Chapter 271

Hongjun Dao Ancestor spoke passionately, indicating that he had absolutely no selfish motives—his act of interruption was entirely because, from the perspective of the Lesser Yang Emperor, he discovered a better refuge!

As a Dao Ancestor of an era, he gladly helps others; his pure heart is evident to heaven and earth. All people of the world, myriad living beings, and many great Luo divine sages, when standing before him, none would speak ill of him.

Precisely for this reason, how could he not step forward and clarify the pros and cons when others make important decisions?

Surely he must explain things clearly to be worthy of his identity as a Dao Ancestor, right?

Fuxi Great Sage and the Lesser Yang Emperor exchanged a glance; both were silent, speechless.

The atmosphere in the Purple Cloud Palace became subtle at this moment.

After a while, the Lesser Yang Emperor finally smiled and spoke, "Dao Ancestor, you have gone to trouble… Since you, fellow Daoist, are so earnest, please elaborate; the Lesser Yang Emperor listens attentively."

The Emperor faced the Dao Ancestor directly, ready to counter each move.

Xihuang stood to the side, unable to help much… After all, the banner the Dao Ancestor raised was meant for the Lesser Yang Emperor's benefit.

Only these two are the protagonists of this dialogue.

"Fellow Daoist has a public heart, harbors great righteousness." Hongjun said calmly, "Before, I was still running for Sainthood… A Sage oversees education; their words, conduct, and mind should serve as a model for all living beings, upright and pure."

"Since you, fellow Daoist, have the heart to run for Sainthood, you must be confident in your moral standing; you are not one who hides evil intentions while corrupt morals yet claim heavenly merit. Moreover, judging from your usual conduct, Lesser Yang fellow Daoist, this is indeed the case—hard to find fault."

"For the better development of the myriad peoples of the present age, for all living beings to enjoy a better life, they have decided to withdraw from the process of running for Sainthood, to join the Heavenly Court, to endure hardship and work diligently to realize their ideals and aspirations, promoting the utmost noble spirit of righteousness."

"Not bad." The Lesser Yang Emperor nodded with a smile, accepting all praise without modesty, "What you say is quite right… I am exactly such a deity."

"Heaven and earth did not give birth to me, the Lesser Yang; the Holy Way is like an endless night… Although this may be a bit exaggerated, it's not far off."

"I cannot compare to Fellow Daoist Fuxi, who inaugurated the Way of Qi Luck, bringing the first glimmer of dawn to humanity and igniting the brilliant flame of civilization… But I once promoted the idea 'Everyone is a Dragon,' contributing greatly to humanity's development—seizing the opportunities of heaven and earth to accomplish the creation of all beings, advocating that everyone is qualified to become an immortal ancestor, to achieve longevity and eternal vision, to pursue the utmost fulfillment of material and spiritual life."

"From these aspects, I too can be considered a fire-starter—just that I ignited the fire of development."

The Emperor spoke with confidence.

"…" At this moment, the Dao Ancestor seemed choked, unable to accept the Emperor's shameless… such frank and candid behavior was somewhat hard to take.

Moreover, among the audience, there were top-tier great divine abilities who found it even harder to accept than Hongjun.

Upon hearing the four words "Everyone is a Dragon," the Dragon Ancestor God this time ate the flat peach without spitting out the pit, gritted his teeth and crushed it into bits, then forcibly swallowed it.

The Dragon Ancestor felt anger and sorrow, yet he endured, refraining from a sudden psychotic breakdown and launching himself as a dragon-body bomb.

However, his gaze at the Lesser Yang Emperor was icy enough to make one's teeth chatter… as if he didn't know how many plans he had devised to cause the Emperor's sudden demise, ready to launch them as soon as he left the venue.

The mighty figures seated beside him expressed understanding.

After all, the Lesser Yang Emperor's "Everyone is a Dragon" had reached its end, yet it became linked to Xihuang's commentary on the Easy Way—"A group of dragons without a leader is auspicious"—which can be called a perfect connection.

