzhao’s body.
“Wenren È, Blood Demon, Hè Wenzhao, Baili Qingmiao—none of you

know what my goal is. Even if this is a trap, all I have to do is be careful
and never reveal my identity,” the person pondered.
“Fine, if you want to lure me into action, then I’ll be the fisherman, and
while the sandpiper and clam fight amongst each other[1], I’ll be the
ultimate victor.” In the wavering lamplight, that person made his decision
and sent his message to the Blood Demon.
When Wenren È returned to his room after yelling at everyone, Yin

Hanjiang said, “If the Venerable wishes to save Baili Qingmiao, then this
subordinate is willing to charge into Shangqing Sect and risk his life for
her.”
Hearing his words, Wenren È paused, looking at Yin Hanjiang’s dedicated

expression that said he was willing to die for his Venerable, just like the
fourth male lead who had quietly stood guard at Baili Qingmiao’s side.
Wenren È worked his mouth, unsure how he should explain to Yin
Hanjiang.
He didn’t let Yin Hanjiang read Abusive Romance because the story was
only halfway revised. The latter half was still the same as the original book,
recording Wenren È risking his life for Baili Qingmiao over and over,
treating her tenderly, and at last sacrificing himself for her. Wenren È didn’t
like reading it himself. He absolutely could not let Yin Hanjiang see it.
In both Abusive Romance and God of Annihilation, Wenren È’s death at the
end hadn’t yet been revised. Wenren È was not certain he could defy heaven
and change destiny. He couldn’t promise Yin Hanjiang he wouldn’t die.
After some thought, he only said, “Baili Qingmiao is important, but not just
to this Venerable. She’s important to the entirety of the three realms, so this
Venerable is helping her.”
Yin Hanjiang half-kneeled in front of Wenren È, quietly listening.
“This Venerable doesn’t wish to hide anything from you. It’s possible that
there’s someone out there who knows more than I. He’s acting in the
shadows, so this Venerable intends to lure him out. Those words out there
were half-truths, but mostly they were a show for his benefit. As for
whether or not it’ll work, this Venerable can’t say.”
Yin Hanjiang worked up the courage to grab Wenren È’s hand. He said in a
tone of forced calm, “Is the Venerable in any danger?”
“I’m uncertain.” Wenren È shook his head. “The enemy is not necessarily
weaker than I. And I also need to use this opportunity to get rid of a threat.”
“The Venerable will not die,” Yin Hanjiang said stubbornly. “This
subordinate will not allow him to.”
“Who knows? Humans make plans, but heaven decides whether or not they
succeed.” Wenren È sighed. After all, the Blood Arts weren’t without
weaknesses.
Yin Hanjiang looked at his expression, and felt the Army Crushing Sword
jerk in his grasp. He clenched it tight, hiding the vicious look in his eyes.
1. It’s a fable. While the sandpiper and clam fight each other, the fisherman
catches them both. ↩
Wants to Know
Chapter 47 – Deception
“What is this?” Hè Wenzhao said furiously, holding a message talisman.
It had shown up in his room at some point. The Shangqing Sect had already
strengthened its defenses, hearing that Wenren È had long since been
interested in Baili Qingmiao and afraid he would show up to take her.
Despite having been married to Liu Xinye for many years, Hè Wenzhao’s
heart was still on his little shimei. Also, as he continued to gain strength, he
came to believe that there was nothing wrong with a man taking three or
four wives. The leader of the Nanguo clan was a Mahayana cultivator with
a horde of wives, who he all treated lovingly, and who helped him manage
his estate. Hè Wenzhao was currently the youngest Void Boundary
cultivator in the cultivation world and was sure to rise to Mahayana in the
future, so he very well could take multiple wives.
In Hè Wenzhao’s heart, the position of his true wife was reserved for Baili
Qingmiao. He had always seen her as his wife, so when he heard that
Wenren È liked her, he saw red.
Thinking back to the events on True Yin Mountain, Wenren È had asked
Baili Qingmiao to leave with him. Fortunately, shimei had refused.
Hè Wenzhao found it unbearable that someone so powerful wanted his

shimei. “Master,” he asked, “how can I get rid of this scum of the
cultivation world?”
“Let’s see…” The Blood Demon Elder chuckled in his mind. “Hasn’t your
Sect Master just woken up? Let me use your body to tell him something.”
“Why should I give you my body?” Hè Wenzhao felt reluctant. Every time
he let his master use his body, he would have a blank patch in his memories,
and had no way of knowing what his master did. This made him
uncomfortable, and he started having misgivings toward his master.
“Because I suspect Wenren È placed a gu parasite in you at True Yin

Mountain, and might now be able to hear your thoughts,” said the Blood
Demon Elder. “Best that I use your body, and you distance yourself from
this matter for a time. If this plan fails, we’ll be unable to overcome Wenren
È. When he kidnaps your little shimei, he’ll have all the evil sorcery in the
world to cast on her. A single spell could make her forget you forever.”
Hè Wenzhao hesitated for a few more moments, then gritted his teeth and
said, “Fine, I’ll let you have my body for the next few days!”
The revisions of God of Annihilation stopped there, though Abusive

Romance continued on a little further, recording how Hè Wenzhao had paid
a visit to Baili Qingmiao. Baili Qingmiao had felt that something was off
about him, but when she was about to ask, he knocked her unconscious. Su
Huai seemed to have also been knocked unconscious.
The readers of Abusive Romance were all asking what had just happened.
Had Liu Xinye taken Hè Wenzhao’s appearance to harm Baili Qingmiao?
The comments were full of discussions and questions. Wenren È knew,
though, that Hè Wenzhao was likely possessed by the Blood Demon. He
had no knowledge of his actions.
Odd. Cen Zhengqi would know that Hè Wenzhao was the protagonist, so it
made sense that he wanted him possessed, but why did he want to knock
out Baili Qingmiao? Wenren È had thought that turning Cen Zhengqi’s
attention toward Baili Qingmiao would focus more of the plot into Abusive
Romance, so he could use it to monitor the situation. How did Cen Zhengqi
think of Baili Qingmiao?
Something was off about this situation.
A chessboard[1] appeared before Wenren È. He set down two white pieces,

and the board suddenly changed unpredictably. Black had now, without its
knowledge, been surrounded by White.
God of Annihilation had three volumes. It wasn’t difficult for Cen Zhengqi
to figure out that he had the first volume. But Abusive Romance had only
one volume and he had been the first to get it. The only other who knew of
it was Yin Hanjiang, who would never let information leak.
Wenren È held two black pieces and closed his eyes, considering how best
to place them down in order to turn the tables.
Cen Zhengqi, Wenren È, Blood Demon, Hè Wenzhao, Burning Sky

Immortal…
His eyes flew open, and he placed the pieces down decisively. The
circumstances changed in an instant. He smiled slightly. No matter who he
was facing, he could counter a thousand plans with one of his.
Two months later, Altar Master Yuan received a message from a disciple
walking outside and rushed to meet with Wenren È.
“Venerable, this is bad!” he said frantically. “Our Message Carriers have

heard a rumor in the cultivation world, that in the past two months,
seventeen Body Unity and above cultivators of the righteous sects and
cultivation clans have been killed. One of them was at Mahayana. They all
died of, of…”
The Message Carriers was a special organization in Xuanyuan Sect,

managed by the Main Hall Master. They posed as wandering cultivators,
sometimes becoming guests of the cultivation clans, tasked with uncovering
information about the cultivation world.
“How did they die?” Wenren È said calmly.
“They were all dissolved into blood and absorbed…” Altar Master Yuan
took a fearful glance at Wenren È and backed away a few steps. “The
Shangqing Sect has shared comprehensive records of the battle against the
Blood Demon ten thousand years ago, spreading word that blood cultivators
have to absorb other cultivators’ souls to gain power, and were sure to
become demons. If people are dying this way, then it means… the coming
of a demon.”
“Shut your mouth!” Yin Hanjiang, standing behind Wenren È, kicked Altar
Master Yuan over and pointed his sword at his throat.
Most people in Xuanyuan Sect knew by now that Wenren È had become a
blood cultivator. Things had remained peaceful because no one knew a
blood cultivator’s cultivation methods. Now that he had heard the
information from Shangqing Sect, Altar Master Yuan was rightfully scared.
However, Yin Hanjiang wouldn’t permit him to suggest that Wenren È had
committed those murders.
The Venerable may cultivate a demonic path, but he would never become a
demon. Even if he wanted to kill people, he would do so in open battle like
he had in the Great Sect War or the destruction of True Yin Mountain. He
wouldn’t commit such underhanded murders.
“No need to be angry, Sect Leader Yin,” Wenren È said. “Altar Master Yuan
is just reporting things as they are.”
Yin Hanjiang stiffly withdrew his sword. Wenren È clapped his hands.
“What a masterful move. Instantly, they’ve put this Venerable in an
impossible situation.”
The Blood Demon had used Hè Wenzhao’s body to assassinate experts of

the righteous sects. In doing so, he could increase his own power, and at the
same time lead Shangqing Sect to spread knowledge of blood cultivation,
making people think that Wenren È had caused these seventeen deaths.
After the news was out, the righteous sects and cultivation clans would start
making plans to kill him.
The people of Xuanyuan Sect would be thrown into a panic. Few people
would be willing to take on the entire cultivation world for Wenren È, and
many would backstab him.
At the same time, after absorbing the seventeen cultivators, the Blood
Demon’s power had probably returned to the peak of Mahayana.
He had isolated Wenren È, while uniting the righteous sects and cultivation
clans against him. He even managed to use Wenren È as a shield while
increasing his own power. All the while, he had avoided showing up in the
revisions, making his moves in the shadows. It was truly a masterful plan.
Altar Master Yuan got to his feet and backed away a few more steps. Only
after putting some distance between him and Wenren È did he say, “V—
Venerable, I hear they’re planning to act against you. W—what should we
do?”
“‘We’?” Wenren È raised an eyebrow. “At this moment, the Xuanyuan Sect
is still willing to fight alongside this Venerable?”
“Naturally, we’re completely loyal to the Venerable. Even if he were to

consume us to increase his power, w—we have no complaints!” Altar
Master Yuan said, backing away.
“Listen to that,” Wenren È said with a smile to Yin Hanjiang. “If this
Venerable really led this bunch into battle, I’d probably find a knife in my
back.”
“The Venerable doesn’t need them,” Yin Hanjiang said. He put down his
sword, standing unarmed before Wenren È, using his actions to signal his
loyalty and trust in him.
“At least you trust this Venerable,” Wenren È said, placing a hand on Yin
Hanjiang’s neck. He felt a shudder run through Yin Hanjiang under his
palm.
His smile faded. He said coldly, “If you trust me, then why are you
shaking?”
“This subordinate is not. This subordinate…” Yin Hanjiang lifted his head
helplessly, not knowing how to explain.
“Fine,” Wenren È said, seeing that he had no answer. “If none of you trust
this Venerable, this Venerable cannot trust in you. Sect Leader Yin, you
have greatly disappointed me.”
He transformed into crimson light, departing Xuanyuan Sect.
“This— With the Venerable gone, what are we supposed to do?” Altar
Master Yuan said, looking helplessly at Yin Hanjiang.
“If the Venerable is not here, the deputy will represent him. If the deputy is
not here, the Right Protector will. What must be done will be done!” Yin
Hanjiang picked up his sword and hopped on it, pursuing Wenren È in the
direction he had vanished.
Altar Master Yuan had no choice but to inform the Right Protector.
When Shu Yanyan received his message, she was lying in Helian Chu’s[2]
lap, eating spiritual fruit. Helian Chu heard the message together with her.
“Protector, would the Venerable really consume people’s souls?” Helian

Chu said, looking fearful as he held Shu Yanyan tighter.
Shu Yanyan shoved him off. “If you’re not scared, quit acting. If he wanted
to consume you, you think you could escape?”
Flushing, Helian Chu said, “Isn’t this subordinate taking the chance to get
closer to the Protector? Protector, do you think he’s someone who would
secretly consume people? In this subordinate’s eyes, he doesn’t seem like
it.”
“Why?” Shu Yanyan said.
“Thirty years ago, when the Venerable returned after the Great Sect War, he
possessed this subordinate’s body. Do you still remember that?”
“Hm? Didn’t you not like bringing this up?” Shu Yanyan said with interest.
Wenren È had possessed Helian Chu, causing Shu Yanyan to not
immediately realize that he had returned, exposing her ambitions in front of
him. Helian Chu had lost his position and been ignored by Shu Yanyan for
years. After studying literature for thirty years and memorizing a few
poems, he had finally regained her favor.
“The situation’s different now,” Helian Chu said. “Anyway, when this
subordinate was possessed, the Venerable could’ve destroyed my soul at
any time, yet he hadn’t. I feel that he’s not the type to kill someone secretly.
If he wanted to consume someone’s soul, he would probably send them a
message declaring his intentions, then defeat them in open combat. He
wouldn’t act in the shadows.”
“You’ve gotten smarter after reading books.” Shu Yanyan stroked his cheek.
Her smile gradually faded, and she said seriously, “If even you think so,
then probably no one with a brain will be fooled.”
After putting her clothes on properly, she headed to the Main Hall to take
over management of the sect. Everyone else had received Altar Master
Yuan’s message and soon assembled there.
The first to arrive was Protector Qiu. Upon seeing Shu Yanyan, she said, “I
don’t believe it. Even if I used my pinky toe to think, I’d know it wasn’t
Wenren È who did it.”
Shu Yanyan smiled brilliantly. She pointed at Qiu Congxue, saying to

Helian Chu, “See? Even people without brains don’t buy it.”
Qiu Congxue: …
Helian Chu: …
After everyone arrived, Shu Yanyan said, “I know many people have doubts
right now. Likely, some want to use this as an opportunity to cause trouble.
But I urge everyone to be patient. Even if you want to take Wenren È’s
position, we should wait until we confirm our information. Everyone still
remembers the punishment they got last time, right? Personally, this
Protector doesn’t wish to get punished again so soon.”
Remembering his punishment, Altar Master Ruan shuddered. He spoke out

first. “Whoever wants to backstab can go ahead, but I don’t dare to.”
The other Altar Masters also successively declined.
At that moment, a message talisman flew into the hall, sent from a Message
Carrier. Altar Master Yuan opened it and played it for everyone to hear.
“According to intel, Baili Qingmiao has been captured by the Blood Demon
and taken to the Blood Hell, currently in mortal danger.”
An image was attached to the message, which Altar Master Yuan displayed.
A scene appeared in the air. Baili Qingmiao and Su Huai were dangled
above the sea of the Blood Hell, both unconscious. From time to time, the
spray from the sea would land on them.
The Blood Hell was the seal that the primordial gods had worked together
to create, and it contained the primordial chaos energy of the cosmos. It
looked to be a sea of crimson water, but it was actually the reflection of
primordial chaos energy. Every drop of water contained terrifying power.
The 180 thousand demonic gods ceaselessly attacked the seal, and over the
centuries, the demonic energy had fused with the primordial chaos,
becoming a corrosive power that could consume everything. A drop of
water fell on Baili Qingmiao’s leg, and instantly, half of the flesh on her leg
rotted. The pain shocked her awake. Looking around, she found she was no
longer in the mountains of Shangqing Sect.
The sea kicked up a spray again, and Baili Qingmiao hugged Su Huai to her
chest, sending out her silk to block the droplets. However, her power was
no match for the Blood Hell’s water, and the Moonlit Frost Silk instantly
disintegrated. With her bonded weapon destroyed, Baili Qingmiao’s dantian
was injured and she spat up a mouthful of blood. Holding Su Huai in her
arms, she fainted again.
“Despicable!” Seeing the scene, Qiu Congxue didn’t think about who had
set the trap. She transformed into a spring breeze and flew off, evidently to
the Blood Hell.
“Oh my, how heartless,” Shu Yanyan said, rubbing her temples. “Since that
idiot wants to go throw away her life, I better go stop her.”
Dragging Helian Chu, she set off in pursuit, leaving the Altar Masters
staring at each other.
They had no plans to go help, and without understanding the situation, they
didn’t dare to act. After a bit of discussion, Altar Master Yuan said, “Why
don’t we all manage our own territories for now and observe the situation.
After the dust settles, we can figure out who’s the new Sect Master.”
Thinking it over, they all found it reasonable. Even if they wanted to cause
chaos, this wasn’t the time for it. Plus, this had occurred too suddenly, so it
was probably a ploy. None of them wanted to be used, so they might as well
copy Altar Master Ruan and turtle up.
After everyone departed, a lone figure came to the Xuanyuan Sect

forbidden grounds, the location of the sect’s only immortal artifact, the
Burning Sky Drum.
“Wenren È has been lured away, Yin Hanjiang has followed him, and
Protectors Qiu and Shu are also gone. The timing is perfect for me to take
control of the Burning Sky Drum.”
The person took out a book. It was God of Annihilation: Volume 2.
He flipped to a certain page in the back. It read, “The Burning Sky

Immortal was actually the Xuanyuan Sect Left Protector Yin Hanjiang.
After sustaining mortal injuries in the cultivation world, a remaining
fragment of his soul hid within the Burning Sky Drum, slowly regaining its
strength. The Burning Sky Drum was an abandoned weapon of the
immortal lord. He eventually found it in the cultivation world and wanted to
take it back to refine it anew, but he was devoured by Yin Hanjiang, who
had now become one with it. Taking over his body, Yin Hanjiang became
the Burning Sky Immortal. He was still loyal to Wenren È, and was filled
with hatred toward Hè Wenzhao and his people. In the cultivation world, he
had secretly harmed Baili Qingmiao and Hè Wenzhao countless times. At
first, he had not yet absorbed the immortal lord’s soul, and could only send
his underlings against them. After a thousand years, he absorbed his soul
and finally took action personally, setting out to kill Hè Wenzhao.
“The Burning Sky Drum might’ve been the immortal lord’s bonded
weapon, but it’s been left in the cultivation world for many years and has
lost its connection to him. I just need to place my blood and a wisp of my
soul within it to begin consuming its power. I’ll be able to refine the
immortal and demonic energy inside it and become an invincible immortal
lord,” that person muttered as he read.
“Since getting this book, I’ve waited a long time for this chance. After
battling the Blood Demon, even if Wenren È survives, he’ll become a
monster who only wants to consume souls. Yin Hanjiang will probably be
the first to get devoured, hahaha…”
“Who will be the first?” said a voice from the bottom of the ravine where
the Burning Sky Drum lay.
A figure leapt out of the ravine. It was Yin Hanjiang.
“D—didn’t you follow Wenren È?” the person said in shock.
“The Venerable ordered me to guard the Burning Sky Drum,” Yin Hanjiang
said. He raised his sword. “Why are you here, Altar Master Yuan?”
1. It’s probably Go ↩
2. The author inexplicably changed Helian Yi’s name.↩

Wants to Know
Chapter 48 – Blossoming of the spider lilies
Wenren È wasn’t someone like Zhongli Qian who wouldn’t miss a single
detail. When it came to strategy, he knew he couldn’t compare to Zhongli
Qian. He couldn’t even match Shu Yanyan’s sense for detail.
But few rulers of the past and present were known for their cleverness. As
the Xuanyuan Sect Master, Wenren È didn’t need to consider every detail
himself. He just needed to assign the right people to the right places, and be
able to trust them.
If all the doubts pointed to Yin Hanjiang, then the situation actually became
simple. He only needed to trust Yin Hanjiang to not betray him.
Thus he had called over Yin Hanjiang and asked who he thought, aside
from him, might know Wenren È was in possession of two books, as well as
who in Xuanyuan Sect could cover up their own identity without any traces.
Yin Hanjiang figured out the first question. He had a good memory, and
remembered that though Wenren È was alone with him on the day he
obtained the book, there was one person who had kept asking what book the
Venerable had obtained, and whether a celebration should be prepared. Yin
Hanjiang didn’t easily forget anything involving Wenren È, and even
remembered that when Wenren È had been reading, Altar Master Yuan had
paced back and forth outside his door several times.
And Altar Master Yuan had only brought up planning a celebration this
once. When Wenren È returned after the Great Sect War, having increased
his power greatly, Altar Master Yuan didn’t mention celebrating. Neither
had he brought it up after their thirty-year seclusion.
After Yin Hanjiang relayed this, Wenren È considered the personalities of
everyone in Xuanyuan Sect. Protector Shu was sharp, Protector Qiu was
straightforward, Altar Master Miao was secretive, Altar Master Ruan was
reckless, Altar Master Shi was cowardly, and Altar Master Yuan was
cunning. None of them were lacking in ambition, but the ones who could
stay undercover for thirty years without acting after obtaining the book
were probably only Protector Shu, Altar Master Miao, Altar Master Shi, and
Altar Master Yuan.
Shu Yanyan had died by Cen Zhengqi’s hand in the book. She and Hè
Wenzhao were enemies, and the books had all chosen people who appeared
to favor the protagonists, so there was no possibility of her having it.
If Altar Master Miao had gotten it, he would’ve wondered why the Violet
Spirit Master was a man, and used his gu insects to interrogate him on the
location of the third volume. Since he hadn’t, he wasn’t very suspicious.
The remaining suspects were Altar Master Shi and Altar Master Yuan. In
order to confirm his conjecture, Wenren È had sent a message to Zhongli
Qian, asking him what kind of person would be able to change their name
and hide in the Xuanyuan Sect for centuries.
Upon receiving the message, Zhongli Qian was a bit dumbfounded. Why
was he, an outsider, being asked to weigh in on Xuanyuan Sect’s internal
affairs?
Even so, Zhongli Qian gave the question his proper attention. After listing
out multiple possibilities, he arrived at his conclusion—it was most likely to
be the person in charge of the register.
Thus, Altar Master Yuan was the biggest suspect. Of course, Wenren È had
no evidence, but did you need evidence to act in Xuanyuan Sect? Did
Wenren È need to justify his actions before killing one or two subordinates?
However, in order to deal with every threat in one move and obtain the
second book smoothly, Wenren È had to wait for a time.
There were only two reasons for the person with the book to lay low for so
long. The first was killing Wenren È, and the second was to increase his
own power.
Since the second volume took place in the immortal realm, it would
probably mention very few opportunities that could be obtained in the
cultivation world. The only clue he had was that the Burning Sky Immortal
and the Burning Sky Drum shared a name. Since the drum was an immortal
artifact, there’s no way it could share a name with the lord of the immortal
realm without being connected to him. They would’ve at least shown some
respect.
So there were only two places for Cen Zhengqi to go. One was to the Blood
Hell, to help Hè Wenzhao kill Wenren È. The other was to the Xuanyuan
Sect forbidden ground, to take control of the Burning Sky Drum while no
one was around.
At this point, whether or not Cen Zhengqi was Altar Master Yuan was no
longer important. They just needed to be stationed at these two places in
order to catch him. That was Wenren È’s plan. It was a bit rough and he
might’ve overlooked things, but for the most part, it was workable.
It just so happened that he needed to take this chance to enter the Blood
Hell. Since Yin Hanjiang might follow him, he had sent him off to guard the
Burning Sky Drum. By the time Yin Hanjiang went to find him, whether
Wenren È succeeded or failed, it would all be over.
Altar Master Yuan, unaware of their analyses, chuckled and said, “What are
you saying, Sect Leader Yin? I was worried about the Venerable, and
wanted to use the Burning Sky Drum to help him! Thirty years ago, didn’t
Sect Leader Yin sound it in order to help him defeat twenty-one righteous
sect experts? Do you think I can’t manage what you did?”
Yin Hanjiang didn’t react, eyes on the book in Altar Master Yuan’s hand.
“After all these years, it seems still no one knows Altar Master Yuan’s
name.”
Shu Yanyan, Qiu Congxue, Ruan Weiyi, Shi Congxin, Miao Qiuqing, all
these names had been on the registers, but where was Altar Master Yuan’s?
Registers in the cultivation world were different from those in the mortal
world. They were magic items, upon which one needed to leave a drop of
blood while recording their name. That way, if they were to die or meet
with a problem in their cultivation, the register would reflect it. Names also
couldn’t easily be changed, being bestowed by one’s parents. Even in
ancient times, there were traditions of summoning souls by calling their
names, showing that a name was connected to a soul. It would be easy to
see that a name on a register didn’t match their blood.
“Why are we discussing such things at this time? We have to hurry to the
Blood Hell to find the Venerable!” Altar Master Yuan’s face dripped with
sweat, but inside, he was calm.
He knew there was no way to maintain his cover anymore. The fact that Yin
Hanjiang was hidden here meant that Wenren È suspected him.
Altar Master Yuan didn’t really understand why he had been suspected.
Even him guessing that Wenren È had a book with Baili Qingmiao as the
protagonist had been a fluke.
Back then, when Wenren È secluded himself with a book, Altar Master
Yuan had been suspicious. Wenren È cultivated the Path of Slaughter, and
each time he raised his realm, it was on the battlefield. When his
subordinates offered him secret manuals, he only gave them a glance, and
very rarely studied one in seclusion. At the time, Altar Master Yuan really
thought Wenren È had obtained some incredible technique, and had asked
Yin Hanjiang several times, to no answer. He had marked it down in his
memory, thinking to steal it to read when he had a chance.
Yet thirty years ago, while Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang were out to kidnap
Zhongli Qian, a book had hit Altar Master Yuan on the head. It was God of
Annihilation: Volume 2. On the first page, Altar Master Yuan was filled with
glee upon seeing the previous volume’s summary, saying that Wenren È had
been killed by Hè Wenzhao at the Blood Hell.
However, the task he had been assigned at the start of the book was:
“Significant deviations have shown up in the events of Volume 1, the
probability of Wenren È’s death has fallen, and Baili Qingmiao has grown
further and further away from Hè Wenzhao. Thus, the one with the most
malice toward Wenren È has been selected in order to change the plot, and
help Hè Wenzhao kill Wenren È and win Baili Qingmiao’s heart.”
Reading the second volume, Altar Master Yuan found his real name, Cen
Zhengqi, appearing in it. Finding out he was one of Hè Wenzhao’s
supporters, he felt dissatisfied. Altar Master Yuan was even willing to kill
Wenren È, so how could be willing to be one of Hè Wenzhao’s
subordinates? He decided to let Hè Wenzhao and Wenren È fight each other,
while he stole the Burning Sky Drum from Yin Hanjiang.
Yet, just after he obtained the book, Wenren È had ordered the sect seclude
itself for thirty years. Thirty years later, when Altar Master Yuan had
wanted to act, he’d heard that the Violet Spirit Master was a man.
From the Violet Spirit Master, he figured out that the third volume had
appeared at roughly the same time as the second. Then the first volume
should’ve also shown up at the same time. But that didn’t make sense—
Wenren È had clearly gotten a book many years ago, and had already begun
changing fate.
After thinking it over carefully, Altar Master Yuan realized that at the start,
Wenren È hadn’t harmed Hè Wenzhao at all, instead favoring Baili
Qingmiao. He came up with a daring idea. Maybe Wenren È possessed two
books, and the second one wasn’t God of Annihilation, but a different one,
one where Baili Qingmiao was the protagonist.
Whether or not his guess was correct, he immediately edited his real name
in the registers, as well as having the Blood Demon knock out Baili
Qingmiao, to prevent his plan being exposed.
He had met the Blood Demon while secretly observing Hè Wenzhao. They
had come to an understanding at the time, and made a temporary alliance.
Altar Master Yuan didn’t get it. He had covered all his bases, so how come
Wenren È still found him out?
Of course, he had said those words just now not in hopes that Yin Hanjiang
would believe him and let him off, but to have Yin Hanjiang think he was
still trying to bluff, and therefore let down his guard.
But after a few words, Altar Master Yuan realized it was pointless. Yin
Hanjiang was like an emotionless puppet, unmoved by any of his words.
His eyes were pinned unerringly on Altar Master Yuan, searching for any
weaknesses, waiting for a chance to strike.
Altar Master Yuan sighed. “If Sect Leader Yin doesn’t believe me, then I
have no choice but to defend myself.”
He brought out his bonded weapon, the Poison Dragon Whip. In all these
years, no one in Xuanyuan Sect had seen it.
To everyone else, Altar Master Yuan had always shown himself to be Void
Boundary stage, the weakest among the Protectors and Altar Masters. He
had harmed his foundation early in his cultivation and was unable to reach
Mahayana. In the book, after meeting Hè Wenzhao and becoming one of his
companions, Hè Wenzhao had helped him find an opportunity and ascend to
Mahayana.
He had found many clues in the second volume and stolen many
opportunities thirty years ago, healing his old injury and rising to
Mahayana. Without sufficient power, he wouldn’t have dared to use the
Burning Sky Drum anyway.
With a lash of the Poison Dragon Whip, poisonous qi suffused the spiritual
energy surrounding them. Ordinary poisons had no effect on cultivators, but
Altar Master Yuan’s poison was extremely potent. The longer you were
affected, the more you would be weakened. Cultivators had to take in
natural spiritual energy in battle, so as they fought, Yin Hanjiang’s strength
would be diminished.
Altar Master Yuan’s goal was to drag out the battle. He tossed out
talismans, spiritual stones, single-use magical items, and quick arrays one
after another, trying to delay Yin Hanjiang and force him to absorb spiritual
energy.
Yin Hanjiang was only at Void Boundary, not much stronger than Altar
Master Yuan, but he was a sword cultivator. Their attacks were especially
fearsome, and they had the strongest combat power in their realms. But his
weakness was someone who fought a battle of attrition like Altar Master
Yuan. Each of a sword cultivator’s attacks expended a large amount of
spiritual energy, so they instinctively absorbed natural spiritual energy in
battle. Yin Hanjiang was a reckless fighter to begin with. Even if he knew
the spiritual energy was poisoned, it was impossible for him to not absorb
it.
He failed to defeat Altar Master Yuan within his first ten moves. Growing
anxious, he took even more spiritual energy into his dantian. His
movements slowed down slightly.
In a battle between experts, even a moment’s carelessness could be an

opening. Altar Master Yuan took his chance and swung the Poison Dragon
Whip, its spiked tip lashing across Yin Hanjiang’s body. Yin Hanjiang had
made no attempt to avoid it. When he was attacking, Altar Master Yuan
wouldn’t be able to properly defend himself. Yin Hanjiang had also been
waiting for his chance!
At the moment the Poison Dragon Whip hit him, Yin Hanjiang thrust his
sword with all his spiritual essence behind it. The single strike held
earthshattering power, and even a newly ascended immortal would be
seriously injured by it.
Yet Altar Master Yuan was prepared. He patted his chest and a streak of
golden light flashed forth. A golden armor appeared in midair, blocking Yin
Hanjiang’s sword.
“When Wenren È sent you here alone, did he really think you could defeat
me?” Altar Master Yuan chuckled sadly. His body morphed, changing from
a short and plump man to a tall, thin, and plain-looking youth.
A cultivator’s appearance wouldn’t change after Nascent Soul, but demonic
cultivators naturally had countless ways to reshape their bodies. Altar
Master Yuan had grown accustomed to using two identities, one tall and
thin and one short and plump—not for any particular reason, just as a
precaution.
In volume two, Hè Wenzhao and Baili Qingmiao had ascended first. Later,
their friends had followed them, and gave Hè Wenzhao the rundown on
what had happened in the cultivation world. Using their accounts, Altar
Master Yuan had beaten the Violet Spirit Master to the Golden Immortal
Armor that was meant for her. Wearing it, he had managed to block Yin
Hanjiang’s strike.
Even if Yin Hanjiang was at Mahayana, how would he be able to pierce the
armor the author had created for the protagonist’s main wife?
Altar Master Yuan struck without hesitation. Protected by the armor, he

lashed his whip again and again across Yin Hanjiang’s body. With the
poison entering his body, Yin Hanjiang felt cold emanating from his
dantian, and was unable to summon a hint of spiritual energy.
“Heheheh.” Seeing Yin Hanjiang collapsed on the ground, unmoving, Altar

Master Yuan began laughing. “Sect Leader Yin, it’s too bad that, for all your
loyalty to Wenren È, you’ll be dying before him. After I deal with you, I’ll
be heading to the Blood Hell to enjoy Wenren È’s last moments.”
While he spoke, his hand never stopped. Altar Master Yuan was an
extremely cautious man, and obviously wouldn’t give Yin Hanjiang any
chance to stand up. The Poison Dragon Whip was nearly thirty meters long,
so Altar Master Yuan stood as far away as possible.
The Army Crushing Sword clattered to the ground. Yin Hanjiang was no
longer capable of flying on it. He heard Altar Master Yuan say that his
Venerable would soon die as well, and suddenly stopped struggling, or
moving at all.
“What’s this? Have you dropped dead? Or are you pretending?” Altar
Master Yuan wasn’t about to fall for any tricks. He wouldn’t stop attacking
until he had Yin Hanjiang’s soul in his hands.
At Altar Master Yuan’s command, the Poison Dragon Whip transformed

into a shadowy serpent. It dove at Yin Hanjiang, about to rip his soul out of
his body.
At the moment the serpent was about to sink its fangs into Yin Hanjiang’s
neck, a far-off drumbeat sounded.
The whip stilled, blocked by some force.
“What happened?” Altar Master Yuan said, feeling anxious for no

discernable reason. He lashed his whip at Yin Hanjiang again, but the Army
Crushing Sword, which had been sitting silently on the ground, lunged up
and pierced through the whip. It had changed its shape, no longer a
longsword, but a vicious-looking triangular spike[1].
It was no longer the Army Crushing Sword, but the Army Crushing Spike.
Bong bong! Two drumbeats sounded. Yin Hanjiang, who had been lying on
the ground and unable to move, stood up. At some point, he had put on a
ghost mask.
Altar Master Yuan backed up several steps, powering the golden armor with
his spiritual energy as he frantically called the Poison Dragon Whip back.
Seeing the situation had reversed, he was already planning his escape.
A Mahayana cultivator wasn’t easy to kill. Even if he couldn’t win, if he put

his efforts toward escaping, he could manage that.
Bong bong bong! The drumbeats grew louder. A huge drum rose out of the
ravine, hovering behind Yin Hanjiang.
Beneath the mask, Yin Hanjiang’s expression couldn’t be seen. He seemed

to no longer be affected by the poison. In a flash, he appeared next to the
Army Crushing Spike, grabbing the whip with one hand. With a yank, he
managed to pull Altar Master Yuan’s bonded weapon out of his grasp.
Yin Hanjiang’s eyes showed a heartless smile underneath the mask. With a
wave of his hand, he beat the whip against the Burning Sky Drum.
Bong! This was hardly a blow against the drum. Yin Hanjiang was using
Altar Master Yuan’s bonded weapon in order to attack his soul.
Seeing the situation was bad, Altar Master Yuan instantly severed his
connection to his bonded weapon. Even if it injured him, it was better to
escape.
Yet as he dropped the Poison Dragon Whip and tried to run away, countless
spider lilies blossomed, blanketing his retreat path.
“Oh my.” Shu Yanyan’s face, more beautiful than a hundred blooms,
appeared from within the lilies. She said with a laugh, “That terrified me. I
thought Sect Leader Yin wouldn’t be able to beat you. If that had happened,
then I would’ve had to betray the Venerable.”
She had been hiding all this time, already planning to support Altar Master
Yuan if he won, and Yin Hanjiang if he did.
“Since you’re a Mahayana cultivator, I don’t dare to touch you. But now
that you’re weakened from having to sever your connection to your bonded
weapon, how can I miss this chance?” Hidden beneath Shu Yanyan’s
beautiful appearance was her usual ruthless manner of action.
The spider lily stamens trapped Altar Master Yuan within them. The
stamens drank blood, while the petals sucked away spiritual energy. Shu
Yanyan stood amidst the field of flowers, smiling as she watched Altar
Master Yuan struggle, like an alluring and carnivorous bloom. “Good thing
Sect Leader Yin won, or I would’ve had to embarrass myself.”
She took a glance at Altar Master Yuan’s completely unremarkable face and
shook her head. “If I kiss up to someone, they at least have to be good-
looking.”
As she spoke, Altar Master Yuan’s body completely vanished. The soul of a
Mahayana cultivator flew out, trying to make one last stand.
Before it had the chance, a spike blade stabbed into it. Three streaks of light
split Altar Master Yuan’s soul apart. Just like that, a Mahayana cultivator
perished, body and soul.
The ghost mask still on his face, Yin Hanjiang picked up the book of God of
Annihilation: Volume 2, which Altar Master Yuan had never had the chance
to put away. He flipped it open and immediately saw the beginning
summary—Hè Wenzhao killed Wenren È at the Blood Hell, finally
avenging the deaths of his family and reclaiming his shimei. The couple
ascended together to the immortal realm, becoming legends in the
cultivation world.
The eyes underneath the mask burned red.
1. For visuals, search chinese spike bayonet, I think ↩

Wants to Know
Chapter 49 – This Venerable forbids you
After leaving Xuanyuan Sect, Wenren È began strolling openly in public.

He wanted the righteous cultivators to know where he was, to make it easier
for them to set up a trap for him.
He didn’t have to wait long. While he sat in a restaurant at the foot of

Xuanyuan Sect’s mountain, drinking wine, he heard someone near him
speak in a volume like they were afraid he wouldn’t hear. “I heard that the
murderer of those seventeen experts was actually the Xuanyuan Sect’s
Wenren È. He’s now kidnapped Baili Qingmiao of Shangqing Sect and is
headed for the Blood Hell.”
“Baili Qingmiao? Is she powerful? Why would he kidnap her?” another

person asked in the same tone.
“Don’t you know? She reached Body Unity in less than a century. Wenren È
kills cultivators who are Body Unity or above. Since her aptitudes are so
good, why would he pass her up?” the first person said emphatically.
“Who did you say kidnapped Baili Qingmiao?” Wenren È said.
“Of course, the Blood Demon Wenren—” The person “accidentally” turned
his head and cried out in shock. “Wenren È!”
His companion quickly shrank into a corner. “D—don’t kill me! I’m only at
Core Formation, I wouldn’t even be a snack for you. There’s no use
consuming me!”
Wenren È, with a wave of his sleeve, beat them both black and blue out of
formality, then set off for the Blood Hell.
At the same time, Baili Qingmiao opened her eyes. She had been trapped at
the back mountains of Shangqing Sect for the past two months, and upon
opening her eyes, found herself tied up in a strange and terrifying place. In
the face of danger, she had protected her disciple first and foremost, and
now endured the pain in her dantian as she shook Su Huai awake. Through
gritted teeth, she said, “Disciple, wake up, we have to get out of here!”
Su Huai blearily opened his eyes. Looking around, he saw the dusky sky
above and the dark crimson sea below him and exclaimed, “What is this
place?”
“I’m not sure,” Baili Qingmiao said. “But we have to climb up.”
They were strung up by a rope around their waists, dangling off the edge of
a cliff with the sea below them. The environment was very strange. Several
times, she tried to fly up the cliff, but to no avail. Her spiritual energy
wasn’t being suppressed, she simply couldn’t fly. An inexhaustible
attractive force came from below, sucking in the surrounding spiritual
energy. To get to the top of the cliff, they would have to climb.
Baili Qingmiao should’ve been scared, but her heart was still. Zhongli Qian
was probably steadying her emotions.
It was going to be okay, Baili Qingmiao told herself. She set her sights on a
jutting rock at her top left, preparing to grab it and start climbing. As the
master, she had to go first and find a safe path for her disciple.
The moment her palm touched the stone, she felt a burning pain eating
away at her flesh. She jerked her hand back, seeing that the fair skin of her
palm had been blackened, blisters of blood continually forming and
bursting within it.
“Master!” Seeing Baili Qingmiao injured, Su Huai frantically took out a

medicinal pill for her to swallow. Whoever had hung them here was rather
strange. Their spiritual energy hadn’t been sealed and their storage items
hadn’t been taken away. They had only been strung up.
After taking the pill, Baili Qingmiao felt a lot better. She looked up, but
couldn’t see anyone around.
“Where on earth are we? We were just at Shangqing Sect, so how come
we’re suddenly here?” Baili Qingmiao said, holding her head. “Has
something happened to Shangqing Sect?”
Su Huai really wanted to whack his master on the head and knock her
tendency to see the best in everyone out of her brain. He said furiously,
“Mister Zhongli was staying at Shangqing Sect as a guest. If something
happened at the sect, do you think he would just sit back and let you be
taken away? It’s obvious that he’s fine right now, so he either doesn’t know
what happened to you or can’t do anything about it. With him there and the
Shangqing Sect’s wards, do you think the sect could’ve been attacked?”
“Then… what happened?” Truthfully, Baili Qingmiao had already arrived

at the answer. She just didn’t want to believe it.
“What could it have been? Before you got knocked out, who was the last
person you saw?!” Su Huai nearly yelled.
It was her shixiong. Baili Qingmiao had long since remembered. Shixiong
had come to see her, then she had lost consciousness and woken up in this
place.
“It’s obvious that Shangqing Sect has strung us up here for some purpose,”
Su Huai said. “Don’t we look like bait on a fishhook right now?”
As a ghost cultivator, he had often used bait to lure in ordinary people. This
scene that he had opened his eyes to was totally familiar.
“What does the sect want from me?” Baili Qingmiao said, still disbelieving.
“What else?!” Su Huai yelled. “Remember what they wanted you to do

before now, that you refused? That’s obviously what they’re after!” How
come his master was such an idiot?
“I…” Baili Qingmiao shook her head. It wasn’t that she hadn’t realized this
either, she just hadn’t wanted to believe.
The Shangqing Sect wanted her to lure out Master Qingxue, and she had
refused, thus being locked up in the mountains. Shixiong had begged her to
reconsider once and she hadn’t listened. The next time he came, he had
knocked her unconscious.
“Using their own disciples to lure out demonic cultivators!” Su Huai said
furiously. “How can Shangqing Sect still call themselves the righteous
path? They’re just a bunch of underhanded crooks!”
He had raised his voice, as well as used spiritual energy to make it travel
further. He wanted to make sure the people lying in wait at the top of the
cliff heard him.
At the clifftop, several cultivators had already set up a Heavenly Net in

order to eradicate the Blood Demon. Hearing a junior like Su Huai yell at
them, some people’s faces turned red, but no one dared make a sound.
It was an elder of the Nanguo clan, who had a grudge against Baili
Qingmiao and her companions, who stood up and walked over to the cliff’s
edge. “What’s the problem with sacrificing a few disciples in order to slay a
demon?” he said.
“It’s you, old fart!” Su Huai said. “You Nanguos are still resentful because
my martial ancestor exposed your evil deeds, so now you want to dispose of
all of us who attended that banquet, huh? The Shangqing Sect has sunk so
low they’re rubbing elbows with the Nanguo clan? Disgusting! I’m
ashamed to be a disciple of Shangqing Sect!”
He was a ghost cultivator, one who had often hung out in marketplaces to
eat wandering spirits. If he wanted to, he could cuss like a hoodlum, and
there wasn’t anything he wouldn’t say.
He was about to die anyway, so Su Huai didn’t hold anything back, cursing
out the Shangqing Sect and Nanguo clan with all he had. Baili Qingmiao
was stupefied at the coarseness of his language and the sheer variety of his
insults. Her disciple had always been so obedient, and even if he was
occasionally a bit rebellious, he never meant any harm by it. Plus, he had
studied literature under Zhongli Qian for all that time. She had never heard
him cuss before, so she got quite a shock today.
She said quietly, “If Mister Zhongli heard you talk like this…”
Su Huai stiffened. His language immediately became formal, though he

continued his insults, simply without the swearing. His language was still as
varied as before, words like “cowards”, “scoundrels”, and “petty crooks”
coming out of his mouth. Baili Qingmiao didn’t get how he couldn’t
memorize poetry, but could memorize so many ways of cursing people.
“Old farts, your actions are lower than those of the demonic sects!” Su Huai
yelled.
The righteous cultivators pretended they couldn’t hear him. The Nanguo
elder couldn’t beat him in insulting, and after pointing a trembling finger at
Su Huai and calling him a “vulgar brat”, backed off. Su Huai yelled until he
was hoarse, but no one responded. He said to Baili Qingmiao, “Your sect’s
no good and your shixiong’s even worse. Stop liking him.”
Baili Qingmiao said faintly, “Shixiong is unable to disobey the sect’s

orders.”
Su Huai was on the verge of disrespecting his master. “When the Shangqing
Sect wanted you to deceive Qiu Congxue, you were willing to be confined
rather than agree. How come when Shangqing Sect wants to use you as bait,
Hè Wenzhao is powerless to refuse?”
Baili Qingmiao was speechless.
[Good one, disciple!][1]
[Nothing will get through to the MC’s idiot brain unless someone cusses her
out first.]
[Love interest number 5 is doing good! In the original version he was killed
by Hè Wenzhao before his identity could be revealed and he was basically
invisible. Now after the revision, we find out he actually has quite a
mouth?]
[One moment Baili Qingmiao was in reflection in the mountains, the next
she woke up here. I thought I missed a few thousand words. Now that it’s
all explained, turns out it’s Hè Wenzhao being shameless, forcing MC to do
something she doesn’t want while acting like it’s for her own good.]
In order to stay on top of developments at all times, Wenren È was reading

his book while rushing to the Blood Hell. After Baili Qingmiao woke,
Abusive Romance had changed, though God of Annihilation remained the
same. Hè Wenzhao was probably still under the control of the Blood
Demon.
He put away the book and arrived at the Blood Hell. Acting like he was
unaware of the ambush, he charged forward and appeared before Baili
Qingmiao.
Baili Qingmiao was currently dejectedly accepting her disciple’s insults

when someone appeared before her. After a moment, she saw it was Wenren
È and exclaimed, “Senior Wenren, why are you here?”
“This Venerable has told you that he owes you a debt,” Wenren È said.
He was also unable to fly above the Blood Hell. Feeling the sea’s relentless
gravity, he stuck a spear into the cliff face, standing on its shaft and holding
Baili Qingmiao. “Hold on tight, you two,” he said. “I’ll take you to the top.”
“Lord, there’s an ambush at the top!” Su Huai had no time to say more. A
golden net appeared above them.
Nine experts appeared in the sky. Among them was the Shangqing Sect
Master, who had not been awake for long at this point.
Wenren È chuckled. “Even the righteous sects will resort to such

underhanded methods? But if you plan to kill this Venerable, shouldn’t you
send out a few more people? What good will nine do? Ah, this Venerable
remembers now. During the Great Sect War, I killed most of your experts,
so now you can’t even muster up ten people! Hahahaha!”
He threw back his head in laughter. “Rest assured,” he told Baili Qingmiao.
“This handful of people can’t threaten this Venerable.”
“Senior Wenren, all I did was help you find the Snow Flame and the
Shattered Mountain Meteorite,” Baili Qingmiao said, tears staining her
cheeks as she looked at Wenren È. “You don’t have to face danger for me.”
“This Venerable isn’t here to save you,” Wenren È said coldly. “I simply
want you to realize something.”
Wenren È felt no fear in facing nine experts. He had lots more magic
weapons on him beside the Seven Killing Halberd, so he took out a pair of
swords, using them to first cut Baili Qingmiao and Su Huai’s rope, then
sticking them in the cliff face, leaping up with them as footholds.
The cliffs surrounding the Blood Hell were constantly subject to its chaos
and demonic energy and were highly corrosive. Even Wenren È didn’t dare
to directly touch them. He could only create footholds like this in order to
get to the top.
Even first-rate magic items would dissolve into blood with a few minutes of
contact with the cliff face. Baili Qingmiao saw that the spear and twin
swords had already dissolved. Thinking back to her own hand, she gulped,
breaking out in a cold sweat.
Had her shixiong known how dangerous this place was when he brought
her here? Baili Qingmiao wondered in bewilderment.
Fortunately, Wenren È had plenty of weapons on him. Sticking knives,

spears, and swords into the cliff face, they made it to the top, near the net, in
just a few hops.
“Merely a Heavenly Net Array,” Wenren È said, glancing at the net. He

raised the Seven Killing Halberd, and with a swing, the power of the stars
slashed through the golden net.
With Baili Qingmiao in hand, he leapt up, nearly free of the net. The nine
experts’ attacks were powerless to touch him, unable to even slow his
progress.
At that moment, Hè Wenzhao appeared. His eyes were cold. Seeing the way
Wenren È protected Baili Qingmiao, his eyes gleamed, and he raised a
sword, stabbing it toward Baili Qingmiao’s heart.
Wenren È knew this wasn’t Hè Wenzhao, but the Blood Demon Elder.
But it was fine. Seeing this, Baili Qingmiao’s feelings toward him should
truly die.
Wenren È turned to shield Baili Qingmiao, taking the blade in his back.
Seeing her shixiong heartlessly attack her, Baili Qingmiao was stunned.
The Blood Demon Elder’s consciousness retreated, leaving Hè Wenzhao in

charge. Hè Wenzhao looked down at his hands and seemed to realize what
he had just done. “Shimei, it wasn’t me!” he cried. “I didn’t do it!”
The blade had been imbued with the Blood Demon’s power, and was able to
damage the blood array Wenren È had carved on his soul. A blood cultivator
understood blood cultivation the best, so only the Blood Demon could
know how to destroy Wenren È’s power.
The exit was right before his eyes, but Wenren È had been badly injured.
Holding Baili Qingmiao and Su Huai in one hand as he wielded his halberd
to block the nine experts’ attacks with the other, he flung the two into the
sky, shouting, “Catch them!”
A figure in the sky snatched the two out of the air. Qiu Congxue had arrived
just in time.
“Master Qingxue…” Baili Qingmiao had sustained too many shocks today,
and sobbed as she clutched Qiu Congxue’s robes. “Please, go save Senior
Wenren. Please…”
“Too late.” Qiu Congxue stood in the sky, quietly watching the scene below.
Inside the golden net, nine different magical weapons had pierced through
Wenren È’s body.
All the while, the sword stuck in his back continually destroyed his blood
marks. Even if Wenren È wanted to dissolve everyone around him into
blood and absorb their powers to heal himself, he couldn’t do it.
Feeling his blood qi being drained, Wenren È burst out in laughter. He knew
the Blood Demon would have a way to kill a blood cultivator. Since his
blood marks had been broken, the plan he had made with Zhongli Qian had
not been in vain.
The plan had three goals. The first was to have Baili Qingmiao see Hè
Wenzhao attacking her with her own eyes, and thus completely let go of
him.
The second was to take advantage of the Blood Demon and Cen Zhengqi’s
cooperation in order to expose the traitor and obtain the second volume. At
the same time, he could destroy the blood marks on his body, freeing
himself from his bloodlust.
The third was to force the Blood Demon into action. Until now, he had been
suppressed by Hè Wenzhao and hadn’t dared to consume cultivators to
restore his power, so the righteous sects had no way of discovering him.
Now that he had acted directly, the sects might be confused for a time, but
they would figure it out eventually. And previously, he could blame the
deaths of those seventeen experts on Wenren È, but after Wenren È “died”,
could the Blood Demon restrain himself from consuming more people? He
couldn’t. After a blood cultivator started killing, they wouldn’t be able to
stop. In the book, the Blood Demon had waited until the divine realm to
take Hè Wenzhao’s body, and hadn’t done anything before then. This time
around, things were different. He wouldn’t be able to hold out until the
divine realm.
Everything was going according to plan. The remaining question was

whether he could use the chaos energy within the Blood Hell to restore
himself.
With his body impaled by weapons and the nine experts endlessly throwing
talismans, Wenren È fell toward the sea of blood.
When it came to absorbing primordial chaos energy, Wenren È had some

confidence, due to something he’d realized from the third volume. Given
some time, he would be able to regain his strength.
Everything was going perfectly, Wenren È thought.
Then, he suddenly heard a desperate cry. “Venerable!”
Wenren È’s eyes flew open. In the instant before he fell into the sea, he saw
a masked man charging through the Heavenly Net Array, plunging toward
the Blood Hell after him.
Beneath the mask was Yin Hanjiang’s burning red eyes.
Wenren È suddenly remembered something he had once said—”If this

Venerable is gone, you can follow me.”
Yin Hanjiang was a single-minded person. If Wenren È allowed something,

he would carry it out.
“No!” Wenren È shouted, as Yin Hanjiang drew closer to him. “This

Venerable forbids you!”
With a thought from Wenren È, his defensive robe flew over and wrapped
around Yin Hanjiang.
At the moment he fell into the waters, Wenren È lifted his hand and thrust
his palm at the robe with all of his strength, shoving Yin Hanjiang back up
the cliff.
Yin Hanjiang had been pushed back from the sea of blood. He could only
watch as his Venerable, his body covered with wounds, fell into the most
hellish place in this realm.
“AHHHHHHH!” A pained cry echoed across the Blood Hell.
If Polis fell, Alkaid would go mad.
sorry to interrupt the screaming and whatnot, but WRE was described as
using both hands to fight this chapter while he should only have one arm
1. The reader comments were always formatted like this, but I didn’t think
it’d bite me in the ass someday. I’ve gone back and reformatted them
though so people reading this footnote in the future should just be confused
↩
Wants to Know
Chapter 50 – Nowhere to be found
Wenren È hadn’t wanted to hide his plan from Yin Hanjiang. He just wasn’t
sure whether or not it would succeed.
Not everyone was capable of reinventing themselves. Wenren È may have

had some idea of what awaited him in the Blood Hell, but he was only half
certain.
Both books said that Wenren È died in the Blood Hell. This time, he came
to face death of his own accord. He was defying heaven, taking his own life
back from fate.
If he was destined to die, then he wouldn’t keep it from Yin Hanjiang.

