Chapter 1596: Desperate Survival Shame Today, Repay Ten Thousandfold Tomorrow

Evil God!

Yue Gongli's expression turned green for a brief moment.

But he quickly concealed it, his eyes soon filling with feigned ignorance and confusion.

Dao Qiong Cang?

Oh, how well I know Dao Qiong Cang.

We might not have shared the same underwear growing up, but we certainly shared the same pants.

But if you're asking me whether I know him, where he is, or what he has done to provoke your arrival, my answer would only be...

"I know!"

Hua Yuan stepped forward, cutting off Yue Gongli before he could speak.

Even if there was only a slim chance that saying "I don't know" might let them survive, he would still say it.

But given the chaotic scene of the Evil God's power rampaging everywhere, it was highly likely that if Yue Gongli uttered a single "no," the Evil God would casually erase them both.

In that case, someone had to be the test subject to probe the cost of answering "I know."

And that person had to be himself, not the future Sacred Emperor of the Yue clan—it had to be Hua Yuan.

The void fell silent.

The dense branches of the Ancestor Tree still writhed restlessly, but the myriad faces of the Chong Yin Evil God surprisingly calmed at the sound.

Yue Gongli glanced at Hua Yuan and sighed inwardly, remaining silent.

Hua Yuan stayed remarkably calm, as befitted someone who managed internal affairs in the Yun Shan Emperor Realm. He spoke steadily:

"I know Dao Qiong Cang, and he hasn't entered the God of the Relics. Senior, you must have misunderstood..."

Before he could finish, the situation changed abruptly.

"Shriek—"

A piercing shriek echoed from the depths of their souls.

In that instant, both Yue Gongli and Hua Yuan felt as if they were being flayed alive.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

Countless branches of the Ancestor Tree descended from the sky, stabbing straight toward Hua Yuan, who had spoken.

"Oh no!"

By the time Hua Yuan regained his senses, he felt a sense of dread.

What on earth had Dao Qiong Cang done to the Evil God? There was no room for negotiation at all...

He had just begun to activate his Sword Dao Mystic Array when the myriad branches pierced through his body, shredding his flesh into dust and devouring it entirely.

"Huh?"

The Liu Sui Corpse King tilted its head, letting out a dumbfounded sound.

It remembered that this human named Hua Yuan had been kind to it, having rescued it from the dangers of the Si Ming Shen Dian earlier.

Seeing this, the Liu Sui Corpse King leaped up.

It could distinguish good from bad, but it seemed oblivious to the situation, patting its non-existent belly and pointing a massive hand at the faces of the Chong Yin Evil God in the sky, ready to intervene.

"Come back!"

Before the Sacred Ancestor Power could manifest, Yue Gongli shouted sternly, forcibly commanding the dim-witted Corpse King back into the Yin Spirit Coffin.

Within the Liu Sui Corpse King lay pure Sacred Ancestor Power—one of the deadliest counters to the Evil God's force.

If that were exposed, would any of them have a chance to survive? They wouldn't even know how they died!

"Yue Gongli, don't act—I'm still alive." A tremor in his soul transmitted Hua Yuan's voice, laced with fear: "In that moment, I abandoned my physical body. I've used a soul-protecting technique to safeguard my divine soul. Once we're out, there are plenty of heavenly treasures to restore a body. Don't worry about me."

"The Di Ying Sacred Tree is completely off—its power is far beyond what you described. The three Ancestral Sources within it are perfectly balanced, and even at full strength, I couldn't handle it. We absolutely must avoid conflict!"

Well, of course it's balanced... Yue Gongli thought bitterly. That Dao Infant it swallowed was the perfect version of me!

But he knew all too well the wisdom of avoiding conflict if possible.

Hua Yuan had just used the destruction of his body to verify the outcome for him:

Since the Di Ying Sacred Tree was truly colluding with the Evil God, its power was certainly not just the tip of the iceberg it had shown in the First Heaven.

Forcing a fight would at best lead to mutual destruction, but more likely, their side would be wiped out entirely.

So, what was the way out now?

Yue Gongli racked his brains, wishing Dao Qiong Cang would appear right beside him so he could either let him take the lead or hand him over to save his own skin.

But such wishful thinking was utterly unrealistic. He had to play it safe, step by step:

"Descend! Chong Yin Evil God!"

With a hand seal, Yue Gongli summoned his own Chong Yin Evil God without hesitation.

The massive monster, with three heads, six arms, and covered in purple fur, emerged and, as expected, drew the attention of the true Chong Yin Evil God's faces in the void.

