Chapter 332: Shen Ni Infiltrates the Hong Huang Myriad Races Assembly [6k]

The arrival of the Demon Ancestor Luo Hou brought turmoil to the Pantao Banquet.

The entire Immortal Realm was suffused with a tense atmosphere.

All the Immortals watched as Luo Hou stepped forward into the Yao Tai Immortal Palace, followed by the myriad Demon Kings!

It was hard to tell whether he had come to attend the banquet—or to smash it.

“You needn’t look at me with such wariness.”

Luo Hou smiled: “The Immortal Realm is holding a grand assembly; I’ve brought these Demon Kings along to lend support and liven things up—isn’t that normal?”

“Liven things up?”

The Yin Yang Daoist said in a sarcastic tone: “Friend, you’ve come to show off your power and mooch free food and drink, haven’t you?”

“You’re welcome to interpret it that way,” Luo Hou admitted outright.

After handing the primordial spiritual treasure Jing Yun Bell to an Immortal official, he sat down beside the Dao Ancestor Hong Jun.

Hong Jun smiled at the Immortals and said: “Guests come from afar; Luo Hou, our rare visitor to the Immortal Realm, needn’t be met with such tension.”

“Eat, drink, and enjoy.”

“We humbly obey the Dao Ancestor’s decree!”

With the top figures speaking, the Immortals had no reason to make things unpleasant.

Soon, the atmosphere within the Immortal Palace became harmonious.

Heavenly Demons and Heavenly Immortals toasted each other; Earth Demons and Earth Immortals exchanged cups; Human Demons chatted, Human Immortals spoke of the world, Demon Gods and Immortal Gods laughed and joked;

Here, Yin Demons and Yang Demons sang and danced; there, Profound Immortals and True Immortals sang and moved in rhythm;

Ghost Demons and Ghost Immortals sat and discussed the Dao; Sickness Demons and Golden Core Immortals expounded scriptures and teachings.

For a moment, the Immortal and Demon paths mingled in joyous harmony—how delightful!

“Yin Yang Daoist, come, come, drink this cup!”

Pan Wang, the Ancient Ancestor, sat beside Yin Yang Daoist and grinned at him: “Come to think of it, we’re old friends.”

“Had I not lost my chance with the Immortal Realm, I’d be an Immortal myself now.”

Yin Yang Daoist said: “The gates of the Immortal Realm remain forever open to you, friend!”

“Should you ever change your mind one day, you may become a Cultivation Immortal at any time!”

“No, no, no!”

Pan Wang, the Ancient Ancestor, smiled with narrowed eyes: “Once a Demon Sovereign, always a follower of the Demon Path.”

“How could one casually switch sects?”

Qian Kun Daoist said confidently: “Friend, you’ll have that opportunity!”

“Oh? Really?”

The Divine Light Demon, assuming the form of the Spirit Heaven Demon King, sat beside Qian Kun Immortal and asked with a smile: “Qian Kun Daoist, would you consider joining my Demon Sect?”

“Of course I would!”

Qian Kun Daoist’s eyes lit up—could such a thing really happen?

“Would Spirit Heaven Daoist be willing to recommend me?”

The Spirit Heaven Demon King, Divine Light Demon, paused slightly, then said: “Joining my Demon Sect requires passing the Demon Path trials. Can you accept that?”

“We can accept it! We can all accept it!”

Yin Yang Daoist and Dian Dao both patted their chests in assurance: “If your Demon Sect will accept us, we’ll switch allegiance right now!”

The Immortal Path was desperate for a chance to infiltrate the Demon Path!

“Hmm…” Divine Light Demon fell silent.

The three Immortals were too direct—it threw him off balance.

The Dao Ancestor is sitting right over there—how could you so boldly declare your intent to defect? Is that really wise?

Finally, the Non-Tian Demon King, Dark Demon, stepped forward: “If any of you wish to join our Demon Sect, you are always welcome.”

“I can even give you two trials right now!”

“Which two?” The three Immortals asked curiously.

The Non-Tian Demon King, Dark Demon, said: “Myself and Spirit Heaven Daoist serve as examiners—I assess the sins of all beings; Spirit Heaven Daoist assesses their merits.”

