Chapter 388

Again the Chu family, again ruins, plus Lingjian Mountain, even Danzong.

Too many complex and widespread factors converged, overwhelming and impossible to untangle, with little direct connection between them, leaving everyone baffled.

Why did the demon race, risking provoking suspicion from the barbarians, come to the human realm and investigate so many tangled details?

Within the inner courtyard of the Heavenly Book Academy, those lost in thought furrowed their brows, unable to decipher the demon race’s intent, thinking: Damn it, are the demons smarter than humans?

Similarly, the demon race’s own investigation was not going smoothly.

Because in the human realm’s eyes, they were still invaders, so being treated with caution was only natural.

Moreover, the specific details of the thousand-year families colluding in their schemes were known only to the high-ranking leaders of the Six Immortal Sects—hardly any information had ever been made public.

Why?

Because the Chu, Li, Zhuang, Zhu, and other thousand-year families were able to ascend so easily through the relics’ immortal fortune, it was only because the Immortal Sects, lured by that fortune, were deceived into opening the relics—a severe blow to the Sects’ dignity.

If too many details were made public, the Immortal Sects’ prestige would plummet.

This is no exaggeration—isn’t the Danzong incident the best example?

Ever since news spread that the Five Immortal Sects had jointly besieged Danshan, these families became extremely cautious, locking themselves away in seclusion or closing their doors to outsiders.

This dealt a heavy blow to the stability of Qingyun’s realm, yet cultivation requires a stable environment to deeply comprehend the Dao—fragmentation and disloyalty were the last things the Immortal Sects wanted.

Thus, due to human vigilance and the scarcity of public information, their investigation into human destiny hit a bottleneck.

As night slowly descended, lanterns in the Shengjing Immortal Garden were lit one by one.

Ye Han and Lin Dou, along with Yashan, sat in the study, pondering the scattered fragments of information for a long time, their brows tightening further.

“Among those we can reach, very few are close to the core of this matter—even those who once accompanied the Immortal Sects in campaigns against those thousand-year families don’t understand the full story.”

“Not surprising. Humans have a widely circulated saying: ‘It’s hard to be foolish.’ Their culture makes them unwilling to pursue truth—they’ll settle for anything that’s barely enough.”

“Then what should we do?”

“Time is running out. Keep gathering related information—there may still be other traces.”

Ye Han picked up his teacup, drained it, and looked at Lin Dou: “How’s your relationship with Fengyang?”

Lin Dou looked up: “Good. Today we even went to a human teahouse to watch a play.”

“She’s been going out often these days?”

“Yes. She seems fascinated by female human cultivators and has recorded many names—Yan Shuyi, Yuan Caimei, and others.”

Ye Han has visited the human realm more often than others, especially last time when he came for trade and was warmly received—he knows many human prodigies.

He knew who Yan Shuyi was, where Yuan Caimei came from, and crucially, he’d heard rumors about the Dao Debate Gathering—he knew the subtle relationship between the two.

Recalling the portrait he’d seen in Fengyang’s room, the demon prince fell silent.

Lin Dou didn’t know why he was silent and asked what was wrong, but Ye Han merely told him to get along well with Fengyang, then dismissed them to rest.

As stars filled the sky, night deepened, and candles in the Shengjing Immortal Garden were extinguished one by one—only the study remained brightly lit.

Ye Han still sat before his desk, studying the gathered information repeatedly.

Soon after, the door was gently pushed open from outside.

The demon prince looked up and saw his sister Fengyang step in: “It’s past midnight—aren’t you going to sleep?”

“The Great Xia Emperor has issued an edict, summoning us for a second audience tomorrow. They’ll likely respond to my request that Yunzhou be recognized as our territory and that our people be allowed to enter the Immortal Sects to cultivate.”

Ye Han pulled his sleeve from the desk: “According to diplomatic protocol, regardless of their answer, we must leave within three days after the audience—so time is short.”

Fengyang nodded, then walked gracefully to the desk, extinguished the lantern she’d brought, and placed it beside the desk.

Seeing this, Ye Han picked up the inverted teacup, turned it upright, refilled it, and handed it to her: “You’ve been wandering around Shengjing City often lately?”

“Just looked around,” Fengyang replied softly, lips slightly curled.

Ye Han stared at his sister for a long moment, then suddenly spoke: “Lin Dou is quite suitable—his lineage and talent are both excellent. But unlike humans, we demons don’t place such weight on family status—if you like any demon general, Father and I will support you.”

“I don’t like him.”

“Then choose Lin Dou.”

Fengyang had been staring at the desk. At these words, she suddenly lifted her beautiful vertical pupils: “The Chu family used the sacred artifact’s origin to perform a ritual, found the connection between Heaven’s Dao and the sacred artifact, and severed it, causing the artifact to lose its power. What does this strategy remind you of?”

Ye Han paused slightly, then looked down at the scroll before him, thought for a moment, and raised his head: “Follow the vine to find the melon?”