Whether Yin Hanjiang chose to die with him or live on after knowing
would depend on him. Wenren È wouldn’t force his choice. On the other
hand, if he survived, that would be the best outcome.
But it would take some time for his survival to be determined, and Wenren
È couldn’t be certain what Yin Hanjiang would do in this time. He feared
that, not knowing Wenren È’s status, Yin Hanjiang would enter the Blood
Hell. Wenren È had a chance of survival in the Blood Hell, but Yin
Hanjiang would certainly die.
So he figured out a plan to cover all his bases—send Yin Hanjiang to battle
Altar Master Yuan.
Yin Hanjiang’s strength was about equal to Altar Master Yuan’s. Even if
Altar Master Yuan had gotten some advantages from the second volume,
gaining an edge over Yin Hanjiang, Yin Hanjiang wouldn’t lose with Shu
Yanyan backing him up. Wenren È understood Shu Yanyan. She would
certainly choose the side of the more attractive person.
Yin Hanjiang should be injured after his battle with Altar Master Yuan, and
be unable to recover in such a short time. Wenren È had already made a
deal with Zhongli Qian in exchange for Baili Qingmiao’s safety. Zhongli
Qian would be heading to Xuanyuan Sect to hold Yin Hanjiang back while
he was injured, telling him Wenren È’s plan and convincing him to wait.
Yin Hanjiang’s injuries should’ve taken a few years to heal. After a few
years, whether Wenren È survived or failed would’ve been decided.
By that time, if Wenren È still hadn’t returned, Zhongli Qian wouldn’t

prevent Yin Hanjiang from entering the Blood Hell.
Wenren È hadn’t considered the possibility that Yin Hanjiang would far
surpass Altar Master Yuan’s strength and score a crushing victory, and then
reach the Blood Hell in practically the blink of an eye. Yin Hanjiang’s light
flash wasn’t proficient, and typically it would take him a full day to reach
the Blood Hell on his sword. Who would’ve imagined that he could cross
the entire continent in less than ten minutes?
The last sound that Wenren È heard was Yin Hanjiang’s despairing cry. As
he fell into the sea, he thought, this really was the worst possible outcome.
It seemed that Wenren È’s death and Yin Hanjiang’s madness were
predestined, impossible to change.
Yin Hanjiang saw Wenren È fall into the waters. Not even a splash was
lifted, as if his entire body had been swallowed and dissolved in an instant.
He was no longer able to control his own darker nature. He wished to
follow, but his Venerable had forbidden him.
He clutched tight to the black-and-gold robe wrapped around him. His

burning red eyes swept across the nine experts surrounding him, and Hè
Wenzhao, who was currently fighting over Baili Qingmiao with Qiu
Congxue. He slowly opened his mouth, the taste of blood filling it.
“Righteous cultivators, die!”
As he spoke, a streak of silver cut through the air. The Army Crushing
Spike pierced into the Nanguo elder’s body. He had not even had a chance
to react.
These flesh injuries were easy to heal, though. The elder swallowed a pill,
circulating his spiritual essence, about to force out the blade.
Suddenly, the points of the triangular blade emitted three streaks of harsh
light. The Nanguo elder’s body was split into three parts, killed instantly.
His soul fled, but a huge drum appeared in the sky. Somehow, Yin Hanjiang
was now kneeling on its surface. He smacked a palm down on the drum.
Bong! The drumbeat roused the demonic and immortal energy within it.
The Nanguo elder’s soul was shredded apart under the pressure of the
sound, its remnants being absorbed into the drum.
“That’s an immortal artifact! A cultivator of the mortal realm can use an

immortal artifact! Retreat!” The Shangqing Sect Master was experienced
and made his decision quickly. “A heavenly tribulation is imminent! With it
obstructing him, we’ll have a chance!”
He’d barely finished talking when a peal of heavenly thunder struck toward
Yin Hanjiang. Using an immortal artifact in the mortal world violated the
laws of the three realms, so heaven would now enact judgment on Yin
Hanjiang.
“But shimei is still in the hands of the demonic sect!” Hè Wenzhao cried.
“There’s no time! Let’s go!” The Sect Master grabbed Hè Wenzhao, flying
back to the sect. Shangqing Sect’s wards were supported by an immortal
artifact, so they couldn’t be broken easily.
The remaining eight experts fled in eight other directions. Yin Hanjiang had
already memorized their faces. His first target was Hè Wenzhao at
Shangqing Sect.
The heavenly tribulation gathered overhead, yet Yin Hanjiang made no
attempt to avoid it. Using the Burning Sky Drum, he blocked the first
lightning strike head-on. With a wave of his hand, the Army Crushing Spike
returned to his grasp. Yin Hanjiang was hot on Hè Wenzhao and the Sect
Master’s heels as he pursued them back to Shangqing Sect.
“How is he so fast? Doesn’t he care about the heavenly lightning?” the Sect
Master exclaimed.
When Yin Hanjiang was just on the verge of catching up to Hè Wenzhao,

who had fallen a step behind, a second bolt of lightning, dozens of meters in
width, struck and caused him to hesitate.
Yin Hanjiang stood within the lightning, seeming to not feel pain. He raised
his head to look at the ever-thickening clouds gathering above. If he didn’t
deal with the tribulation, he would never catch up to them.
He raised both hands. An endless supply of natural spiritual energy gathered

in his palms, slowly forming into two circulating collections of qi, in the
shapes of two drumsticks. He let go of them, using hand signs to manipulate
them as they beat the drum.
Bong bong bong bong bong! Amidst the fierce drumming, red and gold
flames rose from the drum’s surface.
The fire gave off pure golden rays of light. It wasn’t mortal fire, but the
celestial flame of the immortal realm which had been hidden within the
drum for hundreds of thousands of years. The flames transformed into a
golden dragon, charging towards the heavens to meet the lightning, giving
off blinding radiance. Waves of gold light rippled across the sky. The clouds
dispersed upon a single strike from the dragon, and rain gradually began to
fall.
The dragon returned to within the drum. Yin Hanjiang felt like his internal
organs were being shredded. He was using Mahayana stage power to
forcibly activate the Burning Sky Drum, and each move he made overtaxed
his strength.
It wasn’t enough. He wiped blood from his chin and continued his pursuit in
the direction of Shangqing Sect. The Burning Sky Drum’s light flash was
exceptionally fast and soon caught up with the two. Seeing Yin Hanjiang
approach, the Sect Master grabbed Hè Wenzhao and dove behind the
Shangqing Sect array.
The array closed before Yin Hanjiang could reach it, stopping him from
continuing.
Yin Hanjiang, eyes red, glared at Hè Wenzhao and the Sect Master from the
other side of the array. He knew the true mastermind who had plotted
against his Venerable was the Blood Demon, right inside Hè Wenzhao’s
body.
He pointed at Hè Wenzhao. “Come out.”
Hè Wenzhao gripped his sword. “Yin Hanjiang, Wenren È was a blood

demon. The presence of a demon threatens the entire world. This isn’t a
matter pertaining to only the righteous sects. His death helps you too, don’t
—”
“Shut up!” With a hand sign, Yin Hanjiang beat the drum with a force that
shook everyone’s souls. Pressure waves assaulted the Shangqing Sect’s
wards. The array trembled, on the brink of collapse.
Dong! The deep sound of a bell resonated out. It was the Shangqing Sect’s
immortal artifact, the Moon Pool Bell.
Elder Qingyue, seeing the desperate situation, had activated the bell to
counter the Burning Sky Drum. They were both top-grade immortal
artifacts, and though the Burning Sky Drum actually outmatched the Moon
Pool Bell, Yin Hanjiang no longer had the strength to use it.
The tenth drumbeat was canceled out by the bell’s ring. Yin Hanjiang, at his
limits, could not continue.
He glared at Hè Wenzhao through the ghost mask, clutching Wenren È’s

robe to his chest.
He had plenty of enemies, and plenty of time.
Holding the Army Crushing Spike, he pointed at the Sect Master and Hè
Wenzhao. “I want the lives of these two. I’m unable to stop you from hiding
behind your wards today, but I don’t believe you can hide in there for your
whole life. I, Yin Hanjiang, swear to refine your bodies into lamp oil, to
light an everburning lamp for my Venerable!”
He thrust his blade viciously at the barrier, though the Moon Pool Bell
blocked it.
Retrieving the Burning Sky Drum, Yin Hanjiang departed in a streak of

light. Seeing him disappear, the Shangqing Sect Master finally let out a
breath. With a bitter look on his face, he said, “We’ve just eliminated
Wenren È when now this Yin Hanjiang appears. His mind is in disarray, and
he is already showing signs of deviation.”
After relaxing a moment, he suddenly remembered something. “We must go

check on Qingyue-shidi!”
He took Hè Wenzhao and some disciples who could still move and ran
towards the Moon Pool Bell. Qingyue was half-kneeling before the bell, his
hair white, all his spiritual essence expended.
He lifted his head, his formerly youthful face now filled with wrinkles. “It
seems heaven was on our side,” he murmured. “If he had struck one more
time, I would’ve had no power to activate the Moon Pool Bell again.”
“Shidi!” The Sect Master supported Elder Qingyue. Seeing his haggard
face, he knew Qingyue’s foundation had been damaged and he would never
be able to regain his former strength.
Just who was this Yin Hanjiang? How was he so strong? They had seen no
such displays of power from him in the Great Sect War!
Yin Hanjiang had planned to fly to the Blood Hell, but halfway in the
journey, his strength failed him and he fell from the air. He landed heavily
in a snowdrift, not knowing where he was.
He picked himself up from the snowdrift, taking off his mask. After such
fierce fighting, the ordinary mask was already covered with cracks.
He glanced at it, then smiled bitterly. His Venerable was gone. There was no
need for him to wear a mask anymore.
He had used the mask to hide his expression when he could not suppress his
feelings. The person he wanted to hide them from was no longer here, so
there was no more use.
After replacing the mask in his storage belt, Yin Hanjiang sat in the snow,
staring at his surroundings in a daze.
Finally, he recognized it. “So it’s the Thousand Mile Ice Plains.”
Thirty years later, after Wenren È had messed it up twice, it no longer

extended for a thousand li around. Only the area in a hundred li would be
covered with snow in winter, which melted in the spring as flowers
bloomed.
Every direction was a boundless expanse of white. Yin Hanjiang seemed to

see a figure in the distance, beckoning him. He approached and found it was
his Venerable.
His Venerable exposed a wrist, slashing it open and extending it to Yin

Hanjiang. His cold voice held an undercurrent of warmth. “Your body is
chilled and can’t withstand the Ice Plains. If you drink my blood, it can
sustain you for a few days.”
Yin Hanjiang blinked at him, then bowed his head obediently, dipping his
mouth towards the cut, but he only tasted the bitter wind.
Wenren È, who had been looking at him warmly, had vanished.
It was an illusion.
Yin Hanjiang covered his face. He heard another voice near him. “This is
the Snow Flame. If you absorb it, it will dispel the yin energy within your
body.”
He dropped his hand, looking around. It seemed each snowflake had
transformed into Wenren È, surrounding him on all sides. He reached out a
hand, but they dissipated back into snowflakes, being blown away by the
wind.
All false. They were all illusions caused by his inner demons.
Only this one was real. Yin Hanjiang hugged Wenren È’s robe to his chest,
curling up in the snow, closing his eyes and covering his ears, not wanting
to see or hear.
He didn’t dare open his eyes, lest he see his Venerable everywhere. He only
shrank into the snow, shivering in the cold, gradually taking in spiritual
energy in order to heal his wounds.
He didn’t know how long he slept in the snow. Eventually, the snow melted,
spring came, and flowers bloomed.
Yin Hanjiang awoke from the ice that had been covering him. After a bit of
walking, he came upon a blossoming apricot tree.
Wenren È seemed to be sitting in the tree, extending a hand to him. Yin

Hanjiang also reached out, trying to snatch his hand, but didn’t touch him.
He only grabbed an apricot flower.
“Fake.” Yin Hanjiang clenched his fist. The fragile flower was crushed in
his palm.
He opened his hand and let the fragments of that flower blow away in the
wind. In the scattering petals, he seemed to see Wenren È’s figure, leaving
him.
“Also fake,” Yin Hanjiang told himself to not look or listen. It all was the
delusions of his inner demons and couldn’t be believed.
He had unfinished business and couldn’t be overcome by his inner demons.
Step by step, Yin Hanjiang walked out of the Ice Plains being warmed by
spring winds. It no longer resembled the place where he and his Venerable
had come before, and his Venerable was no longer here.
In heaven or the underworld, he was nowhere to be found.

Wants to Know
Chapter 51 – Inconstant hearts
Yin Hanjiang had been buried in the snow for over three months, but not
managed to regain much spiritual essence. He had drained it using the
Burning Sky Drum to fend off the heavenly tribulation. If he didn’t care
about the mortals living near the Ice Plains and absorbed all the spiritual
energy around, he could recover most of the way, but he refused to.
He flew slowly, reaching the Blood Hell after half a month.
He had found out several weeks ago during the battle here that he could
absorb the primordial chaos energy. This was the best place for him to
recover his strength.
Slowly, he climbed to the edge of the cliff and looked down. The expanse of
crimson made him dizzy, and he sat weakly atop the cliff. In his eyes, there
were countless Wenren È’s, jumping downward, beckoning warmly for Yin
Hanjiang to follow them.
“Without Sect Leader Yin, this Venerable is quite lonely,” one said, sitting
by his side. “Didn’t you swear to follow this Venerable throughout every
life?”
Yin Hanjiang gazed at Wenren È’s attentive expression and shook his head.
“Venerable, I want to follow you, but I can’t. You forbade me.”
“This Venerable is allowing you now,” Wenren È said.
“This subordinate has unfinished business,” Yin Hanjiang said quietly.

He took out the ghost mask, now riddled with cracks. Gazing down at it, he
seemed to be looking at his old self.
The Wenren È at his side looked on with him.
“Venerable, do you still remember this mask?” Yin Hanjiang asked.
Naturally, he didn’t answer. He was only a creation of Yin Hanjiang’s

imagination.
“You thought this subordinate was loyal, right? I may not have been a
gentleman like Zhongli Qian, but at least I was open and honest, right?” Yin
Hanjiang ran a hand over the cracks in the mask, his voice restrained. “But
it wasn’t true.”
His family had been slaughtered at five. He had lain in a corpse pile for
days; he had been picked up by Wenren È then abandoned for a decade.
How could he be open and honest? How could he not hold resentment?
Before he turned eighteen, Yin Hanjiang had lived a harsh life. He knew
he’d been saved by a powerful person, whom he had very little contact
with. That person wanted him to become a sword cultivator, and he
understood that he had to win that person’s favor if he wanted to survive, so
he dedicated himself to practicing the sword.
But Yin Hanjiang had never said that he liked the sword.
Before he turned eighteen, he wanted to survive and become stronger, so he

did all he could to win that man’s favor. When he turned eighteen, he
returned to his village, saw the man who had saved him, and found out his
name was Wenren È.
While he watched quietly at the sidelines as Wenren È led his troops to

protect the village, longing, admiration, and worship filled his heart. Yin
Hanjiang wished to be someone like Wenren È, but he could not. After
eighteen years, his temperament was already formed. He would always be a
dark and twisted person.
Wenren È didn’t know that the enemy troops who had fled his battles had
all been hunted down by Yin Hanjiang, one by one, and stabbed to death
with triangular blades.
He had already found the corpse pile where his family members were now
all bones, impossible to recognize. He had buried them and put up steles,
then dragged the enemy tribesmen’s corpses before the graves, setting them
alight one by one, illuminating the graveyard.
Yin Hanjiang’s face was shadowy in the firelight. The warmth of the flames
didn’t reach him.
After Wenren È successfully drove out the enemy tribe, he drank with his
surviving soldiers. Yin Hanjiang hid in a corner, watching him.
After everyone around Wenren È had passed out and Wenren È, with his
spiritual energy sealed, was also drunk, he looked over to the only person
still upright and dragged him over to drink with.
Yin Hanjiang’s face turned red after taking only a sip from Wenren È’s
bowl. He fled in embarrassment, taking a mask from Wenren È’s belt in
order to cover his face. It was a custom in the little border town. After
battles, they wore the ghost masks to pray, to prevent the evil spirits of the
enemy soldiers from harming them. During the festivities, Wenren È had
also worn the mask and prayed.
Yin Hanjiang felt at ease after putting on the mask. With it, no one could
see his expression, and he no longer had to act proper.
He hid the mask, and whenever he could no longer keep up the act, he
would secretly put it on for a moment.
After pretending for so long, he had fooled himself into thinking he really
was someone who lived up to his Venerable’s expectations. Only the
presence of this mask reminded Yin Hanjiang that it was a lie.
There was no need to pretend now. The person he wanted to fool was gone.
Yin Hanjiang released his hand. The crack-riddled mask fell into the sea of
blood, dissolving into nothingness.
He paid no more attention to the illusions by his side. He called out the
Burning Sky Drum, set up a protective array, and sat cross-legged on its
surface, meditating.
The people of Xuanyuan Sect had always thought the Burning Sky Drum
was a first-grade immortal artifact. It wasn’t; it was a divine artifact.
Yin Hanjiang hadn’t known himself. Despite having cultivated on it for

three months, he had never realized. It was when he had forcibly used it
during the Great Sect War and had its vicious energy invade his body that
he had gained a connection to it.
During their thirty years of seclusion, Shu Yanyan had gotten to meditate on
the drum for a year. After a year had passed, Wenren È was still in
seclusion, so Yin Hanjiang had gone there to wake her up and shoo her
away.
After she left, Yin Hanjiang leapt into the ravine. He stood on the drum,
hearing the sounds of war drums by his ears. He wanted to gain power
quicker, hoping to sharpen his sword will by cultivating on the drum and
help his Venerable.
But this time, he was completely unable to make progress.
He didn’t understand why. He was able to cultivate while wielding the

demonic sword, but now he could not with the Army Crushing Sword.
He stared at the blade. There seemed to be a voice deep inside him, telling
him over and over that the weapon wasn’t right.
Yin Hanjiang knew that swords weren’t suited to him. Swords were too
slow at killing people. When a triangular spike stabbed someone, the wound
was difficult to close and the bleeding difficult to stop, so it was his favored
weapon.
He put on the ghost mask. After hiding his emotions, he felt his heart
become unfettered, and he easily harmonized with the Burning Sky Drum.
His cultivation progressed quickly this time. After ten years, his sword had
become the Army Crushing Spike, a weapon that truly suited him, and Yin
Hanjiang had risen to the peak of Mahayana.
But once he left the drum and took off the mask, his realm dropped back to
Void Boundary and his weapon returned to being a sword.
Wenren È had once said that if one’s mental state didn’t match their realm,
it was like giving a three-year-old child a magic sword. They could have the
greatest treasure in the world, but be unable to use its power. Yin Hanjiang
knew that after taking off the mask and suppressing his true self, his mental
state was insufficient for wielding Mahayana level power. In order to grow
stronger, he had to let go of his pretenses.
He didn’t dare. He couldn’t imagine his Venerable’s expression upon seeing

that he held a triangular spike instead of a sword. So Yin Hanjiang decided
it was best to remain this way for now.
When Altar Master Yuan had beaten him and was about to take the Burning
Sky Drum, Yin Hanjiang had no choice but to put on the mask and unleash
his true power.
The mask wasn’t special at all. It was only a shield to allow Yin Hanjiang to
show his true nature.
Now that it had no use, it might as well accompany his Venerable. After Yin
Hanjiang finished what must be done, he would return to the Blood Hell.
After ten months, Yin Hanjiang opened his eyes atop the Burning Sky
Drum. Only a god could absorb chaos energy. Using the divine weapon’s
power, he had already recovered, and had another breakthrough.
Yin Hanjiang didn’t know how strong he was now. He faintly felt he had
already passed the point of his heavenly tribulation, and the heavenly
lightning he had faced while pursuing Hè Wenzhao a year back had, aside
from enforcing the laws of heaven, also been meant for his breakthrough.
He seemed to have immortal essence, but not quite.
Oh well, it didn’t matter. He just needed enough power.
Yin Hanjiang put away the Burning Sky Drum and Wenren È’s robe. After a
long gaze at the sea of blood, he returned to Xuanyuan Sect in a light flash.
Xuanyuan Sect had been a bit chaotic this past year. First Sect Leader Yin
and Protector Shu joined forces to kill Altar Master Yuan, then the Sect
Master had been surrounded and killed at the Blood Hell. Sect Leader Yin,
who had previously been unassuming as a shadow, had snapped and scared
the Shangqing Sect Master and his chief disciple into hiding in their sect for
over a year. The battle had shaken the entire cultivation world.
After gaining renown in battle, Sect Leader Yin had vanished. The
Xuanyuan Sect was left without a leader, Altar Master Yuan’s subordinates
fought and killed over his position, and the rest of the Altar Masters began
to eye Yin Hanjiang’s position after a year had gone by with no news. The
Altar Masters and Qiu Congxue would fight with each other several times
in a month. Right now, they were nursing their injuries and saving up
strength for the next fight.
Shu Yanyan, who had once overcome all four Altar Masters, was
comfortable in her position. She never participated in the fighting, lazing
about on her new large bed all day, occasionally going to mess with Baili
Qingmiao and Zhongli Qian.
Baili Qingmiao had been injured after her bonded weapon was destroyed at
the Blood Hell and had been recovering at Xuanyuan Sect all this time.
Zhongli Qian had made his agreement with Wenren È, that he had to tell
something to Yin Hanjiang, so he couldn’t leave before meeting Yin
Hanjiang.
The two, along with Su Huai, had been guests in Qiu Congxue’s cultivation
grounds. Since Qiu Congxue was powerful and didn’t have many
subordinates, their stay was quite peaceful.
“The Left Protector’s cultivation grounds are more deserted than a haunted
house.” Shu Yanyan had come to “visit” the injured Baili Qingmiao again,
striking up a conversation when she saw Zhongli Qian helping Su Huai
study. “Where’s Protector Qiu?”
“She has an appointment to fight the three Altar Masters in the Main Hall
today.” Zhongli Qian signaled for Su Huai to stop and rose to greet Shu
Yanyan. “Long time no see, Protector Shu.”
“It hasn’t been long, just three days.” Shu Yanyan yawned languidly. “She
sure can fight. She’s just managed to get her flesh back and already turned
into a skeleton again, yet she’s still fighting.”
Zhongli Qian poured a cup of tea for Shu Yanyan, saying warmly,
“Protector Qiu is an honest woman with a straightforward nature, but she
tends to overlook details. I must thank Protector Shu for keeping an eye on
her over this past year.”
“It was nothing,” Shu Yanyan said with a wave of her hand.
“Is there a reason for your visit today?” Zhongli Qian asked.
“I can never fool you.” Shu Yanyan gazed at Zhongli Qian’s face. “You’re
smart, Young Master Zhongli. What would you say I want?”
Zhongli Qian picked up his own cup of tea, saying in an unhurried pace,
“The people of Xuanyuan Sect are inconstant and Protector Shu wishes to
join in the fray, so is hoping for my support.”
“It sure is convenient talking to someone intelligent,” Shu Yanyan said,

gazing at Zhongli Qian with her chin in her hand. “What does Young
Master Zhongli think? I know your relationship with Protector Qiu is better,
but she doesn’t have a brain, and the Xuanyuan Sect would collapse after
three days under her leadership.”
“My thoughts? I hope Protector Shu will wait a few more days,” Zhongli
Qian said.
He had barely finished speaking when the wards around Xuanyuan Sect
broke. A terrifying force charged into the sect.
Shu Yanyan stood and said seriously, “Was this what you were waiting for,
Young Master Zhongli?”
“Right.” Zhongli Qian put down his teacup and said to Su Huai, “Go
prepare medicines and a spirit gathering array. Your martial ancestor will be
getting a lot more injured today.”
Su Huai: …

Wants to Know
Chapter 52 – Tidying up the sect again
A fierce four-sided battle was currently going on at the Xuanyuan Sect

Main Hall.
Altar Master Miao was trying to convince Altar Master Shi to fight Altar
Master Ruan, Altar Master Shi was giving up and not helping either side,
Altar Master Ruan wanted to team up with Qiu Congxue, but Qiu Congxue
was determined to take all three on at once. Finally, it developed into a
scene where Altar Masters Miao, Shi, and Ruan teamed up against Qiu
Congxue, while Miao and Ruan took potshots at each other from time to
time, and Shi hid whenever he could.
Suddenly, a streak of cold light shot into the room. An earthshaking force
caused the four to instantly stop and back off, trying to flee as quickly as
possible. However, three streaks of fierce sword light slashed through the
place where they were fighting. The tortoise shell that Altar Master Ruan
hadn’t had time to pick up was split into pieces in an instant.
Altar Master Shi clutched his chest in terror. Good thing he was quick at
hiding, because the sword light was vicious, able to split your flesh open at
a touch. The attacker hadn’t held back in the least, as if they didn’t care
which of them were cut apart by the slash.
Wondering who was so merciless, Shi Congxin peeked out and saw Deputy
Sect Leader Yin, wearing a crimson robe, with a silver belt that outlined the
slim shape of his waist.
“Yin Hanjiang, do you want to die?” Altar Master Ruan yelled, looking
heartbrokenly at his tortoise shell. “Do you also want to become the Lord of
Demons? Come on! Whoever’s stronger will—”
Yin Hanjiang waved a hand. Translucent qi in the shape of a drumstick
smacked into Altar Master Ruan’s chestplate.
Altar Master Ruan’s armor was said to have been made from the Xuanwu’s
shell, and was a top-grade defensive item, stronger than many smaller sects’
wards. However, under Yin Hanjiang’s strike, his chestplate shattered in an
instant. It felt like his chest had been hit by the weight of an entire
mountain. He flew out of the room, and might’ve gone much further if the
sect’s array didn’t block him.
When he crawled back up the mountain, covered with dust, he heard Yin
Hanjiang’s cold voice echoing across the Main Hall. “After Wenren È, no
one can be titled Venerable.”
“What do you mean?” Qiu Congxue said furiously. “Now that Wenren È’s
dead, it’s no issue if you want to become the Lord of Demons, you just
gotta fight for it. But if you don’t want it, what gives you the right to stop
other people?”
Shu Yanyan, who had rushed over when the array was broken: …
“I thought I’d be in time to save her,” she said to Zhongli Qian. “Oh well.
Might be better for her to get a beating.”
She grabbed for Zhongli Qian’s hand, deciding to back off, but reached for
empty air. Turning, she saw that Zhongli Qian, who had been alongside her
the whole way, had already backed a hundred meters away with Su Huai.
Shu Yanyan: …
This man with both looks and brains certainly never missed anything.
She retreated plenty fast, but was still hit by a flying Qiu Congxue. Her soft
body caught Qiu Congxue’s rack of bones.
Shu Yanyan had brought out her spider lily, preventing her from being sent
flying all the way to the mountain’s array like Altar Master Ruan. She
managed to stand back up, tossing Qiu Congxue aside. After looking more
closely, she saw Qiu Congxue really was on her last legs, and the remaining
flesh on her face was also gone.
She said to Qiu Congxue, “Ah, you find trouble everywhere you can, and
never learn your lesson until you get hurt.”
She placed a slim foot on Qiu Congxue’s face, her eyes curving into a
smile. Spider lilies bloomed around Altar Masters Shi and Miao, displaying
a clear threat.
After she had held back the other two Altar Masters, Shu Yanyan got to one
knee respectfully before Yin Hanjiang. “This subordinate greets Sect Leader
Yin.”
Seeing the states Altar Master Ruan and Protector Qiu were in, and how
Shu Yanyan threw in the towel immediately and had no intention of joining
forces with them, Altar Masters Shi and Miao had no choice but to
recognize Yin Hanjiang, even if they were unwilling.
Without any resistance, they knelt obediently alongside Shu Yanyan.
Yin Hanjiang landed on the ground. He glanced at Shu Yanyan and

immediately closed his eyes. He hadn’t had contact with anyone over this
past year, yet he saw phantoms of Wenren È whether his eyes were open or
closed. Now everyone he saw looked like Wenren È, and even Shu Yanyan
bore his face. It was truly improper.
“Ah,” Zhongli Qian sighed quietly. He told Su Huai, “Take your martial
ancestor back for healing. She can go next to your master.”
Su Huai went over to pick up Qiu Congxue. At this point, she only had a
skeleton left, and it was unknown how long it would take her to recover.
Shu Yanyan also had her subordinate Helian Chu take Altar Master Ruan
away, and ordered people to clean up the Main Hall. Qiu Congxue and the
rest had been fighting here for months, so it was a mess, and Shu Yanyan
had been too lazy to fix it. After all, it’d be broken in a few days anyway.
After Yin Hanjiang had crushed them under his heel, the Main Hall could
finally be at peace. Shu Yanyan finally sent her subordinates to sort it out.
Yin Hanjiang saw that the Main Hall doors had been smashed, the hall, as
well as Wenren È’s room had been covered with dust, and a beam had fallen
on Wenren È’s bed. He waved a hand and sent Altar Master Miao flying, to
join Altar Master Ruan and Qiu Congxue.
Altar Master Shi, who rarely acted, shrank into himself and followed Yin
Hanjiang, trembling.
Yin Hanjiang raised his voice so that it reached every corner of the hall.
“You all can continue to fight in the Main Hall as usual, but from now on,
however many stones you smash and however many beams you break, I’ll
break that many bones and meridians!”
He waved a hand, having the Army Crushing Spike return to his grasp. Its
vicious edges chilled everyone who saw it to their core. This was the
weapon who had stripped all the flesh off Qiu Congxue in an instant, with
the proficiency of a master butcher.
With Qiu Congxue’s bloody body as an example, no one dared to revolt.

Altar Master Yuan’s former subordinates also stopped their infighting,
obediently casting spells to clean and fix up the place. In less than two
hours, the Main Hall was repaired.
“Ven—Sect Leader Yin, should the head seat be changed?” One of Altar
Master Yuan’s subordinates asked warily.
“No need,” Yin Hanjiang said.
“Then should Sect Master Wenren’s furniture be changed? Will Sect Leader
Yin be moving into his room?”
“Of course n—” Yin Hanjiang was going to refuse, but hesitated. He
pressed his lips together and said, “You can leave it the way it was. Where I
stay isn’t any of your business.”
After cleaning up the Main Hall in accordance with Yin Hanjiang’s orders,
they all retreated, leaving only Zhongli Qian and Shu Yanyan. Having been
there during Yin Hanjiang’s battle with Altar Master Yuan, Shu Yanyan felt
rather wary. She took a step back and didn’t speak, leaving everything to
Zhongli Qian.
Yin Hanjiang paid no attention to the two. He stared at the chair Wenren È
usually sat on, unwilling to take it.
He had always stood to the left of that chair.
Zhongli Qian noticed he was standing still and spoke to remind Yin
Hanjiang. “Sect Leader Yin, I’ve been staying at Xuanyuan Sect for these
past months because Sir Wenren asked me a favor. There are some words I
need to pass on to you.”
Hearing Wenren È’s name, Yin Hanjiang froze. Standing before the seat, he
said coldly, “What words?”
“Sir Wenren said, ‘This Venerable must go to the Blood Hell, and I have
some certainty of my survival. For the moment, Yin Hanjiang need not
accompany me. If this Venerable does not return for one year, you can erect
a cenotaph, and decide on your own whether to follow this Venerable or do
something else.’ Those were his exact words, not one is missed.”
Zhongli Qian couldn’t see Yin Hanjiang’s expression, but he could sense his
emotions. These past few months, he had also thought it was silly for him to
remain at Xuanyuan Sect. A year had passed, and these words were already
meaningless.
Even so, Zhongli Qian still had to fulfill his promise, and wait for Yin
Hanjiang’s return to pass these words on to him.
“I can erect a cenotaph after one year….” Yin Hanjiang clutched his chest,
feeling like it was rotting inside, the pain unbearable.
He rested a hand on the armrest of the chair for a long while. Finally, he
slowly sat down on the chair that symbolized the supreme authority in
Xuanyuan Sect.
“I won’t erect one right now,” Yin Hanjiang said through gritted teeth. “I’ll
kill Hè Wenzhao and the other people who ambushed him that day, and
offer their souls to my Venerable!”
Hearing his bloodthirsty words, Zhongli Qian had to advise him, “Sect
Leader Yin, Sir Wenren could’ve entered the Blood Hell at any time, but he
wanted the righteous sects to think he was the Blood Demon, in order to
unmask the true Blood Demon inside Hè Wenzhao before the righteous and
demonic paths. Sir Wenren has said that once a blood cultivator begins
consuming souls, they won’t be able to stop. The Blood Demon will need
five years to completely absorb the seventeen cultivators’ powers. After five
years, he’ll start killing again, so we’ll be able to act then. I beg Sect Leader
Yin to endure for now, and not fail Sir Wenren’s plan.”
Shu Yanyan watched as Yin Hanjiang’s expression became darker and

darker. Only when Zhongli Qian mentioned not failing Wenren È did Yin
Hanjiang manage to restrain himself. Shu Yanyan was worried. Yin
Hanjiang could control his darker nature now because of Wenren È’s words,
but after he completed his revenge, there might be nothing in the world to
restrain Yin Hanjiang.
“I understand.” Yin Hanjiang took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm

down. “The Venerable is compassionate and thinks only of mortal lives. He
doesn’t care who harms him, but I’m not like that.”
Compassionate? Shu Yanyan stared blankly. Who was Yin Hanjiang talking
about again? Wenren È? Did he misunderstand Wenren È?
While she wondered, she saw Yin Hanjiang gripping the armrests tightly. “I
can wait five years, but I won’t do nothing in that time.
“I remember all nine experts there that day. They were from Shangqing,
Tianjian, Jiuxing, Biluo, and Wuxiang, the five great sects, as well as the
Gongxi, Liangqiu, and Nanguo clans. I’ve killed the Nanguo clan elder, so
eight remain. I’ll gift them all to the Blood Demon Elder!”
Shu Yanyan had guessed what Yin Hanjiang would do. With a gulp, she
said, “Sect Leader, at our current strength, Xuanyuan Sect can’t take on so
many sects and cultivation clans at once. Also… also, Shangqing Sect is
holed up behind its wards, which you failed to break last time.”
The Great Sect War was one thing, but to destroy a rooted sect was another.
Almost every sect and clan was warded by immortal artifacts. If they really
hid shamelessly, it would be very difficult to snatch an elder or disciple
from within a sect.
Yin Hanjiang said expressionlessly, “The larger sects have many branches,
so there are always bound to be some disciples traveling outside. We’ll lie
low for a few years, using soul puppeting, gu parasites, or curses to control
them, then use them to lure in the experts of their sect and crush them one
by one.”
Hearing his words, Zhongli Qian immediately said, “Sect Leader Yin, I’ve
passed on the message, and the rest of this is Xuanyuan Sect affairs, so I
don’t wish to get involved. I have already troubled Xuanyuan Sect for many
months, so I think—”
Yin Hanjiang interrupted him. “Mister Zhongli is clever and the Xuanyuan
Sect currently lacks an Altar Master. Since you’ve already troubled us for a
year, why don’t you just stay? Protector Shu, prepare a residence for Altar
Master Zhongli.”
Shu Yanyan’s eyes brightened and she eagerly said, “This subordinate
understands!”
Zhongli Qian: …

Wants to Know
Chapter 53 – Inner demons’ illusions
CW: mentions of suicide interspersed throughout the next few chapters
Zhongli Qian wanted to refuse. He was a Mahayana cultivator, so with his

power and intellect, Yin Hanjiang wouldn’t be able to stop him unless he
crippled his cultivation. And since Yin Hanjiang wanted Zhongli Qian to
work for him, he would have to treat him properly, not like a criminal.
He was about to raise his objections and ask Yin Hanjiang to reconsider, but
the red-robed man said, “Zhongli Qian, do you know what the first thing I
wanted to do upon returning to the sect was?”
Zhongli Qian’s heart stuttered. “I have an idea.”
“My plan was to first send Xuanyuan Sect members to gather up wandering
cultivators and small sects unaffiliated with the great sects. We could accept
those willing to make spirit vows and join the Xuanyuan Sect, while those
unwilling would be interrogated for their secret techniques and killed,” Yin
Hanjiang said heartlessly. “Within three years, all cultivators unaffiliated
with the great sects or cultivation clans would belong to us. At that point,
we’d take on the weaker sects and make their disciples ours, then overcome
the others one by one.”
Yin Hanjiang laughed scornfully at himself. “I’m not my lord. I don’t mind
the lives of the members of Xuanyuan Sect, or the lives of innocent
bystanders. I’ll do anything in order to achieve my goals.
“Zhongli Qian, your words have held me back, but since you got in the way
of my plan, you’ll have to make up for it.”
“This…” Zhongli Qian used spiritual cognition to sense Yin Hanjiang, and
found his words weren’t empty.
“I must take my revenge. If you don’t want me to bring chaos to the

cultivation world, then you had better do your best to stop me. I won’t lock
you up. It’s up to you whether or not you’ll be an Altar Master.” Yin
Hanjiang stood up, turning his back and leaving the main hall, leaving
Zhongli Qian to his decision.
Zhongli Qian smiled wryly. He knew Yin Hanjiang was telling him that
once he left, Yin Hanjiang would return to his old plan.
Yin Hanjiang hadn’t been lying. He really didn’t care about Xuanyuan Sect,
the cultivation world, or even all lives on Earth. The only person worthy of
his concern in this world was Wenren È. In order to avenge Wenren È, Yin
Hanjiang could throw away everything else.
“Still want to leave?” Shu Yanyan said, smiling.
Zhongli Qian sighed. “Sect Leader Yin and Sir Wenren both understand
people well. Both have been open and upfront, never using underhanded
plots so far, but… this is harder to deal with than a plot.”
“Well, Yanyan better go prepare a residence for Altar Master Zhongli. It’s
not ideal to keep staying at Qiu Congxue’s place, right?” Shu Yanyan said.
“You don’t seem concerned about Sect Leader Yin’s current state,” Zhongli
Qian said. “Aren’t you afraid of the world being thrown into chaos?”
“Altar Master Zhongli can worry about it, so why should I stress myself
out?” said Shu Yanyan. “Even if the sky falls, there’ll be smart people to
hold it up. I don’t desire much, so I’m happy just to have someone attractive
near me to ease my eyes.”
Hearing her melodious laughter, Zhongli Qian said, “Protector Shu is wise.”
Resignedly, he followed Protector Shu to accept his position as Altar

Master. No one was concerned he’d be unable to keep Altar Master Yuan’s
former subordinates in line. With his capabilities, it wouldn’t take him more
than a month to sort out the Main Hall.
Shu Yanyan dumped a huge pile of jade slips containing Xuanyuan Sect’s
history, roster, and regulations on Zhongli Qian. A single jade slip of the
cultivation world could hold as much information as a cartload of books,
and there were over a hundred of them alone. After piling them all on
Zhongli Qian’s desk, her face flushed slightly, and she said ruefully, “You
don’t need to overdo it. Don’t stress yourself out too much. The white hair
lends you a distinctive air, but if you went bald, there’s no way I could like
you anymore.”
“…I’ll do my best.”
While Shu Yanyan messed with Zhongli Qian, Yin Hanjiang had come to
Wenren È’s old room, which was now his.
Wenren È was a frugal person. Unlike Shu Yanyan, who filled her
cultivation grounds with beds, his room only had a desk, four chairs, and a
bed barely big enough to fit two adults.
The remaining vast space was for his cultivation. The floor was covered
with arrays, only needing spiritual stones to be placed in their foci to be
activated.
Yin Hanjiang came to the bed. Wenren È rarely laid down, so this bed was
just here for him to meditate on.
He stared for a while at the simple wooden bed, then took off his boots and
laid down with his clothes still on, resting his head on the pillow his
Venerable rarely used.
His heart thumped, louder than the Burning Sky Drum. Counting his own
heartbeats, Yin Hanjiang painfully closed his eyes.
When his Venerable was still here, he often came to this room to listen to
his Venerable’s teachings. Sometimes, Wenren È would read silently, and as
Yin Hanjiang waited, his mind would wander. Sometimes, he would stare at
Wenren È’s handsome features, and sometimes stare at the bed and
daydream.
What was he thinking about back then? Yin Hanjiang wondered quietly.
He didn’t remember.
“You do remember, don’t you?” said a familiar voice from beside the bed. It
was his Venerable. Yin Hanjiang didn’t open his eyes, knowing this wasn’t
real.
“Sect Leader Yin, at the time, you were thinking of how wonderful it would
be to secretly lie in this bed, weren’t you?” The voice became more harsh,
growing closer.
Yin Hanjiang’s eyes flew open. Wenren È was standing before him, only
wearing a white inner robe.
As he kept his eyes on Wenren È, the phantasm came on to the bed with
him, lying on his side next to Yin Hanjiang, saying in a low voice, “This
Venerable is not opposed to sleeping alongside Sect Leader Yin.”
Yin Hanjiang sat upright, his gaze locked onto Wenren È, as if he was
facing down his own unruly heart.
He had once said to Zhongli Qian, “If there is no desire, there will be no
suffering. If there is only love, there will never be resentment.”
He had thought these words were the truth, straight from his heart. But the
reason love led to suffering was that fantasies were hard to suppress. How
could he not desire? How could he never have improper thoughts?
Even when he had not yet understood his heart, he had still thought that the
wine from his Venerable’s cup was incomparably sweet, wanting to steal a
sip. Now that he had realized, his fantasies had run out of control.
“Come here, Sect Leader Yin.” The Wenren È on the bed beckoned him.
“Or do you want this Venerable to call you Hanjiang?”
“Enough!” Yin Hanjiang roared. He lunged across the bed, wanting to grab
that Wenren È, but only met with empty air.
There was nothing within his arms. His Venerable wasn’t there.
Yin Hanjiang stared at the empty bed in a daze. There wasn’t even a
wrinkle at the place where Wenren È had been lying.
After spacing out for a while, he slowly rubbed the place where the illusion
had been lying, seeming to feel a slight warmth. But when he moved over,
then looked at the place where he had just lain, it was empty.
There seemed to be an insatiable beast in his heart, devouring all of his

emotions.
He didn’t dare get on the bed again, despondently sitting at the desk.
Another Wenren È appeared in the seat next to him.
Wenren È picked up a wine cup and poured himself wine. After drinking
half the cup, he looked toward Yin Hanjiang. “Hanjiang, why are you
looking at this Venerable in that way? Do you want to drink? Here.”
He purposefully turned the cup, letting the place he had drank from face
toward Yin Hanjiang.
Obediently, Yin Hanjiang dipped his head, drinking from Wenren È’s hand,
but as before, he sipped nothing but air.
He wasn’t devastated this time. He’d known it was fake, yet he had
indulged himself in order to tell himself that this all was an illusion, and he
could not trust in it.
He rubbed his face and took out God of Annihilation: Volume 2 from his
storage belt. He needed to find some way to occupy himself in his
Venerable’s room.
Yin Hanjiang had heard Wenren È say that Abusive Romance and God of
Annihilation respectively recorded Baili Qingmiao and Hè Wenzhao’s fates,
and they seemed to be the focal points of this world. Yin Hanjiang had
personally witnessed the spiritual realm change depending on whether Baili
Qingmiao was conscious, so knew that this book recorded fate itself.
In order to defeat Hè Wenzhao, he had to know his enemy. Even though the
second volume told of the events in the immortal realm, he could at least
find the weak points of Hè Wenzhao’s character.
Yin Hanjiang had been injured before, so he didn’t dare open this book
which recorded his Venerable’s death, afraid that it might affect his mind
and impede his recovery.
Only now that he was back at Xuanyuan Sect, in his Venerable’s room, a
place that put him at ease, did Yin Hanjiang dare to open the book.
Doing his best to ignore the mention of Wenren È’s death in the summary,
Yin Hanjiang speed-read through the book.
In the book, Hè Wenzhao and Baili Qingmiao arrived in the immortal

realm, initially keeping a low profile and gradually gaining renown. Baili
Qingmiao had good aptitudes and looks, so there were always immortals
foolish enough to hit on her. The first part of the story relied entirely on
Baili Qingmiao to move the plot. Someone would harass Baili Qingmiao
and Hè Wenzhao would act, then she would be harassed again, so Hè
Wenzhao would act again.
Hè Wenzhao had had several breakthroughs in his cultivation, seemingly

just to save Baili Qingmiao.
After reading this, Yin Hanjiang was sure that women were Hè Wenzhao’s
weakness.
Afterward, the Violet Spirit Master, the Gongxi mistress, Zhongli Kuang,
Yao Jiaping, and Cen Zhengqi ascended one after another. Hè Wenzhao had
also met several powerful female immortals and male immortals rebellious
toward the Burning Sky Immortal. His influence gradually grew until he
could contend with the Burning Sky Immortal.
In this part, Yin Hanjiang found Hè Wenzhao seemed to have no
reservations toward women. He would even treat women who used to be his
enemies warmly, as long as they didn’t already have a man. At the
beginning, Baili Qingmiao had gotten plenty of scenes, but as the number
of female characters grew, she became less prominent. After fighting a few
times with Hè Wenzhao over his relations with other women, she stormed
out and wound up kidnapped by the Burning Sky Immortal.
The Burning Sky Immortal cast Baili Qingmiao into the immortal realm’s
divine flames, in order to refine her into a soul lamp.
Seeing “soul lamp”, Yin Hanjiang’s eyebrows rose. He felt this Burning
Sky Immortal was somehow familiar.
Indeed, when he flipped the page, he saw: The Burning Sky Immortal
looked sadly at Baili Qingmiao and said, “Since Wenren È loved you, you
shouldn’t betray his feelings. I’m going to refine you into an everburning
lamp, to place into the sky above the Blood Hell and illuminate it for
eternity, so you can always be with him. Isn’t that good?”
With these words, and his relation to the Burning Sky Drum, Yin Hanjiang
was now certain that the Burning Sky Immortal in the second volume was
himself. But what was his future self saying?
His Venerable loved Baili Qingmiao?
He put down the book, sitting at the desk in a daze, his eyes blank.
Baili Qingmiao had been recovering in Xuanyuan Sect for over a year at
this point, spending most of that time unconscious. Her bonded weapon had
been disintegrated by chaos energy. If a bond with a weapon was forcibly
severed, the dantian would be seriously damaged and it would be difficult
to recover.
This wasn’t a problem to Qiu Congxue though. This just affected her flesh
body. It would be so much better to just discard it and cultivate her soul as a
ghost cultivator. She could give Baili Qingmiao all her secret techniques, as
well open up the hungry ghost path for her and throw her in there to
cultivate. That was a sacred ground for ghost cultivators.
Qiu Congxue always acted according to her words and was highly efficient.
It was fortunate that Zhongli Qian arrived in time and told Qiu Congxue
that Baili Qingmiao’s heaviest injury was not on her body, but in her heart.
Even if she cultivated as a soul, the injury to her soul wouldn’t heal, and she
had no possibility of surviving the hungry ghost path in such a state.
Zhongli Qian wasn’t doing so well at the moment either. He knew that Baili
Qingmiao’s heart was broken. He himself was affected, feeling the urge to
end his own life every day.
In truth, if Zhongli Qian wasn’t restraining her, Baili Qingmiao might’ve

attempted suicide numerous times.
Eventually, Shu Yanyan had sought out Altar Master Miao for help in
suppressing the heart-linking parasites. Altar Master Miao wasn’t sure of
Wenren È’s death at the time, so he didn’t dare remove the parasites and
only gave some medicine to alleviate the effects. Thus, Zhongli Qian was
temporarily freed, but Baili Qingmiao’s condition became worse.
Zhongli Qian could only ask Altar Master Shi to sit with Baili Qingmiao for
a night. After one night, Baili Qingmiao fell ill, drifting in and out of
consciousness, so she didn’t have the strength to take her own life even if
she wanted to.
Baili Qingmiao had spent these past days half-conscious, not knowing
where she was and unclear on how much time had passed.
In her daze, she faintly felt that Su Huai had set down a rack of white bones
next to her, mumbling to himself as he wiped them. “Are you an idiot?
Always looking for trouble. Is there anything in your brain besides fighting
and eating?”
The skeleton moved its jawbone, making a click-clack sound, as if it were

speaking.
Baili Qingmiao couldn’t understand it, but Su Huai seemed to have no
trouble doing so. He said casually, “Are you proud that you’re a skeleton
again? After all the effort I went through to get a body, do you know how
happy I was? Yet you’ve managed to get yourself the body of a wandering
immortal, and treat it like this.”
Click-clack, click-clack… clack! The skeleton’s jawbone fell off.
Su Huai’s voice was suffused with worry. “How long is it going to take you
to recover now? Consider from time to time, that you’re not a ghost
cultivator anymore. You’re a wandering immortal, with a body grown from
the Flesh Mushroom. Each bit of flesh you lose lowers your power. Sect
Leader Yin has already diminished your power to the Nascent Soul Stage. If
this keeps up, you’ll lose your position as Sect Protector.”
Sighing, Su Huai helped the skeleton reattach its jaw. “Protector Shu said
that you first absorbed the Flesh Mushroom by soaking your bones in its
broth, so its essence is in your bones. You’ll recover with top-grade spiritual
stones and attentive care. Mister Zhongli is currently setting up a spirit
gathering array for you, so I’ll take you there in a bit. Cultivate properly.
Stop abusing the flesh on your body.”
He let out a long sigh. As a Core Formation cultivator, he was taking

responsibilities far above his station.
After settling down Qiu Congxue, he went to feed Baili Qingmiao

medicine. He pried open his master’s jaw with practiced motions, stuffing
the pill in, then used his spiritual energy to move Baili Qingmiao’s throat
and force her to swallow.
After he finished, he picked up the skeleton and went to find Zhongli Qian.
Baili Qingmiao was somewhat aware at this moment, and guessed that the
skeleton was Qiu Congxue. She wanted to ask Su Huai if her master was
okay and how she had gotten so injured. Her lips had moved slightly, but
she was unable to open her mouth.
After Su Huai left, Baili Qingmiao laid there, her body feeling heavy. She
felt someone sit by her side. An ice-cold piece of metal touched her face a
few times.
She sensed powerful murderous intent, and her survival instincts made her
open her eyes.
The moment she did, she saw Yin Hanjiang sitting by her bed, holding a
spike blade over her nose. There was a dark look in his eyes, as if he was
deciding whether or not to stab down.

Wants to Know
Chapter 54 – Unstable mind
After reading the book, Yin Hanjiang had been in a daze for a long time. He
didn’t remember what he was thinking back then.
He suddenly remembered his Venerable had once said he had a debt toward
Baili Qingmiao, which he could only repay by helping her attain godhood.
He also remembered how Zhongli Qian had told him that Wenren È had
faced danger to save Baili Qingmiao, not because he didn’t care about his
own life, but because he had a plan.
Sitting at the desk, he cocked his head slightly, not quite certain whether
these memories were real or his own imagination.
He turned toward the Wenren È sitting at his left side and said, “Does the
Venerable like Baili Qingmiao?”
“Don’t you remember what this Venerable has told you?” said that Wenren
È.
Yin Hanjiang turned his head to the Wenren È sitting on his right. “What do
you think, Venerable?”
“This Venerable has told you that these books record fate, and fate is
difficult to change,” said that Wenren È.
With both Wenren È’s repeating his Venerable’s words by his ears, Yin
Hanjiang’s thoughts felt disordered. He didn’t know whose words were
correct, and didn’t even know if the two people next to him really existed.
He lifted his hands, wanting to cover his ears, but now that he was able to
listen to his Venerable’s voice, he was loath to seal his hearing.
Yin Hanjiang shook his head a few times, feeling that something was wrong
with him.
He put away the book and sat cross-legged on the bed, reciting the Clear
Mind Spell, trying to calm his heart and quiet his unruly thoughts.
But the two Wenren È’s sat next to Yin Hanjiang, pressed against his sides.
“Is Sect Leader Yin reciting the Clear Mind Spell because he no longer
wants to see this Venerable?”
Yin Hanjiang felt his meridians were clogged and he couldn’t even circulate
his spiritual essence though his body. He forcibly tried to open his
meridians, but spat up a mouthful of blood. There was a piercing pain in his
dantian, and he was unable to circulate any spiritual essence.
“False, all false.” Yin Hanjiang brought out Wenren È’s robe. Holding it to
his chest, he felt much better.
Clutching it tight, he closed his eyes. He was uncertain if he fell asleep or

lost consciousness.
Vaguely, he seemed to have a dream, though it also seemed to not be a

dream, and instead something that really happened. He dreamed that, after
the Great Sect War, his Venerable had been saved by a woman of the
righteous sects. His Venerable favored that woman very much, and at last,
died saving her at the Blood Hell.
At the moment before he fell into the Blood Hell, his Venerable had thrown
that woman, wrapped in his own robe, at Yin Hanjiang, along with a blood-
red stone. His last words were, “Protect her for this Venerable.”
The pain that seemed to split his heart woke Yin Hanjiang. He looked at his
arms and saw only a robe, but no woman.
Hm? Odd, how did his Venerable die?

Yin Hanjiang shook his head. He seemed to have trouble remembering.
There were two series of events in his memories. In one, his Venerable was
good to him and treated him warmly. He retrieved the Snow Flame for him,
forged a bonded weapon for him, and gave him his robe. In the other… in
the other, he quietly looked on as his Venerable treated a woman kindly,
kindly enough to make his heart ache, kindly enough that time after time, he
put on the ghost mask in the dead of night, carving that woman’s figure out
of wood with his sword, after which he would gouge her face out with his
fingernails, bit by bit, and slowly reduce the figurine to wood chips.
Which was real?
Yin Hanjiang dug through his storage belt and found many wood figurines
of Wenren È, which he had carved secretly. They all looked unsightly, and
he didn’t dare show them to his Venerable.
Wood figurines? So his Venerable liking that girl was true, and his
Venerable treating him well was just a fantasy created by his inner demons?
“Protector Yin, your body is cold. Drink some of this Venerable’s blood.” A
Wenren È stood before Yin Hanjiang, holding out his hand, offering Yin
Hanjiang his blood.
Yin Hanjiang ignored him. He extended two fingers, digging them deep into
his eyes. If he gouged out his eyes, then he would no longer see the
illusions.
The pain shocked him back to his senses, and he managed to regain some
reason.
Yin Hanjiang put away the robe and figurines. He pushed open the door and
immediately ran into Su Huai, who was carrying a skeleton and looking for
Zhongli Qian. When the skeleton saw Yin Hanjiang, all of its joints started
clattering. Who knew if it was scared or cursing out Yin Hanjiang.
“Stop moving!” Su Huai grabbed Qiu Congxue’s bones, preventing her

from speaking. “If your bones were shattered and the essence of the Flesh
Mushroom flowed out, you’d really be done for!”
Seeing Yin Hanjiang walk directly toward him, Su Huai rushed to kneel
down while holding the skeleton still. “This one greets Sect Leader Yin.”
“Who are you?” The corners of Yin Hanjiang’s eyes were bleeding, as he
stared at Su Huai.
Su Huai said frantically, “I’m Baili Qingmiao’s disciple and Zhongli Qian’s
student. At this point, I haven’t yet entered the Xuanyuan Sect and am still
on Shangqing Sect’s roster. I don’t know if I count as a member of
Xuanyuan Sect, but if possible, I’d like to enter the Hellfire Altar, hehe.”
Xuanyuan Sect was a major sect for ghost cultivators, and people like
Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang were legendary figures of the kind it took three
lifetimes of fortune to meet once. Qiu Congxue had originally also been in
this class, but he had known her for too long. With how well Su Huai knew
his martial ancestor’s tendencies, he really couldn’t respect her.
“I don’t remember you.” Yin Hanjiang stared at Su Huai, unsure if his

memory was faulty or if they really hadn’t met before.
“I had the honor of meeting Sect Leader Yin at the Violet Spirit Pavilion.
I’m such an insignificant person that it makes sense for Sect Leader to not
remember me,” Su Huai said, scratching his head.
“You’re Baili Qingmiao’s disciple?” Yin Hanjiang lifted a hand. He

remembered that Baili Qingmiao was the girl his Venerable favored. Even if
he couldn’t kill her, could he not kill a disciple?
Su Huai, not sensing the danger, replied honestly, “Yes. My master and I
were victims of Shangqing Sect’s schemes and have much gratitude toward
Sect Master Wenren for saving us. Su Huai is willing to join the Xuanyuan
Sect and serve Sect Leader Yin for life.”
“The Venerable… saved Baili Qingmiao? At the Blood Hell?” Yin Hanjiang
withdrew the hand that had almost reached Su Huai’s body.
“Yes. It was really dangerous. The righteous cultivators are all scum, and
that Hè Wenzhao, *******…” Su Huai started cussing again. Since Zhongli
Qian and his master weren’t here, he took the opportunity to cuss the
righteous cultivators out so hard their ancestral tablets would be smoking.
Yin Hanjiang had never even heard some of the words he used, but he
understood perfectly well. After listening for a bit, he clapped Su Huai on
the shoulder. “Good cussing.”
“Hehe.” Su Huai chuckled awkwardly. “Master and Mister Zhongli both

don’t like to hear me cuss. If Sect Leader likes it, I could sneak over and
cuss for you to hear.”
“Sounds good,” Yin Hanjiang said. “Where’s Baili Qingmiao?”
“Protector Qiu’s quarters. It’s rich in spiritual energy, which Mister Zhongli
said would help master recover,” Su Huai said a bit doubtfully. “After
master returned from the Blood Hell, her mental state hasn’t been right.
Mister Zhongli said it wasn’t just heartbreak, but that something seems to
be influencing her soul.”
“Mm.” Yin Hanjiang said nothing more to Su Huai, flying directly toward
Baili Qingmiao’s room.
No one in Xuanyuan Sect would dare to stop him, so Yin Hanjiang entered
Qiu Congxue’s room without any obstacles. Inside, he saw a beautiful girl
lying on a bed, her brows knitted, seeming to be trapped in some nightmare.
He sat at Baili Qingmiao’s bedside, staring down at her. She really was very
beautiful.
Yin Hanjiang brought out the Army Crushing Spike, bumping Baili
Qingmiao’s face a few times with its cold hilt. He aimed its point at Baili
Qingmiao’s nose, wondering if he should gouge her face out. Where should
he start? The nose?
No, she wasn’t a carving, he couldn’t gouge her up. His Venerable wanted
him to protect Baili Qingmiao.
He had thrown over a blood-red stone along with her. What had that been?
Where was it? On Baili Qingmiao?
Yin Hanjiang appeared calm, but the thoughts in his mind had repeated
themselves a thousand times. His murderous intent fluctuated, and, sensing
it, Baili Qingmiao finally opened her eyes.
The moment she did, she saw the Army Crushing Spike right next to her
face. Baili Qingmiao took a deep breath, saying weakly, “Sect—Sect
Leader Yin, w—what are you going to do?”
Yin Hanjiang could act as crazy as he wanted in private, but in front of

other people, he had to be a flawless Sect Leader in order to gain their
confidence.
“I’m here to see you.” Yin Hanjiang spoke very slowly, each sentence
requiring a lot of thought.
As he spoke, the Army Crushing Spike still hovered above Baili

Qingmiao’s face. She had originally thought that this wasn’t a bad way to
die, but the moment she saw Yin Hanjiang, all her hairs stood on end.
Somehow, she found the strength to prop herself up on her arms and shift
bit by bit to the other side of the bed, trying to get herself out of the spike’s
range.
Seeing her move, Yin Hanjiang shifted his weapon so it still pointed at her
nose.
A deep chill ran through Baili Qingmiao’s body. She said in a trembling
voice, “S—Sect Leader Yin, I want to sit up. Can you please move your
weapon?”
“Oh.” Yin Hanjiang looked at the Army Crushing Spike, as if he had just
noticed it. He said in realization, “This is the bonded weapon my Venerable
forged for me, using the Shattered Mountain Meteorite.”
“Right, right!” Baili Qingmiao said frantically. “Senior Wenren, Sect

Leader Yin, Master Qingxue, and I worked together to get the Shattered
Mountain Meteorite!”
“Then this is real.” A slight smile appeared on Yin Hanjiang’s face, and he
moved his weapon away.
Baili Qingmiao sat up, gasping roughly for breath, feeling like she had
escaped a terrible fate.
She watched as Yin Hanjiang waved the Army Crushing Spike in front of
her eyes, like a child showing off a toy. “This is the near-immortal artifact
the Venerable forged for me from the Shattered Mountain Meteorite. It’s a
powerful bonded weapon that suits me perfectly.”
“Yeah. Senior Wenren also retrieved the Snow Flame in order to drive out
the yin energy within your body. It’s all my fault, that Senior Wenren is
now…”
She remembered now. At the Blood Hell, she had seen Hè Wenzhao attack
her without mercy. Instantly, her heart had frozen over. She had thought that
since her shixiong wanted to kill her, maybe it was best that she just die.
That thought burrowed into her brain like a parasite, which she couldn’t get
rid of no matter what. At that moment, Baili Qingmiao couldn’t feel
anything else besides the desire for death.
“What’s wrong with me?” she said, looking at her hands. “This isn’t me.
Even if I wanted to die, I wouldn’t be so selfish. Brother Zhongli and I are
connected by the heart-linking parasite. Before we can remove the parasite,
how can I let Brother Zhongli’s mind be affected?”
It was now, under Yin Hanjiang’s murderous intent, that Baili Qingmiao
seemed to wake from her dream. Thinking back on the last year, a shudder
ran through her.
“Am I crazy? Or is something controlling me? Inner demons?” No one else

was around, so Baili Qingmiao could only ask Yin Hanjiang.
“I don’t know.” Yin Hanjiang wiped the Army Crushing Spike’s blades with
Baili Qingmiao’s skirt. “All I know is that if a cultivator goes mad, it’s
because they themselves want to.”
The cold surface of the Army Crushing Spike reflected Yin Hanjiang’s
twisted expression.

