Truth and Falsehood

The Shadow Moon Sect. One of the Six Demon Sects. On its outer borders, it neighbored the Heavenly Dao Sect and the Taiyi Sect, while on the interior, it bordered the Heavenly Demon Sect. It could be considered the demonic power that interacted most frequently with the Heavenly Dao Sect. For this very reason, the Heavenly Dao Sect also had the most comprehensive intelligence regarding the Shadow Moon Sect. Throughout the entire Shadow Moon Sect, apart from Sect Master Yue Wuying, there were fifteen Void Shattering demon cultivators. Naturally, among these fifteen Void Shattering demon cultivators, three were located deep underground, and one was in death seclusion. Only eleven were truly active. Of those eleven Void Shattering demon cultivators, two demon lords—Bahuang and Hei'an—had fallen earlier, and now they had just lost two more Void Shattering cultivators, Zhanpo and Chihun. The number currently available had dwindled to merely seven. Counting the sect master, there were only eight Void Shattering cultivators in total. It was precisely because they had learned of the loss of two Void Shattering demon cultivators that the Shadow Moon Sect had hastily convened a plenary assembly at this moment to discuss the situation they were facing. Of course, there was virtually no foundation of trust among demon cultivators. Even though a Demon Venerable who had achieved Dao Integration loomed above them, maintaining a rudimentary balance among these demonic cultivators, it was still exceedingly rare for one Void Shattering demon cultivator to set foot on another's territory. Convening a meeting now was likewise conducted through a technique akin to virtual projection. Apart from Sect Master Yue Wuying, who presided over the assembly, none of the other seven elders were physically present in person. "Just moments ago, Demon Lords Chihun and Zhanpo met with misfortune. According to the intelligence I possess, the two demon lords received a call for aid after Supreme Elder Buzhou of the Heavenly Dao Sect and Yaoguang, Lord of the Southern Domain, invaded our Shadow Moon Sect's territory in succession. It was for this reason that our two Void Shattering lords moved to intercept them." At this moment, Yue Wuying was recounting what had happened: "Deducing from this, our two supreme elders have nine chances out of ten already fallen victim to Buzhou and Yaoguang's foul hands." "This is utterly outrageous! Strutting into our Shadow Moon Sect's territory and daring to kill within our borders—do they truly think every demon lord of our Shadow Moon Sect is made of soft clay?! If our Shadow Moon Sect fails to deliver a thunderous counterattack, how can we have the face to stand on Beihai Star from now on? What majesty will we have left to hold together our foundation across these hundred and eight provinces?!" One Void Shattering demon lord immediately made his stance known. "I know Buzhou. He is a Void Shattering cultivator who got there purely by piling up years and seniority. With the strength of either Chihun or Zhanpo, even if not quite his equal, preserving their lives and retreating in one piece would be no problem at all. As for Yaoguang... that Lord of the Southern Domain, I cannot see through him!" A Void Shattering demon lord clad in a cyan robe deduced cautiously. "What is there not to see through? Hasn't the truth behind Bahuang and Hei'an's deaths already been investigated? It was because the Heavenly Dao Sect laid a trap to lure us into taking the bait. After losing two Void Shattering demon lords, our Shadow Moon Sect's power suffered a massive blow, so naturally the Heavenly Dao Sect would seize the chance to press aggressively! The deaths of Demon Lords Zhanpo and Chihun this time are the clearest proof. If we still don't strike back with our fiercest counterattack, I'm afraid our entire sect will be picked off one by one and swallowed whole!" Another demon lord spoke up. "Rumors outside claim that in order to ascend to the position of sect master, Yaoguang, Lord of the Southern Domain, slew Jing Yuntian—who strongly supported Zong Wenxian—and defeated the combined might of Zhen Xuanyuan and Gu Li, possessing earth-shattering cultivation... From this, our earlier speculation that Yaoguang possessed Void Shattering-level combat strength even while in the Void Refining realm is nine chances out of ten true. In that case, with Demon Lords Bahuang and Hei'an trapped in a tier-thirteen formation presided over