Chapter 100: Ancient Great Demon—Bai Ze!

"This is!"

Ze's body gave a slight tremble.

"Oh? Does fellow Daoist recognize it?"

"The Demon Spirit of the Western Region Demon Land feeds on the desires of living beings; naturally, I recognize it."

"This thing is ferocious; once released, it becomes a natural disaster for a region. Even within the Demon Race, it has a notorious reputation. Where did you obtain this, fellow Daoist?"

Ze was slightly stunned, his eyes filled with confusion.

Even as mysterious as he was, he did not understand Li Xiang's meaning at this moment.

"Furthermore, what does this have to do with the problem of the Dragon Gate?"

The problem with the Dragon Gate lies in its closure, in the fact that the Spirit Pool at the upper levels is occupied by some fat fish who hold positions without doing any work.

These fellows occupy the spots, yet they cannot swim up themselves, nor will they let those who come later leap up. They unite with other lazy fellows to form cliques, lording over others from above, turning the Dragon Gate into a pool of stagnant water.

It has lost the initial fighting spirit of rowing against the current and the Fish Leaping Over the Dragon Gate.

Now the hierarchy is distinct; the upper levels block the water intake, breeding within it. Regardless of talent, regardless of character, as long as they are born and protected by their parents, they are not washed down by the current. By borrowing the Spirit Rhyme within the Spirit Pool, they can transform into fish-dragons once they grow up.

Then it repeats over and over, for endless generations of descendants; they are the culprits behind the problems at the Dragon Gate.

And what is even more troublesome is that the Dragon Gate does not discipline the behavior of these trash fish; it merely watches coldly and does not allow outsiders to interfere.

Once an external force forcibly interferes, the Dragon Gate will leave on its own and vanish.

This left Ze with no way to proceed.

Having fished here for a hundred years, the intention was to change the situation at the Dragon Gate, but it has not improved.

Li Xiang brought out a Demon Spirit that could be called the enemy of all living beings, and for a moment, Ze truly did not think of what connection this had to the problem he was facing.

"Fellow Daoist Ze, if an ordinary little fish wants to rely on its own perseverance to climb to the very top level, what do you think it needs?"

"What does it need?"

Li Xiang asked softly.

Ze pondered for a moment and spoke slowly:

"The Dragon Gate itself is a test of a fish's character. If one does not consider these fellows blocking the upward water intake, if a fish wants to leap over the Dragon Gate and transform into a True Dragon..."

"It requires terrifying willpower, as well as decades of struggle as if it were a single day, with fate converging, not daring to slack off for even an instant, only then is there a slight chance to leap over the Dragon Gate."

"But if one considers the obstacles faced above the Dragon Gate, those fellows who hold positions without doing work blocking the spring mouth..."

"Under such difficulty, if there is still a fish that wants to climb all the way from the bottom to the peak, what is needed is no longer just a Dao heart and perseverance; it is even more necessary for it to possess the talent of a dragon and the strength of a dragon to be able to break the shackles."

"In this almost impossible situation, to push through everything and climb to the peak."

Ze looked at Li Xiang earnestly, answering that if it were the current Dragon Gate with its upward path blocked, for a fish to want to reach the top, it would only be possible to complete this task if it first possessed the strength of a dragon.

Push through everything.

Regardless of whether you are a family or a disaster, even if you block the upward path, it can still swim against the current, break all shackles, and with absolute power, push through everything.

To want to leap over the Dragon Gate and become a dragon.

Yet it requires you to first possess the talent and strength of a dragon.

Only a dragon can become a dragon.

The path of ascent is sealed; unless one is a Peerless Hero, it is absolutely impossible to reach the top under these circumstances.

Such a situation is an almost unsolvable dead end.

After finishing, Ze sat where he was, still looking with some confusion at the roaring Demon Spirit in Li Xiang's hand.

"Fellow Daoist, what does this have to do with the Demon Spirit?"

"This thing feeds on the desires of living beings and is almost the enemy of all living beings."

"It relies on the desires of living beings to grow stronger. In the past, it once caused boundless slaughter within my Demon Race. Many Great Demons became crazy due to the erosion of the Demon Spirit, harming their own kind. Only a small number of living beings with firm willpower could guard their original heart, and some even turned a misfortune into a blessing..."

"Wait, you mean!"

Ze seemed to have suddenly thought of something.

He raised his head, his eyes staring straight at Li Xiang, completely losing his composure.

Li Xiang smiled, placed the sealed Demon Spirit in front of him, and nodded gently toward Ze.

"Good!"

"The Demon Spirit feeds on the desires of living beings and grows stronger."

"However, if a living being's willpower is sufficiently firm, it can conversely devour the Demon Spirit to nourish itself."

As he spoke, Li Xiang stood up.

He reached out and tapped gently toward the Dragon Gate in the distance.

"As you said, fellow Daoist, this Dragon Gate has completely rotted."

"From the seventh level and above, the living beings of the Dragon Gate have completely lost the courage to make that desperate leap."

"They only know how to guard their own pool, dreaming the beautiful dream of becoming a dragon."

"They love to scheme but lack decisiveness; they love dragons but lack courage."

"They dare not leap, nor are they willing to let go."

"Beneath the Golden Scale, it is full of greasy fat."

"In this situation where the upward path is completely blocked, for a fish at the bottom to want to leap up and break the shackles, it is truly too difficult, too difficult."

"Just as you said, fellow Daoist, unless it first possesses the strength of a dragon."

"Only then can it swim against the current and suppress everything."

