Just a Useful Pawn in the Stain Sect

Chapter 541: This Zouyu Is Not That Zouyu

The Jade Scroll that Minor Metal had given him actually contained only a single sentence:

[The Zouyu Descendants in the Stain Sect joined the sect five thousand years ago.]

It was a sentence that seemed to come out of nowhere, but it instantly made Lü Yang recall a long-forgotten conversation he’d once had with a Zouyu Descendant.

What had the man said back then?

’The Zouyu Descendants, predecessors to the Celestial Wu, were forced to flee their homeland because the last millennial calamity was fated for the East. Their [Fruit of Rampart Earth] and their Fruit were lost together...’

The more Lü Yang thought about it, the more alarmed he became.

At some unknown point, dark clouds had begun to gather overhead, casting a deep shadow below, as if someone was looking down upon the world from the vault of heaven.

But Lü Yang paid it no mind. By now, he had a rough understanding of the four Masters of Dao. Though it might seem like they were constantly monitoring this part of Heaven and Earth, they didn’t actually intervene. Most of the time, they wouldn’t bother staring at this godforsaken place all day.

Often, what seemed to be the attention of a Master of Dao was merely a natural reaction from Heaven and Earth itself.

This time was no different. It looked intimidating, as if a Master of Dao had turned their gaze this way, but in reality, it had at most stirred a Heart Thought from one of them.

A Master of Dao would not easily "look" upon the Current World.

In all of Lü Yang’s ten lifetimes of cultivation, he had only ever seen the Bhagavat do such a thing. He had never even seen a shadow of the other three Masters of Dao.

In other words—

’That damn Bhagavat again?’

Lü Yang looked up at the dark clouds and immediately activated his [Immortal Dao Law]. Instantly, a surge of colorful light rolled out, unceremoniously dispelling them.

Then, he resumed his deep thoughts:

’According to that Zouyu Descendant, the change of dynasty for the Dao Court should have happened five thousand years ago, during the last millennial calamity.’

But what was the reality?

Lü Yang still had a vivid memory of the Celestial Wu officials gathered before Xuanwu Gate, shouting during the unrestricted martial arts tournament for the East—

’The dynasty has nurtured its scholars for fifteen thousand years!’

The Celestial Wu Daoist Court had existed for at least ten thousand years. How could the Zouyu Daoist Court, its predecessor, have only been driven from the throne five thousand years ago?

It didn’t make sense!

In that instant, Lü Yang had a flash of insight:

’Just like the three thousand missing years, this is the second... temporal conflict!’

No, it wasn’t the second one. This discrepancy also centered around the last millennial calamity. It only served as further proof for Lü Yang’s suspicion:

’The Bhagavat is definitely behind this!’

But soon, an even greater question arose in Lü Yang’s mind:

’If that’s the case... why are the Zouyu Descendants in the Stain Sect? If this truly has to do with the Bhagavat, they should have been dragged into the Pure Land for Enlightenment long ago...’

Lü Yang’s thoughts raced. More and more secrets surfaced in his mind, integrating into a clear chain of logic. In the Current World, this manifested as the rumbling thunder growing ever louder, like the wailing of ghosts and howling of gods. After all, this was forbidden Knowledge on the level of the Masters of Dao; to "know" was itself a sin.

’The Saint Sect Ancestral Master... the Bhagavat...’

Lü Yang stroked his chin. If his earlier speculation was correct, the Saint Sect Ancestral Master must have gone to great lengths to help the Bhagavat reach the Nascent Soul realm back then.

But this was the Stain Sect they were talking about.

How could the Stain Sect help someone for free? What’s more, the Bhagavat wasn’t exactly trustworthy. How could the Saint Sect Ancestral Master guarantee that he wouldn’t turn on them after achieving the Dao?

It stood to reason that the Saint Sect Ancestral Master must have prepared a contingency.

’The Zouyu Descendants... must be that contingency!’

A clearly distorted timeline, a connection to the Bhagavat, yet they were left in the Stain Sect, ignored by the Pure Land. This was clearly a tacit understanding between the Bhagavat and the Saint Sect Ancestral Master!

So, the question was:

Regarding the temporal distortion surrounding the Zouyu Descendants—why did the Zouyu Royal Family, which should have been annihilated fifteen thousand years ago, claim to have been destroyed only five thousand years ago?

’The fundamental Profound Mysterious aspect of the Fruit of Rampart Earth... [Zhi Gu Jin]!’

To change the cause in the past to achieve the effect in the present. The history of the Zouyu had clearly been tampered with, resulting in two completely different lines of karmic links.

