Chapter 780

Chapter 780: Deception

Haigang City, Meditation Room

Xia Qingshan’s eyes revealed a killing intent when the light projection appeared, but Lin Jiang showed no fear and stared directly back at him.

"You want to kill me."

After a long time, Xia Qingshan said.

He wasn’t foolish; he had seen how Yang Luo died. Although Yang Luo was not as strong as him, she was once a master at the Transmigration Stage. He did not know if she had survived the tribulation.

"What are you saying? You are a celestial being, a force of heaven. How could I ever kill you?"

"The presence inside you is terrifying. I admit I dare not make a move."

Xia Qingshan was very direct; admitting he was weak was not something to be ashamed of. If he were to fall into a trap like this, that would truly be embarrassing.

"I did not expect you to back down."

"Knowing when to act wisely is the greatest strength of a cultivator, and if we were to fight, it would not wait until today."

"So your appearance must mean you want to cooperate with me, right?"

"Yes, I want to work with you."

"Because of Jiang Star."

"Yes, because of Jiang Star."

"What is the reason? Can you tell me?"

"Of course, Jiang Star is a place where beings like me do not exist. I want you to take my clone there to occupy Jiang Star."

"What if I refuse?"

"You cannot refuse, because without me to use the laws of heaven, that planet may never achieve immortality, and sooner or later, it will be taken over by other immortals. You are not beings born under the laws of other immortals, and to them, you will seem like intruders. They will kill you all."

"Is that so?"

Lin Jiang remained doubtful. If that is true, then what about Blue Star? Lin Jiang should be sure that before he crossed over, there were no cultivators in Blue Star, or in other words, no beings like Xia Qingshan.

"I have no need to lie to you."

"Then why didn’t you kill Yang Luo back then?"

"At that time, my skills were not complete, and I couldn’t kill her. You can’t expect the one who took over Jiang Star to be the same as I was before."

"It seems I have no choice now."

"That’s about right, cooperation, win-win."

"But what you offer is not enough."

"Your woman, your sister, your beast pet, after they reach Transmigration Stage or level eight, let them stop their training to avoid attracting heavenly tribulations, and I will grant them long lives."

"How much can you give?"

"It won’t be less than one hundred thousand years. A human body, no matter how it’s refined, is very weak. This is even less than the demon race. If it’s the demon race, I can grant up to three hundred thousand years of life."

"Is there such a big difference in lifespan between humans and the demon race?"

Lin Jiang frowned; the difference in size between humans and the demon race was quite large, several times bigger.

"If you want to live differently, I can help you, like becoming a mechanical life form, similar to artificial intelligence. If your body gets damaged, you can just replace it."

"Can this kind of life be eternal?"

"No, but it can last a very long time."

"Then that seems meaningless, doesn’t it?"

"The meaning of life is different for everyone."

Xia Qingshan said, giving a vague answer.

"Was that really you, Xia Qingshan, from back then?"

"Yes and no, my situation is very complicated. Even if I tell you, you won’t understand."

"Okay, I won’t ask anymore. How do you want me to cooperate with you?"

"Take over Jiang Star, train more cultivators who achieve Tao, and continue to explore the universe to discover other life planets and conquer those planets."

"Are you gaining strength by this kind of plunder?"

Lin Jiang pointedly stated Xia Qingshan’s purpose.

"Yes."

"You don’t hide it at all."

"For the strong, there is no need to hide, and I have always been sincere with my partners."

"Tao Achieving on Blue Star…"

"I will not take the initiative. My life is very long. Whether those who achieve Tao grow old naturally or die in battle, in the end, I am the one who benefits. However, if it is far away from Blue Star, you need to help me collect their essence after they fall."

Xia Qingshan said, "The soul of a living being, the most important thing is that essence. Therefore, ordinary living beings are useless to me; they must be above Tao Achieving, and the more, the better."

"I understand, but if my family wants to leave Blue Star, you cannot stop them anymore."

"No, your closest ones must stay on Blue Star, unless I have already conquered Jiang Star; then they can go to Jiang Star."

"Can we not negotiate?"

"No, do not think about breaking away from me, or from our cooperation. I have said that our cooperation is a win-win. If you try to make any small moves, it will only lead to your own destruction."

"I understand."

"Let’s end it here for the first meeting. Do not inform too many people about my existence; one or two is enough. We will meet again in the future."

Xia Qingshan nodded, then the projection disappeared, and the wristwatch fell silent once more, shutting down again.

········

"Did you fail your retreat this time?"

Cao Ying saw Lin Jiang leave his retreat, but he was not at the Transmigration Stage, so she asked.

"I won’t be able to break through for a while, I saw him."

"Him?"

"Yes, Xia Qingshan."

"The embodiment of the Heavenly Dao?"

"No, it is the true Heavenly Dao. It’s similar to what we thought, but also different."

"Please explain in detail."

"There is no so-called heavenly path, nor is there becoming an immortal. There is only the consciousness of planets, a being disguised as the heavenly path, and that being is Xia Qingshan—not the Xia Qingshan we know, but a cultivator who once bore the name Xia Qingshan. He survived the trials of the Transmigration Stage and then became a different kind of creature, dwelling within the entire planet and becoming the will of this planet."

"The amount of information is overwhelming."

Cao Ying fell silent; she could not immediately accept this truth. Is cultivation truly a scam?

"It’s actually very easy to understand; it’s like Cthulhu."

"What is Cthulhu? I’ve heard you mention it several times."

"It is a speculation about immortals among mortals. Us ordinary people have a beautiful fantasy about immortals, believing that they should be kind. But in reality, immortals might be dark."

"Unknowable, undefinable, unimaginable—this is Cthulhu. Likewise, the immortals described by Cthulhu also feed on living beings."

"If this information gets out, it could cause the entire world to collapse; the core idea of the cultivation system would be shattered."

Cao Ying said. She, too, was a traditional cultivator. If it hadn’t been for being with Lin Jiang for so long and quickly accepting new ideas, she would be breaking down right now. Even now, her emotions were extremely stirred.

"So this matter is something only you and I know; Lin Ying cannot say anything."

"Does she have to keep it a secret too?"

"Lin Ying’s thoughts are more traditional; her childhood was not very happy."

Lin Jiang said that most people’s ideas are formed very early. In Cao Ying’s childhood, Lin Jiang gave her a happy upbringing. This kind of environment allowed Cao Ying to accept new things more easily. But Lin Ying is different; she grew up with the family-first education from Lin Batian. At that time, the Lin family was weak and filled with many ideas. The happiest moments of Lin Ying’s childhood were probably at Lin Jiang’s estate.

"I can understand the children of the family."

"Yes, so we will bear the responsibility; this is what I should do as an older brother."

"Then I should also do the same as a sister-in-law."

"From now on, let’s act normal and not mention these things."

"I understand. Is there anything else he mentioned?"

"Not yet, but I don’t trust him."

"Is that really something you can say?"

"Yes, everything about Blue Star is under his watch. He knows everything we talk about. There’s nothing to hide. I don’t trust him, and he doesn’t trust us."

"Going back and forth like this is very tiring."

"I know, but there are no other choices."

Lin Jiang said that in this situation, all he needed to do was make sure Xia Qingshan had only one partner to work with, which meant keeping Huaxia strong, so Xia Qingshan truly had no other choice.

"You seem to accept this very quickly."

"Isn’t this what we expected? To be honest, I expected even worse results. This is already quite good."

Lin Jiang said that he had even thought about the possibility of a direct conflict, even considering a mutually destructive plan, but since that didn’t happen, it was the best outcome.