Chapter 1377 - 1005: Prosperity

Jinling City is still the same Jinling City. Despite being ravaged by war, it remains untouched by any damage; only the owner of Jinling City has changed.

Within Jinling City, slaves come and go, constantly walking back and forth. Zhang Chen’s eyes swept over the distance, filled with emotions, but he said nothing more, nor did he think to play the savior and rescue that group of slaves. Instead, he continued to urge his horse towards the distant Chongzheng Academy.

As he walked through the streets of Jinling City, he saw its splendor, Demon Beasts dressed in human attire, living like humans, turning the entire city into a realm of monsters.

The group passed through the streets of Jinling, arriving at the foot of the mountain where Chongzheng Academy stood. Through the dense forest, they looked afar and saw the Vast Righteous Qi of Chongzheng Academy soaring into the sky, with the sound of reading echoing through the mountains.

"Is it... Chongzheng Academy hasn’t closed?" Zhou Qiucheng listened to the sound of reading from the mountains, his eyes showing disbelief.

"Chongzheng Academy has clearly turned into ruins. How can there be reading sounds?" Zhou Qiucheng showed a hint of doubt in his eyes, and then the group followed the mountain path into the depths. Halfway, they met a monster wearing a scholar’s outfit but with a wolf’s head, coming down from the mountain.

Looking from afar, the wolf demon scholar appeared cultured and refined, possessing the demeanor of a learned person, even more so than the scholars of Chongzheng Academy in the past.

The wolf demon passed by several people, and upon sensing Hu Li the Immortal’s aura, his expression changed. He respectfully bowed, then stepped aside, waiting for the group to pass before continuing down the mountain.

"Could it be that a Demon Race academy has opened in this mountain?" Zhou Qiucheng’s face darkened.

Zhang Chen remained silent, for he had already seen through his Dharma Eye a cloud of demonic aura soaring into the sky, overshadowing the entire mountain.

After walking for a while in the mountain, they saw in the distance a palace complex, sprawling like a dragon lying dormant among the mountains, looming in and out of view. Although the mountain mist blocked the view, Zhang Chen’s gaze was unobstructed. He had already seen the silhouettes within that palace, including Demon Beasts and Human Demons, reading and studying in the mountains, some reciting articles, others researching knowledge. The Vast Righteous Qi surged and boiled between Heaven and Earth, stronger than that of Chongzheng Academy of old.

Looking at the academy with numerous Demon Beasts dressed in scholar attire, and the remarkably pure Vast Righteous Qi, Zhang Chen’s eyes revealed a sense of irony: a group of human scholars outshone by beasts—isn’t that a mockery?

To Zhang Chen, the scene before him was so ironic. In the past, the human scholars of Jinling City were inferior in Vast Righteous Qi to these Demon Beasts. To say it out loud would make people laugh.

Yet, Zhang Chen did not laugh. Instead, his face turned gloomy, and his steps halted suddenly, remaining motionless.

Over there, Zhou Qiucheng and Zhong Wubai, both Great Cultivators, naturally could see through the clouds and discern everything within the mist. At this moment, Zhong Wubai, with an amazed expression, said, "Such pure Vast Righteous Qi—unexpectedly, these beasts have acquired insights from their studies. If these Demon Beasts can emit such pure and overwhelming Vast Righteous Qi, imagine what the peak Chongzheng Academy must have been like back then."

Upon hearing Zhong Wubai’s words, Zhou Qiucheng’s face turned somber like water. Could he say that in terms of knowledge, humans were inferior to Demon Beasts? To say it would be humiliating!

Beside him, Zhang Chen knew Zhou Qiucheng’s embarrassment, took over the conversation, and said, "The Vast Righteous Qi of Chongzheng Academy in the past was far less than it is now."

Zhong Wubai paused, then seemed to realize his previous words were inappropriate, quickly turned to explain to Zhou Qiucheng, "Zhou, I didn’t mean it."

Zhou Qiucheng smiled bitterly and shook his head, "It’s not really something that can’t be said. Inferior is just inferior."

"You don’t need to blame yourself, sir. The human heart is mysterious and unpredictable, inherently less pure than Demon Beasts. When Demon Beasts study, they truly focus on their studies, but human scholars have too much to consider, and the temptations below the mountain are numerous. So, in terms of the purity of their scholarly mind, they are far inferior." Zhang Chen comforted Zhou Qiucheng, "If all human scholars concentrated solely on academics, could they be matched by those beasts?"

He was not merely comforting Zhou Qiucheng; he was stating a fact. But humans inherently wouldn’t have such a pure scholarly mind.

Zhou Qiucheng naturally understood that humans couldn’t possibly have such a pure scholarly mind, so he also halted his steps, uninterested, and turned to walk down the mountain.

"Old Zhou, weren’t we going to go up the mountain to take a look? Why are you heading back?" Zhong Wubai called out loudly.

"It’s pointless! I’m not looking! It’s just a building and a bunch of beasts; what’s worth watching?" After saying this, Zhou Qiucheng’s steps quickened.

Zhong Wubai looked at Zhou Qiucheng’s back, shook his head, "Old Zhou’s mindset is problematic."

After saying this, he turned to Zhang Chen, "Are we heading back as well?"

"Are you not looking, sir?" Zhang Chen asked with a hint of surprise.

