“Huh?”
The eyes of the Ultimate One Sect Leader beamed with interest.
“Leader, after the mortals drink the water of the black spring, their bodies were strengthened, and they became tireless. They were no longer scared of the venomous fog or the harsh environment. They adapted to the rough food, too!
“If so, can’t we send them to settle on the worlds where the environment is too hard for normal people?
“It will be a beneficial plan for everybody!
“Right now, the planets under the government of the Ultimate One Sect are all running out of resources. We barely have any harvest now, and we are often plagued by locusts and starvation. A lot of the crops and resources have to be supplied for the frontline, too. If the battles in the frontline do not go well, several planets will be taken over and even burnt to the ground.
“After the battles, it is often the case that nothing can be grown on the planets. Even in the places that are not savaged by the fires of war, famine still exists. The civilians often have to feed on rind, grass, or even soil. Sometimes, they even trade each other’s children as food. Their lives can be extremely difficult.
“Even if they are fortunate enough to join the army, they will be sent to the frontline before they have time for a satisfying meal to fight against the armies of the Mystic Moon Sect and the Dragon King Brotherhood that are also made of mortals. In the end, they will also be ground into cannon fodder in the mill of flesh and blood!
“The civilians do not stand a chance of living at all right now!
“However, in the territory of the Ultimate One Sect, there are still a lot of desolate planets with harsh environments but abundant resources.
“If we organize the ordinary people who don’t have any other options and strengthen their bodies with the water of the black spring, they can survive the venomous fog, eat the rough plants on the planet, and even protect themselves when faced with the brutal local animals. Shouldn’t we send them to establish such settlements?
“No matter how ugly they look and how harsh the environment will be, it will certainly better than a death by starvation or taking someone else’s children as food!
“If so, a large batch of civilians will have a way to feed themselves, and the resources that they collect will be enough for the Ultimate One Sect to rest for a while instead of fighting desperately against the Mystic Moon Sect and the Dragon King Brotherhood over several insignificant mother lodes. The three parties will be able to reach a truce!
“Even better, after we have accumulated enough resources, we will be able to continue marching toward the endless sea of stars outside of the three thousand Sectors, thereby jumping out of the ‘cage’ where we have to kill each other!
“By that time, infinite resources will be waiting for us at the other side of the sea of stars. All the sects in the three thousand Sectors will no longer have to fight against each other for the petty benefits. We will work together to explore the boundless universe. The wars will be ended forever, and we will embrace an eternal peace!
“In such a world, both mortals and Cultivators will live a happy life!
“This is what has been on my mind lately and the reason I started my research before reporting to the headquarters.
“I have indeed acted on my own regarding the issue. If the leader and elders decide to punish me, then I have nothing to say!
“However, the issue concerns the future of the Ultimate One Sect and all three thousand Sectors, and I believe that it is definitely worth discussing!
“Please give it a thought, leader!”
While talking, Ba Yanzhi suddenly fell on his knees and kowtowed to the high and mighty leader of the Ultimate One Sect.
The high-level Cultivators of the Ultimate One Sect nearby were all shocked. Forgetting what a solemn and formal place they were at, they were all whispering to each other.
“Strengthening the mortals to develop the desolate worlds?”
“It sounds rather plausible. However—”
“Yanzhi, stand up!” The leader of the Ultimate One Sect slightly raised his hand, and an invisible force supported Ba Yanzhi to stand on his feet. “If what you said is the truth, then you are indeed loyal to the Ultimate One Sect, and you should be credited instead of being punished.
“You should be properly rewarded for the sole fact that you defended the Infinite Planet for an entire year. But some people find it hard to believe that a small farm was able to resist the assault of the Mystic Moon Sect and the Dragon King Brotherhood for an entire year. That is why we summoned you to return to the headquarters to explain everything.
“Naturally, more inspectors will be sent to investigate the issue thoroughly, but your wholehearted words are indeed very intriguing!”
Ba Yanzhi was overjoyed. “Leader, do you—do you agree to my proposal?”
The leader of the Ultimate One Sect scratched his long beard and smiled casually. The brilliance inside his eyes were so deep that it seemed to consume the entire universe.
The first memory fragment came to an end.
The illusionary world collapsed suddenly like a tower of sand. Then, the colorful quicksand swirled and congregated into a brand-new scene.
This should be the second most important memory piece for ‘Chaos’, Li Yao thought to himself. According to the first memory piece, turning mortals into ‘demons’ was actually because there was no other choice. That’s quite understandable. During the last years of the first civil war of Cultivators, in the shattered worlds where all the living creatures were in perils, the ordinary people only had a chance of survival if they were turned into demons.
