The Founder of Demonic Arts Hoards Far Too Much—Perhaps Another Dark Horse Will Appear
The Founder of Demonic Arts Hoards Far Too Much—Perhaps Another Dark Horse Will Appear
“Young Master Changge... you jest, how could that be possible...”
“How could we possibly suspect you...”
Jun Gou’s face turned pale, his head buzzing as if it were about to explode, and he hurriedly spoke.
His voice trembled, unable to form complete sentences.
He had finally experienced the terrifying pressure of facing Gu Changge—it made one’s heart palpitate and one’s soul shudder.
“Qingge, open your Knowledge Sea and let them see what relationship you have with the Successor of Demonic Arts.”
At this moment, Gu Changge ignored him and repeated himself once more, his voice still without a ripple of emotion.
“Since they don’t dare probe my Knowledge Sea, then I’ll pick a day to pay a personal visit to the Confucian Saint School and find someone with the guts to probe it.”
Never mind the disciples of the Confucian Saint School.
At this moment, every Cultivator present couldn’t help but shiver, their expressions changing drastically as they felt the terrifying chill in Gu Changge’s words.
He was probably truly angry!
For Gu Changge to personally pay a visit with his status—what did that mean? Could it be that he would launch an Immortal War against the Confucian Saint School over this matter?
At the slightest provocation, slaughter until the seas ran rampant for billions of miles.
Probe Gu Changge’s Knowledge Sea?
Even the founder of the Confucian Saint School wouldn’t dare!
Why had no one dared to probe when the Successor of Demonic Arts was previously suspected to be Prince Ying? It was for this very reason.
As the Young Master of a Longevity Family, he represented the face of that Longevity Family!
And Gu Changge’s status surpassed even that of Prince Ying.
Hearing this, Jun Gou and the others trembled in fright, their lips white, their calves shaking, nearly scared out of their wits.
To put it bluntly, although the Confucian Saint School was an ancient great sect with a long heritage...
Before a Longevity Family—especially an unfathomable colossus like the Longevity Gu Family—it was hardly any different from an ant.
“Yes, Gongzi.”
At this moment, Su Qingge obediently listened to Gu Changge, closed her eyes, and opened her Knowledge Sea.
But the place fell deathly silent. No one dared to speak, and everyone even deliberately lowered their breathing.
Let alone probing Su Qingge’s Knowledge Sea—who would dare?
“Are you toying with me?”
Gu Changge’s voice rang out again, laced with coldness.
His gaze slowly swept over the Confucian Saint School members before him.
In an instant, it was as if numerous terrifying visions manifested between heaven and earth. Even from far away, the crowd couldn’t help but feel their hearts palpitate.
The Confucian Saint School members standing before Gu Changge felt it even more deeply.
Thud!
The next moment, including Jun Gou, no matter how unwilling or humiliated they were, they couldn’t help but fall to their knees, their voices trembling as they said,
“This matter was our fault. We shouldn’t have wronged Miss Su like this. We beg Young Master Changge to be magnanimous and forgive us.”
“We will give Miss Su a proper accounting for this matter.”
This scene stirred various emotions in the hearts of the onlookers, who couldn’t help but feel shaken.
Those who humiliate others will be humiliated in turn—this outcome was of their own making.
Compared to having one’s Knowledge Sea probed, kneeling was actually a much lighter price.
A full quarter-hour of silence.
No one present dared to speak carelessly.
The souls of the Confucian Saint School members trembled, scared into a cold sweat by the possible consequences.
“Forget it. Regarding the matter of the Successor of Demonic Arts, I have my own judgment. If Qingge truly has any connection to him, I will be the first to strike, without mercy.”
“But if anyone dares to bully her over this, don’t blame me for turning ruthless.”
Then, Gu Changge waved his hand, his expression already returned to calm.
“Thank you, Young Master Changge, for your magnanimity!”
The Confucian Saint School members looked as if they had been fished out of water, their entire bodies drenched in cold sweat.
After that, the misunderstanding was resolved, and the Confucian Saint School members compensated Su Qingge with quite a few things, including artifacts and sacred medicines.
Su Qingge silently followed behind Gu Changge and left the place.
As for the Successor of Demonic Arts who had appeared earlier, no one knew what appearance he had now disguised himself with.
