Chapter 294

Chapter 294: Entering the Game in Person!

Man Xiao knew that what Ye Tianming had said was right — someone was really setting a trap.

The target was their Savage Demon Realm.

And the one setting the trap was, without a doubt, the Yang family.

The woman in blue said nothing more. She walked into the great hall, where twelve stone pillars stood, each one carved with the image of a ferocious beast.

At the very center of the hall sat a woman dressed in a black robe, her hair entirely silver, her legs seemingly somewhat impaired.

The Great Shaman of the Demon Clan!

Ever since the Demon Ancestor had vanished after suffering severe injuries all those years ago, it was this very Great Shaman who had been managing the entire Demon Ancestor’s Royal Court. Within the Savage Demon Realm, her prestige was extraordinarily high.

The Great Shaman watched the woman in blue without saying a word.

The woman in blue smiled and said, “Great Shaman, I’ve come this time to discuss cooperation. The demon clan has endless demon beasts, and my Celestial Treasure Pavilion has endless wealth, endless pills, and endless equipment. Together, we can raise the entire demon clan’s power by more than tenfold in a short period of time.”

This was naturally no empty boast.

The Celestial Treasure Pavilion had exactly that kind of strength. As the woman in blue had said, the resources the Celestial Treasure Pavilion could mobilize were vast beyond measure.

The Great Shaman fixed her gaze on the woman in blue. “Give me three days to consider.”

The woman in blue nodded. She suddenly produced a scroll and placed it before the Great Shaman. “This is the number one cultivation technique left behind by your Demon Ancestor — the Immortal Sutra. When we first obtained it, it was incomplete, but we later restored it to its full form. Now we return it to its rightful owner.”

The Savage Immortal Sutra!

Once hailed as the universe’s number one body-refining cultivation technique.

But when the Demon Ancestor vanished after suffering severe injuries, the Savage Immortal Sutra had completely disappeared as well — and this had caused the Savage Demon Realm’s power to decline rapidly.

And now, this Savage Immortal Sutra had appeared once again — and in its complete form, no less.

Beside them, Man Xiao’s eyes blazed with intensity, his gaze making no effort to conceal his greed.

For if he were to cultivate it, his strength would increase by at least fivefold — and that was a conservative estimate.

This technique had been created by the Demon Ancestor specifically for the demon clan’s demon beasts, and it was of tremendous benefit to them.

But the Great Shaman gave a slight shake of her head. She pushed the Savage Number One Sutra back toward the woman in blue. “One should not accept rewards without merit.”

The woman in blue looked at the Great Shaman and smiled faintly. “Very well. I’ll come back in three days.”

With that, she put away the Savage Number One Sutra and turned to leave.

After the woman in blue had gone, Man Xiao immediately stepped forward. “Great Shaman, that Savage Number One Sutra…….”

The Great Shaman glanced at him. “You want it?”

Man Xiao nodded.

The Great Shaman said calmly, “Then go be someone’s dog.”

Man Xiao froze.

The Great Shaman wheeled herself to the front of the great hall. She slowly raised her head to gaze into the sky. “Do you know what scheme the Yang family is weaving?”

Man Xiao shook his head.

The Great Shaman slowly closed her eyes. “Whether it’s the Yang family or the Divine Realm, their ultimate goal is in fact the Grand Dao Rankings and the divine seats. You only see the benefits the Yang family is offering, but you can’t see what those benefits actually imply — they mean that our Savage Demon Realm must submit to the Yang family and become their enforcers.”

Man Xiao fell silent.

The Great Shaman continued, “Does submitting to the Yang family actually seem like a decent arrangement to you?”

Man Xiao didn’t dare to speak.

But truthfully, that was exactly what he thought.

Because the Savage Demon Realm’s strength had already fallen far from what it once was. In his eyes, following the Yang family wasn’t necessarily a bad thing for the Savage Demon Realm.

After all, the benefits the Yang family was offering……. especially that Savage Immortal Sutra.

The Great Shaman slowly turned to look at Man Xiao. “Why didn’t that Ye Tianming kill you?”

Man Xiao’s expression turned somewhat uneasy.

“Hmm?”

The Great Shaman fixed her gaze on Man Xiao. Her eyes were steady, yet they carried a terrifying pressure.

Man Xiao was clearly somewhat afraid of this Great Shaman. He lowered his head slightly and recounted the entire sequence of events from beginning to end.

After she had finished listening.

