"Master Chenyuan, aren't you being far too heartless? Back when you were young, you traveled through Great Xia begging for alms with a forged ordination certificate and were caught by the authorities. You were nearly thrown in prison for possessing forged official documents. If I hadn't stepped forward to explain things, they wouldn't have let you off the hook for that crime."
Great Xia had strict requirements regarding the qualifications of Buddhist monks and Daoist priests. Whether one was a monk from the Buddhist Kingdom or a disciple of the Hanging Temple, all were treated equally: they had to undergo examinations and background checks, and only those holding an ordination certificate were recognized by the imperial court as legitimate monks.
Only with official recognition could one collect alms and perform religious rites; otherwise, it was considered illegal.
When Master Chenyuan came to Great Xia in his youth to propagate the Buddhist teachings, the very first thing he had to do was obtain an ordination certificate.
At the mention of this matter, Master Chenyuan could sit still no longer. "If you hadn't informed me that preaching in Great Xia required an ordination certificate, and then sold me a fake one, how could I have been arrested by the authorities in the first place?!"
The Great Elder retorted righteously, "You were the one who approached me first, claiming that the people of Great Xia were plunged into misery and living in deep water and scorching fire, and that you had come to Great Xia to deliver the common folk from their plight, bring them to your Buddhist Kingdom to chant sutras, and guide them into the Buddhist monastic order!
"I told you that the people of Great Xia lived better lives than those in the Buddhist Kingdom, but you refused to believe me. So, I figured I'd let you take a look inside a prison cell.
"Even prisoners in a Great Xia jail don't live in such deep distress—how could ordinary citizens possibly be living the way you described?
"Later on, seeing how fiercely you resisted when the officials grabbed you, I stepped forward to explain the situation."
The Great Elder and Master Chenyuan sat in the front row, with Ao Li of the East Sea Dragon Clan seated between them.
Listening to the two argue, Ao Li felt an itch of curiosity, temporarily forgetting his own grudges and grievances with the Great Elder. He asked instinctively, "So did the authorities release Master Chenyuan?"
"Of course not. While he didn't know he possessed a forged certificate—so it didn't constitute the crime of possessing forged official documents—he didn't know Great Xia's regulations and had bolted straight across the border. That counted as illegal entry, so he was arrested anyway. And by the way, they arrested me too."
"Why did they arrest you?" Ao Li asked before he could catch himself.
"Because I forged the certificate."
"Oh, right."
Master Chenyuan closed his eyes to rest his mind, no longer bothering with the Great Elder.
The Great Elder continued scanning the seats for familiar faces.
Away from home and without Daoist Buyu present, the Great Elder's words and conduct represented the reputation and face of the Dao Seeking Sect. On an occasion like this, it was all the more vital that he take the initiative and handle the sect's diplomatic affairs well.
In his youth, the Great Elder had traveled far and wide. He had acquaintances everywhere—among the East Sea Dragon Clan, the Buddhist Kingdom, the Demon Domain's Dragon Clan, the Phoenix Clan, the Qiongqi Clan...
"Little Jin isn't here?"
The Great Elder noticed that the seat reserved for the clan head of the Qiongqi Clan was empty. It felt odd to him. How could someone miss an event as monumental as the founding ceremony of the Demon Empire?
"You know Clan Head Jin?" Ao Li could not resist asking again.
"Of course I do. How could I not? Back then, Little Jin strayed into a demonic cult, and it was us Nine Sons of the Dao Seeking Sect who stepped in just in time to fish him out."
Ao Li grew even more curious. "Which demonic cult?"
"Qin Jiunian, shut your mouth!"
Clan Head Jin arrived late, panting heavily from exhaustion. Hearing the Great Elder bring up that very incident, he shot him a glare of warning.
Two nights ago, he had encountered Jiang Lianyi. Afterward, he rushed back to his clan to seek an audience with the Little Ancestor. Upon learning that Jiang Lianyi had resurfaced in the world, the Little Ancestor sensed that an unforeseen incident might occur at the founding ceremony and urged him to hurry back and attend.
The Dijiang Clan and the Qiongqi Clan spanned across most of the Demon Domain. Clan Head Jin had nearly run himself into the ground just to make it in the nick of time.
