Chapter 514 515: The Current Situation

Chen Dong wouldn't speak of things he wasn't certain about.

The Human Race's territory was a great distance from Immortal Fox City. Even for a Nascent Soul Powerhouse, a round trip would take over a month unless they had comprehended the art of becoming one with the Dao, letting its laws flow from their heart. Obtaining the Profound Origin Purple-stalk quickly would require careful planning.

Soon, Chen Dong was placed in a small courtyard within the City Lord's Mansion. The four Blue Jade Bracelets still bound him, and numerous guards from the Fox Demon Race stood watch nearby. Yun Mengshang was clearly not underestimating Chen Dong, or perhaps it was a testament to his current importance.

Even though he couldn't use his Spiritual Power, he at least had a private space now.

After a quick check confirmed there were no monitoring Arrays or probing Divine Senses, Chen Dong hissed at the Jade Pendant on his chest, "You damn Liu Ling! How could you just stand by and watch me be violated?!"

Liu Ling's voice replied in his mind, "No, no! I followed you here myself. I'm not anywhere near the Demon Refining Pot, so I was helpless! Besides, the moment the pot's power is used, it would never escape Yun Misha's notice. She's a Divinity Transformation Great Demon. A soul begins to fundamentally change upon entering the Divinity Transformation Stage; it's not so easy to deceive someone at that level."

Chen Dong didn't believe a word of it. 'This has all been part of Liu Ling's plan.' From the very beginning, she had told him to present the book. If he had succeeded, the most likely outcome would still have been imprisonment. Even without complex divination, he could see that he would have been unable to escape his fate of being used as a tool by Yun Mengshang.

Liu Ling chuckled. "Besides, weren't you enjoying yourself? It seems you've been over the moon this past month. She's the Fox Demon King! To explore the path of love with her is the dream of everyone in the Demon Race!"

Chen Dong's face flushed. He couldn't deny it—the memory was intoxicating, the experience sublime.

Then his expression grew cold again, and he snorted. "That was not my desire! Physical pleasure without emotion is hollow and meaningless. Just look at Yun Mengshang! A month has passed, and she's made zero progress on her Path of Emotion. That proves it!"

Liu Ling said, "Now, now, don't be angry. It's not like you're losing out here! I didn't expect the Fox Demon King to be this determined either. But this is for the better. The chances of our next step succeeding have increased significantly. And I think you have a pretty good shot on your own now, don't you?"

Chen Dong fell silent. He sent a mental message to Mu Qingzhu.

"Qingzhu, what's wrong? You haven't responded at all this past month!"

Chen Dong could still sense Mu Qingzhu within the Jade Embryo, but ever since Yun Mengshang had sealed his powers, Mu Qingzhu had not sent a single message.

"Qingzhu, are you okay?" Chen Dong asked again.

Chen Dong had tried to contact her many times over the past month, but Mu Qingzhu seemed to have shut herself away. If he couldn't feel what she felt and know her condition due to their shared connection, he would have truly thought something terrible had happened to her.

Chen Dong hadn't dared to press the matter while he was with Yun Mengshang, for fear she would notice something was amiss. After all, Yun Mengshang now had the Yuqing Immortal Technique. With a few more examinations, she was bound to discover the secret of the embryonic rebirth.

Now that he was relatively safe, Chen Dong asked again, more insistently.

After several attempts, Mu Qingzhu finally responded.

Her voice sounded like she was crying. "Chen Dong… I… I, have I been… broken?"

Chen Dong froze, then immediately asked, "What do you mean? What's wrong?"

Mu Qingzhu continued, "You said that physical pleasure without emotion is hollow and meaningless. If, after I'm reborn from the embryo… will you…"

Mu Qingzhu's voice cut off abruptly, her tone shifting back to normal. "It's nothing. Never mind. I just hid my consciousness so Yun Mengshang wouldn't discover me. I'm fine!"

Chen Dong sensed a shift in Mu Qingzhu's emotional state, but the Jade Embryo was stable. 'She must be fine,' he thought. Besides, the situation with the Fox Race was more urgent right now.

So Chen Dong said, "Good, as long as you're okay. Once we resolve the current situation, we can talk properly."

Mu Qingzhu gave a short reply. "Mm..."

Just then, Liu Ling asked, "So, have you figured it out?"

Chen Dong stated frankly, "Actually, the Cultivation Technique I practice is helpful for Yun Mengshang's comprehension of the Path of Emotion. Unfortunately, she is resistant at heart and refuses to take the final step. It must be subconscious. Even during our dual cultivation, when her passion should be at its peak, her heart remains as still as placid water. In that state, I can't help her. We must first break the shackles on her heart."

Liu Ling said calmly, "Her resistance is related to the previous Fox Demon King. Since you're from the Cyan Sky Sect, I imagine you've heard the legends of the Cyan Emperor."

"I've heard a little. The Cyan Emperor cultivated the Path of Extreme Emotion, and the object of his devotion was the previous Fox Demon King, Yun Mixue. I don't know what happened after that."

Liu Ling's form materialized from the Jade Pendant. She first cast a restrictive seal around them, then slowly began to explain.

"Precisely. What you don't know is that the previous Fox Demon King, Yun Mixue, was also a peerless talent of the Demon Race. A thousand years ago, she and the Cyan Emperor fell in love. One pursued extreme devotion, the other sought to enter the path of emotion—they were a match made in heaven, a truly divine couple. It was also during that time that relations between the Human Race and the Demon Race hit rock bottom. Their relationship was forbidden by both races. The Demon Race was powerful, their natural advantages making them significantly stronger than the humans. At the instigation of the Demon Race, the first war between the two races broke out."

Chen Dong asked in surprise, "Instigated by the Demon Race?"

Liu Ling nodded. "The Floating Shadow Realm didn't have the Demon Race at first. When they appeared, they were very weak. Sandwiched between the two great powers, the Human Race and the Demon Race, their only chance to develop was for a conflict to erupt between those two."

'So the Demon Race had been pulling the strings from the shadows,' he realized. But there was no point dwelling on it. It all happened a thousand years ago.