Speaking to this point, Li Xiang's voice suddenly became somewhat cold.

"Some fish are born at the top, looking down upon all living beings."

"Some fish, however, must endure all kinds of hardships, and for their entire lives, they can only be stuck at the bottom, unable to make any progress."

"Is this fair?"

"This is not fair!"

"Since that is the case."

"Then I, the Daoist, shall give them a chance."

"A chance to climb to the top layer, even without relying on fate."

Inside the orange-yellow Bead, the shrieks of the Demon Spirit grew increasingly sharp.

It seemed as if the sound reached the pool beneath the Dragon Gate, startling the fish there into a slight tremor.

"I, the Daoist, intend to hang this Demon Spirit above the Dragon Gate, allowing the split spirits it births to flow along with the Spirit Spring and spread throughout all the Spirit Pools."

"Because the Demon Spirit has already been suppressed, these split spirits will not possess the potential for active aggression."

"Only if the fish themselves actively fall into the abyss and cooperate with the Demon Spirit can they be parasitized by it."

"Sometimes, the longing for success, the longing to leap over the Dragon Gate, is actually a type of desire as well."

"An incomparably intense desire."

"And in the eyes of the Demon Spirit, desire means power."

"I, the Daoist, am also looking forward to seeing just how much the fish in the lower three layers long to leap over the Dragon Gate."

"Whether, for the sake of leaping over the Dragon Gate and swimming against the current, they are willing to pay any price."

"Using the Demon Spirit's split spirits as fire, and the desire to leap over the Dragon Gate as fuel."

"Today, I, the Daoist, shall grant these fish of the lower three layers, who have shallow blessings, a stroke of fortune."

"With their lives as the wager, they may gamble for the chance of Fish Leaping Over the Dragon Gate."

"Those with a firm Dao heart may naturally devour the Demon Spirit, nourish themselves, and continue to swim against the current."

"Those with a weak Dao heart shall fall into becoming demon servants, transform into demons, and perish."

Li Xiang looked coldly at the Dragon Gate in the distance.

The murderous aura in his words startled the two young attendants nearby, making them feel somewhat fearful.

"The Demon Spirit feeds on desire; the stronger the desire, the greater the power manifested in the body."

"Fellow Daoist, you said that these fish lack the power to swim against the current and break their shackles."

"Then today, I, the Daoist, shall give them the opportunity to obtain that power."

"With weapons in hand, whether they can turn the world upside down,"

"will depend on their own good fortune."

"So, Fellow Daoist, what do you think?"

"Can this resolve the plight of the Dragon Gate?"

Li Xiang looked far off toward the Dragon Gate.

A trace of anticipation had already appeared in his eyes.

When he had previously suppressed and captured the Demon Spirit, he had already had this idea.

Desire is the beginning of a living being's fall.

However, it is also the source of a living being's evolution.

If the power of the Demon Spirit could be perfectly developed, it would be an incomparably huge treasure trove.

The fish in the lower three layers have already endured for a thousand years.

Li Xiang was very curious about what kind of power would erupt once these fellows obtained a path to acquire it.

"Rather than letting these fat fish in the upper layers continue to occupy the Dragon Gate, it would be better for me, the Daoist, to use the Demon Spirit to set this Dragon Gate, which has already turned into a den of desire, completely ablaze and burn it clean."

"Let them hear the anger coming from the lower layers."

Ze was silent.

He stared blankly at Li Xiang.

For a long time, he could not find a suitable adjective.

Using a Demon Spirit to change the current situation of the Dragon Gate—if it were said that the Dragon Gate was stagnant because of the desires of living beings,

then Li Xiang intended to use an even more violent desire to turn the Dragon Gate upside down.

The Demon Spirit itself is a taboo existence for living beings, but why was this person so calm and indifferent when speaking of it?

Ze had not originally intended to truly get an answer from Li Xiang.

This was just a human with deep blessings who had obtained Luck and could come to visit the Dragon Gate.

It was enough to just chat, drink, and relieve some boredom with him.

What he had said about asking him to find a solution was also just a casual remark.

Yet, now he seemed to have truly come up with a solution.

This made Ze unable to sit still.

Seeing that he remained silent, Li Xiang frowned.

"Fellow Daoist, do you still have concerns?"

"As you said, this Dragon Gate has already fallen to such a state."

"Could it be that you feel sorry for those fish-dragons, fearing you won't be able to eat them in the future?"

Once these words were spoken, Ze actually laughed out loud.

"I was slightly distracted, please forgive me, please forgive me."

"I, the Daoist, did not expect that within Humanity, there would be such a person."

"Young as you are, your actions possess such boldness."

"It actually reminds me of some old friends."

Ze casually made a couple of remarks and then moved past the subject.

He gestured for Li Xiang to sit down.

Li Xiang smiled, turned around to sit, picked up his chopsticks, and took a bite of the Fish Dragon Meat.

The taste was still delicious, but it was not as perfect as it had been just a moment ago.

It looked as if it had passed its peak flavor period.

At the same time, a familiar system notification sound suddenly reached his ears.

【Congratulations! You have completed the request of the Ancient Great Demon Baize.】

【Congratulations! You have obtained one opportunity to inquire about ancient secrets!】

【Because of your outstanding performance, Baize has developed a favorable impression of you; you may return to this place at any time to converse with Baize.】

【Special Scene - Dragon Gate, has been locked on the map.】

【Hint: This is one of the few places where you can come into contact with ancient secrets.】

Huh?

What is going on?

An Ancient Great Demon, Baize?

(End of this chapter)