Chapter 4410: A New Possibility
Chapter 4410: A New Possibility
Wei Rong said with distress, "This is very difficult. The problem is not about whether a breakthrough point can be found, but that the gap between my level and Hong Xia’s is simply too great. I cannot understand how he thinks."
Lu Yin bluntly replied, "Then consider things from the perspective of an ordinary person."
Wei Rong shrugged. "Ji He is the only weak point. He is the key for us to deal with Hong Xia, and he can also become the key to dealing with the mastermind behind the scenes. That being must also be searching for Ji He. Using Ji He, we could lure them out into the open, provided that we cooperate with Hong Xia."
Lu Yin listened calmly. Cooperate with Hong Xia to draw out the mastermind?
Wei Rong continued, "Lord Lu, do not misunderstand. I am not suggesting that we genuinely cooperate with Hong Xia to lure out the mastermind. What I am saying is that we should spread rumors that we intend to cooperate with him and use this to draw the mastermind out."
Lu Yin arched a brow as he looked at Wei Rong. "You intend to probe the mastermind?"
Wei Rong nodded, and Lu Yin fell deep into thought. He had considered trying this as well, but this option lacked force. Simply claiming to plan to cooperate with Hong Xia would not be enough to lure the mastermind out.
Wei Rong was not finished. "Of course, everything that we are considering right now is based on the assumption that Ji He needs to be found in order to deal with Hong Xia, but what if we can overturn that assumption and seize the initiative again?"
Lu Yin’s eyes lit up. "How do we seize the initiative?"
That was exactly what he needed, something to push them from a passive position into the ones holding the initiative. Otherwise, they would always be led around by the nose. Even if Hong Xia were dealt with in the end, there was still no way to know if the mastermind would attack their human civilization.
Neither Hong Xia nor the mastermind could be allowed to remain threats.
Wei Rong said, "Hong Xia has twelve parts to his Path of Dispassion. You mentioned this before, Lord Lu, and while I may not understand such a realm of cultivation, I do understand numbers. Breaking seven parts of his path is enough. Ji He has been hidden away, and Hong Xia will never allow him to be found. In that case, we simply need to find another anchor to break instead. For example, Rang Yu."
"Rang Yu?" Lu Yin asked in surprise.
Wei Rong nodded. "I do not know if this will actually work. Over the years, I have asked Ba Yue and Elder Qiu to test this. At least at Elder Qiu’s level, his Path of Dispassion can be broken by his past experiences. If the same applies to Hong Xia, then even if Ji He remains hidden, we are still able to break seven parts of his Path of Dispassion.
"If I can think of this, then the mastermind who has plotted against Hong Xia for countless years must have thought of it as well. Things that I consider difficult or even impossible might be possible for that being."
Lu Yin asked in surprise, "Ba Yue and Elder Qiu cooperated with you?"
Wei Rong smiled. "They were very cooperative."
Lu Yin looked toward the main hall of the Heavens Sect where Ba Yue and Elder Qiu were seated. So they’re here because of Wei Rong.
When Lu Yin had returned earlier, he had been wondering about Ba Yue’s presence.
"How did you conduct the test?"
Wei Rong took a sip of tea and explained the attempts he had made over the years. The method was simple. First, he had approached Ba Yue and asked her to share Elder Qiu’s past experiences, especially deeply memorable events that Elder Qiu believed he had already let go of. These experiences were then repeatedly recreated to observe Elder Qiu’s reaction.
The old man was someone who had become a Dukkhan by following the Path of Dispassion. If his past experiences could still affect him, it would prove that the Path of Dispassion was not truly devoid of emotion.
From beginning to end, Elder Qiu had been passive. He had not volunteered for the experiment. With Ba Yue’s assistance, it did not matter if Elder Qiu was willing or not.
Lu Yin had brought Elder Qiu away from the Crimson Starshade Civilization. The old man had thought that leaving his civilization would free him, but after arriving in the Human Trio, he had still ended up in such a situation.
His feelings were complicated. He did not know whom to blame, and he did not even dare to blame anyone.
What was most puzzling was why Ba Yue would help Wei Rong. The woman was sitting in her chair with a calm expression.
Help Wei Rong? She had not wanted to do that, but after spending so many years in the Trio, she had heard many rumors, including those concerning Wang Wen and Wei Rong. Wei Rong was of particular note, as no matter whom he might offend, no one would ever offend him, fearing that they might be sold off without even realizing it.
Many of Wei Rong’s actions seemed borderline insane. Most of the time, he indeed looked like a madman and appeared utterly useless, but when he was truly needed, he would produce astonishing reversals.
His actions had helped Lu Yin many times, and that was why Ba Yue was willing to offer her assistance.
Besides that, Wei Rong had also promised that Elder Qiu would receive credit for these tests, and Wei Rong’s words carried considerable weight.
After hearing Wei Rong’s explanation, Lu Yin glanced at Elder Qiu with sympathy. Even without witnessing the entire process, it was clear to Lu Yin from Elder Qiu’s expression that these tests had not been pleasant.
Back in the Crimson Starshade Megaverse, the old man had helped Lu Yin access various families’ private records. Now, he was assisting in Wei Rong’s experiments. Elder Qiu truly deserved some recognition.
"So through Elder Qiu’s experiences, you inferred that the mastermind might have left a backup plan within Hong Xia’s twelve parts of the Path of Dispassion, right?"
Wei Rong said solemnly, "Of the twelve parts of his Path of Dispassion, four cannot be changed, and four have already been broken. The remaining four anchors are the mirebound artifact, Xi Shangfeng, Ji He, and Rang Yu. We once believed that forgiving Rang Yu and letting go of that past hatred meant that the anchor could never be changed. We believed that to be true, and so did Hong Xia. So how could the mastermind exploit that assumption and act in the opposite manner to create an opportunity? Even the slightest possibility might be grasped by that mastermind. They have plotted against Hong Xia for far too long, and their calculations far surpass our own.
