Chapter 1984: Origins of the Devil Sect

“Do you know just what the main philosophy of the Devil Sect is?” Yan Xuehen suddenly asked.

Zu An was a bit stunned and couldn't really understand why she would suddenly ask this question, but he still replied, “I think they seek for everyone to live like dragons, with equality for all under the heavens?” He had heard them talk about their beliefs when he was together with Qiu Honglei and Yun Jianyue. At the time, he'd been quite amazed.

“That was what that witch told you?” Yan Xuehen asked coldly.

Zu An was confused and speechless. After fighting against each other for so many years, sure enough, they still had some grievances against each other….

When she saw his expression, Yan Xuehen knew she had guessed correctly. She continued, “Think about it yourself for a moment. If that were really their belief, why would they be called the Devil Sect?”

Zu An was stunned. Actually, that was something he had been confused about at the time. They clearly had just and honorable convictions that seemed to benefit the country and the people, so why were they referred to as the Devil Sect? At the time, the two women had given him a reasonable explanation.

Yan Xuehen continued, “This ideology was merely something the Devil Sect uses to romanticize their own faction, and eventually, some people in the sect really ended up believing it.”

Zu An was speechless. If Yun Jianyue were here, wouldn’t she start another battle immediately?

“Do you think I am only speaking this way because we are enemies?” Yan Xuehen asked coldly.

Zu An chuckled. That wasn’t a question he could really answer.

Chu Chuyan couldn't help but say, “Ah Zu, master has always clearly separated private and public interests. Even though she is the sworn enemy of Sect Master Yun, she wouldn’t slander her for no reason.”

Zu An understood Yan Xuehen’s nature as well, and knew she wasn’t the type to talk badly about another behind their back. He quickly said with a straight face, “I hope that big sis Yan can clear up my doubts.”

“Hmph, who is your big sis Yan? Even if you don’t call me master like Chuyan in the future, you have to call me Sect Master Yan,” Yan Xuehen said as she shot him a glare. She was almost scared half to death by the ‘big sis Yan’ title!

Fortunately, Chu Chuyan only smiled and just thought of it as her sweetheart being a rascal as usual.

“Sure, sure, master,” Zu An replied as he looked at her with a big smile.

When she heard him call her master, Yan Xuehen’s face turned red. She now felt even weirder; that feeling only intensified when she recalled how this man had ravaged her in the past. Was that how a disciple treated his master? Even so, Chuyan was still here, so she quickly collected her thoughts and explained, “The Devil Sect’s people do not seek for everyone to become dragons, but rather for themselves to become dragons, to be equals among themselves.

“The people of the world only know the ‘Devil Sect’, but do not know that the Devil Sect is the collective term for the three schools and six paths. The so-called three schools and six paths aren’t the lowest professions per se, but they have always been looked down on by orthodox society and are those with the lowest statuses. That is why they carry resentment and bias, and the way they do things has become more and more extreme. However, that only leads orthodox society to look down on them more and more, leading to a vicious cycle.”

“What exactly are these three schools and six paths?” Zu An asked, stunned. The Embroidered Envoy’s information on the Devil Sect didn’t seem to be as detailed as what he was hearing right now, but it made sense too. The Embroidered Envoy was established by this dynasty and had only existed for around a hundred years. Even though it was widespread and powerful, it still didn’t have enough history backing it.

The Devil Sect was a massive organization that had existed for thousands of years. Only the daoists that had existed for a similarly long time would understand them better. In the end, the Devil Sect and the daoists really were fated enemies. Even the way they arranged different schools and paths were so similar.

Yan Xuehen replied, “The so-called three schools are the Heavenly Devil School, Skysplitting School, and World School. The six paths are the Treasure Hunter Path, Yin Yang Path, Unfeeling Path, Secret Path, Freedom Path, and Pear Path.”

“The leader of the Heavenly Devil School is none other than that witch Yun Jianyue. If I am not mistaken, then Qiu Honglei is the next sect leader to serve. The Heavenly Devil School has always been led by women. It was rumored that their founding master was a devastatingly beautiful woman, and the whole country rose up in rebellion because of her. Her people enjoyed charming men, and their objective is to painstakingly subdue the world through that craft, to conquer all of the world’s men. This is a belief that is very popular among the brothels, which is why a large portion of their disciples throughout history have come from brothels.”

Zu An had a strange expression. When he first met her, Qiu Honglei was Brightmoon City’s most popular courtesan, so it seemed that could all be traced back to the same source.

Chu Chuyan quietly added, “Ah Zu, don’t worry. Even though most of the Heavenly Devil School’s disciples are from brothels, they are actually divided into two groups. One uses their bodies to seduce others, but the other only uses arts to charm the world. When it comes to subduing men, both Sect Master Yun and Miss Qiu both belong to the latter category. Their beliefs are clearly more brilliant.”

Zu An could tell from how careful she was being that she was worried that they could be slandering the master and disciple behind their backs in front of Zu An. He chuckled and said, “Chuyan, you’re overthinking. Of course I know that.”

Chu Chuyan was stunned at first, wondering how he knew about that. Don’t tell me you and Miss Qiu have already slept together?