by a Void Shattering combatant, their eventual demise makes complete sense." The cyan-robed demon lord continued, glancing toward Sect Master Yue Wuying: "I suspect that even Demon Lords Zhanpo and Chihun were killed by his hand. After all, he has already achieved Void Shattering now, and he boasts the battle record of defeating Zhen Xuanyuan and Gu Li joined together..." "Enough, Jinni. It's fine to listen to such talk, but you don't truly believe a Void Shattering cultivator who has cultivated for barely a century could possess that kind of strength, do you? If he really reached a level comparable to a candidate Dao Lord in merely a hundred years, then Dao Lord Penglai—the greatest prodigy Beihai Star has seen in hundreds of thousands of years—wouldn't even be fit to be mentioned in the same breath." Yue Wuying waved his hand. "Countless people witnessed Yaoguang's battle against Zhen Xuanyuan, Gu Li, and Jing Yuntian with their own eyes, including our hidden agents..." Demon Lord Jinni tried to say more, but Yue Wuying cut him off: "The Heavenly Dao Sect is watched over by Venerable Golden Book. Though we've planted hidden agents in the Heavenly Dao Sect time and again, virtually all of them have been rooted out. Up until now, our highest-ranking sleeper agent only ever reached the level of a true disciple. If the top echelon of the Heavenly Dao Sect intentionally put on a performance, deceiving true disciples who haven't even reached the Void Cavern realm would be all too easy." He swept his gaze across everyone present: "The most crucial matter right now is figuring out the Heavenly Dao Sect's objective..." At this moment, another demon lord chimed in: "According to information I have received, just a short while ago, the entire Heavenly Dao Sect went fully into motion under direct orders from Zhen Xuanyuan. Although no external announcements have been made, their experts and resources have all been placed under strict control, clearly preparing for a major—" "A major war? Zhen Xuanyuan—what is he trying to pull? Does he really think we fear them?" A demonic cultivator seated at the top laughed coldly. He was the chief supreme elder of the Shadow Moon Sect, calling himself Xue Ming and known to the outside world as the Blood Demon. He was also the direct disciple of the Shadow Moon Sect's greatest backer—Demon Venerable Heitian. Over the millennia, the Shadow Moon Sect and the Heavenly Dao Sect had clashed on a grand scale three times, and every time, it was he who faced off against Zhen Xuanyuan. In all three battles, they had fought to a draw. Yet never forget, demonic cultivators specialized in life-preservation rather than frontal combat. For Zhen Xuanyuan to fail to defeat Xue Ming in direct combat was essentially equivalent to losing. If the two sides kept grinding each other down in a fight to the death, the one surviving in the end would without question be Xue Ming. "The Heavenly Dao Sect shouldn't go to war with our Shadow Moon Sect at a time like this," another supreme elder said at this moment. "According to the intelligence in our hands, a fierce conflict broke out between the Heavenly Dao Sect and the Light God race in the outer cosmos. Zong Wenxian drew away four... ah, Buzhou returned, so he drew away three supreme elders from within the sect to fight the Light God race. Meanwhile, the Light God race has poured forth almost in full force, fielding eight God Emperors on the battlefield. Under such conditions, how could the Heavenly Dao Sect dare wage war against us?" "Actually, I have a piece of unconfirmed news on my end," the first Void Shattering demon cultivator said. "A commotion broke out in Changming Hall, where the Heavenly Dao Sect keeps its life lamps. According to intelligence my sleeper agents risked their lives to uncover... the life lamp of a supreme elder has gone out." "The Heavenly Dao Sect lost yet another supreme elder?" This news made many eyes light up, joy evident on their faces. "Who is it? A supreme elder on the extraterrestrial battlefield, one deep in the planetary core, or Buzhou and Yaoguang, who invaded our Shadow Moon Sect's domain?" "Unknown. It's still being investigated," the demon lord replied. "No need to investigate." Yue Wuying raised a jade talisman in his hand and said in a heavy voice, "It is Buzhou! According to the latest incoming news, in a border province, Demon Lord Chihun perished together with him in mutual destruction." "Buzhou?" "Damn it! He dies, fine, but