Lei Jing nodded and stared deeply at Guan Longzi. Finally, she breathed out a faint sigh, then turned towards the entrance and left.

　　After Lei Jing had left, a drawn-out ray of blood-red light peeled itself off from the Lamp of Life and Death ¹ . The light landed at the corner of the tent, launching a shadow. The shadow slowly extended, and out came the silhouette of Shen Lian.

　　“I never would have thought that you, Guan Longzi, would cultivate the means to divide light and catch shadows.” Along with the clear and crisp voice, Shen Lian seated himself in front of Guan Longzi.

　　Guan Longzi raised his head and smiled, “If it was not for you, my friend, being slightly entranced after listening to me talking about ‘Lianshan’, how could I ever detect you with this insignificant means of mine?”

　　Shen Lian shot a glance at the dim brightness of the Lamp of Life and Death and said, “If you, Guan Longzi, possess this insignificant means, then the Son of the White Emperor would not suffer a huge defeat anymore. Pity, pity.”

　　With a smile, Guan Longzi said, “What is there to pity?”

　　“You either avoid doing something clumsy to save your face until you die, or you reveal your hand from the start. As of today, even if you have a thousand voices, can you dispel the rage inherent in Emperor Xia’s thoughts?” Shen Lian plainly said.

　　He knew from the start that Guan Longzi would definitely notice him, but he still used the Spiritual Shadow Disassociation Method to enter the Xia camp. All because he could not resist himself from once again visiting Guan Longzi.

　　Guan Longzi laughed involuntarily, “My friend. At this moment, is your heart feeling joy or are you feeling sorry for me?”

　　His largely irrelevant reply caused Shen Lian to want to slap the table and shout with praise for Guan Longzi. This kind of reply revealed Guan Longzi’s attitude of ‘detachment from worldly goods and refrain from self-pity’. Life and death, success or failure; these were like the clouds to him. It was only at this point in time did Shen Lian harbor a profound admiration for him.

　　Deep inside, Shen Lian cheered for Guan Longzi. His outward demeanor remained plain, “If I feel sorry for you my friend, you might not be happy. If I feel joy, it would imply that you previously had me mistaken. Both outcomes leave me in a precarious position. However, I can very clearly tell you that I feel joy.”

　　If Shen Lian felt sorry for Guan Longzi, it would naturally mean that his heart was placed in a position too high, and he was not jealous of anyone who has real talent. That would show that Shen Lian cultivated to a masterly state and had what it takes to be Emperor Xia’s biggest enemy.

　　On the other hand if Shen Lian felt joy, this would signify that deep down, Shen Lian regarded Guan Longzi as a worthy and valuable opponent. This would show that Shen Lian was not unrivaled.

　　The ‘unrivalled’ that was spoken of here was not in terms of strength, but in terms of attitude –’as long as there is ‘me’, there will be no ‘enemy’.’ Therefore one was able to detach from the importance of life and death as well as success and failure. This person could make precise judgments at any given situation, with no error.

　　But Shen Lian’s response drew a forced smile from Guan Longzi, “My friend, you are finally determined to mix the right and wrongs in the world. You should know the implications of this. One wrong step and you will lose all that you have cultivated up till now. There is no possibility of turning back.”

　　Shen Lian gaze sized up the food box that Lei Jing sent a moment ago to Guan Longzi, “Lei Jing’s cook, if my guess is correct, is a person who understands Dao at a high level and is closer to attaining the philosopher’s state than you are. If this kind of person could wish to show his splendor in this world, then why should I, Shen Lian, become a corpse-guarding ghost that merely attracts the ridicule of people?”

　　A dumbstruck look came over Guan Longzi’s face, “My friend, what do you wish to do?”

　　“If Tianyi obtained him, it will be like a fish back in water. If I, Shen Lian, obtained him, he would be like a dragon that flies in the sky. Seeing as he relied on Jing Er, and knowing his current contradictory attitude, he misses Xia Kingdom. But at the same time, he knows that Xia Kingdom will collapse and he is not willing to be buried with Xia. This is my best opportunity yet.” Within Shen Lian’s happy and content appearance, a flash of resoluteness was revealed in its entirety.