"Everyone is a Dragon, everyone is equal… but there is still a Dragon Ancestor, of high rank and seniority—wouldn't that be inappropriate?"

Thus, in the Great Calamity of Dragon and Phoenix, the Dragon Ancestor died directly at the hands of Luo Hou Demon Ancestor… At that time, the Lesser Yang Emperor was the chief minister and most important strategist of the Dragon Ancestor God—roughly comparable to Fengxi's position and treatment with Nüwa.

Likewise, the Lesser Yang Emperor was also beguiled by the Demon Ancestor, inadvertently entering the demonic path, and became one of the great divine abilities who filled the grave for the Dragon Ancestor's demise… Ultimately, after the Dragon Ancestor's fall, he had a great awakening, repented his past errors, turned from darkness to light, and resolved to contribute his strength to the cause of the orthodox primordial divine sages' camp triumphing over the evil demonic path.

Then the Demon Ancestor also met his downfall; to this day he still hasn't been released from prison, remaining in the divine jail, occasionally engaging with the Lesser Yang Emperor in "discussing heroes over boiled green plums and wine, judging the merits and faults of the various deities."

Who is merit, who is fault?

The victors are all merit, the losers all fault.

Looking back over the ages, the primordial divine sages of the Fuxi lineage laughed last, inscribing the Way of Qi Luck into the origin of the Honghuang universe, mass-printing the highest currency usable by all deities—Qi Luck merit—secretly harvesting all cultivators participating in this Honghuang game, treating them as leeks to be repeatedly cut.

Regarding this, the Dragon Ancestor God expressed that losing was too hard to accept… After all, back then, under the Lesser Yang Emperor's formulation of the "Everyone is a Dragon" plan for him, he nearly sought to transform all postnatal beings in heaven and earth into dragons, completely achieving the great unification of humanity—without such merit, the Lesser Yang Emperor could not have become the most important chief minister of a regional hegemonic power.

Unfortunately, just as he saw the dawn of victory, he muddledly stumbled, ending up doing someone else's work.

Afterward, the Dragon Ancestor revived from death's slumber, once again lively and energetic, unwilling to accept it, repeatedly reviewing the past events of his downfall… After emptying half of the Dragon Palace and spending heavily to buy information, he obtained a secret—

The Lesser Yang Emperor once had a deep friendship with Fuxi Great Sage, long before he knew the Dragon Ancestor, though few people knew of it.

What's more frightening is that this heavenly secret was quickly covered up… personally handled by Fuxi, the supreme master of the Heavenly Mechanism Easy Way.

Afterwards, through various twists and turns, the Lesser Yang Emperor came to serve under the Dragon Ancestor, launching a life from ordinary to rise, then to brilliant splendor, shining upon the world—becoming the most 'inspirational' legendary myth.

Upon learning this inside story, many things seemed to have an alternative version of explanation.

But what could the Dragon Ancestor Divine Sage say?

First, the art of warfare is deceitful… if one's skill is inferior, strategy lacking, vision inadequate, losing does not justify crying foul.

Moreover, Honghuang is already unified; Fuxi and Pangu manipulate the present, becoming the highest Heavenly Emperor—would the losers of political struggles dare to jump?

There is a saying: kill the chicken to scare the monkey.

The gruesome fate of this chicken, the Luo Hou Demon Ancestor, serves as a warning to all monkeys.

The Dragon Ancestor dares to be angry but dares not speak.

If he dared to be angry, perhaps various dragon-slaying techniques and dragon-slaying platforms might arrive who knows how many yuan earlier in the morning.

It is rare to be muddled, yet that allows longevity.

Moreover, he also holds Fuxi in high esteem.

Only that person who is likely to betray his trust… is truly the most hated.

An insider traitor is forever more hateful than an enemy!