Wants to Know
Chapter 55 – Seems I was late
Baili Qingmiao didn’t notice that Yin Hanjiang had cut several gashes into
her dress. She thought back on her memories of the past year, feeling like
she had been controlled. Besides thinking that if her shixiong wanted to kill
her, she might as well die, there had been no other thoughts in her head.
She’d lost all will to live, her heart controlled by Hè Wenzhao. Occasionally
another desire would surface within her, but quickly be crushed by the
desire for death.
“No,” she said decisively. “A normal cultivator wouldn’t wish for

themselves to go mad. Only when something is already wrong with them
and their rationality is already destabilized by inner demons, so that only
desire remains in their mind, can inner demons take advantage of their
weakness.”
Yin Hanjiang moved his gaze very slowly from the Army Crushing Spike to
Baili Qingmiao. He laughed silently. “You’re right. I’m the one who let it
happen.”
“Huh? You?” Baili Qingmiao blinked innocently.
Yin Hanjiang stood up slowly. “I’m not sure which is true. Since I can’t tell,
I might as well not worry about it.”
“Worry—worry about what?” Baili Qingmiao faintly felt that something

was wrong. She wanted to escape, but the moment she tried to use her
spiritual essence, she felt a sharp pain in her dantian and was powerless to
do so.
She could only slowly shrink to the other side of the bed, huddling in her
blanket, looking pitifully weak and powerless.
The smile on Yin Hanjiang’s face hadn’t vanished. “Now that I think about
it, there’s no need for me to figure out what’s true and what’s false. Because
one thing doesn’t change—the fact that my Venerable is already…”
He couldn’t continue, unwilling to say it.
“Senior Wenren was trying to save me. It’s all my fault…” Baili Qingmiao
began to sob, unable to stop her tears from flowing upon hearing his words.
“In that case, there are only two things I need to do. The first is to take
vengeance, and the second is to send something he might like down to
accompany him.” Yin Hanjiang’s gaze landed on Baili Qingmiao. “Once I
send it to him, the Venerable can decide whether or not he likes it. What do
you think?”
As he spoke, he gradually raised the Army Crushing Spike. The cold light
reflecting off the steel hurt Baili Qingmiao’s eyes.
“I don’t think it’s a good idea,” said a voice from the doorway.
Yin Hanjiang remained in his stance of holding the weapon in the air,
turning his head to see Wenren È standing at the doorway, with white hair
and a blindfold, smiling slightly at him. He knew it was Zhongli Qian, but
he couldn’t recognize him.
A head poked out from behind Zhongli Qian’s back, revealing itself to be
Su Huai. He glanced at Yin Hanjiang’s face and said, “Sect Leader Yin,
your eyes are injured, so I asked Mister Zhongli to look at your eyes.”
“I see.” Yin Hanjiang rubbed the now-dried blood at the corners of his eyes.
“It’s no problem,” he said lightly. “It’ll heal soon.”
“At least let me wipe the blood,” Zhongli Qian said calmly. He took out a
handkerchief and, seeming to not notice that Baili Qingmiao had woken, sat
at the bedside. With Su Huai’s pointers, he gently wiped away the dried
blood, applying medicine at the same time.
When he was about to bandage them, Yin Hanjiang stopped him. “If my
eyes are covered, I won’t be able to see him.”
Zhongli Qian didn’t ask who “he” was, just changed the subject.
“Xuanyuan Sect’s historical records are long, so I still need a few more
days to take my position at the Main Hall. Su Huai is a clever child, and he
enjoys the atmosphere of Xuanyuan Sect, so I thought of having him help
out there. I hope Sect Leader Yin will approve.”
“Su Huai belongs to Shang…”
Baili Qingmiao barely opened her mouth when Zhongli Qian tossed a jade
slip into her hand, interrupting her. “Baili Qingmiao is the disciple of
Protector Qiu, so she counts as half a member of Xuanyuan Sect. Since her
heart is linked to mine, after she recovers, she could also help me out there.
What does Sect Leader Yin think?”
“I don’t agree,” Yin Hanjiang said. “I have use for her.”
Use? What use? In what way? Zhongli Qian’s eyebrows rose. He couldn’t
see, but it was obvious to him that Yin Hanjiang was in a bad state.
He arrived in time to save Baili Qingmiao only because, as Su Huai brought

Qiu Congxue to him, he happened to mention his encounter with Yin
Hanjiang, as well as briefly going over their conversation and Yin
Hanjiang’s eye injury. Zhongli Qian sensed something was off upon hearing
that. It was fortunate that flight was allowed within Xuanyuan Sect, and Yin
Hanjiang seemed to have some hesitation, allowing Zhongli Qian to arrive
quickly enough to prevent disaster.
In order to placate Yin Hanjiang, Zhongli Qian said, “Aside from the work
at the Main Hall, there’s something else I wanted to report to Sect Leader.
You’ve said before you were keeping me at Xuanyuan Sect to prevent you
from throwing the cultivation world into chaos and disrupting Sir Wenren’s
plans. Is that right?”
“Yes.” As they spoke, Yin Hanjiang’s gaze never moved off Baili
Qingmiao, and he didn’t put down the Army Crushing Spike.
Yin Hanjiang was powerful enough that, if he wanted to kill Baili

Qingmiao, no one would be able to stop him. His words and actions
contradicted each other, showing there was still conflict within him.
Zhongli Qian couldn’t force him. After some thought, he said, “Does Sect
Leader remember that Sir Wenren had always wanted to solve the mysteries
surrounding Baili Qingmiao?”
“Not too clearly.”
Ignoring Yin Hanjiang’s questionable state, Zhongli Qian continued. “I’ve

traveled with Baili Qingmiao for thirty years and noticed two odd things
about her. The first is that she seems to draw all kinds of heavenly treasures
and spiritual lands to her, and be able to escape any kind of danger she finds
herself in. The second is that, though Sir Wenren and I have labored hard to
free Baili Qingmiao of her infatuation, and her condition was good when
leaving Shangqing Sect, she would regress whenever she met with a
heavenly tribulation. It was only because I had a heart-linking parasite and
could sense her emotions that she managed to stay away from her sect for
thirty years.”
“What about those?” Yin Hanjiang reached out and grabbed Baili
Qingmiao’s leg, about to drag her over.
“At the Blood Hell, both changed.”
Hearing “Blood Hell”, Yin Hanjiang finally reacted. He let go of Baili

Qingmiao, focusing on Zhongli Qian.
“Now that I think about it, this was something I overlooked. When Hè
Wenzhao brought Baili Qingmiao to the Blood Hell, I was long aware of it,
and had made a plan with Sir Wenren beforehand. I approved of that plan
because I knew of Baili Qingmiao’s special characteristics, and believed
that she wouldn’t be hurt in the Blood Hell, and might actually obtain an
opportunity. I never imagined that she would be injured to such a degree
and lose her bonded weapon.”
Zhongli Qian sighed, his face filled with regret. “I also never imagined that,
after returning from the Blood Hell, Baili Qingmiao would want to die with
a single-minded obsession as if possessed, to the point that I couldn’t even
restrain her. This doesn’t make sense.”
Yin Hanjiang listened intently.
Baili Qingmiao also spoke up. “I also feel that something isn’t right.
Previously, my mind was hazy, as if it wasn’t me acting at all.”
“I believe that something in the Blood Hell must’ve affected Baili

Qingmiao,” Zhongli Qian said. “Sir Wenren probably entered it despite the
risk not only to resolve his blood cultivation, but also to investigate
something.”
“When I touched your leg just now, your skin was burning,” Yin Hanjiang
suddenly said. “Do you have a fever?”
“That would be my fault,” Zhongli Qian said. “I asked Altar Master Shi to
give some of his sickness qi to Baili Qingmiao, so that she would be
unconscious from fever and unable to seek death.”
Baili Qingmiao: …
She knew Zhongli Qian had good intentions, but it felt so awkward.
When it came to Altar Master Shi, Yin Hanjiang remembered perfectly

clearly. His muddled memories were all concerning Wenren È.
Hearing that Altar Master Shi had transferred sickness to her, Yin Hanjiang
shook his head. “That doesn’t make sense. There’s no way Altar Master
Shi’s sickness qi could affect her.”
“Why?” Zhongli Qian had no knowledge of this.

Acting without warning, Yin Hanjiang extended a finger and tapped Baili
Qingmiao’s blindfold. Zhongli Qian slipped a bamboo scroll out of his
sleeve in alarm. If Yin Hanjiang jabbed his finger in, Baili Qingmiao would
really lose that eye.
Fortunately, Yin Hanjiang’s finger stopped at her blindfold. “Shi Congxin

was unable to curse Baili Qingmiao, stopping after only one eye. How
could he transfer sickness qi to her, and leave her bedridden for over a year
at that?”
Zhongli Qian wasn’t clear on what he was referring to, and after hearing
Yin Hanjiang’s explanation, told Su Huai, “Go find Altar Master Shi.”
“No need.” Yin Hanjiang scribbled out a message talisman, with the
message, “Get your ass over!”
Zhongli Qian: …
The Yin Hanjiang he was looking at seemed to be a completely different

person from the Yin Hanjiang he had first met.
Altar Master Shi rushed over upon receiving the message. After fearfully
hearing Zhongli Qian explain everything, he said, “Truthfully, when Altar
Master Zhongli told me his request, I was in quite an awkward position.
During that night, I never approached her, and sat in a corner the whole
time.”
He pointed at the corner of the room furthest from Baili Qingmiao.
“If you didn’t transfer sickness qi to her, how come she developed fever the
next day?” said Zhongli Qian.
Altar Master Shi trembled harder. “She took it herself! She’d been knocked
out by Protector Qiu that evening, and suddenly woke up in the middle of
the night. She walked over to me and sucked away my sickness qi!”
“What?” Baili Qingmiao said in disbelief. “I don’t remember that at all.”

“I—I don’t understand it either!” Altar Master Shi said, pulling his cloak
tighter. “Haven’t you noticed that I haven’t coughed much lately? You took
most of my sickness qi and made me lose a lot of power. I can’t have
anyone notice, so when Altar Masters Miao and Ruan roped me into their
fights, I didn’t dare do anything!”
Everyone was puzzled by Altar Master Shi’s words, but unbeknownst to

them, as they spoke, great changes occurred at the Blood Hell.
Being the place where the primordial gods had sealed 180 thousand
demonic gods, the atmosphere above the Blood Hell was influenced by
demonic energy and always overcast. The grey sky wasn’t covered with
clouds, but a corrosive mixture of primordial chaos and demonic energy,
which blocked sun and rain and ensured the weather in a hundred li around
the Blood Hell hadn’t changed in a million years.
But now, the clouds of a heavenly tribulation attempted to form in the sky
above the Blood Hell. It tried several times to gather, each time being
devoured by the chaos energy. Eventually, it powerlessly released nine tiny
sparks before vanishing.
The moment it vanished, a whirlpool appeared on the ocean surface. A man

holding a black halberd flew out.
Ignoring the restriction on flying above the Blood Hell, he landed on the top
of the cliffs in one move.
That man closed his eyes, as if taking in the experiences and memories of
the past days. After twenty-four hours, he slowly opened his eyes.
He wore only a white inner robe, covered with holes made by magical
weapons. With a wave of his hand, a grey robe draped itself over his body.
Along with the robe appeared three books and a blood-red stone.
He first opened God of Annihilation: Volume 1. Flipping through it, he said

quietly, “A year and a half has passed. It seems I was late.”

Wants to Know
Chapter 56 – Lord’s return
This person was Wenren È. He had asked Zhongli Qian to tell Yin Hanjiang
that he would return after one year, a figure he had arrived at after repeated
analysis. He thought it was enough, but only the heavens knew in the end.
Some things, he had no way of anticipating.
He looked at the red stone in his hand and said quietly. “At least I got this.
It wasn’t a pointless trip.”
This stone was the second reason he entered the Blood Hell.
The Blood Hell was a vital location in both Abusive Romance and God of
Annihilation. In Abusive Romance, Wenren È died in the Blood Hell, after
throwing Baili Qingmiao a blood-red stone. Treating it as his parting gift,
Baili Qingmiao hid it on her body. The first time Yin Hanjiang tried to kill
Baili Qingmiao, he mistook Liu Xinye for her, and the second time, as he
pursued her as the Ghost Mask, he occasionally took off the mask and
pretended to protect her, all in order to lure her to the Blood Hell.
At the time, the book’s Yin Hanjiang was on the brink of victory. Baili
Qingmiao’s strength was far below his, and there was no one near the Blood
Hell, so no one could possibly have come to the protagonist’s rescue. Since
victory was within his grasp, Yin Hanjiang purposefully let Baili Qingmiao
see the ghost mask. He wanted to kill Baili Qingmiao as she was filled with
despair, at the closest place to Wenren È.
He had wounded Baili Qingmiao, about to yank out her soul in order to
refine into a lampwick. With that red stone in hand, Baili Qingmiao had fled
to the edge of the Blood Hell. Staring at the stone, she thought about how
Wenren È had died to save her. Hearing Yin Hanjiang darkly tell her to
accompany him in death, she said, “You’re right. I own Wenren È my life
and ought to repay him with it, but it won’t be at your hands.”
With that stone the size of a man’s fist clasped in both hands, she leapt into
the Blood Hell. Within the sea, the stone unleashed a mystical radiance,
protecting Baili Qingmiao from the corrosive energy.
From a seal at the depths of the Blood Hell, a ray of light shot up to the
surface, entering Baili Qingmiao’s body. As she merged with the divine
nature, she inadvertently struck a blow against Yin Hanjiang, her divine
power instantly disintegrating his soul. Only one wisp escaped, clinging to
its obsession, and returned to Xuanyuan Sect to hide within the Burning
Sky Drum, enduring for a thousand years to finally become the Burning
Sky Immortal.
The moment Baili Qingmiao merged with the divine nature, she regained all
memories of her past life. It turned out that she had hid the divine nature at
the depths of the Blood Hell. Her divine power was great and might be
sought by greedy people, so the Blood Hell was the safest place to put it
within the three realms. The power of chaos could incorporate all other
energies, so it would be able to hide her divine power.
And after Baili Qingmiao gave up her divinity, she automatically hid it
within the Blood Hell again, wanting it to remain a secret forever.
To the end, the book never mentioned what the red stone was, and how it
could protect Baili Qingmiao within the Blood Hell and allow her to obtain
the divine nature before she was ready. There was no clear explanation, and
the readers had been so mad at Baili Qingmiao giving up her divine nature
to follow her man that they couldn’t think straight, so they were in no mood
to ask about the red stone. Thus it became an unresolved thread.
Wenren È had never understood how he’d managed this in the book. From
the book’s depiction, Wenren È had had no knowledge of the divine nature
before falling into the Blood Hell, so how could he suddenly come up with
a stone?
The readers had all assumed it was a plot device the author made up
because she was stuck, but Wenren È didn’t think this way.
Everything in this world was logical. Baili Qingmiao’s love for Hè

Wenzhao, Wenren È, Zhongli Qian, and Yin Hanjiang’s love for Baili
Qingmiao, the unconditional loyalty Zhongli Kuang and Cen Zhengqi
showed toward Hè Wenzhao, and the Violet Spirit Master’s willingness to
be his wife, had all had reasonable explanations behind them. The red stone
also couldn’t appear out of nowhere.
If there was no description of it at all in the book, then there was only one
possibility. Wenren È could only obtain it at the moment he fell into the
Blood Hell, while he was still conscious.
After reading God of Annihilation: Volume 3, Wenren È had more

questions. First, who was the supposed god who slaughtered Hè Wenzhao’s
village? In the first volume, the Blood Demon deceived him into thinking it
was Wenren È, while the third volume didn’t mention it at all. Second, Hè
Wenzhao had become a god in the third volume, yet never regained the
memories of his past life. Only at the end as he faced the divine nature did
he remember everything. How did that make sense?
The readers had brought up these questions too, but everyone just said that
the story was too long and the author had forgotten the beginning. Wenren
È understood this was possible with a mortal’s memory, but if the world
was real, then there must be a cause behind these two points.
It seemed everything was pushing Wenren È to go to the Blood Hell. Thus,

after preparing properly, he had entered the sea.
“So that was it.” With the red stone in his hand, Wenren È understood
everything.
Reading through the revisions to God of Annihilation, he saw how Yin

Hanjiang had snapped, and, controlling the Burning Sky Drum, scared Hè
Wenzhao and the Shangqing Sect Master into shutting themselves at home.
Wenren È sighed slightly. It seemed Yin Hanjiang’s madness after his death
was impossible to prevent.
The readers of God of Annihilation were flaming it in the comments, saying
the author was insane for revising a perfectly good harem novel into
something like this, moving the immortal lord from the second volume into
the first volume to terrorize the protagonist, turning his main wife into a
man, letting his shimei be kidnapped by the demonic cultivators for a year.
Even Liu Xinye kept avoiding Hè Wenzhao for some reason. A perfectly
good protagonist had been kicked around by the villain and lost his wives
and followers. It seemed like the author was taking revenge on society.
Wenren È put away God of Annihilation and opened Abusive Romance. He

was in an unusual situation and needed to use Baili Qingmiao’s viewpoint
to confirm the leadership of Xuanyuan Sect before he decided whether or
not to go back.
The revision used a good thirty thousand words to describe how

heartbroken Baili Qingmiao was by Hè Wenzhao’s act, how she didn’t want
to live on, how she sobbed even in her sleep. She seemed like a completely
different person from the previous silly but pure-hearted protagonist.
The comments here were cursing the author for getting back in her old habit
of abusing the protagonist. Only when Yin Hanjiang woke Baili Qingmiao
and Zhongli Qian spoke his conjecture did the comments calm down.
[The ten straight chapters of wishing for death made me so scared I almost
didn’t want to follow anymore, but when I was about to give up, somehow
the author came up with such an amazing plot twist! This revision really is
legendary!]
[I knew with Zhongli Qian’s brains around, everything would be fine.

Xuanyuan Sect sure is crafty to take our Qian as Altar Master. They really
have an eye for talent.]
[I feel a bit bad for our Qian. He’s herding a bunch of cats and can’t make
them do anything.]
[The brooding ghost cultivator fifth love interest has now become a little
nanny, wiping down his martial ancestor and looking after his master, so
good and obedient. I suddenly want to steal him away. Have I gotten old?]
[Hold on a minute, was Qian’s words telling us that there’s a reason behind
Baili Qingmiao’s blind love for the male lead? That she’s being controlled
by something?]
[Anyone know who Shi Congxin is? Has he been mentioned before? Why
does it seem like he likes the MC?]
[Shi Congxin said Baili Qingmiao sucked away his sickness qi while
unconscious. Why is a good little female lead being described like some
life-sucking demoness?]
[I thought daddy Wenren È had died like in the original story, but now Qian
said there’s a possibility he survived. Will he come back? Will he explain
everything after he does? How come this story doesn’t seem like a
masochistic romance anymore? It’s become a suspenseful mystery?]
[“Suspenseful mystery”, I’m dying, adding in Yin Hanjiang will make it

horror suspense, hahahahaha!]
[No matter how the story changes, Yin Hanjiang still wants to slaughter the
MC. When he was making motions at the little flower’s face with his
weapon, he really gave off the feeling of a horror story serial killer.]
[I want to know just what relationship Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang have.
How come Yin Hanjiang always goes dark after Wenren È dies?]
[After scrolling through the comments for half an hour, the word that
appeared the most was “know”. This story’s title should be changed to “The
Readers Also Want to Know”]
Seeing the current leader of Xuanyuan Sect was still Yin Hanjiang, Wenren
È let out a breath. With his current condition, if someone else were leading
the sect, he’d find it difficult to act.
Looking at the stone, he furrowed his brows slightly, and replaced it and the
books within an extradimensional storage space. The moment the stone left
his hand, the robe he wore slipped off his body.
As if the person wearing them had vanished, the grey outer and white inner
robe passed through Wenren È’s body and gently landed on the ground.
Though both his clothes had fallen, Wenren È still appeared to be wearing
the black robe he had used to protect Yin Hanjiang.
With a small sigh, he vanished into light and arrived at Xuanyuan Sect. The
sect was protected by an array, and anyone who wanted to enter had to
either break it, defeat the gatekeepers, or secretly enter along with someone
else. Of course, each member of Xuanyuan Sect had their own password to
open it, so whenever someone entered, the guards instantly knew who they
were.
Wenren È used none of those methods. He passed through the barrier

tracelessly, not alerting anyone.
He had to first find Yin Hanjiang and let him know he was alive.
He had seen from the book that Yin Hanjiang had already deviated. It was
the outcome Wenren È least wanted to see.
He first came to Yin Hanjiang’s room, which looked like no one had been in
it for a long time.
Thinking that Yin Hanjiang was now in command of Xuanyuan Sect, he

was probably staying in the Sect Master’s room. Their rooms were only
separated by a wall, so Wenren È directly passed through it, but found no
sign of Yin Hanjiang.
Coming to the spiritual spring in the back mountains, he finally found Yin
Hanjiang there.
Yin Hanjiang sat silently by the spring, holding an empty wine cup.
Dipping his head, he carefully put his lips on the cup’s edge. He appeared
normal for now.
Wenren È let out a breath and called to him, “Sect Leader Yin, this
Venerable has returned.”
Yin Hanjiang didn’t turn his head, acting as if he hadn’t heard. Pouring
wine into his cup, he threw it back in one gulp.

Wants to Know
Chapter 57 – This Venerable permits you
Wenren È walked around to Yin Hanjiang’s front. Yin Hanjiang’s face was
flushed, a handkerchief clutched in one hand. A jar of wine was set beside
him, with the empty wine cup in his other hand and Wenren È’s robe in his
lap.
“Sect Leader Yin, is your alcohol tolerance low?” Wenren È asked.
If a cultivator didn’t want to get drunk, they could use their spiritual essence
to expel the alcohol. If one was drunk, either they hadn’t expelled the
alcohol, or they were drinking spiritual wine.
Wenren È sniffed the wine jar. It was the spiritual wine he usually drank,
made from the spiritual fruits growing in the back mountains. It couldn’t be
considered particularly good wine and wasn’t strong enough to get drunk
on.
Yin Hanjiang’s eyes were hazy, half his red robe having slipped off. He
lazily raised his eyes to look at Wenren È, then poured himself another cup
of wine and gulped it down. “Haven’t you switched to calling me Hanjiang
by now? How come it’s back to Sect Leader Yin?”
“Hanjiang?” Wenren È repeated.
He had never seen Yin Hanjiang like this before. The Sect Leader Yin he
remembered dressed in all black and was silent as a shadow. Though
Wenren È knew he was good-looking, ordinarily, he was so reserved he was
easy to overlook.
This Yin Hanjiang dressed in scarlet, his hair loose and fluttering in the
breeze, a vicious spark in his eyes. Were he in a crowd, his figure would
instantly draw one’s sight.
From what Wenren È remembered, Yin Hanjiang typically never drank,

only secretly stealing a sip when Wenren È wasn’t looking. Wenren È never
imagined he’d see him throwing back one cup after another.
“This jar and cup…” Wenren È raised an eyebrow, faintly remembering that
these were the ones he had given him, after catching him drinking wine.
“The Venerable has drank from them.” The corner of Yin Hanjiang’s lips,
pressed against the edge of the empty cup, showed a slight smile.
An odd feeling rose in Wenren È’s heart. He looked at the unfamiliar Yin
Hanjiang before him, so eye-catching compared to his previous self.
“This Venerable assumed you didn’t like wine.” Wenren È also sat down on
Yin Hanjiang’s left side. Things hadn’t developed the way he had expected,
but he didn’t mind chatting with Yin Hanjiang for a bit.
“Right, I don’t like wine.” Yin Hanjiang looked toward his right and raised
his cup toward empty air. “I like the wine that my Venerable has tasted.
After he’s taken a sip, I’m willing to drink it.”
Wenren È: ?
Only now did he realize that every time Yin Hanjiang poured a cup, he first
tipped it toward the empty air on his right side, spilling a drop, as if feeding
it to someone.
After offering it to empty air, he then turned the cup, placing the side that
had faced the air against his lips and slowly enjoying the wine.
“Sect Leader Yin, who are you giving the wine to?” Wenren È sensed
something was wrong.
“What, do you want some too?” Yin Hanjiang looked toward Wenren È
with hazy eyes. He lifted the wine jar, giving it a shake. “Too bad there’s no
more.”
He held the jar in his arms, wiping away nonexistent dust with his sleeves.
Pressing its cold surface against his cheek, he blissfully closed his eyes.
“My Venerable gave me this jar and cup, that he drank from.”
He raised the handkerchief clenched in one hand. “This is the handkerchief

my Venerable once used to wipe his hands. It had Protector Shu’s blood on
it, but I washed it clean and kept it.”
Wenren È furrowed his brows. After a while, he finally remembered that

Shu Yanyan had once thought he liked Baili Qingmiao and tried to tempt
him with her. Wenren È had nearly cracked her skull with his hand as a
warning, her blood being left on his fingertips. Yin Hanjiang, right behind
him, handed over a handkerchief, which Wenren È had tossed away
casually after wiping his fingers.
Yin Hanjiang rubbed his cheek with the handkerchief, a contented smile on
his face. Finally, he carefully put the handkerchief, the wine jar, and the cup
into a storage space. The Army Crushing Spike was left carelessly by his
side.
The spike had been forged with Wenren È’s blood and soul, so he instantly
recognized it as the Army Crushing Sword. “Is that your bonded weapon,
Sect Leader Yin?” he couldn’t help asking. “Wasn’t it a sword? How come
it looks like this now?”
“If the Venerable wants me to use the sword, I’ll use the sword. If the
Venerable thinks I’m suited to being a sword cultivator, I’ll be a sword
cultivator.” Yin Hanjiang held Wenren È’s robe in his arms, his eyes
blurred. “If the Venerable doesn’t allow me to follow him in death, then I’ll
live on.”
“Sect Leader Yin, this Venerable only made a suggestion. My ideas might
not always suit you, and you don’t need to follow me in everything.” As
Wenren È looked at Yin Hanjiang, he suddenly realized that he had never
really seen this subordinate of his. The Yin Hanjiang he saw was an act in
accordance to Wenren È’s expectations.
He thought he had expressed himself clearly, but Yin Hanjiang didn’t even
look at him. Instead, he reached out a hand toward empty air, as if stroking
someone’s face. He said in a low voice, “Does the Venerable like Baili
Qingmiao? How about I send her to be with you?”
“This Venerable doesn’t like her,” Wenren È said.
Yin Hanjiang’s gaze finally turned toward Wenren È. He reached out and
grabbed for Wenren È’s sleeve, but his hand passed through his body.
Wenren È’s current body was condensed from primordial chaos, so couldn’t
be touched.
“This Venerable…”
Wenren È wanted to explain his current condition, but Yin Hanjiang said,
“False.”
His expression didn’t change, as if he had experienced this a thousand times

already. He reached out toward his front, back, and right, grabbing nothing
each time, and threw back his head in laughter. “False, all false.”
“Only this is real.” He clutched Wenren È’s robe to his chest, curling up on
the ground by the spiritual spring, closing his eyes. He seemed to have
fallen asleep.
“How many of me are you seeing?” At this point, Wenren È generally

understood Yin Hanjiang’s condition.
Yin Hanjiang didn’t reply. He would speak to an illusion if he was lonely,

but he mostly ignored them. He especially couldn’t reveal his weakness in
front of other people.
Wenren È sat next to the sleeping Yin Hanjiang, thinking back to the Ghost
Mask in Abusive Romance. Putting that together with the Sect Leader Yin
before him, he seemed to finally understand something.
Yin Hanjiang hadn’t deviated and lost control. For Wenren È, he had been
suppressing his true nature from the start.
After reading that book, he had kept telling Yin Hanjiang that what he
needed wasn’t an obedient subordinate, but a companion who could fight
alongside him. Ever since he had picked up that child and told him to
practice the sword, Wenren È had been filling him with his own notions, but
it hadn’t been what Yin Hanjiang wanted.
Wenren È thought Yin Hanjiang was suited for being a sword cultivator, so
Yin Hanjiang became a sword cultivator. Wenren È thought Yin Hanjiang
was his most loyal subordinate, so Yin Hanjiang changed his personality to
one that would put Wenren È at ease. Wenren È thought that Yin Hanjiang
would be able to take over Xuanyuan Sect in his absence, so Yin Hanjiang
had done his best to live up to his expectations.
Every time Wenren È’s notions clashed with Yin Hanjiang’s own
personality, he always chose Wenren È.
The Lord of Demons sat beside the spring, looking toward the full moon
rising on the horizon. He took out a handful of water from his storage space
using spiritual energy, letting it reflect the moon in the sky.
This was Yin Hanjiang’s favorite source of joy in his youth. After the Great
Sect War, he had given it to Wenren È.
He seemed to see a scene where a young Yin Hanjiang smiled contentedly,

watching the empty reflection of the moon on the water.
“This Venerable was wrong,” Wenren È said quietly, putting away that
handful of water.
After taking in that child, he had raised him to be what he wanted him to be.
He thought he had given him the best, but he had never considered whether
they were things Yin Hanjiang wanted.
Inner demons didn’t form overnight. At the very beginning, Wenren È had
planted their seeds into Yin Hanjiang’s heart.
He brought out the red stone, clutching it in one hand. “I’ll borrow this for a
moment,” he said quietly.
With the stone in his hand, his body became solid, and the robe that had
been created from chaos energy vanished. With a flick of his fingers, he had
the robe in Yin Hanjiang’s arms fly onto his body, then sat by Yin
Hanjiang’s side, lightly stroking his hair.
“Huh?” Yin Hanjiang’s spiritual sense was sharp and he woke instantly. On
discovering the robe was gone, he became frantic, losing all his stubborn
composure from before. He scrabbled around everywhere, looking for it.
Wenren È let his sleeve brush against Yin Hanjiang’s face. He grabbed the
sleeve and said quietly, “Right here.”
Yin Hanjiang saw that the Wenren È before him was wearing his real robe.
Grabbing his hand, he found it was solid.
“The inner demons are already so strong?” Yin Hanjiang shook his head in
a daze. Though he believed it to be fake, he still held onto Wenren È’s hand.
“Sect Leader Yin, this Venerable is real. I’ve returned from the Blood Hell,”
Wenren È said.
“Right, the Venerable has returned,” Yin Hanjiang said lightly, not really
believing.
Wenren È didn’t mind if Yin Hanjiang thought he was fake. Seizing this
opportunity, he began to speak. “The Wenren clan had been dedicated to the
emperor and the people for generations, yet wound up executed to a man.
Digging around in a mass grave, I dragged out one headless corpse after
another. With each body I dug out, I hoped to find that it had a head, and the
person was still alive, but I didn’t find a single one. Probably, ever since
then, an obsession had taken root in my heart, a hope that even one member
of the Wenren clan had survived.
“After many years passed, I believed that I had let go of attachments and
escaped the chaos of the mortal world, traveling down the path of
immortality without any connections to family. But this obsession still
remained deep within me.
“When I picked you up in a mass grave, my first act was to touch your
neck. From that moment onward, I took you as a survivor of the Wenren
clan, and raised you to be a general.
“It was all my fault. It was my obsession that turned you into this.”
Wenren È pulled Yin Hanjiang into his lap. “From now, Yin Hanjiang need
not live for Wenren È. You should use your own eyes and ears to decide.
You don’t need a mask, and you don’t need to pretend. Do the things you
want.”
Yin Hanjiang knew this was an inner demon, but the warm embrace, the
gentle tone, and the words he had never heard before led him to willingly
indulge in it.
“I want to take vengeance for my Venerable,” Yin Hanjiang said. “I’m a

ruthless person and might ruin the plan my Venerable has set. I have to be
patient. I can’t act out.”
“You can act out,” Wenren È said. “This Venerable permits you. Whatever
you want to do, I’ll help you.”
“I want to destroy everything you love and offer them to you, so they can
accompany you down there. Can I?” Yin Hanjiang lifted his head, looking
expectantly at Wenren È.
” …I don’t like Baili Qingmiao. You don’t need to burn her.”
“How wonderful.” Yin Hanjiang sighed. “No wonder so many people are
unable to escape the illusions of their inner demons, when it’s so perfect.”
“I’m not an inner demon.”
Yin Hanjiang didn’t listen to him. He pursed his lips and, after taking a deep
breath, said, “What if this subordinate liked the Venerable? Can I?”

Wants to Know
Chapter 58 – Predetermined
Yin Hanjiang’s words were a shock to Wenren È. The way he remembered

it, Yin Hanjiang had always been oblivious to love. Back when Hè Wenzhao
was lying to Baili Qingmiao about Shu Yanyan, Wenren È had asked Yin
Hanjiang, “Protector Yin, would you believe something like this? Can love
really make people so brainless?”
Yin Hanjiang had answered, “This subordinate believes anything the

Venerable says, and hears not a word of anything anyone else says.”
Wenren È had always believed that Yin Hanjiang was ignorant like him. Yet
he had said he liked Wenren È.
Was it the doings of inner demons, or Yin Hanjiang’s own thought?
When Wenren È didn’t respond for a long time, Yin Hanjiang looked
displeased.
He pushed Wenren È over with one hand, looking down at him with a fierce
glare. “A mere inner demon dares to defy me?”
Wenren È had never seen Yin Hanjiang be so unreasonable before. “Sect

Leader Yin, I…”
Before he could finish speaking, Yin Hanjiang dipped his head and trapped
Wenren È’s lips with his own.
Yin Hanjiang’s cold lips pressed against Wenren È’s, carrying the lingering
taste of wine. Wenren È had never experienced something like this before in
his life. He felt a tingling sensation spread throughout his body. His body
was already formed from primordial chaos, but he couldn’t summon his
spiritual energy to push Yin Hanjiang away.
Wenren È lost all sense of time, knowing only the cool softness against his
lips.
As he wondered why Yin Hanjiang’s body was still so cold, the red-robed
man had already let go of him, sitting up shakily.
Yin Hanjiang rubbed his temples, then splashed a handful of spring water
on his face. “What am I fighting with an inner demon for?” he muttered to
himself.
He glanced sideways at Wenren È. His eyes were frosty, a cold smile at the
corner of his lips, as if he was scoffing at himself.
He stood up and, while Wenren È was still in a daze, yanked the robe off
him. Holding it lovingly in his arms, he walked away without a backward
glance, leaving Wenren È alone.
The red stone fell from his hand, causing Wenren È’s body to return to
energy. He touched his lips with his fingers, feeling like the tingling had
spread to his soul.
No one would come to the back mountains. Wenren È sat there stunned for
a long time, until he finally remembered something. He picked up the stone
and brought out Abusive Romance. Flipping it open, he saw the scene
where, when Baili Qingmiao and Hè Wenzhao first met, Baili Qingmiao
bumped her shixiong’s finger. She had felt a tingling sensation travel from
her fingertip all the way to her heart, as her heart began to race wildly.
Wenren È had thought this was the lingering effects of the lightning that had
struck her.
Only now did he realize there really could be a tingling sensation when
people touched.
Wenren È plunged his hand into the spiritual spring. The spring water was
far warmer than Yin Hanjiang’s hands.
In Baili Qingmiao’s conversation with Zhongli Qian and Yin Hanjiang, she
had nearly been killed by Yin Hanjiang. Only with Zhongli Qian’s advice
did Yin Hanjiang suppress his murderous intent and, as he was leaving, he
shot Baili Qingmiao a vicious glare. Baili Qingmiao was so terrified that
she collapsed with a high fever.
Zhongli Qian shooed Altar Master Shi away, so he wouldn’t make her
illness worse. He ordered Su Huai to feed her medicine, and after seeing her
condition stabilize, he said to Su Huai, “Come with me to the spirit
gathering array in the Main Hall. We still have to help your marital ancestor.
There’s never any rest with these two.”
He told Baili Qingmiao to rest, and that Su Huai would be back to take care
of her tomorrow.
Baili Qingmiao sank into a doze again, until in the middle of the night, she
suddenly felt a chill. Her eyes flew open, and in the dim light, she saw a
figure watching silently at her bedside.
The last time she had been suddenly awoken, it was to see Yin Hanjiang
wave a triangular spike in her face. This time, Baili Qingmiao couldn’t see
the figure’s face. Wrapping herself in her blanket, she said tremulously,
“Who are you? What do you want?”
“It’s me.” Wenren È lit the lamps within the room with a wave of his hand,
revealing his face.
“Senior Wenren!” Baili Qingmiao exclaimed. “Are you alive, or am I

dreaming?”
“This Venerable is alive,” Wenren È said.
“I’m so glad. It’s my fault you fell into the Blood Hell. I swore at that
moment that if you were to survive, I’d be willing to serve you for the rest
of my life, and do anything you asked of me.” Baili Qingmiao began to sob
in relief. She stumbled shakily out of bed, about to kowtow to Wenren È.
“No need.” Wenren È stepped aside. He couldn’t let Baili Qingmiao lower
her head to him. “This Venerable came here to ask something.”
“Whatever you ask, I’ll say everything I know.”
“What does love that takes you unawares, and before you know it, you’re
deep in its clutches, mean? I understand the literal meaning. That’s not what
I’m asking for.”
He had spent a long time in thought in the mountains, but his thoughts were
in a tangle. He didn’t know if Yin Hanjiang’s feelings were a delusion, and
he didn’t know how he should respond.
He decided he probably didn’t understand romantic matters well enough,

having never figured out that third line. That must also be the reason that,
after he got Baili Qingmiao and Zhongli Qian together for thirty years, they
still only treated each other like siblings. He had never understood why
Baili Qingmiao was so obsessed with Hè Wenzhao, and he didn’t know how
to answer Yin Hanjiang.
This… what could Baili Qingmiao say, besides the literal meaning? At this
moment, she really wished she had Zhongli Qian’s wisdom.
“You don’t know?” Wenren È looked at Baili Qingmiao. “Doesn’t that

exactly describe you and Hè Wenzhao? Not only are you deep in love’s
clutches, but infatuated and unwilling to let go. Even after Hè Wenzhao
took a wife, you still pined after him. After he let you be imprisoned in the
back mountains and strung up over the Blood Hell, you still want to die for
him. This Venerable wants to know just what kind of a feeling this is? That
can cause someone to…”
He paused, thinking back to how Yin Hanjiang sat by the spiritual spring,
with his lips pressed to a wine cup and a robe in his lap, and an odd pang
shot through his heart. “Can cause someone to lose their soul and cease to
be themselves.”
Wenren È had thought Baili Qingmiao would have an answer for him, but
she grabbed her hair and said, “I… I don’t understand either! All I know is
that I love my shixiong, and even after he’s married, I still love him, but
why? Before he was married, I loved him for being warm and considerate,
always secretly taking care of me, but now, he’s married yet still longs after
me, disrespecting both me and Liu-shijie, so why do I love him? It’s my
most despicable habit. Why do I love him?”
She slapped herself across the cheek, saying in disappointment, “I even

wanted to die for him. What was I thinking?”
Wenren È: …
Baili Qingmiao seemed to be at her breaking point. She couldn’t answer

anything for him.
The more Baili Qingmiao thought about it, the more she felt it wasn’t right.
Her fingers tangling her hair into a mess, she paced back and forth across
the room, saying, “It’s odd… I feel like I’ve split into two, one half
knowing rationally that I should let him go, while the other still pines for
him, even hoping Liu-shijie will die soon, so that we can be together.
What’s wrong with me? Senior, I…”
Walking up to Wenren È, she tried to grab his hand. Wenren È avoided her
in time, but his sleeve brushed against her fingertips and passed through her
hand.
Baili Qingmiao: …
“Forget it,” Wenren È said. “Seeing as you’re in a bad state yourself, this
Venerable asked the wrong person.” Stepping away from Baili Qingmiao,
Wenren È took out a red stone. “I must borrow this for a few days, but by
the time you need it, I will certainly return it to you.”
“What is that?” Baili Qingmiao swallowed hard as she looked at the stone.
She wanted it, she had never before felt such desire for an object—it was as
if it should be hers in the first place!
“This is the divine blood,” Wenren È said. “It can help this Venerable
stabilize chaos energy and cultivate a divine body sooner. Without it, this
Venerable is only a phantasm, who can be seen but not touched.”
This was the second safeguard the primordial goddess had left behind for
herself besides her divine nature. She had hidden it within the chaos energy
of the Blood Hell, so that when Baili Qingmiao became an immortal and
was on the threshold of godhood, she would feel the calling of the divine
blood. With the help of the blood which contained the essence of the
primordial goddess, she would be able to successfully merge with the divine
nature.
The instant the book’s Wenren È had fallen into the Blood Hell, due to his
fated connection with Baili Qingmiao, he had come into contact with the
divine blood, and realized everything the moment he touched it. Before his
death, he tossed it to Baili Qingmiao. When she caught it, Wenren È’s debt
to Baili Qingmiao was fully paid, and from then on he had no more ties to
her.
In this life, just like in the book, Wenren È had found the divine blood the
instant the sea of blood engulfed him. When he touched it, he finally
understood how his fate was connected to Baili Qingmiao.
Three hundred years ago, the primordial goddess helped Wenren È enter the
Path of Slaughter; thus, three hundred years later, the now Lord of Demons
needed to retrieve the divine blood for Baili Qingmiao.
Everything one gets in life is predetermined.
That deep love was only the machination of fate, in order to ensure Wenren
È wouldn’t be tempted to take the divine blood’s power for himself.
Wenren È had originally planned to give the divine blood to Baili Qingmiao
upon seeing her, and cut off his connection to the female lead there.
However, right now, he needed the divine blood, in order to get Yin
Hanjiang to believe, through the inner demons that plagued him, that
Wenren È was alive.
“How can I decide what happens to something so important?” Baili
Qingmiao said, crushing down her desire toward it. “Senior can use it
however he wants.”
“Thank you.” Wenren È nodded to her. “This Venerable will do all in his
power to help you obtain everything that belongs to you.”
In a blur, he vanished, extinguishing the lamps behind him.
Baili Qingmiao was still feverish. She sat on her bed, tugging at her messy
hair a few times. “Did that really happen, or was it a dream?”
After a short while, she laid down and passed out again.
With the divine blood in hand, Wenren È returned to his room. He saw Yin
Hanjiang had arranged his robe on one side of the bed, while he slept stiffly
on the other, not touching the opposite half of the bed at all.
Cultivators usually rested in meditation and rarely needed to sleep. Yin

Hanjiang seemed to be drunk, though, his face slightly flushed. He slept
cautiously on one side of Wenren È’s bed, not willing to even move, like a
completely different person from the one who had boldly pushed down an
“inner demon” earlier.
Wenren È lightly leapt onto the bed. Laying on his side, he watched Yin
Hanjiang’s face as he slept.
“Sect Leader— Yin Hanjiang,” Wenren È said quietly. “You have the right
to love me. It’s not my place to permit you. But as for me… how do I
answer you?”
Neither refusal nor acceptance could be resolved with just a few light
words.
He had to treasure Yin Hanjiang’s feelings and answer from his heart.
Yin Hanjiang slept until the late morning. Upon waking, he rubbed the
space between his eyebrows, and, with a glance at Wenren È, snatched back
the robe. “Is this yours to touch?” he said coldly.
Wenren È: …

Wants to Know
Chapter 59 – Side by side
Good thing Wenren È hadn’t used the divine blood to become solid and was
lying on the robe with his primordial chaos body, otherwise Yin Hanjiang’s
yank would’ve left them both speechless.
In truth, it would’ve been easy to let Yin Hanjiang know he was real. He
just had to call over Zhongli Qian, Shu Yanyan, Qiu Congxue, and so on.
Anyone could prove his existence, but could he really do that?
Yin Hanjiang was a reserved person, having always hidden his own nature,
putting on the mask and cutting loose only when he could no longer bear it.
From the revisions of Abusive Romance, he could see that Yin Hanjiang had
never let his current state, beset by inner demons, slip before Zhongli Qian
or Baili Qingmiao. Aside from trying to kill Baili Qingmiao, he hadn’t
revealed anything else.
Even though his thoughts were confused, he still remained unperturbed in

front of other people, not showing any weaknesses. If that kind of person
had everyone around him telling him, what you’re seeing is not an inner
demon, how would he react? Would he gladly accept it, or fall apart
completely?
Wenren È wasn’t willing to bet, unable to accept such an outcome.
If when he had first returned to the sect, he had directly entered the Main
Hall and announced his return to everyone, so that it was known to all at the
same time, Yin Hanjiang probably would’ve accepted it. But if he had done
so, then Yin Hanjiang would’ve continued to hide his heart. Inner demons
that were affecting his mind so severely wouldn’t just vanish because
Wenren È was alive, and someday, suppressing his true nature would
destroy Yin Hanjiang.
This way was still good. At least he could secretly observe Yin Hanjiang,
and understand his most loyal subordinate, the man he trusted most in the
world, so he could slowly resolve his inner demons.
Wenren È was always direct and had crushed all his problems with force in
the past, so he had never felt helpless like this before. It felt as though he
was using strength enough to lift a mountain, to pick up a needle and
embroider a flower.
His forehead was dripping with sweat, his fingers trembling, terrified of
damaging that flower covered with thorns.
After Yin Hanjiang got up, he didn’t spare another glance for Wenren È.
There were countless Wenren È’s in his sight, all speaking to him, so he
habitually ignored them. When he was alone, he would answer whichever
one he wanted, but in front of other people, he needed to be the Sect Leader
with the power to crush the righteous sects.
Having sobered up, he used a spell to clear the scent of alcohol from his
body, and sat businesslike in front of the desk, sending out several message
talismans.
The first was to Zhongli Qian: “Altar Master Zhongli, after you fix up
Protector Qiu, immediately give me a plan to eliminate the eight righteous
experts and Hè Wenzhao. If you don’t have a satisfactory solution before
my patience runs out, I’ll act my own way.”
The second was to Shu Yanyan: “Protector Shu, you’ve had contact with Hè
Wenzhao. His weakness is women, so hurry up and come up with a way
with Baili Qingmiao to lure him out and make him sell out the Blood
Demon.”
The third was for Wenren È. Yin Hanjiang only wrote it, without sending it.
It had only one line. “I’ve asked Sir Zhongli to be the Main Hall Master. All
is well in Xuanyuan Sect, so the Venerable may meditate in peace.”
After completing it, Yin Hanjiang held it in his hand, but didn’t ignite it. To
send a message talisman, one needed to know the location of the recipient,
and alert their spiritual consciousness so that they could accept it. There
was no way to send this talisman to Wenren È.
“I know,” Wenren È said earnestly, sitting across from Yin Hanjiang.

“You’ve done very well.”
Yin Hanjiang paid no heed to this phantasm who wouldn’t even call himself
“Venerable”. After he finished everything, he left the room.
After casting an illusion so that no one else could see him, Wenren È
followed Yin Hanjiang out. Yin Hanjiang came to the Main Hall and took
the register of Message Carriers. It was an organization created by Altar
Master Yuan, most of them directly taking orders from him instead of
Xuanyuan Sect. There was no way this register was complete either.
Yin Hanjiang took the register and, after messaging Altar Master Miao, flew
out of the Main Hall. He was probably going to clean out the ranks.
Wenren È wanted to follow, but he was worried about being detected by

others, and also had some preparations of his own to make. For now, they
would have to act separately.
He had no doubt Yin Hanjiang would be able to root out the traitors within
the Message Carriers and sort out Xuanyuan Sect’s personnel. He couldn’t
help but worry, though, for no reason relating to trust, just out of concern.
Wenren È let out a sigh. If only he had a book with Yin Hanjiang as the
protagonist, so he could keep track of what he was doing.
When Yin Hanjiang left, Wenren È immediately came to the spirit gathering
array in the Main Hall. The only person who could help him plan at this
time was Zhongli Qian.
Zhongli Qian had just finished healing Qiu Congxue when he received Yin
Hanjiang’s message. He quickly picked through the pile of jade slips,
selecting the important ones to read. However smart he was, he would need
knowledge to act.
The vital question was how he could satisfy Yin Hanjiang while diverting
him from his plans to wreck the cultivation world.
While he was studying, Zhongli Qian suddenly felt a gust of wind pass by.
After having sealed his sight for thirty years, his spiritual sense had become
even sharper.
Putting down his jade slip, he released his spiritual cognition, but didn’t
sense anyone. Instead, the spiritual energy in the room seemed to have
gotten several times thicker.
No, it wasn’t spiritual energy. It wasn’t even immortal energy—being a

Mahayana cultivator, and having spent time with the wandering immortal
Qiu Congxue, Zhongli Qian had a good understanding of immortal energy.
Yet the presence in the room was something stronger.
“Which honored person is this?” Zhongli Qian asked.
“The Crane-Haired Wanderer lives up to his name. This Venerable has

hidden himself from even the sharpest sight, yet you found me.” Wenren È
revealed himself, allowing Zhongli Qian’s spiritual cognition to instantly
pick up on him.
Zhongli Qian let out a long breath, then cupped his hands and said, “Sir
Wenren has managed to return from the brink. I’m not certain whether to
congratulate you on surviving or rising in power.”
“Have you told Sect Leader Yin of your return?” he continued. “He nearly
wrecked the Shangqing Sect for you. He’ll certainly be overjoyed to know
you’re safe.”
First he praised Wenren È, then immediately got to roundaboutly telling

him, hurry up and go to Yin Hanjiang, in a few days he’ll start slaughtering
people.
“I know,” Wenren È said. “This Venerable came here to discuss something

with Altar Master Zhongli.”
Hearing Wenren È call him an Altar Master, Zhongli Qian’s expression

froze. “I’m really not qualified to be an Altar Master…”
“If Yin Hanjiang says you’re qualified, then you’re qualified,” Wenren È
said, interrupting him. “This Venerable also has a task for you, and if you
complete it, I can have the tracking curse and heart-linking parasite
removed.
Zhongli Qian: …
He had thought that when Wenren È returned, he would take charge of the
situation, Yin Hanjiang’s obsession for revenge would subside, and peace
would return to the cultivation world. After the Blood Demon was defeated
and Baili Qingmiao was freed from her infatuation, Zhongli Qian could
travel the world freely, spreading his Dao. But now…
Oh well, most things in life didn’t go the way you want. Cultivation was to
open one’s mind. Adjusting his outlook, Zhongli Qian said, as even-
tempered as always. “What orders does Sect Master have?”
“Two things. First, gather up all information you can find on inner demons,
and find a healer who can treat them. Second, cooperate fully with Yin
Hanjiang. Help him keep control of Xuanyuan Sect, and let him do
whatever he wishes. Don’t mind this Venerable’s previous plans.”
Wenren È knew that Zhongli Qian wouldn’t have overlooked Yin

Hanjiang’s current condition. He might’ve already figured it out, just not
told anyone. Instead of trying to deceive Zhongli Qian, it was better to get
him on his side. Wenren È could act more easily in the shadows with
Zhongli Qian as cover, and slowly help Yin Hanjiang.
“Sect Master, do you know what Sect Leader Yin’s original plan was?”
Zhongli Qian asked carefully. “He wanted to use force to unify the
cultivation world, killing anyone who defies Xuanyuan Sect and
eliminating the sects that participated in the attack on you.”
Wenren È really hadn’t been aware, as the book only said Yin Hanjiang
wanted to kill Hè Wenzhao. After some thought, he chuckled. “He does
have ambition.”
There was no admonition in his tone, and even a hint of praise.
Zhongli Qian: …
He daringly circled Wenren È with a thread of spiritual cognition, carefully

examining his current state, and came upon a guess. “Has Sect Master
already been to see Yin Hanjiang? Did… he say something to you?”
Wenren È hesitated a moment. Looking carefully at Zhongli Qian, he saw

the certainty on his face, as if he had seen through everything. “You truly
are perceptive,” he said. “However, this Venerable hopes you won’t keep
guessing. Even if you guess right, there’s no need to say it. This Venerable
has a handle on everything. All you need to do is act for me in secret, and
not let anyone know I’ve returned.”
“But if Sect Leader Yin is determined to bring suffering to the people, then I
must stop him.” Seeing Wenren È had decided to stand with Yin Hanjiang
in everything, Zhongli Qian made his own stance clear.
“He won’t,” Wenren È said with certainty. Yin Hanjiang was the child he
had raised. Even if he was a bit gloomy and self-loathing, he was a good
child.
“What if, though?” Zhongli Qian insisted.
What if? After a moment of thought, Wenren È answered, “Then Altar

Master Zhongli may lead the entire cultivation world in alliance against Yin
Hanjiang. This Venerable will stand side by side with him.”
This… Zhongli Qian shook his head with a helpless smile. “Baili Qingmiao
ought to see for herself how the Sect Master treats Sect Leader Yin.”
“What do you mean?” Wenren È looked at him in confusion.
“Nothing in particular. When the Sect Master wants to know, he’ll

understand it.”
How mysterious. It made no sense. Wenren È told Zhongli Qian to work on

his tasks, and the Main Hall Master who was already buried to his neck in
work had to delegate some responsibilities. He messaged Protector Shu and,
pretending that Baili Qingmiao was still seeking death, and saying that he
feared inner demons would arise within her, asked Protector Shu to find an
expert healer. Then he asked Altar Master Shi, who cultivated the seven
sufferings, to find books regarding resentment and desire, and had Altar
Master Ruan look for methods to treat inner demons.
At the same time, he continued to quickly memorize the information in the

jade slips, so that by the time Yin Hanjiang returned, covered with blood,
Zhongli Qian knew Xuanyuan Sect inside and out.
Yin Hanjiang tossed the list of Message Carriers who could still be trusted
at Zhongli Qian for him to sort out, then headed for the spiritual spring to
wash off the blood.
Wenren È, seeing he had no reservations toward him, entered the spring

with him. Sitting at one side, he said. “You’ve brought the Message Carriers
under control after only one day. I’m quite impressed.”
Wenren È assumed he would be ignored like before, but Yin Hanjiang

suddenly looked at him and ordered coldly, “Come here.”
“Me?” Wenren È wasn’t sure which inner demon Yin Hanjiang was talking
to. After all, he couldn’t see what Yin Hanjiang saw.
“Yes, you,” Yin Hanjiang said. “The one least like the Venerable.”
Wants to Know
Chapter 60 – The nature of infatuation
He was the one least like himself… Wenren È was speechless for a
moment. He really wanted to see what the inner demons in Yin Hanjiang’s
eyes were like, or, in other words, what Wenren È was like in Yin
Hanjiang’s mind.
Right now, Wenren È had a body of chaos energy, so his clothes were
transformed from it. He didn’t use the divine blood. Since Yin Hanjiang
was in the spring, if he went in there without any clothes, it wouldn’t be too
proper.
Wenren È entered the spring without raising a single splash, as if he had

melted into the water.
Keeping a handspan of distance between their shoulders, he sat side by side

with Yin Hanjiang, turning his head to watch him closely.
He had never seen Yin Hanjiang like this. Each action and word seemed to
be the opposite of what he would’ve originally done, yet oddly, he didn’t
clash with the past Yin Hanjiang at all.
Previously, whenever Wenren È looked directly at Yin Hanjiang, Yin

Hanjiang would always avoid his sight, either turning his head or lowering
it. He very rarely shared a direct gaze with him.
Now, however, Yin Hanjiang watched him straight-on, some murderous

intent lingering in his eyes.
He had dealt with many Message Carriers today. They ought to be

subordinate to Xuanyuan Sect, yet they were helping outsiders, colluding
with righteous sects and cultivation clans along with Altar Master Yuan.
After interrogating many of them, Yin Hanjiang had found out there were
plenty of lowlifes among the sects and cultivation clans, doing evil deeds in
secret and blaming them all on Xuanyuan Sect with the Message Carriers
and Altar Master Yuan’s help.
The Venerable rarely minded such small matters, delegating everyday tasks
to the Altar Masters. Miao, Ruan, Qiu Congxue, and Shi Congxin all had
odd ways of thinking and didn’t want to bother with such things, so left
them all to the jolly old Altar Master Yuan. Altar Master Yuan had managed
to smear Wenren È a lot.
Such things as abducting virgins to harvest their essence, slaughtering

villages to take their souls, snatching months-old infants to refine magic
items, killing six to nine months pregnant women for their placentas, all
sorts of matters that felt dirty just to hear about, Yin Hanjiang had
memorized one by one, recording the names of the wandering cultivators,
righteous sect members, and clan members who had done them. After
killing a bunch of Message Carriers to vent his rage, he gave their leader to
Altar Master Miao.
Altar Master Miao gleefully dragged him away, not even letting his soul go,
saying that he was going to raise a king gu that could control a wandering
immortal, specifically to deal with Qiu Congxue.
After he had killed so many, the Army Crushing Spike had drunk its fill of
blood and kept humming. Yin Hanjiang had forcibly returned it to within
his body, but he couldn’t fully hide the glee in his eyes.
Some of the Wenren È’s around him praised him, while others disapproved,
the clamor grating on his nerves. After returning to Xuanyuan Sect, he
didn’t want to enter his Venerable’s room while covered with blood, so first
came to the spring to wash. Seeing one of the inner demons watch him
quietly, standing out among the crowd, he wanted its company.
He was a bit out of control after killing and needed to cool his head. He
wanted to see his Venerable, but didn’t want to let his inner demons control
him. He might as well pick the one least like him, to reminisce.
“In what way am I not like Wenren È?” Wenren È asked. He was really
curious what the him Yin Hanjiang was seeing looked like.
Yin Hanjiang’s gaze was fierce as he shot him a glance, as if he didn’t want
to chat with an inner demon.
Wenren È’s question still brought back memories for Yin Hanjiang, though.
He lowered his eyelids, his long lashes faintly trembling.
Scooping up a handful of water, he splashed it across his face. A droplet slid

down the corner of his eye. It could’ve been a teardrop or the spring water.
Wenren È put a hand to Yin Hanjiang’s face, but the drop of water passed
through his hand, vanishing in the spring. For a moment, Wenren È had an
urge to empty the spring in order to find that tiny droplet.
Yin Hanjiang’s weakness passed in an instant like this. If Wenren È hadn’t

been watching every moment, he might’ve thought he was just washing his
face.
Wenren È suddenly remembered that when Yin Hanjiang gifted him that
handful of moonlight, he had said that when he was tired of practicing the
sword, he would lay by the waterfall and play with the water. How many
times, while acting like he was playing, had he used the water to disguise
his feelings like this?
Wenren È’s impression of Yin Hanjiang had always been a child covered
with wounds. Eventually, he had grown into an adult, who quietly followed
behind his lord. Wenren È had taken no part in his decade or so of
childhood, and had no way of knowing what he was like back then.
“You shouldn’t like me,” Wenren È said. “I don’t deserve it.”
Yin Hanjiang was infuriated at those words. He had always ignored his
inner demons, but never imagined that a phantasm that came from his
deepest desires could speak such a thing. Yin Hanjiang thrust a palm at
Wenren È, but just before he came into contact with the “phantasm”, he
moved his hand to the side slightly, barely grazing past Wenren È’s face,
smashing a rock a dozen meters away.
Yin Hanjiang couldn’t even attack an illusion, as long as it bore his face.
If this went on, how could he possibly overcome his inner demons? How
could he recover?
Wenren È felt an ache in his heart which had always been cold as steel. He
wanted to tell Yin Hanjiang that, if he let go of his feelings, he would be
more at ease. But he couldn’t get the words out.
With such pure and sincere feelings placed before him, how could Hè
Wenzhao bear to proclaim love for Baili Qingmiao, while having dalliances
with other women? Wenren È couldn’t understand it.
In this life, he had seen through the ways of heaven and earth, and the
vicissitudes of human society, but he still had yet to understand love.
Fuming, Yin Hanjiang stood and, waving an arm to put on his clothes,
stormed toward Wenren È’s room. Inner demons were capable of saying
anything. Why should he believe Wenren È wasn’t worth his love?
Wenren È followed closely after. Yin Hanjiang was lying on his side on
Wenren È’s bed, his hair still damp, and upon seeing Wenren È enter, he
roared at him, “Get out!”
Being yelled at by someone was a fresh feeling. Who was the last person
who had done so? Probably the Violet Spirit Pavilion Master forty years
ago. Where was he now? Oh, it seemed he had been turned into a puppet by
Qiu Congxue, who helped take care of Baili Qingmiao when Su Huai
wasn’t around.
Of course Wenren È wouldn’t leave. Why should he leave his own room?
He stood before the bed, seeing Yin Hanjiang’s chest heave in rage.
However, it didn’t seem his anger was leading him to lose control of his
spiritual energy and causing him any internal injuries, so Wenren È relaxed.
He sat on the edge of the bed.
Yin Hanjiang was helpless against the “inner demon” and didn’t want to
destroy the inside of Wenren È’s room, so all he could do in the end was sit
up and glare at it. After fuming for a while, he said helplessly to himself,
“Why am I so mad? Of course an inner demon would have ways to disturb
my mind, so it can weaken me and cause me to deviate. Not right now,
though, I can’t let that happen right now.”
“I didn’t want to disturb your mind,” Wenren È said. “I just don’t

understand why you love me to such an extent.”
He had thought his actions were insufficient. What he had done wasn’t
worth being repaid with such pure feelings.
“What would an inner demon who can’t even call itself Venerable
understand?” Yin Hanjiang said coldly.
He stopped paying attention to Wenren È and sat cross-legged in

meditation, reciting the Clear Mind Spell.
After watching him for a while and seeing that he might not leave his trance
anytime soon, Wenren È left to find Zhongli Qian. “Have you found a way
to deal with inner demons?”
“…You only gave me half a day,” Zhongli Qian said.
Sensing Wenren È’s impatience, he continued, “There is a wandering

immortal called Yao Jiaping, one of the top healers in the cultivation world.
Protector Shu has already invited him to Xuanyuan Sect, and is currently
negotiating with him.”
Yao Jiaping? Wenren È frowned, remembering this name. He was one of Hè

Wenzhao’s followers, originally an eccentric wandering immortal with great
medical skill. On one of Hè Wenzhao’s travels, he had met the eldest
daughter of the Gongxi clan. She had a haughty attitude, at first looking
down on Hè Wenzhao and only reluctantly traveling with him. In their
journey, she caused many problems and wound up nearly getting herself
killed. Hè Wenzhao took her to see Yao Jiaping, and since Yao Jiaping
admired how he had treated this woman, he agreed to help. After that, the
Gongxi mistress fell for Hè Wenzhao, going from an unruly brat to one of
his wives.
Yao Jiaping also got some backstory. He had once had a lover who suffered
the same injury as the Gongxi mistress. At the time, his medical skills
weren’t high enough and he could only watch as his beloved died. From
then on, he had become an eccentric wandering immortal obsessed with
medicine, habitually rude to everyone with only Hè Wenzhao having gained
his respect. They became the best of friends.
Seeing how dedicated Yao Jiaping was to his beloved, Hè Wenzhao admired
him and often helped him out. And Yao Jiaping… was a person who was
difficult to describe.
The clothes he wore and the everyday objects he used were all things that
had been given by his beloved, and he thought of her all day, resenting his
own powerlessness, like an infatuated loafer. Yet Wenren È couldn’t
understand his actions at all. His medical skills were incomparable, so many
people came to beg for his help, and yet his demands were quite random.
Sometimes, he would ask for someone’s most important possession, other
times, for their wife or daughter, all according to his whims.
The women Yao Jiaping chose all had looks or personalities similar to his
lover’s. Often, while with those other women, he would reminisce about his
lover, and then toss that woman aside afterward, saying she couldn’t
compare to one finger of his beloved, looking upon her as if she were dirty.
Hè Wenzhao recognized Yao Jiaping as a man driven by love, and promised

that if he became a god someday, he would help Yao Jiaping find his lover’s
reincarnation. In the third volume, Yao Jiaping really did find her, and they
reunited without any trouble, living sweet and joyful lives.
After reading that book, Wenren È only thought that Yao Jiaping’s love
really matched Hè Wenzhao’s. They were just as bad as each other.