Back on the Celestial Ancient Continent, there had already been cases of the Successor of Demonic Arts disguising himself with another’s face and blending in, so at this point, everyone had no way to deal with it.
They could only be careful to avoid ending up alone like Zhao Xiaoyao, giving the Successor of Demonic Arts an opening to exploit.
And today, the Confucian Saint School members had not only lost all face but also offended Gu Changge—they were green with regret.
For a time, all sorts of discussions arose with differing views. In the eyes of many, there was nothing improper about Gu Changge’s actions.
The fault in this matter lay with the Confucian Saint School—after all, they had drawn conclusions before getting the facts straight.
...
After leaving the Eternal Overcast Battlefield, Gu Changge brought Su Qingge back to the residence where he usually stayed. Along the way, he barely spoke to her, his expression calm and profound.
Many thoughts flashed through his mind.
This arrangement of his—whether in timing or method—had not a single flaw to be found.
Even with Su Qingge’s exceptional intelligence, she hadn’t noticed that this black pot had actually been placed on her head by Gu Changge himself.
And at the critical moment, it was Gu Changge who appeared to rescue her, forcibly earning a wave of goodwill.
By now, Gu Changge had almost concluded that Su Qingge was this generation’s Successor of Demonic Arts.
His Grand Flask had a very clear perception of the aura of the Demonic Arts.
Although Su Qingge couldn’t sense his existence, as long as the distance wasn’t too great, Gu Changge could perceive the Grand Flask she had condensed with runes.
This feeling was like a genuine article looking at a counterfeit in a painting—and the key was that the counterfeit was drawn very crudely.
Gu Changge really wanted to ask her whether what she’d learned of the Taboo Demonic Arts amounted to even one percent of the whole.
Probably far from it.
The inheritance of the Taboo Demonic Arts wasn’t as simple as merely condensing the Grand Flask for cultivation—it also involved numerous secret techniques.
Such as the Entanglement Immortal Art, Demonization, Supreme Freed Mind, Against the Heavens Technique...
Su Qingge had probably never even heard of these things, let alone cultivated or studied them.
Gu Changge suspected that the inheritance she had received amounted to only this much. Perhaps every generation of Taboo Demonic Arts successors had been the same.
The first-generation Founder of Demonic Arts really hoarded far too much... From all the signs, Gu Changge had always felt that the founder was one of his own alternate identities—this hoarding personality was exactly like his own.
Seeing Gu Changge’s calm and profound expression...
Su Qingge, following behind him, vaguely guessed what he was thinking.
But she didn’t know how to broach the subject at this moment.
The crisis had indeed been defused.
But it was obvious that Gu Changge’s words back then had been based on the situation at hand—before that, he had no idea she would come to the Southern Flourishing Heaven.
The claim that her mother had told her to come find him was just an excuse he’d made up on the spot to get her out of trouble.
Su Qingge was very smart. She understood Gu Changge’s intention, so she had played along with her answer.
And now, Gu Changge was clearly waiting for her to take the initiative to speak and explain everything.
Having figured all this out, Su Qingge’s bright eyes blinked, and she took the initiative to tug at Gu Changge’s sleeve, her voice carrying a hint of coquettishness.
“Gongzi~”
“I’m sorry, Qingge deceived you today.”
“Oh? What did you deceive me about?”
Gu Changge’s thoughts flew back. He didn’t turn around, asking casually, as if he had been waiting for Su Qingge to speak up all along.
“Gongzi, Qingge shouldn’t have lied to you about coming to the Southern Flourishing Heaven to find you.”
She answered very frankly. She understood Gu Changge’s temperament well—if she didn’t tell the truth in front of him, it would probably displease him.
“Oh, so you came to the Southern Flourishing Heaven not to find me—meaning you didn’t want to see me at all?” Gu Changge asked indifferently.
“Since Gongzi didn’t want to see me anyway, what if I came to find you and you refused to see me?”
Su Qingge’s voice carried a tiny hint of grievance.
Gu Changge asked with interest, “Why would I not want to see you?”
“Well, Gongzi, you left me in the Primal Celestial Temple for so long without ever coming to see me. I thought you had already forgotten about me. Someone like Gongzi has no shortage of outstanding heaven-blessed maidens by his side—women like Princess Mingkong and the Successor of Mortal Palace. Qingge knows she doesn’t hold much of a place in Gongzi’s heart.”
