"Fellow Daoist, what brings you to my Heavenly Court instead of remaining on Shouyang Mountain?"
Inside the Hall of Ascending Heaven, Daochen sat upon the Golden Que, his eyes slightly narrowed as he regarded Laozi with a faint, inscrutable smile.
"I have come to seek Junior Sister Nüwa's opinion on a few matters. Might she be available?"
Laozi looked toward Daochen and asked.
"Why bother asking my opinion, Senior Brother? Haven't you and the other senior brothers already made your move?"
"If I am not mistaken, your disciples have already lured members of the Witch Clan into the vicinity of the Eastern Seashore."
As Laozi's words faded, Nüwa appeared beside Daochen and addressed Laozi in an icy voice.
"Well..."
At Nüwa's words, Laozi's expression stiffened slightly before he smiled. "Nothing escapes your discerning eyes, Junior Sister."
He naturally understood what Nüwa meant.
The Human Race Calamity, of course!
"This was not our intention. Such is the greater course of the Heavenly Dao; we are merely following its current."
Laozi offered his explanation with an unruffled gaze.
"Oh, following its current? Then does that mean my Demon Race should perish together with the Witch Clan to make way for the Human Race?"
Before Nüwa could respond, Daochen spoke with a smile, though that smile looked rather cold.
These Sages really are sinister. If you're scheming against someone, just admit it. Why dress it up in such grand, righteous excuses?
"Not so, not so. With two Sages-the Demon Emperor and the Wa Emperor-presiding over the Demon Race, and the Chaos Pearl anchoring its fortune, it can endure through the ages. How could it possibly be compared to those crude, uncouth creatures of the Witch Clan?"
Laozi showed no anger at Daochen's challenge, his tone remaining perfectly calm.
"What a fine choice of