"I never imagined Shangqing had such a wondrous edict."
With his head gripped in Xu Taiping's hand and his body held fast by the Star Soul Power, unable to move an inch, Tianluo Primordial Lord spoke in a trembling voice filled with admiration.
Xu Taiping lowered his head to glance at Primordial Lord Tianluo and asked curiously:
"Doesn't your Nine Abysses command the vast majority of Shangqing's edicts?"
Tianluo Primordial Lord, a piece of his head missing, sighed softly.
"We call it commanding them, but in truth, we merely gained the same qualification as your Human Race-the right to comprehend the Shangqing Edicts."
Xu Taiping gave Tianluo Primordial Lord a searching look and asked:
"Were you once a cultivator too?"
Tianluo Primordial Lord nodded.
"That's right."
A trace of puzzlement entered Xu Taiping's eyes.
"Was it worth paying such a heavy price to defect to the Demon Mother, only to obtain something you already had before?"
Tianluo Primordial Lord grinned, casting a meaningful look through the gaps between Xu Taiping's fingers as he said:
"Do you truly believe that you human cultivators of today are qualified to comprehend the complete Shangqing Edicts?"
Xu Taiping's gaze sharpened.
Tianluo Primordial Lord continued:
"Did you know? I, along with the other sixteen Dharma Protectors, reached your current cultivation realm long ago."
"But do you know why we still chose to defect to the Demon Mother?"
"Because the path of ascending to heaven was severed back when the Heavenly Court collapsed!"
"If we cannot ascend to heaven and attain immortality, what meaning is there in our cultivation?"
Much to Tianluo Primordial Lord's surprise, Xu Taiping's expression remained calm upon hearing this.
After meeting Tianluo's eyes, Xu Taiping said without a ripple in his expression:
"So the Nine Abysses does know about the Great Void