Never Killed Anyone

"Buddhist Sect's Wu Zhi pays respects to the Human Emperor!"

"Confucian Sect's Wang Bian pays respects to the Human Emperor!"

Enlightened Zhi Buddhist Son and Wang Bian were incredibly excited, immediately performing a grand salute with even more reverence than they showed their own masters.

As the strongest person in the Nine Provinces, Jiang Li could be called the idol of every member of the younger generation. In an era where ascension was impossible, their goal was to become a powerhouse like Jiang Li.

Jiang Li muffled their voices. These two knew his identity and would still mind their manners, but if the other passengers learned who he was, they would definitely surround him again.

Jiang Li felt like a huge celebrity from his previous life, needing sunglasses even when going to the mall for fear of being recognized.

"All you know is fighting. You nearly got yourselves trapped and strayed onto the crooked path!" Jiang Li reprimanded the two juniors in the tone of an elder.

The two men, who had looked so imposing just moments ago, hurriedly admitted their mistakes and promised not to do it again.

Seeing them acknowledge their errors, Jiang Li said no more. "You're attending the Dao Sect's Immortal Artifact Appreciation Conference too? Where are your masters? Why did they only send two juniors to represent their sects?"

"My master said his comprehension of the Space Dao was at a critical juncture and he could not divide his attention, so he sent me in his place," Enlightened Zhi Buddhist Son replied.

Jiang Li understood. It seemed Mount Sumeru Old Buddha's Space Dao had improved again.

Wang Bian hesitated before finally saying, "My master said that seeing the Dao Sect Master makes him angry..."

"So he sent you in his place?" Jiang Li knew that the Confucian Sect Leader and the Dao Sect Master had a personal grudge. The Confucian Sect Leader supported the Theory of Innate Goodness and had painstakingly taught an entire nation to become gentlemen who returned lost gold without pocketing it.

He had gone to show off before the Dao Sect Master, but the Dao Sect Master believed human nature was greedy. He had tossed a huge handful of Top-Grade Spirit Stones onto the roadside, and the refined, courteous crowd had indeed begun scrambling for them, turning the Confucian Sect Leader's face iron-blue with rage.

"No. He said he also wanted to see an immortal artifact refine itself, so he told me to make it known that I was attending as his representative, while he secretly came himself."

"...Your master certainly has ideas."

What Jiang Li really wanted to say was, wasn't his master afraid that the Dao Heart of his vast righteous qi would crack apart? "What do you plan to do with this Eagle Demon?"

"We ask Human Emperor Jiang for guidance."

Jiang Li smiled. "Since you captured it, naturally you should deal with it yourselves. Why ask me?"

"This humble monk believes we should show compassion. How about releasing it?"

Upon hearing this, the Eagle Demon hurriedly said, "The Buddhist Son truly is a man of great virtue! When I return, I will erect a longevity shrine in your honor and ensure that the incense never ceases."

Wang Bian shook his head. "Release it so it can rob other flying ships? Better to kill it."

Enlightened Zhi Buddhist Son was greatly tempted, but he said with difficulty, "But it has not killed anyone. Wouldn't killing it be too harsh a punishment?"

"Yes, yes, yes! I've never killed anyone!" The Eagle Demon hurriedly claimed it was a good demon, terrified that these two would butcher it if it spoke too late.

It could see that Enlightened Zhi Buddhist Son had no small amount of killing intent too. And this is supposed to be a man of the cloth?!

Enlightened Zhi Buddhist Son was conflicted. Logically speaking, the Eagle Demon was lying, but he could not kill a demon merely because he suspected it of lying. If he killed it by mistake, dust would settle upon his ethereal state of mind.

Wang Bian took out the Great Confucian Calligraphy, wrote the character "Truth," and stuck it onto the Eagle Demon.

"Have you killed anyone?"

The Eagle Demon said, "No."

"You only rob Spirit Stones from flying ships, but don't kill people?"

"I don't kill."

Wang Bian said to Enlightened Zhi Buddhist Son, "What I just used was the Truth Calligraphy. It can only speak the truth now. Since it says it has never killed anyone, it seems it truly isn't guilty of monstrous crimes. Let it go."

Enlightened Zhi Buddhist Son nodded. "Very well."