The Great Shaman said quietly, “This Young Master Ye went to the Divine Academy, but ultimately left the Divine Academy again. Combined with the matter involving your son……. it’s quite obvious that none of this is a coincidence. The Yang family intends to kill two birds with one stone — to once again stir up conflict between us and the Cultivators’ Institute. If things truly reach that point, our Savage Demon Realm would have no choice but to side with the Yang family…….”

Man Xiao said in a low voice, “Ye Tianming said the same thing. But in my view, given the current situation, there will inevitably be a battle between the Yang family and the Divine Realm. And once it’s over, if the Yang family wins, our Savage Demon Realm would have to submit whether we wanted to or not — and by then, we’d have no bargaining power at all. But if we act now…….”

He glanced at the Great Shaman. “Submitting now would bring us boundless benefits.”

The Great Shaman gave a slight nod. “What you say is not wrong, but……”

She looked toward Man Xiao. “Your eyes only see the Yang family and the Divine Realm. But have you ever considered the Cultivators’ Institute? Have you ever considered that Young Master Ye?”

Man Xiao’s brow furrowed slightly.

The Great Shaman opened her palm, and a scroll appeared in her hand. “I just had someone pull together everything there is to know about this Young Master Ye. It turns out he has defeated the Yang family’s young lord from Guanxuan Universe three times. Between him and Guanxuan Academy, there is a blood feud that cannot be resolved.”

Then she suddenly broke into a smile. “The fact that he didn’t kill you was his way of giving our Savage Demon Realm a choice.”

Man Xiao said in a low voice, “He wants us to choose him?”

The Great Shaman glanced at Man Xiao. “Choosing the Yang family or the Divine Realm both mean submission. But choosing him — that’s not submission. That’s cooperation.”

Cooperation!

Man Xiao’s brow creased. “But the Cultivators’ Institute has already withdrawn from the world……. and from what things look like right now, Ye Tianming has no advantage whatsoever against the Yang family and the Divine Realm…….”

The Great Shaman said bluntly, “You and your son are both dumber than pigs.”

Man Xiao’s expression turned unpleasant, but he still didn’t dare to argue back.

The Great Shaman said, “First — he has the Cultivators’ Institute behind him. The fact that he’s out there making his way in the world alone right now doesn’t mean the Cultivators’ Institute has truly washed its hands of him. Have you ever heard of a term? Free-range. Second — he has defeated Yang Jia three consecutive times. What does that mean? Competing for the Grand Dao Rankings does require the strength of the forces behind you, but what matters most in the end? It’s still the challenger themselves.”

She raised her head to gaze into the sky and said softly, “You couldn’t even mount a counterattack against him. How dare you look down on him?”

Man Xiao said in a low voice, “Is the Great Shaman thinking of choosing him? He’s from the Cultivators’ Institute — and back in the day, between our Savage Demon Realm and the Cultivators’ Institute……”

The Great Shaman said softly, “Man Xiao, you know as well as I do that even when the Cultivators’ Institute was at the height of its terrifying power, our Savage Demon Realm never once submitted to them. And yet now, you want us to kneel before the Yang family or the Divine Realm?”

Man Xiao let out a deep sigh.

The Great Shaman continued, “Since this Young Master Ye has shown our Savage Demon Realm some respect, why can’t we show him the same in return? Have someone send an invitation on my behalf……. actually, forget it. I’ll go see him myself.”

Man Xiao said in a low voice, “But my son…….”

The Great Shaman said, “You’re still young. Have another one.”

Man Xiao: “…….”

On the other side.

Ye Tianming and the Northern Zhao Emperor walked slowly along the river.

Ye Tianming said, “Thank you.”

The Northern Zhao Emperor shook her head. “Young Master Ye had no need of our help at all.”

Ye Tianming turned to look at the Northern Zhao Emperor. “Miss Zhao Emperor, I believe that ‘people’ and ‘the Dao’ can walk the same path side by side.”

The Northern Zhao Emperor’s eyes immediately lit up. “Young Master Ye…….”

Ye Tianming smiled and said, “Miss Zhao Emperor, would you be interested in playing a game of chess?”

The Northern Zhao Emperor narrowed her eyes slightly. “I’d love to hear more.”

Half an hour later, the Northern Zhao Emperor left with her people.

After the Northern Zhao Emperor departed, the Great Shaman arrived at the wooden cottage where Ye Tianming and Zhantai Zhan were staying.

Ye Tianming looked toward the Great Shaman. “The Savage Demon Realm?”

The Great Shaman nodded slightly. She studied Ye Tianming with a smile. “Young Master Ye, you’re so young.”

Ye Tianming smiled and said, “Please, have a seat……”

As he spoke, he opened his palm, and a cup of tea that Zhantai Zhan had just brewed floated gently over to the Great Shaman.

