Chapter 391: Dead people are sometimes more useful than the living! (First Update)

"... Oh, so the current Butian Alliance has quite a complicated origin."

After listening to this story, which was not exactly straightforward, Ren Yidao blinked, gaining a new understanding of the current Butian Alliance.

And a point that made him really want to complain.

He understood that these people needed a title to legitimize their actions, and a pretext to rally others.

But really... couldn't you use some other high-sounding excuse?

What is this?

The Avengers?

Or some holy vengeance cult from somewhere?

The reason of "vengeance" sounds bloody enough, but in reality, its status is quite low.

"It's not even as good as a reason like 'destroying potential threats to protect world peace!'"

"What did you say?"

Huang Huang: Hm?

She gave Ren Yidao a strange look, wondering why he was spacing out again.

However, seeing that he didn't seem to be thinking about anything uninteresting, she didn't dwell on it.

"Ah, nothing... By the way, Senior sister, I have another question."

Ren Yidao waved his hand, thought of another point of doubt, and asked: "Since they have made such a declaration, how could the people of the world tolerate their insolence?"

Judging by the results, the Butian Alliance has survived to this day, but news of those powerhouses has mostly vanished.

What happened in between?

Could it be that they actually succeeded?

Huang Huang was not at all surprised that Ren Yidao would have such a question, and this was precisely the next question she was prepared to test him with.

"Are you asking, 'Why does the whole world know the Butian Alliance is a potential threat, yet they allow them to remain at large?'"

"Yes, exactly that. Why not nip the threat in the bud early on? Wouldn't wiping them out once and for all solve everything?"

One can be a thief for a thousand days, but how can one guard against a thief for a thousand days?

Huang Huang smiled without answering, turning instead to ask: "Then what do you think? What is the reason they are allowed to do this?"

The reason...

Ren Yidao raised an eyebrow and asked tentatively: "Is it because of their special escape techniques?"

He didn't know much about the Butian Alliance, but the escape techniques displayed by Di Si and He Shou had left a deep impression on him.

Those methods didn't look like cultivation techniques, but rather like they were relying on some special items.

"That point is indeed not wrong."

"You may have encountered members of the Butian Alliance before; their ability to escape is excellent, achieved through the power of Supreme Treasures."

"There are several Supreme Treasures within the Butian Alliance, one of which is an innate Supreme Treasure called the 'Ten Thousand Worlds Shadowless Bamboo', a purple bamboo that can grow."

"The Shadowless Bamboo has infinite wonders; its fallen withered leaves alone can traverse the Void, and if one uses a bamboo plaque refined from its main body, one can traverse the world's Restrictions—even the Arrays of the Demon God Realm cannot stop it."

"Of course, the bamboo plaque itself can be called a Supreme Treasure; the Star Envoy likely isn't even qualified to touch it, only the Four Symbols Envoy should be qualified to borrow it."

After explaining, Huang Huang nodded, then shook her head again, "But this only counts as one reason, not the real cause."

"Think about it again."

What other reason could there be?

Ren Yidao pondered for a while, and a thought flashed through his mind.

"Is it because... they no longer pose a threat?"

Correct.

Because they are not a threat, there is no need to care.

However, how could such a large organization not be considered a threat?

Unless...

"... The Butian Alliance transformed from an 'assassination organization that always kept an eye on others' into a 'bunch of idiots who want to conquer the world'."

Once he figured out the key issue, Ren Yidao's train of thought became smoother and smoother, and he quickly straightened out his deduction:

"The latter might cause great harm to the whole world, but to those powerhouses, it cannot be called a threat; on the contrary, it was the former that made them worry day and night."

Huang Huang nodded with satisfaction, acknowledging Ren Yidao's conjecture.

"You guessed right."

"In the early years, the reappearance of the Butian Alliance did indeed make the whole world panic; for a time, everyone felt insecure, and many people huddled together, forming many small groups."

"But as time passed, that tense atmosphere gradually dissipated, because they discovered that the newly formed Butian Alliance had also begun to change."

"As the sun and moon alternated, the reborn Butian Alliance ultimately could not resist the ruthless erosion of time, gradually losing its original intent; corruption appeared within them, and the fire of vengeance ultimately lost to greater greed."

"In the end, after symbolically taking revenge a few times, they no longer mentioned vengeance, but instead raised the banner of 'The Heaven is incomplete, we shall remake the universe' once again."

Hmph.

