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After forming an alliance with the Emperor, Chen Qing obtained a critical piece of intelligence.

It concerned the division of the Ghost Kings’ influence within the Path of Yin Yang.

The Ten Ghost Kings and the Four Ghost Venerates represented different factions and controlled portions of reincarnation.

To be precise, if someone from a guild’s faction died, as long as their body and soul weren’t obliterated by external forces, there was still a chance for reincarnation.

However, this chance... wasn’t as convenient as that of the Jiangnan Hell Ruler. It was, in fact, rather troublesome.

First of all... the entrances to the Four Ghost Venerates’ reincarnation points were in very remote locations. Within the vast Path of Yin Yang, one needed to traverse a sprawling map and pass through countless territories controlled by Evil Ghosts to even have a chance to reach them.

The Four Ghost Venerates couldn’t stray too far from their entrances; otherwise, their entrances might be occupied by other factions, locking them into a defensive position for years on end.

Thus, controlling the Path of Yin Yang required rallying the Evil Ghosts—essentially drawing in the Ghost Kings who warred over the Path to expand one’s sphere of influence.

Simply put, the Ghost Kings... were the proxies of the Four Ghost Venerates, and the wars within the Path of Yin Yang were essentially conflicts fought by these proxies.

For factions of the guild’s influence, if a member died and wanted to reincarnate within their own faction’s domain, massive amounts of power would be needed to shield the process.

For instance, if someone were reborn, by bad luck, within an enemy faction’s territory—under a Ghost King loyal to an opposing force—then ensuring their safe reincarnation would require organizing supporting power from their side to provide protection and cover...

And if the enemy became aware of this situation ahead of time, they would send forces to intercept, making the process risky!

No faction could guarantee that their own people would always reincarnate successfully. At this delicate stage of equilibrium, no member of significant power was willing to risk reincarnation to carry out missions. Only lower-ranking individuals were sent—though the Black Empress was an exception.

Old Liu’s plan at the time was covert. He wanted to orchestrate a grand scheme in secret and seize the Life and Death Dao Fruit.

Naturally, he couldn’t send out his top generals, let alone Venerable Ones.

For one, Venerable Ones were far too precious; losing even one would be a great blow to the faction.

Secondly, Venerable Ones themselves were unwilling to take risks. And thirdly, if a figure of such status were to reincarnate, it would inevitably draw the attention of enemy factions.

For someone of such importance, Old Liu would undoubtedly deploy vast forces from the Path of Yin Yang to escort and secure their reincarnation. But such movements would make it impossible to conceal the operation...

Thus, Old Liu chose to utilize the clones of those designers!

The clones... if swallowed by Evil Ghosts, then so be it—they were merely replicated data. Another could easily be created, and minimal force would be needed for protection. The process could rely entirely on luck—whatever number could reincarnate would reincarnate.

That group’s survival depended entirely on luck. Many were devoured by Evil Spirits, and only a fortunate few managed to reincarnate successfully.

This was Old Liu’s account. It sounded honest, but Chen Qing still felt that parts of it were lies.

One major part... was Ziyue!

According to his explanation, Ziyue, in a human vessel, intentionally allowed herself to be devoured by the Ancient Demon Clan.

This act was meant to lure the Ancient Demon Clan into symbiosis with an important figure.

Ultimately, she would lead the Ancient Demon Clan to establish the Sorcerer Dynasty while simultaneously attracting the Extraterritorial Demon to sign a contract, eventually drawing out the master of the Demon Realm—the one who wielded the Eyes of Direct Death. ..

Every element of the plan seemed tightly interlocked, appearing well-conceived. Yet in truth, there were far too many unpredictable variables!

How could Old Liu be certain that the Ancient Demon Clan would send an important figure for symbiosis?

How could he be sure the Princess of the Ancient Demon Clan would possess such formidable resolve?

How could he guarantee that the elders of the Ancient Demon Clan would persecute the Princess? And how could he ensure... that the Extraterritorial Demon would take the bait?

There were simply too many uncontrollable factors. In hindsight, it seemed as though the plan had succeeded. But when viewed from the perspective of its inception, the plan was utter nonsense.

The only possible explanation Chen Qing could think of was that Old Liu was lying.

None of it had been planned from the start. It was all mere coincidence!

At most, Old Liu had reincarnated a batch of cloned designers in secret. His initial objective had likely been very imprecise—merely to disrupt the current state of affairs, break the stalemate, and use the designers to reopen certain opportunities.

He had never expected things to turn out so well...

Thus, he went along with it, leveraging the Ziyue situation to provoke the master of the Demon Realm into action, scheming to seize the Eyes of Direct Death in the process.

Of course, his son going undercover in the Dragon Palace and becoming the Dragon King—this had been part of his long-standing plot to target the Demon Realm’s master. But to claim this outcome had been part of the initial plan—Chen Qing did not believe it.

The question then arose: was all of this truly coincidence?

Chen Qing didn’t think so either.

How could there be so many coincidences?

Ziyue being devoured could be orchestrated. If someone had been planted as an undercover agent in the Ancient Demon Clan from the very beginning...

Looking at it from this perspective, many things started to make sense. Why was the Ziyue Princess so resolute?

Could she have been groomed for this from the start?

Raised with this purpose from a young age, she would naturally be poised to make those pivotal decisions when the time came.

And who would be most likely to create such a resolute Princess?

The answer... the Guard Commander!!

A top-level King-Level member of the guild falling in love with the Ancient Demon Clan’s Queen—it sounded implausible. But when viewed this way, it suddenly made sense.

Chen Qing turned his gaze toward the person who looked identical to Ziyue and immediately smiled. Piece by piece, everything was finally coming together.

"Guard Commander... you’re from the Taoist Sect, aren’t you?"

"What makes you say that?" asked the woman who claimed to be Yun Yue, smiling faintly.

"When you think it through, it’s obvious.

How could the Ancient Demon Clan ensure that an individual of such formidable resolve would arise to symbiotically bond with Ziyue?

Simple—you create one. Start grooming them from childhood, and bestow them with absolutely noble lineage.

The offspring of the Queen herself would naturally become a figure of monumental importance.

So, the Guard Commander fell in love with the Ancient Demon Clan’s Queen.

Therefore... this so-called cross-species romance was a conspiracy from the very start. "

"So you’ve suspected the Taoist Sect for a long time?" Yun Yue squinted slightly.

"No..." Chen Qing shook his head. "I’ve been wondering whose side the Guard Commander was on. Now it’s clear..."

"Lord Chen Qing, you truly live up to your reputation!" Yun Yue clapped her hands and laughed. "A man who once nearly turned the tide of fate... how extraordinary..."

"You flatter me..." Chen Qing smiled. "Now, the real question is, I know about the Dharma of Severing the Three Corpses. I didn’t design it, but I know the basics. Since you’re here, where’s the Evil Corpse?"

"The Evil Corpse is out of control... I must reunite with Lady Ziyue as soon as possible. Otherwise, if it appears again, Lady Ziyue will be in grave danger." Yun Yue’s expression was sincere as she looked at Ziyue.

"Is that so?" Ziyue smiled faintly but took a step back to hide behind the Emperor.

"Lady Ziyue doesn’t trust me?" Yun Yue frowned.

"Indeed, we don’t trust you..." Chen Qing smiled. "I want to ask you two questions—will you answer them?"

"Please, go ahead..."

"Who is the Taoist Sect’s puppet master?"

"And..." Chen Qing’s expression turned subtly mocking as he looked at her. "Are you really the Good Corpse?"