Chapter 15: A Conversation with Jiang Yixing
Zhou Emperor Ji Zhi sighed inwardly. He knew exactly where the rumors of Jiang Li slaughtering an entire city had originated.
At that time, an Outer World Demon had been defeated but used the Demonic Disintegration Art, splitting itself into a hundred thousand fragments. The entire city fell within its contamination range. Anyone affected—regardless of cultivation—would succumb to inner demons, lose their rationality, and attack others on sight. Those bitten would, in turn, become new contamination sources. Even Soul Formation cultivators were not spared.
If those infected weren’t killed immediately, the entire Nine Provinces Continent would have been corrupted.
However, the karmic burden of such an act was immense, and publicly admitting it would tarnish one’s reputation. Because of this, none of the other Human Sovereign candidates were willing to take action—except for Jiang Li. He killed without hesitation, slaying anyone infected, including a Soul Formation cultivator, ultimately stopping the contamination from spreading.
At the time, Jiang Li had said, I have yet to find a cure. Announcing this will only cause unnecessary panic. Just say I accidentally harmed innocents while fighting the demon.
From that day forward, no one dared to call themselves a Human Sovereign candidate in front of him.
Jiang Li casually tossed aside the man he had been holding and turned to the kneeling Clan Leader Jiang.
“Clan Leader Jiang, I understand why you tried to manipulate the crowd. You thought that because I value the people’s will, you could use public opinion to force my hand and make me accept the Jiang Family into the Human Sovereign Hall.”
“The Human Sovereign Hall holds a lofty position with many privileges. If Jiang Yixing’s case fell under its jurisdiction, it would be easy to lessen his punishment. That’s why you kept emphasizing his innocence and remorse, reminiscing about childhood memories—hoping that I would show leniency and spare the Jiang Family.”
“Did you really think I care about what the people think?”
Jiang Li ignored Clan Leader Jiang’s reaction and turned to Zhou Emperor Ji Zhi. “Ji Brother, handle Jiang Yixing’s case as you see fit. Judge and sentence him as the law dictates—don’t concern yourself with me.”
“What a pity,” Ji Zhi sighed. “I was hoping you’d plead for mercy so I’d have an excuse to fight you!”
The two locked eyes and burst into laughter.
Yuan Wuxing, watching this, felt a sudden enlightenment. His fear dissipated, and without a sound, his Golden Core shattered, transforming into a Nascent Soul—one of the highest quality possible.
With both the Zhou Emperor and the Human Sovereign overseeing the case, the trial proceeded swiftly. Using a Recording Sphere and Time Reversal, Ji Zhi captured every involved suspect.
Everyone in the Jiang Family—except for a few who were truly unaware—was thrown into prison, sentenced to execution after autumn.
Of all the former Qing City Lords, only two were ignorant of the Jiang Family’s crimes. The rest were imprisoned and sentenced to death.
Jiang Yixing was placed in the Celestial Prison, condemned to complete annihilation—body and soul erased.
The two princes, guilty of covering up crimes and abusing their authority, faced even harsher punishment due to their royal status. They were imprisoned for a hundred years, with no chance of reduced sentences or parole. The Zhou Emperor seized this opportunity to launch an anti-corruption crackdown, shaking the Great Zhou bureaucracy to its core.
The Celestial Prison was damp and sinister, with a Ten Directions Spirit-Sealing Formation woven into its foundations, making spiritual energy nearly nonexistent. Cultivators held here would struggle even to draw in spiritual energy, let alone advance in cultivation.
The prisoners fell into two categories:
High-level cultivators—who had their meridians and divine sense sealed with silver needles to prevent them from cultivating.
Criminals with violent tendencies—who, though weak, were so dangerous they couldn’t be held anywhere else.
These two groups despised each other. The former saw themselves as superior and looked down on common thugs, while the latter feared nothing, treating even former powerhouses as equals.
As a result, the prison was constantly filled with shouting and fighting.
But today was different.
Today, the prisoners sat quietly in meditation, not daring to stir up trouble.
“Jiang Li, you truly are imposing,” Jiang Yixing chuckled, watching him. “Just sitting there in silence is enough to keep these prisoners in check.”
