Chapter 502: Discuss and Discuss Again, the Blade Is About to Fall

Carrying the head of Layman Red Lotus, Cheng Zhen, Zuo Fan headed straight for Red Sun Peak and placed it right in front of Xu Ziyang.

Xu Ziyang gazed at the slightly charred head, a nostalgic expression appearing on his face.

"Brother Cheng, so you’re dead after all," Xu Ziyang couldn’t help but remark. "I joined the sect later than him back in the day."

"He was my inferior in every way, so he assumed I was always working against him, meddling in everything I did."

At this, Xu Ziyang’s tone turned scornful. "He never once considered that he himself was the reason."

"I was able to beat him, not because of some grand conspiracy, but simply because my aptitude was better and my planning was superior."

"Back then, he put on the airs of the eldest disciple, squandering his aptitude and wasting the resources that came with his position."

"It’s only natural that he lost." Xu Ziyang made no attempt to hide anything, speaking as if to himself.

Zuo Fan listened in silence before asking, "So you’re saying you had a hand in his defection, Sect Leader?"

"Now, you can’t put it that way." Xu Ziyang smiled. "It’s not that I had a hand in it. I orchestrated it."

"His character flaws were plain to see. All it took were a few underhanded tricks to make him leave in a fit of indignation."

"With a little more prodding, he could be forced to ’defect’."

Xu Ziyang was younger back then, so his methods were more sinister and cruel. Now, he prefers a blend of orthodox and unorthodox tactics.

One must not only use cunning plots but also wield the power of overwhelming momentum.

Otherwise, if he only knew how to play tricks, he wouldn’t have lasted long.

"Aren’t you afraid I’ll leak what you’ve told me, Sect Leader?" Zuo Fan asked calmly.

"From the very beginning, I’ve been grooming you to be the next Sect Leader."

"Your methods are too crude. Only knowing how to kill will never get you far. You need cunning and schemes to complement your strength. Only then can you ensure the Yanghuang Sect continues to grow."

"Therefore, I’m not leaking secrets. I’m teaching you how to operate." Xu Ziyang was unconcerned.

If Zuo Fan were to actually leak this, it would, at worst, just mean replacing the Peak Master of Azure Flame Peak.

He favored Zuo Fan because of his excellent aptitude; he had no concerns about his future potential in terms of strength.

Especially after killing the Mad Beggar, a Seven Kills Disciple, Zuo Fan was already arguably the second most powerful person in the Yanghuang Sect.

Now, even if someone wanted him to die an early death, they’d have to find someone capable of killing him first.

Xu Ziyang had, of course, experienced the overwhelming power of the Flame Demon’s true form firsthand.

What Zuo Fan lacked now wasn’t strength, but cunning. He was too young.

Strength alone wasn’t enough to command the respect of the Yanghuang Sect, let alone the other eight major sects.

"So, Sect Leader, how is your cultivation of the three Spiritual Techniques coming along?" Zuo Fan changed the subject.

"Very well. I’ve already reached the minor accomplishment stage." Xu Ziyang’s progress was naturally much faster than Zuo Fan’s.

After all, Zuo Fan still had to deal with the Seven Kills Disciples, so his attention was naturally divided.

Besides, Xu Ziyang’s own aptitude was top-tier, and with the full backing of the Yanghuang Sect, reaching the minor accomplishment stage wasn’t difficult.

"Sect Leader, your talent is truly exceptional, but this progress..." Zuo Fan said in a low voice, "Isn’t it a bit too fast?"

"The difficulty of cultivating these three Spiritual Techniques may not match the Nine Fire True Yang Red Dragon Skill, but cultivating all three simultaneously should be just as challenging."

"When I think about the time it took you to master your core technique, and then look at your progress today, it’s clearly too fast, isn’t it?"

Zuo Fan wasn’t questioning him without reason. The side effects of the Flame Demon’s true form were terrifying, and he worried that Xu Ziyang was being corroded by a lust for slaughter.

Xu Ziyang, however, lowered his gaze. "These three techniques complement one another."

He was, of course, aware of his problem, but it was impossible for him to stop now.

"You didn’t come to see me just for these two things, did you? You must have official business to discuss," Xu Ziyang said, abruptly changing the subject.

He didn’t want to discuss it any further.

’Even if I told him, what could he do? Zuo Fan has no way to help me solve this.’

Xu Ziyang had even supplemented his training with numerous Spiritual Techniques meant to clear the mind and focus the spirit, all to suppress the lust for slaughter that came with the Flame Demon Body Refining Technique.

Yet, they all had minimal effect. At first, they helped a little. Later, stacking more and more techniques provided a sliver of security. But now, no matter how many he added, they were barely holding on.

So, he had decided to go all-in, pushing himself to break through to the major accomplishment stage of the Flame Demon Body Refining Technique as quickly as possible.

But he soon discovered, to his despair, that the three Spiritual Techniques were deeply intertwined. They could only advance in unison; a breakthrough in one was impossible without the others.

At the same time, the chasm between the minor and major accomplishment stages was vast enough to make him despair.

"That’s right, the matter of the Seven Kills Disciples." Zuo Fan didn’t press the issue, going along with Xu Ziyang’s change of subject. He then said, "The documents I sent you earlier, Sect Leader. Have you read them?"

"I’ve read them. It’s just... this matter requires further deliberation." Of course Xu Ziyang had read them; he was perfectly clear on what needed to be done to stop the creation of new Seven Kills Disciples.

