Longevity Chronicles
Chapter 461 - 321 Longevity Strategy, Yellow Heaven Secret Scroll

In the Ancestor Dragon Hall, within a certain chamber.

Tao Qian almost crushed the fake toad in his hand, and he was a hair's breadth away from casting a spell to rescue them.

In this world, good people are scarce, and Yin Juejun and Duan Qiu, this heroic couple, were what Tao Qian considered to be good people.

As he watched these enthusiastic comrades being plotted against, how could Tao Qian restrain himself?

However, he soon realized it was too late.

What he had just witnessed was a delayed scene, transferred by the Invisibility Demon.

It seemed as though his thoughts had been sensed, and as soon as the projection ended, the Demon immediately reported:

"Master, those two Yellow Skin Monsters are highly alert. I dared not get too close."

"However, in my judgment, there is still a chance to save those two Human Clan Cultivators, albeit very slim."

"Those Yellow Skin Monsters seem to be akin to the 'Soul-harboring Demons' from the Outer Realm, and they seem to have owners. Their actions aim to create followers who have their own thoughts yet are extremely loyal and fervent. This is a clever technique, far more effective than common deceit or arranging Heavenly Demons to seize bodies."

"As the common saying goes, 'the person who tied the bell should be the one to untie it.' If Master could control the masters of these Evil Spirits, there might be hope to save that unfortunate man and woman."

"If not, even with Master's formidable abilities, rushing there now would do nothing but startle the snakes and result in no other outcome."

It was rare, but Tao Qian was persuaded by the advice of his subordinate, the Outer Demon.

After silently considering it, he had to admit that it was indeed the case.

Cruel, yet unchangeable for the moment.

Tao Qian furrowed his brows slightly, seemingly distressed by issues of cultivation, but in reality, thoughts were swirling in his mind:

"I was worried about Ying Qingdi, fretting on his behalf that even if his revolutionary efforts succeeded, his loose organization would result in others claiming the fruits of victory."

"But unexpectedly, the fool is myself."

"Should I say, as expected of a hero? With this silent method, building a base of unprecedented loyalty and fervor for oneself, indeed far surpasses the likes of Zhu Qi, Zhang Jiudeng, Song Tiecheng."

"Now, the only question is: how many within the Ancestor Dragon Society have been corrupted by Ying Qingdi?"

"Is it Zhong Ziyang? What about Lin Bujue? And what about Chen Xiyi, Qi Daozhen, and Shen Ruolan? Have they all been contaminated?"

"No, that's not right. They shouldn't be yet."

"While such methods are covert, they have a drawback; they must progress step by step, impatiently cannot, and must start from the lowest level. For people like Lin Bujue, Zhong Ziyang, Chen Xiyi, they would become alert at even the slightest hint of such events."

"No wonder, when coming here, Zhong Ziyang and Lin Bujue mentioned that since joining the Ancestor Dragon Society, they have been extremely busy to the point of exhaustion. It seems now that Ying Qingdi deliberately made it so, to prevent those members skilled in various techniques and strong in cultivation from discovering the secrets in Hidden Dragon Mountain."

"His actions must have started from inconspicuous details, in the most overlooked and hidden places..."

Suddenly, as if Tao Qian had thought of something, a flash of inspiration struck his mind.

Immediately, his gaze swept across the chamber, landing on a rosewood bookshelf in the room, filled with books, thick and thin, each hand-copied with slight variations, exuding a faint aroma of ink.

Pretending to have finished his cultivation, Tao Qian stood up and walked over.

In the next moment, a row of titles caught his eye.

Immortal and Mortal Debate!

Green Emperor's Uprising!

Longevity Strategy!

Outer Realm Strange Events Examination!

Ten Methods of Governing by the Ancestor Saint!

Ancestor Emperor's Dao Validation Song!

...

Without any surprise, all these works were authored by the same person, Ying Qingdi.

Relying on too much himself, Tao Qian did not hesitate. He reached out and took the first book from the shelf to flip through it.

A thin booklet, with not much content, revolving around the theme of "equality between Immortals and Mortals."

Ying Qingdi attempted to use the fact that immortals, demons, and devils all arise from mortals and, coupled with the influence of fortune, to argue counter-evidence for the equality of immortals and mortals, proposing that the cultivation sects of the world, be they Daoist, Buddhist, Demon, or Devil, should all integrate into the mundane world to aid their own lineage and so on.

It has to be said that his literary flair is impressive, but it's all talk, and even Tao Qian isn't convinced, let alone the entire Cultivation World. This booklet seems to be propaganda aimed at the common people.

Putting it down, Tao Qian then looked at the second book, "Green Emperor's Uprising."

The content was even more straightforward and directly recorded Ying Qingdi's multiple attempts at initiating reforms and revolts in the various provinces of the Longevity Heavenly Dynasty, totaling thirty-six times, both large and small.

Although each attempt ended in failure, Tao Qian still gradually became immersed in it.

Because the protagonist was not just Ying Qingdi; there were other heroes, and the focus was even on others.

Ying Qingdi seemed intent on highlighting the greatness of those who sacrificed themselves, turning himself into a recorder of sorts, writing down all their heroic and tragic tales.