His frail body shook with each laugh, forcing him into fits of coughing.
To outsiders, the scene resembled a grandfather and grandson sitting together. Few would guess that these two were actually cousins—only a year apart in age.
Jiang Yixing had killed hundreds of infants to cultivate demonic arts. Either crime alone was enough to land him in the Celestial Prison. Together, they left him no chance of redemption.
“You should be grateful this is Great Zhou. If this were any other empire, I would have executed you on the spot. Who cares what the law says?” Jiang Li said coldly.
Jiang Yixing sneered. “The Mahayana Stage really is something else. Unlike me—born with mediocre talent, no Heavenly Spirit Root, no Boundless Dao Physique. Without clever tricks, I’d have died at the Foundation Establishment Stage.”
“Don’t play dumb,” Jiang Li snapped. “When I first started cultivating, my Heavenly Spirit Root was concealed, and my Boundless Dao Physique was blocked. To the outside world, I was nothing more than a useless Five-Element Trash Body. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have been bullied by you.”
“I clawed my way to the Mahayana Stage through countless life-and-death battles. Even then, I never preyed on the weak like you did—slaughtering infants, utterly devoid of humanity!”
Jiang Yixing scoffed but said nothing. His earlier words had been spoken out of spite.
“I only have one question,” he muttered. “For five hundred years, you never returned home. Why did you suddenly decide to visit a few days ago? If you hadn’t come back, no one would have discovered me!”
His expression twisted with resentment. His wrinkled face trembled.
Had Jiang Li not returned, he could have continued ruling Qing City from the shadows, wielding power unchecked. He could have bided his time, broken through to the Soul Formation Stage, and lived for a thousand years.
You could’ve been the Human Sovereign, and I could’ve been Qing City’s uncrowned king. We could’ve coexisted in peace. So why did you have to come back?
Jiang Li hesitated for a moment before answering, “I had a feeling I should return. I can’t explain it.”
He had considered telling Jiang Yixing about the System, but upon reflection, he realized even he couldn’t fully explain it. So, he simply attributed it to intuition.
“The heavens have their own order,” Jiang Yixing murmured. “Maybe even the gods couldn’t tolerate my actions and sent you to punish me.”
His voice carried no surprise.
He had long suspected this was the case. But without confirmation, the doubt had weighed heavily on him. Now that Jiang Li had given his answer, it was as if a great stone had been lifted from his chest.
His gloomy demeanor brightened, as if he had finally accepted his fate.
“My question is done. Now it’s your turn.”
“You knew I had a question?” Jiang Li raised an eyebrow.
“One does not enter the temple without reason. If you were just here to see me off, I would have gladly thanked you.”
Jiang Li didn’t hesitate. “Where did you learn the method of sacrificing infants? And how did you know that Power of Faith could dispel their lingering resentment?”
Jiang Yixing tilted his head, staring at the damp prison ceiling. He was silent for a long time, as if lost in thought—or perhaps carefully choosing his words.
“About 380 years ago, a man in black appeared before me. With a mere gesture, he elevated my cultivation from Foundation Establishment to Golden Core.”
“I was nearing the end of my lifespan then—trapped in the middle stages of Foundation Establishment, waiting for death. Yet he gave me another hundred years. Naturally, I was grateful.”
“He then taught me the Infant Blood Sacrifice technique. Having escaped death once, I desperately clung to life and was tempted by the method. But I worried that the infants’ resentment would expose my demonic cultivation.”
“The black-robed man saw my hesitation and told me that Power of Faith could cleanse the resentment. Then, he vanished. I never saw him again.”
Jiang Li’s expression darkened.
If he had relied on Power of Faith, then once Jiang Yixing’s crimes were exposed, the backlash would have been catastrophic.
Was this an elaborate scheme against him? Or merely a random act of spreading demonic techniques?
But 380 years ago, he had only been a Human Sovereign candidate. Could the black-robed man have left similar traps for all candidates?
Lost in thought, Jiang Li’s figure faded, drifting away into the unknown.
Jiang Yixing stared out his tiny prison window at the blue sky and soaring birds, tears streaming down his face.
Even after accepting his fate, he still feared death.