Wants to Know
Chapter 61 – Turning the tables
Zhongli Qian had used Baili Qingmiao as an excuse to send Shu Yanyan to
search for a healer, but with who the Right Protector was, she figured it out
immediately.
Baili Qingmiao had been suicidal at Xuanyuan Sect for over a year, with no
one speaking of finding a healer. Instead, they had called Altar Master Shi
over for a night and made her even more ill, leaving her unconscious for a
year.
Now Yin Hanjiang had been back for less than ten days, and Zhongli Qian
was begging her to find a healer. It was obvious who for.
Shu Yanyan didn’t question him, since she also thought Yin Hanjiang’s
current state wasn’t right. Even when Wenren È was still around, she had
seen signs of Yin Hanjiang deviating.
She hadn’t expected, however, to send people out to search and

immediately run into the number one healer of the cultivation world, Yao
Jiaping. This made her a bit wary.
In her six hundred years of cultivation, Shu Yanyan had successively served
three Xuanyuan Sect Masters, and her experiences were innumerable. As a
woman who often plotted against others, she believed anything that was too
easy to come by must be a trap. If something appeared on your doorstep, it
was either bait or poison.
Thus she immediately reported to Yin Hanjiang that Altar Master Zhongli
had found a doctor for Baili Qingmiao. Foremost so Yin Hanjiang could
also keep an eye out, and the problem became Zhongli Qian and Yin
Hanjiang’s business. Even if Yao Jiaping was questionable, it wouldn’t be
her fault. Secondly, if Yao Jiaping really was here to treat people, then he
could come into contact with Yin Hanjiang and secretly observe his
condition.
After making her report, Shu Yanyan personally served Yao Jiaping a cup of
top quality spiritual tea and ordered her subordinates to bring him unlimited
spiritual fruits. Gracefully sitting next to him, she said, “Word is you never
make house calls. I’m deeply grateful that you were willing to come to
Xuanyuan Sect today.”
“It was a coincidence,” Yao Jiaping said. “I was out searching for spiritual
herbs when I met your people. Since I was in a good mood, I decided I’d
come look. However, as a doctor, I have a few stipulations. If I was only
sought after others have already failed to treat the condition, I won’t treat
them. If the condition isn’t interesting enough, I won’t treat them. If you
can’t pay, I won’t treat them.”
His looks were above average, about matched to Zhongli Kuang’s, but his
words were even wilder.
It made sense, since Yao Jiaping was a wandering immortal whose power
ranked quite high in the cultivation world. He was also a skilled doctor who
always had people begging for his services, so he could naturally get away
with being arrogant. Zhongli Kuang hadn’t had the strength to back his
words, but the power of the Zhongli clan itself was formidable, so his
arrogance had also been justified.
“The first two requirements are definitely fulfilled,” Shu Yanyan said.
“What price are you asking for?”
Yao Jiaping looked at Shu Yanyan’s fingers. “I must first check the patient
before I can say,” he said haughtily.
“I’ve already sent people to bring her over.” Shu Yanyan acted like she
hadn’t noticed Yao Jiaping’s glance. She clapped her hands lightly, having
two of her subordinates carry Baili Qingmiao in.
At the same time, Yin Hanjiang had also arrived at the guest quarters. He
stood outside the door without entering, seeing Zhongli Qian rush over.
Zhongli Qian had had contact with Yao Jiaping in the past. In their thirty
years of travel, Su Huai had gotten injured on one occasion, and Baili
Qingmiao, while seeking care for him, coincidentally ran into Yao Jiaping.
The eccentric doctor wanted her to pay using her Nascent Soul or body, so
Baili Qingmiao chose to give up her Nascent Soul to save Su Huai.
Fortunately, Qiu Congxue arrived in time and managed to “convince” Yao
Jiaping. From then on, there had been enmity between the groups.
After hearing who Shu Yanyan had invited to the sect, Zhongli Qian had
first thought to settle him in and check whether he actually had the ability to
help Yin Hanjiang. If he didn’t, all they would need to do was shoo him
away. If he did, on the other hand… they could always negotiate.
Coincidentally, Wenren È had thought the same. Wenren È didn’t care about
Yao Jiaping’s behavior. After all, he wouldn’t dare act high and mighty in
Xuanyuan Sect. Thus, Wenren È had hidden himself, following Zhongli
Qian to the guest quarters, but hadn’t expected to run into Yin Hanjiang.
Zhongli Qian froze for a moment. He extended his spiritual cognition to

Shu Yanyan, purposefully letting her detect his probing. He was expressing
his doubts as to why the Sect Leader needed to be informed about Baili
Qingmiao’s treatment.
Shu Yanyan acted like she had noticed nothing. After all, feigning ignorance
wouldn’t get her in trouble with Yin Hanjiang.
“It’s you?” Yao Jiaping’s eyebrows rose upon seeing Zhongli Qian. Then he
looked at the unconscious Baili Qingmiao and exclaimed, “You want me to
treat her?”
A pleasantly surprised expression crossed his face upon seeing Baili

Qingmiao, though it was quickly hidden. He ignored Zhongli Qian,
immediately going over to inspect Baili Qingmiao’s condition, acting
serious and dutiful as if he had forgotten any bad blood between them.
Yao Jiaping took Baili Qingmiao’s pulse with uncommon courtesy, and,
furrowing his brows, said, “Her bonded weapon’s been destroyed, her
dantian’s sustained damage, there’s lingering demonic energy within her
body, her mind is disordered, and on top of that she has tuberculosis and a
high fever. A cultivator coming down with a mortal illness certainly is odd!
Plus, she seems to have a gu parasite and a curse cast on her, though I can’t
determine which right now.”
Zhongli Qian showed no expression. He had also contributed to Baili

Qingmiao’s ailments.
“These are the conditions I can find right now. Whether or not she has any
other ailments will require a deeper examination,” Yao Jiaping said,
withdrawing his hand. “I’ll need a quiet room where I’m not disturbed.”
Zhongli Qian and Shu Yanyan were both dumbfounded. Yao Jiaping’s
attitude was completely different from what they had expected.
Yao Jiaping was a petty person who wouldn’t tolerate the slightest insult.
He had a grudge toward Baili Qingmiao, so even if he was willing to help
her, he would at least make an extravagant demand. How could he start
treating Baili Qingmiao so quickly and attentively?
“Sir Yao has not yet mentioned his fee,” Shu Yanyan said.
“That’s not urgent,” Yao Jiaping said. “Human lives are what’s important.
As for my fee, I haven’t even started diagnosing yet.”
“Sir Yao certainly is a benevolent doctor, capable of looking past previous

conflicts. I apologize for the disagreements we’ve had in the past,” said
Zhongli Qian.
“No need for that. It was just a little squabble, and who can remember
something that long ago?” Yao Jiaping waved his hands. “I’ll need peace
and quiet for my treatment, so hurry up and prepare a quiet room.”
“I’ll have someone do so right now,” Shu Yanyan said.

“No need.” Yin Hanjiang, who had been hiding his presence and standing
outside the door all this time, pushed it open and walked in. Glancing at Yao
Jiaping, a slight smile appeared on his face. “Here I was worrying I
wouldn’t have a chance to lure out Hè Wenzhao, when you turned up of
your own free will.”
Zhongli Qian’s eyes widened as he heard Yin Hanjiang’s words. He quickly

said, “Sect Leader Yin, he—”
“I know what you want to say,” Yin Hanjiang interrupted. “You think that
despite his conduct, his medical skills are at least among the best, which is
why he’s been able to run wild across the cultivation world for all these
years without anyone killing him. You know he must have some ulterior
motive for ‘coincidentally’ running into Xuanyuan Sect’s followers, but you
think that, as long as he has the skill, you can always negotiate, is that
right?”
Without waiting for an answer from Zhongli Qian, he looked at Shu

Yanyan. “And you, Right Protector. Are you scared of me?”
Shu Yanyan went pale, her previously languid and unconcerned expression
instantly becoming serious. She had been wearing a thin light purple outfit
which traced her perfect curves, but the moment Yin Hanjiang’s gaze fell on
her, a white cloak appeared over her body, covering her from neck to toe so
that not an inch of skin showed.
“Is it not natural for a subordinate to respect the Sect Leader?” Shu Yanyan
said with a reserved smile.
She didn’t dare use her seduction against Yin Hanjiang. Every time she
looked into those emotionless eyes, she felt her teeth ache. When Wenren È
was here, Yin Hanjiang had been quiet and reserved, so Shu Yanyan could
cut loose a little, but now Yin Hanjiang was like an unchained beast. She
didn’t know what he was capable of.
“You’re not respectful, you’re afraid,” Yin Hanjiang said with a cold smile.
“When you saw my expression before, you thought I was on the verge of
deviation. Now, are you using Baili Qingmiao as an excuse to find someone
to treat me? Altar Master Zhongli thinks the same, doesn’t he?”
The two were shaken at having their plans seen through by Yin Hanjiang,
and didn’t dare say anything.
This was the first time Wenren È had seen Yin Hanjiang handling sect
business. At this point, Yin Hanjiang was no longer following Wenren È in
his actions, and his unfettered, willful manner was dazzling to behold.
“Since you think this Lord has inner demons, then I’ll admit it.” Yin
Hanjiang swept his gaze across their faces. “But it won’t affect this Lord’s
ability to command the Xuanyuan Sect, or eliminate the righteous experts.
There’s no need for you two to concern yourself with this matter further.
This Lord doesn’t need treatment.”
Wenren È was stunned. What did Yin Hanjiang mean? If he was ill, then he
needed treatment. Did he want to let the inner demons go on, until someday
he died from qi deviation?
“As for you…” After crushing the two brainiacs’ plan, Yin Hanjiang looked
at Yao Jiaping, a joyful yet vicious smile across his face. “Did you really
think this Lord was unaware that you’re Hè Wenzhao’s close confidant?”
Seeing Yin Hanjiang approach, Yao Jiaping, shaken by his imposing

manner, backed away a few steps until he hit the opposite wall. He grabbed
a medicine pouch on his waist and a streak of silver light flew out,
protecting him.
“The Immortal Shielding Jade?” Yin Hanjiang said. “You’ve picked up

some nice toys after being a doctor for all these years. Too bad it won’t do
you any good.”
With a wave of his hand, the Army Crushing Spike unsheathed itself,
cutting across the space between them. A single swing shattered the
Shielding Jade. The spike’s vicious point stopped in front of Yao Jiaping’s
face.
“Impossible!” Yao Jiaping cried. “This Immortal Jade is capable of
blocking the full power of an immortal from the upper realms!”
“It’s not quite as good as the Shangqing Sect’s protective array,” Yin
Hanjiang said. He blasted a current of qi into Yao Jiaping’s body. Yao
Jiaping felt like there were knives in his meridians. When he tried to use the
least bit of qi, it was as if his meridians were being shredded.
“You knew that this Lord must’ve been injured after facing heavenly
lightning and the Shangqing Sect Moon Pool Bell, so you loitered around
Xuanyuan Sect, hoping to be called in to treat me, right? Hè Wenzhao asked
you to save Baili Qingmiao, didn’t he? While treating me, you’d ask for her
as payment, so you can take her back to Hè Wenzhao. You could even leave
something in my body while treating me, so as to deal with me later, isn’t
that right?”
He was right about everything. “H—how did you know?” Yao Jiaping
cried.
How did he know? This whole sequence had shown up in God of

Annihilation: Volume 2 too many times. After ascending to the immortal
realm, Yao Jiaping had pretended he didn’t know Hè Wenzhao, and
whenever Hè Wenzhao had a problem with someone, he would pretend to
be a doctor and offer his services to them, coordinating with Hè Wenzhao to
defeat them.
It was the exact same here. Yao Jiaping appreciated Hè Wenzhao’s

“devotion” toward Baili Qingmiao, so when he heard that Hè Wenzhao’s
little shimei had been kidnapped by demonic cultivators and might be in
trouble, he was reminded of the death of his own lover. Unable to stand
such a pair of soulmates being torn apart, he agreed to rescue her. In his
arrogance, he thought that even if Xuanyuan Sect’s people saw through his
plan, they wouldn’t do anything to a legendary doctor like him.
He hadn’t imagined that the new Sect Leader would show no restraint and
not bother with any courtesy. Gritting his teeth against the pain, Yao Jiaping
yelled, “Yin Hanjiang! Don’t think I can’t tell how you’re beset by inner
demons! Even if you have power enough to rival an immortal, in less than
ten years, your meridians will rupture and you’ll die! The more you use
power beyond the cultivation world, the quicker your death will come. I’m
willing to declare that I’m the only person in this world who can treat you!
The day’ll come when you’re begging on your knees for my help!”
“I won’t need you.”
The triangular spike impaled Yao Jiaping’s throat, pinning him against the
wall as his blood poured down.
A wandering immortal wouldn’t die so easily. Yao Jiaping struggled a few

times, but found that the Army Crushing Spike had also impaled his soul,
and the more he struggled, the more it shredded his soul.
Seeing Yao Jiaping finally quiet down, Yin Hanjiang tore a piece off Baili
Qingmiao’s clothes to wipe his hands, then tossed it at Yao Jiaping’s face.
“Altar Master Shi,” he said. “I seem to remember you have a technique to

wear someone’s skin and take their appearance.”
Shi Congxin, who had been hiding in the doorway and trembling all this
time, tiptoed in quickly. “Yes,” he said. “Since the skin holds the target’s
aura, it’s very difficult to distinguish.”
“I want his skin.” Yin Hanjiang ran a tongue over his lips. “Unsightly
though it may be, his build is similar to mine. Now that Baili Qingmiao has
been staying at Xuanyuan Sect for over a year, someone ought to escort her
back to Shangqing Sect, isn’t that so?”
“I—I can go back on my own.” Baili Qingmiao, who had woken up at some
point, was hugging her knees on the floor, watching Yin Hanjiang fearfully.
“That would be so rude.” Yin Hanjiang shot her a cold look, and Baili
Qingmiao shut her mouth immediately.
“Sect Leader Yin, Yao Jiaping’s intentions may be questionable, but his
words were true. You need his treatment.” Zhongli Qian, having received a
frantic transmission from Wenren È, forced himself to speak up. “Even if
Sect Leader Yin doesn’t value his own life, if Sect Master Wenren were to
somehow return, he would not be happy to see you suffering.”
Zhongli Qian’s words managed to get through to Yin Hanjiang, whose

malice faded a bit. He asked, “Altar Master Shi, will skinning him kill
him?”
“No way, how could a wandering immortal die from being skinned?” Altar
Master Shi said. “This subordinate will take every care possible to keep him
alive.”
“Yin… if you dare to do anything… just… wait to die. I’ll… never… treat
you…” Yao Jiaping spoke with difficulty, his throat having been pierced.
Yin Hanjiang paid him no mind. There were too many ways to convince
Yao Jiaping.
“This Lord wants an intact skin within three days. Also, Altar Master
Zhongli, I’ve already given you a list of the Message Carriers and the
names of the cultivators who’ve pushed their evil deeds onto the Xuanyuan
Sect. Within a month, I want to see those people, alive. Since they’ve
borrowed Xuanyuan Sect’s name, they ought to pay interest.”
After giving his orders, he paid the matters no more mind and walked out of
the guest room. His Venerable had said before that everyone had their own
specialties. As a Sect Leader, he just needed to delegate the difficult tasks to
his subordinates, and await results.
Wenren È didn’t pay any attention to the beleaguered Zhongli Qian.

Following closely behind as Yin Hanjiang returned to his room, he appeared
and asked, “Why won’t you let Yao Jiaping treat you? You can receive
treatment, then have him skinned, can you not?”
Yin Hanjiang actually answered him this time. He reached out with a hand,
stopping just before it touched Wenren È’s face. In a low voice, he said, “If
I’m cured, I won’t be able to see the Venerable.”

Wants to Know
Chapter 62 – Ill-fated love
Even when he knew he was looking at an illusion, Yin Hanjiang couldn’t

strike Wenren È. Even though he knew he would die soon, Yin Hanjiang
still didn’t wish to be unable to see Wenren È, even if he knew it was all
false.
Inner demons were a trial because those who were trapped by them didn’t
want to escape.
When reading Abusive Romance, Wenren È’s attention had been on Baili
Qingmiao, unable to understand why she was willing to offer up her heart
for Hè Wenzhao to stomp on.
Yet at this moment, when Yin Hanjiang offered him his own beating heart,
the one Wenren È didn’t understand was Hè Wenzhao. Faced with this
bared heart, how could Hè Wenzhao betray her, hurt her, and make
countless demands of her in the name of love? The only reason that he
could hurt Baili Qingmiao was Baili Qingmiao’s love for him.
Now, such a heart was placed before Wenren È.
Wenren È brought out the divine blood, gripping it tightly in his hand.
Disregarding how he wasn’t dressed, he grabbed Yin Hanjiang’s hand and
pressed it to his face.
The invisible barrier that Yin Hanjiang had never been able to cross had
been broken by Wenren È.
The last step was up to him.

Wenren È had seen what Yin Hanjiang was like when he wasn’t there. He
had been dazzling, impossible to look away from, so much more eye-
catching than he had been at Wenren È’s side. Wenren È had also seen Yin
Hanjiang’s heart. He knew these feelings weren’t a momentary impulse, but
a longing held for a hundred years, which had grown too deep to let go of.
As for Wenren È’s feelings, whether Wenren È could accept Yin Hanjiang
like this, whether he could answer such deep emotions, the answer was
already obvious.
When Yin Hanjiang kissed him and he didn’t refuse; when Wenren È was
happy to watch in secret and allow Yin Hanjiang to command Xuanyuan
Sect; when he had been determined to enter the Blood Hell, yet worried
about Yin Hanjiang’s mind; when he wanted to give everything good he
came across to Yin Hanjiang; when he had first read Abusive Romance, and
been unable to accept Yin Hanjiang’s madness, the seeds of those feelings
had already been planted in his heart, and blossomed.
Yin Hanjiang was special, and had been from the start. Even back when
Wenren È walked past a mass grave and a tiny hand grabbed the hem of his
robes, Yin Hanjiang had entered his heart.
Wenren È gripped Yin Hanjiang’s hand, placing a gentle kiss on the palm
where it had touched his face. “Yin Hanjiang, this Venerable permits you to
love him. Sect Leader Yin, will you permit me to love you?”
Yet he didn’t know that in Yin Hanjiang’s eyes, there were countless
Wenren È’s explaining themselves to him, and among them, the real
Wenren È looked especially false.
Wenren È assumed that Yin Hanjiang’s inner demons arose from his death
and Yin Hanjiang’s longing, and if he revealed his identity, they would be
powerless. He didn’t know what the scene in Yin Hanjiang’s eyes looked
like and how hollow his actions seemed—compared to Wenren È having
survived, it seemed more likely that Yin Hanjiang had fallen further into the
inner demons’ clutches, so that, on top of his sight and hearing, even his
sense of touch could not be trusted.
“No, no, no! It’s not possible!” Yin Hanjiang wanted to pull his hand away.
He shook his head. “You can’t be the Venerable. You’re just an inner
demon.”
The words of the Burning Sky Immortal in the second volume of God of
Annihilation were far more convincing than the man before him. Yin
Hanjiang cocked his head, his eyes dull, appearing completely abnormal as
he spoke. “It was what my future self said, in the second volume of the
books that the Venerable said recorded fate itself. He said the Venerable is
dead, and there’s no way he could love me either, because the one he loves
is…”
He couldn’t say the words “Baili Qingmiao”. He didn’t want to think about
her.
“I do!” Seeing that Yin Hanjiang believed the books more than him, Wenren
È brought out Abusive Romance and the first and third volumes of God of
Annihilation. “You saw me obtain these books with your own eyes. An
inner demon couldn’t bring out a book you’ve never read before. Open
them and see for yourself. The plot has already changed. Fate can be
changed!”
Wenren È also brought out an ordinary dark blue robe and put it on. He
clutched the divine blood tight in one hand, hooking Yin Hanjiang’s waist
with the other so that he couldn’t escape.
If Wenren È wanted something, he wouldn’t give the other party the chance
to refuse.
He was more certain than ever that the Wenren È in Abusive Romance never
loved Baili Qingmiao at all. Could he possibly admire her from a distance,
content just to watch her live happily with Hè Wenzhao? That was absurd!
Wenren È’s love would always be selfish. If he couldn’t have the object of
his desires, then he would rather burn everything to the ground than back
off quietly.
“Yin Hanjiang, it was me who drank wine with you that day at the spiritual
spring. I’ve heard your feelings.” Wenren È pressed his forehead against
Yin Hanjiang’s. “If you like this Venerable, then you’re not allowed to look
at any more illusions, you understand?”
“What?!” Yin Hanjiang couldn’t believe it. Since that day, when he had
responded to that inner demon, it was no longer an illusion he was seeing,
but his Venerable?
He didn’t answer Wenren È, his mind awhirl, feeling as though his skull
was splitting open.
He shoved Wenren È aside, clutching his head in both hands. It was as if he

was being torn into pieces.
One of them was telling him, just believe, just believe in what’s before your
eyes and be happy, even if it might be a lie, believe that your Venerable
loves you. Another was saying, how could Wenren È love you, he’s always
loved Baili Qingmiao, you saw how he gave his life to protect her at the
Blood Hell. Yet another said, they’re all illusions, not a single one can be
believed.
Seeing Yin Hanjiang’s soul break into pieces, each about to burst from his
body, Wenren È didn’t dare push him any further. He sent a stream of chaos
energy into Yin Hanjiang’s body in order to stabilize his soul.
He didn’t understand. Yin Hanjiang liked him and he had returned it. An
ailment of the heart should be treated from the heart, so if he expressed his
feelings, Yin Hanjiang’s turmoil should be resolved and everything should
work out, so why did it end up this way?
“Which is real? Which is fake?” Yin Hanjiang’s hair was in disarray, his
eyes red, on the verge of madness.
Clutching the divine blood, Wenren È cried, “Yin Hanjiang, look at me!
Look at this Venerable!”
Yin Hanjiang calmed down a bit, his gaze falling on Wenren È’s face. He
turned his head slightly, seeing the red stone in Wenren È’s hand.
“What’s this?” He put a hand atop the stone.
“The divine blood,” Wenren È answered.
“I’ve seen this stone before.” Yin Hanjiang placed both hands over it, his
eyes hazy. “Is it real?” he said in a trembling voice.
“I obtained it in the Blood Hell—”
Before Wenren È had a chance to explain the whole complicated story of

the divine blood’s origins, Yin Hanjiang had already confused it with the
stone Wenren È had thrown Baili Qingmiao in his memories. “The
Venerable will give it to Baili Qingmiao, right?” he said. “The Venerable
went to the Blood Hell for it, didn’t he?”
“Not entirely, I—”
“Hahahahahaha…” Before Wenren È could finish speaking, a despairing

laugh came from Yin Hanjiang’s mouth, along with a mouthful of blood.
His soul which had nearly shattered slowly merged back together, but not in
the form that Wenren È had wanted.
Yin Hanjiang seemed to hear his Venerable say words like “love”,
“primordial god”, and “fate” near his ears, but he couldn’t hear clearly. His
eyes blurred, a roar filling his ears. What was real?
Oh yeah. His Venerable had said that the words of the books were real.
Yin Hanjiang grabbed the volume of Abusive Romance that Wenren È had
left on the ground, flipping it to a random page in the back. He saw the
words: “Yin Hanjiang grabbed Baili Qingmiao by the neck, his face twisted
with hate. He spat, “If the Venerable died for you, shouldn’t you accompany
him?”
In that moment, Yin Hanjiang couldn’t hear anything, and he couldn’t see
anything beside those words. He quickly read on, seeing how he failed to
kill Baili Qingmiao, how she leapt into the Blood Hell with the divine blood
in her hands, regaining her divinity. At the moment she merged with the
divine nature, Baili Qingmiao thought that it was thanks to Wenren È giving
her this stone at the moment before his death, that she was able to survive.
“Enough!” Seeing that Yin Hanjiang was reading the pages that hadn’t been
revised yet, and hadn’t heard a word he said, Wenren È snatched back the
book. With a light tap on Yin Hanjiang’s forehead, he sent chaos energy into
his body, forcibly suppressing his rampant spiritual energy.
Yin Hanjiang lost consciousness, his brows still knit. Wenren È picked him
up and, in a flash, appeared in Zhongli Qian’s room.
“How could this happen?!” Wenren È laid Yin Hanjiang down on Zhongli
Qian’s bed.
Zhongli Qian set down the jade slip in his hand. Without asking what had
happened, he felt Yin Hanjiang’s pulse, and after a long moment, asked,
“Sect Master, how come Sect Leader Yin’s emotional state was suddenly
thrown into disarray and he lost the ability to control his power which now
reaches the immortal realm, his spiritual energy running wild and his soul
nearly being destroyed?”
“This Venerable also wants to know.” Wenren È still held onto Yin
Hanjiang. He didn’t understand why things had turned out like this. Wasn’t
Yin Hanjiang just suffering from inner demons? If his inner turmoil was
resolved, shouldn’t the inner demons vanish? Was this not the source of Yin
Hanjiang’s turmoil, after all?
Zhongli Qian was silent for a moment, then took off his blindfold, looking
at Wenren È’s face. Ignoring how Baili Qingmiao popped up in his vision,
he observed Wenren È’s expression and was dumbfounded. Wenren È was
probably unaware of what he looked like right now. He gazed at Yin
Hanjiang, his eyes filled with concern, tenderness… and fear.
The Lord of Demons had never feared anything in his life, but at this
moment, he feared losing Yin Hanjiang.
“Did you say something to Sect Leader Yin?” Zhongli Qian asked,
replacing his blindfold.
“This Venerable… wishes to become cultivation partners with Yin Hanjiang
for the rest of our lives.” Wenren È spoke not to Zhongli Qian, but to Yin
Hanjiang, but unfortunately the man couldn’t hear him.
Zhongli Qian understood everything. With his usual calm manner, he said,
“Sect Master, the first time I met Sect Leader Yin, I saw signs that he was in
danger of deviating. I advised him not to desire too strongly, but he
answered that he wouldn’t desire.
“I have little knowledge of love, but after reading books and poems for all
these years, and after seeing how Miss Baili was ensnared by it, I’ve come
to some understanding. The world is filled with those who seek love, and
how many of them can refrain from desire?
“Those who can either don’t love strongly enough, or don’t dare to pursue.
Which does the Sect Master think Yin Hanjiang is?”
He probably didn’t dare. In these few days of observing Yin Hanjiang,

Wenren È had discovered that he seemed to be certain of something—that
Wenren È could not possibly love him. If he said he did, it must be an inner
demon, the product of his own fantasies, a lie.
“Sect Master, either great joy or great sorrow can both disrupt someone’s
composure. Sect Leader Yin has already sustained the pain of losing his
beloved, and has never dared to imagine that his Venerable could return his
feelings, and is also beset by inner demons. If he were to meet with great
joy, it would be like a piece of porcelain going from flames to cold water.
Even though the heat would be extinguished, the porcelain would shatter
from the shock.”
Yin Hanjiang’s feelings weren’t like Wenren È’s, powerful and unwavering,
impossible to shake. He’d only had the courage to say the words hidden in
his heart for so many years to an illusion. If it weren’t for the inner demons,
and Wenren È had gently guided Yin Hanjiang around, warmed him up
gradually, it was possible he could believe it. But he had acted too suddenly.
Heat and cold could counteract each other, but how could anything also
withstand such a forceful will?
“Has the Sect Master heard the saying, a desire too deep is not fated to last
long? Protector Shu has amused herself in the mortal realm for many years
and tasted all it has to offer, so why has she never given her heart to
anyone? Because love’s power to harm is too great. Yin Hanjiang has risen
in power due to his obsession, but the backlash has become more powerful
in turn. The cosmos is heartless and the Dao is dispassionate; the path that
will lead one to heaven is the Path of Indifference, not the path of
obsession.”
“This Venerable understands. This Venerable was wrong.” He hadn’t

considered Yin Hanjiang’s personality and the fragile state of his mind, and
hadn’t thought about whether he would be able to accept such information.
Wenren È pressed his lips against Yin Hanjiang’s burning forehead. “But
this Venerable will not accept his mistakes.”
He sent a message talisman to Altar Master Shi. “Bring Yao Jiaping to this
Venerable!”
Since his heart had been moved, he could no longer let go. Yin Hanjiang
must accompany Wenren È, in this world and the next. He wouldn’t allow
him to escape in death so easily.

Wants to Know
Chapter 63 – Soul communion
Yao Jiaping hadn’t been skinned yet. Yin Hanjiang had asked for an intact
skin, but Yao Jiaping’s throat had been pierced by him. In order to
accomplish the task the new Sect Leader had assigned him, Shi Congxin
first carefully treated Yao Jiaping’s injury with elixirs, then soaked him in
medicinal water. Only after he soaked for forty-eight hours could the
procedure to steal his skin be used, otherwise it might tear.
Shi Congxin had always been a follower in Xuanyuan Sect and never been
entrusted with something this important. Today, Protector Shu and Altar
Master Zhongli had been reprimanded by Sect Leader Yin while he had
been given a task, so he actually felt rather cheerful.
Ever since he succeeded Qiu Congxue and took over the Hellfire Pavilion,
Shi Congxin had been panicking. Altar Master Yuan, who had
recommended him, had been killed by Sect Leader Yin for colluding with
the righteous sects, and Protector Qiu had brought back a ghost cultivator
with a flesh body named Su Huai, saying that when Su Huai’s cultivation
improved, she’d help him remove Shi Congxin and take over the Hellfire
Pavilion.
Plus, the new Altar Master Sect Leader Yin appointed, Zhongli Qian, saw
Su Huai as his disciple. Shi Congxin had been shedding tears in his heart,
afraid he’d be replaced any day. There was nothing good about being in a
high position.
The tables seemed to be turning, though. Sect Leader Yin was starting to
value him after taking over the sect. He was determined to impress Sect
Leader Yin with his capabilities, cough cough!
Yet it hadn’t been six hours, and he’d just gotten Yao Jiaping soaked
properly, when he received a message from Sect Master Wenren.
The Sect Master was back? Then who was he supposed to listen to now?
Shi Congxin was too scared to offend either of them. He had no choice but
to pick up the half-dead Yao Jiaping and bring him to Wenren È.
For some reason, immediately after his return, Wenren È was in Altar
Master Zhongli’s room. Were the two plotting together in order to take back
the sect from Sect Leader Yin? It was time for him to make his stand, Shi
Congxin decided. He had to convey this information to Sect Leader Yin, so
he would be prepared. Then, when the time came, Qiu Congxue, Shu
Yanyan, Zhongli Qian, and Su Huai would all… cough, cough!
While fantasizing, Shi Congxin walked into the room and saw Sect Leader
Yin was heavily injured, lying in Wenren È’s lap. He started coughing
harder.
“Shut up.” The Lord of Demons wore a blue robe, his imposing presence
stronger than ever. He didn’t even glance at Shi Congxin, his eyes locked
on Yin Hanjiang’s face, brushing his fingertips over the corner of Yin
Hanjiang’s mouth.
The ever-vigilant Zhongli Qian pulled Shi Congxin aside and transmitted to
him, “Don’t disturb the Sect Master right now. Yao Jiaping is still alive,
right?”
He doesn’t want me to receive favor from the lord! Shi Congxin thought.
But he still acted fearful as he transmitted back, “Thank you for your
advice. He hasn’t died, cough cough.”
Zhongli Qian turned toward Shi Congxin. His eyes were blindfolded, yet
Shi Congxin had a feeling like all his thoughts were exposed in front of
him. It must be his imagination—it was just the moonlight shining through
a window and illuminating Zhongli Qian’s face, that was giving him such a
strange feeling.
Shi Congxin transmitted, “Why is Altar Master Zhongli looking at me like
that? Is something wrong? Cough cough.“
“Nothing, I just didn’t expect your mental transmissions would also have
coughing,” Zhongli Qian said.
Shi Congxin: …
I—it was just a habit! Since he cultivated the seven human sufferings, he
naturally had to experience suffering at every moment. Even if his sickness
qi had been sucked away by Baili Qingmiao, he at least had to act sick!
Cough cough cough!
Shi Congxin avoided looking at Zhongli Qian, scared his intentions would
be seen through. Staring at the Sect Master, he saw Wenren È dip his head,
drawing closer and closer to Yin Hanjiang’s face, until Shi Congxin’s face
and ears flushed red. He stared unblinking, trying to figure out what the
Sect Master was actually doing, but Wenren È’s long hair slid down and
blocked the two’s faces from view.
It took a while for Wenren È to raise his head again, and say in a deeply
pained voice, “This Venerable was too hasty.”
Shi Congxin backed up into a corner. Terrified, he bit down on his fingers,
not letting himself make any noise.
He had glimpsed a little through the Venerable’s hair. What was the
Venerable doing? Sucking away Yin Hanjiang’s power? Altar Master
Zhongli stood at one side and acted like he was blind—well, he was blind.
Wenren È didn’t give Shi Congxin a glance. He extended a hand at Yao

Jiaping, who flew across the room to him. He planted his hand on Yao
Jiaping’s skull and, with a casual yank, removed his soul from his body.
“This is…” Zhongli Qian couldn’t hold back his doubts.
“This Venerable learned this technique in the Blood Hell,” Wenren È said,
distracted. “It can extract all of a person’s memories and abilities, and make
them one’s own. It’s just an unorthodox technique, not worth mentioning.”
There were 180 thousand demonic gods sealed in the Blood Hell, so
Wenren È hadn’t had an easy time of it for the past year and a half. The
Blood Demon had destroyed the marks on his soul, which was equivalent to
destroying a blood cultivator’s foundation, and he had also been impaled by
the weapons of nine experts before falling into the Blood Hell. He had lost a
lot of strength.
He’d been betting on that stone that had protected Baili Qingmiao in the
book and helped her awaken her divine nature. As long as he obtained the
divine blood, Wenren È could cultivate within the Blood Hell and absorb
the chaos energy.
Indeed, after he obtained the divine blood, it shielded his soul, but
simultaneously, the divine nature hidden at the bottom of the Blood Hell
called to it, constantly dragging Wenren È toward the depths of the sea.
In that year and a half, Wenren È awakened to a path of divinity from the
divine blood, absorbing chaos energy while resisting the divine nature.
Thousands of demonic gods drifted at the bottom of the Blood Hell, all
desiring to kill Wenren È and return to the cultivation world in his place.
Wenren È continued to advance in combat, killing many demonic gods and
obtaining their techniques.
He’d wanted to return way earlier, but the divine nature tugged at the divine
blood, preventing his escape.
It was only a few days ago that the power of the divine nature had suddenly
weakened, and Wenren È had found his chance. Gathering all his power, he
broke out of the Blood Hell.
Later, he learned from the book how Baili Qingmiao’s heart had been
crushed at the Blood Hell. Having come into proximity of the divine nature,
she fell under its control, becoming obsessed with ending her life. It was
only when Yin Hanjiang’s killing intent woke Baili Qingmiao and her will
strengthened, had the power of the divine nature and blood weakened.
Yin Hanjiang truly had done well. He didn’t turn Baili Qingmiao into lamp
oil because of his resentment, and had even inadvertently awakened her will
and given Wenren È a chance to escape the Blood Hell.
Yao Jiaping thought of himself highly, believing his medical skills were
without competition. He never could’ve imagined that Wenren È would pay
no mind to whether or not he was willing to treat Yin Hanjiang, only
requiring his capability to do so.
It was also because Wenren È knew there was a cure for Yin Hanjiang’s
inner demons that he suggested he could receive treatment first, then steal
Yao Jiaping’s skin. But when he heard Yin Hanjiang’s reason, he hadn’t
been able to control himself.
He had been too self-centered.
Wenren È calmly took in Yao Jiaping’s memories, skipping over his time
with his lover, and how every time he saw a woman who resembled his
lover, he would feel unbearable pain, and could only use a warm body to
relive the time he spent with her. If you asked Wenren È, this was nothing
but a defilement of their love.
No one could replace Yin Hanjiang. The very idea was an insult to him.
Quickly, he found a method to heal Yin Hanjiang.
Yin Hanjiang’s problem wasn’t with his body, but his heart. There was
nothing wrong with his cultivation, his mental state just couldn’t control his
level of power.
Immense power required immense mental fortitude. Once one’s mental

control couldn’t keep up with their realm, they would suffer qi deviation. It
usually came in two forms—going berserk, indiscriminately attacking
anyone around them in order to relieve their rampaging spiritual essence; or
suppressing their spiritual essence inside their bodies, so that it didn’t harm
anyone else even as they suffered.
Yin Hanjiang was obviously the latter. Repression had just become a habit
for him.
Such an injury needed to be attacked from two sides. He needed to sort out
his spiritual essence, while at the same time use a soul communion
technique to seek out the source of his suffering, and resolve his inner
demons.
Fixing his spiritual essence would be easy. Wenren È’s chaos energy could
transform into all other forms of energy, being their primordial form.
However chaotic Yin Hanjiang’s spiritual essence was, it would behave in
the face of Wenren È’s power.
Wenren È stuffed Yao Jiaping’s soul back into his body and tossed him to
Shi Congxin again, so he could hurry up and use the skin stealing technique
while the man was still breathing.
He gave Zhongli Qian a look, and Zhongli Qian quickly left the room,
putting up an array behind him and leaving the space to the two of them.
Wenren È carefully laid Yin Hanjiang on the bed, and bent over him, until
his forehead was pressed against Yin Hanjiang’s.
As he had no physical body right now, his body and soul were one and the
same. In a flash of light, Wenren È vanished, leaving only his blue robe
draped over Yin Hanjiang.
Yao Jiaping’s experience told Wenren È that he couldn’t heal Yin

Hanjiang’s heart on his first try. He would have to use the soul communion
technique multiple times, so this time, what he had to do was find what was
making Yin Hanjiang lose control within his memories, and help him return
to normal for now. Afterwards, he could continue on, filling Yin Hanjiang’s
memories with “Wenren È isn’t dead”, “Wenren È loves you”, until when
Yin Hanjiang finally accepted it, Wenren È could appear before him, and
say those words in person.
He followed Yin Hanjiang’s memories to a few hours earlier, seeing his

confrontation with himself.
This time, through Yin Hanjiang’s memory, Wenren È finally saw how
many illusions were plaguing Yin Hanjiang at that time.
They each had different expressions, some loving, some cold, some calm,
some overbearing. They all resembled the real person, but were missing
something.
Seeing such a scene, Wenren È had to laugh, at Yin Hanjiang’s foolishness

and his own arrogance.
Yin Hanjiang was seeing at least a dozen of him. In such a condition, how
was he meant to distinguish which was real and which were fake? It was
too difficult.
He saw how after the him in the memory confessed to Yin Hanjiang, Yin
Hanjiang broke down. He could easily change the words he had said, but he
didn’t.
He didn’t want to casually change Yin Hanjiang’s memories, and didn’t

want to wipe away his own words. He wouldn’t touch anything that had
already happened.
In the memory, Yin Hanjiang flipped through Abusive Romance, his mouth
filling with blood, unable to see or hear. Only now, inside Yin Hanjiang’s
soul, did Wenren È understand just how much agony he had been in at that
point.
He hadn’t not wanted to believe, but it was impossible for him to. When he
couldn’t trust his sight, hearing, and touch, how could he believe anything
that happened to him?
Watching as he kneeled on the ground, reading, Wenren È walked up and

put his arms around this Yin Hanjiang who finally neglected to hide his own
weakness in front of him. He said quietly, “You can take me as an inner
demon. I won’t force you to believe anymore. Right now, just allow me to
say a few words, and just listen to me for a bit. Don’t push me away.”
The soul communion only affected the soul’s memories. Since everything
had already happened, Yin Hanjiang wouldn’t fall apart further because of
it. Yin Hanjiang paused, feeling the warmth of the person behind him.
Without anyone pushing him to believe anything, Yin Hanjiang leaned back
against him and closed his eyes.
Wenren È tenderly kissed Yin Hanjiang’s forehead, holding his ice-cold

fingers. “You don’t need to believe. But at least have some hope. Hope that
I’m still alive, okay? Think about it, almost nothing in the world can harm
this Venerable.”
Even hearing the words, “his Venerable was alive”, brought Yin Hanjiang
unparalleled joy. With his eyes closed, he nodded obediently. “Mm.”
Seeing he was willing to believe this fact, Wenren È relaxed. Right now,
Yin Hanjiang’s soul was wounded, so staying within it for too long would
cause further damage. Realizing his time was almost up, but there were
many things he hadn’t yet explained, he had an idea. “Yin Hanjiang,” he
said quietly, “you opened the wrong page. When you wake up, open
Abusive Romance and read the parts that this Venerable has changed.”
After saying those words, Wenren È left Yin Hanjiang’s body, returning to
reality. After bringing Yin Hanjiang back to his room and gently laying him
down on his bed, he left behind his three books and departed.
Baili Qingmiao had lost count of how many times she’d been scared awake.
During the day, she’d been so terrified by Yin Hanjiang that her fever had
worsened and she’d been having nightmares all this time. Right now, she
finally felt a bit better and blearily got up, wanting to get a drink of water,
but saw a shadowed figure standing at the head of her bed.
“S—Senior Wenren!” The sweat that had broken out across Baili
Qingmiao’s body eased her fever a lot.
“This Venerable came in order to tell you something. You don’t need to
understand, just hear it,” Wenren È said.
“I’m listening,” said Baili Qingmiao. “Senior Wenren, are you actually
alive?”
“This Venerable is alive,” Wenren È said. “What this Venerable needs you
to hear is, Wenren È loves Yin Hanjiang.”

Wants to Know
Chapter 64 – The moon behind the clouds
Yin Hanjiang awoke in Wenren È’s bedroom. He still felt lingering pain in
his body from his spiritual energy running wild, but it had mostly healed.
His emotions were strangely calm. It was as if he’d had a long dream, in
which his Venerable had returned. His joy and pain warring with each other,
he’d had a qi deviation and nearly died, but at least, upon waking, he could
remember two things. His Venerable was alive, and very few things on this
earth could overcome him.
Yin Hanjiang was at peace just knowing that Wenren È was alive. As for
everything else, he didn’t want to remember right now.
There were three books placed by the bed, the first being Abusive
Romance.
Yin Hanjiang didn’t touch any of them. He grabbed for each of the inner
demons before him, and only after finding they each were formless illusions
did his heart settle. He didn’t feel like he could face these inner demons
right now. When he thought that his real Venerable could be hiding among
them, he felt uncomfortable all over.
In his years of following Wenren È, enduring had long become a habit. He

had cut loose excessively over the past few days and didn’t know how
much his Venerable had seen. Thinking about it, Yin Hanjiang tasted blood
in the back of his throat.
No, there were times in the dream when his Venerable could not be touched.
He couldn’t tell the real one apart from the inner demons by touching them.
Panicked, Yin Hanjiang looked at the illusions, who all looked back with
focused and tender gazes. Under all their eyes, Yin Hanjiang felt like he had
nowhere to hide, wishing he could vanish on the spot.
He grabbed his arms, clawing lines of blood across his skin, managing to
calm himself. He thought back to the events of last night.
Actually, his thoughts were muddled, and he only remembered that he had
lost control, and though his Venerable had said a lot to him, he didn’t
remember any of it. Aside from one sentence—”You read the wrong page,
you have to look at the revision”, which it seemed his Venerable had
repeated by his ear many times. After he calmed down from last night, he
had gradually grown to believe that Wenren È was alive. At the beginning,
his emotions were too strong, aggravating his inner demons, but now that
he had calmed down, he could face everything rationally. His grief had
faded away, replaced by joy.
Yin Hanjiang did his best to force a calm and reserved expression and
picked up Abusive Romance. A note fell out from within it: “I’m at Altar
Master Zhongli’s place, not among the inner demons.”
It was signed, “From Wenren È”
Yin Hanjiang instantly relaxed, his posture becoming more casual. He

leaned back on the bed with the book in his lap, and, thinking about how his
Venerable was alive and had already returned, joy flooded his heart and he
couldn’t keep from smiling.
“Does this Venerable’s return make you that happy?” said an inner demon,
leaning against the bed.
Yin Hanjiang didn’t look at it. He opened the book, beginning to read from
the first page.
The story had already been revised as to be unrecognizable, and the original
plot could only be gleaned from old comments, but Yin Hanjiang still
managed to find out from years-old comments and the unrevised portion
what the him in the book had done after his Venerable’s death. He had
really outdone his current self. When he thought that his Venerable had read
this book over forty years ago, Yin Hanjiang felt like lighting himself on
fire.
His qi roiled inside his body, and after only a bit he couldn’t go on. He shut
the book, reciting the Clear Mind Spell.
Fortunately, Wenren È wasn’t here and Yin Hanjiang was able to maintain
his composure. If it was like last night, he would probably lose his mind
again.
He was just reading a book, so if he couldn’t continue, he could pause for a

moment and take it slowly. After a while of controlling his breathing, he
was about to read on when he heard a knock at his door. Altar Master Shi’s
voice came from beyond it. “Sect Leader Yin, your subordinate has a report
to make, about Wenren È!”
Yin Hanjiang was going to ignore him, until he heard his Venerable’s name.
He ended up hiding the books and letting him in.
Shi Congxin walked to the desk, facing the frosty Sect Leader Yin. “Sect
Leader, this subordinate discovered last night that Sect Master Wenren
wasn’t dead! Cough cough cough!”
“Mhm,” Yin Hanjiang said.
Shi Congxin saw that Yin Hanjiang had no reaction, but thought of how
difficult it had been for him to work up the courage to come here. It was
time to make a stand. Zhongli Qian had already thrown in his lot with
Wenren È, and if Shi Congxin continued to follow the Lord of Demons, he
would have no future. He could only choose Yin Hanjiang.
Remembering Zhongli Qian, Qiu Congxue, Shu Yanyan, and Su Huai, who
had eyes on his position, Shi Congxin thought that he had been afraid for
his whole life, and ought to work up his courage for something. He said
boldly, “The Sect Leader may be unaware that Wenren È and Altar Master
Zhongli have acted against you last night, cough cough!”
“What’d you say?” A vicious light entered Yin Hanjiang’s eyes. If Shi
Congxin dared to slander his Venerable before him, his life was over.
Oblivious to Yin Hanjiang’s murderous intent, Shi Congxin continued,

“Last night, when the Lord ordered me to bring Yao Jiaping to Altar Master
Zhongli’s room, I saw him doing something to Sect Leader while you were
unconscious. Does the Sect Leader remember this?”
“No,” Yin Hanjiang said. Watching Shi Congxin’s sickly face, he reached
for his neck and placed his fingers against his arteries. “What did you see?”
“Cough cough cough! At the time, Wenren È’s hair blocked my sight, but I
could see that he must’ve been stealing your spiritual essence!”
He roughly described what he had seen through Wenren È’s hair. Gesturing
to his lips, he said, “He was stealing your spiritual essence through your
mouth. Sect Leader, you must check the Violet Palace of your dantian. He
may have done something underhanded, cough cough cough.”
“Cough cough cough!” It wasn’t Shi Congxin coughing this time, but Yin
Hanjiang.
After hearing Shi Congxin’s words, his face went bright red and he started
coughing furiously. He withdrew his hand from Shi Congxin’s neck in order
to cover his mouth.
Shi Congxin: …
Had he given his sickness qi to Sect Leader Yin? No, it couldn’t be, his
sickness qi had been stolen by Miss Baili, so that he had lost most of his
power and was barely even sick now, having to pretend to cough.
“This Lord understands,” Yin Hanjiang said after recovering. “You can go
now.”
Shi Congxin wanted to say more, but Yin Hanjiang had turned away and
was no longer looking at him. He could only leave dejectedly, but when he
was at the door, he heard Yin Hanjiang say, “Do you have any wood or
other material that can be made into a mask?”
“I do.” Shi Congxin took out a top-grade piece of underworld iron from his
storage item, something he was saving for crafting a bonded weapon when
he reached Mahayana.
“It doesn’t need to be so… whatever, you can go.” Yin Hanjiang took the
piece of iron and shooed Shi Congxin away.
Shaping it with his hands and the Burning Sky Drum’s fire, he very quickly
turned it into a ghost mask.
He put it on and, with his face covered, he felt his heart gradually calm.
This time, with sufficient mental preparation, he opened the book and
picked out scenes involving Wenren È to read. Baili Qingmiao’s time with
Hè Wenzhao at their sect and her thirty years of wandering had nothing to
do with him, so he skimmed over all of them.
In less than two hours, Yin Hanjiang had reached the last page of the
revision. He saw Wenren È standing by Baili Qingmiao’s bed as he said to
her, “What this Venerable needs you to hear is, Wenren È loves Yin
Hanjiang.”
He had heard these words last night, but with his thoughts in disarray, he
didn’t know whether he should believe it. More importantly, Yin Hanjiang
had been almost certain that Wenren È liked Baili Qingmiao at the time, and
in his confusion he had suffered qi deviation.
Now he had read the original story and comments and knew this was from
before the revision, and had never happened. He had also received Shi
Congxin’s report, and with the comforting presence of the mask on his face,
as he saw Wenren È say these words to Baili Qingmiao, his emotions were
different.
He held the mask, afraid of it falling, and read on with his heart pounding
wildly.
Baili Qingmiao said, trembling, “If Senior Wenren has romantic intentions
toward Sect Leader Yin, why not say it to him directly?”
With a bitter smile, Wenren È said, “He probably won’t believe me.”
Baili Qingmiao, thinking that Wenren È wanted to ask her about romantic
matters, spoke considerately after some thought. “It may be hard to convey
your true intentions through words. Often, actions will reassure someone
more. Like me… nevermind, I’m a bad example. None of my shixiong’s
actions could reassure me.”
“Your example could serve as a warning,” Wenren È said.
Baili Qingmiao instantly felt heartbroken. However, she was someone who
liked helping people, so recounted her experiences with her shixiong,
getting closer and closer to tears as she went on.
“This Venerable knows.” Wenren È nodded. “I’ll keep your experiences in

mind. That’s why I wanted to say it to you clearly, because I want him to
understand. Whether it’s the reserved Yin Hanjiang, or the reckless and
carefree Yin Hanjiang, this Venerable will love them both. Yin Hanjiang is
Yin Hanjiang. He need not hide himself.”
Reading these words, Yin Hanjiang felt like he was burning up inside. His
body had always been cold, which hadn’t been resolved even by the Snow
Flame. He knew it was the fault of his deep obsession and the inner demons
tormenting him. Yet reading this passage, his body felt hot, like his blood
was boiling underneath his skin.
He flipped on to the comments—
[Weird, in the original story, I was always scared of Yin Hanjiang, but why
do I think he’s kind of cute now? Using the protagonist’s dress to wipe his
sword and hands—does he think the little flower is a rag?]
[Better a rag than lamp oil. I also think he’s become a bit cute. Man, what
have I experienced over these years?]
[I’ve changed from an innocent little girl into a crazy woman, when I see a
psychotic freak I’m not just not scared, I want to say, eeeeeeek, be more
psycho!]
[Hello? Are you all still discussing the previous chapter? Go read the new
one immediately, this is major! In this Mary Sue romance story, the second
male lead confessed to the fourth to the female lead’s face!]
[What kind of crazy words are you saying. I’m reading immediately.]
[Just read the newest chapter, I went back to look at the work’s tags, and the
author hasn’t just revised, she changed the romance category from
“traditional” to “uncertain”.]
[What does uncertain mean?]
[It means anything is possible.]
[Hold on, how come you all are unshaken by Wenren È’s declaration of
love? Where’s the screaming? Where’s the rejection? Where’s the shock
that this story has become a danmei?]
[You haven’t seen the next thread over, huh? The one discussing the hidden
romantic threads in Abusive Romance‘s original and revised texts. They’ve
already analyzed everything thoroughly.]
[Back from reading it and I feel enlightened. So Yin Hanjiang liked Wenren
È ever since the original, and that’s why he went so crazy. I used to be
scared of him, but now all of a sudden I want to hug the poor thing.]
[It’s no longer considered the original and revised editions, it’s a different
life. Go check out the next thread, there’s even fanfiction of the two. If
you’re too slow, it’ll be deleted.]
[Back with a nosebleed. Yin Hanjiang being vicious to other people and
obedient in front of his master is so adorable, I’m here for more.]
[I can’t say what I want from the Demon Lord and his vicious little wolf, if
I say any more I’ll get reported.]
Yin Hanjiang: …

Wants to Know
Chapter 65 – A blow to the head
Within Wenren È’s room, Yin Hanjiang’s emotions were hidden behind his
mask.
His finger ran under the four words, “This Venerable is alive,” many times,
and gradually, a wild joy rose within him.
His memories were still chaotic, difficult to distinguish from fantasy, but
what he had seen last night told Yin Hanjiang that Wenren È was still alive,
and Shi Congxin said he’d seen him, and even this book which he took as
truth told him his Venerable still walked the earth.
This was more important than anything else, a thousand times more
important than whether or not his Venerable returned his love.
He wanted to see his Venerable immediately. Even though such fierce

emotions made the blood roil in his veins and strengthened his inner
demons, he didn’t care.
Yin Hanjiang picked up the note. Right, his Venerable said he was at
Zhongli Qian’s place. Clutching it in his hand, he flew to the meeting room
in the Main Hall, finding Zhongli Qian working on his own. Surrounding
him were four or five Wenren È’s, each holding the divine blood.
Seeing such a scene, Yin Hanjiang stopped in his tracks. Why were things
like this? He knew his Venerable was alive, but the inner demons would
hardly vanish so easily. He was now unable to tell which was the real
Wenren È.
Sensing Yin Hanjiang’s arrival, Zhongli Qian calmly left the meeting room,
giving the two their space.
His departure made Yin Hanjiang more anxious, though. Without anyone
around to help, he couldn’t distinguish the illusions.
At this point, one Wenren È spoke up. “This Venerable will be solid when
holding the divine blood.”
Yin Hanjiang rushed forward, gently clasping that man’s hand, and found it
could be touched.
“Venerable!” He got to one knee, his voice choked. “You’re still alive. I…”
For a moment, Yin Hanjiang was unable to speak. Blood welled up in the
back of his throat, but, not wanting his Venerable to notice, he swallowed it
back down.
He had neglected propriety last night. He absolutely could not let his
Venerable see him in such a state today.
Wenren È pulled him to his feet, saying solemnly, “Yin Hanjiang, I don’t
like to see you kneel.”
He slowly took off Yin Hanjiang’s mask. With a soft smile, he said, “Did
you see my words?”
“Yes—” Yin Hanjiang only got out one word before blood poured from his
mouth. He pressed a hand over it, but it dripped between his fingers.
“Yin Hanjiang!” Wenren È hadn’t expected their next meeting to go like

this. He assumed they could at least have contact normally, but Yin
Hanjiang was too good at repressing, and he nearly hadn’t noticed his pain.
He put a hand to Yin Hanjiang’s chest, pouring chaos energy into his body,
finding that his spiritual essence was a mess. He had treated him last night,
but their meeting today had hurt Yin Hanjiang further.
“Venerable, your subordinate is fine,” Yin Hanjiang said. “Your subordinate
is just happy, I…”
Seeing how he pushed himself, Wenren È quickly placed the mask back on
his face. With that barrier, Yin Hanjiang relaxed a bit.
He berated himself inside. It should be a joyful reunion, yet he…
“Don’t force yourself.” Wenren È placed a hand over Yin Hanjiang’s eyes,
so he no longer needed to look at him.
In the darkness, Yin Hanjiang heard Wenren È speak. “I was hasty

yesterday and damaged your foundation. If your mind is disrupted, it will
aggravate your inner demons. In this realm, you don’t have immortal
essence to sustain yourself, so if your inner demons are not resolved, your
recovery will be difficult.”
“This subordinate is useless,” Yin Hanjiang said, clenching his fists.
“Who says you’re useless?!” Wenren È said. “During this Venerable’s

departure, you’ve done very well. You subjugated the two Protectors and
four Altar Masters, gained their confidence, and kept Xuanyuan Sect from
falling into chaos. You also reformed the Message Carriers, uncovering
those with ill intentions toward Xuanyuan Sect. No one could’ve done
better than you.”
With his eyes covered, Yin Hanjiang didn’t need to distinguish Wenren È
from a crowd of illusions, and with the mask covering his face, his
expressions were hidden from Wenren È. These two shields helped him
settle his emotions. He spoke the question he was most concerned about.
“Venerable, why do you need the divine blood to solidify your body?”
Wenren È went roughly over his time in the Blood Hell. Yin Hanjiang
immediately understood. It was equivalent to those righteous cultivators
having destroyed Wenren È’s flesh body, so that without it, Wenren È could
only cultivate his soul. Even though absorbing the chaos energy had
increased his powers immensely, he was still inconvenienced.
Learning of Wenren È’s experiences over the past year and a half, Yin
Hanjiang’s hate for Hè Wenzhao deepened. Underneath the mask, his
expression grew twisted.
“The power of the divine blood must be saved for helping Baili Qingmiao
merge with the divine nature, so I cannot use it as I please. For a time, you
still need to manage Xuanyuan Sect. As for the matter of the Blood Demon,
you can do whatever you feel like,” Wenren È said.
From the soul communion last night, Wenren È knew Yin Hanjiang had a
lot of built-up frustration, having always lived in Wenren È’s shadow. If he
didn’t stand alone before others and gain confidence, he couldn’t overcome
his inner demons. He could only let Yin Hanjiang vent his feelings, for
which Hè Wenzhao and the Blood Demon were the best targets.
Hearing that Wenren È was relying on his protection, Yin Hanjiang

straightened up. Yes, he could not let the members of Xuanyuan Sect
discover his Venerable’s weakness. He must protect his Venerable!
Seeing Yin Hanjiang regain his spirit, Wenren È said, “Last night was an
urgent situation, so I had to use the soul communion technique to
temporarily calm your soul. This technique can only be used once in fifteen
days, and must be repeated several more times for you to fully recover. Are
you… willing for me to enter your soul again?”
“It is this subordinate’s privilege to have the Venerable expend his power to
save him, so how could I refuse?” Yin Hanjiang said.
Wenren È sighed lightly. “Yin Hanjiang,” he said helplessly, “I don’t want

you to call yourself a subordinate, or me Venerable.”
Yin Hanjiang froze. He was supposed to call Wenren È’s name directly?
How could he?
Wenren È didn’t want to pressure Yin Hanjiang. “It’s fine for now,” he said.
“If after your inner demons are cured, you continue to refer to me this way,
I won’t be happy.”
Wenren È knew Yin Hanjiang was tormented by not being able to tell him
apart from illusions, and also didn’t want him to see his more vicious side.
“I need to cultivate to stabilize my soul, so I’ll be at the spiritual spring for
the next few days. You can act on your own. When the time comes for the
next soul communion… or when you want to see me, come to the spiritual
spring.”
Of course, Yin Hanjiang wanted to see Wenren È at every possible moment,

but he knew he was in an unstable condition, and if he pushed himself, he
would cause his Venerable more trouble. He nodded, then felt a warmth in
one of his palms as it came into contact with something soft.
After gently kissing Yin Hanjiang’s palm, Wenren È took Abusive Romance
from his lapel and vanished.
After a long while, Yin Hanjiang slowly removed his mask. He stood alone
in the hall, his expression chilling, sometimes smiling and sometimes dark.
He thought about a lot of things, but also seemed to have thought nothing at
all. He walked up to a desk, which still held the information about the
Message Carriers that Zhongli Qian hadn’t had time to handle.
Yin Hanjiang had previously ordered the Message Carriers to investigate

the whereabouts of the scum who had slandered Xuanyuan Sect. Having
just gotten their ranks cleaned up by Yin Hanjiang, the Message Carriers
showed impressive work ethic and had sent reports about more than a dozen
people in just one day’s time. Yin Hanjiang picked up the list and left,
brushing past Zhongli Qian, who was standing in the doorway.
Zhongli Qian: …
Three days later, Yin Hanjiang returned, overflowing with murderous intent,
dragging a few righteous disciples behind him. He tossed them to Zhongli
Qian. “I’ve brought the people. Soon I’ll get Hè Wenzhao here too. You
come up with a way to lure out those experts. I’m going to unmask the
Blood Demon before the masses!”
” …Previously, Sect Leader gave me a month. Right now, only three days
have passed,” said Zhongli Qian. “Even if you’ve captured these disciples,
I’ll need time to control them, have them infiltrate their own sects, and
sabotage them from the inside.”
And he also needed to be Wenren È’s relationship coach, and act oblivious
even though he had already seen through everything—it was truly
exhausting. Yesterday, Shu Yanyan had dropped in and picked up a white
hair from the floor, distastefully saying that Crane-Haired Wanderer had
such a nice ring to it, but he better not become the No-Hair Wanderer.
After getting implanted with the heart-linking parasite along with Baili
Qingmiao, he’d sold himself to Xuanyuan Sect and gone too deep to pull
back.
He was respected in the Zhongli clan, with no one even daring to raise their
voice to his face and the scholarly guests also holding him in utmost
esteem. Yet in Xuanyuan Sect, he had been ordered left and right by the two
successive leaders and forced to bury his conscience in order to help clean
up the righteous sects, occasionally dealing with the Right Protector’s
flirting, getting a migraine looking after the Left Protector and her two
disciples, as well as being Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang’s relationship
counselor.
The strange thing was that he had no desire to escape, just dealing with the
headaches and accepting all these complicated tasks.
Perhaps in comparison to the hypocritical cultivation clans who acted noble

to your face and did lowly acts behind your back, he preferred these kinds
of straightforward and open attitudes.
“I’ve given the people to you,” Yin Hanjiang said. “If the Altar Masters and
Protectors don’t listen to your orders, come find this Lord. This task must
be completed soon. Don’t keep my Venerable waiting.”
Running a hand through his hair, Zhongli Qian agreed helplessly.