You have successfully trolled Chu Chuyan for +99 +99 +99…

When she saw these two looking at each other and exchanging signals, Yan Xuehen suddenly felt a bit unhappy for some reason.

You have successfully trolled Yan Xuehen for +99 +99 +99…

Zu An was stupefied. Why are these two suddenly angry? He sensed that something was off and quickly changed the topic. “By the way, what was the name of that Heavenly Devil School’s founding master?”

A devastatingly charming beauty? Why did she sound a bit like Daji?

Yan Xuehen shook her head and said, “It has already been far too long. Forget about me, it doesn’t seem as if even the Heavenly Devil School’s people know. Even the techniques that were passed down since ancient times seem to be damaged.”

Zu An entered his own thoughts for a moment. Daji’s skill and the technique used by Yun Jianyue’s group seemed a bit similar. He wondered if it really was just a coincidence…

Yan Xuehen continued, “The Skysplitting School seeks to bring a major disaster upon the world, and the greatest disaster that could befall this world is the assassination of a enmperor.”

Zu An was stunned, replying, “They're assassins?”

“That’s right.” Yan Xuehen nodded slightly. “The Skysplitting School's founding belief is 'the anger of the ignorant sends blood flying three feet, the anger of the emperor results in millions of corpses'. The purpose of their existence is to keep the rulers and bigwigs in check, to prevent them from running amok, as there will always be people in the Skysplitting School who can take their heads. There was once a certain figure in history who focused solely on assassination and passed down his skills. Those famous assassins largely all come from the Skysplitting School.”

Zu An’s expression grew serious as he said, “That means the Skysplitting School is one worthy of respect.”

“Even though the founding creed is admirable, human nature will forever exist. I reckon that only a small number of those utterly fearless assassins throughout history followed that principle," Yan Xuehen said with a sigh. “The people of the world seek glory, splendor, wealth, and rank, or live among wine, sex, avarice, and temper. Even though those assassins have left behind their names in history, most of them died with all of their relatives executed as well. Many of them even abandoned their beliefs and chose to kill for money. Henceforth, the Skysplitting School gradually fell, ultimately becoming an assassin organization that seeks nothing but profit. They have long forgotten their former faith.”

Zu An sighed deeply. However, he knew there was no way everyone would be a saint. This was probably an inevitable result. He suddenly thought of something and said, “The most famous assassin organization in the present world seems to be the Shadow Group. Their range of influence seems to be similar, so wouldn’t they be in conflict?”

“Of course there’s no conflict,” Yan Xuehen said with a strange expression. “Because the Shadow Group is the Skysplitting School.”

Zu An was speechless.

In the end, the Shadow Group was also part of the Devil Sect?

Yan Xuehen explained, “Strictly speaking, the Shadow Group is a branch of Skysplitting School. Around a hundred years ago, chaos broke out in the Devil Sect, with the major factions suddenly fighting against each other for some reason. Some were unwilling to participate in such a thing and broke away, and among them was an ordinary youngster who was pushed aside in the Skysplitting School. In the end, he amazed the world with his talent and established the Shadow Group.”

“Do you have any information about that youngster?” Zu An quickly asked.

Yan Xuehen shook her head slightly and said, “The Skysplitting School, due to the nature of its profession, cares about secrecy above all else. Even brothers in the same sect would often only know each other's nicknames, knowing nothing about the other party’s identity in society. That youngster endured for many years, but then he ended up establishing Shadow Group, so he is definitely someone capable of hiding his schemes. Thus, it was even less likely for him to have exposed his identity.”

“The Skysplitting School just agreed to the establishment of the Shadow Group?” Zu An asked curiously.

Yan Xuehen’s red lips gently opened and she said, “It is not that simple, of course. After the Shadow Group was founded, many elders from the Skysplitting School and even some of that youngster’s own brothers tried to dominate him and steal his work, but in the end, they were all killed. As time went on, many outstanding disciples of the Skysplitting School were drawn to the Shadow Group instead. Now, the Skysplitting School is already weak and has declined, and it is instead the Shadow Group that has been tacitly acknowledged as the true master of the Skysplitting School of this generation.”

Zu An frowned. This Shadow Group seemed to have some connections to the Imperial Palace. It felt like a guillotine that constantly loomed over his head, giving him an uneasy feeling.

“Among the three schools, there is still the World School. Can you guess what they care about in this world the most?” Yan Xuehen asked.

“Money?” Zu An answered, feeling a bit shaken.

“That’s right. The World School’s founding master was a great merchant who was exceedingly wealthy. Their group reveres trade and commerce, but their status and wealth have never quite endured in history, so many of them were a bit dissatisfied with the court and tried to change everything. When the court tried to suppress them, they ended up becoming part of the Devil Sect too," Yan Xuehen said. She then suddenly recalled the affairs in Cloudcenter Commandery and added, “Right, you actually have some connections to the World School.”

“When did that happen?” Zu An asked, stunned. Why do I have no recollection of something like this?

“Aren’t you close to the Hub of Freedom? Just as the Shadow Group is Skysplitting School’s greatest force, Hub of Freedom is the most powerful organization of the World School,” Yan Xuehen replied.