“I came here only to slay Yin Spirits, so I could enter the True Immortal Academy to cultivate...”
“Not to come see Gongzi.”
At this point, Su Qingge was instead very calm and composed, pouring out all the thoughts in her heart.
She wasn’t afraid of Gu Changge blaming her at all.
“Well, well, Su Qingge, you’ve certainly grown bold, daring to speak to me with such sarcasm.”
At this moment, Gu Changge finally turned around and pinched her exquisite, flawless chin.
The expression on his face revealed neither joy nor anger.
“Coming to the Southern Flourishing Heaven without coming straight to see me, and even causing me all this trouble. I think you just need to be taught a lesson...”
“Then teach me a lesson, Gongzi.”
Su Qingge didn’t know where she found the courage—perhaps it was because today, Gu Changge had unconditionally chosen to believe her, which moved her deeply.
Now, she instead looked at him provocatively, blinking her eyes.
“You little thing, you clearly know I can’t bear to, yet you still provoke me like this...”
Hearing this, Gu Changge shook his head somewhat helplessly.
“Gongzi...”
Su Qingge deliberately dragged out the ending of the word, smiling as happily as could be.
“Gongzi, can I ask you a question?”
“What question?” Gu Changge raised an eyebrow slightly.
“If I really were the Successor of Demonic Arts, what would you do to me?”
“Why would you ask such a strange question? Isn’t the Successor of Demonic Arts Prince Ying? Don’t tell me you actually have something to do with him?” Gu Changge asked casually, not seeming to care much.
“No, no, Gongzi, I’m just asking casually. I want to know my place in your heart...”
Su Qingge stared at him intently.
“Does that even need asking? Of course I’d slap you dead with one palm, lest you become a scourge that brings calamity upon the world.”
Gu Changge gave her a look like she was an idiot.
“...”
“Gongzi, you’re too heartless.”
Su Qingge’s expression turned somewhat sad. “But dying at Gongzi’s hands like this would be fine too.”
“If you really were the Successor of Demonic Arts, then it would be inseparable from me—after all, I was the one who brought you to the Beyond. So after I slap you dead, maybe I’ll come keep you company...”
Gu Changge laughed casually and pinched her delicate nose.
“Gongzi, don’t talk nonsense. You’re destined to be the one standing at the very peak of this world. Doing something like that wouldn’t be worth it at all.”
Although Su Qingge knew Gu Changge’s words were a joke, she still looked at him very seriously.
“You know it’s nonsense, yet you still take it so seriously?” Gu Changge smiled nonchalantly, though inwardly he found it rather intriguing.
Time flew by, and soon several days had passed.
With the matter of the Successor of Demonic Arts emerging in the Southern Flourishing Heaven, and as Prince Ying gradually faded from sight, things became peaceful during this period.
Many young prodigies—whether contemporary Young Prodigies or ancient freaks—formed their own small groups.
They set out together to hunt Yin Spirits, which avoided many cases of people being caught alone and encountering the Successor of Demonic Arts.
As a result, this proved quite effective. For a long time, no more news of attacks by the Successor of Demonic Arts was heard.
The True Immortal Academy, located in Hongyu Heaven, finally began accepting disciples on a wide scale, its scope covering the entire Beyond.
Regardless of one’s faction or lineage, regardless of race, as long as one’s bone age did not exceed fifty, all could go.
But the sole condition was to slay enough Yin Spirits to exchange for points and obtain qualification.
For a time, the young beings who had obtained sufficient qualifications rushed to Hongyu Heaven one after another.
In the sky, magnificent divine ships and flying vessels could be seen crushing through every day, rumbling as they went.
All kinds of ancient ferocious beast mounts swept across the lands, blotting out the sky with astonishing momentum.
It could be called a golden age of prosperity, with all sides stirring and stars gathering in multitude.
Hongyu Heaven was named after a supremely powerful being called Hong Yu. Some said his cultivation had already surpassed that of a True Immortal, reaching another realm entirely.
But whether this was true or false could not be verified.
Hongyu Heaven’s terrain was vast and boundless, mysterious and immense, with all manner of divine peaks and immortal trees towering immeasurably high.
Looking down from high above, one could see dense immortal qi rising from everywhere, qilins galloping and Celestial Phoenixes beating their wings—countless visions, like a land of immortals.