Yin Hanjiang went looking for Shi Congxin immediately after. Barging into
the Hellfire Pavilion, his vicious aura scared a flock of ghost cultivators into
hiding.
“Has Yao Jiaping been skinned?” he asked impatiently.
“Cough cough, yes, it’s done!” Shi Congxin offered up a neatly folded skin
with both hands, teaching the incantation to Yin Hanjiang.
Yin Hanjiang accepted the skin with distaste. Picking up Shi Congxin, he
returned to the main hall and dumped him in Baili Qingmiao’s bedroom.
“Take back her sickness qi. This Lord needs to bring her back to Shangqing
Sect, and she’ll be a hassle if she’s sick.”
Baili Qingmiao knew Yin Hanjiang wanted to use her as bait to lure out Hè
Wenzhao and said in a small voice, “I heard Brother Zhongli’s explanation.
It wasn’t shixiong trying to kill me that day, it was the Blood Demon
possessing his body. Can you possibly…”
Yin Hanjiang didn’t have the same patience toward Baili Qingmiao as
Wenren È. He grabbed her neck to prevent her from speaking, and said
threateningly, “It’s indisputable that Hè Wenzhao is colluding with the
Blood Demon. Even if he’s being used, heaven will place the karma on him.
If you don’t want to cooperate, this Lord can always break Shangqing
Sect’s wards and slaughter the whole sect. It’s your choice, the Shangqing
Sect or Hè Wenzhao.”
He tossed Baili Qingmiao aside, then, remembering how in the ending of

Abusive Romance, Baili Qingmiao dared to reject Wenren È, he suddenly
sneered. “You were willing to give up everything because Hè Wenzhao
taught you to value mortal lives. Now that those lives and Hè Wenzhao are
placed side by side, which will you choose, Baili Qingmiao?”
He was too blunt, directly giving her this question.
“I…” Baili Qingmiao opened and closed her mouth, but was unable to
answer.
“Does this warrant hesitation?” Yin Hanjiang said, looking at her intensely.
“If it were me, there could be no other answer besides my Venerable. Baili
Qingmiao, you claim to love Hè Wenzhao with all your heart, willing to
betray my Venerable’s kindness for him. Now it’s just the Shangqing Sect
against Hè Wenzhao, but you’re unable to decide? Do you actually love Hè
Wenzhao, or are you just intoxicated by the feeling of infatuation? Figure it
out!”
His words were like a blow to the head, reaching straight to Baili
Qingmiao’s heart.

Wants to Know
Chapter 66 – So-called fate
What awakened Baili Qingmiao wasn’t the choice between Hè Wenzhao

and mortal lives. She wasn’t like Yin Hanjiang. Yin Hanjiang could
disregard all other lives, but she had never been that kind of person.
The words that awakened her were “willing to give up everything”. She had
always used this to justify her feelings. Subconsciously, she thought that she
had given up so much for Hè Wenzhao, she’d been so good to him, she
loved him so much, so how could he treat her like this? It wasn’t fair.
But right now, she suddenly realized that it felt like she hadn’t done much
for Hè Wenzhao at all.
“Sect Leader Yin, why do you think that I’ve given up everything for my
shixiong?” she asked.
Yin Hanjiang answered, “You retrieved the Snow Flame—”
No, that wasn’t right. His Venerable had told him before that Baili
Qingmiao once retrieved the Snow Flame for Hè Wenzhao, but now it had
been given to Yin Hanjiang. The Shattered Mountain Meteorite had also
originally been obtained for Hè Wenzhao, but now it likewise belonged to
Yin Hanjiang.
The one who had gained so many things from Baili Qingmiao and his
Venerable was him.
Yin Hanjiang fell silent, watching Baili Qingmiao, the situation becoming a
bit awkward.
Yin Hanjiang didn’t care about other people’s lives and deaths, but for all
these years, he’d had no connections to anyone and, aside from his debt to
Wenren È for saving and raising him, he owed nothing to anyone else. But
now that he thought about it, he owed a debt to Baili Qingmiao through
Wenren È. At the very least, the Snow Flame had been obtained through her
nearly freezing to death.
Fortunately, Baili Qingmiao didn’t notice Yin Hanjiang’s change in attitude.

She held her head, shaking it a few times. “You also think I haven’t done
much for my shixiong? But how come I keep feeling like I love him so
much that I’ve given up so many things for him?”
“When shixiong’s foundation was destroyed, I did retrieve the Seven-

Colored Jade Lotus Heart, but in the end, I gave it to Liu-shijie. I clearly
know that his Nascent Soul was stolen by Protector Shu, but now I’m at
Xuanyuan Sect being looked after by Sister Shu, and if we’re not close,
we’re at least friendly with each other. After shixiong married Liu-shijie, I
left the sect and traveled the world with Brother Zhongli, Master Qingxue,
and Su Huai. At True Yin Mountain, I didn’t obtain the Lockheart Herb for
shixiong, but for the Sect Master.
“Even when I finally returned to Shangqing Sect, when shixiong asked me

to plot against Protector Qiu, I refused.”
Her eyes became more wild as she continued to talk, unable to comprehend.
Clawing her hair into a mess, she asked, “We’ve walked separate paths ever
since shixiong got married, and have hardly interacted even to today, so
why do I always feel like he betrayed me, and I can’t give up my feelings
toward him? If he betrayed anyone, it’s Liu-shijie.”
Yin Hanjiang was familiar with this feeling. Right up to the present, he had
felt an inexplicable urge to kill every time he saw Baili Qingmiao, feeling
like she had betrayed Wenren È’s love.
Seeing her in such a mess, Yin Hanjiang slowly pulled her sleeve over,
ripped off a piece, and used it to wipe nonexistent dust off the Army
Crushing Spike’s scabbard.
Every time he wanted to kill Baili Qingmiao, he used this to keep himself in
check.
Having gotten half her sleeve ripped off, Baili Qingmiao’s thoughts were
interrupted. She stared wordlessly at her tattered dress, not understanding
what enjoyment Yin Hanjiang got out of using her as a rag.
She coughed a few times and turned to Altar Master Shi, who was currently
looking at her greedily. She said a bit awkwardly, “Altar Master Shi, I don’t
know how to transfer sickness qi, so I must trouble you to do it yourself.
Don’t worry, I no longer wish to die. Thank you for your care.”
“Cough cough cough, I didn’t do anything for you, you took it yourself.”
With a few guilty coughs, Altar Master Shi walked up and placed a hand
against Baili Qingmiao’s back, retrieving the sickness qi he had spent so
many years cultivating.
After completing the transfer, he discovered that his power had increased.
Sickness qi was like spiritual essence and would diminish a lot every time it
was transferred. Altar Master Shi had been prepared to become weaker, but
his qi had actually strengthened.
After resting for so long, Baili Qingmiao’s injury had basically recovered,
so she only needed to find materials to create a new bonded weapon. She
had been constantly weak and passing out because of the sickness qi, so
now that it was given back, she perked up significantly, her thoughts also
becoming clearer.
“I’m willing to follow you to Shangqing Sect and lure out my shixiong,”
she said to Yin Hanjiang. “Not only that, but since Qing— Protector Qiu
has given me the tablet holding Liu-shijie’s spirit vow, I can order her to
help. But I have a condition.”
“Don’t bother,” Yin Hanjiang said, instantly letting her know there was no
way he would agree.
Baili Qingmiao was stubborn, however. She hadn’t been willing to set a trap
for Qiu Congxue for Shangqing Sect, and now that Yin Hanjiang wanted to
harm Shangqing Sect, she wasn’t willing either.
Even if Yin Hanjiang wouldn’t agree, she said it anyway. “Your ultimate
goal is the Blood Demon. I’ve already heard from Brother Zhongli that the
Blood Demon was the one who killed seventeen experts of the righteous
sects, and after he regains his power, he’ll be a threat to the whole
cultivation world. Us righteous cultivators cannot possibly allow such a
madman to threaten the cultivation world, let alone the mortal world.
Setting aside my personal feelings, Hè Wenzhao is probably ignorant and
being used by the Blood Demon. He is partly at fault, so can’t be considered
innocent in the whole matter.”
Her words were logical and actually made Yin Hanjiang see her in a new
light, so he held back his impatience and listened.
“That’s why I’m willing to go to Shangqing Sect and lure out Hè Wenzhao,
as well as the Blood Demon, but afterward, Hè Wenzhao must be given to
Shangqing Sect and the four other great sects to be judged publicly. We
can’t condemn him on our own.”
Yin Hanjiang even wanted to burn Baili Qingmiao, so how could he let off
Hè Wenzhao? But Baili Qingmiao’s thoughts happened to agree with his.
Yin Hanjiang wanted to clear his Venerable’s name and clearly show the
righteous cultivators just how blind they were, siding with evil and harming
the most just man in the world!
But after it was all exposed, Yin Hanjiang didn’t plan to let Hè Wenzhao
and the other cultivators who had participated in the attack go. He smiled
coldly at Baili Qingmiao, not telling her his thoughts. “Sure, he can be
judged by the public.”
“Sect Leader is generous,” Baili Qingmiao said, cupping a fist. “I’ll gladly
accompany you.”
Having gotten her cooperation, Yin Hanjiang planned to set out

immediately. Since Baili Qingmiao’s clothes were full of holes, she asked
Yin Hanjiang to wait while she changed into something other than a rag for
the Army Crushing Spike.
She had just put on the yellow uniform of the disciples of Shangqing Sect
when someone appeared before her. It was Wenren È.
“Senior Wenren.” She cupped a fist.
Wenren È had been caught by surprise by Baili Qingmiao’s decision as he

saw it through the Abusive Romance book. He was already prepared to
possess her if she refused so he could personally go to Shangqing Sect and
bait out Hè Wenzhao, but it was possible he would be seen through by the
Blood Demon, so it wasn’t an ideal plan. Now that Baili Qingmiao was
cooperating, Wenren È was relieved but also confused.
“This Venerable didn’t expect you to willingly help Xuanyuan Sect deal
with Hè Wenzhao,” he said. “I thought you would never be able to free
yourself from Hè Wenzhao for your entire life.”
Baili Qingmiao blushed slightly. In front of her senior who was a bit cold,
but had always taken care of her, she confided her thoughts. “I’m also
baffled. When I was eighteen, I felt like I could give my life for my
shixiong. After the Great Sect War, my heart ached every time I looked at
shixiong, and all I wanted to do was give my Nascent Soul to him. After
shixiong got married, I was in such agony, and if it weren’t for Brother
Zhongli’s help, I would’ve snuck back to Shangqing Sect to see him. If he
wasn’t happy with Liu-shijie, I might’ve even betrayed my principles and
offered myself to him, becoming a person I would despise.”
Wenren È found her analysis logical. The book’s Baili Qingmiao probably
would’ve, if it weren’t for the interference of the Violet Spirit Master,
already become part of Hè Wenzhao’s harem.
Her relationship with Hè Wenzhao was so hopelessly muddled, and she was
being influenced by the divine nature, so it was impossible for her to escape
this cursed relationship.
But everything was different now. In their thirty years of traveling together,
Zhongli Qian had taught Baili Qingmiao much, and Qiu Congxue…
might’ve helped slightly too.
After thinking for a moment, Baili Qingmiao said, “I’ve thought carefully
about what I felt when shixiong was wedded. Probably since I had my heart
set on him from the start, and also dedicated twenty years of my youth and
feelings to him, I was unwilling to give it up. But now, I’m almost seventy.
Even mortals would understand the ways of the world at that age. I’m not as
impulsive as I was in my youth and have gained some insight. With some
things and some people, the more you invest and commit to them, the more
you want to be repaid, and if you aren’t, you become unable to let go. But if
you let go early, then you’ll see that those things were only obsessions.
“Sect Leader Yin’s words weren’t completely correct, but one thing he said
was. After thinking carefully about my relationship with shixiong, I
suddenly feel like I don’t really love him very much. I was just attached to
sacrificing for someone, moved by the depths of my own love.
“Senior Wenren, please don’t laugh at me, but… I can’t even remember
why I wanted to die a year ago.”
Baili Qingmiao’s expression was calm. She had truly been awakened by Yin
Hanjiang’s words.
Wenren È smiled slightly, and thinking about the words he had just read in
Abusive Romance, said with some pride, “This Venerable has gone around
asking everyone he could find about your attachment to Hè Wenzhao, from
the members of Xuanyuan Sect to Zhongli Qian and Zhongli Kuang, even
digging through Yao Jiaping’s memories to no avail. Who would’ve
thought, that the one who most understood love was right by this
Venerable’s side?”
He had exhausted his efforts, even using the tracking curse and heart-
linking parasites, but never managed to wake up Baili Qingmiao. Yet Yin
Hanjiang had seen through everything.
Yin Hanjiang asked for nothing in return for his love. He didn’t need
Wenren È’s answer, just his survival. Even when the book’s Wenren È loved
Baili Qingmiao, he could endure his heartbreak and protect her.
And it was because of his experiences that he could see the source of Baili
Qingmiao’s problem at a glance. She was just attached.
“Baili Qingmiao.” Wenren È brought out the divine blood, holding it out to
Baili Qingmiao. “The debt this Venerable once owed you is now fully
repaid. Holding this, your mind won’t be affected by the divine nature, as
long as you don’t get too close to it. Keep it safe. From now on, you and I
have no more connection to each other.”
Baili Qingmiao received it, instantly feeling her body fill with power. The
stone transformed into a red silk ribbon, becoming her new bonded weapon.
She immediately sat down to meditate, circulating her spiritual essence to
refine her new magic item. Wenren È could clearly see that she was
practicing the Path of Indifference.
Wenren È once entered the Dao due to the war the primordial goddess had
started, gaining power to avenge his family. Because of his lingering
attachments, he had saved Yin Hanjiang, who had grown to love him. Baili
Qingmiao, in the clutches of her love, had been enlightened by a few words
from Yin Hanjiang, and had truly abandoned her infatuation and entered the
Dao.
So-called fate had long been decided in mysterious ways.

Wants to Know
Chapter 67 – New techniques
Baili Qingmiao said she was going to change, but Yin Hanjiang ended up
waiting outside her door for three days!
After waiting for an hour, Yin Hanjiang started to lose patience, pacing back
and forth outside. He wanted to throw the door open, but was concerned
Baili Qingmiao wouldn’t be dressed and he would see something.
Yin Hanjiang originally didn’t care about accidentally seeing a female body.
It was just a skin to him. Forget about bodies without clothes, he had seen
plenty of bodies without flesh in his life. Of the two Xuanyuan Sect
Protectors, one dressed skimpily and one found having flesh distasteful.
After knowing these two for so long, it was hard for Yin Hanjiang to have
any sense of modesty toward the opposite sex.
Just when he was about to kick the door open, Shu Yanyan, who had been
lazing around wherever for the past few days, rushed up and blocked Yin
Hanjiang’s kick with a smile, standing in front of the door.
“Don’t be so impatient, Sect Leader,” she said. “How can you barge in as
you like on a girl changing?” She looked unruffled on the surface, but on
the inside, she was cursing.
Wenren È had just sent her a message, saying that Baili Qingmiao had
entered meditation, and since Zhongli Qian was too busy and he really
didn’t want to bother him anymore, he needed her to come stop Yin
Hanjiang from barging in. If Baili Qingmiao was disturbed, the Path of
Indifference that she had finally enlightened to would be broken.
Wenren È wanted to go outside and explain himself, but Yin Hanjiang
would suffer internal injuries if he saw him. Plus, even the perpetually
oblivious Wenren È had learned to be a bit more considerate after causing
his lover to cough up blood and nearly die upon confessing to him, and
realized that if he emerged from Baili Qingmiao’s room, Yin Hanjiang
might be affected by the original plot’s events and his thoughts might go to
wild places.
So he had asked Shu Yanyan, who was closest to Qiu Congxue’s rooms, to
come help him. As for why it wasn’t Qiu Congxue, who was even closer…
did that warrant explanation?
When Shu Yanyan visited Zhongli Qian a few days earlier and picked up a
strand of his hair from the floor, she had known Wenren È was back and
had left Yin Hanjiang still in charge of the sect. Wenren È’s presence itself
had the ability to keep Xuanyuan Sect in line, so she instantly realized she
now had two bosses instead of one, feeling a hint of dismay in her heart.
Most importantly, this time Wenren È specified that Shu Yanyan couldn’t
mention this was on his orders, so Shu Yanyan was in an even more difficult
position. She was starting to understand how Zhongli Qian, as a Mahayana
cultivator, could be losing hair.
Brushing a hand over her head of luxuriant black hair, Shu Yanyan smiled
at him, saying softly, “Ah, Sect Leader Yin, you may be strong, but your
understanding of what men like and what they think about is rather
lacking.”
She walked near, leaning toward his ear and whispering, “If you barge in
and see Baili Qingmiao improperly dressed, do you think the Venerable will
be happy?”
Shu Yanyan thought Yin Hanjiang would realize, but he gave the door a
disdainful glance and, raising his head, said haughtily, “The Venerable
doesn’t like Baili Qingmiao.”
Shu Yanyan: …
She was realizing that she had overestimated Yin Hanjiang. Seeing him
glance at her smugly and turn to kick the door again, she hurried to stop
him. Though gritted teeth, she transmitted, “Of course I know who the
Venerable likes, but the problem isn’t you seeing Baili Qingmiao changing,
it’s you seeing anyone besides Wenren È changing, whether male or
female!”
Yin Hanjiang’s foot was already against the door, prepared to bring down
the whole room, but when he heard Shu Yanyan’s words, his face
immediately turned red. Very slowly, he drew back his foot. Stiffening his
face and raising his chin, he looked down on her as he transmitted.
“Protector Shu, as one of this sect’s pillars, what… do you say I should do
in this situation?”
Shu Yanyan rolled her eyes inwardly, but she was outwardly respectful as
she spoke. “Why don’t I go in and take a look, and ask Baili Qingmiao to
hurry up? That’s what a subordinate should be for, right?”
“Yeah.” Yin Hanjiang put his hands behind his back, turning calmly so Shu
Yanyan could act.
Shu Yanyan entered, turned in a circle, and came back out. “Baili Qingmiao
has entered a trance.”
” …She can enter a trance by changing clothes?” Yin Hanjiang said.
“How would I know? If you just barge in, she might have a qi deviation. If
Sect Leader is impatient…”
She thought back to her meeting with Wenren È in his room. Wenren È
wanted her to talk Yin Hanjiang around and ask him not to be impatient, but
she mustn’t provoke him, in case he had another qi deviation.
Shu Yanyan finally understood why someone like Zhongli Qian, who was
usually as unfettered as a breeze, had been looking more haggard recently.
She originally thought there wasn’t anything that could stump someone so
smart as Zhongli Qian. But facing this dilemma, she realized there truly
was.
They were pressured by two tyrants. Wenren È wanted her to talk around
Yin Hanjiang, but also wanted her to be careful, use a delicate touch, not
aggravate him. He was only considerate toward Yin Hanjiang. He didn’t
think about whether, when Sect Leader Yin disciplined her, he used a
delicate touch!
Good thing she was Shu Yanyan, having once served the old Sect Master,
then Wenren È, and now Yin Hanjiang. Seeing Yin Hanjiang’s expression
was growing darker, she smiled even more sweetly and transmitted, “If Sect
Leader Yin is impatient, why don’t you use this time to learn some new
techniques?”
“This Lord has already passed his tribulation, so what technique of the
cultivation world could be of use to me?” Yin Hanjiang said coldly.
“Don’t be so sure. How about…” Shu Yanyan leaned closer to Yin Hanjiang
and made a very recognizable shape with her mouth.
Yin Hanjiang’s skin was pale and his emotions showed easily on his face.
His blush which had just faded reappeared instantly. He turned with a flap
of his sleeve, hiding his face, and when Shu Yanyan could next see it
clearly, he was wearing a mask.
“This Lord may already be powerful, but there’s nothing wrong with
learning a few more techniques,” he said. Underneath the mask, his voice
was steady. “Baili Qingmiao needs to meditate alone for a while anyway, so
this Lord might as well see if he can pass the time with your techniques.”
Shu Yanyan: …
Keep pretending! This Protector has so many techniques you won’t be able
to learn them in a year! I won’t just teach them to you, I’ll teach them to
Wenren È, and after you seclude yourselves together for thirty or fifty years,
Xuanyuan Sect will belong to me!
After cussing him out mentally, Shu Yanyan, her expression still perfectly
deferent, invited Yin Hanjiang to her cultivation grounds where she
instructed him in her techniques for three full days.
Baili Qingmiao had already laid down the foundations of the Path of
Indifference. She was just taken advantage of by the divine nature every
time she underwent a tribulation, having the principles she’d just
enlightened to suppressed. With the help of the divine blood, as well as
Wenren È, Yin Hanjiang, Qiu Congxue, and Zhongli Qian, she
comprehended everything in a flash. She enlightened to great principles
after three days, and signs of her enlightenment remained in her eyes after
she left her trance. She had advanced directly to Void Boundary stage, just
one step away from Mahayana.
“Looking at you, it seems the tribulation to advance from Body Unity to

Void Boundary had no effect on you,” Wenren È said, pleased.
“Thanks to Senior Wenren’s guidance, my heart is now as still water,” Baili

Qingmiao said calmly.
“Then this Venerable has another favor to ask,” Wenren È said. “While you
go to Shangqing Sect, this Venerable wishes to borrow your body to enter
along with you.”
Yin Hanjiang was afflicted by inner demons. He might be powerful, but the
Shangqing Sect had their Moon Pool Bell and the Blood Demon, so Wenren
È was afraid complications might arise somewhere along the way. He
wasn’t at ease with Yin Hanjiang going alone, yet if they were face to face,
Yin Hanjiang would be tormented by being unable to tell him apart from the
illusions. With all that in mind, the best way was possessing Baili
Qingmiao’s body to follow Yin Hanjiang. If anything went wrong, he could
help out secretly.
In the past, Baili Qingmiao would’ve never agreed. It was hard enough for
her to act against Hè Wenzhao, let alone allow Wenren È to use her body.
Her thoughts were different now, however. Hè Wenzhao was an obstacle in

the way of her Path of Indifference. After so much trouble, she’d finally
enlightened to this path, so it would be bad if she saw him again and slipped
into old mistakes. With this plan, Senior Wenren could be reassured and she
could keep her heart from being shaken, so it was the perfect method.
“There’s naturally no issue. In fact, I should thank my senior.”
Wenren È’s possession technique no longer worked the same way as a

blood cultivator’s. He had already taken advantage of the Blood Demon’s
attack to escape the body of a blood cultivator, and now his soul was
composed of chaos energy. The primordial chaos was the only force in the
universe before the separation of heaven and earth, so all material things
originated from it. He could meld with anything without a trace,
undetectable to a degree the Blood Demon wasn’t capable of.
Thus the one who walked out of the room wasn’t Baili Qingmiao, but
Wenren È wearing her body. He knew Yin Hanjiang still bore a grudge
about the events of the original plot, so decided not to tell him that he was
possessing Baili Qingmiao. They would just take a trip to Shangqing Sect
and come back, so he didn’t need to reveal himself.
Yin Hanjiang had already returned after completing Shu Yanyan’s tutelage.
With great effort, he suppressed the blush on his face with his spiritual
energy and took off his mask, saying coldly to Baili Qingmiao, “You sure
have wasted this Lord’s time and made him wait for you. Hurry up and get
going. The faster we get there, the faster we’re back.”
He put on Yao Jiaping’s skin and flew off without another word to Baili
Qingmiao.
Wenren È wasn’t good at impersonating other people in the first place, so

seeing that Yin Hanjiang didn’t need an answer, followed in silence.
Yin Hanjiang could bring Baili Qingmiao along as he flew, but after
learning Shu Yanyan’s techniques, he had some aversion to touching others’
skin. For example, when Yin Hanjiang used to kill people, he had no
problem with grabbing their necks or ripping out their hearts with his bare
hands, but after knowing about some of these techniques, when Yin
Hanjiang attacked people in the future, he might wrap ropes around their
necks or stab them in the heart with a weapon, preferring to have a barrier.
If you wanted to take someone along in a light flash, you would wrap them
in your body, or in sword flight, Baili Qingmiao would have to sit on the
Army Crushing Spike, and Yin Hanjiang didn’t want either. He could only
go on ahead and wait for Baili Qingmiao to slowly catch up.
Wenren È’s light flash was quick, but if he was pretending to be Baili
Qingmiao, he couldn’t go at those kinds of speeds. At Void Boundary, it
would take her half a day to get from Xuanyuan Sect to Shangqing Sect,
and he couldn’t bring out the Iridescent Blood Flame Silk that she had
refined from the divine blood either, because the divine blood would cause
Wenren È to gain a material form and be unable to possess her.
He could only fly slowly, curbing his speed. Seeing Yin Hanjiang disappear
into the distance, he thought this wasn’t the way he had wanted to
accompany him.
After flying for about two hours, he saw Yin Hanjiang, in the shape of Yao
Jiaping, come flying back. Furiously, he said, “You’re too slow! This Lord
has waited at the teahouse for an hour!”
Wenren È was trying to think of an explanation, when he saw Yin Hanjiang

remove from his silver storage belt a heavenly silk rope. It could change
length at will and was used for capturing people in Xuanyuan Sect. Yin
Hanjiang had previously dragged back the dozen or so scum of the
righteous sects, all wrapped up in this rope.
“Hold—” Baili Qingmiao had just opened her mouth when Yin Hanjiang
wrapped her into a bundle so that no skin showed. He lifted her over his
shoulders, heading back to Shangqing Sect.
After they arrived, Yin Hanjiang retrieved the rope with a cold huff and
dropped Baili Qingmiao.
Wenren È turned cleanly in midair and managed not to faceplant. After

landing solidly on both feet, he said to Yin Hanjiang, “You could’ve just
taken me on your sword. What was the need for that?”
“This Lord shouldn’t have close contact with you.” Yin Hanjiang gave Baili
Qingmiao a cold look. “Don’t expect this Lord to embrace you the whole
way.”
“You—” Wenren È wanted to speak, but remembered how in the original
story, he was always described as carrying Baili Qingmiao in his embrace
the whole way as he flew—that was a direct quote.
Yin Hanjiang seemed to still have problems with the original story.
Wenren È thought Yin Hanjiang didn’t like how he loved Baili Qingmiao in
the original book, so treated her poorly, but he didn’t know that Yin
Hanjiang was furious about something different. His Venerable had treated
Baili Qingmiao so well, yet all she’d thought about was Hè Wenzhao. She
was worthless!
The person his heart was devoted to had been discarded like an old shoe, so
how could he not be furious?
So now, even though those events had never happened, and could never
possibly happen, Yin Hanjiang still felt… an indescribable distaste toward
Baili Qingmiao.
With a cold huff, he used a cleaning spell on his hands, then grabbed Baili
Qingmiao’s sleeve to wipe them.
Wenren È: …
After they reached Shangqing Sect, Yin Hanjiang restrained himself a bit.
After all, he was supposed to be Yao Jiaping.
Before Yao Jiaping departed, Hè Wenzhao had given him a messaging

talisman. After he rescued Baili Qingmiao and returned to Shangqing Sect,
all Yao Jiaping needed to do was snap it, and Hè Wenzhao would open the
wards and welcome them in.
Yin Hanjiang snapped the talisman. Hè Wenzhao, upon seeing it really was
Yao Jiaping and Baili Qingmiao outside the wards, opened it
enthusiastically and invited them in. After thanking Yao Jiaping, he threw
his arms around Baili Qingmiao, saying, “Shimei, I didn’t want to hurt
you…”
Before he could finish, Yao Jiaping kicked him off.
After kicking him, Yin Hanjiang shot a look at Baili Qingmiao, thinking,
after you rejected my Venerable, you let this thing hug you?
Wenren È: …

Wants to Know
Chapter 68 – Treasure trove
Yin Hanjiang had kicked him hard. He restrained his power a bit, as Yao
Jiaping was a wandering immortal, so he had to act the part. He didn’t
really put his heart into the act, though.
Hè Wenzhao was only at Void Boundary, though, and with his guard
completely down, there was no way he could withstand an attack with the
full force of a wandering immortal. If the Blood Demon hadn’t used
spiritual energy to protect him, Yin Hanjiang’s kick might’ve destroyed his
organs. The Blood Demon did treasure Hè Wenzhao as a host with the
potential to ascend, so that he could absorb more powerful people in the
immortal realm.
“What are you doing?!” Hè Wenzhao said, climbing back to his feet.
He was close friends with Yao Jiaping. Yao Jiaping had previously saved
the Sect Master, and later, touched by Hè Wenzhao’s feelings toward Baili
Qingmiao, agreed to infiltrate Xuanyuan Sect to rescue her. Yao Jiaping’s
eccentricities were well-known across the cultivation world, but he had
always been loyal to Hè Wenzhao. Hè Wenzhao had never been treated like
this before and was furious.
It was too much to ask for Yin Hanjiang to act like Yao Jiaping.
Impersonation just wasn’t in his nature. Fortunately, after reading God of
Annihilation: Volume 2, he had learned Yao Jiaping’s catchphrases and
manner of speaking, so he recited a line from the book. “Oh, I just can’t
stand seeing you two act so lovey-dovey with each other.”
Yao Jiaping was this kind of twisted person in the book. Every time a pair
of lovers begged for his help, he would give them a particularly bad time.
He would give them two choices, either for the woman to give her body to
him, or for them to give up what was most important. Back when Baili
Qingmiao brought Su Huai to him, he wanted her to give over her Nascent
Soul or her body. When Hè Wenzhao was traveling, he had also brought the
Gongxi mistress to him.
He told him clearly that he and the Gongxi mistress were only
acquaintances, and also couldn’t let him take a maiden’s innocence, so
agreed to become a test subject for Yao Jiaping.
After saving the Gongxi mistress, Yao Jiaping tormented Hè Wenzhao for a
good month. Hè Wenzhao grit his teeth and bore it the whole time, even
getting lucky and achieving a breakthrough, increasing his cultivation
because of the medicines Yao Jiaping tested on him. Yao Jiaping’s interest
in Hè Wenzhao was piqued, and he was also touched by his chivalry, so
they became good friends.
Hè Wenzhao got to know Yao Jiaping during Baili Qingmiao’s thirty year
absence, and they’d been friends for twenty years by now. He never
would’ve imagined that Yao Jiaping would one day say the same words to
him as he did to cultivators he didn’t like.
Remembering Yao Jiaping’s habits, he immediately turned to Baili

Qingmiao and said, “Shimei, he didn’t do anything to you, did he?”
Thinking about the fees that Yao Jiaping took for his treatment, he saw how
healthy Baili Qingmiao looked. She’d been injured so badly at the Blood
Hell, yet now she’s recovered perfectly…
A very unpleasant notion came to Hè Wenzhao’s mind. His face turning

pale, he stumbled a few steps back, shaking his head. “No, this can’t be.”
Yin Hanjiang didn’t care about where Hè Wenzhao’s thoughts went. He

came here for one purpose—capturing Hè Wenzhao. Right now, they were
right next to the sect array and Hè Wenzhao was alone, so as long as they
subdued the Blood Demon, they could carry him right off. Sect arrays were
difficult to enter but easy to leave, so no one would be able to stop him and
“Baili Qingmiao”.
Yin Hanjiang had no interest in entangling himself within Baili Qingmiao
and Hè Wenzhao’s relationship. He wanted to grab Hè Wenzhao and leave
as soon as possible, so he could be back sooner for his next Soul
Communion.
The Army Crushing Spike’s power might not be enough to instantly subdue
the Blood Demon, so he would need to bring out the Burning Sky Drum.
The illusions Yin Hanjiang was seeing were caused not only by his inner
demons, but also the Burning Sky Drum. The inner demons were only
capable of disrupting Yin Hanjiang’s rationality. It was the Burning Sky
Drum which made them manifest as phantoms.
Using a top-grade immortal artifact without sufficient power, it was natural

that one would suffer backlash. Yin Hanjiang assessed the backlash the
Burning Sky Drum would cause and decided he could handle it, so opened
his hands secretly, forming the seals to control the drum inside his sleeves.
At that moment, the Shangqing Sect Master arrived and, upon seeing Yao
Jiaping, greeted him enthusiastically. “When I saw Wenzhao open the sect
array, I guessed it was for Sir Yao’s return. Sir Yao’s timing is flawless.
Please, come this way.”
Upon seeing the Sect Master, the skin over Yin Hanjiang’s face twitched.
His two enemies were both before him. He was wildly delighted, nearly
unable to keep the skin he wore in place.
Wenren È quickly grabbed Yin Hanjiang’s hand, afraid he would act

without thinking. Back when he infiltrated Shangqing Sect last time, using
Liu Xinye’s body, he could endure it and hold back his disgust to meet Hè
Wenzhao. If Hè Wenzhao was alone here, he and Yin Hanjiang could just
work together to capture him and leave quickly.
But now the Sect Master had arrived, and they were in enemy territory and
didn’t know how many cards the Shangqing Sect had up their sleeves, so
they couldn’t act recklessly at this time.
Seeing “Baili Qingmiao” voluntarily reach for “Yao Jiaping’s” hand, Hè

Wenzhao was so mad he nearly bled from the eyes. Yet Yao Jiaping threw
her hand off, glancing at her haughtily and reciting another line from God of
Annihilation 2. “You think you could possibly be equal to my Xiao Yi?”
At the same time, he transmitted, “I know what you meant. This Lord has
other uses for the Shangqing Sect Master, so this isn’t a suitable time to
wipe both out at once.”
He took a deep breath and, managing to calm down, stiffened his expression
and looked at the Sect Master. “Seeing as you’re so anxious, I assume you
have a patient for me?”
“Yes, precisely.” The Sect Master paid no mind to the strained atmosphere
between Baili Qingmiao, Yao Jiaping, and Hè Wenzhao. He felt ashamed
for his actions toward Baili Qingmiao and didn’t want to involve himself in
his juniors’ relationships, so he could only play blind. He said to Yao
Jiaping, “Shangqing Sect already owes an immeasurable debt to Sir Yao for
rescuing one of its disciples from Xuanyuan Sect, so we’re really not in a
position to ask more favors, but Qingyue’s life is in danger right now! No
one but Sir Yao could save him! No matter whether or not you succeed, as
long as you’re willing to help him, Shangqing Sect will go through heaven
and hell to carry out any request of Sir Yao’s in the future, as long as it
doesn’t betray our principles.”
Yin Hanjiang raised an eyebrow slightly. Forget the future, he would have a
request for Shangqing Sect very soon, and they would neither have to
betray their principles nor go through heaven and hell—it was a very minor
request.
In that case, there was no reason he couldn’t fool around for a while.
Yin Hanjiang nodded. “Sure. Take me there.”
He sat obediently on a flying boat with the Sect Master, Baili Qingmiao
following close behind. Seeing his shimei follow Yao Jiaping everywhere
without even sparing him a glance, Hè Wenzhao was so mad he nearly gave
himself internal injuries.
The Sect Master gave Hè Wenzhao a look of warning. “Hurry up.”

His disciple was good in every way, just he was too free with women. He
was perfectly aware of how, though Hè Wenzhao was married to Liu Xinye,
he acted heartfelt with the Gongxi mistress, was close with several of his
shimei, and still had his heart set on Baili Qingmiao.
If he hadn’t kept all those women happy and prevented any trouble from
starting, as well as being strong enough to be Shangqing Sect’s future pillar,
the Sect Master would’ve long since reprimanded him.
Right now, he could only look the other way.
The Shangqing Sect owed a debt to Yao Jiaping, who had once treated the
Sect Master and now was being asked to treat Elder Qingyue, so how could
Hè Wenzhao antagonise him over a woman?
With his master’s admonishment, Hè Wenzhao held back his dissatisfaction,

clenching his fists and swearing he wouldn’t forget how Yao Jiaping stole
his girl. After this treatment was done, he was going to confront him.
Promising to rescue his beloved, and then ending up with her—how was
that good brotherly behavior? He and his shimei were childhood
sweethearts, having grown up together, so how could Yao Jiaping get
between them?
Yin Hanjiang obviously didn’t know medicine. He planned to just play

along, though he did know what kind of injury this Qingyue had sustained.
Coming to a side room, he glanced at Elder Qingyue, with white hair and
his face covered with wrinkles and age spots, and pretended to take his
pulse as the Sect Master explained everything to him. “A year and a half
ago, during the battle at the Blood Hell, the new Sect Leader of Xuanyuan
Sect threw away his life and faced a heavenly tribulation to use an immortal
artifact, chasing Wenzhao and I back to the sect. We made it behind the
wards in time, but that man tried to use the Burning Sky Drum to break the
array. In order to protect Shangqing Sect, Qingyue-shidi used our defensive
immortal artifact, the Moon Pool Bell, having his spiritual essence drained
and suffering backlash. Now he’s suffering the five declines, and though
we’ve used elixirs and medicines to prolong his life, it’s no longer enough
and his life is about to burn out.”
So it was him who had gotten in Yin Hanjiang’s way that day… Yin
Hanjiang looked down at Qingyue’s face, thinking karma worked in
mysterious ways. About to burn out? Don’t worry, he would make him burn
very brightly indeed, once he turned him into lamp oil.
This trip to Shangqing Sect felt like entering a treasure trove. Everyone he
ran into was someone he bore a grudge against—it was simply too lucky.
The skin on “Yao Jiaping’s” face twisted again. It looked as if the muscles
underneath were smiling while the skin didn’t move, creating a chilling
effect.
Seeing his expression, the Sect Master became anxious. “It can’t be that not
even Sir Yao can treat this? Oh, shidi, your shixiong has harmed you!”
In order to display the dignity of a Sect Master, he purposefully appeared

like a middle-aged man, with black hair and a long beard like a poor
official, a popular look in the mortal world. Tears fell from his eyes as he
kneeled at Qingyue’s side, silently sobbing.
Baili Qingmiao took a glance at Qingyue and transmitted to Yin Hanjiang,

“There’s a way.”
Since Wenren È was using Baili Qingmiao’s body to send the transmission,
the voice was still Baili Qingmiao’s. He had previously taken in Yao
Jiaping’s memories, so he knew there was a cure. “A Mahayana cultivator
must be willing to transfer over all of their spiritual essence, after which
elixirs are administered, capable of returning the patient to Body Unity.
However, they will always remain at Body Unity, and never be able to
advance. There’s also a second method, finding the Five Aggregates Herb.
The five declines affect all beings, from ascended gods to the smallest
insects, and all things are destined to undergo this trial aside from the
primordial gods, born with the cosmos. Cultivation is only able to delay this
fate. Only the Five Aggregates Herb, nurtured by the heavens and earth, can
treat the five declines, but that’s a treasure of the divine realm and many
ascended gods want to get their hands on it.”
Yin Hanjiang gave Baili Qingmiao a look. What use was there in
mentioning something they couldn’t get?
“I have it,” Baili Qingmiao transmitted.
In the original plot, Baili Qingmiao stumbled into a small primordial realm
and obtained it, naturally giving it to Hè Wenzhao. The Five Aggregates
Herb was drawn to her primordial divinity, so this time, even though Hè
Wenzhao didn’t need it, she still found it in her thirty years of travel. She,
Zhongli Qian, Qiu Congxue, and Su Huai were all unable to identify it, only
knowing it was something belonging to the divine realm, so they had kept it
hidden all this time.
“Don’t ruin my plans,” Yin Hanjiang transmitted.
He turned to look at Shangqing Sect’s only Mahayana cultivator, the Sect

Master, and smiled pleasantly. “There’s a way.”
He never mentioned the Five Aggregates Herb, only saying the first
method. He then said, “I can teach you the transfer method and refine the
supplemental elixirs for you. Whether or not you want to trade a Mahayana
cultivator for a Body Unity one who will never advance and still experience
the five declines after five hundred years, that’s up to you.”
“This…” The Shangqing Sect Master was shaken. “Isn’t there any other
way?”
“Even ascended gods can’t avoid the five declines, so what can I as a
wandering immortal do?” Yin Hanjiang sat casually in a chair and gave the
Sect Master an uncaring look. “It’s your decision whether or not you want
to save him.
“As for my fee, no need to wait for the future.” Yin Hanjiang glanced at Hè
Wenzhao and smiled gleefully. After putting on a glove, he grabbed the
back of Baili Qingmiao’s neck and addressed Hè Wenzhao, “How about
giving her to me?”

Wants to Know
Chapter 69 – Beset by rumors
A lofty position as an elite healer, contempt for others, so-called dedication

to his Xiao Yi, and disdain for other women made up the character of Yao
Jiaping. Yin Hanjiang wasn’t a particularly good actor, but along with
Wenren È transmitting treatments to him, he could play the part well
enough.
Seeing how Baili Qingmiao still acted so docile even though Yao Jiaping
was grabbing her, Hè Wenzhao was trembling in rage. Pointing a finger at
Yao Jiaping, he said, “I can’t believe, that after I treated you as a good
friend and sworn brother, you would do this to me! Plus, your heart is stuck
on your Xiao Yi, so what do you want my shimei for?”
“Oh,” Yin Hanjiang said slowly, enjoying Hè Wenzhao’s expression. He

grabbed Baili Qingmiao’s dress and used it to wipe the hand he had just
touched Elder Qingyue with. “This woman might be suited for being a rag.”
“Shimei! Are you happy being treated like this?” Hè Wenzhao shouted at
Baili Qingmiao.
If it was Shu Yanyan playing the part, at this point she would probably be
crying, unable to speak, putting on a no-holds-barred performance of a
purehearted girl forced to dishonor herself for the sake of her sect. Too bad
it was Wenren È here, though. Watching Yin Hanjiang play the part of Yao
Jiaping, he was seeing another side of the man.
He was no longer grieving, but still as unrestrained.
So this was Yin Hanjiang’s true nature. He… truly wasn’t suited to be a
sword cultivator. A sword cultivator needed to be bold in the beginning and
reserved later on, until they reached the point of being a sword in of
themselves, so that a blade was hidden in their every move and glance. Yin
Hanjiang was only bold, so he had advanced quickly through the earlier
stages, but became stuck at Void Boundary. Yet when he gave up the sword,
he instantly broke through to the peak of Mahayana.
Wenren È simultaneously thought that he had gotten in the way of Yin

Hanjiang’s growth, and felt this was quite a refreshing sight. Seeing how
Yin Hanjiang put on a glove to grab Baili Qingmiao’s neck, he seemed so
polite and cute, so how could Wenren È put up an act of being coerced?
Wenren È could only raise a sleeve to block the smile that he couldn’t hold
back, turning his head aside and acting too ashamed to let Hè Wenzhao see
his face, even though he was grinning inside.
He barely managed to stay in character. Hè Wenzhao believed that Baili

Qingmiao had been broken after being abused, thinking she was unworthy
of him and unable to look directly at him.
“Yao Jiaping, this marks the end of our—”
Before Hè Wenzhao could finish, the Sect Master moved before him with a
flap of his sleeves and bowed to Yao Jiaping. “My shidi sustained this
injury while saving Wenzhao and me, so I must repay him. Even if I can
only give him five hundred years of life, he might yet find opportunities to
advance. As the only Mahayana cultivator of Shangqing Sect, naturally it
falls to me to save my shidi.”
The Sect Master looked at Baili Qingmiao, and after a moment of thought,
said, “As for Sir Yao’s fee, in my humble opinion, Baili Qingmiao is
unacceptable. She is a disciple of Shangqing Sect, and even if she has gone
down the wrong path before, Shangqing Sect cannot give her away like an
object. I’ve watched Baili Qingmiao grow up. She’s a kind and pure-hearted
girl, and even if she’s a bit gullible, she would never do anything immoral.
If Sir Yao needs a test subject or a rag, this lowly Daoist will do his best,
but Baili Qingmiao cannot be given to you.”
Hearing his words, Yin Hanjiang and Wenren È sobered up again. Yin
Hanjiang was naturally dark and a bit vicious, but he had been influenced
by Wenren È since his youth, and approved of people who could give their
own lives to protect others. Of course, if he didn’t know Wenren È was still
alive, he wouldn’t have shown any mercy no matter how much he approved
of someone. Knowing of Wenren È’s survival had mellowed out Yin
Hanjiang a lot.
He stood up. “What use is a Foundation Establishment test subject? And

why would I need Baili Qingmiao—it’s not like I don’t have rags. It was
just a joke. As for my fee… we can talk after the treatment.”
Yin Hanjiang wrote down the transfer method and the medicinal
prescription. The medicinal ingredients were common, so Shangqing Sect’s
stocks had plenty of them. They could start refining the elixirs anytime, but
it would take three to five days to finish, during which “Yao Jiaping”
needed to look after it. Yin Hanjiang naturally knew nothing about refining
elixirs. “Baili Qingmiao” had written the prescription, so he made Baili
Qingmiao his assistant, helping him fan fires.
The Sect Master, after receiving the technique and prescription, treated
them like treasures. He sat at Qingyue’s bedside, saying with joyful tears,
“Shidi, there’s hope for you!”
“Shixiong…” Elder Qingyue reached out a hand, powerlessly grabbing the

prescription and trying to tear it. “You can’t do this. You have hope for
ascending. You mustn’t waste your gifts on me. Plus, the sect still needs
you.”
The Sect Master said resolutely, “Shidi, some exchanges can’t be weighed
in terms of value. It’s my wish to save you. Even if I’ll fall to the
Foundation Establishment stage and my future cultivation will be arduous,
it won’t be impossible. As for the sect, Wenzhao has already grown up, and
I can rest easy leaving it to him.”
“Yao Jiaping” watched uncaringly at one side. The flesh underneath his skin
twitched once, his expression dark.
Qingyue needed to take some medicines before he could withstand the
transfer technique, so Yao Jiaping would be spending the next few days
making elixirs. He forbade other people from entering and set up an array
outside the room, shutting himself in with Baili Qingmiao.
Many rumors about Baili Qingmiao had already spread through the sect.
After returning to his room, Hè Wenzhao had cussed out Yao Jiaping, which
was overheard by Liu Xinye. She proceeded to spread the news around
about Baili Qingmiao and Yao Jiaping within the sect, saying she had not
only taken the Xuanyuan Sect Protector Qiu Congxue as master, but had
also learned the art of plucking and replenishing from Right Protector Shu
Yanyan and dual cultivated with Yao Jiaping to gain power. Afterwards, Yao
Jiaping had treated her as a rag and thrown her away.
There were other rumors that Baili Qingmiao had raised her cultivation so
fast because, in her thirty years of travel, she had dual cultivated with
Zhongli Qian many times, and she didn’t even pass up her young disciple
Su Huai. Other people said that Baili Qingmiao was perfectly healthy
despite her bonded weapon having been broken because she had received
favor from the two successive Xuanyuan Sect leaders during her stay.
In just two days, Baili Qingmiao was regarded within the sect as a woman
who would sleep with anyone. The targets of the rumors, besides Yao
Jiaping, just happened to be Wenren È, Zhongli Qian, Yin Hanjiang, and Su
Huai, the four love interests of Abusive Romance.
In the original story, Liu Xinye also started these kinds of rumors in order to
destroy Hè Wenzhao and Baili Qingmiao’s relationship. Hè Wenzhao
misunderstood her for a long time and ignored her every time she tried to
explain, treating her awfully for a while.
As the rumors spread, Yin Hanjiang and Baili Qingmiao were focused on
refining elixirs.
It was mainly Baili Qingmiao doing all the work. Yin Hanjiang sat on a
chair in the medicinal hall, holding God of Annihilation: Volume 2 and
thinking.
He was trying to think of a method to make the victim of the transfer Hè
Wenzhao.
The transfer required a Mahayana cultivator, so Hè Wenzhao wasn’t strong

enough. But Yin Hanjiang saw he showed signs of a breakthrough. When he
was confronting Yao Jiaping, he was so furious he nearly advanced on the
spot.
In God of Annihilation 2, every time Baili Qingmiao was kidnapped, Hè

Wenzhao would have a breakthrough before or during combat. Filled with
righteous anger about his woman, he would score an underdog victory.
Right now, if he tried to take on the wandering immortal Yao Jiaping at
Void Boundary, the difference was too much even for an underdog. If he
rose to Mahayana, he would have some hope.
And at Mahayana, he could participate in the transfer.
If Hè Wenzhao fell to Foundation Establishment, the Shangqing Sect

Master had to watch helplessly as his sect’s future pillar was ruined, and
Elder Qingyue lived the rest of his life in regret, then that sounded more fun
than killing the lot.
The Shangqing Sect Master and Elder Qingyue were both stuffy righteous
cultivators, so even if they were killed by demonic cultivators, they would
die happily having given their lives for the righteous path, so there was no
entertainment in killing them. It would be better to see them suffer.
Yin Hanjiang rearranged the skin over his face, so that Yao Jiaping’s skin
smiled together with him.
Wenren È, watching him from one side: …
The hardest parts of refining elixirs were lighting the fires and retrieving the
elixirs, while the process itself was simple, only needing the fire to be
maintained. Wenren È had only been busy initially lighting the fire, while
spending the rest of the two days idle.
Yin Hanjiang had nothing to say to Baili Qingmiao while they were
together. One stayed inside and one outside, having nothing to do with each
other. When Yin Hanjiang wasn’t paying attention, Wenren È would use the
elixir furnace to block Yin Hanjiang’s sight as he read his two books.
When he read, he blocked Baili Qingmiao’s consciousness so that she

wouldn’t be able to see the book’s contents, in order to prevent the readers
from knowing that one of the characters they were reading was aware they
were in a book.
The comments of God of Annihilation were united in flaming the author. No

one could’ve imagined that Baili Qingmiao, who’d always been considered
part of Hè Wenzhao’s harem, would’ve been stolen by his sworn brother. A
lot of readers quit, disgusted by this NTR storyline, while many stayed,
saying since they didn’t have to pay for the revision, they might as well
read until the end and see what else this story could abuse the main
character with.
The Abusive Romance readers were seeing through Baili Qingmiao’s point
of view and knew that Yao Jiaping was Yin Hanjiang in disguise, and
Wenren È was controlling Baili Qingmiao’s body. The protagonist herself
knew everything that happened, but couldn’t interfere. Everything
happening at Shangqing Sect was shown to the readers, and the comment
section was on fire.
[Aaaaah! Now that Baili Qingmiao’s switched to the Path of Indifference,

the author has changed the story’s category to no romance. After following
this romance story for so long, it’s become a story about a female
protagonist defying the heavens. I should complain, but how come it feels
so refreshing?]
[It really is refreshing, the protagonist hasn’t been mistreated once in the
revision. Every time the female villains or the male lead want to bully her,
she’s been rescued by her violent sisters or handsome brothers.]
[“Violent sister”, what a good term. It fits a certain person perfectly.]