“Exactly. They used the origin as the vine to locate the link between Heaven’s Dao and the sacred artifact, then cut it. Humans tend to repeat the same actions because what worked before is the easiest and most certain path for them.”

“What are you getting at, little sister?”

Fengyang extended a finger toward a point on the scroll: “After the Qiling incident, the Immortal Sects sealed all relics. These families lack the power to open them themselves—the only way is to get the Sects to open them. To do that, they need to make the relic’s immortal fortune retrievable. Has anything major happened before?”

Ye Han re-examined the scroll: “Yes. A year before the incident, Heaven’s Dao foretold floods and frequent earth tremors, shortly after human cultivators entered the Sage’s Sacred Ground.”

“So the disaster’s origin began then—otherwise, Heaven’s Dao wouldn’t have issued warnings.”

“You mean the relics’ retrieval is connected to the Sage’s Sacred Ground?”

“Yes. Based on what I’ve heard recently, I believe all the thousand-year families’ schemes trace back to that period. If we follow the vine to find the melon, what’s the solution?”

Ye Han pondered long, then his eyes hardened—he remembered what his father had once told him.

He said Heaven’s Dao has no subjectivity, cannot alter earthly cause and effect; its only function is to monitor things that shouldn’t exist, through its connection to human destiny. When something that shouldn’t exist suddenly appears, it means Heaven’s Dao’s surveillance has failed.

“You mean they severed the link between human destiny and Heaven’s Dao in the Sage’s Sacred Ground?”

Fengyang nodded: “I think that’s the most likely possibility.”

“Then why is destiny leaking out?” Ye Han asked, puzzled.

“Once severed, human destiny can’t remain inert—it must have triggered something else, causing the Sacred Ground to slowly collapse.”

Ye Han spread all the scrolls across the desk, reanalyzed them according to his sister’s logic, and as clarity dawned in his mind, his expression turned stunned: “You… how did you piece this all together?”

Hearing this, Fengyang slightly pursed her lips.

She hadn’t pieced it together—she’d merely followed someone’s footsteps, and found that watching those footsteps made the demon race’s investigation suddenly crystal clear.

“Brother.”

“Hmm?”

Fengyang set down her teacup: “After tomorrow’s audience with the Great Xia Emperor, I want to visit the Heavenly Book Academy.”

Ye Han slowly raised his head: “What’s there to see in the Heavenly Book Academy? Just a bunch of people sitting idle in the mountains, cultivating without caring for the world.”

“I’m interested in human methods of comprehending the Dao and cultivation.”

“Some families that secretly trade spirit stones with us would welcome us—visiting them would be the same.”

Fengyang blinked gently: “The Immortal Sects and the families are fundamentally different, and the Heavenly Book Academy is closer.”

Ye Han fell silent for a long while, then smiled faintly: “Fine. I’ll request it from the Great Xia Emperor during tomorrow’s audience.”

“Thank you, brother.”

“Go rest now.”

Fengyang nodded, then rose slowly and walked toward the door.

Watching his sister depart through the window, Ye Han slowly let his smile fade.

The demon race has many classic tales about men and women—one tells of a Mao youth who seduced a naive, innocent Lin girl into eloping, only returning after she became pregnant.

In the story, the Mao youth was idle and good with flattery; he planned the elopement because he couldn’t afford the bride price.

After the elopement, her family was heartbroken, weeping day and night, hoping for her return.

Only when their daughter returned with a child, pale and emaciated, her scales dull and lifeless, did they realize how much suffering she’d endured.

And that Mao youth, with his yellow fur, became etched in demon memory as the image of a thief stealing his father’s or brother’s treasures.

Damn that human yellow fur! Ye Han slammed the scroll onto the desk with a sharp crack.

“The demon race wants to visit our Heavenly Book Academy?”

“Yes. They reportedly requested it during the audience, saying they’ll ascend the mountain after noon if we permit it.”

The next day at noon, a gentle breeze swept through the hall, bringing coolness.

At that moment, Zuo Qiuyang was still reviewing the demon race’s recent investigations, baffled, when he received a report from the Administration Office—his brow furrowed.

He was already confused by the demons’ motives, and now they suddenly wanted to visit the Heavenly Book Academy—it only deepened the mystery.

What could the demon race possibly want from the Heavenly Book Academy?

Qin Rong, seeing Zuo Qiuyang’s furrowed brow, couldn’t help speaking softly: “If you don’t approve, I’ll decline them immediately.”

“No need. Let them come. Since our consensus is to break the barbarian-demon alliance, befriending the Heavenly Book Academy has far greater impact than befriending Great Xia.”

“Understood. I’ll send disciples to deliver the message.”

Qin Rong turned and walked toward the mountain’s base, but halfway down, he slowed his steps.

For on the path ahead, Ji You was approaching, yawning. Seeing Qin Rong, he gave a light bow: “Long time no see.”

“Indeed. Are you here to see Lord Zuo?”

“I have some questions. Is he in the hall?”

Master Qin nodded: “Lord Zuo is inside. Go right in.”