The Dragon Ancestor originally thought this hatred might be endless, with no chance even across countless calamities.

But Fuxi stepped down!

Without this super-sized Heavenly Emperor seated on top, who could still protect the Lesser Yang Emperor?

The Dragon Ancestor God's gaze grew ever deeper, his look toward the Lesser Yang Emperor becoming more inscrutably meaningful.

This era… opportunities, it seems, are many?

……

The Lesser Yang Emperor could sense the Dragon Ancestor God's gaze, but he didn't really care about it.

A has-been boss—his strength might not even surpass his; in a one-on-one, who fears whom?

Moreover, regarding scheming… if it weren't for him bearing the mission, being the front line, the damage‑taking position, creating opportunities for the true assassin to deal damage, he would have to initiate the team fight, draw attention—how could such a solitary situation arise?

He makes a living by his wisdom; other things aside, he is still quite experienced in uniting teammates and surrounding enemies.

Even if the situation now faintly targets them, aside from the divinities involved, who could imagine, who dare to think, that right now among these twelve saint candidates, ten have already united?!

The Three Pure Ones, Zhenyuanzi, Hongyun, Minghe, Kunpeng, Zhunti, Jieyin, plus Shaoyang himself……they are a gang!

Long before Fengxi mingled in Kunlun, when Shaoyang Emperor visited the Three Pure Ones, he had already begun to plot a great game.

But on the surface, in plain view, they seem to be in a competitive, opposing relationship because the slots for Heavenly Dao saints are limited, each looking displeased with the other.

But when a certain special time point arrives, the sharpest blade will be drawn, becoming a heavyweight that tips the scales!

So, Shaoyang doesn't care about the Dragon Ancestor's hostility.

Different mindsets, different patterns.

Only Hongjun is his true great enemy at this moment, requiring serious response.

In fact, the Dao Ancestor also used his methods, proving his difficulty to deal with and his unmanageability.

After Shaoyang Emperor's words, ostensibly self-praise but actually raising the price, the Dao Ancestor steadied his mind and said with a smile: 'Precisely because of this, I want the fellow Daoist to fully display his abilities and also enjoy higher status and treatment.'

'Oh?' Shaoyang raised his eyebrows slightly, feigning surprise: 'Fuxi fellow Daoist is about to step down and yield the worthy position; I will oversee the construction of related immortal Dao affairs… Do you fellow Daoist actually think that's not enough?'

'Of course!'

Hongjun's resolute words, he waved his whisk.

Instantly, a sheet of cloud-light surged, evolving at the hall's dome into a miniature scene of the Honghuang world.

The gods raised their heads, watching, listening as the Dao Ancestor slowly said: 'Any reform, no matter how many benefits it has, to be implemented must suit the land and the time.'

'Since you, fellow Daoist Shaoyang, say you want to contribute to the whole of humanity, this aspect naturally cannot be overlooked… otherwise, good intentions leading to bad outcomes would be quite improper.'

'So, fellow Daoist, you mean…' Shaoyang narrowed his eyes.

'This era is not only about the Heavenly Court!' the Dao Ancestor leisurely said, 'There is also a very special force… its name is the Wu Clan!'

'Their existence does not violate the rules—born upholding Pangu the Great God's ideals and spirit, they carry a legacy.'

'The key is their ideals and spirit, which have also attracted many groups to affiliate, forming their own camp… in some aspects, they greatly diverge from the Heavenly Court.'

'Of course, such divergence is permissible—we in Honghuang value ideological freedom!'

'As long as they haven't committed great sins, we must acknowledge their existence.'

Hongjun said this, letting out a faint cold laugh.

At this moment, beneath the stage, who knows how many great Luo heavenly wills, their expressions calm and natural, as if they had nothing to do with themselves.

The Dao Ancestor glanced, not taking it to heart, merely continuing: 'The Wu Clan camp objectively exists, standing in opposition to the Monster Race's Heavenly Court, with occasional conflicts and friction.'