[You can say her name aloud. Elder Qingxue, my favorite Protector Qiu
Congxue! An independent, unique woman who views physical beauty like
dirt and wants nothing other than to become a skeleton. From the moment
the protagonist saved Qiu Congxue in the war instead of the Demon Lord,
the story’s been completely different.]
[Right, when Hè Wenzhao was injured, Qiu Congxue stopped the

protagonist from sacrificing herself for him. When Hè Wenzhao slept with
Liu Xinye, Elder Qingxue planned their wedding. When Hè Wenzhao got
married, Qiu Congxue brought the protagonist to Xuanyuan Sect and tied
her to Zhongli Qian, then the four of them rampaged across the world for
thirty years. How is this an abusive romance? It’s been a comedy
throughout!]
[Qiu Congxue did the most work, but coming in second has to be my
Demon Lord. What kind of a brain does he have that can think of using a
tracking curse and some heart-linking gu for matchmaking? The Demon
Lord doesn’t understand love.]
[Third place is our Qian-Qian! I’m begging you, author, show him some
mercy! In Xuanyuan Sect, Shu Yanyan’s indulging in men all day, Qiu
Congxue’s always bullying people and getting bullied, Altar Master Miao is
apparently developing a new bug, Altar Master Ruan must be hibernating
like a tortoise with how little he appears, and Altar Master Shi spends all
day being a boot-licker. Our Qian is the only one who does any work
around here! With so many people in Xuanyuan Sect, don’t you feel guilty
assigning everything to the newest Altar Master? Qian is about to lose his
hair, think of his hair!]
[Fourth place is Yin Hanjiang, he really managed to change my opinion.

Not only has he not turned the protagonist into a lamp, but he shook her
awake and helped her enter the Path of Indifference.]
[In the original version, Yin Hanjiang made you feel like you were reading
a horror story, but now he seems a bit moe, doesn’t he?]
[It was awesome when he kicked Hè Wenzhao.]

[And when he grabbed BLQM’s nape and said ‘I want her’, that was so
cool! I think I’ve fallen for the overbearing yandere type.]
[I’ve always thought the best way to deal with a scumbag male was to have
all the things he did to the female lead repaid to him, but that would be too
pitiful for our little girl. But now, Yin Hanjiang’s given me the satisfaction.
Hè Xisi, do you know how it feels now to watch the person you love be
with someone else? Keep talking about forgiveness and generosity, it’s all a
fantasy! There’s no room for a third in a relationship!]
[Well said! Though one question, who’s Hè Xisi?]
[From “If you learn the Dao in the morning, you can die happily in the
evening[1]“. Scumbag Hè.]
[If the protagonist wasn’t cultivating the no romance path, I’d almost
support her and Yin Hanjiang together, facepalm]
[Stop your dangerous thoughts, remember it’s Wenren È in Baili

Qingmiao’s body now—Yin Hanjiang belongs to Wenren È!]
Wenren È ran a finger over those words, “Yin Hanjiang belongs to Wenren
È”, and smiled slightly.
Abusive Romance was written from the protagonist’s point of view, but
occasionally, when female villains tried to harm her, it would give a bit of
an omniscient perspective, letting the readers see what awful things the
villains were doing so they could worry.
Upon discovering what Liu Xinye had done, Wenren È was considering
how he should strike back, when he heard Yin Hanjiang in the room. “Hey,
rag— Baili Qingmiao. Come here.”
Wenren È quickly put away the books and went over, finding him smiling
gleefully. He reached out a hand. “Hand me Liu Xinye’s spirit vow. This
Lord has a plan.”
I barely remember how to do footnotes
1. This is the proverb that Wenzhao comes from. It goes, “zhao wen dao, xi
si ke yi”. So Wenzhao is “learn morning”, and the reader changed it to “die
evening”. The author mentioned this in an author’s note very early on, as
well as clarifying the pronunciation was zhao, not chao. I may not translate
the author’s notes, but I read all of them. This isn’t really relevant, I’m just
puzzled by a certain translator’s choices. ↩
Wants to Know
Chapter 70 – Preparations completed
Via the spirit vow, Yin Hanjiang ordered Liu Xinye to see him at midnight,
without being discovered by anyone. If she didn’t obey, he would snap the
jade talisman the vow was recorded on and damage her soul.
Helpless, Liu Xinye could only sneak out while Hè Wenzhao was drinking
to drown his troubles. She entered the elixir-making chamber and stared at
Yao Jiaping in shock. “H—how do you have my spirit vow?”
“When I went to Xuanyuan Sect, it was obviously to treat people. Since the
Left Protector Qiu Congxue was injured, I treated her and she handed this
over as payment,” Yin Hanjiang said carelessly, tossing the jade in his
hands. “I typically give two prices for my treatment. First, something
important to the patient, and second… well, you’ve probably heard.”
Tearfully, Liu Xinye made to take off her clothes. “Once should be enough,
right?”
Yin Hanjiang: ???
Frantically, he lifted a finger and used spiritual energy to stop Liu Xinye’s
movements, so she couldn’t keep undressing.
Fortunately, Yao Jiaping’s skin was reliable and didn’t flush or show panic.
It felt as if he was wearing a mask, giving Yin Hanjiang a feeling of
reassurance. He said steadily, “You think too highly of yourself. I have no
interest in you. What I want is the thing most important to you.”
“I won’t let you take my Nascent Soul, soul, or bonded weapon!” Liu Xinye
cried.
” …I’m not interested in those either,” Yin Hanjiang said. “I just need you
to complete a task.”
As he spoke, Baili Qingmiao wordlessly walked up, holding a transparent

talisman in one hand. Wenren È had crafted it using chaos energy. He
burned it and dropped the ashes into a cup of water, which he then poured
into a jade vase and handed to Liu Xinye.
“Find some way to make Hè Wenzhao drink it,” said Yin Hanjiang.
Liu Xinye was afraid to take it. “W—what are you going to do to
Wenzhao?”
“At worse, make him fall back to Foundation Establishment. It’s not like
I’m going to kill him. After all, he’s my good ‘brother’.” “Yao Jiaping”
said, smiling. “If you don’t agree, I could make you fall to Foundation
Establishment instead.”
“I’ll do it!” Liu Xinye grabbed the vase.
“Liu-shijie, weren’t you willing to give up everything for shixiong? You

were once willing to destroy your foundation for him, so why are you
choosing this now?” It was Baili Qingmiao herself speaking. She had
already entered the Path of Indifference and when she saw Hè Wenzhao, her
heart was unmoved. She had no objection to Yin Hanjiang’s plot to make
Hè Wenzhao take the Sect Master’s place, either. After all, Elder Qingyue
had given his life to save Hè Wenzhao and the Sect Master, and Hè
Wenzhao owed the Sect Master a debt for raising and teaching him. As long
as Hè Wenzhao was at the right level, then by all reasoning, he ought to be
the one to save Qingyue. If Baili Qingmiao was in his place, she would’ve
offered too.
She just didn’t understand why Liu-shijie was making the complete
opposite of the choice she had once made.
“Heheh, ahahahahaha!” Liu Xinye burst into laughter. Tears flowing from
her eyes, she said, “Yes, I love him, I’ve loved him since I was young. I
worked hard cultivating to be with him. I wished so much to marry him!”
Wrapping her hands around the jade vase, her expression slowly became
vicious and her voice harsh. “But him? The night after we married, as he
embraced me, do you know whose name he shouted? It was yours, Baili
Qingmiao!
“He thinks I’m unaware of what he did with Gongxi Jin while he was
traveling. He thinks I didn’t hear how he said to other people that he liked
Gongxi Jin’s eyes, because her eyes are a lot like yours.
“We’ve been married for thirty-three years, but has he ever truly looked at
me once? Back… back when we cultivated side by side, he would smile at
me, and fight with you to defend me, but now? Has he cared once about
what I feel?
“I’ve seen clearly now. The only thing that matters is being strong on your
own.”
Her gaze toward Baili Qingmiao was brimming with barely-concealed

envy, but Baili Qingmiao didn’t mind anymore.
If she had married her shixiong, she probably would’ve become like this
too, blinded by jealousy, unable to think straight, until she became a person
she would despise.
She shook her head and sighed softly. “I understand.” With that, she
retreated, once again being a puppet for Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang.
Yin Hanjiang used a technique, making the jade talisman transform into a
streak of light and enter Liu Xinye’s body. If she completed this task, the
spirit vow would dissolve. If she couldn’t, it would destruct her soul and
she would instantly die. Looking at her now, it seemed she had no more will
to sacrifice herself for Hè Wenzhao.
After Liu Xinye left, Yin Hanjiang looked at Baili Qingmiao and said,
“Who taught you the exchange spell and the treatment for Qingyue?”
Wenren È was back in charge now, and he said steadily, “Zhongli Qian
did.”
Zhongli Qian was like a brick for the Xuanyuan Sect, which could be
moved wherever it was necessary, very convenient. Since he knew a little of
everything, he had a lot of medicinal knowledge, though not as much as
Yao Jiaping. He was the one who had treated Qiu Congxue, and come up
with the idea to let Altar Master Shi use his sickness qi on Baili Qingmiao.
After knowing him for so many years, it wouldn’t be strange if Baili
Qingmiao had learned some things from him.
Yin Hanjiang stared at Baili Qingmiao. Putting on a glove, he grabbed her

chin and examined her from all angles. He shook his head. “If it weren’t for
how you acted with Liu Xinye just now, I would’ve thought…”
He didn’t continue, just shooed Baili Qingmiao back to her elixirs. After
returning to his room, he thought, It’s been just three days and I can’t think
straight. I miss my Venerable so much I thought Baili Qingmiao was him.
How ridiculous.
Yin Hanjiang turned his head to look at an illusion sitting in a chair next to
him. He stared for a while, thinking about how his Venerable would use the
soul communion technique to treat him when he returned. He looked
forward to it, but he was also afraid, worried he would spit blood again
upon seeing him, and cause him further worry.
After he let his thoughts wander for a bit, his emotions became unsteady.
He quickly recited the Clear Mind Spell again, so he wouldn’t reveal any
weakness at Shangqing Sect.
As the time for the second soul communion hadn’t come yet, Wenren È
couldn’t meet Yin Hanjiang face-to-face, so he could only borrow Baili
Qingmiao’s eyes to watch and worry from afar.
After two more days, the elixirs were ready. Wenren È retrieved them,
placed them on a tray, and followed Yin Hanjiang out of the room.
Having heard that the medicines were ready, the Sect Master was waiting
outside with a crowd of disciples. After exiting the door, Yin Hanjiang
glanced at Liu Xinye, who stood in a corner. She nodded slightly. Last
night, she had talked to Hè Wenzhao softly, accompanying him in drinking
and acting especially warm and considerate. Hè Wenzhao didn’t particularly
like Liu Xinye, but couldn’t resist such tender care and shared a few cups of
wine with her, spending a warm night together. He readily gulped down the
water that Liu Xinye poured him.
The water had been suffused with chaos energy. It was invisible and
traceless, but overnight, it caused Hè Wenzhao to break through to
Mahayana.
Yin Hanjiang already knew this from the spirit vow. Everything was
prepared. They only needed the last step.
After only walking a few steps with Baili Qingmiao, he heard several of the
disciples transmitting gossip about her, saying who knew what Baili
Qingmiao and Yao Jiaping could’ve been doing together in these days
they’d spent alone, as well as how she could’ve won the favor of Wenren È,
Zhongli Qian, and Yin Hanjiang, in order to rise in cultivation so fast.
Yin Hanjiang was at a much higher realm, so he could hear the

transmissions of anyone Body Unity or under. He wanted to ignore it, but
when he heard his Venerable getting dragged in, he was instantly furious.
He appeared before a few of the gossiping disciples. A cold light flashed
with a wave of his hand, and several tongues fell to the ground.
“Aaaaaaaaah!” Whether or not they were hurt, all the Shangqing Sect
disciples began screaming.
“Shut up,” Yin Hanjiang snapped.
Everyone instantly covered their mouths, not letting out a peep. With a
troubled look on his face, the Sect Master said, “Sir Yao, what are you…”
“If they can’t talk properly, they shouldn’t speak.” Yin Hanjiang gave
several of the disciples a frosty look. “Do I need to repeat what you were
saying?”
Several of the disciples, with blood pouring out of their mouths, shook their
heads frantically. Looking at them, the Sect Master understood that they had
spoken carelessly and offended “Sir Yao”. Unfortunately, their cultivations
were low and the man overheard them.
Yao Jiaping’s actions were cruel, but it was still Shangqing Sect in the
wrong. The Sect Master called out quietly, “Those who have spoken
nonsense should be slapped a hundred times, and have their mouths sealed
for ten years.”
Several of the disciples nodded and were about to pick up their tongues so
the medicinal hall disciples could reattach them, when Yao Jiaping said,
“Hold on.”
Yin Hanjiang glanced at Baili Qingmiao, looking cheerful. “Pick them up,”
he said. “They’re yours.”
Wenren È: …
He managed to say, “Thank you, Sir Yao, but… Baili doesn’t need them.”
“How could you not need them?” Yin Hanjiang said, smiling beneath his
skin. “They were gossiping about you. You should take these tongues and
dry them, then hang them around your neck, so you can always see it and
remind yourself to not tolerate rumors in the future, isn’t that right?
“Now hurry up!”
His last command made everyone shudder. Wenren È sighed lightly and,
taking out a handkerchief, confidently picked up the tongues. “Thanks to
Sir Yao for his guidance,” he said.
“Do you always treat my shimei like this?” Hè Wenzhao shouted, his eyes
burning.
“What if I do?” Yin Hanjiang glanced at Hè Wenzhao out of the corners of

his eyes. “Isn’t that better than you, clearly knowing she’s being insulted yet
doing nothing about it?”
Without giving Hè Wenzhao a chance to explain, he turned to the Sect

Master. “The elixirs are yours. Eight hours after he takes them, the transfer
can start. I’ll take that time to put up the array. Besides the transferer, there
should also be a high-level cultivator standing guard outside, preferably one
with a lightning spiritual root.”
He was nominating Hè Wenzhao for the position. Hè Wenzhao was also

someone who had been saved by Qingyue, so it was proper that he guard
the array.
As they set up the array, the Blood Demon suddenly spoke up in Hè

Wenzhao’s mind. “Strange, Yao Jiaping never mentioned anyone standing
guard in the beginning, so how come he wants one now?”
“He’ll be standing outside the door with my shimei at the same time,” Hè
Wenzhao said, fuming. “He wants to humiliate me by making me watch
while she suffers!”
“Hmm. Since he’s at Shangqing Sect, he can’t start anything big. But, was
this Yao Jiaping always so… extreme?”
Hè Wenzhao thought back to when he was a test subject. He hadn’t minded

much back then, but looking back on it now, he shuddered. “He’s normally
like this. Master, do you remember how he treated me as a test subject?”
“True,” the Blood Demon sighed. “I just thought he was an idiot back then,
but now that I look at him, he has the makings of a good demonic
cultivator.”
“What did you say, master?”
“Nothing. The array is complete, so why don’t you go over?” The Blood
Demon sank back into his mind.
For some reason, the Blood Demon felt especially tired today, wanting
nothing more than to seclude himself and rest.
Hè Wenzhao stood at the spot Yin Hanjiang appointed. Seeing Baili

Qingmiao walk by, he reached out and grabbed for her wrist. “Shimei…”
Baili Qingmiao avoided his hand with a flap of her sleeve. “Shixiong, men
and women should not be close.”
He’d picked that up from Yin Hanjiang. He even needed a glove to touch
Baili Qingmiao—who knew what he had learned from Shu Yanyan?

Wants to Know
Chapter 71 – Broken off all ties
Following Yin Hanjiang’s directions, the Sect Master stood in Qingyue’s

room and began the technique. He had been told that, using this array, the
transferer would be able to maintain some of their spiritual essence. He
waited for a moment, perfectly still, and was overjoyed to discover that he
wasn’t losing as much spiritual essence as he thought he would.
Hè Wenzhao, standing guard outside, glared at Yin Hanjiang and Baili

Qingmiao. At first, his thoughts filled with rage, he didn’t feel anything. But
gradually, he realized that his spiritual essence was incessantly pouring
away. However hard he tried to take in spiritual energy, he couldn’t keep up
with the rate of loss.
Abruptly, he found out he couldn’t move his legs from the spot he stood. Hè
Wenzhao wasn’t an idiot. He turned toward Yao Jiaping. “Is this your
scheme?”
Underneath his skin, Yao Jiaping slowly smiled. He had already chased off
all the other Shangqing Sect members, claiming that he needed peace and
quiet, so now only the Sect Master, Qingyue, Hè Wenzhao, “Yao Jiaping”,
and “Baili Qingmiao” were in the side hall.
Hè Wenzhao circulated his spiritual essence, trying to resist, but found out
that the more he did, the quicker it was drained.
“What exactly did you do?” he said.
“Nothing much. I just feel so sorry for your master, being so old and having
to fall back to Foundation Establishment. As his disciple, isn’t it proper for
you to take on your master’s burdens?” Yao Jiaping said casually, as he
enjoyed Hè Wenzhao’s look of alarm and fury.
This array was certainly an invention of Yao Jiaping’s. It had a very clever
manner of action. The one undergoing the transfer inside was not actually
transferring their spiritual essence, just maintaining the array, inexorably
sucking away the spiritual essence of the guard outside. Yao Jiaping, to
think of such an array that traded people’s lives, certainly was a twisted
person.
However, this array didn’t have the ability to prevent the guard’s escape.
What Yao Jiaping wanted to see was the guard running away in order to
preserve their spiritual essence, and the two people inside suffering
backlash from the array, one ending up dead and one injured, knowing they
had been betrayed by someone they trusted. That was Yao Jiaping’s goal.
Yin Hanjiang obviously didn’t want Hè Wenzhao to run. That’s why

Wenren È had created that talisman, which Liu Xinye had gotten Hè
Wenzhao to drink.
It was made to restrain the Blood Demon. Wenren È was one of the only
two blood cultivators in the world. During the battle at the Blood Hell, the
demon’s attack on his blood marks allowed Wenren È to comprehend how
to restrict the marks. After Hè Wenzhao drank the talisman he had made
from primordial chaos energy, the Blood Demon’s marks were sealed and
he fell into slumber.
As for Hè Wenzhao, he was currently affected by an immobilization spell

Yin Hanjiang had cast. Without the Blood Demon as backup, there was no
way Hè Wenzhao could stand up to Yin Hanjiang, who had already broken
out of the mortal realm.
“Yao Jiaping, you’re too vicious!” Hè Wenzhao shouted.
“Vicious?” said “Yao Jiaping”. “It’s your master inside, and the shishu you
owe your life to. It’s only right for you to sacrifice yourself. Don’t you want
to help your master? The Shangqing Sect still needs a Sect Master who
understands the bigger picture.”
Hè Wenzhao knew there was no use talking to Yao Jiaping. He immediately
sent a transmission to his master, about to ask him to stop the transfer, but it
was blocked.
Yin Hanjiang had already sealed off the courtyard, so that only he and Baili
Qingmiao could hear Hè Wenzhao.
Seeing his spiritual essence was already half gone and he had fallen from
Mahayana to Deity Transformation, Hè Wenzhao gave up on yelling at Yao
Jiaping and turned to Baili Qingmiao. “Shimei, shimei, please, save me! If
this goes on, I’m going to become an ordinary mortal who’s just stepped
through the gates!”
“Why don’t you answer him yourself.” Wenren È gave Baili Qingmiao’s
body back to her, leaving the choice to her.
If at this point, Baili Qingmiao’s mind was still muddled by the divine
nature, then Wenren È would give up on her. He might as well cherish the
time he had with Yin Hanjiang, before the three realms were destroyed.
Regaining control of her body, Baili Qingmiao watched Hè Wenzhao

wordlessly, then said, “Shixiong, Sir Yao’s methods are indeed excessive,
but he’s not wrong. You owe a debt to both your elders, and just happened
to break through to Mahayana, so the duty should be yours.
“Ever since I was young, you taught me that a cultivator must not obsess
over temporary gains and losses, and instead value justice above all else.
I’ve followed your teachings for all this time, putting others before myself
in everything I did. Even if I can save just one life, then it’s worth it no
matter what losses I suffer.
“If you can save shibo’s life, then what’s a bit of power? The Sect Master is
already very old. If he were to fall to Foundation Establishment, then even
though he says he’ll be able to cultivate again, he’s already over eight
hundred years old. There’s no way Foundation Establishment power can
sustain eight hundred years of age. After the transfer, when the technique
ends, the Sect Master’s time would instantly be up. This is just exchanging
one life for another!
“But it’s not the same for you. You’re less than a hundred years old, so
Foundation Establishment power can extend your life to one hundred and
fifty or even two hundred years. If you undertake the transfer, it’s the only
way every person involved can survive.”
This was the reason Baili Qingmiao didn’t try to stop Wenren È. She herself
also thought it would be for the best if her shixiong took her Sect Master’s
place.
“Shimei! Are you under Yao Jiaping’s influence?” Hè Wenzhao was frantic,
but he still maintained a loving expression toward her. “Shimei, think about
me as well. I’m the Sect Master’s direct disciple. All my peers’ eyes are on
me, treating me as an example. If I fell to a level below even an outer
disciple’s, how will they all look at me? Do you know how hard it’ll be for
me?”
Listening to him, the last traces of hesitation and affection in Baili

Qingmiao’s eyes vanished. She shook her head. “The Sect Master would’ve
had a harder time than you.”
She had always thought her shixiong was a righteous person. Even if he had
relations with other women, that just meant he hadn’t learned better on that
front. Baili Qingmiao understood very well how difficult love was to
control, so didn’t really blame her shixiong, just grieving on her own.
Yet right now, Hè Wenzhao’s actions could not live up to the words he had
said in the past. He had never taken to heart the things he’d taught Baili
Qingmiao.
“Shixiong, you have truly disappointed me.” Baili Qingmiao shook her
head. “I thought you at least had compassion.”
She turned uncaringly to Yin Hanjiang and said, “From now on, Baili
Qingmiao has broken off all ties with Hè Wenzhao. We no longer have
anything to do with each other. You can take up any grudge with him that
you wish. I won’t get in your way. The agreement that we made is, as of
now, nullified.”
The condition that Baili Qingmiao had raised before letting Yin Hanjiang
bring her to Shangqing Sect was that Hè Wenzhao needed to be judged
before the public, instead of privately condemned. Now, Baili Qingmiao
had been truly disappointed by Hè Wenzhao. She had no more feelings
toward him, and thought it was perfectly natural for Yin Hanjiang to want to
take vengeance on him.
“I never planned to follow that agreement anyway.” Yin Hanjiang gave

Baili Qingmiao an approving look. “This Lord is glad you were able to
make this decision, in the end.”
He was glad that his Venerable’s efforts had not gone to waste, and that
Wenren È no longer needed to be placed side-by-side with Hè Wenzhao.
“The time has almost come.” Yin Hanjiang nodded slightly, watching Hè
Wenzhao’s level steadily fall towards Foundation Establishment.
Inside the room, the Sect Master watched as Elder Qingyue regained his
youth, rising to Body Unity, while his own realm had actually not decreased
at all, remaining at Mahayana.
He had expended his spiritual essence, but after taking some supplemental
elixirs and spending a few months in secluded cultivation, it would all
recover.
The outcome was far better than he had expected. He sent a transmission to
“Yao Jiaping” outside. “Sir Yao truly is a legendary doctor. Shidi has
recovered fully, yet your array has managed to preserve this humble
Daoist’s cultivation!”
“Since he’s recovered, this Lord can take his fee, right?” said the man
outside the door.
This Lord? The Sect Master didn’t think about it too hard. “Sir Yao can go
ahead and say it, as long as it’s something in my power.”
“It’s no big deal,” Yin Hanjiang transmitted. “On the seventh of next month,
have all the sect masters and major elders of the Biluo, Jiuxing, and
Tianjian Sects, the Wuxiang Temple, and the four great cultivation clans
gather at True Yin Mountain. This Lord has an announcement to make.”
“This will naturally be no issue, but what does Sir Yao want to announce?”
the Sect Master asked.
“If you’re worried I’ll set up an array there in advance, you can send out
disciples to check beforehand. If you agree, then make a vow.”
Seeing that Elder Qingyue was slowly waking up, the Sect Master felt
grateful towards “Yao Jiaping”, and thought that nothing could possibly
happen with so many powerful cultivators going to the deserted True Yin
Mountain, so he agreed to the vow.
“Well, remember this debt. This Lord is leaving.”
Upon hearing Yao Jiaping was going to leave, the Sect Master stopped the
technique and, after making sure his shidi was okay, rushed out of the room.
Stepping outside the door, he stopped in his tracks, seeing his favorite
disciple had now become forty years old in appearance, being carried off by
Yao Jiaping.
Yao Jiaping, Baili Qingmiao, and the unconscious Hè Wenzhao were all
riding on an enormous drum. No one in Shangqing Sect was more familiar
with this drum than the Sect Master. Eighteen months ago, Yin Hanjiang
had ridden it as he chased him home.
Yao Jiaping ripped off the skin on his face, revealing an extremely
handsome, yet somewhat cruel face. He smiled calmly at the Sect Master.
“This Lord is Yin Hanjiang.”
He tossed Hè Wenzhao to Baili Qingmiao and formed seals with both his
hands. Two translucent drumsticks condensed from spiritual energy beat
madly on the surface of the drum. Scarlet flames roared to the sky, carrying
the Burning Sky Drum upward.
With the Moon Pool Bell’s wards, flight was restricted within Shangqing
Sect, but wielding the Burning Sky Drum, the Moon Pool Bell’s restrictions
were nothing to Yin Hanjiang.
Among the three people in Shangqing Sect who could use the Moon Pool
Bell, the Sect Master had expended his spiritual energy, Qingyue was still
recovering, and Hè Wenzhao had fallen to Foundation Establishment and
was being dragged away by Baili Qingmiao. The sect array could prevent
entry, but not exit. Who was left to help Shangqing Sect?
There was no one.
If the Sect Master wanted to stop them, he had to get to the Moon Pool Bell
and activate the array’s maximum strength, but he had to ride on a flying
boat to get there. By the time a flying boat arrived, Yin Hanjiang would be
long gone.
“Yin Hanjiang! Do you want to start another Great War?” The Sect Master
yelled, coughing up a mouthful of blood.
“What’s wrong with that?” Yin Hanjiang said indifferently. “Don’t forget
who suffered defeat in the last war thirty years ago? If my Venerable were
not benevolent, thinking of the survival of mortal lives, how could the
righteous path have even held out for ten years?”
“Release Wenzhao and Baili Qingmiao!” the Sect Master shouted.
“Baili Qingmiao must return to Xuanyuan Sect to have her heart-linking gu

and tracking curse removed. As for your disciple… this Lord will take back
everything he is owed, one by one. I’ll be counting on you to inform the
other sects. Their disciples are all at Xuanyuan Sect, and if they want to see
them again, they better be at True Yin Mountain on the seventh of next
month.”
With that, an enormous flame broke through the Shangqing Sect’s array.
Yin Hanjiang flew out, riding on the drum. After the Great Sect War and the
battle at the Blood Hell, there was no one left at Shangqing Sect who could
stop him. Everyone was helpless to do anything but watch as the Xuanyuan
Sect Leader entered and left Shangqing Sect unobstructed.

Wants to Know
Chapter 72 – Ziwu Soul Locking Array
The Burning Sky Drum flew at incredible speeds and arrived back at
Xuanyuan Sect in less than an hour.
Yin Hanjiang completely removed Yao Jiaping’s skin. Standing atop the
drum, his red robes fluttered in the wind, outlining his lithe frame. A silver
belt stood out against the red, making his waist look particularly thin.
Arriving above the Main Hall, he didn’t descend, instead transmitting loud
and clear, “All members of Xuanyuan Sect, deploy the Ziwu Soul Locking
Array.”
Everyone in the Main Hall heard his transmission and was shocked.
Qiu Congxue, who’d been dispirited since having all the flesh sliced off her
by Yin Hanjiang, immediately brightened up. Laughing wildly, she grabbed
Su Huai, who was sleeping with a book in hand and drooling. “Come on,
disciple, let’s go deploy the array!”
“W—what array?” Su Huai said, his brains rattled by Qiu Congxue’s

shaking. He immediately raised the Rod of Heartbreak. “Wh—what is it?
Are we being invaded?”
“The Ziwu Soul Locking Array. I’ve only seen it once in three hundred
years,” Qiu Congxue said, licking her lips. “A hundred years ago, when
Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang slaughtered their way into the sect, and the old
Sect Master was on the verge of death from the Burning Sky Drum’s
backlash, he ordered us to seal them with the Ziwu Soul Locking Array.”
The sky had turned dark at midday as over a hundred experts of the
Xuanyuan Sect set up the array, trapping the badly wounded Wenren È and
Yin Hanjiang. Everyone thought the two would die. Qiu Congxue, who had
been impaled through the brain, maintained the array most desperately of
all, determined to kill them.
They maintained the array for three days and nights. Just when everyone
thought they had been killed, the twin stars of Polis and Alkaid blazed in the
sky. A blood-red demonic sword and black halberd broke out of the array
together. Wenren È flew out, calling back the Seven Killing Halberd, and
the blood sword transformed back into Yin Hanjiang, who collapsed, being
caught by Wenren È and held against his chest.
“I must commend you for pushing me to such an extent,” Wenren È said

slowly. “I thought the Xuanyuan Sect was full of fiends, not one worth
keeping, but from what I see now, some can be used.”
A wave of the halberd called up the powers of the Northern and Southern
Dippers[1]. Above Wenren È’s head, a star map formed.
Fighting intent allowed Wenren È to not feel the pain of his wounds. The
power of the stars replenished his drained spiritual essence. Wenren È’s
black robe fell, revealing starlight shining on his back.
It wasn’t a technique he had purposefully cultivated, but the scars left from
his life-and-death experiences on the battlefield as a mortal.
The scars mysteriously connected into a map of the fourteen major stars[2],
steadily absorbing energy from them. With a swing of the Seven Killing
Halberd, the unleashed power of the stars injured all of the hundred-plus
people maintaining the array.
At that moment, Wenren È stood alone with Yin Hanjiang in his arms. Of
the Xuanyuan Sect members, who had just been trying to kill him, all who
were capable of getting up kneeled to him, with both hands pressed against
the ground and their heads deeply bowed.
They kneeled to Wenren È’s power that could overcome a hundred men, to
the courage to take on Xuanyuan Sect with only two people, to this
miraculous scene of starlight filling the heavens.
From that moment on, Wenren È was recognized by all as the Lord of
Demons.
And the Ziwu Soul Locking Array became a secret technique of the
Xuanyuan Sect. With Wenren È there, they would never need such an array.
Even in the Great Sect War, it hadn’t been used.
Yet today, Yin Hanjiang wanted this array deployed. What kind of enemy
warranted such vigilance?
“That was also the moment I decided I must rise to Mahayana, and worked
up the courage to enter the hungry ghost path,” Qiu Congxue said. “I used
to fear pain and death. Only now do I know that cultivation is like rowing
against the current. Only by having courage can you surmount the
heavens!”
But your courage is more like recklessness… Su Huai pursed his lips and
didn’t speak his thoughts, in case he got beaten.
“The Ziwu Soul Locking Array requires at least ninety-nine Nascent Soul
and above experts. Who knows if we still have that many,” Qiu Congxue
said. “Come on. Let’s go watch the fun.”
Qiu Congxue and Su Huai arrived at the scene first, Zhongli Qian following
them. After a while, Shu Yanyan led a group of a dozen or so subordinates,
all over Nascent Soul stage.
Baili Qingmiao landed smoothly. Wenren È had already left her body by
now. She greeted Zhongli Qian, “Brother Zhongli.”
Zhongli Qian took off his blindfold. He looked Baili Qingmiao over,
enduring his dizziness, then put his blindfold back on. He said in relief,
“You’ve found your Dao.”
“I must thank my seniors for their help,” Baili Qingmiao said quietly.
“Who’s the Ziwu Soul Locking Array for?” Shu Yanyan asked.
“Hè Wenzhao, as well as the Blood Demon,” Baili Qingmiao said. “After
infiltrating Shangqing Sect alone, Sect Leader Yin has brought back Hè
Wenzhao. Right now, Hè Wenzhao’s fallen to Foundation Establishment,
but the Blood Demon is tricky to handle, so must be sealed.”
“You didn’t stop Yin Hanjiang from taking Hè Wenzhao?” Shu Yanyan
didn’t care about Hè Wenzhao’s life, of course, but she looked at Baili
Qingmiao with concern.
Protector Shu didn’t get involved in matters of love, but she admired those
in love. She thought well of Baili Qingmiao, admiring this pure and honest
girl who didn’t make demands of others. If possible, Shu Yanyan wanted
Baili Qingmiao to have the best in life. Too bad heaven toyed with people,
and her impassioned feelings were met with a faithless man.
Baili Qingmiao smiled gently. “Thank you for your concern, Miss Shu, but
I have already seen through mortal affairs and dedicated myself to the Path
of Indifference.”
Seeing as she was calling her Miss Shu, she must be thinking of the past.
Shu Yanyan smiled. “Back when we first met, you were still a little girl who
threw tantrums because of me and your shixiong’s relationship. Now forty
years have passed, and you’re climbing the path to the heavens.”
The beautiful woman raised her head to the sky with a sigh. “The path to
the heavens is arduous, and so many bones lie beneath it. A single misstep
can lead to your complete and utter demise. If you can’t find someone who
can defy the heavens with you, then you might as well abandon love, and
forge onward alone.”
She said these words for Baili Qingmiao, but also for herself. Even if her
heart moved, whether or not she was willing to take a risk was another
matter entirely.
She, Shu Yanyan, had never indulged in love. She only pursued absolute
power.
Shu Yanyan didn’t look at Zhongli Qian, but Zhongli Qian understood. He
had realized this clever woman’s intentions all along. He also admired
Protector Shu, but he had never admitted it because he knew she was a
vicious beauty, living a free and willful life, never to be tied down by
anything.
Yet… Zhongli Qian felt the sharp killing intent that descended from the sky
and thought it would also be nice to be like them, two people mutually
supporting each other.
It was difficult to reach the heavens, but more difficult to know another’s
heart.
“Is everyone gathered?” Yin Hanjiang called out. “Deploy the array!”
The plaza before the Main Hall already contained a huge array. Ninety-eight
experts stood at the spots suited to their own elements, leaving the center
spot to Yin Hanjiang.
Holding an unconscious Hè Wenzhao, Yin Hanjiang descended, leaving the

Burning Sky Drum in the sky above the Main Hall as he activated the array.
Ninety-nine experts’ spiritual energy rotated around Yin Hanjiang in the

center. With his strength alone, he would command all that power,
redirecting it onto Hè Wenzhao and completely sealing him off.
Logically, such treatment shouldn’t be needed for a Foundation

Establishment cultivator, but Yin Hanjiang had read God of Annihilation:
Volume 2 and seen all the times Hè Wenzhao was in desperate situations,
even once being forced to destroy his own Nascent Soul, but, as long as he
wasn’t dead, he always managed to make a comeback, becoming even
stronger and crushing his enemy.
So Yin Hanjiang had to be ever-vigilant. He had to keep his guard up

against not only the Blood Demon, but Hè Wenzhao.
That was why he had made an exception and used the Ziwu Soul Locking
Array. If this array was used offensively, it had the power to destroy a
civilization. If it was used for imprisonment, even a Great Golden Immortal
couldn’t escape.
The array was maintained for seven days and nights. In that time, the effects
of Wenren È’s talisman wore off and the Blood Demon woke up. Blood
mist gathered within the array, and Hè Wenzhao, an ordinary cultivator, let
out the howl of a demon.
“Why, you bastards! If this ancestor were at his full strength, a Ziwu Soul
Locking Array would be nothing! When I get out, I’ll feast on all your
souls!” the Blood Demon Elder roared.
He had already absorbed seventeen cultivators, so he wasn’t easy to deal

with. Some lower level disciples were at their limits, and even Shu Yanyan
was being drained.
Yin Hanjiang was completely immovable, however. He pointed one finger

at the Blood Demon, steadily pouring spiritual energy into the array,
wearing him down. His other hand made swift hand seals, beating the
Burning Sky Drum, diminishing the blood mist with every strike.
They were at a stalemate for seven days and nights. The Blood Demon
Elder’s spiritual essence was finally exhausted, and with the flames of the
Burning Sky Drum, he was no longer able to endure.
Yin Hanjiang was at his limit too, but his expression never changed,
stubbornly holding on until the Blood Demon had no more power. His voice
steady, he called out, “For damaging my Venerable’s reputation and
harming him twice at the Blood Hell, Blood Demon Elder, kneel!”
With his furious yell, Yin Hanjiang steadily pressed his finger down.
Ninety-nine streaks of black and white qi poured into Hè Wenzhao’s body.
The Blood Demon continued to struggle, until his strength was finally at its
limit, and he fell to both knees before Yin Hanjiang.
The black and white qi restricted his spiritual essence, so he could no longer
escape.
Yin Hanjiang was completely drained, but his expression didn’t change. He
ordered Shi Congxin, “Throw him into the water prison and have ghost
cultivators watch him night and day. If anything unusual happens, inform
this Lord immediately!”
Having risen greatly in power after retrieving his sickness qi, Shi Congxin
said gleefully, “This subordinate understands!”
“You two.” Yin Hanjiang pointed to Shu Yanyan and Qiu Congxue. “Keep
an eye on Baili Qingmiao for a month. She has not yet reached Mahayana,
so it’s possible something might disrupt her rationality and she might
release Hè Wenzhao in a moment of weakness.
“Altar Master Miao, take the righteous disciples to Altar Master Zhongli,
and think of a plan that’ll make it impossible for the righteous sects to
refuse this Lord’s invitation.
“Altar Master Ruan, follow Altar Master Shi to the water prison, set up an
array there, and keep watch. You have the strongest defensive armor, so if
anything happens, you’ll be able to protect the ghost cultivators before this
Lord arrives.”
“This subordinate understands,” everyone said.
By now, Yin Hanjiang had proved by his own power that he was strong
enough to become the new Lord of Demons.
After retrieving the Burning Sky Drum, Yin Hanjiang returned to Wenren
È’s room. He clutched his chest, trying not to show weakness.
The inner demons, the Burning Sky Drum, and the Ziwu Soul Locking
Array were each difficult to endure on their own, but Yin Hanjiang had held
on.
“Venerable, I finally… subdued the Blood Demon.” Yin Hanjiang smiled.
Though exhausted, he felt carefree.
He was obsessed with revenge, so he wouldn’t let go of his grudge even if

Wenren È was alive. He didn’t just want to vent his anger, but tell everyone
on earth that he protected the Lord of Demons, and no one else better even
think of touching one hair on his head. Anyone who wanted to kill Wenren
È needed to go through Yin Hanjiang.
“You’ve done very well, better than I could’ve.” The phantasm that looked
least like his Venerable walked up, saying softly.
“Are you my Venerable?” Yin Hanjiang said, looking lost.
“Close your eyes.”
Yin Hanjiang closed his eyes obediently.
Wenren È insubstantially rubbed his head. Yin Hanjiang, you’ve done so

well.
Fifteen days had passed without them realizing it.
While Yin Hanjiang’s eyes were closed, Wenren È dipped his head slightly
and kissed him on the lips, pressing their foreheads together.
Even though Wenren È wasn’t solid, Yin Hanjiang still felt a hint of warmth
on his lips.
What happened?
As he wondered, he began to feel tired, down to the depths of his soul.

Wenren È entered Yin Hanjiang’s consciousness, to begin the next soul
communion.
1. The northern dipper is the Big Dipper. If you don’t remember, the
southern dipper is a Chinese constellation which contains Polis, now part of
the modern constellation Sagittarius. ↩
2. The fourteen major stars are used in the Chinese school of astrology
called Purple Star Astrology. These are the stars this book has been
referencing. ↩
Wants to Know
Chapter 73 – Second soul communion
The first soul communion had been under urgent circumstances. Wenren È
had just wanted to stabilize Yin Hanjiang’s mental state, so didn’t look very
deeply into his soul. The soul communion depended on the state of Yin
Hanjiang’s soul. If Yin Hanjiang was determined to resist him and not open
up, then it would be no use.
The previous time, Yin Hanjiang’s mind was chaotic, and Wenren È had
been immediately blocked by the memory of his confession and Yin
Hanjiang reading the book. After being treated and having this period of
time to calm down, Yin Hanjiang had improved significantly. There were
now many points of light in his soul.
Wenren È approached one light and saw within it the scene where he had
retrieved the Snow Flame for Yin Hanjiang.
He walked to another, larger one, and saw Yin Hanjiang capturing Hè

Wenzhao.
After looking at a few more, Wenren È realized that the many points of light
of varying sizes were the memories that brought Yin Hanjiang joy and
happiness. If the feeling was weaker, the light was smaller. If it was
stronger, the light was bigger.
In the largest light was Yin Hanjiang reading Abusive Romance, seeing
Wenren È’s confession through Baili Qingmiao. It hung at the highest point
in his sea of consciousness, bright and round like a sun.
There was a bloodstain within the light, however, and when Wenren È
extended his consciousness into it, he found a mess of chaotic, dark
thoughts, with traces of the inner demons’ interference. It was the things
that caused Yin Hanjiang the most pain.
Wenren È realized. The points of light were Yin Hanjiang’s happiest

memories, while the bloodstains were the sources of his inner demons.
He walked further and further into Yin Hanjiang’s sea of consciousness,

searching for the origin of his deepest pain. Finally, somewhere deep, he
found an enormous bloodstain, bigger than the “sun” hanging in the sky.
This must be the root of everything.
Wenren È tried to enter it, but it resisted him, unwilling to let him in.
“Sect Leader Yin,” he said softly. “It’s me, Wenren È.”
When he said his name, the bloodstain shrank even tighter, forbidding him.
Yin Hanjiang was resisting him. This was what he least wanted Wenren È to
see.
What should he do, then? Hovering before the bloodstain, Wenren È felt a
bit anxious. All the lights and bloodstains were events of the past, which
meant this stain before him was something Wenren È didn’t know about,
which Yin Hanjiang had sealed off from him.
Even if they were cultivation partners, there should still be some boundaries
between them. If Yin Hanjiang didn’t want him to touch something, he
wouldn’t force him.
But if he didn’t resolve this bloodstain, he couldn’t treat Yin Hanjiang’s

inner demons. He really was trapped in a dilemma.
Wenren È thought for a while, remembering all his interactions with Yin
Hanjiang. Thinking that he also had events in his past he didn’t wish for
anyone to know, he suddenly realized.
If Yin Hanjiang didn’t want him to probe, then he could allow Yin Hanjiang
to understand him.
Wenren È opened his arms. “This Venerable won’t overstep your
boundaries. I just wanted to enter your soul and dissolve the walls between
us.”
As he spoke, the bloodstain kept shrinking, until it was small enough that
Wenren È could encircle it in his arms, and hold it to his chest.
Even if it was Yin Hanjiang’s dark past, Wenren È would use his body to
protect it. The bloodstain slowly melded into Wenren È’s consciousness.
“Ah-Wu, Ah-Wu!” A remote and unfamiliar voice that nevertheless brought

back memories rang by his ears. A gentle hand was patting his shoulder.
Wenren È opened his eyes blearily and saw a beautiful woman standing
near him, saying quietly, “Time to get up.”
It was his mother, the heroic woman who, in times of need, could put on
armor and lead the militia of the border town to protect it desperately for
five days, until reinforcements arrived and she fainted on the city wall.
Wenren È found he now appeared to be a fourteen or fifteen-year-old youth,

and suddenly realized that this was his memory.
“Martial arts, literature, calligraphy… you have many lessons today, so

don’t keep your teacher waiting.” His mother held a pair of light swords. If
Wenren È didn’t get up, they would probably be slicing down on his hair.
“I’m up, mother!” Wenren È leapt out of bed, quickly getting dressed and
washing his face.
He had grown up at the border. Manpower was tight there, so Wenren È

didn’t have a maid, only a servant boy who learned martial arts alongside
him. He typically did everything himself, but he was in a hurry now, so
yelled, “Hand me a towel!”
A pair of tiny, blackened hands held a white towel out to him. After taking
it, Wenren È froze. His servant boy was gone, and in his place was a child
who appeared just five or six years old. His skin was covered with purple
welts, and half his flesh was rotten. He was dirty and stank, holding up a
towel with trembling hands.
It was Yin Hanjiang.
Wenren È had taken in the memories Yin Hanjiang was most unwilling to
face, and within his soul, Yin Hanjiang had found a suitable position to take
and become his servant boy.
This wasn’t reality, it was Wenren È’s memories.
He accepted the towel, but didn’t use it himself. Picking up the tiny Yin
Hanjiang, he wet the towel in warm water and used it to gently wipe Yin
Hanjiang’s body.
A swollen and necrotic hand slapped the towel away. “Dirty,” Yin Hanjiang
said through gritted teeth.
Yin Hanjiang wasn’t worried that the towel was dirty, but that his own body
would dirty it.
“A towel can be washed clean,” Wenren È said. “You need treatment and a
change of clothes.”
Changes in his mind could affect the people in his memories. His mother no
longer pushed him to go study, instead patting Yin Hanjiang’s head gently.
“How did this happen to little Jiang? Ah-Wu, help wash him, then bring
him to Doctor Li for treatment.”
Wenren È obediently boiled water in order to clean Yin Hanjiang and dug
out his own childhood clothes for him to change into. Carrying him, he used
lightness art to get to the town doctor’s house.
In his childhood, Wenren È was a young general-in-training, always dressed

in white brocade and a bit of a show-off. As he bounded across rooftops
with Yin Hanjiang in his arms, the residents looked up and started
complaining about how the Wenren clan’s little general was leaping around
again.
Back then, Wenren È was a dazzling youth. His figure appeared brilliant,
and even the sky over the border town was a vivid azure.
“Ah-Wu?” Little Yin Hanjiang asked in his arms.
“Before I began cultivating, Wenren Wu was the name my parents gave me.
They had also planned to give me the courtesy name Zhige, splitting apart
the character for Wu[1],” Wenren È answered.
Unfortunately, before that day arrived, the Wenren clan was met with
disaster, and Wenren Wu renamed himself to Wenren È.
Hopping down from the eaves to before Doctor Li’s door, he gave the man a
shock. The elderly but still lively army doctor snatched up a broom beside
him and swung it at Wenren È. “Why, you unruly brat! You’ll scare this old
man to death! Can you knock properly on the door just once? Every time,
you either hop down from the roof or run in from the backyard—my old
bones can’t take the shock!”
Before his broom could connect, it was grabbed by a pair of hands. Little
Yin Hanjiang glared at Doctor Li with a sullen expression.
Even the dark part of Yin Hanjiang’s soul was very strong. Wenren È, afraid
he would fight, was about to stop him when Doctor Li said, “Oh dear,
whose kid is this? How did this happen to him? Quick, come in, I’ll get him
bandaged.”
“He was picked up in a corpse pile. His parents and relatives were all
slaughtered by foreign tribesmen,” Wenren È said quietly.
Doctor Li’s wrinkled face was instantly filled with sympathy. He had
Wenren È place little Yin Hanjiang down on a bed as he fetched strong
alcohol and a knife, then began to excise the dead flesh.
Back when Wenren È saved Yin Hanjiang, he healed him with just an elixir
and some channeling of spiritual energy. The injuries of mortals were really
nothing to a cultivator, so Yin Hanjiang had no particular impression of
being treated.
This time, Doctor Li painstakingly cut at his flesh, disinfecting with alcohol
as he went, making Yin Hanjiang’s face twitch with pain. Wenren È was
puzzled as he watched. In the form of a soul, why would he feel pain? What
was Yin Hanjiang thinking right now?
Afraid of damaging healthy flesh, Doctor Li worked slowly. Only after ten
hours, with the sun having moved from the eastern sky to the west, did he
finish applying medicine to and bandaging all of Yin Hanjiang’s wounds.
Little Yin Hanjiang’s face was covered with sweat from the pain. When
Doctor Li said, “Done,” Yin Hanjiang fainted on the spot, his brows
furrowed.
“How many days had this child been hurt by the time you picked him up?”
Doctor Li asked quietly, pulling Wenren È aside.
“About three to five days before I dug him out of the corpse pile,” Wenren
È said in a low voice. He didn’t know whether Yin Hanjiang could hear, and
they couldn’t transmit each other messages within his consciousness.
“This child’s a bit odd,” said Doctor Li. “He’s so young that I didn’t want to
use anesthetic, afraid it would damage his brain, so I had to work without.
Some of the necrotic flesh could be cut off with no sensation, but some
flesh that was not yet dead but couldn’t be saved would cause agony just by
touching. He’s such a small child, but after that long a treatment, with me
wiping his wounds with alcohol now and then, he didn’t even make a
sound. If it was a braggart like you, I’d believe it if you grit your teeth and
didn’t scream, but for such a young child to not even cry, I’m worried
there’s something wrong with him here.”
Doctor Li tapped Wenren È’s chest, over his heart.
His heart? Doctor Li had noticed something was wrong in an instant, yet
Wenren È back then just abandoned Yin Hanjiang on a mountain without a
second thought. He thought it would be enough if he just gave him good
food, new clothes, a cultivation method, and the power for revenge. A man
didn’t need weakness. But Wenren È hadn’t realized that Yin Hanjiang
wasn’t a man. He was only a five-year-old little boy, still at the age where
he could cry.
“This child was saved a little late,” Doctor Li said, shaking his head. “His
left leg will probably be crippled, and there’ll be scars left all over his face
and body. I know you’re busy and Marshal and Madam Wenren are very
strict with you, but you need to find the time to look after him once in a
while. While I was doing the excision, he looked at you every time the pain
was too much. He obviously thinks of you as his savior, so take care of
him.”
“Your junior understands,” Wenren È said with a low sigh.
“What junior?” Doctor Li slapped him on the head. “Don’t be so formal

with me, you’re practically my grandson!”
“Ah-Wu understands,” Wenren È said, having no choice but to pick up the

name he had abandoned for so long.
When Doctor Li slapped Wenren È’s forehead, Yin Hanjiang had already
woken up, and glared bitterly at the hand he used.
After having observed him for so long, Wenren È understood Yin