—Same origin power!

A faint doubtful voice echoed in everyone's minds as the purple pupils on the Evil God's faces flickered:

"Inheritor?"

Yue Gongli kept a straight face, his expression filled with utmost solemnity. He leaped out of the Yin Spirit Coffin, thumped his chest with one hand, knelt on one knee, and spoke with respect and a tremor in his voice:

"Chong Yin above, this junior Xu Xiao Shou, after enduring eighteen trials in the Southern Domain, has finally obtained the Chong Yin power."

"Guided by Chong Yin, aiming to dye the world with its essence, we seekers have journeyed far and wide, and here we stand before the true god."

"The divine miracle is overwhelming, and I am filled with awe. Blessed by Chong Yin's grace, if there are tasks to be done, I will face any peril without hesitation."

"I, Xu Xiao Shou, swear to fulfill this without fail, or may I be struck by lightning and meet a death beyond redemption!"

His words were impassioned and stirring, nearly moving heaven and earth—he was just short of prostrating fully or kowtowing a few more times to the Chong Yin Evil God.

Thump, thump, thump!

Yue Gongli followed through, kowtowing without holding back. Once done, he gazed up at his Chong Yin true god with devotion and admiration, his entire body trembling with excitement.

In that moment, even Hua Yuan's soul, crouching on the Yin Spirit Coffin, felt a touch of daze:

"So, in those binary choices, there really was a hidden third option?"

From this, it seemed that his earlier answer of "I know"...

No wonder I was just a shadow.

No wonder he could rise from a shadow to become the master of the Yue clan.

"Good!"

The Chong Yin Evil God's faces now looked at Yue Gongli with a hint of warmth.

Swish, swish...

But soon, the branches of the Di Ying Sacred Tree writhed violently from all directions.

The expression in the demonic purple pupils on the Evil God's faces gradually turned indifferent.

Even Hua Yuan, reduced to a soul, could sense the atmosphere dropping back to freezing point—Yue Gongli's hard-won rapport had vanished!

What had happened?

Before he could think, Yue Gongli prostrated himself, repenting devoutly:

"This junior Xu Xiao Shou deserves a thousand deaths!"

"Earlier, this junior did not recognize the true Chong Yin above or know that the Ancestor Tree and Di Ying Sacred Tree serve as your agents, and I offended you greatly."

"But upon sensing the Chong Yin power, this junior realized part of the truth and offered the perfectly balanced Dao Infant with its three Ancestral Sources. I wonder if the true god has received this gift?"

Shriek—

No sooner had he spoken than shrieks rang out from the nine heavens.

Vast numbers of Ancestor Tree branches withered and fell from the void, piling up like mountains on the ground.

"This works too?"

Hua Yuan was stunned.

He wasn't foolish and had pieced together some truth from the results:

The Di Ying Sacred Tree had encountered Yue Gongli before and likely recalled something after his speech, just about to expose him—perhaps revealing that Yue Gongli was from the Sacred God Hall or a Sacred Ancestor follower, or that he wasn't really Xu Xiao Shou but Yue Gongli...

But Yue Gongli acted first, cutting it off preemptively.

Regardless of what the Di Ying Sacred Tree wanted to say, the fact remained that it had privately swallowed the Dao Infant.

In the Evil God's eyes, what could be more important than claiming that perfectly balanced three Ancestral Sources for itself?

Thus, the one punished wasn't Yue Gongli, who had offered the gift and made the connection, but the Di Ying Sacred Tree, which had kept the treasure for itself!

"And from this, it's clear..."

"The Chong Yin Evil God and the Di Ying Sacred Tree aren't in the kind of symbiotic relationship Yue Gongli described—it's more like master and servant."

"A presumptuous servant who secretly took the master's gift—if she weren't still useful, this could have cost her life."

Hua Yuan sighed at his own inadequacy, about to point this out, but stopped himself.

Wasn't he overstepping again?

This punishment of the Di Ying Sacred Tree was all orchestrated by Yue Gongli. How could he not see these implications?

Yue Gongli had certainly noticed the master-servant dynamic. Seizing the moment while the rapport from the offering was still warm, he pointed toward the Yin Spirit Coffin:

"This is my servant, Hua Yuan. We do know Dao Qiong Cang... and we probably know where he is."

Sensing a change in the Evil God's faces, Yue Gongli quickly added:

"He doesn't speak well and offended Chong Yin earlier without realizing it. I ask the true god to spare his life."

Why point me out?

Hua Yuan's first reaction was betrayal, followed by the chilling realization: this was an Evil God!