he still dragged down one of our Shadow Moon Sect's top champions with him!" "In that case, this Yaoguang isn't as strong as Jinni claimed. Defeating Zhen Xuanyuan and Gu Li two-on-one? If he truly had that sort of strength, Buzhou wouldn't have died at all in a two-on-two situation." One after another, the demon lords voiced their own judgments and thoughts. "No wonder the Heavenly Dao Sect has mobilized with such fanfare. Buzhou died, and as a direct disciple of Dao Lord Juntian, if the Heavenly Dao Sect remained indifferent, no one could bear that responsibility. However, their main force has already been deployed to the extraterrestrial battlefield. I wager that the Heavenly Dao Sect's current movements are nothing more than a hollow bluff, designed to bare their fangs and intimidate surrounding powers from acting rashly." Demon Lord Xue Ming remarked calmly, "I wager that even if they seek retaliation, they will wait until Zong Wenxian and the other supreme elders return from the extraterrestrial battlefield. Otherwise, if they go to war with us now, they are doomed to lose." The other demon lords nodded in deep agreement. "If that is truly the case, shouldn't we seize this moment of Heavenly Dao Sect weakness to reclaim our lost thirteen provinces of the Southern Domain?" Demon Lord Jinni said. "Ill-advised," Yue Wuying waved his hand. "With Buzhou dead, the Heavenly Dao Sect will inevitably send word to True Monarch Jinghong, who is stationed in the planetary core! Nine times out of ten, True Monarch Jinghong will emerge in person to avenge Buzhou! Therefore, we must remain on full alert with twelve-tenths of our vigilance!" He said with solemn earnestness, "Right now, the Heavenly Dao Sect is like a wounded, bleeding wolf. It looks weak, but in reality, it is at its most vicious. Unless we have the power to club them to death in a single blow, stepping forward right now... will only result in having a bloody chunk of flesh torn from us." "Yet letting such a prime opportunity slip by would be a great waste," Demon Lord Jinni frowned. Demon Lord Xue Ming pondered for a moment. "I shall make a trip to the planetary core and ask Senior Brother to keep a close watch on True Monarch Jinghong. If True Monarch Jinghong makes a move, we will immediately switch from offense to defense. But if that aged True Monarch remains in seclusion for his final thousand-year opportunity... to say nothing of anything else, reclaiming the thirteen provinces seized by the Southern Domain, or even biting off another thirteen provinces from the Southern Domain, will be no difficult feat. After all, the intruders into our Shadow Moon Sect weren't just the dead Buzhou, but also Yaoguang, this Lord of the Southern Domain!" At this point, he sneered, "Invading our Shadow Moon Sect and slaying two of our demon lords—if they don't pay a price, the world will truly believe our Shadow Moon Sect can be pushed around at will!" "Then we shall trouble Elder to make the journey to the planetary core," Yue Wuying nodded. "Right now, the Heavenly Dao Sect is indeed at its weakest. No matter how fiercely they bare their fangs, they cannot hide the fact that they are hollow inside. The only one we need be wary of is Jinghong. As long as Jinghong does not emerge, the Heavenly Dao Sect is ours to ride roughshod over!" Demon Lord Xue Ming nodded slightly. Regrettably, the Gate of the Immortal Realm was rooted in the planetary core, and the swirling, dispersing laws within made communication between the planetary core and the outside world extremely difficult. Transmission talismans and similar devices were completely useless there, so he had to make the trip down in person. "No time to lose; I set off now," Demon Lord Xue Ming said, his figure vanishing. Seeing Demon Lord Xue Ming depart, Yue Wuying proceeded to warn and instruct the other demon lords to remain vigilant in the days ahead, while also gathering forces to prepare to strike into the Southern Domain, reclaim the thirteen provinces, and potentially seize another thirteen provinces. However, this briefing had lasted less than a few minutes when one of the demon lords froze slightly. Immediately following that, she sneered, "That Yaoguang truly does not know life from death. With Buzhou dead, has he gone mad? To think he actually dared charge straight into my territory, Guiye's domain! Everyone, continue the discussion for now; I will be right back." With those words, her figure vanished from the chamber.