Hanjiang’s looks and thoughts, and realized he was currently angry that
Doctor Li had hit him.
He sat on the bed, picking up little Yin Hanjiang and letting him rest his
head on his thigh. “This man is Doctor Li,” he introduced. “He was once an
imperial doctor.”
“Upstanding men don’t mention their past accomplishments,” Doctor Li

said. “I’m just a rotten old man who was chased away for misconduct while
treating the imperial concubines and exiled to the army!” He turned his
back, his figure seeming a bit glum.
Wenren È smiled. “Then let’s not mention that. Doctor Li’s medical skills
are incredible, and after coming to the border town, he’s saved the lives of
six thousand one hundred and forty-eight soldiers. A few years ago, he
accompanied the army to the battlefield and saved dozens of soldiers within
three days, finally collapsing behind the lines from exhaustion. Many times,
he’s brought my father and elder brother back from the brink of death, and
even I…”
He saw that Doctor Li’s ears were red and decided not to mention his
accomplishments anymore. He said quietly by Yin Hanjiang’s ear, “At the
time, the town was in a state of emergency and my nine-months pregnant
mother donned armor and joined the army on the walls. When
reinforcements arrived and she was carried down, she was already bleeding.
If it weren’t for Doctor Li’s skills, I would’ve died in the womb.”
Little Yin Hanjiang blinked up at him.
“Actually,” Wenren È said, lowering his voice, “I’m his adoptive

grandson.”
Yin Hanjiang’s eyes brightened and he spoke for the first time to someone
besides Wenren È. “Grandpa!” he called Doctor Li.
His voice was still hoarse and weak. Hearing it, Doctor Li grinned so hard
his mustache trembled. Turning around, he bent down by the bed. “Oh,
good child!”
Yin Hanjiang grabbed his mustache and grinned, pulling the bandaged
wounds on his face. He instantly hissed in pain.
Doctor Li snatched back his whiskers and gave Wenren È a look, saying
that this child was finally showing some life, so keep it up.
Little Yin Hanjiang was tired, so after some messing around, he rested his
head against Wenren È’s hard and muscular thigh and slept.
Before falling asleep, he thought, so these were the people his Venerable
wanted to protect.
1. This is the character for wu 武, meaning martial/military. It’s made of

these components 止戈 zhi ge. The first character is stop. The second is
dagger-axe, an ancient pole weapon. The quote that “Wu means to stop the
dagger-axe” (martial prowess is meant for stopping conflict) is attributed to
King Zhuang of Chu, who ruled during the Spring and Autumn period.
However, the 止 in 武 actually comes from foot, so it refers to the
movements of an army. The quote is just an artistic reinterpretation. ↩
Wants to Know
Chapter 74 – Prosperity and chaos
“Wenren Wu!” Wenren È was carrying little Yin Hanjiang back when he
heard a yell. “Was it you who smashed up Wang Whiskers’ liquor shop the
other day?”
A tall and sturdy man with broad shoulders and a thin waist, a head taller
than young Wenren È, strode over furiously and flicked Wenren È hard on
the forehead. “We in the army are meant to protect the civilians, so how
could you go around causing mayhem?”
Wenren È stared blankly for a moment before remembering that this was his
older brother, Wenren Tai, named for “the country prospers and the people
live in peace”.
It was too long ago. Only after a lot of thought did Wenren È remember that
he really had smashed the shop. Wang Whiskers was a perpetually
pessimistic drunk who always said that this town would fall sooner or later,
that the Wenren clan would leave and be replaced by some useless wine-
guzzling official who would abandon the town and run away when trouble
came. Instead of staying here, they might as well die sooner and
reincarnate.
Wenren È had come to the liquor shop a few days ago. The emotions of
youth were straightforward and strong. If he despised someone, then he
despised someone. If he liked someone, then he liked them. He respected
his father and elder brothers and thought nothing could possibly happen to
the border town as long as the Wenren clan was there, so he was furious at
hearing Wang Whiskers’ words. At night, he covered his face and smashed
all of Wang Whiskers’ wine jars, and also shaved off his whiskers, leaving
his face full of cuts.
He thought he had lain low, but hadn’t considered that in the border town,
there was only him who was a young teenager with good martial arts skills
who spent all day leaping across rooftops. His pair of bright and scornful
eyes were different from anyone else’s in the town and could be recognized
at a glance.
Young Ah-Wu’s forehead was bright red from his brother’s flick. Yin
Hanjiang got mad and bit down on Wenren Tai’s arm.
Wenren Tai was frantic. “Little kid, let go! My arm is tough, you’ll break
your teeth if you bite too hard!”
Little Yin Hanjiang: …
The sturdy young man was at a loss with Yin Hanjiang, afraid to hurt him,
and finally turned the blame on his younger brother. “Wenren Wu, you use
children as a shield when you’ve done something wrong?”
“Little Jiang, let go.” Wenren È gently squeezed Yin Hanjiang’s face.
“You’ve just gotten your face bandaged. Don’t open your wounds.”
Yin Hanjiang slowly let go. Wenren È held him in one arm, and hooked his
other arm around his elder brother’s shoulders. He pressed his forehead
against Wenren Tai’s broad arm and said softly, “Brother, I’m so glad to see
you again.”
Even if it was only in his memories.
Wenren Tai was stationed year-round at the border and his skin was dark
and a bit rough. His face reddened, and, lifting a scarred and calloused
hand, he patted Wenren È on the head before coming back to his senses.
“Don’t give me that act, it’s not going to make your beating any lighter!”
Wenren È took a beating that day. His father was at the army camp and his
eldest brother was stationed at the rear lines, so Wenren Tai dragged him to
apologize to Wang Whiskers and pay for the damages, then, in the liquor
shop in front of the civilians of the town, enforced military justice on
Wenren È and sentenced him to fifty strokes with a rod, beating him until
the skin on his young back was split open.
Little Yin Hanjiang was held by Wenren È’s mother, howling in fury and
struggling to escape from the pair of rough hands, wanting to throw himself
over his Venerable to protect him.
“Don’t move!” The woman appeared gentle, but was actually strict. “Stay
still and watch. No matter what the reason, a soldier who harms a civilian
for personal reasons must be punished by military law. Since he’s young,
his punishment has been lightened, otherwise it wouldn’t end until that rod
snaps!”
“It hurts…” Yin Hanjiang put a hand on his own heart.
“Of course it hurts. Pain on a son’s body is pain in a mother’s heart.” A tear
ran down Wenren Wu’s mother’s cheek, but she wiped it away and
continued. “But he must take the beating. No matter relating to the civilians
is unimportant!”
A tear that she missed landed on Yin Hanjiang’s hand. He licked it. It tasted
salty and bitter.
After the beating, Doctor Li bandaged Wenren È’s wounds—none too

lightly.
When it was done, he also needed to kneel in the memorial shrine for a day
and night.
Little Yin Hanjiang wanted to accompany him, and the people around him
had no choice but to prepare a cushion for him. Because of the flesh that
had just been gouged out of his legs, he couldn’t kneel and had to sit on a
cushion, filled with indignation. “The Venerable wasn’t wrong.”
“No, I was wrong,” Wenren È explained gently.
“How could the Venerable be wrong?” Yin Hanjiang lifted his head, his
eyes filled with admiration.
“Is this how you’ve seen me all this time?” Wenren È smiled and flicked his
nose. “No wonder I’m the phantom least like myself in your eyes.”
At the mention of how he was unable to distinguish the inner demons, Yin
Hanjiang’s face creased, looking very troubled.
Since this was Wenren È’s consciousness and Yin Hanjiang was in a
spiritual body, he wasn’t affected by his inner demons. In his eyes, there
was only the young Wenren Wu. However, he was surrounded by Wenren
È’s mother and brother, who looked a lot like him. They had hurt his
Venerable, yet since they resembled him so much, Yin Hanjiang couldn’t
find it in himself to punish them.
Wenren È rubbed little Yin Hanjiang’s head and said seriously, “Yin
Hanjiang, I wasn’t born powerful or wise. In my youth, I thought my father
and brothers were gods and could hold back all the world’s calamities, and
the border town would be peaceful forever, but this was a grave mistake.”
Who was all-powerful? People only straightened their backs, not letting
their weakness be seen even if their spine shattered.
Wenren È told Yin Hanjiang what happened after he was beaten. After he
was punished for a month, his father, Marshal Wenren, came back to the
town on break, and when he heard what had happened, he gave Wenren È
another beating. Afterward, he had gone from strict to kind and told Wenren
È Wang Whiskers’ story.
The drunk was fifty years old, and forty years ago, when Marshal Wenren
was still a child, the border was in a desperate situation, with the troops
having fled and the tribesmen invading. Wang Whiskers, then only ten years
old, was hidden in a wine cellar by his mother, and his innocent and tender
eyes witnessed uncountable horrors.
Listening, Yin Hanjiang thought of his own past, and the pain in his chest
made it hard to breathe.
Wenren È pulled him into his lap and continued. “Yet he survived until my
grandfather stepped up during the crisis, leading troops into battle and
taking back the town. Since he was a war orphan, he could accompany the
army to the nearest governmental office, where there was an orphanage
taking such children. However, he didn’t leave the town, instead joining the
militia. A few years ago, before I was born, he joined my mother at the city
walls, dropping stones on the enemy tribesmen to hold them off.”
“Then why did he say things like that?” Yin Hanjiang asked.
“Because it was all true. The Wenren clan was unable to protect the town.”
Wenren È’s voice was filled with pain.
This was the past he had never been able to revisit. All these vivid lives
were filled with both good and evil, whether crafty cheats or slippery
businessmen. Nobody could be painted in black or white, all making up a
frontier town filled with life.
In the end, the Wenren clan was exterminated and the court ceded nine
provinces at the border to the enemy tribes. The next day, the tribesmen
massacred the town, not sparing men, women, young, or old.
“Don’t look at me.” Wenren È held tiny Yin Hanjiang in his lap, burying his
face against his chest. Yin Hanjiang kept trying to raise his head, but it was
always pushed back down by Wenren È. Right now, he was still young and
could show weakness.
Drops of ice-cold water fell on Yin Hanjiang’s hair. Yin Hanjiang thought
that these droplets must also be salty and bitter.
“Venerable…” Yin Hanjiang’s voice was muffled by Wenren È’s chest

which was filled with the aura of youth.
“In here, call me Ah-Wu,” Wenren È said.
“A—Ah-Wu…” Yin Hanjiang flushed, and didn’t know if he was just

stifled by Wenren È’s chest.
Wenren Wu was very healthy and was jumping around again only a few
days after being punished, arguing with his teacher every day. He stole the
wine that had been buried for his sister[1] and sat on the eaves drinking it,
even giving some to Yin Hanjiang. After his mother found out, she grabbed
his ears and spanked him. Little Yin Hanjiang sat on a chair, covering his
eyes as he watched Brother Ah-Wu get spanked. His fingers were spread
wide, a pair of large, bright eyes peeking out between his third and fourth
fingers.
“Mother, don’t let him watch me get hit,” Ah-Wu said unhappily.
“You still know shame!” his mother said, smacking him again. “Yet you
stole your sister’s wedding wine to drink—I can’t believe you!”
After he was beaten, he was forced to copy characters. He was young and
couldn’t sit still, and his backside still hurt, so he could only lie on his bed
to write. Yin Hanjiang watched at his side as he wrote crooked characters.
His Venerable’s calligraphy had always been very good.
“My writing became good after I grew up,” Wenren È said. “Back then, all I
cared about was martial arts and I looked down on literary stuff. Every day,
I wanted to cut off my teacher’s beard and make it into a brush to send to
him.” He smiled. “Only later did I learn what use this stuff was. Martial
prowess can protect the kingdom, but literature can educate the people.”
“That’s why you looked favorably on Zhongli Qian?” Yin Hanjiang asked,
resting his chin in his hand. The wounds covering his body had mostly
healed, only leaving some scary-looking scars.
“In times of chaos, the Wenren clan is needed, but in times of prosperity,
people like Zhongli Qian are needed. Without us, chaos will never become
prosperity, but without them, prosperity will soon fall back into chaos,”
Wenren È said.
After one month, Marshal Wenren came back, and Wenren Wu got beaten
again just as he said. By now, little Yin Hanjiang was no longer angry. He
had realized that here, anyone could give Brother Ah-Wu a few smacks. He
got a small beating every three days and a major one every five. Even his
ten-year-old sister, Wenren Yan, gave him a scratch after he drank her wine.
Yin Hanjiang’s face was covered with scars, and he had originally thought
of wearing a mask, but he noticed that many people in the border town had
scarred faces, and there were some with missing hands and legs, but no one
looked at them differently.
Brother Ah-Wu told him that these were veterans or civilians who had been
injured. Here, everyone accepted their scars and laughed at life. No one
pitied themselves, because once you thought like that, you would be truly
pitiful.
Thus Yin Hanjiang learned to face people without a mask. No one around
him looked at him oddly, and even ten-year-old Wenren Yan adored her
little brother, often sneaking the vegetables she didn’t like to him.
Yin Hanjiang knew that these people were only his Venerable’s memories.
His Venerable’s buried memories turned out to be so gentle.
In this way, he lived happily for more than a year. What was to come, must.
Things that had already happened could not be changed, and so Wenren È’s
memories turned to that chapter.
After the army was recalled, Wenren Wu ran to the capital after recovering
from his injuries, and found the walls hung with severed heads.
Digging around within a pile of corpses, he screamed and cried within the
mass grave, as little Yin Hanjiang silently watched everything unfold.
All of these people, some resembling his Venerable, some looking a little
similar to him, some looking nothing like him, were gone just that easily.
Life was such a fleeting thing.
Right now, the two lonely figures huddled together and lit a fire. Beheaded
criminals weren’t buried, and the young Wenren Wu didn’t have the
capability to buy coffins for all of his dead family. He himself was a wanted
criminal right now.
He laid the countless headless corpses out in rows and set fire to them one
by one. Yin Hanjiang didn’t help, just watching him.
“I remember you seem to like fires.” After lighting the last body, a ten-year-
old who might’ve been Wenren Yan, Wenren È turned to Yin Hanjiang.
After a moment of silence, Yin Hanjiang shook his head and said hoarsely,
“I like to burn those who’ve sinned so the bodies once used to commit such
crimes can go on to illuminate the night sky. I think that’s all they’re good
for, but this is different.”
The Wenren clan wasn’t evil. They should’ve been alive.
“I don’t want them to burn…” Little Yin Hanjiang covered his mouth,
choking down sobs.
Wenren È wiped away silent tears and said quietly, “Neither do I.”
Yin Hanjiang still remembered that when Wenren È had taken control of
Xuanyuan Sect, he forbade his subordinates from harming any ordinary
mortals. Any who disobeyed were killed by him with especially cruel
methods.
Back then, Yin Hanjiang said indifferently, “Venerable, the Xuanyuan Sect
is a demonic sect. If they are overly suppressed, they might rebel.”
“Then anyone who rebels will die,” Wenren È replied coldly. “The common
people are innocent.”
Back then, Yin Hanjiang was ignorant, only knowing how to follow orders.
At this moment, he understood what it was that Wenren È was willing to
descend into the Path of Slaughter to protect in the midst of death and
bloodshed. What it was that stood behind Wenren È’s back and provided his
inexhaustible fighting intent.
The common lives that Wenren È protected became his will to never admit
defeat. As he protected them, they protected him.
1. A tradition in the shaoxing prefecture was burying a jar of a type of wine

called nuer hong when a daughter was born and digging it up when she got
married to serve at the wedding. ↩
Wants to Know
Chapter 75 – Old scars
Wenren È rode a horse, carrying six-year-old little Yin Hanjiang in his lap,
heading slowly toward the border with travel documents in hand.
Little Yin Hanjiang lifted a hand and touched the bandages on Wenren È’s
face.
“Do I look scary?” Wenren È asked.
His hands and face were covered with burn wounds, which young Wenren
Wu had inflicted himself.
After the Wenren clan’s extermination, Wenren Wu rushed back to the

capital with the help of Marshal Wenren’s old subordinates, but didn’t
manage to do anything other than recover his family’s corpses.
His father’s friends couldn’t help him much, only prepared a false identity
for him and told him to travel as far away as possible. Before the Wenren
clan was exonerated, he must not return.
Since Wenren Wu was a fugitive, in order to protect himself and not bring
anyone else trouble, he threw himself into a bonfire, burning his face.
Before his burns healed, he sped away from the capital, running into a
checkpoint on the way where a disbelieving officer ripped off his bandages,
revealing crimson and bloody flesh.
“No.” Little Yin Hanjiang curled up in his lap, thinking about how the
young Wenren Wu had spent these years.
His whole family was dedicated to the country, yet only he now remained.
He wasn’t more than a fifteen-year-old boy, having not long ago been a
mischievous troublemaker who caused chaos wherever he went, but now he
needed to hide his name and identity, crushing down his willful and carefree
nature, destroying his own uncommonly handsome face and facing a world
filled with malice, alone.
A cultivator could heal any sort of injury. By the time Yin Hanjiang met
Wenren È, he had already been cultivating for two hundred years and was
powerful as to resemble a deity. He knew no match in the cultivation world,
an embodiment of strength itself. No one would be able to imagine he once
had such a past. Even though Yin Hanjiang had occasionally heard Wenren
È bring up the past, he was unable to connect what he heard with the man
he knew.
Only now did Yin Hanjiang realize, more clearly than ever, that his
Venerable wasn’t a deity. He was a flesh-and-blood mortal, who understood
better than anyone what pain was.
Little Yin Hanjiang climbed up, wrapping his arms around Wenren È’s neck
and raising his head to kiss his bandages. “Hurts,” he said softly.
“What are you thinking?” Wenren È poked Yin Hanjiang in the head.
“Three hundred and fifty years have passed, so how could it still hurt?”
In his memories, certain special points couldn’t be changed. After all, the
events had all already happened. At points when Wenren Wu’s emotions
were most intense, Wenren È would be forced down the same actions. But
during this blank space which he had no particular impression of, he could
stay levelheaded.
Yin Hanjiang didn’t say anything, just buried his head in Wenren È’s
shoulder.
They traveled for half a year before arriving at the border. It was no longer
the border they had left, after nine cities had been ceded to the enemy
forces.
“Back then, I knew I couldn’t kill the worthless emperor, so I fled back to
the border and infiltrated the occupied cities in order to assassinate as many
of the enemy leaders as possible,” Wenren È said to Yin Hanjiang. “The
halberd I always used was in the family manor, so my only wish was to
return home and take back my weapon.”
Yin Hanjiang’s heart clenched.
He watched as young Wenren Wu, instead of becoming an official with his

recommendations, relied on his martial arts skills and leapt the city wall at
midnight. He ran the rest of the way, avoiding enemy soldiers for several
days and nights, until he arrived at the town where he had lived.
He had thought that if he returned home, even if his family wasn’t there,
there would be traces left of his life, as well as his weapon and the wine his
parents had buried for his sister.
But when he arrived, he distantly saw fires in the evening light.
He killed a lone enemy soldier and stole his clothes in order to sneak into
the town, finding it abandoned to flames.
Doctor Li, Wang Whiskers, and so many other people he knew were now
corpses sprawled across the streets. The enemy soldiers had dug out Wenren
Yan’s wine, and were now drinking it as they celebrated.
Wenren Yan had been too young to have any thoughts about marriage. All
she knew was that marrying someone was like finding someone to take care
of her like her father. She knew her father liked to drink, so treasured her
wine, thinking about digging it up and bringing it with her when she got
married. She had shown off her fine wine in front of Wenren Wu the whole
day, making him mad enough he dug it up and drank it.
The wine she had treasured like her own life had all been wasted, the jars
smashed before the doors of the manor.
“Kill them! Kill them all! Burn them! Make them into lamps to burn
eternally!” Little Yin Hanjiang spoke beside Wenren È, his face twisted.
This was Wenren È’s memories, and when Wenren È entered a particular
frame of mind, Yin Hanjiang would be separated from the world. If Wenren
È could see him, everyone else could see him. If Wenren È couldn’t, no one
else could.
Right now, Wenren Wu didn’t notice Yin Hanjiang. Staring at the heartless
scene before him, he gripped his arms so hard his nails broke skin, forcing
himself to endure.
He couldn’t go, he couldn’t go! He was all that was left of his family, so he
must survive. There was no meaning at all in killing a handful of people. He
needed to survive in order to find his chance.
He covered his eyes, then turned around and ran, leaving the town behind.
When he was in the deserted wilderness, he finally collapsed on the ground,
curling up, burying his head in his arms and letting out an inhuman howl.
Little Yin Hanjiang stood to one side, watching his Brother Ah-Wu, unable
to do anything else.
As he watched, a man descended from the sky at Wenren Wu’s side.

Looking loftily down at him, he said, “I was drawn here by the smell of
blood from this town and looking to capture a few resentful ghosts, but the
spirits’ resentment was completely insufficient. I thought I wasted a trip, but
who knew I’d run into a good prospect like you?”
Yin Hanjiang knew this was a demonic cultivator, at the Nascent Soul stage.
Hearing someone suddenly talk to him, Wenren Wu hid away his pain,
lifting his head and saying coldly, “Who are you?”
“To you ordinary mortals, I should be considered a god, huh? Hahahaha!”

The demonic cultivator burst into haughty laughter. “How about it? Do you
want revenge? I have here a manual for the Path of Slaughter. It’s not my
path but it’d be a waste to throw it away. I need someone to try it, so what
do you say?”
Wenren Wu refused. “However strong one person’s martial arts is, they
can’t take on an army. My family’s martial arts are strong enough. I don’t
need yours.”
“Hahahaha! With your handful of external martial arts techniques?” the

demonic cultivator said. “The blades on a battlefield are merciless and
anyone would die no matter how strong their martial arts are, but this
method is different.”
“I won’t take you as master.” Wenren Wu wasn’t dumb. After suffering so

many tragedies, he was highly on-guard.
“And I don’t need you to. I just want to see how powerful this method is.
This manual says that the Path of Slaughter is the supreme demonic path
and those who succeed will become the demonic path’s star of death,
unmatched within the cultivation world. Tut, tut, a lot of hot air. The last
line says that in all of history, of the over one thousand people who have
tried this path, not one has made it to Nascent Soul. Not even a single
Nascent Soul, and it wants to brag about being the supreme demonic path?
How come I don’t believe it?
“What do you think? Do you want it? If you do, all you have to do is hand
over a droplet of blood.” The demonic cultivator waved the book in front of
Wenren Wu.
The demonic cultivator flipped open the first page, holding it in front of
Wenren Wu’s eyes. In a glance, Wenren Wu was entranced by the mysteries
recorded within. Before he could read more than a few lines, the demonic
cultivator closed the book and held out a hand maliciously.
“I won’t trick you. I can use this drop of blood to control you. If you
manage to form a Nascent Soul, I can take it and switch to the Path of
Slaughter. If you fail, you’ll die in the heavenly tribulation, and I can use
your Golden Core to make elixirs. But either way, you’ll have enough time
to gain power and take revenge. How about it?”
Wenren Wu hesitated for a long time, but eventually stuck out a hand,
offering a drop of his blood and receiving the book in exchange.
The demonic cultivator flew away, laughing. Seeing that a human could fly
in the sky, Wenren Wu clutched the manual in his hands tighter, his
expression twisted and his eyes hazy.
“Brother Ah-Wu.” Little Yin Hanjiang clung to Wenren Wu’s leg. No matter
how much he shouted, he had been unable to call him awake.
“Don’t worry. Everything’s fine. It’s all in the past.” Wenren È put down the
book and picked up Yin Hanjiang, tapping him on the forehead. “It’s just a
memory. Three hundred years have passed, and aren’t I still alive? And that
method was indeed what that demonic cultivator said it was, providing the
power to take on a hundred men.”
Little Yin Hanjiang just held him tightly, muttering, “Ah-Wu, my Ah-Wu.”
Not Venerable, just Ah-Wu.
Yin Hanjiang felt sympathy for Wenren È with his entire heart. This was no
longer the worship that once saw him as a god, and no longer the dedication
of a subordinate to protect his master. He wanted to use his own tiny body
to protect Wenren È, and shield him from all the cruelties of the world.
“Don’t cry. Ah-Wu isn’t crying, is he?” Wenren È patted Yin Hanjiang on
the head, and suddenly discovered that the scars on Yin Hanjiang’s face and
body had disappeared.
Doctor Li had once said that Yin Hanjiang would never fully recover and be
left with scars and crippled. This place was Wenren È’s memories, not Yin
Hanjiang’s, and if he wanted to recover, he could do so fully. But he didn’t,
just becoming what Doctor Li said, crippled and disfigured, brooding and
quiet, his thoughts unknown.
Now his scars had vanished on their own. Wenren È examined his smooth
face and said, “How come you’re healed?”
Yin Hanjiang felt his face and was confused himself. He’d had no notions
of wanting to recover, but without noticing, he had slowly gotten better on
his own.
They were both stumped, and after thinking for a while without figuring it
out, Wenren È patted Yin Hanjiang on the head. “I’m so glad you’re
recovering.”
He stared intently at Yin Hanjiang. Reliving his old memories, he finally

realized why he had left Yin Hanjiang alone on a mountain and ignored him
for years after saving him.
To him, Yin Hanjiang was an incomplete promise. At the moment when

Wenren È found him, dusty memories from many years ago were
reawakened, stirring an old ache in his heart. He saw history repeating
before his eyes, and as he faced this young child, he didn’t know how to
comfort him.
All Wenren È could do was give Yin Hanjiang everything he hadn’t had. A
healthy body, a secure environment, a method guaranteed to be safe, and a
sword that could give him power. And… when Yin Hanjiang grew up, a
safe and peaceful border.
So he donned his armor again, for the sake of his realm which had stagnated
for long, but also in order to let a child no longer hate the world.

Wants to Know
Chapter 76 – My Ah-Wu
Time passed differently within his consciousness compared to outside. Its

speed was related to the depth of Wenren È’s memories, so the next ten
years passed like an instant to Yin Hanjiang.
He was an observer in this world, looking on as ten years flew by and

Wenren Wu changed his name, running around within the occupied cities
and saving whoever he came across. All the while, he was gathering
strength and waiting for his opportunity.
At the same time, great changes occurred in the imperial court. With a new
emperor’s rise to power, the country became more prosperous and the
military stronger. The new emperor hoped to take back the lost lands and
was waiting to build up power. War could break out any instant.
Wenren Wu took the opportunity to ally with the underground resistance in

the cities, and with cooperation from inside and outside, they drove the
foreign tribe out in one fell swoop. His martial arts were powerful and he
commanded forces with skill, as well as having the support of the civilians
at the border. He built up renown within the military, waiting for his
opportunity, then revealed himself as the orphaned son of Marshal Wenren.
Everyone rallied in support of him, and faced with his influence, the court
had no choice but to exonerate the Wenren clan.
After laying low for ten years, Wenren Wu finally entered battle as a
general, taking back the nine cities in one move and pushing the
tribespeople back to the prairies where they didn’t dare to emerge.
By this point, his natural talent in cultivation had brought him to the peak of
Core Formation.
Wenren Wu had climbed to the Core Formation stage quickly through
conflict, but at that moment, he felt himself reach a bottleneck.
No matter how many people he killed or how much territory he took back,
he was unable to break through. Just as the manual had said, it was very
difficult to break through to the Nascent Soul stage on the Path of Slaughter.
By now, that demonic cultivator returned. He made a suggestion—Wenren

Wu had not yet forged a bonded weapon, but a meteor had just fallen onto
the prairies, starting a fire which burned for half a month. The tribespeople
lost their grazing lands and many of their livestock had starved to death.
Wenren Wu discovered a divine metal within the meteor and forged it into a
halberd with divine fire, but no matter what he did, he couldn’t merge with
it and make it his bonded weapon.
The prairie fire destroyed the foreign tribe’s power, and they had no choice
but to surrender, becoming vassal states who sent tribute to the imperial
court every year.
The new emperor negotiated peace and the war that had lasted for three
years finally ended. Wenren Wu was unable to accept this.
When his town was slaughtered, he had vowed to exterminate the enemy
tribe, not leaving a single soldier or civilian.
The official that the court sent to negotiate surrender happened to be a

branch member of the Zhongli clan named Zhongli Chu[1]. He was also a
Core Formation cultivator and had great prestige. In one move, he brought
Wenren Wu under control, forced him to give up his leadership, and put him
under house arrest.
Rage burned within Wenren Wu. Holding his newly forged halberd, his
expression was dark and vicious, and he showed faint signs of deviation.
Yin Hanjiang was still tiny after fifteen years had passed. He had never seen
his Venerable like this before, and hugged his leg, wishing he would return
to normal, but Wenren Wu was submerged in his memories and didn’t
notice him.
“Tut tut, looking at your state, you’ll probably never break through to
Nascent Soul.” The demonic cultivator had returned. He figured Wenren
Wu should be forming a Nascent Soul any time now, so often hung around
the border, waiting for his chance.
“The Path of Slaughter is indeed quick. I’ve never heard of someone

making it from Qi Gathering to Core Formation in just ten years. But in the
past five years, you’ve made no progress. Ah… the Path of Slaughter is
easier to cultivate than other paths—you only need to kill people to
advance, but the more you kill, the stronger your inner demons will be, and
you’ll be unable to pass your Nascent Soul inner demon tribulation. No
wonder Nascent Soul is a threshold that no one can surmount on the Path of
Slaughter.”
Wenren Wu swung his halberd at the demonic cultivator, who quickly

backed off. “Woah, you’ve become so addicted to killing, you even want to
kill me. How about this? I have an idea for you. You’ve been unable to
merge with that magic weapon, probably because it doesn’t have a
consciousness. Consciousness can be nurtured by heaven and earth, or
created by sealing souls within it. Haven’t you captured many prisoners of
war? There are also herders who have fled the fires and come to the cities,
and are being managed in the prisoner of war camps. All together, it
probably comes up to a hundred thousand people.
“They’re of different races and we can’t see eye to eye. Since you have a
grudge against them, you don’t need to see them as people. Think about it
—with a hundred thousand killings and a hundred thousand souls refined
into your halberd, shouldn’t you be able to break through to Nascent Soul?
At Nascent Soul, what could the disciple of the Zhongli clan do to you?
“Can an exoneration make up for the over a hundred lives of the Wenren
clan? You might as well declare yourself a king and slaughter your way into
the capital, eliminating the corrupt officials of the court, making the
emperor into a figurehead and ruling yourself. Doesn’t that sound better?”
Those words, dripping with poison, ate at Wenren Wu. At night, he left the
manor with his halberd in hand, breaking into the prisoner camp. His gaze
slowly swept across the battered and exhausted prisoners, sleeping huddled
together.
It was hard to recognize the tribespeople’s foreign features. In Wenren Wu’s

eyes, their faces overlapped with the soldiers who had slaughtered his town
years ago.
“Ah-Wu!” Still a five or six-year-old child, Yin Hanjiang grabbed Wenren

Wu’s leg, wishing he would wake up.
But this was only a memory, and all of Yin Hanjiang’s actions had no
meaning.
Wenren È raised his halberd, aiming it at a prisoner wearing tattered

clothing. When he was about to strike, he heard the weak voice of a child
say, “Mommy, I’m hungry.” He regained awareness. Looking at the halberd
in his hand, his body began uncontrollably shaking.
What was he doing?
Taking action against defeated soldiers, the elderly, women, and children, in
order to seal their souls eternally within this halberd. It was the same as the
deeds the tribe’s heartless soldiers had once carried out against his
hometown.
“Eh? What are you thinking?” the demonic cultivator said. “Why aren’t you
acting?”
Not long ago, he had sworn to protect the common people living at the
border, but now he had become the same kind of slaughterer as his enemies.
When he refused his orders and insisted on slaughtering the foreign tribes,
what had Zhongli Chu said?
“Marshal Wenren, you’re a genius commander with unrivaled martial arts.

You can single-handedly wipe out all life on the prairies, but what good
would that do? When the spring breeze blows, the grass will sprout again.
The vast prairie needs people to manage it, herd cows and sheep and raise
horses. After you kill these people, where will the court find people to raise
herds? Do you want the border army to manage the lands while you make
yourself king of this territory? Or do you want exiled criminals to be sent
there, so in a few generations, a new enemy tribe emerges?
“You are a general, so you want to slay the enemy and defend the kingdom.
But prolonged military campaigns will only empty the country’s treasury,
and the fighting will disrupt the lives of the civilians living at the border.
Only by letting the enemy feel the pain of a defeat, then educating and
overseeing them, opening up trade and commerce, can we truly defend the
border and ensure lasting peace.
“You say that your grudge from fifteen years ago for the slaughter of your
town is still unavenged, and I understand you. But looking into the future,
this grudge must stop here.”
Back then, Wenren Wu just thought he was full of it. Because he hadn’t
suffered, he didn’t understand how deep this grudge ran.
But now, he stood in the sky and watched the prisoners living lives like
animals in the prison camps.
If he killed them and used them to refine his weapon, he could break
through to the Nascent Soul stage and truly become a god of death. If he let
them go, he would never have any possibility of advancing, and the
demonic cultivator next to him was coveting his golden core.
Wenren Wu’s sight slowly turned from the prisoners to the demonic
cultivator. The man, who called himself Wanderer Yinsha, said suspiciously,
“What are you looking at me for? The ants below you are your targets. With
all these people here, even if you aren’t willing to kill them, I’ll take their
souls. After experiencing the tragedies of the war and fire, they’re each
filled with resentment, so they’ll make top quality materials! It’s hard for
me to even let you have them!”
Wenren Wu raised his halberd, but instead of pointing to the prisoners, it

now pointed at Wanderer Yinsha.
“What are you doing?” Wanderer Yinsha asked.
“Even if they’re barbarians, they can be educated and become our citizens.
A general’s duty is protecting the common people. I won’t kill prisoners of
war, and I won’t allow someone to take advantage of warfare to capture
souls for evil arts!”
As he spoke, his black halberd thrust toward Wanderer Yinsha.
The Nascent Soul stage Wanderer Yinsha calmly took out an item, a doll
stained with Wenren Wu’s blood. He stuck a needle through its chest, and
Wenren Wu felt deep agony there. Bearing the pain, he continued to attack,
but he had no way to defeat the demonic cultivator who was a realm higher
than him and was captured within a few moves.
“Forget it, I’ve wasted fifteen years without any point. The Path of
Slaughter isn’t as strong as it’s said to be, nothing but empty words. At least
I still have a golden core and these resentful spirits, and after I refine them,
they should be perfect for breaking through to Deity Transformation, so it
wasn’t a complete waste.” As he spoke, Wanderer Yinsha reached toward
Wenren Wu’s dantian, about to take his golden core.
The doll painted with Wenren Wu’s blood had already been taken apart by
Wanderer Yinsha, and with each limb being removed, Wenren Wu felt
himself lose control over part of his body. Now he lay powerlessly, unable
to move, only capable of watching.
He raised his head, looking up to the myriad stars dotting the sky above the
prairie, and felt unwilling. Fifteen years ago, he hadn’t been able to protect
his family and the civilians at the border, and now, fifteen years later, he
was still unable to protect his former enemies, the prisoners of war.
Wenren Wu gripped his halberd tightly. It was covered with fresh blood.
The halberd had been forged from the meteorite’s iron, and no matter how
much blood it absorbed, he was unable to control it and couldn’t use it to
fly.
Right now, Wenren Wu had one thought left. The common lives at the
border no longer needed Wenren Wu, so then the only use he had for this
life was protecting peace and securing the future.
Kill! Kill this demonic cultivator!
Killing intent filled him, but the intention to protect allowed him to
maintain his rationality.
At the moment Wanderer Yinsha took out his golden core, that halberd
which had never responded before moved. It absorbed the blood covering it
and let out faint golden rays of light.
In the sky, Polis shone, the power of the star called down by the light of the
halberd. The halberd flew up and slashed through the night with a streak of
golden light, severing Wanderer Yinsha’s arm. The golden core returned to
Wenren Wu’s dantian.
Wenren Wu’s upper robe fell away, revealing the scars crisscrossing his
body which he had gained in years of fighting at the border—the proof of
him protecting his homeland.
As starlight descended, Wenren Wu circulated his spiritual energy. While

his halberd did battle with Wanderer Yinsha using the power of the stars, he
needed to break through to Nascent Soul.
Only a battle that put his life on the line could have a chance of killing his
opponent.
At this point, whether or not he could pass his inner demon tribulation and
whether or not he would survive was no longer important to him. All he
needed was the burst of power at the instant he formed his Nascent Soul.
The inexhaustible power of the stars restored Wenren Wu’s injured body.
With a thought, his halberd returned to his hand. All the deaths he had
caused flashed before his eyes, but Wenren Wu wasn’t shaken, clutching the
halberd firmly. With the spiritual energy from the formation of his Nascent
Soul, his halberd thrust through the sky, aimed for Wanderer Yinsha.
Rays of frosty light shone out. At the last moment before daybreak, the
halberd pierced Wander Yinsha’s dantian. Wenren Wu stood in the sky,
gazing silently at the ground below.
Polis shone above his head, reflecting the golden patterns of light on the
halberd.
Before the power of the stars, Wanderer Yinsha’s soul was scattered. Two
streaks of blood ran from Wenren Wu’s eyes. In the end, he hadn’t been
able to take his revenge.
“Marshal Wenren’s righteousness fills this one with admiration,” Zhongli

Chu said respectfully as he slowly walked up to Wenren È. “I followed you
here, originally intending to sacrifice myself to stop you, but I didn’t
imagine that you would show great virtue, abandoning your vengeance and
martyring yourself. Today, Marshal Wenren has used battle to stop the
dagger-axe, and truly deserves the name of ‘Wu’.”
Wenren Wu glanced at Zhongli Chu and said in a low voice, “You don’t
need to worry about me using a cultivator’s power to mess with imperial
matters. From now on, Wenren Wu no longer exists in this world. There is
only Wenren È.”
When war broke out once more and disaster descended to earth, Wenren È
would be there.[2]
That night, Wenren Wu died from old injuries the night before peace was
negotiated, being posthumously awarded the title of the North Defender
King.
Not long after, a new Nascent Soul stage expert suddenly appeared among
the demonic sects. In just a few months, he destroyed several sects who had
harmed the public. He wielded the Seven-Killing Halberd, surrounded by
the aura of death, calling himself Wenren È.
At the end of the memories, Yin Hanjiang was ejected from Wenren È’s
consciousness. Having relived the past, Wenren È also slowly opened his
eyes.
Within Yin Hanjiang’s soul, he saw that the bloodstain that had prevented
him from approaching had transformed into a vast circle of light. Wenren È
looked into it and found it was every moment of little Yin Hanjiang’s
experiences in his memories.
The circle of light carried Wenren È up into the sky, hanging at the peak of
Yin Hanjiang’s consciousness and beginning to absorb all the lights around
it.
The points of light like stars gathered together, becoming blinding radiance
that illuminated the previously dark expanse of Yin Hanjiang’s soul,
causing all the bloodstains to vanish under its light.
Wenren È smiled. He left Yin Hanjiang’s consciousness and reappeared in

the real world.
Yin Hanjiang opened his eyes, and for a moment, didn’t know where he
was.
He looked around himself. All the Wenren È’s crowded in his sight
vanished one by one, only leaving the one least resembling him, before Yin
Hanjiang.
No, it wasn’t the one least resembling him. It was the true Wenren È that he
had never seen before.
Admiration and reverence had led him to deify this man. Thinking that he
could never match up, he had automatically retreated from him and put up a
boundary between them.
Yin Hanjiang extended his arms to the man before him, holding him tight.
“My Ah-Wu,” he said quietly.
Even if he was unable to touch him right now, he needed to hold him.
However, when Yin Hanjiang’s arms tightened, he touched a solid body.
Even Wenren È was shocked. He had already returned the divine blood to
Baili Qingmiao, so how was his body solid?
“Where’s the Seven-Killing Halberd?” Wenren È felt in his storage space
for it. Since he had no material body, he had been unable to store it inside
his body and kept it in a storage space all this time, but it was no longer
there.
The Army Crushing Spike lying by the bed hummed toward Wenren È’s
chest, as if greeting something.
Yin Hanjiang, linked to the Army Crushing Spike’s intent, placed his hand
against his Venerable’s chest. “In here.”
The Seven-Killing Halberd had been forged from a heavenly meteorite.

Back then, the goddess in charge of disasters had flung it to the earth to
bring devastation to the prairies, so the iron contained the power of the
primordial goddess. Because of this power within it, Wenren Wu had been
unable to awaken it as his bonded weapon, and also because of it, after it
awakened, it commanded the power of the stars and absorbed Wenren È’s
blood.
Within his memories, Wenren È had relived everything that happened back
then and once more awakened the divine power within the Seven-Killing
Halberd. It fused with his body of primordial chaos and, without knowing
it, he had reformed his physical form and cultivated a divine body.
Cultivation was about cultivating the mind. While treating Yin Hanjiang,
Wenren È had returned to his origins and rediscovered his original desires
that had set him down the path of cultivation.
Wenren È clasped the hand Yin Hanjiang had placed on his chest. “Yin
Hanjiang, I’ve returned.”
“Welcome back, Venerable,” Yin Hanjiang said respectfully, but he still had
his arms around Wenren È and was unwilling to release him.
“Can Sect Leader Yin return this Venerable’s robes to him?” Wenren È said.
After reforming his body, his illusory clothes had disappeared. The two had
just awakened from their soul communion so weren’t in a normal frame of
mind and hadn’t noticed until now. But with Yin Hanjiang hugging him,
Wenren È began to feel a bit awkward.
“No!” Yin Hanjiang said stubbornly. “The Venerable bestowed it to me

himself.”
“…This Venerable has just returned to Xuanyuan Sect, and his subordinate
has left him without even his clothes?” Wenren È said with a smile.
“That’s right.” Yin Hanjiang looked at Wenren È, his expression the same as
his child self.
Wenren È smiled and leaned over to take back his robe. They struggled for
several days, until Yin Hanjiang was exhausted, lying contentedly in
Wenren È’s arms.
1. haha it means zhongli first. ↩
2. the È comes from zai e which means disaster ↩

Wants to Know
Chapter 77 – Imminent war
After returning from Shangqing Sect, Yin Hanjiang shut himself in for an
entire month. The seventh was tomorrow and Zhongli Qian had already
prepared everything, pressuring the great sects so that they had no choice
but to come, but would Yin Hanjiang be ready tomorrow?
While the two sect leaders secluded themselves, Zhongli Qian had to use
various methods to “reassure” the Altar Masters and motivate the
exceedingly lazy and individualistic Xuanyuan Sect key members to do
work. He had finally completed the tasks the two sect leaders had set out for
him, and when he thought he’d finally be free, the two refused to emerge.
In truth, the tracking curse and heart-linking parasite didn’t really matter to
him. After thirty years, he’d long gotten used to them. Besides, after Baili
Qingmiao reached Mahayana, he wouldn’t need the Altar Masters, as if he
and Baili Qingmiao joined forces, they could simultaneously break the
curse and expel the parasites.
As for this position as Altar Master, Zhongli Qian truly didn’t want it
anymore. He hoped after the Blood Demon was dealt with, the sect leaders
could let him free to wander the world as he pleased and prepare for his
tribulation.
“Altar Master Zhongli.” The soft and feminine Altar Master Miao came up
to him. “After you helped me tweak the method for raising king gu, I really
have seen results. It’s already made a cocoon, and when it emerges in a few
days, it should have the power to kill a wandering immortal. I really must
thank you. Also, I have a few other ideas, and after the king gu emerges I’d
like to raise a few more gu with different effects, so I hope Altar Master
Zhongli will help out then too.”
Zhongli Qian maintained a faint smile, not mentioning how he had already
decided to leave Xuanyuan Sect after everything was over tomorrow.
“Move!” Altar Master Ruan pushed aside Altar Master Miao. “Altar Master
Zhongli, what you said was right. Things will tip back when at their
extremes, so everything is at its strongest when it can find an equilibrium.
After I added some flexibility to my Xuanwu Armor, its defensive power
has skyrocketed. I grabbed a few gu and they were unable to burrow
through my armor. In the past, they’d always find a way in.”
Altar Master Miao paled. “Ruan Weiyi, you stole my gu?”
“No way, I just borrowed a few of the righteous disciples,” Altar Master
Ruan said, stiff-faced.
“Sir Zhongli, Sir Zhongli!” Helian Chu rushed over, holding a book.
“Thank you so much for your pointers. When I presented the poem I wrote
with your advice to the Protector, she especially favored me. I’ve written
another poem today, so can you help me edit it?”
Zhongli Qian smiled slightly.
“Cough cough cough!” Altar Master Shi piled in. “Altar Master Zhongli,
there’s still a point I don’t understand in desire of the seven sufferings, can
you…”
Zhongli Qian kept smiling.
He didn’t have power that far surpassed the cultivation realm like Wenren È
and Yin Hanjiang, so in order to get the Altar Masters working for him, he
had to coax them a little and get them helping him of their own free will.
The four Altar Masters of the Xuanyuan Sect crowding cheerfully together
was truly a sight unprecedented since the sect’s founding. With a yawn, Shu
Yanyan leaned against a doorframe, watching them, a bit puzzled over
whether Helian Chu was asking Zhongli Qian for poetry help in order to
kiss up to her, or if he really wanted to spend more time with Zhongli Qian.
“What’s the racket?” A black-robed woman with a frosty expression
marched into the hall—Qiu Congxue.
She hadn’t been in a good mood lately. It had taken a lot of effort to get rid
of her flesh, but it had all regrown. Even though she’d risen in strength
again, and it wouldn’t take long for her to ascend to the immortal realm, she
was still unhappy.
Baili Qingmiao and Su Huai followed her. Baili Qingmiao wanted to leave
Xuanyuan Sect. Her sect had never kicked her out, so she was still a
Shangqing Sect disciple, and she really felt out of place in Xuanyuan Sect’s
environment. Plus, the ghost taking care of her was the Violet Spirit
Pavilion Master whom Qiu Congxue had refined into a puppet. She felt like
she was sitting on needles all day and really looked forward to departing
after the gathering.
In the past, that one line from Qiu Congxue would’ve had all the Altar
Masters scuffling with her, but now Zhongli Qian was here. He greeted Qiu
Congxue while unobtrusively placating the Altar Masters, preventing
conflict from breaking out.
“Did Altar Master Zhongli call us all here in order to prepare for
tomorrow?” Yawning, Shu Yanyan slowly wandered up.
“Precisely,” Zhongli Qian said. “Tomorrow, the righteous cultivators might

turn on us, so we should be prepared. Everyone here is a pillar of Xuanyuan
Sect, and even if one person gets injured, it’d be a loss to us. Sect Leader
Yin isn’t allowing us to set an array in advance, but we at least have to take
defensive measures.”
With just a few skillful words, he had all the Altar Masters looking proud of
themselves, and even Altar Master Shi, who had his guard up toward
Zhongli Qian, decided he was a decent guy.
Suddenly, a black blur flew into the main hall. In a clear voice, he said, “No
need for preparations. Just follow this Venerable.”
It was Wenren È.
With a wave of his sleeve, he transformed the head seat into two. After
Wenren È seated himself on the left one, another man in red flew in, sitting
down at Wenren È’s right-hand side—Yin Hanjiang.
The sect members, all huddling in a group, instantly took their places,
saying simultaneously, “Greetings to the Venerable.”
Everyone stopped there, with only Shu Yanyan and Zhongli Qian going on
to say, “Greetings to Sect Leader Yin.”
Everyone hurried to greet Yin Hanjiang. Though deferential and polite, they
secretly observed Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang together, and were
bewildered.
According to Xuanyuan Sect’s customs, when Wenren È was gone, Yin

Hanjiang took his position, so when Wenren È returned, shouldn’t he teach
the new Sect Leader a lesson and take his seat back? How come they hadn’t
fought?
Shi Congxin was especially worried. He had wanted to support Sect Leader
Yin, but who could’ve imagined that the two leaders would settle
everything amicably? Who should he kiss up to now?
He secretly looked at Zhongli Qian and felt bitterness in his heart. Zhongli
Qian had been the confidant of both sect leaders from the beginning. How
was he so perceptive?
Sweeping his gaze over the assembled crowd, Wenren È spoke calmly, with
his right hand holding Yin Hanjiang’s left. “Today, I have an announcement.
From now on, Yin Hanjiang is Sect Master of Xuanyuan Sect alongside me.
His words should be considered this Venerable’s words. If my ideas conflict
with his, you should listen to Sect Master Yin.”
The two’s auras had now far surpassed the cultivation realm. No one
understood why these two villains hadn’t been taken by a heavenly
tribulation to the immortal realm, and were still lingering about the
cultivation realm. They didn’t dare to question though, and only answered
obediently, “Understood.”
Shu Yanyan bowed her head, cursing in her heart. “After learning my
techniques, you only secluded for one month? Useless!”
When she lifted her head, her face was filled with smiles like usual, as she
decided she couldn’t just tutor Yin Hanjiang, the key to having them
seclude for longer would be Wenren È.
Though everyone’s thoughts were going in wild directions, Zhongli Qian’s

attitude was unwavering from the start. He took a step forward. “Reporting
to the two Sect Masters, everything has been arranged. At noon tomorrow,
the righteous sects and cultivation clans will gather at True Yin Mountain.
The message carriers have brought info that they’ve already set up a
Heavenly Net Array at True Yin Mountain and are awaiting us.”
“Oh?” Yin Hanjiang seemed a bit tired. Propping himself up one one arm,
he lazily swept a gaze over Zhongli Qian. “How did you manage to get
them to come quietly?”
Zhongli Qian smiled lightly. “I simply asked the message carriers to

investigate a few matters, and found out several secrets from the righteous
disciples Sect Master Yin captured earlier. I sent word to each of the sects
that if they didn’t attend, these matters would be spread to the public, so
naturally they each had to come.”
“Well done,” Yin Hanjiang praised.
“It was Sect Master Yin who originally captured the disciples. I also had
Altar Masters Shi and Miao’s help, and Protectors Shu and Qiu went out to
interrogate righteous cultivators. Also, Altar Master Ruan led the members
of his Tortoise Shell Pavilion to handle the cowards harassing Xuanyuan
Sect. I only made use of everyone else’s abilities,” Zhongli Qian said. “One
person can’t accomplish much alone. I was only able to complete the two
Sect Masters’ tasks in a month thanks to the Xuanyuan Sect members acting
in harmony and working toward a common goal.”
He made everyone happy with those words, and several people puffed out
their chests unconsciously.
Wenren È fell into thought, wondering when his Xuanyuan Sect had
become something that could be described as “acting in harmony”.
Yin Hanjiang was tired, and hearing that Zhongli Qian had gotten
everything done flawlessly, didn’t feel like speaking. He closed his eyes,
leaning back against the chair. The interpersonal relationships of the sect
members were nothing to him, as long as they didn’t fight in front of him.
Wenren È saw he was resting and knew he wanted to save his strength for
tomorrow, so turned the topic back. “Zhongli Qian, you’ve done admirably.
Altar Master Shi, Altar Master Miao, immediately remove the tracking
curse and heart-linking gu from Altar Master Zhongli. We’ve been rude to
Sir Zhongli over the past thirty years.”
Zhongli Qian shook his head. “It is thanks to the Sect Master that I can be
here today, after I was given the opportunity to leave the Zhongli clan.”
The Zhongli clan’s prestige, influence, and power were what the disciples
of other clans longed for, but to Zhongli Qian, who had been brought up as
an heir from his birth, they were only chains. From youth, his cultivation
had progressed faster than his fellow disciples, but no one recognized it as
his own talent, just the prestige that he carried. The Zhongli clan didn’t
need Zhongli Qian. They just needed a person who could gather prestige. It
could be Zhongli Qian or anyone with the name Zhongli.
He had always wanted to know what kind of person he would be if he left

the Zhongli clan. If he followed his own ideas, what path would he walk
down? With his own power, could he open the way to the heavens?
Now, he knew the answers.
After the curse and gu were removed, Zhongli Qian took off his blindfold.
The Xuanyuan Sect main hall was bathed in sunbeams. He blinked a few
times, feeling like the world he saw was different from what he
remembered. His hair also slowly returned to black.
Baili Qingmiao also removed the blindfold around her left eye. Her heart
felt lightened, knowing that they had finally reached the end of their
journey together. From now on, she and Zhongli Qian would part ways,
each walking their own paths.
They shared a smile with each other and bowed with cupped hands,
thanking each other for their companionship and wishing each other well on
their future journeys.
Seeing that they had finished their farewells, Wenren È said, “There’s no
need to prepare too much for tomorrow. Just follow this Venerable closely.
The righteous sects’ traps will be nothing to this Venerable. As for how Hè
Wenzhao should be dealt with and how we’ll negotiate with the righteous
sects, that can all be left to Sect Master Yin, so you don’t need to interfere.”
The battle at the Blood Hell had been planned by Wenren È. He had only
used the righteous sects and the Blood Demon to achieve his goal. This
grudge didn’t belong to Wenren È, just Yin Hanjiang.
Yin Hanjiang hated the righteous sects’ blind slandering of Wenren È, and
how their scum had pushed countless crimes onto his Venerable.
Wenren È didn’t care about empty fame, but Yin Hanjiang did.
Tomorrow, he would bring forth Hè Wenzhao and let the righteous

cultivators see just how much filth hid beneath their dignified facades.

Wants to Know
Chapter 78 – Hidden corruption
True Yin Mountain, original location of Violet Spirit Pavilion.
Two years ago, when True Yin Mountain erupted, its natural might razed
Violet Spirit Pavilion in a day, the lava spewing forth for a month before
stopping. Now, after two years, the area blanketed by the ash was filled
with the vivid green of lush growth. The lava had reshaped the landscape
around True Yin Mountain, but fortunately it was remote and had no human
settlements nearby. Countless plants and animals had died though. The life
in the vicinity had undergone a cleansing, reemerging stronger than ever
before.
After the eruption, a new spiritual vein had formed underneath True Yin
Mountain, enriching the spiritual energy around it. If no new sect claimed
it, after a thousand years, there was a good chance it could give rise to a few
primordial spiritual beings or new species.
Yin Hanjiang selected this place because the surroundings were remote, so
even a major battle wouldn’t affect mortals. Also, though it was covered
with lush plants, new animals had yet to appear after the disaster. This was
the location where the least innocent lives would be harmed.
Even though his thoughts had been muddled and filled with the desire for
revenge, Yin Hanjiang instinctively chose a place which would do the least
harm to the mortal world.
He had watched Wenren È for so many years, so even if he didn’t

understand, he had been subconsciously influenced by many ideas.
The sects here had all been threatened by Zhongli Qian, so in tacit
agreement, they arrived ahead of time, checking that the demonic
cultivators hadn’t set up a trap and setting up an inescapable net of their
own, hoping to bring the demonic path down in one move.
The previous Great Sect War started because under Wenren È’s
management, the internal strife in Xuanyuan Sect decreased. Their
influence grew by the day, and since demonic methods were faster than
righteous ones, in just ten years, the Xuanyuan Sect had the power to take
on the entire righteous path alone, and Wenren È had become the top expert
of the cultivation world, unmatched by anyone.
Thus, the righteous sects needed to curb the expansion of the demonic sects
and fight over the limited spiritual energy. Also, of course, both the
righteous and demonic sides had realized that only by having this war could
they escape the judgment of heaven.
The last time, the righteous sects found a random excuse to declare war. A
small sect had been slaughtered, everyone assumed by the demonic
cultivators, so that had become the fuse to kick off the Great Sect War.
This war, however, wasn’t fate. It was Yin Hanjiang’s determination for
justice.
Altar Master Yuan used to work with the righteous sects’ scum, growing his
own power in the shadows, so his death unearthed many secrets. Any one of
the things Yin Hanjiang discovered would be enough to make a great sect’s
reputation completely collapse. Zhongli Qian well understood the
importance the righteous sects and cultivation clans placed on reputation,
and since Yin Hanjiang was impatient and Zhongli Qian had his own
motives, he had used the Xuanyuan Sect’s name to threaten each and every
sect.
Several arrays from ancient texts had been dug up, and the small mountain
was blanketed with the Drunken Dream Array, the Sky Fire Array, the
Ascending Firmament Array, and over a dozen others, awaiting the arrival
of Xuanyuan Sect so they could massacre them all at once.
A red streak flew over the mountain first. The people waiting in hiding saw
it was Yin Hanjiang and quickly gave the signal to activate the arrays.
A vast torrent of spiritual energy approached Yin Hanjiang. He made no

move to avoid, stopping in the air and watching as countless cultivators
emerged from hiding.
His Venerable had said that he should just focus on doing what he wanted,
and not worry about anything else.
When the force that could collapse mountains and overturn seas was about
to crush Yin Hanjiang’s frail body, a halberd cut through the air, severing
the lines of several arrays.
Wenren È appeared behind Yin Hanjiang. He raised a hand, and the natural
spiritual energy gathered by the arrays instantly fell under the control of his
primordial chaos.
The cosmos was born from chaos, so all spiritual energy came from chaos
and would return to chaos. After Wenren È comprehended this, all the
techniques of the cultivation world were nothing more than transformations
of energy to him. These arrays used secret techniques to transform the
spiritual energy suffusing the human realm into weapons, so he could then
use the power of chaos to return the weapons to the earth. He no longer
needed to use his own power to block, leading to both sides being hurt and
spiritual energy being wasted pointlessly.
A whirlpool of spiritual energy formed around him, absorbing the power of

the arrays and magic weapons around him. When the righteous cultivators
no longer dared to attack and were powerless to do so, with a wave of
Wenren È’s sleeves, the terrifying volume of spiritual energy reversed its
direction, transforming into sparks of light and falling onto True Yin
Mountain as a rain suffused in spiritual energy.
When Baili Qingmiao, following Qiu Congxue, saw this scene of

rejuvenation, she was moved and instantly sat cross-legged in the sky,
having a moment of sudden enlightenment.
Qiu Congxue, Zhongli Qian, and Su Huai never could’ve imagined that
with a war on the brink of starting, Baili Qingmiao could just have a
moment of enlightenment whenever she wanted. What kind of talent did she
have? She was already at the peak of Void Boundary, so when she woke up
from meditation, wouldn’t she be at Mahayana?
Sensing a change in spiritual energy, Wenren È glanced toward Baili

Qingmiao and finally realized. Back then, True Yin Mountain had been
influenced by Baili Qingmiao and thus shown signs of erupting. Even
though it was eventually brought about by Wenren È’s fight with the
Pavilion Master, the ultimate trigger was Baili Qingmiao’s command over
disaster.
Her duty was unleashing disaster, so wherever she went, any kind of hidden
danger would be prematurely awakened. Even in the spiritual realm, what
Baili Qingmiao had seen was the darkness and terror that always
surrounded her.
But after she closed her eyes, the spiritual realm was peaceful, bright and
dazzling, abundant with treasures.
That scene in the spiritual realm resembled the True Yin Mountain now. In
both cases, Baili Qingmiao had brought about disaster, and the disaster had
been followed by new life.
After awakening to the Path of Indifference, Baili Qingmiao no longer

placed her gaze on a single person, but looked further and higher. When she
looked at someone, she saw not a human, but the earth behind them.
The Dao was dispassionate yet held compassion, and such was the cosmos.
After the prairie fires raged, new flowers would always open trembling
petals in the aftermath, greeting the new land in a new form.
For millions of years, the three realms had existed like this, destruction
being followed by rebirth in turns, the cycle repeating without end.
In her meditation, Baili Qingmiao seemed to hear someone speak
incessantly by her ear. She didn’t remember their words, but she faintly
remembered there was something she had never been able to say.
“You’re incorrect,” Baili Qingmiao muttered in her trance. Only Su Huai,

laying out a chair near her, heard.
What? Su Huai leaned close to his master, hearing her say, “If a god of
heaven were to place their sight on a single species, then they would not be
worthy of being a god.”
As she spoke, Hè Wenzhao was tossed at Yin Hanjiang like a dead dog,
whom he caught in one hand. Yin Hanjiang looked around, his gaze finally
falling on the Shangqing Sect Master, throwing Hè Wenzhao at his feet.
“Since you’ve completed your oath, I’m returning your disciple to you,” the
red-robed man said coldly.
“Wenzhao!” The Sect Master threw himself at Hè Wenzhao. He saw that he

was covered with talismans and unconscious. Seemingly even his soul had
been sealed away.
“Yin Hanjiang,” the Sect Master said furiously, “On that day, I led the
attack on the Blood Demon. The Shangqing Sect has ancient records that
say, when a blood demon appears, all life in the mortal realm will perish, so
he must be eradicated at all costs. Now that Wenren È has survived, I’m
willing to give my life in order to slay the Blood Demon! But none of this
has anything to do with my disciple. If you have a grudge, then take it up
with me! Why harm an innocent?”
With Wenren È’s appearance today, everyone knew they had failed to
eliminate the Blood Demon. Somehow, he had gotten more powerful in the
Blood Hell, breaking their painstakingly set arrays in one move. Many
people wanted to flee at that moment, but their paths were blocked by the
members of Xuanyuan Sect, and many people also prepared to fight to the
death against the Blood Demon.
The new abbot of Wuxiang Temple placed his palms together, saying to Yin
Hanjiang, “Benefactor Yin, a blood demon is like no other cultivator. If you
are determined to shelter him, then even if we’re to give up our mortal
bodies, we must prevent you from making a grave mistake.”
“Shelter him? Hahahaha!” Within the spiritual rain, the red-robed man burst
into laughter. His eyes were filled with contempt, as if he saw the righteous
sect experts before him as no more than a herd of silly sheep.
With a sweep of his sleeves, Yin Hanjiang appeared before Wenren È.

“Today, if you’re determined to kill the Blood Demon, I certainly won’t
stand in your way. But as for who truly is the Blood Demon, we need to
clarify matters.”
As he spoke, Yin Hanjiang’s fingers flew through hand seals. The talismans
of the Ziwu Soul Locking Array on Hè Wenzhao’s body faded, the power
sealing him growing weaker and weaker.
Over this past month, the Ziwu Soul Locking Array had been steadily
draining at the Blood Demon’s soul. In order to survive, the Blood Demon
would’ve had to expend his spiritual essence to fend off the corrosion. By
now, the spiritual essence he’d absorbed from those seventeen experts
should all be used up.
At the moment before the array lifted, Yin Hanjiang summoned the Burning
Sky Drum, which began to sound in the sky. The cultivators prepared
themselves to defend or attack Yin Hanjiang in order to stop him from
casting his techniques, but after a few beats, they realized that the drum’s
sound wasn’t targeting them.
The pressure of its sound waves were all focused on Hè Wenzhao.
The sound of the Burning Sky Drum had the power to awaken someone’s
demonic nature. Yin Hanjiang had experienced this heavily. Now he wanted
to see whether the Blood Demon, who was so steeped in dark impulses,
could withstand it.
The Blood Demon and Hè Wenzhao regained consciousness
simultaneously. The past month had been hard on them. Hè Wenzhao had
been protected by his divine nature and the power of primordial lightning,
so could resist the array for some time, but the Blood Demon was
vulnerable to it. By the last few days, he had long expended the spiritual
essence he previously absorbed and held out by secretly consuming Hè
Wenzhao’s primordial essence and divine power.
Hè Wenzhao didn’t know it was the Blood Demon absorbing his essence,
and just assumed it was the array.
Now, finally, the array had been lifted, and when Hè Wenzhao opened his
eyes, he saw his master before him. Joy rose in his heart. Had his master
come to rescue him?
And the Blood Demon was hungry, starving, as if he hadn’t eaten for a
hundred thousand years, his soul parched without the nourishment of
spiritual energy. He felt as though if he didn’t eat a few people, he wouldn’t
survive.
Underneath the pounding of the drum, the Blood Demon was brought back
to ten thousand years ago, when he was attacked by the entire cultivation
world. So many people flashing about before his eyes, attacking him like
they wanted to throw their lives away. When he ran out of spiritual essence,
he could randomly grab one of them to consume and use the power he
replenished to continue fighting. Countless died in that battle, and the Blood
Demon, drunk on slaughter, laughed madly as he watched the cultivators
fall one after another.
He was hungry, so hungry, enduring as a wisp of a soul for ten thousand

years. After he had finally consumed a few more cultivators, all of that
spiritual essence was lost. He desperately needed to replenish his spiritual
essence.
His rationality told him that before he had fully subjugated Hè Wenzhao,
and without knowing the current situation, he needed to endure. After
figuring out what was going on, he could find an opportunity to act.
But if rationality could suppress demonic nature, then Yin Hanjiang
wouldn’t have been so tormented by inner demons, unable to free himself.
Only those who had experienced this madness could understand it, so only
Yin Hanjiang could awaken it.
The Blood Demon shook his head, seeing the Shangqing Sect Master
through Hè Wenzhao’s eyes. Hè Wenzhao had dragged his battered body
toward the Sect Master, who supported him upright.
The moment Hè Wenzhao’s hand touched him, the Blood Demon felt the
overflowing energy beneath his skin.
At that moment, his dark urges were impossible to resist. In an instant, he

took over Hè Wenzhao’s body, and with a slight effort, blood mist
enveloped the Sect Master while his guard was down.
The Sect Master let out a scream as his body began to dissolve into blood.
He watched helplessly as a heartless smile appeared on his disciple’s face,
as he ripped off his leg which had already dissolved and began absorbing
his soul.
Fortunately, the new abbot of Wuxiang Temple reacted quickly, thrusting

his staff at the Sect Master and separating him from Hè Wenzhao, and
forcing back the blood mist with Buddha power, saving the Sect Master’s
life.
However, half of the Sect Master’s spiritual essence had been absorbed by
the Blood Demon, his own disciple. Staring at Hè Wenzhao
uncomprehendingly, he asked, “Wenzhao?”
Yin Hanjiang raised his voice. “You say my Venerable is a Blood Demon,
but who’s personally seen him killing cultivators? You say this Lord is
sheltering the Blood Demon, but this Lord wants to ask the Shangqing Sect
Master, exactly what is Hè Wenzhao?”
While the righteous cultivators were too shocked to act, Yin Hanjiang
clapped his hands, and his subordinates tossed out the scum of the righteous
sects. They had been tormented by Altar Master Miao for a month and had
lost any will to fight.
Yin Hanjiang kicked one of them in the chin and said, “Tell them what you
did!”
“I—I’m a disciple of Biluo Valley. We cultivate by signing contracts with

resentful ghosts—we help them fulfil their lingering regrets and they serve
us for a few years. I wanted a more powerful resentful ghost in order to
show up the other disciples, so I pretended to be a demonic cultivator and
killed a bunch of people, and tortured a woman for a few months before
killing her, then showed up and told her the culprit was Xuanyuan Sect,
getting her to sign a contract in exchange for revenge. I—I even forced her
to eat her family’s souls in order to become the most powerful ghost,” that
disciple said, sobbing with a battered face.
Yin Hanjiang kicked another one. “And you?”
“I—I’m from Nanguo clan, I…”
One righteous cultivator after another was brought forward, confessing

what evil deeds they had pushed onto the Xuanyuan Sect. Even Qiu
Congxue couldn’t stand to listen in the end and shattered the Bilou Valley
disciple’s skull with a kick, saying, “You’ll do the deed but you won’t admit
it! Worthless!”
The Biluo disciple’s body was dead, but his spirit lingered in the air,
yelling, “It wasn’t just me who did it, my sect’s strongest resentful ghost
was created using evil techniques!”
After his words, several other people, at Yin Hanjiang’s hinting, also yelled
out what their sects had done, such as how Tianjian Sect had forged their
immortal blades, how the Gongxi clan had unleashed plagues of locusts
onto the populace because of a feud with the Liangqiu clan, and various
other matters, revealing that not a single person present this day was
innocent.
It wasn’t that the sects had never done anything good, but there were too
many members and too many connections, and there would always be
people willing to do evil for power or fame. It was as if a sheet of white
paper was stained by dots of ink, and they could no longer stand up for
themselves.
“Shangqing, Biluo, Jiuxing, Tianjian, Wuxiang, Nanguo, Gongxi, Zhongli,

Liangqiu… the great righteous sects and four cultivation clans have a
thousand years of heritage, following the path of heaven and preserving
mortal lives. This is how you preserve mortal lives? Such righteousness!
Such value in sentient lives! What a breeding ground of hidden corruption!”
Yin Hanjiang said.