“Would you three care to try?”

Dark Demon smiled broadly at the three Immortals.

Yin Yang Daoist paused, then asked: “How is this assessed?”

“It’s simple—just look into this demon mirror.”

Dark Demon pulled a demon mirror from his sleeve and said: “This is the Sin Mirror. Simply recite the incantation: ‘Demon mirror, demon mirror, tell me, how great are my sins?’—and you’ll see your own sins.”

“That’s it?” The three Immortals exchanged glances.

“Yes, that’s all!”

The Spirit Heaven Demon King, Divine Light Demon, chuckled and also produced a mirror: “This one is the Merit Mirror—it reveals the merits of all beings. Would you care to try?”

“If you pass these two trials, the rest will be child’s play for you.”

Divine Light Demon’s words carried a strong air of seduction.

“I’ll try!” Yin Yang Daoist stepped forward and took the Sin Mirror from Dark Demon.

He recited the incantation: “Demon mirror, demon mirror, tell me, how great are my sins?”

Hummm~~

The mirror trembled slightly, then fell still.

Yin Yang Daoist frowned. “Is this mirror broken?”

Dark Demon explained: “You are a Great Luo Sovereign—your information load is immense. Wait a moment.”

No sooner had he spoken than the mirror in Yin Yang Daoist’s hand began to shake violently.

Suddenly, he screamed: “Ahh—this terrifies me! It terrifies me!”

“Yin Yang Daoist’s sins are profound! Profound indeed!”

The loud voice echoed throughout the entire Yao Tai Immortal Palace.

All present were stunned.

The entire palace fell into silence.

Whether Immortal or Demon, all eyes involuntarily turned toward Yin Yang Daoist.

Yin Yang Daoist’s facial muscles twitched slightly; his grip on the mirror tightened.

Creak~~

“Ahh—I’m going to crack! I’m going to crack!”

“Yin Yang Daoist is trying to silence us! Yin Yang Daoist is trying to silence us!”

The Sin Mirror shrieked wildly, exaggerating beyond reason.

“Oh dear, friend, no need for this, no need for this!” Dark Demon rushed forward to rescue the Sin Mirror.

Divine Light Demon and Pan Wang, the Ancient Ancestor, kept their heads bowed, their lips twitching with suppressed laughter.

Lei Ze, the mighty god, covered his mouth and let out a “Ku ku ku” chuckle.

The Immortals and Demon Kings pretended not to notice, resuming their eating and drinking.

Yet, subtly, their glances kept drifting toward Yin Yang Daoist.

“Regrettably, friend, you have not met our Demon Sect’s assessment standards.”

Dark Demon looked at Yin Yang Daoist with feigned regret.

“Of course, you needn’t be discouraged—if you reform yourself, perform good deeds, and accumulate merit, you may yet qualify for our sect.”

“Exactly! Our Demon Sect welcomes those who repent and start anew!” Divine Light Demon’s expression was earnest, utterly sincere.

“Hmph!” Yin Yang Daoist’s face darkened.

He knew full well he’d been tricked by these bastards.

Dark Demon turned to Qian Kun Daoist and Dian Dao: “What about you two? Would you like to try?”

“No need!” Qian Kun and Dian Dao waved their hands frantically.

Divine Light Demon held up the Merit Mirror and asked: “You truly won’t try? My Merit Mirror can lower the volume.”

“Absolutely not—we’ve suddenly lost all interest in your Demon Sect,” Qian Kun Daoist and Dian Dao declared decisively.

The mirrors these two Demon Kings held weren’t assessment tools—they were social death artifacts!

【The Demon Path is truly deceitful!】

The three Immortals mentally severed ties with the Demon Path, abandoning any thought of joining.

On another side, Demon Ancestor Luo Hou and Dao Ancestor Hong Jun sat alone at a separate table.

“My Weiyuan Society intends to lead the myriad races and form an alliance to jointly subdue the ferocious beasts. What do you think of this plan?” Luo Hou asked.

“Jointly subdue the ferocious beasts? That’s a good thing—I wholeheartedly support it!”

