The Evil Path Has Always Been the Orthodoxy

It was already late at night.

In a small town in the southern Golden Triangle, a building of more than forty stories is still brightly lit.

In the meeting room on the second floor of the building, thousands of armed men were seated. They were not carrying guns, but their words, actions, and the way they looked suggested that they were ready to shoot and kill at any moment.

Many militants were still injecting their own Spirit Blood into their necks with syringes.

In the past six months, the share of Spirit Blood has been increasing.

People who have been injected with Spirit Blood gradually become more energetic at night, while they tend to feel sleepy in the midday and afternoon.

These people were originally going to volunteer for the fight tonight.

"I haven't been out in battle for a long time since I was selected to come here."

"I heard that the three kingdoms of Siam are still sending troops here. It's infuriating! They should send us out for a surprise attack and decapitation strike, killing our way all the way to Bangkok!"

The main gate on the north side of the venue opened, and several people walked in and stood on the podium.

Among these people, Zhang Mengxi was the leader.

Judging from his appearance, he was a middle-aged man with black hair and no beard, almond-shaped eyes, and slightly yellow pupils. He sat behind the lectern as soon as he stepped onto the stage.

On the table was a copper basin filled with water and a small hammer, but there was nothing like a microphone.

As soon as he stepped onto the stage, the crowd's voices immediately fell much lower.

"I heard you guys were volunteering for battle. Hmm, you're among the group with the highest average progress in injecting Spirit Blood, the best of the best. This desire to fight has been brewing for a long time, so it's not surprising that it's erupting today."

"But we can't fight a war blindly. I need to ask you a few questions first."

Zhang Mengxi spoke calmly, his voice carrying throughout the entire venue.

"In many countries, we practitioners are considered to be on the wrong path. In your opinion, over the past thousand years, has the wrong path or the right path prevailed?"

The armed men present looked at each other in bewilderment.

They were used to killing people while selling cigarettes, attacking their competitors, and extorting money. They had a lot on their plate and plenty of things to do, so they didn't have time to think much.

Recently, having been bestowed with Spirit Blood, they are all strong and healthy, with sharp hearing and eyesight, burning desires, and high spirits. They feel extremely happy and have no mind to think about the distinction between good and evil.

Moreover, Zhang Mengxi had already admitted to practicing heresy, so when he asked this question, none of the people below knew how to answer.

Zhang Mengxi didn't force them to answer; he simply picked up the small hammer in his hand and lightly tapped the copper basin beside him.

I will explain it to you in detail today.

"Taking the history of the great northern powers as examples, such as the Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties, the number of times the people rebelled exceeded the number of years the dynasty lasted."

"If the true path refers to a State Security, with the world at peace, none of the ruling classes in these dynasties were able to achieve that."

"Looking at their use of heretical methods, during the Song Dynasty, monks were revered first, and then Daoists were valued. Most monks and Daoists became famous for their eloquence, incantations, and medicine, and were granted estates and lands, which grew day by day. The methods they used were to quickly please the powerful and wealthy, so they were inevitably either unorthodox or evil arts."

"During the Yuan Dynasty Dao Contention, monks and nobles vied for the Dao, and many monks used drugs, were skilled in sexual intercourse and aphrodisiacs. The emperor himself set up the Sixteen Heavenly Demon Dance. The Ming and Qing dynasties showed very little self-reflection. Their superstitious beliefs and heresies were nothing more than a change of name, and their essence remained the same."

"But as long as they haven't been defeated in the final battle, these dynasties remain the legitimate rulers."

At this point in Zhang Mengxi's speech, many of the quick-witted people in the audience had already grasped the meaning.

Someone exclaimed, "Therefore, for most of the past thousand years, the orthodox court has been, in itself, a heretical path."

Zhang Mengxi chuckled.

"That's right. Orthodoxy is never the same as righteousness. In the past thousand years, the heretical path has had the upper hand for at least 70-80% of the time. Even in the remaining years, the heretical path has at most been brought to a draw."