It was not without reason that the True Immortal Academy was situated here.
Whether in cultivation resources, relics left by Sacred Emperors, mansions of Great Emperors, or fortunes and blessings, Celestial Herbs and sacred trees, immortal springs and divine iron—it was the most bountiful place in the entire Beyond.
As the place determined to create an immortal in this era...
The True Immortal Academy was currently far from peaceful.
Inside an ancient palace standing in the void, mottled with rust and surrounded by Chaos Energy...
Several old men with incomparably terrifying auras, Chaos Energy swirling between their opening and closing eyes, were flipping through volumes of ancient records.
On the desks beside them lay the current records of all the Young Prodigies in the world under fifty years of bone age.
Their faces were utterly calm.
Even when they saw things like reincarnations of ancient sages, born Sacred Emperors, ancient divine pupils, the Unrivalled Battle Physique, or sword-heart spiritual communion... there was no change in their expressions.
These terrifying young beings seemed to have become commonplace in their eyes, hardly able to stir any ripple.
Suddenly, a trace of astonishment flashed through one old man’s eyes. Looking more carefully, his expression changed again, seemingly somewhat shaken.
The person beside him looked over and frowned, murmuring, “Immortal and demon in one body, able to reverse yin and yang, to defy reincarnation.”
“The Celestial Demonic Physique—how many years has it been since this physique last appeared...” another old man leaned over and said softly.
“I can no longer remember.”
The old man beside him had deep astonishment in his eyes. “It seems another monster is about to appear in this era.”
“Those who have currently revealed Quasi-Sacred Realm strength include the one from the Gu Family, the one from the Wang Family, the one from the Phoenix Mountains, Prince Shen who emerged from Sky Emperor Mountain, the Chosen Monk of Golden Cicada Temple, and possibly the Successor of Demonic Arts hiding in the shadows...”
“Perhaps there will also be a dark horse blessed by heaven appearing.”
“Moreover, the Wondrous Stone that our True Immortal Academy has sealed away for countless years should also emerge soon.”
“The contest for the Ten Great Ranked Disciples shall begin among them first. Though I wonder what the situation will be with the Demon World’s successor in this era.”
When the Demon World was mentioned, their expressions couldn’t help but turn somewhat grave and apprehensive.
It wasn’t that they feared the Demon World itself.
Rather, the True Immortal Academy had a Demon Race being of very ancient seniority who came from the Demon World.
The disciple he had once taught was now Empress Yao Xi, who had unified the Demon World.
Other than that Empress Yao Xi, he had never taken another disciple, which led to a rather awkward situation—whenever a successor from the Demon World came to the True Immortal Academy, no one dared take them as a disciple.
That being himself refused to take them, no matter their aptitude.
The other Elders couldn’t very well overstep and take them in his place. As a result, it became rare to see any successors from the Demon World coming to the True Immortal Academy.
So they were wondering whether anyone from the Demon World would come in this generation.
And while this group of old monsters deliberated...
Beyond a distance of countless billions of miles.
The Demon World, in a certain domain.
Inside an antique-style room, a Demon Race man with a pale face and cold sweat covering his forehead suddenly roared and jolted awake from his bed.
His expression twisted as he shouted in agony,
“Yao Xi, I regarded you as my beloved—why did you kill me?”
His words instantly startled the little Demon Race maid responsible for looking after him.
The little maid’s face also turned snow-white with fright.
She didn’t understand why the Young Master had suddenly fallen unconscious, and now, upon waking, was suddenly shouting nonsense.
Yao Xi?
Wasn’t that the name of Empress Yao Xi, who now ruled the unified Demon World?
“Young Master, what nonsense are you spouting? Empress Yao Xi’s name cannot be spoken carelessly. We’ll be beheaded.”
She stammered, badly frightened.
“What...”
The Demon Race man on the bed, hearing this, was suddenly stunned, full of disbelief.
He couldn’t come back to his senses for a long time.
He was the biological son of the Solar Demon Overlord, one of the Demon World’s former Six Demon Overlords. Yao Xi was the biological daughter of the Lunar Demon Overlord, his childhood sweetheart who had grown up alongside him.
Hadn’t he drunk Yao Xi’s poisoned wine and been killed by her sword?
How was he alive again?
And Yao Xi had already proclaimed herself Empress?