Wants to Know
Chapter 79 – Hè Wenzhao’s death
Being in the wrong, the righteous cultivators had no way to defend

themselves. Even the Shangqing Sect Master, the old-fashioned righteous
cultivator who had never done anything wrong in his life, never could’ve
imagined that the Blood Demon he’d declared he would eradicate was his
own disciple. The shock was such that he was unable to speak.
Yin Hanjiang wasn’t interested in slaughtering the righteous cultivators. He

only cared about Wenren È’s reputation. His Ah-Wu thought purely of
mortal lives, would rather face death and enter the Blood Hell to seek a slim
chance of survival than give in to demonic nature and devour souls. Yin
Hanjiang couldn’t bear such a person being slandered as the Blood Demon.
He glanced at the Shangqing Sect Master. With the amount of spiritual

essence the Blood Demon had taken, he probably wouldn’t last much
longer, so Yin Hanjiang paid no more attention to this worthless mentor.
The soul of the Shangqing Sect Master alone was far from enough for the
Blood Demon. He looked around, searching for victims. With a strange
technique, Yin Hanjiang appeared behind each of the experts who had
ambushed Wenren È that day, kicking them toward the Blood Demon.
“Don’t you want to slay demons? This Lord has delivered the Blood Demon
to you! Go on!”
With his last yell, the righteous experts gained some spirit. They brought
out their weapons, determined to fight to the death against the Blood
Demon.
However, the righteous cultivators had just expended all their power on the
arrays set against Xuanyuan Sect, their spiritual energy having been
transformed into a rainstorm by Wenren È, so they had hardly any power
left.
The Blood Demon had recovered some strength from the Shangqing Sect
Master, and the Burning Sky Drum’s awakening of his demonic nature had
faded. He knew he had exposed himself and could no longer lie low, so
abandoning all caution, he grabbed a Shangqing Sect girl who was the
closest to him and dissolved her into blood, consuming her.
She just happened to be Liu Xinye.
Seeing that Hè Wenzhao was actually the Blood Demon, all the love left for
Hè Wenzhao in her heart had turned into hate. She knew that after
everything was settled, she would be humiliated when she returned to the
sect for being the wife of the Blood Demon. Liu Xinye had often used other
girls’ love toward Hè Wenzhao and jealousy for Baili Qingmiao to make
Baili Qingmiao an outcast within the sect, so she knew better than anyone
what it was like to be bullied. She desperately wanted to escape such a
situation.
Right now, her only choice was to sacrifice her love for the sake of justice.
If she struck the first blow against Hè Wenzhao, even if she failed to defeat
the Blood Demon, people would admire her. So she hid behind one of the
experts and attacked.
Unfortunately, Liu Xinye had never really faced any opponents in her life
and her experience was lacking. She thought she was hidden, but the Blood
Demon was aware of every move she made. The Blood Demon had taken
on every expert of the cultivation world single-handedly ten thousand years
ago. He easily discovered a particularly weak girl within the crowd, perfect
for replenishing his spiritual essence.
Liu Xinye, too clever for her own good, thus died at the Blood Demon’s
hands.
After absorbing Liu Xinye’s soul, the Blood Demon became more powerful
and began to attack, taking on the righteous sect experts.
By now, Yin Hanjiang had backed off a great distance with Xuanyuan
Sect’s members. He watched coldly as the righteous cultivators battled the
Blood Demon, occasionally kicking a few of the scum he’d captured into
the circle.
Zhongli Qian, who had regained his sight just yesterday, felt uneasy, but he
didn’t plan to plead for Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang to help the righteous
cultivators and take the higher road. Zhongli Qian could be selfless, willing
to save Zhongli Kuang even though he knew the other hated him, but he
wouldn’t make other people follow his own standards.
He sighed quietly, unrolled a bamboo scroll, and entered the fray, doing his
best to protect the disciples who had gotten caught up in the conflict.
“Don’t you hate Hè Wenzhao?” Wenren È didn’t know what Yin Hanjiang
was thinking right now. He couldn’t help clasping his hand under their wide
sleeves.
Wenren È thought of himself as someone who didn’t care for reputation,

and didn’t mind when others pushed their crimes on him. As for whether or
not it was his doing, heaven kept its own record. Besides, as the leader of a
demonic sect, it was better for him to have a bad reputation.
But today, as Yin Hanjiang felt injustice on his behalf, vented for him, and
cursed the blind righteous cultivators for him, Wenren È’s heart felt
warmed.
“I’ll deal with him myself, of course,” said Yin Hanjiang. “But these
righteous cultivators have to bear the fruits of their own actions.”
Back when his Venerable saved him, he had vowed to be a vanguard and
follow his Venerable throughout every life. Right now, Yin Hanjiang no
longer wished to be Wenren È’s yes-man. He wanted to stand in front of
Ah-Wu and protect this man who was willing to sacrifice himself for mortal
lives.
“The Venerable may continue on his own path and pay no mind to the
gossip of the outside world,” Yin Hanjiang said, gazing at Wenren È. “But I
care about the things you don’t care about, so let me deal with the things
you don’t feel like dealing with!”
Yin Hanjiang saw that several righteous cultivators had been consumed by
the Blood Demon, who had grown in power significantly. If this went on,
even he wouldn’t be able to handle him. And the righteous cultivators had
gotten enough of a lesson, so the time was now.
“Leave!” The red-robed man dove from the sky, a wave of his sleeve
tossing aside the righteous cultivators, who were gathered into a clump and
making themselves easier targets for the Blood Demon. Under everyone’s
eyes, he faced the Blood Demon.
A few righteous cultivators wanted to set aside prior conflicts and team up
with him, but he kicked them away.
“Yin Hanjiang!” one person said, flustered. “This isn’t the time to bicker
over the past! The righteous and demonic paths have to work together to
defeat this demon! Why are you attacking us?”
“If you stay here, you’ll be a burden. If you don’t want to become fodder
for the Blood Demon, then get out of this Lord’s way!” Yin Hanjiang
yelled.
That man wanted to say something, but Zhongli Qian knocked him out with
his bamboo scroll from behind and dragged him off. Before leaving,
Zhongli Qian gave Yin Hanjiang a look that said, “don’t worry, I’ll deal
with them”.
At the same time, a spike blade shining with frosty light transformed into
countless copies and surrounded the Blood Demon.
The Blood Demon extended a wisp of soul, trying to dissolve the Army
Crushing Spike and absorb Yin Hanjiang’s bonded weapon.
The moment his soul touched the weapon, though, the power of Polis
descended from the sky. Wenren È stood behind Yin Hanjiang, halberd in
hand, and the Blood Demon found himself unable to touch the Army
Crushing Spike with Wenren È’s chaos energy shrouding it.
The leader of Jiuxing Sect looked up to the seventh star of the Northern
Dipper and muttered, “Auspicious signs for Alkaid.”
Alkaid was the vanguard unit on the battlefield, disregarding their own lives
to enter enemy lines alone. If there was insufficient support, then they
would be crushed, so the danger was great. But if they were supported, then
great fortune would come to them and they could rewrite the situation.
If Polis couldn’t give Alkaid sufficient backup, Alkaid would be a lone

soldier, unable to unleash its power. With its master behind it, Alkaid was a
dagger that could penetrate deep into the enemy’s ranks.
Countless blades pierced into Hè Wenzhao’s body, pinning the Blood

Demon. During the time when Yin Hanjiang and Wenren È were fighting
over his robe, they had looked into methods to deal with the Blood Demon.
A blood cultivator was formless and immaterial, difficult to truly get rid of.
Ten thousand years ago, the cultivators had used everything available to
them but still allowed a wisp of soul to remain, to wreak havoc again today.
The best method was pinning his soul, preventing him from leaving Hè
Wenzhao’s body. Wenren È taught Yin Hanjiang the Blood Severing
Technique and the two came up with a method to immobilize the Blood
Demon’s soul. While the Blood Demon was still unwilling to give up Hè
Wenzhao’s divine nature, they would seal him within Hè Wenzhao.
With the Army Crushing Spike pinning the Blood Demon, Yin Hanjiang
laughed coldly, and began an incantation he’d learned from the Burning
Sky Drum. Using the vein of fire beneath True Yin Mountain, he began the
Burning Sky Technique.
A streak of crimson fire rose into the heavens, becoming a fiery dragon and
wrapping around Hè Wenzhao. The Blood Demon tried to escape, but found
himself unable to leave Hè Wenzhao’s body.
All he could do was use his spiritual energy to fend off Yin Hanjiang’s
flames. After his spiritual energy was drained, the Blood Demon began
absorbing Hè Wenzhao’s divine nature without any regard to him.
The divine nature held great power, and even Yin Hanjiang was only at a
level slightly above the cultivation realm. Gradually, his strength
diminished and the flames began to weaken.
When Yin Hanjiang was gritting his teeth and struggling to hang on,
Wenren È took his hand before everyone’s eyes. With a slight smile, he
said, “You’re up against two people, so why don’t we work together?”
Yin Hanjiang bit his lips, unwilling. Wenren È leaned closer and said, “Ah-
Wu understands that Sect Master Yin wants to protect him. But this
Venerable also wants to protect Yin Hanjiang, so will Yin Hanjiang give
him this chance?”
Yin Hanjiang had originally wanted to defeat the Blood Demon with his
own power in place of Wenren È, but hearing Wenren È’s words, his
stubbornness faded away.
He understood the desire to protect more than anyone, so how could he let
his Venerable be worried?
Chaos energy entered Yin Hanjiang’s body. The spiritual rain mingled with
the flames, becoming part of his power. The flames engulfed the Blood
Demon, who, nearly unable to endure, released Hè Wenzhao to control his
body again.
Hè Wenzhao had been bewildered the whole time. He had suddenly fallen
back to Foundation Establishment, suddenly been captured and sealed at
Xuanyuan Sect for a month, suddenly harmed his own master, and suddenly
been engulfed in raging flames, suffering with his spiritual energy drained.
“Master, Shishu, what’s happening?” he cried. “Why am I on fire?”
A hand on his chest, the Shangqing Sect Master asked, “Wenzhao, did you
know there was another soul within your body?”
Hè Wenzhao froze for a moment, then screamed again from the flames.
Seeing him, the Sect Master was resigned. Coughing up a mouthful of

blood, he said, “Then did you know he was the Blood Demon?”
Hè Wenzhao opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but suddenly

froze and was unable to speak.
He hadn’t known at the beginning, but at the battle at the Blood Hell, when
the Blood Demon took over his body to attack Wenren È, Hè Wenzhao had
gotten the faint impression that the person possessing him maybe wasn’t
anything good, and possibly those experts hadn’t been killed by Wenren È.
But he hadn’t told his sect, possibly worried the Blood Demon would turn
on him, or possibly afraid to take responsibility for his wrongdoings, or
possibly…
Looking at his expression, the Sect Master sighed. “Hè Wenzhao is my

disciple, so as his master, I should pay the price for the grave mistake he has
made. If Baili Qingmiao hadn’t helped Sect Leader Yin capture this
monster, who knows how many more people would’ve died? Let it be
known to all disciples of Shangqing Sect that Baili Qingmiao has helped to
eliminate evil and achieved great virtue. After this lowly Daoist’s death,
Baili Qingmiao should inherit the leadership of Shangqing Sect!”
After he spoke, he gathered his remaining strength and leapt into the
flames.
“Master!” “Sect Master!” The members of Shangqing Sect all began

shouting, some people trying to sacrifice themselves to save him.
The Sect Master held up his hands, though, and said, “If we fail in
righteousness, we should bear the punishment.”
“Amitabha,” the Wuxiang abbot recited.
It was clear to everyone that the righteous sects had truly lost all face to Yin
Hanjiang today. If they didn’t make such a display, the righteous sects
would be unable to stand in the cultivation world in the future. The
Shangqing Sect Master wanted to die not only because of his own shame,
but to bring honor to the Shangqing Sect. If any future disciples wanted to
go down the wrong path, they would remember the outcome today.
Within the night, a circle of fire burned until daybreak, like an lamp in the
darkness that illuminated the sky above True Yin Mountain.
By the time the sky lightened, the three people within the flames had been
reduced to ash. Within the Burning Sky Drum’s fire, only a spike blade
remained.
Yin Hanjiang retrieved his weapon, haughtily surveying the ash-covered

righteous cultivators. With a scoff, he said, “The Shangqing Sect has a
sense of responsibility, using two of its lives to make up for its mistakes. As
for you guys… this Lord will return your disciples to you, so figure out
yourself what should be done. And remember one thing—in the future, each
sect will take responsibility for its own actions. Don’t go finding someone
else to blame!”
After finishing, he led the Xuanyuan Sect members and left True Yin
Mountain grandly.
Upon departing, Yin Hanjiang’s body listed. He had been injured fighting
the Blood Demon, but endured it in front of everyone, not willing to let
them see.
Suddenly, a hand closed around his ice-cold fingers and warm spiritual
energy poured into his body.
The two exchanged a smile.
At the last moment before daybreak, Polis and Alkaid shone brilliantly,
reinforcing each other, beating Venus, which should be the brightest in this
moment, in radiance.
guys i just translate the chapter titles


Wants to Know
Chapter 80 – Book-burning immortal
The day Hè Wenzhao died was the apocalypse for God of Annihilation‘s
discussion page and cause for celebration for Abusive Romance‘s. The
atmospheres of the two were night and day.
In the discussion page of God of Annihilation—
[What do you mean ‘the end’? When I heard such an old book was
suddenly getting revised, I rushed to the site to read it, and after following
for a million words, the protagonist suddenly… dies? I thought he could
still come back to life, but the author wrote ‘the end’? What kind of ****
ending is this? I ********.]
[Author you ****, why did I pay money for this ****, you made the
protagonist into a ****, you ****]
[Wasn’t this an old classic? I even bought a physical copy once! Now the
protagonist is dead before the end of the first volume. **** author, I want
my money back]
[I agree but… previous poster, this book was never printed. Did you read a
1 million word physical copy?]
[Then what did I buy?]
[Was it an especially thick book with especially small text, poor paper
quality, which constantly had broken punctuation replaced by question
marks? That’s called a pirated edition.]
[Forget about the pirated edition. Author, what do you mean by this
revision? When Zhao-ge was locked up by Xuanyuan Sect, I was waiting
for him to make a comeback, but at the conference he just got burned to
death by Yin Hanjiang? And then right afterward, the story was finished?
What does this mean?]
[Speaking of this book, God of Annihilation, I always thought it was a

classic because of the mind-blowing ending. But now that I’ve come back
to it ten years later, I suddenly feel like the protagonist is kind of a
hypocrite and the logic of the harem is questionable. I guess I’ve grown up
and my tastes and outlook have changed?]
[It’s probably the same for the author, I guess? After getting older, he
looked back on his previous work and just wasn’t satisfied with it, so
decided to toss it all out and start over. I can understand the author not
wanting to face his shameful past, but you have to make a sensible ending,
you ****]
[Why are there so many ****s in this discussion page?]
[Language filters. Curse words aren’t suitable for children. This story isn’t
either, it’ll make you doubt your life. Let’s just go read no romance stories
to clean our eyes.]
The readers of God of Annihilation went from rage to helplessness to finally

indifference as they moved on to other stories, while the discussion page of
Abusive Romance was harmonious throughout.
In Abusive Romance, revised edition, Baili Qingmiao exited meditation

having reached Mahayana, achieving minor enlightenment of the Path of
Indifference. After hearing that Hè Wenzhao had died and she had been
appointed the new Sect Master, she was silent for a bit, then accepted her
new responsibility.
Her disciple Su Huai was puzzled. She was already at Mahayana and would
soon be able to ascend, so why did she want to tie herself to Shangqing
Sect?
Baili Qingmiao smiled gently at her disciple. “Do you think that Shangqing
Sect and the entire righteous path all consists of chasers of fame?”
“All of them, except for you,” Su Huai answered angrily.
He had also been listening on True Yin Mountain as Yin Hanjiang

interrogated the righteous scum on each and every one of their deeds. When
he realized just how much dirt had been smeared on Xuanyuan Sect, he was
furious, wishing that Sect Master Yin would just burn everyone there, but
Sect Master Yin hadn’t done so. He just eliminated the Blood Demon, then
gave all the prisoners back to their sects, for them to deal with themselves.
If you asked Su Huai, the best would be killing all the righteous experts
present, so Xuanyuan Sect could take over the cultivation world!
“But do you know why the righteous cultivators could push all these deeds
onto Xuanyuan Sect?” Baili Qingmiao asked.
“That…” Su Huai found himself wordless.
He wanted to say that Xuanyuan Sect had a bad reputation, but why was its
reputation bad? Because it really had done many awful things.
“Before Sect Master Wenren unified the demonic sects, Xuanyuan Sect
truly was capable of all evils.” Baili Qingmiao thought back to Zhongli
Qian’s teachings and the stories of the past that Master Qingxue had told
her. “Their actions were in no way inferior to the ones of the righteous sects
today.”
Over these past several years, Baili Qingmiao had been free from
Shangqing Sect, wandering the world and witnessing the sufferings of the
mortal realm with her own eyes. She understood that the world wasn’t black
and white. When her eyes, previously blinded by infatuation, had been
cleared, her understanding of the world had changed.
She patted Su Huai’s hand, saying, “After Wenren È became the Lord of
Demons, he used harsh methods to purge the ranks of the old Sect Master’s
subordinates. That was destruction. He then reformed the sect’s ranks,
ordering everyone to follow new regulations. That was rebirth. After a
hundred years, Xuanyuan Sect has transformed from a demonic sect to a
sect where anyone can express their nature. You feel comfortable in
Xuanyuan Sect because everyone there is true to themselves, displaying
malice and kindness openly with no pretenses or masks. But the one who
made this possible was none other than Wenren È.”
“As for today, when Yin Hanjiang unmasked the righteous sects’ years-old
decay on True Yin Mountain, it was destruction. After all these years of the
righteous sects taking in disciples from far and wide, they’ve inevitably
ended up unable to manage them. A large sect is bound to have rotten
elements. If they don’t excise them with a firm hand, the rot will spread to
healthy flesh, until righteous and demonic have no meaning, right and
wrong, black and white, are intertwined, and chaos ensues under heaven.”
“So… what Sect Master Yin did was for the benefit of the righteous sects?”
Su Huai said, astonished. “Master, have you become smarter? Did you
really think of all this yourself? Sir Zhongli probably taught you, right?”
He was close with Qiu Congxue and Baili Qingmiao was a friendly person,
so there was no distinction of age between them.
Baili Qingmiao tapped a finger on Su Huai’s forehead. “Your master

thought of it herself. After your master obtained the Iridescent Blood Flame
Silk, she remembered a great deal.”
The Iridescent Blood Flame Silk was transformed from the divine blood,
which the primordial goddess had prepared in order to regain her divinity,
so it also stored some memories of her previous life. After ascending to
Mahayana, Baili Qingmiao gradually regained some of those memories.
Having been influenced by Hè Wenzhao’s previous incarnation, she really

had believed that what she had done was wrong. Only now that she
reincarnated and saw Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang’s actions did she come to
understand.
“Sect Master Yin’s destruction is painful to the righteous sects, but it’s also
their only path for survival,” Baili Qingmiao said regretfully. “In my
previous life, I brought immeasurable pain to the mortal realm. To the lives
individually, this pain was a devastating blow, but to the cosmos, each
disaster is a chance for a new start.”
Su Huai cocked his head as he listened, not really understanding.
“In my previous life, I always brought about destruction, never rebirth. The
leadership of Shangqing Sect is an opportunity for me. Shangqing Sect is
the leader of the righteous sects, so the Sect Master used his life to wash
away the stain Hè Wenzhao brought to it, and trusted me enough to give me
this chance to reform the sect and the righteous path. I cannot refuse such a
heavy responsibility.” Baili Qingmiao’s expression grew solemn, and facing
the direction of True Yin Mountain, where the Sect Master had passed, she
made a deep bow.
She faintly felt, deep inside, that the day she led the righteous sects to once
again gain prestige in the world would be the day she was qualified to
regain the divine nature.
The primordial goddess had been born together with heaven and earth, and
all of her thoughts and actions were in order to preserve the realms. If only
disaster existed in the cosmos, then it would head toward inevitable
extinction. Disaster was only a means to clear out the weeds, refreshing the
cosmos so it could grow brighter.
Su Huai was still confused. Baili Qingmiao asked if he wanted to go to

Shangqing Sect or stay at Xuanyuan Sect, and after a lot of thought, he
decided he would follow his master. Even though Xuanyuan Sect was his
aspiration, his master was a bit dumb and he was afraid she would get
pushed around at Shangqing Sect, so he couldn’t leave her alone.
And if he stayed at Xuanyuan Sect, that Altar Master called Shi Congxin
would keep looking at him secretly, paranoid about him stealing his seat as
the master of Hellfire Altar. Su Huai thought the members of Xuanyuan
Sect were a bit out of control, and even Sir Zhongli, with all his brains, was
about to go bald. He rubbed his thick head of hair and thought there was
nothing wrong with being a head disciple at Shangqing Sect.
Before Baili Qingmiao left Xuanyuan Sect, some people who got along
well with her showed up to say their farewells.
Qiu Congxue was highly unsatisfied. Her disciple had finally reached
Mahayana, but instead of joining forces with her to assassinate Wenren È
and Yin Hanjiang, she was heading off to be the Sect Master of Shangqing
Sect. She grabbed Baili Qingmiao and yelled at her for a while, until Su
Huai couldn’t listen anymore and, pulling her aside, quietly told her his
master wanted to unify the righteous path.
Qiu Congxue’s eyes instantly brightened and, puffing out her chest, said,
“Go get it done, and by the time you’ve unified the righteous sects, I’ll be
the Xuanyuan Sect Master. By then, when we meet on the battlefield as
master and disciple, it’ll be legendary!”
Su Huai rubbed his forehead, feeling like what she was saying wasn’t even
close to legendary.
“Don’t you worry,” the alluring Protector Shu said, stroking Su Huai’s face.
“With this Protector around, there’s no way your martial ancestor is going
to take over the demonic path. If she becomes leader, she’ll probably turn
the whole sect into ghosts, and if everyone’s a skeleton with no flesh, who
will this Protector dual cultivate with?”
Faced with Protector Shu’s overwhelming beauty, Su Huai’s face reddened

and he backed up several steps. Watching her warily, he said, “I’m entering
the righteous path with my master, I’ll never d—dual cultivate with you!”
Shu Yanyan laughed slightly and took a few steps forward to squeeze Su
Huai’s cheeks. “I wouldn’t touch someone like you. You’re too serious and
sentimental, willing to give up everything for the person you love. I can’t
take responsibility for that.”
While Shu Yanyan talked to Su Huai, Shi Congxin quietly moved up to

Baili Qingmiao and presented a jade talisman with both hands.
“What’s this?” Baili Qingmiao said, looking doubtfully at him. Over her
stay at Xuanyuan Sect, she hadn’t actually had any disagreements with
Altar Master Shi. When she was unconscious, she instinctively took Altar
Master Shi’s sickness qi in order to protect herself and fend off the divine
nature. Thus, she had owed him a debt. But after she returned the sickness
qi, it had been strengthened by the body of the primordial goddess that
commanded disasters, so Altar Master Shi had gained power and Baili
Qingmiao had repaid her debt.
“T—there’s a curse inside. You can use it if anyone defies you,” Shi
Congxin said timidly.
Every time he laid eyes on Baili Qingmiao, he wanted to fall to his knees
and offer everything he had to her. He really didn’t understand it.
“Thank you.” Even if she wasn’t necessarily going to use it, Baili Qingmiao
still accepted his gift.
And, thinking back to the tracking curse that had been placed on Zhongli
Qian and her, curses didn’t necessarily have to be bad things, as long as
they were used in the right ways.
Thinking about the friend she had traveled for thirty years with, she looked
at Zhongli Qian, cupping her hands to him for farewell.
There were no unnecessary words or demands made of each other. A

relationship between gentlemen was as faint as water, but Baili Qingmiao
knew that if she ever met with trouble in the future, Zhongli Qian was sure
to help her out, and if Zhongli Qian needed help, she would do the same.
After bidding farewell to Baili Qingmiao, Zhongli Qian asked Shu Yanyan,
“Protector Shu, when will the two Sect Masters exit seclusion? I need to
resign and take my leave of them.”
“Exit seclusion?” Shu Yanyan lifted a slender hand to cover her surprised
expression. “Who knows how much longer that’ll take? Yesterday, upon
returning to Xuanyuan Sect, Sect Master Wenren borrowed a manual from
me before entering seclusion. He asked for the most profound manual
which not even I have grasped, so if he wants to master it, it might take
thirty or fifty years.”
Zhongli Qian: …
He looked toward Baili Qingmiao, hoping his friend could lend him a hand,
but Baili Qingmiao had hurried off right after saying her farewells and was
long since gone.
Zhongli Qian let out a long sigh. The two Sect Masters seemed to be
leaving the task of controlling the demonic cultivators entirely to him. They
say that once you set foot on a pirate ship, you can’t leave, and Zhongli
Qian understood exactly what that meant now.
Abusive Romance‘s last page stopped on this chaotic scene. Each of the
readers acted as if they were proud to see their first daughter grow up.
[sob sob Reading Baili Qingmiao’s final lines, I feel like my daughter who’s
been tricked into running off with a scum man finally grew up. It’s such a
bittersweet warm feeling, it’s great.]
[Yeah, she not only stomped on him, but stole his company. Beautifully
done!]
[After reading for over a million words, there wasn’t any romance up to the
end, or you could say it was a romance between Wenren È and Yin
Hanjiang written from Baili Qingmiao’s point of view, so it was actually a
danmei. I’m pondering the title.]
[Abusive romance? All I see is Yin Hanjiang awesomely destroying Hè

Wenzhao, where’s the abuse?]
[Abuse of Zhongli Qian’s hair. After this, he needs to keep the demonic
cultivators in check. An award-winning teacher goes bald over his
misbehaving students—is this twisted morality or the decay of societal
values? Hahahaha!]
[Stop it, it’s too vivid. My poor Qian… he might as well shave off all his
hair. Monks are self-restrained and good-looking, and it’s better than having
a bald spot.]
[Who says there’s no abusive romance? Baili Qingmiao and Elder Qingxue
a hundred years later, one the leader of the righteous sects, the other the
Demon Lord, forced to kill each other even though they love one another.
‘Back then, I saved your body, you helped me escape a worthless man and
saved my soul, we supported each other for thirty years, how could we end
up facing each other in battle?’ Isn’t that cruel?]
[You’re thinking too much. Qingxue doesn’t have the brains to become the
sect leader. If she goes for the position, Sister Shu won’t let her.]
[Speaking of Sister Shu, I want to see how her deepest techniques can take
thirty to fifty years to master.]
[Me too—
Slap! Yin Hanjiang slammed shut Abusive Romance: You Are the
Unchanging One in My Heart, giving up on reading the comments.
With the book in hand, he eyed the lamp by the bed, and slowly extended
the book to the flame.
A sturdy arm reached over and took the book out of his hand. A lazy voice
sounded by his ear. “What does it say? That makes you angry enough to
burn it?”
“This Lord is just concerned…” Yin Hanjiang opened his mouth, but found
his throat was hoarse, and took a cup of spiritual wine from his storage
space, gulping it down before he continued. “This work is malicious and
might affect one’s emotions.”
He roughly went over how, when Wenren È was in the Blood Hell, he had
seen scenes from the original edition of the book and it had aggravated his
inner demons.
“It isn’t just you who’s experienced that.” Wenren È thought back to how,
when Qiu Congxue had been saved by Baili Qingmiao in his place, the
original dialogue had appeared in her mind. When Shi Congxin first saw
Baili Qingmiao, he also saw divine light.
Only, if the same plot was placed on a different person, a completely
different outcome would result.
“Why would such a thing happen?” Yin Hanjiang took out Abusive
Romance and the three books of God of Annihilation and flipped through
them, finding that Annihilation Volumes 2 and 3 had already become blank.
Aside from people still hurling insults in the discussions, there were no
signs of a revision.
“I’ve always had a question. In both God of Annihilation and Abusive

Romance‘s comments, there has never been any mention of the other book.
They clearly have the same two protagonists, so has no one read both
books?” Wenren È said.
Yin Hanjiang was bewildered for a moment. Staring at the books, various
guesses flashed through his mind, but only one was close to a plausible
answer. “The two books don’t exist in the same world.”
“Correct,” Wenren È said. “The myriad worlds are all disconnected from
each other, but they also influence each other. The cultivation realm has
many legends about the immortal realm and the divine realm, but when it
comes to whether they’re true, we can’t know until we go to the immortal
realm or the divine realm. Yet this doesn’t stop us from knowing things and
discussing them.
“Our story is the same. From the viewpoints of different people, it’s
reflected in different worlds. Thus, no book in no world has the entire story,
only the perspective of a certain person.
“If I have to give a judgment on both books, I’d say these two books are
warnings about the end of the three realms. The fact that they each appeared
in different hands is heaven working in mysterious ways, spreading the
knowledge of the calamity facing the three realms. Whether or not the
people who obtained the books can grasp the single chance of survival
would depend on how they act.
“As for the plot appearing in people’s minds, it could be the doings of the
divine nature, or a warning from heaven, or other worlds influencing ours.
But there could also be other reasons, so it’s impossible for me to judge.
“The only thing we can be certain of is that, after cultivating the Path of
Indifference and taking on the leadership of Shangqing Sect, Baili
Qingmiao’s will should be firm enough to subjugate the divine nature.”
Yin Hanjiang didn’t care about whether or not Baili Qingmiao could save
the three realms. If you asked him, being able to live and die alongside
Wenren È, then melding together with him after death and becoming the
new cosmos, was a fine conclusion.
“I wonder if there’s a book with us as the main characters?” Yin Hanjiang

suddenly said, as he flipped casually through the book over the oil lamp.
“Who knows?” Wenren È smiled slightly, and didn’t go to stop Yin

Hanjiang’s move to burn the book. “Would you object to our story being
read?”
“What does it matter to me?” Yin Hanjiang tossed the book onto the
ground.
Just as Wenren È had said, even if other worlds could see their story, they
didn’t have the power to affect the two of them. To Yin Hanjiang, the most
important thing was that Wenren È was alive and they were together. This
alone was enough.
Yin Hanjiang’s long hair, usually tied up neatly, was loose over the bed,
with one lock being lain on by Wenren È, but he didn’t mind. He picked up
a lock of their entwined hair and began playing with it.
“Is the Burning Sky Immortal me or someone else? Am I the reincarnation

of the Burning Sky Immortal, or just someone who stole his position?”
“When we reach the immortal realm, we’ll naturally know the answer. In
order to reach the immortal realm sooner, should we practice Protector
Shu’s techniques again?” Wenren È said.
Yin Hanjiang threw an arm over Wenren È and turned over. He half-lidded
his eyes, hiding his look of triumph.
As he turned over, he flicked a wrist and set aflame the four books
discarded on the floor.
The fire illuminated their somewhat shadowy bedroom. Seeing the light in
the corners of his eyes, Yin Hanjiang smiled.
This is the last chapter, but stay tuned for two extra chapters! I think they’re
fairly short?
I haven’t translated the author’s notes all along because I’m lazy and want
to avoid having to translate slang at all costs, but this last one I’ll
summarize
Author’s notes:
Yin Hanjiang: At the very end, I’ve lit one last fire.
Wenren È: Playing with fire is bad, minors shouldn’t emulate it.
The text ends here, but the story of Xuanyuan Sect, Yin Hanjiang and
Wenren È, and Baili Qingmiao will continue in their own world.
The author goes on to ask you to check out their next work, I Await You at
the Abyss.
They thank each of their subscribers and say their likes, subscriptions,
comments, and bookmarks give an author the power to finish a story.
As an extraneous comment from me, I Await You at the Abyss is another

danmei with a gong protagonist, their dynamic has some pretty clear
similarities to this one. It’s set in a modern world with scifi elements. At the
beginning, the shou is a patient at an asylum, the gong is a doctor and the
only person he can trust, and the asylum becomes a living hell every
midnight. The protagonists have to solve the mystery, there’s nice horror
and psychological thriller elements.
I heard it’s unfinished and I don’t believe a translation exists.
Thank you for reading, point out my mistakes, and support the original
author over on jjwxc.
Wants to Know
Extra Chapter 1 – The end
At the grand conclusion of God of Annihilation: Volume 3, Hè Wenzhao

used divine power to reconstruct the three realms, living in eternal peace
and happiness with his wives and friends in the divine realm.
Several centuries later, Hè Wenzhao also used his memories to recreate

many people from the divine, immortal, and human realms.
He was the supreme god in all the realms whom no one dared to defy.
Everyone obeyed him without a hint of dissent.
At the beginning, Hè Wenzhao thought this kind of life was wonderful. He

could go freely throughout the three realms and no one dared to threaten
him or his friends and loved ones. He didn’t need to constantly worry about
people and gods plotting to harm him. The three realms belonged to him,
and it was a peaceful and happy existence.
But a few centuries later, Hè Wenzhao was tired of this life.
The peace without any sort of disruption and the days and years in the same
routine caused Hè Wenzhao to gradually lose feeling.
Everything unfolded according to his wishes without anything unexpected

happening. Life was tasteless, no surprise or delight to speak of.
One day, in a flash of callousness, he called in the beautiful Gongxi Jin,

then called in Baili Qingmiao and made out with Gongxi Jin in front of her.
Baili Qingmiao’s expression was calm, smiling slightly as she said,

“Shixiong treats Sister Gongxi so well.”
Hè Wenzhao pushed Gongxi Jin aside and grabbed Baili Qingmiao by the
shoulders. “Aren’t you jealous? Aren’t you bitter? I remember when I had
any contact with a female disciple in the past, even a few words, you would
start a fight over it!”
Baili Qingmiao didn’t act like her shoulders hurt. She pressed her forehead
against Hè Wenzhao’s arm, saying meekly, “But shixiong, you don’t
actually like them. You just can’t help it. I know the one you love the most
is me.”
“Then… why don’t you be a little willful, argue with me or something?” Hè

Wenzhao gripped Baili Qingmiao’s shoulders hard. “I’m using so much
force, doesn’t it hurt?”
How could it not? Hè Wenzhao could hear the sound of bones being
crushed.
“How could I argue with shixiong? Shixiong is the supreme god in charge
of all of the three realms. With how busy you are, how could I
inconvenience you?” Baili Qingmiao said. “Also, my shoulders don’t hurt.
Even if they were injured, shixiong would heal them for me, right?”
Listening to her, Hè Wenzhao took his hands away in a daze.
Right, back when he resurrected his little shimei, he had thought, his little
shimei was so good, she was just too jealous. He was the divine emperor, so
what was the problem with him having relations with a few goddesses? It
would be so great if his shimei didn’t have such a temper.
So the new Baili Qingmiao was always dedicated to Hè Wenzhao, never

raising a fuss or causing trouble, waiting patiently in her palace every day
for her shixiong to come to her.
Hè Wenzhao left Baili Qingmiao’s palace and went looking for his main
wife, the Violet Spirit Goddess.
Seeing Hè Wenzhao coming with an album in hand, the Violet Spirit

Goddess said, “Dearest, that’s an album of goddesses of the divine realm.
Are there any you’ve been close to recently, that you need me to arrange
marriage with?”
Staring at the Violet Spirit Goddess, Hè Wenzhao said, “I’m your husband.
Isn’t it hard for you to arrange marriages to other women for me?”
“My dearest is so gallant that these goddesses are blessed to be able to

marry him, no?” the Violet Spirit Goddess said.
“As I remember, you would secretly eliminate the women you didn’t like.”
Even if Hè Wenzhao never mentioned some things, that didn’t mean he
hadn’t noticed. “I remember you disliked Gongxi Jin the most, so why
haven’t you gotten rid of her?”
“Because my husband likes her, of course.” There was no emotion in the

Violet Spirit Goddess’s smile. She resembled a finely-crafted puppet.
Hè Wenzhao opened the album. Each and every woman was beautiful in her
own way, but he could no longer tell the difference between their
appearances.
“Just look through and pick a few,” Hè Wenzhao said, leaving with a
disinterested wave.
His wives all looked like what he wanted. Hè Wenzhao knew all their words
and actions in advance, because all of them had been created by him, even
the future wives he took.
He came to Yao Jiaping’s palace. Yao Jiaping was now a god of medicine,
in charge of the miraculous medicines of nature. When Hè Wenzhao
arrived, Yao Jiaping’s wife, Xiao Yi, was tending the herbs in the garden.
Upon seeing him, she bowed to him. “Divine emperor.”
“Where’s Yao Jiaping?” Hè Wenzhao never had much of an impression of

Xiao Yi, so the one he created looked exactly like the original, but had a
personality like a blank sheet of paper.
“He’s treating a patient,” Xiao Yi said.

When he heard that, Hè Wenzhao furrowed his brows and barged into Yao
Jiaping’s rooms. He saw him putting on his clothes, a woman lying on his
bed. Her eyes looked like Xiao Yi’s, probably a patient or a patient’s
relative.
“You’ve already found Xiao Yi, so why are you still doing this?” Hè
Wenzhao said furiously, grabbing Yao Jiaping. “Isn’t your heart dedicated to
Xiao Yi?”
After tying his belt, Yao Jiaping said, “I’m the god of medicine, so what’s
wrong with me getting with a few women? She can increase her power by
dual cultivating with me too. And Xiao Yi is the only one in my heart—with
other people, it’s only fooling around. Aren’t you the same? Your love for
Baili Qingmiao doesn’t get in the way of you marrying the Violet Spirit
Goddess, Gongxi Jin, and all those other goddesses.”
“You scum!” Hè Wenzhao sent Yao Jiaping flying with one blow.
Yao Jiaping flew out of the palace, heavily injured. Xiao Yi instantly threw
herself in front of him. “If you want to kill my husband, you’ll have to kill
me first!”
“Your husband?” Hè Wenzhao’s eyes turned cruel. He pointed a finger to

one side, creating an identical Yao Jiaping. “How about that one?”
Xiao Yi instantly threw herself in front of the other Yao Jiaping, saying, “If
you want to kill my husband, you’ll have to kill me first!”
“Hahahahaha!” Hè Wenzhao let out a sudden burst of chilling laughter. He

took a few steps back, pointing at Xiao Yi. “These two husbands are both
yours. Pick one for yourself, hahahaha!”
He left Yao Jiaping’s palace, wandering aimlessly in the divine capital.

“False,” he thought, “all false. It’s all my imagination, hahahaha!”
He had woken up from a centuries-long dream. Alone, he had spent several

centuries with puppets created from his imagination who would never
disobey him.
From then on, Hè Wenzhao no longer pampered his wives. None of them
bothered him, each content to stay in their own palaces.
Hè Wenzhao sat on his throne, idly messing with the human realm. He
released a disaster here and destroyed a country there, a species. From the
divine realm, he watched the destitute refugees of the human realm, but felt
nothing.
“So this is what being a god feels like. No wonder you could heartlessly
unleash disasters. I get it now.” Hè Wenzhao looked to the sky, his eyes
empty, talking to someone who wasn’t there.
Back when he first became a god, he thought the primordial goddess was
beautiful beyond compare. Her indifferent eyes looked equally upon all
gods, as if there was no difference between them and the insects of the
mortal realm. Thus, he began constantly bothering that woman, wanting her
to look differently at him than everyone else, wanting those emotionless
eyes to gaze at him tenderly.
After they reincarnated, he fell in love with Baili Qingmiao the moment he
laid eyes on her, just like in their previous lives. Yet when he saw that his
little shimei’s eyes held only himself, he felt disinterested. It felt as if
something was wrong, different from what he had imagined.
Now he realized that what had drawn him in his previous life was that pair
of eyes, emotionless yet caring, and filled with compassion.
“You’re no longer around, are you?” Hè Wenzhao rubbed his chest and
suddenly said, “No, your divinity exists inside my body. We’ve been
together all this time.”
The world outside was all an illusion, a mere daydream of his. Only the
divine nature within his body was real, the only thing left behind by that
primordial goddess.
Hè Wenzhao curled up on the throne, his arms encircling empty air, as if

embracing someone.
He closed his eyes, feeling a bit tired, and sank into deep slumber.
The moment the divine emperor fell asleep, tremendous waves rocked the
Blood Hell in the human realm.
After Hè Wenzhao took in the divine nature, he was still unable to purify
the demonic energy it had commanded. Following his memories, he sealed
the demonic energy in the Blood Hell, which remained peaceful for all
these years.
Within the waves, a human figure gradually solidified above the Blood
Hell. He lifted his head, looking at the sky and listening to the wind around
him, seemingly taking in countless pieces of information.
“I see,” that person spoke quietly to himself. “After this Venerable fell into
the Blood Hell, so much has happened. Yin Hanjiang, the Burning Sky
Immortal… this Venerable has truly missed a lot.”
He faintly remembered that after falling into the Blood Hell, he had been
consumed by the 180 thousand demonic gods, only one lingering obsession
remaining. As for what kind of obsession, he didn’t really remember. But he
knew that he had left an incomplete task, and couldn’t die.
So when the divine nature destroyed the barriers of the three realms, that
obsession began to absorb the demonic and divine energy around it,
growing stronger.
After the human and immortal realms were merged, the mindless demonic
energy found the remnants of the Burning Sky Immortal in the immortal
realm. At that moment, the divine nature lost control over it, the barrier
between the immortal and divine realms was broken, and the 180 thousand
demonic gods attacked the divine realm, bringing the world to the brink of
destruction.
Finally, Hè Wenzhao used his soul bond with Baili Qingmiao to take in the
divine nature, and sealed the demonic energy back in the Blood Hell, giving
time for that obsession to continue absorbing demonic energy.
The moment Hè Wenzhao’s mental stability crumbled and he closed his
eyes and sealed himself off from the world, this man took his chance,
gathered all the demonic energy, and shattered the seal on the Blood Hell,
breaking out of it.
He was a demon, the only remaining demonic god in the three realms,
Wenren È.
Wenren È looked at the mortal realm. His eyes could see through falsehood,
so the fantasy Hè Wenzhao had constructed couldn’t fool him.
In his eyes, the three realms had already merged into one, the world
contracting, all energy returning to chaos. In the center of the mass of
chaos, someone embraced the divine nature, having a sweet dream.
Unbeknownst to him, the divine nature was gradually eroding his godly
power, and when it was all drained, his soul bond with Baili Qingmiao
would vanish, and no one would be able to stop the divine nature from
returning creation to chaos.
Wenren È arrived at the sleeping Hè Wenzhao’s side. Placing a hand on his

head, he “saw” his dream.
The divine nature noticed Wenren È and realized that he was the only
person who could stop it from destroying the cosmos. Feeling threatened, it
gathered its power in order to kill Wenren È.
“You don’t need to be on guard,” Wenren È said. “This is no longer the

world that this Venerable wishes to protect.”
He looked at Hè Wenzhao, currently putting all his effort toward subduing

the divine nature with the soul bond, and chuckled quietly. “Burning Sky
Immortal… you desperately wanted to avenge this Venerable, so today, let
me realize your wish.”
With a flick of Wenren È’s wrist, the remnants of Hè Wenzhao’s soul bond
was dissolved. The divine nature burst out of Hè Wenzhao’s body,
becoming one with the cosmos, beginning to absorb chaos energy.
The chaos began contracting endlessly, even affecting Wenren È’s body. He
felt the demonic energy that sustained him being gradually drained away,
but his heart was calm.
The world had already been destroyed. The only thing that could be looked
forward to was the creation of a new world.
In that case, there was only one thing he could do.
Wenren È stopped resisting and dove into the chaos energy, being absorbed
by the divine nature and compressed.
After millions of years, the chaos energy had compressed to its limit, and
finally exploded.
The conflagration brought about new life, giving rise to myriad worlds, and
an obsession which had not been worn down after eons split and merged
with three of the worlds.
In the first, a female author typed the title, Abusive Romance: You Are the
Unchanging One in My Heart at her computer.
In the second world, a male author typed out God of Annihilation.
And in the third world, Wenren È, in the middle of discussing the Great
Sect War with his subordinates, suddenly felt a space open up above his
head, from which fell a book.
He caught it casually and saw on the cover, Abusive Romance: You Are the
Unchanging One in My Heart.
if I change the title format, I’m afraid the novelupdates bot might not catch
it
One more extra then we’re done for real
Did you know this book has an audio drama? It made some inexplicable
changes, I found it just ok. It’s not complete
Support the author on jjwxc.
Wants to Know
– Table of Contents
Extra Chapter 2 – Ten years later
Xuanyuan Sect, Main Hall
Zhongli Qian was talking business with Shu Yanyan in the discussion room.
He had been ignored by Wenren È for ten years now, over which he would
send a resignation slip to Wenren È and Yin Hanjiang every half month.
After persistently sending two hundred and forty talismans over the past ten
years, he finally got an annoyed response from Wenren È: “If you find
someone suitable to manage Xuanyuan Sect, you can hand the position over
and leave.”
After receiving this message, Zhongli Qian happily touched his hair and
hurried to find Shu Yanyan. He passed the regulations he had written over
the past years, rewards and punishments, stocks of spiritual stones, the
methods of sect members and their potential advancements and bottlenecks
in the future, all over to Shu Yanyan. Seeing how she leaned on the desk
with no intention of checking the jade slips, he was forced to explain every
point to her.
After ten years, Shu Yanyan was still beautiful as a young maiden. She
yawned, looking at Zhongli Qian bleary-eyed. “Forty years ago, when I met
you at the literature conference, why didn’t I realize you were so long-
winded?”
At the literature conference, Zhongli Qian had discussed classics and

composed poetry, each line eloquent and uplifting even if you didn’t
understand it. Right now, he was talking about how many first-grade, upper-
grade, mid-grade, and lower-grade spiritual stones were in storage, what
anxieties the sect members had lately, what the Altar Masters were planning
and how to keep them content, and so on. Shu Yanyan couldn’t stop her
eyelids from growing heavy as she listened.
She pinched Zhongli Qian’s handsome face and said wearily, “No wonder
the scholars of the mortal world are so distinguished and elegant as
students, like a tender bamboo stalk, that you can’t help but want to sample.
But after passing the exams, they all become gluttonous officials with
potbellies and wrinkles, and on top of being ugly, they can’t even compose
a poem and stink of alcohol. Ah, Zhongli Qian…”
She shook her head with a sigh, as if lamenting a beauty past its prime.
Zhongli Qian, who had been youthful and handsome for many years: …
After some thought, he replied, “After all these years at Xuanyuan Sect, I’m
still a teacher of the Dao and haven’t changed.”
“I know.” Shu Yanyan suddenly stood up. Stroking his chin, she said
tenderly, “You’ve lost weight.”
Zhongli Qian was stunned.
Shu Yanyan said seriously, “I celebrate you being a student or a teacher, but
don’t bother yourself with Xuanyuan Sect’s odd jobs anymore. That’s not
suited to you. A teacher passes on knowledge and values. You make every
effort for your disciples, but there are times where you have to take your
hand away. Everyone walks their own paths, and you can’t do it for them.
You’re exhausting yourself.”
Zhongli Qian stared at the jade slips on the table, one of which recorded
each sect member’s future path of cultivation. He had written down
everything he could think of, but in truth, there were countless possibilities
he hadn’t been able to write.
“As for me, I follow my heart in everything. I sample everything I like and
discard everything I don’t like. If I appreciate someone, I’ll interact with
them more. If I respect them, I’ll be honest with them and share my
feelings, and not treat them lightly,” Shu Yanyan said. “I respect Sir
Zhongli, so I’m willing to let someone I desire leave me. But at the same
time, I’m happy to let go because I want Zhongli Qian to forever remain a
gentleman, a revered teacher. If you let this pack of fools degrade your
principles, then I won’t be so nice anymore.”
Zhongli Qian pondered for a long time, then cupped his hands to Shu
Yanyan. “Many thanks to Protector Shu for her guidance. I understand
now.”
He had given so much to Xuanyuan Sect over all these years, and without
his notice, it had become a fetter for him, just like the Zhongli clan,
gradually taking away his freedom and causing him to forget his original
intent.
He had originally wanted to spread the Dao to the entire realm. However,
the Dao he wanted to teach wasn’t rigid, and thus each person would have a
different understanding and arrive at their own path. And right now, he had
nearly planned out the future paths of all the members of Xuanyuan Sect,
instead of letting them develop on their own.
“I’m glad you understand.” Shu Yanyan picked up the jade slips. “I’ll look
at the things you put together, but as for whether or not I’ll follow your
instructions, that can’t be said. This Protector has her own path, so I don’t
want you buzzing by my ear like a fly, telling me to do this and not that.
People who speak too much aren’t attractive.”
“I understand.” Zhongli Qian smiled slightly, carefree like the night breeze.
“You can go,” Shu Yanyan said. “Spread your Dao across the world and let
me see if peace can exist under heaven. Also, come back every few years so
I can admire your face, okay?”
“The sage[1] said, ‘anyone can be my teacher’. The path of teaching isn’t
just about teaching others, but finding your own teachers, which can be
anyone in the world. Today, Protector Shu has been my teacher,” Zhongli
Qian said.
Staring at his face, Shu Yanyan pressed a hand against her forehead, waving
him off with her other hand. “Hurry up and go, before I make you be my
teacher for a day.”
With a smile, Zhongli Qian said, “Then this is farewell. A few years later,
when my realm has advanced, I’ll come back to discuss the Dao with
Protector Shu.”
Watching his departing figure, Shu Yanyan shook her head. “You better not
come back, or I really won’t be able to resist.”
She picked up a jade slip, looking through everyone’s current information

until she got to Qiu Congxue. It was written, “Protector Qiu frequently goes
to Shangqing Sect to challenge a duel, and after losing to Baili Qingmiao,
she goes to beat up Su Huai. With her motivation, the three have each made
swift progress, so it could possibly be considered legendary.”
The corners of Shu Yanyan’s mouth twitched. Someone like her, who
sought pleasure in the moment, could never understand how Qiu Congxue’s
brain worked.
Oh, right, she didn’t have a brain. She never thought about anything, just
relying on her instincts for everything, huh? It’s a good thing Baili
Qingmiao and Su Huai spoil her and let her use Shangqing Sect as a
playground. That was fine, with Protector Qiu at Shangqing Sect all day,
Shu Yanyan had one less rival for the position of Sect Leader.
As for the other two…
Protector Shu gazed toward Wenren È’s room. By the time those two came
out, they would probably be heading off to the immortal realm to terrorize
the immortals, so by then, Xuanyuan Sect would be hers!
But this was somewhat boring. They were going to the immortal realm to
throw their weight around, and since she was so dedicated to rising in the
ranks, shouldn’t she follow and become a leader of immortals?
Sitting at the desk with her chin in her hands, Shu Yanyan began to
seriously consider focusing on her cultivation.
At the back mountains of Xuanyuan Sect, a red-robed man sat barefoot at

the edge of the spring, silently watching the moon in the sky.
The black-robed man sat leaning against his back, also looking at the sky,
not understanding what there was to see about the moon.
Wenren È casually spoke his question, and after a long pause, Yin Hanjiang
replied behind him. “On that day you found me, the moon was especially
bright and the night was peaceful. When I managed to stick my head from
the corpse pile, I saw you slowly approaching in the moonlight. You walked
with no sound and my vision was weak, so if the moon hadn’t been so
bright, I would’ve missed you.”
“Put that way, the full moon truly is beautiful.” Wenren È turned and pulled
Yin Hanjiang into his lap.
The night wind blew their loose hair to one side. Seeing their hair together,
Yin Hanjiang controlled the wind with a flick of his fingers and tied their
hair together in a knot.
Yin Hanjiang’s hand landed casually on Wenren È’s body, but firmly pinned
his robe.
Noticing his actions, Wenren È didn’t say anything, but used chaos energy
to entangle the two’s hair completely together, so they couldn’t tell whose
was whose.
“After Zhongli Qian leaves, Shu Yanyan will rule over the place again,” Yin
Hanjiang said, suddenly remembering.
“That doesn’t matter. She can solve a lot of problems. But if you like being
Sect Leader, I’ll shoo her off for you.”
“I’m not interested.” Yin Hanjiang turned his head, looking at the side of
Wenren È’s face in the moonlight.
“Then what do you want?” Under his gaze, Wenren È’s throat slightly
trembled.
Yin Hanjiang leaned toward Wenren È and whispered in his ear. “Under the
moonlight…”
The next few words, only Wenren È could hear. He noticed that Yin
Hanjiang’s ears were bright red.
“Okay.”
By one hand, he grabbed Yin Hanjiang’s waist. Underneath the moonlight,

their belt sashes fluttered in the wind, landing in the spring and reflecting a
silver shine on the water’s surface.
1. Confucius ↩
Thank you everyone, for following to the end! This was my first time
publishing a translation like this, so your support was really important.
I’m glad I could share this story I love with you all.
有缘再见！/ If fate allows, we’ll meet again.

– Table of Contents

Devil Venerable Also Wants to Know by ⻘⾊⽻翼 Cyan Wings

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Chapter 1 – Devil Venerable Also

Chapter 1 – Divine book from the heavens

The Lord of Demons wasn’t extravagant in nature and didn’t like

After reading this line, Wenren È immediately secluded himself, spending a

After an indeterminable number of eons, most of the primordial gods had

An overview of the specifics would be false accusations,

[This MC is insane, giving up being a god to stay with a previously married

[Trash, underdeveloped, kept me waiting for over a million words for MC

Wenren È knew the one written in the book was he himself.

After contemplating for three days, he made his decision—that he would

After he said only a few words, Wenren È remembered Yin Hanjiang’s

Yin Hanjiang probably also didn’t understand love.

Please support the original author over on jjwxc.

1. Not literally a world. Refers to the community of cultivators who exist

2. Jianghu and Wulin are terms referring to the communities of martial

3. Not literally demons. Demonic sect, demonic cultivator, and demonic

4. Refers to a technique to cultivate by having sex. ↩

5. Tribulations are sent by the will of heaven in order to enforce certain

6. If you cultivate with an unstable state of mind, your qi can become

7. Literally, heart demon. Also not actually a demon. An obsession that

Chapter 2 – Temptress of Xuanyuan Sect

As a child, he was picked up out of a mass grave by Wenren È and taken

Yin Hanjiang’s pupils trembled, and he switched to kneeling with both

He didn’t know, but Wenren È did.

“Really?” Yin Hanjiang had said.

While reading, Wenren È didn’t understand Yin Hanjiang’s motivations.

“You can get up,” Wenren È said.

Why would he be pulled under and become completely unable to free

There was too much that Wenren È didn’t understand.

After casually fixing up Yin Hanjiang, Wenren È commanded, “Tell the

Yin Hanjiang obeyed, taking out one of the Venerable’s commanding

She covered her mouth, while revealing a bashful smile.

Wenren È well understood this subordinate of his. “Are you itching to

Wenren È raised a hand. Shu Yanyan, receiving his permission, walked to

Wenren È knew exactly what she was talking about.

“Tell me what happened then,” Wenren È said.

If Shu Yanyan stole Hè Wenzhao’s essence, his divine power would

“Oh?” Wenren È raised an eyebrow slightly. “They have to be willing?”

Wenren È hesitated for a moment. “No, it’s not necessary,” he said.

These words pleased Wenren È greatly.

Seeing Shu Yanyan’s farsightedness and Yin Hanjiang’s efficiency, then

Thinking that, he ordered, “Shu Yanyan, we must think more long-term.

He just wanted Baili Qingmiao to see clearly that Hè Wenzhao was

He was referring to the him in the book.

He wanted to see, now that Shu Yanyan wouldn’t steal Hè Wenzhao’s

The Lord of Demons was quite curious.

Please support the original author over on jjwxc.

1. The dantian is an area in the lower abdomen where qi is gathered in order

Chapter 3 – So that was it

Wenren È, the Lord of Demons, was already recognized as the strongest

“No matter.” Wenren È indicated the seat next to him. “Sit.”

Yin Hanjiang obediently sat next to Wenren È. Without a command from

He was almost like a marionette, with no thoughts of his own. If Wenren È

He improved at breakneck speed and in only a few decades, achieved Body

“How long has this gone on?” Wenren È said.

Dedication, resolve, loyalty. These three words outlined everything about

The sword known as Yin Hanjiang had no chance to be unsheathed.

Wenren È replaced the book. Looking at Yin Hanjiang, a bitter, nameless

“This Venerable doesn’t need a sword,” he said in a cold tone.

The book often described Yin Hanjiang as holding a sword. Once a