Hong Jun agreed without hesitation.

“But…” Hong Jun then changed tone.

“But what?” Luo Hou pressed.

Hong Jun smiled at Luo Hou: “But for Weiyuan to lead the myriad races seems inappropriate.”

“Oh?”

Luo Hou asked: “Why inappropriate?”

Hong Jun said: “If this is an alliance, the great matter should be jointly planned by all the gods, with all races raising the same banner—only then can the united strength of the gods and myriad races be truly demonstrated.”

Hong Jun picked up a jade cup, sipped a goblet of nectar slowly and deliberately, then said: “This matter cannot favor any one family alone!”

“Mm.”

Luo Hou gave a slight nod: “Your friend speaks wisely.”

“But this initiative was first proposed by our Weiyuan Society. We are providing the venue for the Wanzu Alliance—surely you have no objection?”

Hong Jun asked: “Where will Weiyuan hold the alliance?”

Luo Hou smiled faintly and uttered two words:

“In dreams!”

“In dreams?” Hong Jun’s eyes flashed with surprise.

He had to admit: Weiyuan had thought this through thoroughly—dreams were indeed the perfect place for an alliance.

It could easily accommodate all sentient beings of the ten thousand clans and the deities of the myriad heavens, while sparing them the burden of travel—everyone need only sit within their cultivation halls.

“Fine. We of the Immortal Realm will certainly attend.” Hong Jun agreed.

“Splendid!”

Luo Hou laughed: “In three thousand years, Weiyuan will send out invitations. We await your arrival, dear friends!”

With the matter settled, Luo Hou made no move to leave.

He acted as if he had truly come for the feast, lingering over the Immortal Realm’s delicacies.

Hong Jun made no move to dismiss him; instead, he chatted amiably with Luo Hou.

When the conversation grew lively, Luo Hou even produced several divine artifacts and spirit treasures, inviting Hong Jun to inspect them.

Hong Jun, no doubt a seasoned collector, had an exceptional eye—he evaluated each divine artifact and spirit treasure with the ease of a connoisseur recounting his own prized possessions.

Luo Hou laughed: “Friend Hong Jun, your vast experience humbles me!”

Hong Jun smiled back: “Friend Luo Hou, your collection is impressive—I envy you!” Their laughter and banter made them seem less like rivals and more like old friends reunited, with endless topics to discuss.

The Three Pure Ones watched the two get along so well, and shook their heads slightly.

Tai Shang sent a mental message: [Brother Three, I’ll bet you anything that inside, they’ve already sentenced each other to death eight hundred times.]

[To be fair, Hong Jun really keeps his cool.] Yu Chen Dao Jun had just heard of Weiyuan’s bold move.

Put himself in Hong Jun’s place, Yu Chen knew he himself could never remain so calm—he would have drawn his sword against Luo Hou immediately.

[If he couldn’t keep his composure, he wouldn’t be Hong Jun.]

Xiang Xuanqing looked left and right but saw no trace of Yang Mei Dao Ren.

He had specifically sent Yang Mei a message, but received no reply.

[Strange—where has Master Liu gone?]

Meanwhile, the Xiongshou Clan reappeared across the Hong Huang realm, after a period of calm.

This time, they did not immediately spark large-scale chaos, but continued promoting the doctrine: “The Xiongshou have Dao; the gods and Dao are one.”

The Hong Huang deities who had defected traveled among the clans, and actually persuaded many tribes to join the Xiongshou Clan.

The reason was simple: all clans had watched the previous war.

Despite the massive uproar across heaven and earth, Shen Ni had not been killed.

That proved the Xiongshou Clan truly had power!

Moreover, after Kong Ming Dao Ren, another deity had ascended to become a Da Luo Zhi Zun.

This Da Luo inherited the Dao Fruit of the True Demon God and played a pivotal role within the Xiongshou Clan.

This further inspired the Tai Yi deities.

In their eyes, the Xiongshou Clan was indeed a path to enlightenment.

If they missed this chance, how could they ever hope to attain Dao in the future?

In the struggle for the Dao, to stand still is to fall behind.