But what happened later that transformed Ba Yanzhi into ‘Chaos’?
The second illusionary world was in a dry world below a bleak, yellow sky.
The plants on the mountains far away had all been chopped, revealing the bare rocks. Some of the rocks were already battered with shockingly large holes, as if the skeleton of the mountain had been dug out and exposed to the air.
On the drought-stricken land, a thick, long line of people was wriggling forward slowly, which was made up by thousands of starving civilians.
It was a planet of hunger.
Countless starving civilians, together with their entire families, moved slowly toward their hope while they carried their only belongings that were bundled in ragged cloths.
Occasionally, some of the staggering civilians would fall silently, but those behind them seemed to see nothing and simply step over their bodies. Even their family did not have much time to look at them and hurried to follow the line.
The years of war had completely destroyed the feelings of the ant-like people.
The destination of the line turned out to be a vast valley in which a large area of camps had been established temporarily. Behind the camps, deep inside the valley, enormous teleportation arrays more than a hundred meters in length and width had been set up.
Colorful beams shot out of the teleportation arrays now and then, piercing into the sky and showering the clouds in glamorous colors, as if they were a city of the deities. All the starving civilians were granted hope again and moved faster while shaking their limbs that were no thicker than straws.
Li Yao saw that countless starving civilians entered one side of the valley. There was no telling what kind of procedures they went through in the continuous camps, but when they walked out again from the other side, they had already become stronger and more muscular, with features of the demons on their bodies.
However, compared with the demons forty thousand years later, the features of the demons on those people were still sparse. Some of them had darker skin, some had grown horns or small tails, and some had longer canine teeth. Nothing more.
Ba Yanzhi was still wearing black armor, but his armor had been carefully cleaned and lubricated with oil, which made it as reflective as a mirror. He no longer had the ragged appearance from the first memory piece. Instead, his face was red, and he was commanding the starving civilians who had gone through mutations to get into the teleportation arrays in high spirits.
One teleportation array could accommodate almost a thousand starving civilians. After a flash, a thousand people disappeared. There was no telling where they had been sent.
“Master!”
Suddenly, six civilians, who were apparently a family, with long horns on their head and thicker noses, ran out of the line and bowed toward Ba Yanzhi. “Thank you for saving our lives! Thank you for saving our lives! Without you, our entire family would have been boiled and eaten up already!”
Ba Yanzhi observed them for a moment and burst into laughter. He patted one of the muscular men’s shoulders and said loudly, “Zhang Niuer, it’s you! I did not expect that you could become so strong after you drank the ‘Divine Water of Kunlun 1 ‘ even though you were as thin as a lath. Your name is particularly suitable for you right now. 2 Hahahaha! What about your new appearance? Have you been used to it?”
“You will not be hungry anymore!” Ba Yanzhi promised them. “When you arrive in the Green Wolf Planet, a certain coverage of land will be allocated to every household. Even part of the production in the mother lodes will be redistributed to you, too! As long as you are willing to work hard, your life will certainly be better in the future!”
“Thank you master. We cannot return your favor even if we work as bulls and horses—”
While talking, Zhang Niuer seemed to have realized that his current appearance was more or less similar to bulls and horses, and he was amused by himself.
Ba Yanzhi smiled, too. He said firmly, “There’s no need to work as bulls and horses for me. If you really want to return my favor, just live a good life on the Green Wolf Planet and try to develop the place into a new, prosperous world!
“With the resources that you collect on the Green Wolf Planet, more starving civilians will be fed, and the war between us and the Mystic Moon Sect and the Dragon King Brotherhood can be ended. Chances are that you will be able to return to your home one day in the future!”
“If we are really given a piece of the land, we will not be coming back! Home? Wherever I can feed my children will be my home!” Zhang Niuer said boldly.
Ba Yanzhi was dazed for a moment, before he nodded. “Well said, Zhang Niuer. The home is where the stomach can be fed. Go now to build our home!”
After thanking him multiple times, Zhang Niuer and his family joined the crowd in a hurry and boarded the teleportation array along with other bizarre-looking civilians whose eyes were shining with hope. After glamorous flashing, they marched into their new home!
The memory piece was like a mirage and soon dispersed. Butterflies of light and shadow danced and formed the third scene. This time, Ba Yanzhi returned to the headquarters of the Ultimate One Sect. He was back at the splendid palace again.
The palace had expanded and looked even more spectacular than last time. Every corner of the palace was extravagant, as if it were a palace in the heaven. Even the stele of ‘Ultimate One Sect’ was now decorated with eye-catching adornments.
But Ba Yanzhi’s miserable scream was echoing inside the splendid palace like the cry of a ghost.
“You lied to me, leader. You lied to me!”