"Imagine this: if someone truly wanted to use this matter to scheme against Hong Xia, the best method would be to force him to remember his past hatred. Only then could that anchor of his Path of Dispassion be broken."
Lu Yin’s expression grew heavier. "You mean that, somewhere within the Crimson Starshade Civilization, where Hong Xia will inevitably see it, an experience identical to his own past that led to his hatred of Rang Yu might be found. And that experience would recreate the past and break that anchor of his Path of Dispassion?"
Wei Rong replied in a low voice, "This is only my conjecture, but I believe it to be possible. Of course, my cultivation is too low, and it might be impossible to achieve such a thing."
Lu Yin stood up and stared off into space. Whether this could be accomplished or not did not depend on Lu Yin or Hong Xia, but rather on that hidden mastermind.
That individual had plotted against Hong Xia for countless years and perfectly understood him. They might truly be capable of doing this. If that were the case, then even without finding Ji He, it might still be possible to break seven parts of Hong Xia’s Path of Dispassion.
That was also exactly what the mastermind hoped to do. They wanted to use a past experience to break seven parts of Hong Xia’s Path of Dispassion, force him to clash with the Trio in a fight to the death so that both sides would suffer, and leave the mastermind to ultimately reap the benefits—that was true scheming. It was a plan prepared long ago where no step in the process required any direct oversight, but its overall direction was still guided by a key that could inevitably break the situation.
The chances of this being true was small, but it existed.
After a long silence Lu Yin said, "Your deduction is excellent. You’ve worked hard."
Wei Rong stood up and bowed. "I only hope to share Lord Lu’s burdens. Such hardship is nothing."
Not long after that, Lu Yin went to the Crimson Starshade Megaverse and appeared before Jiu Wen. "Senior, do you know the history of the enmity between Rang Yu and Hong Xia?"
Jiu Wen shook his head. "I already told you before. I was merely a slightly talented young cultivator at the end of the Nine Ramparts era. It was only by chance that I saw the Crimson Lotus Tomb, was acknowledged by Hong Xia, and then rose up within Crimson Starshade. To gain his trust, I helped him build this Blood Tower and even transformed myself into someone like Rang Yu, but I do not know anything about the past between those two."
Lu Yin asked again, "Is there anything special about Hong Xia? Or someone or something that he particularly cares about?"
Jiu Wen asked in confusion, "Why do you ask?"
Lu Yin replied, "There are some speculations that need to be verified."
Jiu Wen thought for a moment. "Hong Xia spends most of his time in seclusion. Aside from cultivating the anchors of his Path of Dispassion and occasionally interacting with He Xiao and the others, there is little else. I cannot think of anything for now. You might ask He Xiao and the others."
Lu Yin had nearly forgotten about those people. They had all been Hong Xia’s disciples and might have further clues.
Thinking of this, Lu Yin immediately turned to look at Xi Shangfeng. The man met Lu Yin’s gaze. "Nothing comes to mind at this moment."
Jiu Wen looked at him. "Think more carefully."
Xi Shangfeng glanced at Jiu Wen and then back at Lu Yin before nodding.
Lu Yin left and went to find Hong Xia’s other disciples, who had been captured. He just hoped that He Xiao was still alive. Lu Yin had not expected those people to eventually prove to still be useful.
In the Nine Odysseys Megaverse, bustling city streets were filled with hawkers’ cries while cultivators occasionally flew overhead. It was an extremely prosperous city.
But even such prosperity could not conceal the underlying darkness and filth. On a street corner, a group of people were beating a figure who lay curled up. That figure did not cry out in pain but instead released manic laughter. He sometimes raved, and he sometimes cursed. Regardless, he allowed the group to beat him for half an hour until they grew tired. At that point, he stood up and ran off, all the while cackling madly.
"A lunatic! That lunatic can really take a beating."
"I told you, that madman absolutely isn’t normal. He might have been a cultivator before."
"Even a cultivator shouldn’t be able to endure all of that. We beat him for half an hour, and he didn’t even lose any skin. That should be impossible."
"Wait here. I’ll go find someone."
"Hey, who else are you calling?"
"My brother-in-law just returned. He’s a cultivator, so let’s let him try."
"Great! Hurry up and go get him. We’ll block the lunatic’s path and keep him here."
The madman kept running, but all exits were sealed off. Unable to think of turning elsewhere, he ran back and forth like a headless fly.
Soon, a young man with an arrogant expression arrived. He carried a sword on his back and maintained an imposing bearing. Everyone hurriedly bowed when they saw him.
"Brother-in-law, that’s him. That lunatic is incredibly tough. We beat him for ages, but he wasn’t hurt at all."
The young man observed the laughing madman and frowned slightly. "He’s just a lunatic. Was it really necessary to call me here?"
With that, he casually waved a hand, creating a visible distortion in the air. A blast of force swept over the crowd, and those who were close enough had their faces cut open. Drops of blood shot out, and they all struck the madman at the same time as the air blast.
The surrounding people were horrified and quickly stepped back, staring at the young man in fear. This was the power of a cultivator. A casual gesture was sharper than Blacksmith Wang’s finest blade.
The young man showed disdain. These people were merely ignorant mortals. He glanced at the lunatic, assuming him to be dead.
The madman had been slammed against a wall by the attack, and he slowly slid down to the ground, drawing everyone’s attention.
Then, he burst into laughter again. "Why are you attacking me? You should fulfill me! All of you should fulfill me! Hahaha. This is all your fault. All your fault! Hahaha!"
The crowd stood stunned. Had even a cultivator’s attack done nothing?