With the coming of the Da Luo Age, who wouldn’t want to condense a Dao Fruit and become a Zhi Zun, transcending time and space, watching the ages pass with a smile?

“Risk it all—Tai Yi becomes Da Luo!”

“Bet it all—ascend to become Pan Gu!”

If enlightenment succeeds, all past deeds are but clouds.

So what if one joins the Xiongshou?

If I succeed, then this path was always meant to be mine.

Under this tide of thought, more and more deities joined the Xiongshou Clan.

Added to this was the presence of the new True Demon God, who continuously purged infiltrators from within the Xiongshou Clan, retained only true defectors, and used the power of his Dao Fruit to rewrite the world’s perception of the Xiongshou.

As a result, the Xiongshou Clan’s power did not shrink—it grew steadily.

Even after pruning the weak, the Xiongshou Clan became stronger.

And the Demon Gods grew increasingly cautious.

They rarely appeared directly to manage Xiongshou affairs; instead, they assumed new identities and roamed the Hong Huang realm, assisting Shen Ni in locating and setting up array nodes.

“This time, we will establish a grand array that envelops the entire Hong Huang realm. While summoning our fellow Daoists, we will unleash a true Xiongshou Catastrophe that sweeps across the Hong Huang.”

Inside a certain Xiongshendian, Shen Ni was ecstatic: “Dear friends, strive! Rejoice! A world teeming with Xiongshou is about to emerge!”

“We will surely be the ultimate victors!”

In the void, countless demonic shadows also felt the tide was turning in their favor—they were energized: “Pan Gu, we will defeat you!”

“Hahahaha~~”

At Kai Ming Mountain, the Wu Shen organization held another meeting.

[Di Jiang] Shen Ni presided over this assembly.

At the meeting, [Di Jiang] Shen Ni expressed deep concern: “Now I am being dragged forward by the Chaos Demon Gods, causing the Xiongshou Clan to grow ever stronger. The beings of Hong Huang hang by a thread; the entire Zhen Jie teeters on the brink of collapse. Do any of you have a solution?”

Shen Ni now led two opposing factions: one, under the title of “Beast Emperor,” sought to destroy Hong Huang; the other, under the title of “Di Jiang,” sought to save Hong Huang.

He frequently had to hold meetings on both sides.

Only because deities could manifest countless forms could he avoid going mad.

“It’s difficult!”

The Wu Shen sighed: “We never imagined Chaos Demon Gods included such beings as the Wisdom Demon God, the True Demon God, and the Fate Demon God—working together, they’ve produced unexpected results.”

“A mere Xiongshou Clan has now become the largest clan in Hong Huang.”

“Indeed! Especially that True Demon God—we thought we were safe after we killed him, but now a new True Demon God has appeared.” [Zhu Jiuyin] Zhu Long said with lingering unease:

“Fortunately, the new Demon God has only just fused the True Dao Fruit—he’s only first-jing Da Luo, not yet second-jing. Otherwise, we’d be utterly exposed before him!”

Actually, you’ve already been exposed. [She Bi Shi] glanced at Zhu Long without expression.

The True Demon God’s Dao Fruit naturally suppressed all illusions.

According to She Bi Shi’s knowledge, every infiltrator within the Xiongshou Clan had been marked by the new True Demon God, [Yuan Ji Zhen Ren].

Had Yuan Ji Zhen Ren not traced this thread back to Shen Ni himself—and then dared not investigate further—

the Wu Shen would have been purged long ago.

In fact, Yuan Ji Zhen Ren himself had been thoroughly baffled.

The Beast Emperor is an infiltrator?

That’s impossible!

Yuan Ji Zhen Ren had briefly doubted whether he’d failed to perfectly fuse the True Dao Fruit, causing an error.

How else could he have traced it to the Beast Emperor?

After seven days and nights of struggle, Yuan Ji Zhen Ren finally sought out Shen Ni.

She Bi Shi still remembered the expression on Yuan Ji Zhen Ren’s face—nervous, hesitant—as he asked the question.

At that moment, Shen Ni hadn’t expected he’d actually uncovered the truth.

