Stellar Transformation-Chapter 187: Episode 9 - 8 Metamorphosis of Heart and Mind
Today, Chapter Two!
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"Valley Master, the last message that came through was that twenty-five people entered the interior of the Capital. During the attack on the Imperial Palace, one of them desperately self-destructed to kill a certain influential figure, likely a concubine or even the Empress of the Qin Dynasty."
Yan Xin respectfully reported, while Di Nai’s eyes immediately lit up.
"Confirmed?"
Di Nai asked again.
Yan Xin nodded and said, "Valley Master, according to the transmitted message, those Palace Maids called that woman ’Lady’, so she’s either the Empress or a concubine."
"Very good... What else?" Di Nai’s face showed a hint of joy.
Yan Xin was taken aback, but Yan Mou spoke up, "Valley Master, that was the last message. After sending that message, the captain was killed... However, the remaining Demon Cultivators should be attacking important ministers within the Capital and some members of the Royal Family who reside outside the Imperial Palace. Mortals are very fragile; even the casually emitted Qi Force of Demon Cultivators can kill them, so it’s estimated that the Qin Dynasty has definitely suffered considerable losses."
"Excellent."
Di Nai stood up with a smile, "However, from the current battle situation, we can see that the Qin Dynasty’s defenses are extremely tight. They have suffered a great loss this time and will definitely increase their defensive measures. I estimate that sending more people would probably be quite difficult to break through the Capital’s wall surveillance."
Yan Xin frowned and said, "Valley Master, what should we do then?"
"Yan Xin, after much thought, I have come up with a clever plan... Mortals against mortals!" said Di Nai with a radiant smile.
Brothers Yan Xin and Yan Mou were stunned.
"They are defensive against Demon Cultivators, but how will they defend against mortals? If we control a group of mortals and let these mortals do the attacking, the effect may well be better than if Demon Cultivators took action," Di Nai said confidently.
Yan Xin and Yan Mou’s eyes immediately shone.
"Based on the intelligence gathered from the Ming Dynasty, Hidden Dragon Continent has Assassin Organizations and spy organizations," Di Nai said with a smile, "What we need from the undersea are the valueless pearls and agates, which mortals rather like."
"Valley Master means to say..." Yan Xin caught on as well.
"That’s right, first use treasures and wealth to make those Assassin Organizations take action," Di Nai said slowly, "However... according to intelligence, Assassin Organizations also have their limits when taking on missions, they dare not carelessly kill the princes of the Qin Dynasty. Therefore... apart from that, we need to build our own Assassin Organization."
"Build our own?" asked Yan Xin, puzzled.
Di Nai nodded and said, "Yes, send several dozen Demon Cultivators to the Ming Dynasty and Han Dynasty. In front of some Innate Experts, display their strength to attract them to our organization."
"At the same time, also show the strength of Demon Cultivators to some of the larger clans, gain their support, and even control some of the large familial powers!"
Di Nai’s eyes sparkled with scheming light.
"Taking the Ming Dynasty and Han Dynasty as our foundations, we’ll build an Assassin Organization, to be named ’Yin Soul’! The ultimate goal is to kill the members of the Royal Family of the Qin Dynasty," Di Nai declared coldly.
The ultimate goal was set to kill the members of the Royal Family. He had no intention of letting those mortal assassins go after Qin Yu.
"Valley Master is wise."
Yan Xin and Yan Mou both knelt on one knee in joy, finding the plan very feasible. Mortal against mortal; Demon Cultivators use their Spiritual Sense to monitor, but that’s only to monitor other Demon Cultivators, whereas they can’t monitor mortals.
"Assassin Organization ’Yin Soul’." Di Nai sneered inwardly, "Qin Yu, I want to make your Qin Family understand the true meaning of ’Yin Soul Lingering’!"
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Within the Ming Dynasty’s territory.
The renowned expert of the Ming Dynasty, ’Sky-Supporting Hand’ Yu Wen Shang, was riding a horse on the official road. It was already night, yet Yu Wen Shang continued to travel at a leisurely pace.
"Stop."
A cold command sounded.
"Who is it?" Yu Wen Shang’s expression changed, as he could not sense where the voice had come from.
"I am behind you." The cold voice sounded once again.
Yu Wen Shang dismounted and turned around, his movements smooth and seamless. He didn’t strike out, knowing that... if the person who had appeared so silently behind him wanted to kill him, he would already be dead.
"You..."
Yu Wen Shang’s face changed drastically, for the person in front of him was standing in mid-air.
Only the legendary Upper Immortals could stand in the air without any support.
"Are you an Upper Immortal?" Yu Wen Shang asked incredulously.