Huang Huang sneered and shook her head:

"It's just that, with the first failure of the former Butian Alliance, plus the criminal record of the latter, no one believes them anymore."

"Now, while they speak hypocritical grand words, they are secretly doing shady business, trying to stir up the situation in the world and then take advantage of the chaos."

"Many people want to eliminate them, but relying on their escape techniques, they are everywhere, yet hidden extremely deep."

Huang Huang looked at Ren Yidao and sighed again:

"I have always known that there were members of theirs in Demon Emperor City, and I have always been arresting them in secret, but all I've caught over the years are small fry."

"Not to mention the Ask Dao Realm, I haven't even caught a Star Constellation Envoy of the Wuxiang Realm; at most, there was only a small spy in the Void Refining Realm."

"If it weren't for you, I wouldn't dare believe that this True Person He, who has lived in seclusion in Demon Emperor City for so long, would actually be a Star Envoy of the Butian Alliance."

She stepped forward, raised her hand, gently patted Ren Yidao on the top of his head, and said softly:

"So, you really don't need to thank me. Although I saved your life, you also eliminated a spy for me. If we really have to calculate it like this, I should be the one thanking you."

Huang Huang's words were cryptic, but she was actually conveying one meaning.

Although the matter of being siblings is fake, since I have tacitly accepted it, as long as this relationship lasts for a day, I am your sister for the time being.

Between you and me, there is no need to calculate things so clearly.

I am your sister; it is only right and proper that I save you.

You are my brother; it is equally expected that you help me.

Ren Yidao understood the subtext, feeling a bit emotional and a bit touched.

However, admitting mistakes honestly at a time like this was not his personality.

As a national-level master of contrarianism yesterday, he insisted on being contrary.

Thus, he smiled, shook his head, and said:

"That's not right."

"Hm? What is not right?" Huang Huang raised her eyebrows; she did not believe Ren Yidao could not understand her meaning.

Could it be that he does not want to be siblings with me?

Ren Yidao took a step forward, standing almost against Huang Huang, staring straight into the eyes of her Incarnation, and asked softly:

"Because, if we really have to calculate it this way, does Sister think that my life is not even worth as much as a Star Envoy like him?"

"My life is very precious, far more precious than his!"

"Or is it that, in Sister's heart, I am not as good as him?"

Huang Huang was forced back by his aura and said in a flustered manner:

"Uh, no, that's not what I meant..."

Ren Yidao's strength was not high; this Incarnation could easily crush him.

But at this moment, Huang Huang was forced by his burning gaze to subconsciously look away.

She excelled in the five-element fire Dao Technique and had not felt such a scorching sensation for a long time...

And Ren Yidao did not even use any Dao Technique; he was just looking over with those excessively beautiful eyes.

Huang Huang gritted her teeth and cursed inwardly: "What a harmful little fox spirit!"

None of you Fox Demon are any good!

She took a deep breath, turned her head, and discovered that Ren Yidao had already retreated to his original spot with his hands behind his back at some point.

He had returned to his Half-Demon appearance, staring at her with a smiling face, his Fox Tail swaying back and forth behind him.

He looked like a petty person who had gotten his way.

Hmph.

"Cough... cough! I misspoke."

Huang Huang stared at Ren Yidao and gave him a light glare.

"Hm, don't let it happen again!"

However, Huang Huang's original intention was to warn him, but when she actually finished glaring, it felt more like she was acting coquettishly.

A beauty's feigned anger—what lethality could it possibly have left?

Huang Huang looked at the smile curling at the corners of Ren Yidao's mouth and realized something; just as she was about to get angry, she started laughing herself.

The two looked at each other and smiled, both feeling more relaxed and feeling that their relationship had taken a step closer.

No one brought it up, and the two naturally sat together, continuing to talk about other things.

They talked about a lot, involving many secrets Ren Yidao had never heard of before, and also resolved many of his past doubts.

Of course, some new questions also arose.

For example, when Ren Yidao mentioned the Transformation Demon Art discovered in Beigan, Huang Huang actually indicated that she knew nothing about it.

Hm?

And seeing his dazed appearance, Huang Huang asked back amusedly:

"This Transformation Demon Art is indeed not the work of the Demon Race. Rather, why would my Demon Race need the Human Race to undergo Transformation Demon? The Demon Race's ability to reproduce is no worse than the Human Race's; the two races simply cannot determine a winner on this point."

"If I wanted to plant a spy among the Human Race, wouldn't it be better to just use a Demon Race that can transform? I wouldn't even have to worry about the Transformation Demon spy betraying me."