Yet the moment he arrived, he heard the Great Elder airing his dark history.
Among the leaders of the various major factions, Clan Head Jin was considered relatively young—only around nine hundred years old.
Nine hundred years ago, when he had just reached the Nascent Soul stage, he felt that the Qiongqi Clan was completely stagnant, its mindset rigid. If things continued like that, they would definitely grow poorer and poorer.
To find a way out, he left his ancestral homeland and smuggled himself into Great Xia.
Lacking legitimate identification, he drifted around the black market for a long time. By a stroke of chance, he joined the Nine Nether Cult.
After working in the Nine Nether Cult for a while, he met a wealthy young master.
Like him, this young master indulged in wine, women, and gambling, and often treated him to lavish outings. The two quickly became good friends.
The young master lived a decadent, pleasure-seeking life, yet his money seemed bottomless, filling Clan Head Jin with immense envy.
Once, Clan Head Jin tentatively probed the young master's background, asking which prestigious clan was wealthy enough to support such spending.
The young master replied that he was not a disciple of any great clan, and the money he spent was not given by his family, but earned by himself.
This piqued Clan Head Jin's curiosity even further. He pressed the young master to reveal his moneymaking venture and asked if he could take part as well.
At first, the young master refused. It was only after Clan Head Jin bustled about at his beck and call, working like an ox and a horse for him, that after considerable effort the young master finally relented.
The young master explained that a friend of his had developed an elixir recipe for extending one's lifespan. Although the increase in life expectancy wasn't dramatic, it was enough to drive cultivators whose lifespans were running out into a frenzy. Investing money into this industry right now was a guaranteed profit: invest one hundred, get one hundred and twenty back. The more one invested, the more one earned.
Clan Head Jin tentatively invested twenty thousand spirit stones. A year later, the young master returned twenty-four thousand to him.
That night, Clan Head Jin was too thrilled to sleep, convinced that his chance to strike it rich had arrived.
However, he was not a reckless man. Worried that this business might be unstable, he tested the waters for another two years.
For three consecutive years, high returns came without fail each year. The young master hadn't lied!
The path to prosperity lay right before his eyes!
Unfortunately, unexpected misfortune can strike at any moment. The matter was discovered by Clan Head Jin's superior, a Branch Master of the Nine Nether Cult.
The Branch Master elbowed Clan Head Jin aside and began dealing with the young master directly.
Some time later, Clan Head Jin found himself being hunted down by the Nine Nether Cult, forced to wrack his brain for the reason even as he fled for his life.
Even after escaping back to the Demon Domain, he still couldn't fathom why the Nine Nether Cult wanted him dead.
It was only two hundred years ago, while chatting idly with the Great Elder and casually bringing up the incident, that he finally learned the truth: the young master he had met back then was none other than the Eighth Elder.
The Nine Sons of the Dao Seeking Sect had orchestrated an investment scam targeting the Nine Nether Cult, conning them until they lost everything down to their shirts. And Clan Head Jin had been the very first cultist they duped.
Presumably out of sheer rage and spite, the Nine Nether Cult Master of that era had ordered his execution, though he had managed to escape with his life.
Over a year ago, when he discovered three Nine Nether Cult members sneaking into the Demon Domain, the memory of those days on the run made his blood boil, and he swiped them all to death with a single claw.
Joining the Nine Nether Cult and being duped by the Nine Sons of the Dao Seeking Sect—this shameful history was something the Great Elder must never be allowed to blab about. It was far too humiliating.
His tiger eyes glared wide and round, glaring hostilely at the Great Elder. The Great Elder spread his hands, indicating he wouldn't let the cat out of the bag.
*I was just reminiscing; no harm intended.*
The Great Elder wanted to continue catching up with acquaintances, but at that moment, the deep chime of a bronze bell resonated. The bell toll was solemn and weighty, as if echoing from countless eons past, reverberating across the Altar of Heaven.
Mists and clouds surged atop the Altar of Heaven, within which the colossal silhouette of a Dijiang loomed, shrouded in mystery.
The white clouds in the sky shifted, transforming into auspicious clouds.
The founding ceremony had officially begun.
Out of courtesy, the Great Elder had no choice but to temporarily put an end to his chatting.
Chapter 610