"Yes." The burly man in green clothes admitted directly. In fact, this man in green was none other than a Demon Cultivator, "I see you have good potential, and you’re already an Innate Expert. I wish to take you as my disciple. Would you be willing?"
Hearing that an Upper Immortal wanted to take him as a disciple, Yu Wen Shang was dumbfounded.
"Eh, you’re not willing?" The man in green frowned.
"No, I am willing, your disciple greets you, Master," Yu Wen Shang immediately knelt down and said.
The existence of an Upper Immortal is supreme; countless martial artists dream of becoming a disciple of one, and now that an Upper Immortal wanted to take him as a disciple, how could Yu Wen Shang refuse? The allure of becoming an Upper Immortal’s apprentice was simply too great.
...
In just three short months, a massive Assassin Organization was established.
Base in the Ming Dynasty and Han Dynasty, this organization had the service of several clans with over a century of heritage, and many of them agreed to join because the Upper Immortal accepted their descendants as disciples.
Besides that, there was an influx of Innate Experts into the organization.
Becoming an Upper Immortal was something even the most elite warriors dreamt of.
Such enormous power, along with a large number of Innate Experts, naturally attracted many Postnatal Experts, and like a sweeping storm, the influence of this Assassin Organization rapidly extended into the Qin Dynasty.
In three months, an Assassin Organization only second to ’Heavenly Net’ was established, this organization named ’Yin Soul’.
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Yu Royal Mansion.
"Uncle Xu, your prediction was indeed correct. As you expected, an Assassin Organization has indeed emerged these past few months," Qin Yu said with a smile.
After taking the Foundation Establishment Pill, Qin Yu had used his own power to help Xu Yuan cleanse his marrow and absorb the power of the pill, and by now, Xu Yuan had indeed become an Innate Expert, appearing to be in his forties or fifties.
The Foundation Establishment Pill was extremely precious, something a small Cultivation sect could hardly produce.
Qin Yu used some materials from the ’Treasure Hall’ he had taken from the Nine Evil Hall to refine quite a few Foundation Establishment Pills. With one Foundation Establishment Pill and Qin Yu personally helping out, it was natural for a mortal to become an Innate Expert instantly.
"Integrating into the mortal world, dealing with mortals as a mortal... However, this Di Nai only has a bit of cunning, actually using methods from the Assassin Organization, which happens to be the easiest to deal with," Xu Yuan said while fanning himself with a feather fan, seemingly not the least bit concerned.
Qin Yu looked at Uncle Xu.
"Don’t worry, your men don’t need to take action for now. Since he’s using mortals, I can handle him with mortals as well." Xu Yuan said confidently, fanning himself slightly with the feather fan.
Qin Yu smiled and nodded.
That night.
Qin Yu was alone, reading under the lamp when a knocking sound suddenly erupted.
"Father, it’s you." Qin Yu opened the door to find his father, Qin De, outside, which made him very happy. According to Uncle Xu’s ’Substitution’ strategy, the ones living in Qinglin Garden were not Qin De and Feng Yuzi, but in fact, Qin De and Feng Yuzi were staying inside the Yu Royal Mansion.
Qin De smiled and nodded, looking at the book on the desk he said with a smile, "Still reading at night?"
"Just bored."
Qin Yu immediately sat down, and Qin De picked up the book and glanced at it: "Gain and Loss? This book is also written by a great Daoist master, indeed worth drawing from."
Qin Yu shook his head and said, "Cultivators, respect strength above all. But the longer I stay in this world, the more tired my heart feels, reading these books can relax me a little." In front of his father, Qin Yu unconsciously revealed his weakness.
Qin Yu was strong, a young man who had come to the Overseas Demon Cultivation World and had reached this stage. It was indeed unbelievable.
"Yu’er, you should also rest well, don’t fight anymore," Qin De consoled.
"Fight? Father, I don’t want to fight, but others force me to. In the Overseas Demon Cultivation World, when people want to kill me, if I don’t want to be killed, I have no other choice but to kill," Qin Yu took a deep breath.
Qin De certainly understood this principle but was unable to speak for a moment.
"I’ve always believed in a saying, ’The weak let their thoughts control their actions. The strong, however, let their actions control their thoughts!’" Qin Yu’s expression became resolute.
"When I’m sad and in pain, I sing even louder. When I’m scared and afraid, I push forward even more bravely. When I feel powerless, I recall past successes to muster the courage to try again! I absolutely cannot let my thoughts control my actions, once that happens... I probably would have died long ago."
A light flickered in Qin Yu’s eyes.
"In the Undersea Demon Cultivator World, I didn’t want to kill. But I knew if I was soft-hearted, I wouldn’t be able to suppress my subordinates and would even face retaliation, so I had to become strong and cold-hearted!"
