The Demon Lord of All Forms

Chapter 32 On Strength

Setting down his teacup, Nongting City held up three fingers.

"The Nine Nether Sect is one of the top three sects among the Ten Directions of Demonic Path. It has three Great True Persons: the sect leader Yan Qihui, myself, and an elder named Si Luoqu."

Yun Weiyang listened quietly.

"With these three as the main force, the Nine Nether Sect has subtly split into three major factions. The Sect Leader faction is headed by Yan Qihui. The Greedy Wolf faction is headed by me. I control the Greedy Wolf Hall of the Nine Nether Sect. Most of the three dynasties, six grotto-heavens worlds, and hundreds of large and small mineral veins and blessed lands within the Nine Nether Sect's sphere of influence are under my control."

"There is another faction, the neutral faction led by Si Luoqu. It was quite powerful a hundred years ago, but in recent years, as Si Luoqu's lifespan is coming to an end, the neutral faction has been losing members, and it looks like it won't last much longer."

Upon hearing this, Yun Weiyang asked, "So, you and Yan Qihui have been engaged in a power struggle both openly and covertly?"

Nong Tingshi glanced at Yun Weiyang and said calmly.

"He wants to keep his position as leader, and I want to take over. Is that so hard to understand?"

"It's not difficult." Yun Weiyang shook her head: "I just want to know what this has to do with me."

"It has a lot to do with you."

Li Qinghe spoke, sitting beside Nong Tingshi with the Seven Kill Sword across her lap, her voice cold and clear.

"Yan Qihui's foundation is the 'Dragon Demon Sacred Armor Scripture'. To cultivate this celestial technique to perfection, one must forge twelve dragon demons. Once the twelve dragon demons gather, he will be qualified to undergo the Three-Nine Heavenly Tribulation and ascend to the Celestial Realm."

Yun Weiyang's brows twitched slightly.

"Twelve dragon demons... how many has he successfully forged now?"

"Ten." Nongting City held up ten fingers, then pulled them back: "Two more are needed."

Which two are missing?

"Practitioners of the Nine Extremes Hell Demon Path and practitioners of the Seal Demon Scripture."

Yun Weiyang fell silent, looked at Li Qinghe, then at Nongting City, and then smiled.

"So, I'm number eleven?"

"You're number twelfth," Li Qinghe said calmly. "I'm number eleven."

Yun Weiyang's smile remained unchanged, but his eyes narrowed slightly. This was the first time he had ever encountered a situation where he was being eaten.

Yun Weiyang looked at Li Qinghe, then at Nongting City.

"So you made me cultivate the 'Demon Seal Scripture' and brought me back to the Nine Nether Sect, all from the beginning just to lure Yan Qihui into a trap?"

"If you don't cultivate the 'Demon Seal Scripture,' he won't even glance at you, and you won't live to enter the Ninefold Netherworld." Nong Tingshi's voice was cold: "Souls capable of cultivating the 'Demon Seal Scripture' are rare. In the past hundred years, you are the only one in the Nine Nether Sect to have succeeded. You are bait that he cannot refuse."

Yun Weiyang leaned back in her chair and crossed her hands in front of her abdomen.

"So, what's your plan? To turn me into a dragon demon, and then have it backfire at the crucial moment?"

Li Qinghe glanced at Nong Tingshi, who nodded slightly.

"Yan Qihui needs to completely transform your soul and body into his puppet in order to refine the dragon demon. This process is irreversible. Once it is completed, you will never have a chance to turn things around. But before the refinement, he needs you to grow stronger."

"My father will do everything in his power to ensure your advancement, using the most and best resources to help you overcome the Nine Heavens Tribulation and advance to the True Person realm as quickly as possible. Only then will you be qualified to be refined by Yan Qihui."

Upon hearing this, Yun Weiyang couldn't help but laugh.

"Such a simple scheme, and Yan Qihui falls for it?"

"You don't understand."

Li Qinghe's voice was calm, yet carried a sense of certainty.

"With the twelve dragon demons gathered, he would be qualified to undergo the Tribulation of the Three Nine Heavens and ascend to the Celestial Realm. Faced with such a temptation, he could not refuse. Moreover, Old Monster Yan was a genius. It took him less than two hundred years to go from being a mortal servant to passing the Tribulation of the Two Nine Heavens. He was very confident in himself and confident that he could destroy all conspiracies and tricks with absolute strength."

Yun Weiyang looked at the father and daughter in front of her and remained silent for a moment.

"It seems I don't have the right to refuse."

"Of course not." Nong Tingshi looked at Yun Weiyang, his voice leaving no room for doubt: "From the moment you stepped into the Ninefold Netherworld, you were already destined to never be free."

Yun Weiyang did not refute, but turned her head to look at Li Qinghe.

"You are not entirely without hope," Li Qinghe said calmly. "As long as our plan succeeds, Old Monster Yan will surely die. If you struggle a little longer and preserve your consciousness, you might be able to turn the tables and inherit his ten demonic dragons after Old Monster Yan's death, ascending to the heavens in one step and becoming a Great True Person."

Yun Weiyang chuckled, neither confirming nor denying. With his cultivation level, it was simply a pipe dream for him to turn against Yan Qihui.

"Since you've given me such a dangerous mission, shouldn't I receive some kind of reward?"

Nong Tingshi looked at Yun Weiyang, smiled coldly, said nothing, and turned to leave the Dao Palace.

Li Qinghe stood up and looked at Yun Weiyang, saying, "If you want a reward, you must first prove that you have the ability to survive. In the Nine Nether Sect, even if we want to protect you, you won't survive if you're not strong enough."

Yun Weiyang stood up, looked at Li Qinghe, and said, "So, if I want to sell myself, I still need to prove that I have value to be sold, right?"

"You've grasped it very well," Li Qinghe said calmly without refuting.

"How can you prove it?"

Li Qinghe looked at Yun Weiyang and said, "It's very simple. Three days later, Old Monster Yan will announce my return to the position of elder. At that time, I will promote you to a true disciple. However, it won't be easy for you to hold onto this position. True disciples of the Nine Nether Sect will definitely have strength far exceeding that of ordinary disciples. Other disciples will challenge you. Once you lose, not only me, but even Old Monster Yan will not be able to protect your position as a true disciple."

"It's normal to talk about strength." Yun Weiyang nodded and looked at Li Qinghe, saying, "So, tomorrow I only need to defeat some disciples of the Demonic Cult, and that will be enough, right?"

Li Qinghe looked at Yun Weiyang, whose expression remained calm, and said, "It's not as simple as you say. Even with my suppression, disciples above the Dao Embryo realm won't attack you, but even among those Dao Embryo realm disciples, it will be difficult for you to defeat them. After all, you haven't cultivated many supernatural abilities yet."

Yun Weiyang smiled upon hearing this and spoke.

"Then, could you please teach me two supernatural abilities, Master? The supernatural abilities of the 'Demon Seal Scripture' lie in its eerie demonic corruption, and it is not good at direct combat."

Li Qinghe glanced at Yun Weiyang, said nothing, and turned to walk out of the Dao Palace.

Yun Weiyang followed behind Li Qinghe, passing through a magnificent golden corridor and through door after door, finally arriving at a spacious hall.

The palace gate was three zhang high and two zhang wide, cast entirely in black iron. It had no decorations, only two deep engravings, as if it had been scratched by something extremely sharp. Li Qinghe raised his hand and pushed, and the heavy palace gate slid open silently.