Chapter 2158: The Lowest Layer of Human Nature

He was now resting his eyes, clearly exhausted. Having the divine spark in hand was an extremely heavy burden for him, yet he couldn't let anyone notice it.

This treasure could usually only be stored within the Divine Bone Necklace, managed by the Great Square Flask on his behalf.

The relationship among the holders of the Divine Spark of Destiny was now somewhat complicated.

The Soul-Snatching Mirror finally found an opportunity to interject: "Lu Zhensheng saw our hundred thousand-strong army at his doorstep, yet he didn't kneel and surrender; instead, he dared to retaliate and scheme against you! Heh, he's so foolish, he deserves to die without a burial place."

Its opening words were flattery, but He Lingchuan wasn't having any of it: "You've been by my side for so long, do you truly not understand?"

The mirror stammered.

Oh, its flattery had fallen flat. But it truly didn't understand.

"He's not foolish, which is precisely why he doesn't intend to surrender and await death." The perpetual lamp on the offering table was about to go out, so He Lingchuan went to change the oil. "Firstly, Lu Zhensheng and my family have a deep-seated blood feud. While I may not have uncovered every truth, he has a guilty conscience and knows I will certainly not let him go. Even if he were to kneel, ha, it would only change today's script, but his ultimate fate would remain the same. Not resisting means death; successful resistance, however, offers a glimmer of hope. At the very least, Lu Qing'an might still inherit Bailie afterward."

"Furthermore, his struggle against me is a high-stakes gamble. If he wins, it would be extremely worthwhile. If you were Lu Zhensheng, would you dare to risk everything?"

Lu Zhensheng's scheming against the Great Emperor Jiuyou was like He Lingchuan's plotting against the True Immortal Qianhuan in the past—both were high-stakes gambles. If it succeeded, the rewards would be incredibly rich.

The mirror considered it from that perspective: "That's true."

"Secondly," He Lingchuan said, gently wiping away the incense ash from the table. "There are many people in this world whom you might deem weak. You can bully them, insult them, spit on them, slap them, and they might not even dare to resist. But you cannot trample on their bottom line! Do you know what a bottom line is?"

"Uh, an area you shouldn't touch?"

"A bottom line is a core interest," He Lingchuan stated solemnly. "Killing someone's parents, defiling their wife or daughter, seizing their foundation or livelihood, blocking their path in life—these actions strike at a person's very roots and infringe upon their core interests. Even the weakest person, even if they've been accustomed to silently enduring humiliation, might find this time unbearable and choose to perish with you."

"So we're affecting Lu Zhensheng's core interests?" The mirror thought hard. "Oh right, you're trying to seize his legacy, take his position as Bailie clan chief, and block his path in life."

"He can compromise and pay tribute to Mu, allow Ya to plunder and abduct people, and endure the curses of his subjects and clan members, but all these concessions are for the sake of preserving his position as Bailie clan chief." He Lingchuan scoffed, "Yet I want to pull him down from that very position. This strikes at his foundation. How can you still expect him not to resist, to just meekly kneel and die?"

"It's a do-or-die situation, a desperate struggle," he said calmly. "This has nothing to do with whether Lu Zhensheng is cowardly or brave, or whether he is smart or foolish. When people are pushed to a dead end, they don't have many choices."

The key is two words:

Desperation.

"Are there people who, even when pushed to a dead end, still don't dare to resist and meekly await death?" He Lingchuan scoffed. "Of course there are. But I can only say that those who hold such thoughts are pure cowards, even worse than Lu Zhensheng."

"As for those Mu soldiers, it's even more natural that a mere three hundred of them would dare to draw their blades against me and the Black-Armored Army." He Lingchuan let out a long breath. "Heh, let's change perspective. If the tables were turned, and Luo Xie and Wan Qiliang led three hundred Black-Armored soldiers surrounded by a hundred thousand Mu troops, do you think they would dare to draw their blades against them?"

The mirror, naturally, replied: "Of course they would dare."

The Blood Demon laughed loudly: "You've fallen into his verbal trap."

"Why wouldn't they dare? Don't they have the duty and spirit of warriors? Behind them is a powerful nation; in their hearts, they carry the pride of a great country; on their shoulders, they bear the Emperor's mission; and in their hands, they hold swords, spears, and halberds." He Lingchuan shook his head. "If they were to drop their weapons and prostrate themselves upon seeing my hundred thousand-strong army, how would they be any different from wavering bandits from the countryside?"

If soldiers lack integrity, are they even worthy of being called soldiers?

Commander Wu, what a pity.

He Lingchuan appreciated officers with integrity, but who was he to be in that position, blocking the Great Emperor Jiuyou's path?

"What I am discussing with you today is all about human nature: the inability to endure further and seeking a mutually destructive end is human nature, and fearlessly drawing a blade against authority is also human nature," He Lingchuan mused calmly. "It's understandable that you can't grasp this, because you are not human. You don't comprehend human nature; your minds only understand bullying the weak."

The Blood Demon argued, "Isn't bullying the weak the truth of this world?"

"Indeed, but this world's truths are not limited to just that one. Have you ever considered how many truths operate simultaneously and influence each other in this world?"

"But you can only take for granted and apply simple, crude logic to deduce human nature, assuming that if I am strong and he is weak, he cannot and dare not resist, and will let me butcher him and die in misery. If he resists even slightly, you're astonished and find it unbelievable. If that were truly the case, Bega would only need to send its army to parade before all nations, and the entire world would bow down, and Bega's territory would already be ten times its current size. Why did Dragon City and Yuan Kingdom resist it back then? Why did Jinmao Kingdom resist Dragon City back then? Since the disparity in strength was so vast, they should have just bowed down early and enjoyed the benefits."

"You see, why isn't the truth you believe in working now?"

The Blood Demon also fell silent.

"You are destined not to understand that the deepest layer of human nature is emotion, and emotion often exists outside of reason and logic. Both the vilest and most glorious aspects of human nature are emotional," he mused. "This is why human nature, and the fate behind it, are so complex and unfathomable."

"Fortunately, most people are as ignorant as you are. If everyone could fathom human nature as I do, predict it well, and then use it effectively, what advantage would I have left?" The meditation time in the shrine had expired, and He Lingchuan stretched. "All wars and actions related to Bailie are important pieces in my overall plan. Once I accomplish the next thing, this game will be won."

"Ah, you're referring to..."

"Do you think I've gone to such great lengths, even risking my life, just to conquer a tiny Bailie?" He Lingchuan turned to open the door. "What I want is lasting peace for Cangyan! If handled well, starting next month, Cangyan will likely enter a period of long-term peace, with no need for war for quite some time."

He intended to use peace and stability to safeguard the nascent state of Cangyan.

After the ceremony, the Great Emperor Jiuyou exchanged renewed courtesies with the Lu family elders. He then invited the younger generation of the Lu family to share a late lunch. During the meal, he chatted and laughed, easing everyone's minds, showing not a trace of his previous killing intent.