The Great Shaman took the teacup. “Three teacups. Young Master Ye knew I was coming?”

Ye Tianming nodded. “The matter between us will have to be resolved eventually, won’t it?”

The Great Shaman looked at Ye Tianming. “And how does Young Master Ye intend to resolve it?”

Ye Tianming turned the question back on her. “Does the Savage Demon Realm wish to compete for the Grand Dao Rankings?”

The Great Shaman shook her head.

The Savage Demon Realm as it stood now simply didn’t have the strength to compete.

Ye Tianming said, “But this is an age of great contention. Even if the Savage Demon Realm wants to sit back quietly on its own, that’s probably not going to be possible. Right now, though, the situation is unclear, and the Savage Demon Realm must be hesitating — unsure whether to choose the Yang family or the Divine Realm……. or perhaps the Savage Demon Realm doesn’t want to choose either. Am I right?”

The Great Shaman looked at Ye Tianming and smiled. “Young Master Ye truly sees through everything.”

Ye Tianming said, “May I ask — what is the current state of the Demon Ancestor?”

The Great Shaman’s eyes narrowed slightly, and the atmosphere between them suddenly became tense.

Ye Tianming said, “I have no ill intentions.”

After a brief silence, the Great Shaman said, “Severely injured.”

Ye Tianming smiled and said, “Neither the Divine Realm nor the Yang family would want the Demon Ancestor to recover from those injuries, would they?”

The Great Shaman looked at Ye Tianming. “What are you getting at?”

Ye Tianming said, “No matter whether you choose the Yang family, the Divine Realm, or even me and the Cultivators’ Institute, you’ll ultimately end up as a dependent — and that’s surely not what you and the Demon Ancestor want to see. So I believe that only when the Demon Ancestor’s injuries are healed can the Savage Demon Realm’s Demon Ancestor truly be the master of their own house and stand tall with pride.”

The Great Shaman stared hard at Ye Tianming. “My grand-master is a very good person. I’ll write him a letter — what happened back then should be water under the bridge.”

He wasn’t overstepping — he had already written to Liu Sha to ask. Liu Sha’s reply was that the grand-master regarded what had happened back then……. without the slightest concern. It was a matter too trivial to even dwell upon.

The Great Shaman said in a low voice, “You want to help our Demon Ancestor?”

Ye Tianming nodded. “I want to see the Savage Demon Realm return to its peak.”

The Great Shaman stared at Ye Tianming. “Why?”

Ye Tianming said, “The Divine Realm and the Yang family want to subjugate you. But that’s not what I want. I want to make friends with the Savage Demon Realm.”

After staring at Ye Tianming for a moment, the Great Shaman said, “You’re serious.”

Ye Tianming nodded.

The Great Shaman fell silent.

“Wait — that’s not right!”

Ye Tianming suddenly looked up at the Great Shaman. “The Demon Ancestor must already be gone from this world!”

The Great Shaman’s eyes contracted sharply. Without a sound, a dagger appeared at Ye Tianming’s throat.

Ye Tianming showed not the slightest fear. He looked at the Great Shaman. “You are formidable, my lady. You’ve used this lie to protect the Savage Demon Realm for all these years…….”

It wasn’t hard to imagine what would happen to the Savage Demon Realm if outsiders were to learn that the Demon Ancestor was no more.

The Great Shaman stared hard at Ye Tianming. “How did you know?”

Ye Tianming said, “If the Demon Ancestor were still alive, knowing the pride your people had back then, you wouldn’t just refuse to surrender — you wouldn’t even deign to cooperate with outsiders. But you came to find me yourself. That makes it clear you understand that this time, there’s no hiding from it — you must find a way forward for the Savage Demon Realm…….”

The Great Shaman said nothing.

Ye Tianming gently removed the blade from his throat, then said, “Since strength is lacking, then let us rely on strategy and wisdom.”

He looked toward the Great Shaman. “Great Shaman, would you be interested in playing a game of chess?”

The Great Shaman asked, “How do we play?”

Ye Tianming broke into a smile. He slowly raised his head to gaze into the depths of the void and said softly, “Miss Ding, I hear you are the most brilliant mind in the Yang family……. then let us play a game of life and death chess!”

With that, he returned to the thatched cottage and began to write a letter.

This time, he would place himself inside the game.

To clash with the Yang family once more!This time, he’s not fighting the younger generation, but your Yang family’s older generation!

Three days later.

The Savage Demon Realm announced its support for the Yang family!

And almost at the same time, the Great Qian Empire chose to side with the Yang family