But it was simply impossible to implement.

The simplest reason was that his cultivation of the three Spiritual Techniques required a massive amount of resources.

Those resources wouldn’t materialize out of thin air. They came from exploitation, squeezed down through the layers of society until the burden landed on the common folk at the very bottom.

Making changes now would undoubtedly affect his own cultivation.

More importantly, such a series of reforms would infringe upon the interests of various factions.

He had the power to suppress any dissent, but causing turmoil among the great clans and wealthy gentry would still give him a massive headache.

From the very beginning, in the eyes of the Yanghuang Sect, "the people" were not the commoners at the bottom, but the middle-tier groups—the clans and merchants—who served them and generated wealth for them.

The people at the very bottom were little more than consumables.

Though they were treated with a degree of benevolence, they weren’t truly valued.

For instance, hiring a Spirit Master for a job—could any ordinary commoner afford that?

Only the great clans and wealthy gentry had that privilege.

But who could have expected the appearance of Seven Kills Zhenren’s *Blood Sea Killing Scripture*, which gave the common people at the bottom a chance to rise up?

Of course, this only made life even harder for them.

"Then how long will this deliberation take? If you keep delaying, people will continue to die region by region. Before long, the population within the Yanghuang Sect’s territory will be decimated." Zuo Fan could sense Xu Ziyang’s evasiveness.

The Seven Kills Disciples were emerging one after another. The prerequisite of killing out of rage meant there was practically no barrier to entry.

Village massacres were commonplace, and there were even numerous town-wide slaughters. If this tide of violent resentment wasn’t quelled soon, the Yanghuang Sect would be the one to suffer the greatest loss.

Xu Ziyang sighed. "Change. It’s easy for you to say. But for me, it means reconciling the interests of every faction."

"Do you think that’s easy?"

Zuo Fan smiled at his words. "I know it’s not easy. But it’s very easy for the Seven Kills Disciples to kill them."

"Since you have no way to treat the root cause, Sect Leader, then I see no point in continuing to treat the symptoms."

"Today, I will return to Azure Flame Peak to cultivate and strengthen my Spiritual Power. As for this assignment, I suggest you find someone else, Sect Leader." Zuo Fan was done with this.

He was on the front lines, spilling rivers of blood killing Seven Kills Disciples, while those in the rear were constantly dragging him down by creating even more of them.

’At this rate, aren’t I just running around like a dog on a pointless errand?’

’I might as well quit. If the problem can’t be solved, what’s the point of all this useless effort?’

These so-called great clans and wealthy gentry were just ordinary people who happened to be well-protected.

Perhaps they’ll start to feel regret when the blades of the Seven Kills Disciples are at their own throats.

But what good is regret? None at all. Once you’re dead, it’s useless.

Xu Ziyang gave Zuo Fan a long, hard look, then granted his request. "Fine. Go and rest. I’ll arrange for someone else to handle it."

He understood that even if he forced Zuo Fan, the man wouldn’t go.

"That said, why did Cheng Zhen suddenly try to kill you? Was he also a Seven Kills Disciple?" Xu Ziyang brought the conversation back to his late brother, Cheng Zhen.

"I’m not sure. But he was strong. So strong that he was no weaker than me when I use the full power of my Flame Demon’s true form."

"He would have had a chance of winning even in a fight against you, Sect Leader." Zuo Fan, of course, would not mention the Pure Yang Fire Seed or the organization behind his opponent.

’I can’t see through Xu Ziyang’s schemes. Who knows what he’s really thinking? I can only trust myself.’

"It seems he spent all these years biding his time and enduring humiliation. After making a breakthrough in his Red Lotus Divine Fire Spell, he must have decided to eliminate my right-hand man, which is why he targeted you."

"A pity he underestimated you. His entire life was a genuine failure," Xu Ziyang added with another sneer.

***

"Red Lotus is dead."

Inside a palace with a ceiling resembling a starry night sky, several large thrones were arranged. A shadowy figure sat upon each one.

The shadow representing Layman Red Lotus, Cheng Zhen, suddenly shattered.

"I thought he was going to his homeland to retrieve the Pure Yang Fire Seed. With his power, how could anyone there be his match?" a voice emanated from one of the shadows.

"The holder of the Pure Yang Fire Seed, naturally," another shadow explained. "If his opponent was cultivating the two Sect’s Spiritual Techniques of the Yanghuang Sect, where Red Lotus originated, then killing him would have been possible."

"Who’s free? Go and retrieve the Pure Yang Fire Seed," the leading shadow said, cutting off the others’ chatter.

"I’m still tracking the Qianyuan Golden Mother. I can’t break away."

"Busy killing. No time."

"Eliminating loose ends. Can’t go."

Several shadows spoke up, all indicating they were too busy.

"Yaksha and I will go," a burly shadow finally said. The gaunt shadow beside him voiced its agreement.

The lead shadow nodded. "Good. I’ll leave it to you, then. Anyone who can kill Red Lotus is not to be trifled with. Even though you are both a cut above him, you must not underestimate your opponent."

"Rest assured, leader," the gaunt shadow called Yaksha said plainly. "We have wandered the stars for many years. We would never be so careless."

"Good. Meeting adjourned." After speaking, the lead shadow distorted and faded away.

Seeing this, the other shadows also departed. They all had their own affairs to attend to and couldn’t afford to waste any more time.