"Back when I was being hunted down and alone, feeling lonely and weak... the only thing I could do was recall the happy times in the past, think back on the days I spent with my father and brothers, so I could regain the strength to continue fleeing for my life, believing that there would come a day when I could turn things around."
Qin Yu clenched his fist, his veins bulging.
"Yu’er..." Qin De took Qin Yu’s hand.
"Letting actions control my thoughts, does that go against my conscience? I don’t know... that day, when the teacher died and you and Uncle Feng had your arms severed. Originally, I only wanted to kill Dongfang Yu. But... Dongfang Nian wouldn’t agree, and if I were soft-hearted, probably many more would bully the Qin Family, so I had to go against my heart, I needed to be ruthless, so I massacred them all."
Qin Yu’s eyes were fierce.
"When I was young, the extreme training was painful, I didn’t want to train, but I forced myself, coerced myself... Each time I passed my limits, I felt exhilarated. It was like the rainbow after a storm; I knew one day I would make Father proud, your smile, Father, is the rainbow I long for the most."
Qin Yu smiled, his smile was as pure as that of a child.
"Father, the world of cultivators is really cruel," Qin Yu sighed.
Qin De merely held Qin Yu’s hand but was unable to say a word.
"If it weren’t for Uncle Lan, I would have to continue the slaughter, continue to fight with others. Otherwise... even if my family was insulted, I would be unable to avenge them," Qin Yu said softly, his gratitude for Uncle Lan was profound.
Because of Uncle Lan, Qin Yu’s life was somewhat easier, allowing him to handle things according to his own will.
This is a world for the strong, if he, Qin Yu, wasn’t the strongest, then he had to act against his heart.
"Killing, indifference, cruelty, bloodlust... I don’t want to, but I have no choice. Whenever I’m alone, my heart aches. Yet, even if my heart is in pain and suffering, I still have to appear cold and calm in front of others. Pretending to smile, acting as if I have everything under control, because I am the Pavilion Master, I cannot panic, show fear, or appear weak. I must be strong! I must be indifferent! I must be ruthless!"
Qin Yu looked at his father, smiling wryly, yet nearly on the verge of tears, "Father, do you know that feeling?"
"Yu’er, I know, I do," Qin De also felt heartbroken.
In the past.
At all times, even experts from the Green Dragon Palace and Bishui Mansion, who had thousands or even tens of thousands of years of experience, had to admit that Qin Yu was a remarkable figure—strong and indifferent, able to smile in the face of collapsing mountains.
The likes of the Azure Dragon, the Three-eyed Old Demon, True Master Yan Xu, and Yida, these experts had all grown up in such an environment, living thousands or even tens of thousands of years.
Their coldness and ruthlessness came naturally.
But Qin Yu was different. He was only about twenty years old when he first went to the Undersea Demon Cultivation World. As a child, he was accompanied by his family in Cloud Mist Villa, and educated by Grandpa Lian. Qin Yu was by nature kind-hearted and sentimental.
Alas, circumstances forced people.
In his youth, to enhance his strength and win his father’s approval, he forced himself. Until finally, when his strength was achieved, he and Wu Xing perished together.
Then, he entered the Undersea Demon Cultivation World, where he had to go against his conscience again, to adapt to that world of undersea demon cultivators.
"’The weak let their thoughts dictate their actions. The strong, on the other hand, let their actions control their thoughts.’ If it weren’t for this sentence in the depths of my heart, like a pillar supporting my inner world, I probably... would have collapsed long ago under the unbearable weight of acting against my conscience."
Tears shimmered in Qin Yu’s eyes as he released the suppressed pain in his spirit, causing him to lose control over his emotions completely.
"Yu’er."
Qin De looked at his son, his heart surging with emotion, "Yu’er, you cannot keep everything buried inside. Do you understand? Speak out, talk to your father at home, share with friends and confidants outside. You can’t keep it all to yourself."
Qin Yu took a deep breath and then smiled.
"Father, having Uncle Lan’s help is my fortune. If I didn’t have Uncle Lan’s help, it would be the justice of fate. But... life is my own, and I must be responsible for myself."
Qin Yu stood up and opened the door.
"Likewise, I must continue to act against my heart because I aspire to become a strong man!" Qin Yu’s voice was resolute.
Qin Yu walked out of the door and looked up at the dazzling stars in the sky, but in his heart he thought, "Because I cannot tolerate my family being humiliated, I cannot bear to see them in pain. Therefore, I must become strong, strong enough to protect my loved ones!"
"A smile, composure, cruelty, bloodlust! This is me, weakness, and tenderness, can only be buried deep in my heart. Only there!!" Qin Yu’s expression became even more resolute.