'But palms and backs are both flesh… they too are members of humanity.'

'Therefore, fellow Daoist, your reform move, beneficial to humanity, must consider their existence… otherwise, it is prone to cause discrimination disputes.'

The Dao Ancestor waved his whisk, and instantly the miniature landscape's mountains and rivers changed hue—too many red dots appeared on the Honghuang continent, all representing the Wu Clan's infiltration.

'What you say is quite correct!' the Dragon Ancestor God Lord rose, speaking righteously: 'As the supreme leader of the Dragon Clan, I have no stake with the Wu Clan; now I stand on a rational, neutral, objective stance to say a few words.'

'Fellow Daoist Shaoyang, even if your intentions are good and greatly benefit humanity… such a grand undertaking still needs more comprehensive consideration.'

'Joining the Heavenly Court and promoting reform is certainly not wrong. But because of your stance, you will instead face heavy resistance in the future!'

'The Wu Clan's ancestral witches and great witches will inevitably view you with special eyes, thinking your work is espionage—that much is tolerable.'

'If they think—whatever the Monster Race carries out, we must destroy, strike first… wouldn't that be terrible?'

'A good thing turned into a major bad thing.'

The Dragon Ancestor God Lord spoke solemnly and dignifiedly, as if it were truly so.

'Exactly!'

The Dao Ancestor nodded, indicating agreement.

'Oh…'

Shaoyang Emperor let out an 'oh' and countered: 'Then if I treat others sincerely and engage in friendly exchange and negotiation with the Wu Clan side, could we avoid misunderstanding?'

'This… perhaps possible, perhaps not.' Hongjun shook his head: 'But no matter what, if you join the Monster Race, you will become a thorn in the hearts of the Wu Clan fellow Daoists.'

'So simply, the best method is to prevent that thorn from appearing, to eliminate it invisibly.'

Saying this, the Dao Ancestor bared his fangs.

'I think, with fellow Daoist as leader, establishing an absolutely neutral organization to promote humanity's reform… this is the most suitable method.'

'Thus, for both the Monster Race and the Wu Clan, they would no longer be enemies, with ample room for easing tensions.'

'Your ideal ambition can be perfectly realized this way; status and position are also available, treatment and welfare will not be problematic—I will grant you authority, with the Heavenly Dao's recognition and support.'

'Even beyond this core work… fellow Daoist Shaoyang, you can also provide deeper assistance and support to humanity's myriad beings.'

Hongjun laughed: 'I see that the Wu and Monster camps, with constant friction, will inevitably have war.'

'When war breaks out, countless casualties will likely result… but what guilt do the myriad beings bear?'

'At that time, we need an organization to shoulder the great righteousness of the myriad beings, manifest humanity's brilliance, conduct humanitarian relief, and also mediate some frictional wars.'

'I have had this idea for a long time… but I have never found a true pursuer of ideals, one who wholeheartedly serves Honghuang as a great divine adept, to ask him to take charge.'

'Until now, seeing fellow Daoist, I suddenly realized—having a fellow Daoist Shaoyang of such noble character and flawless morality as a great sage, I have no more worries; I can confidently join the Heavenly Dao. No need to worry that one day I become engrossed in work while outside humanity has gone mad, losing its bottom line… Ladies and gentlemen, what do you think?'

Upon these words, the top experts in the front rows of the Zixiao Palace, about dozens of them, were all invigorated in spirit.

They first glanced at Dao Ancestor Hongjun, then at Shaoyang Emperor, and immediately turned their heads to look toward the remote corner where Rahu Demon Ancestor stood… each widened their eyes, pupils flashing with fervent anticipation—the expression of those eager to watch a good show.

PS: These past two days it's not that I don't want to update, but I don't know why I can't log into the writer account on my computer… what's going on with this situation? I, I don't know, and I dare not ask.

(End of chapter)