He had only lost his body and thought hiding his soul on the Yin Spirit Coffin might fool it, but was that even possible?

If the Evil God noticed him, erasure could come in an instant.

This wasn't betrayal—Yue Gongli exposing his self-deception was the real way to save him.

Sure enough...

"Good."

The Chong Yin Evil God nodded slightly, and Hua Yuan felt a profound relief as the aura of death around his soul vanished.

So powerful...

How did the Yue clan's Sacred Emperors cultivate such inheritors?

In normal circumstances, Hua Yuan could have handled this as well, perhaps even better.

But under the pressure of an ancestral god, to remain so composed...

If he had that kind of resolve, perhaps the Hua family wouldn't have been confined for thirty years under Hua Chang Deng's schemes.

"Huh!"

Without hesitation, Hua Yuan's soul manifested, kneeling on one knee as he said devoutly:

"Chong Yin above, Hua Yuan pays his respects!"

Bowing to an ancestral god wasn't shameful.

But getting the etiquette wrong would be.

In front of the Technique Ancestor, you couldn't mention "Evil God," and in front of the Evil God, you could only say "Chong Yin"...

In short: serving a tyrant is like serving a tiger.

Your true beliefs didn't matter, but if you slipped up and said "Technique Ancestor above" or "Evil God above," not even ten thousand Yue Gonglis could save you.

The Chong Yin Evil God had no interest in Hua Yuan. The reason it spared this human was because another had proposed a deal.

He knew where Dao Qiong Cang was, and that was enough.

No more words were needed. With its purple pupils fixed on him, Yue Gongli shuddered and thought: Sorry, Dao Qiong Cang, I'll handle the guiding—you handle dealing with the Chong Yin Evil God. He then said:

"Dao Qiong Cang wasn't in the God of the Relics before, but during my time in the Si Ming Shen Dian, he must have entered and angered the true god... This villain has committed a capital crime and deserves clan extermination!"

Yue Gongli stood up indignantly, pretending to scan the surroundings with his sacred intent, dropping his awkward kneeling pose as he analyzed seriously:

"Dao Qiong Cang is elusive, with many life-saving methods and impressive combat ability. Though no match for the true god, he's like a buzzing mosquito—annoying if not eradicated completely!"

His words hit the mark with the Chong Yin true god's faces.

Recalling how that nine-tailed giant had obliterated a soul with one finger—truly elusive and powerful, but nothing more.

The Chong Yin Evil God's faces shifted slightly, though it didn't speak, Yue Gongli could see its impatience.

Flattery had its limits... He quickly continued: "Dao Qiong Cang has the ability to create countless avatars—from a flower, a stone, a blade of grass, or anything with spirituality, it can become his new body."

As soon as he finished, the Evil God's power swept across the Eighteenth Heaven, obliterating all spirituality in flowers, stones, grass, and wood.

The world's dao principles collapsed. Aside from a few life forms near the Yin Spirit Coffin, all other creatures and nascent spirits were exterminated.

The world was truly quiet now.

Yue Gongli knelt again in what he feigned as excitement (terror), murmuring repeatedly:

"Chong Yin above, Chong Yin above..."

Oh no, I didn't mean for you to destroy my spirituality too—don't get carried away!

Once his thoughts settled, he dared not say more to stir trouble and got straight to the point:

"Since the Eighteenth Heaven holds no possibility of Dao Qiong Cang's presence, in my view, he must have ascended to a higher realm, perhaps the Thirty-Third Heaven..."

A flash of irritation crossed the Chong Yin Evil God's faces.

Yue Gongli shuddered and spoke rapidly: "Of course, Chong Yin above, the Thirty-Third Heaven is the true god's domain—how could a mortal set foot there?"

"Based on what we've seen, Dao Qiong Cang must have returned to the First Heaven!"

The thousands of Chong Yin Evil God faces moved in unison at the mouth, unleashing a thunderous rebuke:

"Annoying!"

They had thought this ant might be useful, but it was all nonsense!

The Chong Yin Evil God's patience was exhausted.

Whoosh...

The void turned to vacuum.

The thousands of faces, having devoured energy, lit up their demonic purple pupils, converging into thousands of Evil God beams that shot down toward Yue Gongli!

Damn, you're really not easy to fool...

Yue Gongli roared inwardly, unleashing his sacred aura and forcibly suppressing Hua Yuan's soul, which was about to resist. He closed his eyes, adopting a posture of resigned surrender:

"Yue Guan Shan!"