The militants all wore expressions of excitement, clearly having taken these words to heart.

Someone asked, "Then our approach is absolutely correct, leading to resounding success, and is the orthodox path passed down from our ancestors. Why then do we still need to be so repressed and patient?"

Bite!!

Zhang Mengxi tapped the copper basin again, causing the water to ripple slightly and producing a lingering, clear sound.

"That's what I'm going to talk about next."

"Although the evil path has always prevailed over the millennia, every time it truly involves the Spirit Clan seizing power, or even events instigated by gods behind the scenes, it always ends in failure."

"The actions of the Spirit Clan are actually no different from those of many monarchs and nobles. It's just that they are too straightforward and don't understand the essence of the evil path, which makes them particularly prone to pushing people to their limits and causing a full-scale backlash."

"Therefore, while there are so many poems praising kings and nobles, the Spirit Clan has been deeply labeled as Evil Spirit and despised by discerning people throughout history."

Zhang Mengxi said, "With our current strength, we can easily dominate several surrounding countries, kill their leaders, destroy their capitals, kill indiscriminately for pleasure, and collect slaves to play with."

"But such haste will lead to repeating past mistakes, and destruction will not be far off. It can only be considered pure evil, and cannot be called the Way."

Many of the militants were completely convinced upon hearing this, while others remained resentful, their emotions betraying their true feelings despite their silence.

These men were originally considered elite soldiers, and they both respected and feared their superiors.

However, after consuming the Spirit Blood, the Evil Spirit ' instincts made them even more unruly.

Zhang Mengxi could easily overwhelm them with his imposing presence, but he had no intention of doing so.

These people are the future pillars of society, and they will be sent to even more distant places, just like those who were previously dispatched, to take charge of a region.

It's impossible to overwhelm them all with sheer force every time; you have to make them understand the pros and cons themselves before you can accomplish anything significant.

"I'm not asking you to completely suppress your true nature, just to present it in a more refined way."

Zhang Mengxi smiled, "As I just said, history has repeatedly proven that the world has always regarded the unorthodox as the orthodox, and has always been dominated by people of the unorthodox path."

"If we simply add a little packaging and grasp the essence of the heretical path, countless like-minded people will naturally flock to us, valuing our worth and becoming our allies."

"By then, once the momentum is established, there will be no need for such a low-key and patient approach."

With analysis and promises made in this way, coupled with their already strong prestige and power, they managed to get things done.

By the time Zhang Mengxi finished speaking, everyone's expressions showed genuine admiration.

At that moment, a simple red cord jade bird-shaped pendant on his wrist gleamed slightly.

Zhang Mengxi, who was about to say something more, got up, handed the meeting over to his secretary, and walked out, taking the elevator.

Not long after, he appeared in the room on the top floor.

Sahong sat behind his desk, his eyes fixed on the safe in the side corner.

There was only a stone tablet in the safe.

"It seems you've adapted very well. You've only been in the real world for a little over a month, and after absorbing Zhang Mengxi's soul and body and taking his identity, not only are his original subordinates obedient to you, but even the people selected by Sahong are very devoted to you."

Sahong's tone was calm.

If it were the original Sahong, these words would probably have been a warning, but the two of them are now priests of Yu Mountain.

The small amount of territory they have in the Golden Triangle is merely a bridgehead, a stepping stone, and not worth any infighting between them.

"We follow the teachings of the Ghost Mother, and we should understand that in the beginning of heaven and earth, all things were one, and devouring was like recycling."

"By absorbing Zhang Mengxi, I've essentially taken him as my new life. Using Zhang Mengxi's name as my name in this life will naturally make me much more at ease in the present world."

Zhang Mengxi sat down across the table and laughed, "Luo Sichao is lucky; in his latest life, he was truly reincarnated into this era."