’This Zouyu... is probably not that Zouyu!’

Lü Yang had spoken with Empress Xiao many times and knew the historical records of the Celestial Wu Daoist Court like the back of his hand, including some of the secret histories of when the Celestial Wu overthrew the previous dynasty.

’Fail to pull up the roots, and the weeds will grow again when the spring winds blow. Even a disciple at the First Layer of Qi Refining in the Stain Sect knows this. How could the Celestial Wu Royal Family not understand? According to the historical records, the Celestial Wu slaughtered the entire Zouyu Royal Family fifteen thousand years ago. In theory, it’s impossible for any pure-blooded descendants to have survived!’

The origin of the Stain Sect’s Zouyu Descendants is wrong!

And yet, not a single person had noticed anything amiss. Even the Celestial Wu Daoist Court itself was completely unaware of the issue.

And that included Lü Yang himself.

He had known the intelligence on the Zouyu Royal Family for several past lifetimes, and he had obtained the Celestial Wu Daoist Court’s records from Empress Xiao ten years ago.

But until just now.

Until Minor Metal placed that Jade Scroll in his hand, it was as if this Knowledge had been locked away. He knew the pieces, but he couldn’t connect them.

Minor Metal’s Jade Scroll was the key that unlocked his memory.

’The three thousand missing years... the Profound Mysterious of the [Fruit of Rampart Earth]... history was changed.’

The next second, Lü Yang had an epiphany: ’The Stain Sect’s Zouyu Descendants... they must have come from a history that was changed by the Bhagavat, a history that no longer exists!’

’They are connected to the secret of the Bhagavat’s attainment of the Dao, and they were the Royal Family that once wielded the [Fruit of Rampart Earth]. That’s why the Saint Sect Ancestral Master kept them in the Stain Sect. He must have used some other means, but in short, this is the contingency the Saint Sect Ancestral Master put in place to threaten and restrain the Bhagavat, to prevent him from turning on them!’

’This is the step I was missing.’

The Stain Sect’s Zouyu Descendants were undoubtedly a contradiction. On one hand, they existed within this Heaven and Earth, but on the other, their roots did not lie here.

It was this unique characteristic that had been affecting Lü Yang.

’The [Fruit of Celestial Fire] requires Ruling the World, but the Stain Sect’s Zouyu Descendants are not illuminated by it. And yet, the karmic links they carry are absurdly massive...’

Generally speaking, the [Fruit of Celestial Fire]’s requirement for Ruling the World wasn’t that strict. It didn’t mean that one had to control every single individual to be considered Ruling the World.

After all, the karmic links of mortals and those in Qi Refining were simply too insignificant; they tended to just go with the flow.

Most of the time, Lü Yang only needed to control the upper echelons, and the mortals and Qi Refining cultivators below would naturally fall under his rule without him needing to worry about them.

The Zouyu Descendants, however, were different.

Their numbers were small, but their karmic links were immense... In the eyes of the [Fruit of Celestial Fire], they were a tiny but indelible stain.

It would be meaningless even if they submitted to him.

Because they didn’t belong to this Heaven and Earth, or even to the current history, their very existence undermined the conceptual image of the [Fruit of Celestial Fire]!

The [Fruit of Celestial Fire] is that which warms mountains and rivers, its radiance illuminating the cosmos.

How could there be people it does not shine upon, or lands it does not rule?

The more Lü Yang thought, the deeper his frown became:

’If I don’t find a way to eliminate them, this stain will pop up when I try to attain the [Fruit of Celestial Fire], interfering with my Magic Instrument for Ruling the World!’

The most direct method, of course, was the same one he’d use against the Pure Land: kill them all.

Unfortunately, the Zouyu Descendants were just too special... After all, if his guess was right, they were a tool the Saint Sect Ancestral Master used to blackmail the Bhagavat.

Who would dare to kill them? Who could kill them?

If he really made a move, the Bhagavat would probably be overjoyed!

’Since I can’t kill them, I’ll have to find a way to deal with them at their source, so that the radiance of the [Fruit of Celestial Fire] can reach them.’

Besides that, there was one more problem.

Lü Yang raised his head and looked at Minor Metal, who stood directly in front of him.

The Knowledge in the Jade Scroll was extremely critical, concerning the secrets of the Bhagavat... Even if Minor Metal was the Interim Sect Leader of the Stain Sect, he absolutely should not have known such a secret.

And yet, the Jade Scroll he delivered was exactly what was needed to solve Lü Yang’s pressing problem.

Who had guided him?