He shouted: "Dao Qiong Cang must be at Yue Guan Shan—he once accidentally mentioned that he'd resurrect there in his final moments!"

Clearly...

The answer was wrong...

The Evil God beams were almost upon him, showing no sign of stopping—the "Yue Guan Shan," whose location even Yue Gongli didn't know, meant nothing to the Chong Yin Evil God.

"I have a way to lure Dao Qiong Cang back to the Eighteenth Heaven!"

In the nick of time, Yue Gongli crouched down, hugging his head and wailing. The purple... no, Evil God beams halted just above him.

"Good."

With that word, Yue Gongli collapsed limply, forcing himself to sweat profusely.

He had confirmed two things:

First, the Chong Yin Evil God's true body was indeed in the Thirty-Third Heaven, and its condition wasn't great.

Second, it had reservations and didn't dare descend.

This made sense—from the Thirty-Third to the Eighteenth Heaven, its power was greatly weakened.

That's why Dao Qiong Cang, after entering the God of the Relics, had a chance to severely wound it, leading to the current situation.

And if it crossed two realms to the First Heaven, it might end up being beaten by Dao Qiong Cang.

So...

All along, the Chong Yin Evil God knew exactly where Dao Qiong Cang was—it didn't need some clever guide.

It just wanted him to come back.

The process didn't matter; for these great beings, only the result did.

But for Yue Gongli, this "process" was his key to buying time and saving his life.

Whew...

He had survived.

But another crucial issue arose.

Dao Qiong Cang could hide in the First Heaven, and so could he—so why would the Evil God let him escape?

Yue Gongli knew these types all too well and immediately prostrated himself, saying respectfully:

"Chong Yin above, such a minor figure as Dao Qiong Cang doesn't require the true god's intervention."

"This junior Xu Xiao Shou is willing to offer a poisonous oath and soul blood as tribute. I humbly request the true god to bestow a divine decree, allowing me to become your agent and capture Dao Qiong Cang from the lower realm to face judgment."

"If I break this oath..."

Yue Gongli tremblingly produced a Semi-Sacred Edict, fabricating eighteen generations of Xu Xiao Shou's ancestors and cursing them all to miserable lives as he wrote their names.

He then took out a drop of soul blood—likely from some long-forgotten Semi-Sacred predecessor of the Yue clan, given for protection during travels—and thought, Sorry about that, as he offered it up.

"Chong Yin above, please grant me the honor of becoming your agent." Yue Gongli held the Semi-Sacred Edict and soul blood, his palms sweating.

The Chong Yin Evil God didn't move.

"Chong Yin above, please grant me the honor of becoming your agent!" He requested again, shaking like a leaf.

The Chong Yin Evil God ignored him.

"Chong Yin above..."

His third plea was cut off by a cold voice from the Evil God's faces:

"Yue Gongli..."

Yue Gongli pressed his head to the ground, kowtowing in repentance:

"It's me, it's me, it's me! But Yue Gongli is my name, and Xu Xiao Shou is also my name. I have many names; I'm one person with a thousand derivatives... Xu Xiao Shou is my true name. I never meant to deceive the ancestral god. There was once a fraud who stole my name, Xu Xiao Shou, and caused trouble everywhere. The Di Ying Sacred Tree should know about him..."

A drop of soul blood flew from his brow, and Yue Gongli desperately wanted to grab it back but forced himself to ignore it.

Only when the Chong Yin Evil God's voice sounded again did he stop repenting.

"Go."

A purple eye and a branch from the Di Ying Sacred Tree appeared before him.

With a swish, Yue Gongli picked up the items, stood up, his face covered in blood, but his voice resolute:

"I will not fail the divine command!"

With that, he turned, carrying the Yin Spirit Coffin with Hua Yuan's soul and the Liu Sui Corpse King, heading toward the Wheel of Reincarnation Ascension Pillar.

The world isn't perfect.

Those who are too meticulous, always striving for perfection, rarely live long by breaking the rules.

Exposing a small vulnerability to the powerful lets them see you're controllable—a minor schemer who won't disrupt their plans, someone who'd be content with a little reward.

As for the soul blood...

It could indeed threaten his life!

But once back in the First Heaven, with the Evil God's power limited, that might not hold.

And if he found Dao Qiong Cang, with his elusive methods, what could a mere drop of soul blood do?

Ancestral god? Chong Yin?

Hah! The wheel turns—thirty years east of the river, thirty years west...

Today's humiliation—once I find Dao Qiong Cang and team up with Xu Xiao Shou, I'll repay it a hundredfold!