What you said... seems to make some sense, huh?

Perhaps because of a cognitive bias, Ren Yidao and Li Long had never doubted before that the Transformation Demon Art came from the Demon Race.

But thinking about it now, it seems there really was no need to go to such trouble.

But this led to a new question: this technique wouldn't just appear out of thin air, would it?

There must be someone behind the scenes causing trouble.

"Does Sister have any suspected candidates?"

As it turned out, Huang Huang gave him the answer without even thinking.

"Butian Alliance."

"Hm?"

The Butian Alliance has such a high appearance rate!

"Remember one thing: in this world today, the vast majority of conspiracies and schemes, fifty percent come from the Butian Alliance, and another twenty percent are disguised as being done by the Butian Alliance."

"So, when you don't know who the mastermind is, just assume it's the Butian Alliance, and you'll be right eight or nine times out of ten."

Ren Yidao blinked, greatly shocked.

Is that so!

Butian Alliance, what a huge amount of hatred it has attracted!

The Butian Alliance, in the mouth of Huang Huang, gave Ren Yidao the impression of a street rat that could be blamed for anything at will.

To be able to mix into such a state in the eyes of others, listening to it, actually makes one feel a tiny bit envious...

"But why would the Butian Alliance do this? Is it to intensify the conflict between the Human Race and the Demon Race?"

"I don't know." Huang Huang shook her head, not taking this small matter to heart, "It is nothing more than some subtle little tricks; they cannot stir up any big waves."

"Think about it, has this matter caused any major ripples in Shenzhou?"

Ren Yidao blinked, pondered for a moment, and had to admit it.

"……It hasn't."

Strange, there really wasn't any big deal.

Although the Song Family practiced this technique, all nine generations had already been "eliminated" by Li Long, and in the end, no great chaos had broken out.

"Come to think of it, it is time-consuming and laborious, and the success rate is not high; it is clearly not yet mature."

After reading the cultivation technique Ren Yidao shared with her, Huang Huang scanned it a few times and completely grasped the principles within.

"Either the person behind the scenes created an immature technique and wanted to find a sacrificial lamb to experiment on, finding problems to continuously perfect it."

"Or, they found a completed remnant scroll somewhere, filled it in recklessly, and finished it into this ghostly state."

She curled her lips in disdain, her words carrying a hint of mockery.

"No matter which one it is, they are an idiot."

Ren Yidao blinked, thinking of the Jade Slip he had read in Wanshou City before.

Among them was a certain "smart person" who had self-perfected a remnant scroll and finally succeeded in chopping himself into three pieces while in seclusion.

This kind of conceited, top-tier idiot is not rare in the cultivation world; one can pop up after a period of time.

Like chives, one crop is cut and another grows.

Perhaps, it really was just a trivial matter not worth mentioning, and only he and Li Long were overthinking it?

Ren Yidao pondered for a while, then did not bring it up with Huang Huang again, smiling and skipping over the topic.

"In any case, let's just assume the truth is as such for now."

But in Ren Yidao's heart, he did not completely seal this matter away.

Because of his intuition.

This matter, perhaps, was not that simple.

After talking for a long time, Ren Yidao remembered one thing and discussed it with Huang Huang.

"Hm? You say, you want me not to kill He Shou, that you still have use for him?"

"Yes."

Huang Huang was somewhat surprised, not knowing what medicine Ren Yidao was selling in this Gourd, and asked curiously:

"It is possible, he was captured because of you after all, and I don't intend to startle the snake in the short term, but can you tell me what you want to do with him?"

Regarding this younger brother of hers, Huang Huang was now full of confidence in him.

She did not feel at all that Ren Yidao lacked the means to control the other party, just curious about what he wanted to do with this Star Envoy.

"Heh heh, this mountain man has his own clever plan."

Ren Yidao smiled triumphantly, looking at He Shou who was wrapped up like a rice dumpling, his smile bright and sunny.

"It's very simple."

"Squeeze out his remaining value."

As a qualified Merit entrepreneur, this job is something I, Huhu, am very, very familiar with.

"Dead people are sometimes more useful than living ones."

Apply for heritage, must apply for heritage!

"Hm? Didn't you just say to spare his life?"

"Cough cough, that was a metaphor, a metaphor, sister!"

……

……

The third day.

Amidst Cang Hai's anxious waiting.

The Crown Prince returned safe and sound.

……Together with True Person He.