"I’m afraid that after seeing, I will feel despair, and in the future, lose the confidence to resist the Demon Race." Zhong Wubai also, with hands on his back, began to descend the mountain slowly.

"Let’s head back as well. Mr. Zhou is in a poor mood, and we don’t need to continue stabbing at his heart." Beside him, Ji Feihua said to Zhang Chen.

"Go back!" Zhang Chen listened to the sound of reading aloud echoing through the mountains, his eyes reflecting a complex emotion. After taking a deep breath, he took the lead and walked down.

"With the Demon Race being so ambitious, do humans still have hope? Even if all demon beasts turn into wild beasts, if the Human Demon tribe has such aspirations, I’m afraid humans won’t be able to compete," Ji Feihua asked as he followed behind Zhang Chen.

"Who knows what the future holds? What we need to do is preserve the Northern Land as much as possible, ensuring the Demon Race never has a chance to invade us," Zhang Chen also felt that the Demon Race was overly ambitious, unsettlingly so.

The group came with high spirits but left dejectedly. Passing the once Shen Family Mansion, they saw that it had been rebuilt and restored to its former grandeur, which left Zhang Chen feeling a sense of impermanence.

Not long after leaving the Northern Land, the ruins of the Shen Family had been rebuilt and rejuvenated. However, the current inhabitants were demon beasts, each with strange heads but human bodies, looking quite bizarre.

"Shen Garden? Is this the Shen Family?" Ji Feihua looked at the Shen Family gate with curiosity, scanning the demon beasts coming and going.

"You know the Shen Family?" Zhang Chen looked at Ji Feihua with curiosity.

"The matter between you and the Shen Family has long spread around Kyoto, becoming a laughingstock, especially about you being rejected from the marriage..." Ji Feihua realized he might have said something wrong and quickly shut his mouth, giving Zhang Chen an awkward smile, "I misspoke."

Zhang Chen glanced at Ji Feihua and said nothing more, but helplessly cursed, "Bad news travels fast."

"It was Shen Ling who blew the matter up at the Academy to ruin Zhang Gaoqiu’s reputation. After a quarrel in the Academy, the matter became widely known," Ji Feihua paused, "I found it amusing and dispatched someone to investigate thoroughly. Later, Shen Ling tried to get close to me, but I thought her character was problematic, so I reprimanded her from afar."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Chen was surprised; he never expected such twists and turns.

The two talked along the way, returning to the big ship, where human slaves were tirelessly transporting goods to replenish the ship’s supplies.

The slaves had dull eyes and emitted an unpleasant odor, disturbing from a distance. Upon seeing Zhang Chen and the others, they didn’t cry out for help but regarded them as human traitors allied with the Demon Race, silently accepting their enslavement.

"With the Demon Race so diligent and united, do you think humanity truly has hope?" As soon as Zhang Chen boarded the ship, he heard Zhou Qiucheng ask, directed at Zhang Gaqi and the others.

Hearing this, Zhang Gaqi and the others fell silent, their expressions filled with pessimism.

"Sir, do not worry. If one day the Demon Race conquers the human Divine Land, they will succumb to the indulgent lifestyle and eventually adopt human vices, becoming the next humans," Zhang Chen comforted Zhou Qiucheng.

He thought of another race from a previous life: the Northern Grasslands.

After the people from outside the border entered, the Manchurian Banner People completely degenerated. The ruler of the central plains claimed the orthodox Huaxia identity and suppressed their own race using various methods.

Humans have ruled the orthodox Divine Land for hundreds of thousands of years, with a profound cultural heritage, and places like the Jiangnan Water Village are mesmerizing enough to confuse the Human Demons. Once they lose the external threat, they will quickly degenerate and follow in the footsteps of humans.

After hearing Zhang Chen’s high remarks, everyone was taken aback. On closer thought, there was some truth to it.

However, the atmosphere on the ship was much heavier than before, and the smiles on people like Zhou Qiucheng disappeared.

Zhang Chen didn’t continue to console them but instead went aside to brew tea, picking up pastries to eat. His eyes swept over the slaves continuously carrying supplies, spotting a seven or eight-year-old child, thin as a skeleton, struggling to carry half a sack of grain, walking silently behind the other slaves.

"Even the Demon Race uses child labor?" Zhang Chen gazed at the emaciated young teen, black as a little savage, with arms seemingly nothing but bones, looking like a skeletal frame.

The frail youngster glanced at the pastry in Zhang Chen’s hand, pausing slightly and subconsciously swallowing. He gazed longingly at Zhang Chen, who then gently pushed the pastry forward. Seeing that the Steward from the Demon Race wasn’t watching, the youngster quickly shouldered the sack, hurriedly approached, and devoured the pastries greedily.

"Eat slowly, don’t choke! Don’t worry, they won’t punish you if they see; I’ll speak for you," Zhang Chen felt a surge of compassion as he watched the boy.

"You’re so kind, sir! When I find my father, he will repay you! Whatever you need or trouble you have, you can ask my dad," the boy said while devouring the pastries.

Zhang Chen was surprised, intrigued, "So you have connections? Then how did you end up as a slave?"

Hearing Zhang Chen’s words, the boy was taken aback, "Because I haven’t found my father yet! My mom said he’s a hero with unparalleled skills and wisdom. When I find him, I’ll be sure to have him repay you."

At this, the boy noticed a Demon Race Steward patrolling from a distance. He hurriedly stuffed the pastries into his pockets and rejoined the ranks.