"The Qinfu City uprising, with two hundred and thirty heroes, including fifty cultivators and the rest being martial artists or strange people, attempted to assassinate the current Emperor Zhu Yong passing through Qinfu City at the time... The assassination failed. Ying Qingdi and Liu Chengyan, although they broke through the Forbidden Army's defenses, were thwarted by a powerful figure beside Zhu Yong. Disciple of the Shenxiao Sect, Liu Chengyan, to protect the lives of the others, coerced Zhu Yong to release them with the 'Innate Divine Thunder Self-Slaughter Secret Method', ultimately resulting in two hundred and one sacrifices, including Liu Chengyan himself."

"The Zhenbei Pass uprising was led by Master Huo Ya, Sun and Moon Zen Master, and Ying Qingdi, with a hundred cultivators and heroic individuals, attempting to seize this well-known perilous pass in the Northern Land that had accumulated thousands of layers of significant prohibitions over the years... An infiltrator from the Demon Sect in the uprising squad led to a massacre by the border army. Except for Master Huo Ya and Ying Qingdi who escaped, all the others died. In a fit of rage, the leader of the border army, the Poison Demon General Fei Shigu, even ordered the slaughter of several cities related to them, resulting in rivers of blood and the deaths and injuries of more than a hundred thousand civilians."

"The Zhu Familial Fifth Prince Tomb uprising aimed to gather resources and treasures for the many rebel armies within the seventy-two provinces. Individuals like Zhou Shixiu, Ying Qingdi, Bi Longgong, and Huang Feihu, in collaboration with the Moving Mountain Sect, jointly robbed the tombs of five princes from the Zhu Dynasty... Although they successfully obtained many treasures, the act alarmed the Zhu ancestors and they were eradicated from afar. Ying Qingdi and Bi Longgong were critically injured and escaped, while all the others died."

"The Imperial City new army uprising, where Princess Zhu Xiaozhuang, eight hundred miles away from the Imperial City at Dragon Suppressing Mountain, combining Royal Secret Method and some foreign Divine Spirit techniques, created a new army. One of the leaders, Fang Jiujie, in alliance with Ying Qingdi, Ma Zhongshan, Zhou Changmin, and others sought to take control of the new army, intending to storm the Imperial City and execute the Zhu Royal Family... Unexpectedly, Zhu Xiaozhuang was a descendant of the Evil Sect, and at the critical moment, she cast a spell to summon an Evil Sect Elder. The uprising failed, and except for Ying Qingdi who survived, the rest died, including tens of thousands of new army soldiers who joined the rebellion."

...

One heroic endeavor after another, one hero after another.

Through the records of Ying Qingdi, a witness himself, even the most hard-hearted cannot help but be moved at this moment.

Those who are more empathetic, who already have aspirations for national salvation, are utterly unable to resist it.

Suddenly, they become engrossed.

Unknowingly, he also looked at subsequent books like 'Longevity Strategy', 'Outer Realm Strange Events Examination', and more.

Although Tao Qian was wary before reading, by the time nearly all the books were finished, he still hadn't felt anything unusual.

What he gained was merely a clearer understanding of Ying Qingdi's life trajectory in the first half of his life.

This person!

Truly a tenacious hero who fought continuously despite repeated failures.

Thirty-six uprisings, both big and small, fighting across many provinces, each ending in failure with heavy casualties.

Anyone else would have collapsed by now.

Perhaps they would have ended it all or seen through the vanity of the world and retreated to the mountains for cultivation.

But Ying Qingdi never gave up.

Finally, after many attempts, he formed the foundation of the Ancestor Dragon Society.

With just a bit of discernment, one could see the various forces converging on the mountain and know that the "New Moon Uprising" Ying Qingdi was preparing would come infinitely close to succeeding.

The New Moon of the Northern Land's large province would fall into his hands.

So, this seems to be a good thing, right?

Having seen those feats, who wouldn't develop a favorable impression of Ying Qingdi.

If the compatibility was right, one might indeed fully endorse him and follow him.

"Could it be, that I was wrong?"

As this thought crossed Tao Qian's mind, involuntarily, several other thoughts arose.

"The idea of equality between immortals and mortals does hold some merit... If the New Moon Uprising is successful, it would also be considered great... The Seven Evils Sect deserves to be exterminated, and the Alchemists should die too... The Ancestor Emperor is certainly also great..."

When these thoughts surged, Tao Qian had not yet realized anything amiss.

Suddenly, Master Yuan's voice rang out in his arms:

"Boy, wake up quickly, you've been ensnared."

Master Yuan's voice, like the sound of a large bell, caused a thick yellow light to flicker in Tao Qian's eyes, abruptly going out.

At the same time, Record after Record belatedly entered Tao Qian's mind:

[Suffering from the invasion of Outer Realm Evil Technique... Exemption Granted!]

[Record Name: Yellow Heaven Evil Slave Summoning Divine Spell.]

[Record Type: Outer Realm Evil Technique.]

[Record: This is a special magic skill for developing Evil Slaves, invisible and traceless, hidden within secret commands, stemming from the Outer Realm Evil Scripture 'Yellow Heaven Secret Scroll'.]

...

Having come to his senses, Tao Qian, feeling the earlier anomaly and the Records revealing the truth, his eyes filled with shock and joy.

Shocked by the truth, he was pleased that by following his intuition and reading all of Ying Qingdi's works in one go, he indeed made an astounding discovery.