Just as the Eagle Demon thought it was about to escape death, Jiang Li suddenly asked, "Have you considered one question? After it robs a flying ship of its Spirit Stones, can that flying ship still fly?"

"Huh?!"

The two instantly realized.

That was right—the Eagle Demon indeed only robbed Spirit Stones. But without Spirit Stones, the spiritual energy of the people aboard the flying ship would not be enough to land it. Even if they managed to land, they would land within the Bai Ze Imperial Dynasty.

What fate awaited a group of cultivators with exhausted spiritual energy in the Bai Ze Imperial Dynasty was easy to imagine!

Perhaps because they felt their intelligence had been insulted, the two did not hold back. The Eagle Demon did not die peacefully.

"So, don't always rely on treasures. Use your brains more. Even without the Truth Calligraphy, you should have realized that once the Eagle Demon stole the Spirit Stones, the passengers would surely die."

When Jiang Li had asked the two how they planned to deal with the Eagle Demon, he had wanted to see how far their thinking could go.

As expected, they could only think of the first step, foolishly using the Truth Calligraphy to test truth from falsehood. Yet their questions had been imprecise, and they had nearly released an Eagle Demon that had killed countless people as though it were a good demon.

Jiang Li helplessly continued teaching the two juniors. How had they cultivated all the way to the Nascent Soul Realm? When he had been in the Nascent Soul Realm, he had not been this naive.

He felt that the Human Emperors of past generations had died in battle, while he would die from overwork.

Couldn't people let him worry a little less?!

Jiang Li decided to treat this Immortal Artifact Appreciation Conference as a vacation. He absolutely, absolutely would not concern himself with affairs again! Human Emperors needed vacations too!

New mission released: Although you placed first, your classmates mock you for having low cultivation and being unworthy of first place. They demand that you withdraw from school. Please make a stunning display during the cultivation test at the end of the term.

This mission may be abandoned.

Mission reward: one chance at an enlightenment infusion, a secret Beast Taming Sect cultivation technique (fragment), one Blood Burning Pill.

"Abandon."

Jiang Li glanced at the mission, somewhat disappointed, and chose to abandon it. A mission like "Immortal Realm Mystery" truly would not appear consecutively.

More than ten days later, the flying ship finally landed near the Dao Sect.

The moment they disembarked, Dao Sect Master Bai Hongtu warmly received them. Beside him stood the Confucian Sect Leader Dong Zhongren, wearing the expression of a defeated man.

Wang Bian covered his face in shame, wanting to remain aboard the flying ship and never come down.

Clearly, his own master's—and Sect Leader's—plan to infiltrate had failed.

In the end, Enlightened Zhi Buddhist Son dragged Wang Bian off the flying ship.

"On behalf of everyone in the Dao Sect, I welcome Human Emperor Jiang to the Dao Sect for the Immortal Artifact Appreciation Conference!" Dao Sect Master Bai Hongtu said with a hearty laugh, giving Jiang Li a hug.

Jiang Li smiled and hugged him back, lightly patting Bai Hongtu on the back.

Bai Hongtu kept a smile on his face, enduring the pain without crying out.

Behind Bai Hongtu, several thousand Dao Sect disciples bowed and said in unison, "Welcome, Human Emperor Jiang!"

It was clear that Bai Hongtu had truly put thought into welcoming Jiang Li.

"And the Pure Heart Saintess. It has been many years since we last met, yet your relationship with Human Emperor Jiang remains the same as ever."

Pure Heart Saintess pressed her lips together and forced a smile, not attacking on the spot.

"I've never asked you—how is the research on the Nine Provinces' World Protecting Array going? Is it nearly complete?"

Bai Hongtu pulled a long face and complained, "You ask such upsetting questions the moment you arrive. To research the World Protecting Array, I've nearly gone bald. Can't we talk about something pleasant?"

Jiang Li curled his lip. "Those in the Tribulation Transcendence Realm can regenerate from a single drop of blood. How about I beat you until only one drop of blood remains, then let you regenerate? Your hair will grow back."

"Damn it, even landlords aren't as ruthless as you!"

Bai Hongtu immediately beamed. "Fortunately, I've already developed the World Protecting Array. Now all that's missing is an immortal artifact to serve as its array core."