Sahong said in a deep voice, "Something happened to him."

"His communication talisman was destroyed by an extremely powerful yang energy. Before that, I heard about his last battle; his opponents were Chu Tianshu and another Taboo human."

Zhang Mengxi's expression changed slightly.

"Didn't we repeatedly warn him not to actively seek out or provoke any powerful human beings associated with the cave Grotto-Heaven?"

"As long as the Grotto-Heaven remains intact, Grotto-Heaven master can welcome friends into the corresponding territory at any time. The probability of us killing people is too low; on the contrary, it might arouse widespread vigilance and hatred from humanity."

Sahong shook his head. "Luo Sichao was killed on his own turf. He didn't go out; the other side came looking for him."

Zhang Mengxi remained silent.

That's... that's hard to say.

"Was it a lucky accident, or did Chu Tianshu have some intelligence?"

Sahong pushed over a document containing information about the Baosheng Temple Market's high-profile promotion and rapid rise.

Zhang Mengxi was already moved after only two glances, and whispered, "Excellent tactics. They came with the power of a great nation, yet they didn't rush in recklessly, nor did they try to get involved in the upper echelons of the three kingdoms, thus avoiding pointless wrangling."

"Clearly involving something as significant as the Grotto-Heaven, they still managed to be patient, choosing the market as their angle, and quickly building up momentum..."

This choice is the most important. Choosing other routes would make it difficult to find the market angle. This approach is to take advantage of the situation and adapt to local conditions.

"It seems that even if Luo Sichao hadn't been exposed, we would have had to fight sooner or later."

Zhang Mengxi did not hesitate to highly praise his opponent, saying, "The number of Taboo in the Mystic Kingdom now is probably more than just one."

Even if we can't all go abroad, these few people, led by Chu Tianshu, are perhaps worth keeping our distance from.

Sahong said calmly, "You mean, why not just abandon the Golden Triangle, take your people, and move out ahead of time?"

Zhang Mengxi nodded.

"But only the Kingdom-Founding Dragon Qi can activate the Great Yu Dragon Stele, and only the Great Yu Dragon Stele can define the north and south and suppress the Grotto-Heaven."

Sahong said, "Although Luo Sichao is dead, the front of the Dragon Stele has fallen into their hands, but since they don't know how to use it, they can't solve the problem of the Grotto-Heaven."

"If we leave voluntarily, the Kingdom-Founding Dragon Qi will dissipate, and the matter of the Grotto-Heaven entrusted to us by several supreme gods will fail."

When Luo Sichao awakened his innate wisdom, the Yu Mountain lineage sent his original body to reality, where he merged and broke through to a Taboo level.

Within the same month, Luo Sichao used all his accumulated wealth to bring a Yu Mountain Priest into reality, who then devoured Sahong, obtained the Dragon Stele, and declared the establishment of a nation.

Although Sahong had many responsibilities and grand visions for this trip, his most important task recently was to destroy the Grotto-Heaven ruins.

"Only ruins remain of that Grotto-Heaven."

Zhang Mengxi asked, puzzled, "Is it really worth continuing to take this risk?"

"Your original form went to sleep early and doesn't remember the full view of the Grotto-Heaven back then."

A chilling glint flashed in Sahong's eyes.

"Among those who build their Grotto-Heaven, some are building them quickly. I once thought that before the Wind of Dao Dissolution reach their peak, I would ride my Grotto-Heaven and crash into the depths of the Spirit Realm."

"That scene was truly one of heavenly blood rain, ghostly wails, and the gods filled with fear."

"But the most important function of the Grotto-Heaven is not for combat..."

Zhang Mengxi sensed the determination in his tone and immediately changed his mind about withdrawing.

"In other words, even if we retreat, we must at least destroy the Grotto-Heaven before leaving."

Zhang Mengxi pondered for a moment and said, "Alright, we still have some methods at our disposal!"

(End of this chapter)