Cause-and-Effect Threads
"To understand why Xie Chong is special, we must return to the limitation of the 'Karma Threads' ability—as I mentioned before, the deeper and heavier the Karma entanglements of a person, the more difficult it is for the Thousand-Eyed Thousand-Silk Demon Lord to use his abilities."
"Therefore, based on this limitation and each time it uses its power, I, the old Daoist, deduce that the 'Karma Threads' of the Thousand-Eyed Thousand-Silk Demon Lord usually first find a relatively marginal and unimportant person as a breakthrough point, modify their past through the weak connection between them and the 'Thousand-Eyed Thousand-Silk Demon Lord' itself, and then use that person's 'past' to gradually devour those who have interacted with it."
Xuan Yunzi spoke, Lin Yu nodded, pondering in his heart.
"This ability is like some kind of plague that spreads through 'interpersonal relationships'..."
This also aligns with the "pattern" he observed—those who fell victim to the scams in the escort teams started with unimportant members and gradually progressed to more important ones.
Li Nian muttered to herself, "It sounds a lot like a spider spinning a web..."
Upon hearing this, Lin Yu looked at Li Nian.
Although Lin Yu initially thought the process was similar to contagion, after Li Nian said that, he realized that Li Nian's analogy was indeed more apt.
This does indeed resemble a spider weaving a web—and the Thousand-Eyed Thousand-Silk Demon Lord really is a giant spider.
The threads connect to form a web, and each node on the spider web is a living person.
"I see. So, besides staying true to oneself, people with heavy karmic Karma are also highly resistant to it. Moreover, one must consider whether one has an overly close relationship with the person being manipulated."
After Lin Yu finished speaking, the other Player understood.
Gao Shan pondered for a moment and then said, "That doesn't make sense. Judging from Xie Chong's experiences, he should be someone with extremely deep karmic Karma. So why... could it be that he has some connection with the Thousand-Eyed Thousand-Silk Demon Lord?"
Xuan Yunzi nodded. "That's right—Xie Chong's ancestors were the only survivors from Willow Town back then!"
"I didn't know this at first, it wasn't until two years ago that I learned it," Xuan Yunzi said in a deep voice. "Back then, although my Taiqing Sect's founder successfully suppressed the Thousand-Eyed Thousand-Silk Demon Lord, he also left a fatal loophole for him because of his benevolence!"
"Back in Willow Town... there was an abandoned baby whose parents were unknown. The patriarch found the baby and brought it back to the mountain gate."
"After long-term observation, the patriarch concluded that the infant did not seem to be affected by the 'Karma Threads' of the Thousand-Eyed Thousand-Silk Demon Lord, so the patriarch personally named the infant and raised him in the mountains."
"After completing his studies, the infant left the mountain and, following my ancestor's instructions, found a place to live in seclusion under an assumed name, where he lived a peaceful and prosperous life... And he was none other than Xie Chong's great- Grandfather."
Xuan Yunzi spoke calmly, and Lin Yu, upon hearing this, knew what was going on. He sighed and rubbed his forehead.
"I understand. The Thousand-Eyed Thousand-Silk Demon Lord had been biding his time, not using this underhanded method, until the Bloodline was passed down to Xie Chong, is that right?"
Xuan Yunzi said solemnly, "That's right. When Xie Chong was very young, he showed extremely high Martial Arts talent, so he was sent to Xuanjiang Martial Arts School. It seems that they sensed that he would achieve extraordinary things in the future, so the Thousand-Eyed Thousand-Silk Demon Lord began to make his plans."
"It manipulated Destiny and the past, making Xie Chong's already promising future even more magnificent... But unfortunately, that was not the future Xie Chong wanted to see."
Seagull couldn't help but interject, "Could it be that the destruction of Xuanjiang Martial Arts School was actually..."
"That's right, it was it that corrupted Xie Chong's mind," Xuan Yunzi said sadly. "Overnight, he went from a promising martial arts prodigy to a heartless and insane Demon Lord who murdered his master and slaughtered his entire sect. And what's worse, Xie Chong probably even thinks he did it himself—because he will have the Memory of those massacres."
Just as Xuan Yunzi finished speaking, Lin Yu suddenly realized what was happening.
"Senior Xuan Yunzi, you wouldn't happen to be the 'Guest in the Mountains', would you?"
"I heard that two years ago, Xie Chong reappeared and killed several martial arts masters who besieged him. In the end, a reclusive master known as the Guest in the Mountains intervened and killed Xie Chong, cutting his corpse into five pieces."
"And that 'Guest in the Mountains'... it's rumored to be a retainer of your Taiqing Sect!"
Upon hearing Lin Yu's words, Xuan Yunzi sighed deeply, "Young friend, you are truly quick-witted; you were able to grasp so many key points in an instant."
"That's right, I am the one who summoned Xie Chong two years ago, and I am also the 'Guest in the Mountains' in the legends of the martial arts world," Xuan Yunzi said, pausing for a moment. "But I didn't kill Xie Chong back then. I just sensed the aura of the Thousand-Eyed Thousand-Silk Demon Lord on him and then told him everything."
"Master Xie Chong... after learning the Truth, understood that he would become the key to the Resurrection of a Yaomo, and also realized that the Yaomo was the murderer who slaughtered his sect. Therefore, he would rather die than accept such Destiny and prepared to end his life in this world."
"As for why the body was shattered and had cut marks—this old Daoist priest has no idea either."
"I'm not even sure how Layman Xie Chong died."
Hearing Xuan Yunzi's words, Lin Yu frowned. "You don't know? How could you not know?"
Li Nian also stroked her chin. "That's a bit strange, isn't it you who called him over?"
"Yes, there was a third person present at the time—an uninvited guest interrupted my conversation with Layman Xie and knocked me unconscious before Layman Xie could commit suicide," Xuan Yunzi said helplessly. "To this day, I still don't know who that person was. I can only vaguely sense that he was a human martial artist."
"Perhaps it was that person who killed Xie Chong."
Upon hearing this, Lin Yu suddenly realized something.
"Wait, since this spider Yaomo manipulates others using 'Karma Threads,' and these Karma Threads work through 'Karma connections between people'..."
Now, although Xie Chong is in pieces, he is still "alive"!
Most importantly, Xie Chong's five remaining body parts have now reconnected with countless people in the martial arts world—and his fame has even surpassed that of the living Xie Chong!
Even someone with just a little toenail can understand who the biggest beneficiary of this phenomenon is.
Without a doubt, it was the Thousand-Eyed Thousand-Silk Demon Lord from the underground.
So, the initial contact that led to Yue Zhenqiao and his group being targeted was likely because they made contact with the remains of "Xie Chong".
They were the bodyguards transporting Xie Chong's remains, so naturally they could be affected by the Karma Threads.
Li Nian also realized what was happening.
"I understand—there's another guy operating outside this Prison Mountain Realm, dedicated to getting this spider to appear in the world as soon as possible!"