So he could only say the Wu Shen were his own people—ignore them.

That was how the Wu Shen avoided being purged.

Of course, some infiltrators remained undiscovered.

That was the Fenghuang Clan!

Because they were the original creators of the Xiongshou.

In a sense, they were Xiongshou themselves.

For the new True Demon God to expose them would be to deny the very existence of the Xiongshou Clan.

How could one possibly investigate that?

It’s impossible!

“Our goal is to infiltrate the Xiongshou Clan and, when the time is right, overthrow them—if possible, inherit some of the Demon Gods’ legacies.”

“But now, I feel the Xiongshou Clan might win.”

A Wu Shen said: “If the Xiongshou Clan wins, should we continue hiding, integrate into them, and become part of the Xiongshou Clan?”

“Impossible!”

Zhu Rong declared firmly: “I don’t believe the Xiongshou Clan can win!”

“Why?” [She Bi Shi] asked.

“I believe in Pan Gu the Great God!”

Zhu Rong said: “Don’t we have a script? We Wu Shen are the true lineage of Pan Gu—how could we possibly side with the Xiongshou Clan?”

“So they must lose!”

Gong Gong nodded: “Yes, yes! The Xiongshou Clan has a high chance of winning—but the ultimate victor cannot possibly be the Xiongshou Clan!”

Hou Tu smiled at this: “The Pangu Zhengzhong is only one part of our plan—and this script hasn’t yet turned fiction into reality!”

“But the script of the Chaos Demon God’s heir is nearly complete.”

“From the perspective of the Dao, it’s still worthwhile for us to continue backing the Xiongshou Clan right now.”

“Whether the Xiongshou Clan wins or loses, we can still claim the Demon God’s legacy—we’ve already secured second-in-command positions in every Xiongshendian.”

Hearing this last line, the Wushen all laughed.

If the Xiongshou Clan perished, they would indeed gain substantial rewards.

【Di Jiang】 Shen Ni sighed: “It seems we can only continue lying low and wait to see how things unfold.”

“There’s nothing we can do about it.”

Wu Luo said: “Who’s to blame? We simply lack the absolute power to crush everything.”

After hearing this, the Wushen sighed again in unison.

At this moment, a call echoed from outside Kaiming Mountain.

“Is there a deity at home inside the mountain?”

“Huh? Who’s that?” The Wushen all turned their gazes toward the mountain’s entrance.

Outside the Shanmen, Zhen Yuanzi held the Earth Book, gazing intently into Kaiming Mountain.

“Strange—I clearly remember that before the Xiongshou Cataclysm began, there was an organization here dedicated to fighting the Xiongshou. It was quite active back then. Why has it vanished now?”

“Could they have moved their base, fearing retaliation from the Xiongshou Clan?”

Zhen Yuanzi waited a while but saw no deity appear, so he marked an X on the Earth Book and prepared to head to the next location.

“Friend, please wait!”

【Di Jiang】 Shen Ni led his followers to greet him.

Zhen Yuanzi looked at the imposing Shen Ni and asked: “Who are you?”

Shen Ni laughed loudly: “I am the leader of the Wushen organization—Di Jiang!”

“And who are you, friend? What brings you to my Kaiming Mountain?” Shen Ni asked in return.

Zhen Yuanzi said: “I am the envoy of the Taiwei Yuan, the Zhenxing Shangzun. I’ve come here to discuss something with you all!”

Shen Ni was curious: “What is it?”

Zhen Yuanzi’s expression turned solemn: “To form an alliance, united against the Xiongshou!”

“Oh?”

A flicker of amusement passed through Shen Ni’s eyes. He said: “You’ve come at the perfect time—we detest the Xiongshou and have been waiting for a chance to resist!”

“Really?” Zhen Yuanzi smiled. He had come to the right place.

“Of course!”

Shen Ni’s smile beamed brightly.

“This isn’t a place for talk—let’s go inside the mountain!” Shen Ni was exceedingly warm.

“Good!”

Zhen Yuanzi gladly accompanied him.

He didn’t notice that several Wushen were looking at him with odd expressions.

————

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(End of Chapter)