　　Guan Longzi was hardly able to believe him, “You wish to overturn the destiny of ‘Xia replacing Yinshang’. No, you wish to establish a country.”

　　A person who reached the same heights as Guan Longzi would naturally understand that destiny is a trend. This trend was that Qi cultivators will replace Xia and its governance of the Netherworld. That was the original source of determination for the Netherworld. If these trends were going against, karma will bite back. If one did not stop, defeat and death would be inevitable unless one prevailed over the whole world.

　　The reason why the Qi cultivators would replace the Xia clan was wholly because Xia’s plundering of the world was too severe, and the idea of cultivation was not in line with the development of the Netherworld. But it was none other than Tianyi who represented the benefit of a great Qi cultivator to the Netherworld. Throughout an uninterrupted ten years, he disseminated the pure merit of Buddha. He made a deep-rooted and favorable impression in the hearts of people from many clans, and he gained respect everywhere.

　　A direct contrast to Xia’s brutal plundering, he started off by carrying out trade. From the exchanging of natural resources from all around the world, he made a great contribution to the people of Yinshang. It was only natural that he was even more well-received and welcomed by people from other nations.

　　Essentially, Yinshang concentrated the natural resources from all around the world by engaging in commercial activities. All these resources were accumulated in Yinshang. Such means, however, showed too much of moderateness.

　　This particular perspective revealed Tianyi to be proficient Daoist and a brilliant strategist.

　　If Emperor Xia was not this strong, the accumulation of resources in Yinshang along with the help provided from everywhere else could possibly even replace Xia immediately. It was a pity that the tyranny of Emperor Xia caused the people to be angry, but fearful of showing that anger. This led to the perpetuation of Xia’s phase of power over the world.

　　Shen Lian smiled, “Can’t I?”

　　Complex expressions were revealed in Guan Longzi’s face, “In this path of cultivation, my overcautious nature is less than yours, my friend.”

　　It was also a form of cultivation for Shen Lian to establish a nation. He would neither assist in commerce nor lend a hand to Xia. Instead, he wanted to forge a path by himself and cut his way through the thistles and thorns. He wanted to do what others could not do.

　　It was destiny for Shang to replace Xia. However, this destiny was not absolute, because it was the trend accumulated by Tianyi. After all, when Xia collapses, only a colossal power such as Yinshang could be able to replace Xia’s original position and quell the Netherworld once again.

　　And yet, under the current trend, Shen Lian wanted to build a nation to be capable of contending supremacy with Xia and Yinshang. He wanted to build a surprising summit even under the forceful crushing of Yunyang.

　　Guan Longzi’s heart could not help but not be affected.

　　Shen Lian leisurely said, “Only you, Guan Longzi, are able to get a glimpse of my thoughts through my words though few.” After completing this sentence, Shen Lian sighed and continued, “Now, I deeply begrudge the fact that you will be buried along with Xia.”

　　Guan Longzi unflinchingly replied, “My friend, there is no need to feel sorry for me. Perhaps the great king will understand me in the end. But there is something I absolutely cannot comprehend. Why do you suddenly think such, my friend? With your brilliance, you would surely understand the principles of conforming to nature.”

　　“My friend, you think that the Dao of Daoists’ is the Dao of Nature. But you know not that the Dao of celestials’ bears differences with the Dao of the Daoists’,” Shen Lian joyfully said.

　　Guan Longzi questioned, “How can you explain that?”

　　“My friend, how could you not know ‘becoming celestial by going the wrong way’? To keep going resolutely despite knowing the task is impossible, creating Dao with little or no knowledge. A tall mountain may stand in the way, I can neither fly nor crossover. I, Shen Lian, then have no choice but to spread open the mountain and forge my own path.”

　　Shen Lian did not know what the destiny placed on him was. But Yinshang replacing Xia was naturally destiny as well. After all said and done, he knew this part of history. He damaged this destiny just to see what those in the Netherworld, who cared only for their own existence, would feel.

　　More so, he did not think of the consequences that flowed from his doing. After all, this was the most perfect trying-out opportunity for him. If it was not for the impeccably coincidental experience with participating in the shooting down of nine suns with Hou Yi, causing Shen Lian to act in spite of himself, he feared he would find it hard to make a firm resolution.