I’ve Reloaded the Save File! [Transmigration] 37

37: Scheming

To avoid losing his life, the subordinate didn’t dare to hide anything this time and honestly told them everything he knew.

“I was originally just an ordinary rogue cultivator. Later, the boss found me and said he could teach me cultivation techniques and help me become stronger,” the subordinate said, feeling that the pressure from the two of them was too strong, and he sat down on the ground with a plop. “I had just reached the Foundation Establishment stage at that time. Someone who looked much more powerful than me wanted to help me, so of course I agreed.”

“If I didn’t agree, I was afraid he would get angry,” the subordinate added weakly.

“Later, I followed the boss to cultivate. After about a year, the boss taught me a special mental technique that made my cultivation speed ten times faster…”

The subordinate’s experience was actually very simple. He was attracted by the speed of cultivation and, in order to become stronger, he directly abandoned his conscience and did whatever the black-robed boss told him to do.

“I only know that the boss seems to have some connection with the Demon Realm. Many of the things were provided to him by them,” The subordinate said, observing the expressions on Mo Xiao and Zuo Wuyi’s faces as he confessed.

He knew very well in his heart that a person without use value did not deserve to live. While confessing his experience, he also had to show his value, so that he would not be silenced for being useless after he finished speaking.

“This is our eighth time placing these things. According to the boss’s plan, after we finish placing these eggs, we can throw those spirit artifacts, spirit stones, and other things nearby for the cultivators to use,” the subordinate said cautiously.

“As for what the boss really wants to do, I only know a little, but I’m not sure.”

Mo Xiao and Zuo Wuyi remained silent throughout. Only after the subordinate had stopped and was looking at them nervously did Mo Xiao give a hum.

“Is that all you know?” Zuo Wuyi followed up with a question.

“My lords, I’ve told you all the definite information. The rest are just my speculations, which may be wrong, so I dare not say,” the subordinate said. Seeing that Zuo Wuyi was about to make a move, he quickly added.

“But my lords, I know where the boss contacts the people from the Demon Realm!”

“Speak,” Mo Xiao drew her sword and asked with a frown.

“If I’m near that place, I’ll definitely recognize it, but I can’t say the specific name!” the subordinate said hastily, afraid that he would be a step too slow and have his neck cut off by the sword.

“But I can guarantee that it’s definitely not too far from here, because the boss’s ability is limited. Even with the help of a formation, he can only move freely within a certain range! As long as you give me some time, my lords, I can definitely find the place!”

The subordinate was indeed telling the truth. He remembered the place where the black-robed boss contacted the demons. But he had revealed this information to save his life. Before he found a way to escape, he probably wouldn’t be able to “find” that place.

Mo Xiao thought for a moment, then directly destroyed the subordinate’s cultivation and said coldly, “Are you going to walk on your own, or should I knock you out and take you away?”

The subordinate spat out a mouthful of blood. Feeling his empty dantian, his heart was full of resentment, and the thought of perishing together with Mo Xiao instantly arose.

“If your cultivation is gone, you can cultivate again. But if your life is gone, then it’s really gone,” Zuo Wuyi was the most sensitive to this kind of villainous aura and immediately warned him.

The subordinate shrank his neck, the courage that had just sprouted in his heart shattered by Zuo Wuyi’s words. Life was indeed only one. As long as he could live, it would not be a problem to re-cultivate to the Golden Core stage.

My life is important, my life is important. A wise man does not fight when the odds are against him. As long as I can live, maybe my future cultivation can even surpass theirs!

Under the subordinate’s self-deception, he was brought to the City Lord’s Mansion by Mo Xiao.

When the city lord heard that Mo Xiao and Zuo Wuyi had arrived, she immediately stopped what she was doing, came to the main hall, and met with them.

“City Lord, we seem to have found the reason for the demonic beasts’ abnormality,” Mo Xiao did not waste time on pleasantries, but dropped a bombshell with her first sentence.

The city lord was first stunned, then her expression became solemn. “Fellow Daoist, you mean that the demonic beasts’ abnormality is man-made?”

Mo Xiao nodded. As expected of a city lord in a high position, she had guessed the key point at once. “City Lord, please take a look. This is what we found in the forest outside Nanfeng City.”

As she spoke, Mo Xiao took out a black egg. This egg was taken from the black-robed boss’s storage ring. The demonic energy on the egg had not been completely integrated into it. With a little careful observation, one could see that something was wrong.

“This aura…” The city lord took the egg from Mo Xiao’s hand and held it in her palm to observe it carefully. Her expression became more and more solemn. “Fellow Daoist, is this the aura of a demon attached to it?”

Mo Xiao nodded. “I have fought with demons before. This egg is indeed tainted with demonic energy.”

“Where did you find it, fellow Daoist? Can you tell me the specific location?” The city lord’s tone became urgent. If the demons were really behind the beast tide, then their purpose was most likely to destroy Nanfeng City.

“Don’t worry, City Lord. We have already investigated and brought back almost all the black eggs,” Mo Xiao said. “We also encountered two people who were working for the demons, but one of them is already dead. The one who survived is his subordinate.”

“You also encountered enemies, fellow Daoist?” The city lord frowned. “Are you two injured? That kind of person is not worth pitying. You don’t have to worry about it.”

“Where is the person who survived, fellow Daoist? Is it convenient for me to see him?” the city lord followed up with a question.

With the city lord’s words, her image in Mo Xiao and Zuo Wuyi’s eyes became much more upright. Regardless of whether the other party was intentional or not, the fact that the city lord was concerned about whether they were injured first, rather than other matters, was already very rare.

“Rest assured, City Lord. That person’s cultivation has already been crippled by us. He’s at the door being watched by the guards. He can’t run away,” Zuo Wuyi explained, to avoid the city lord being too anxious.

“City Lord, this storage ring contains all the contaminated eggs and some spirit stones and herbs. Please keep it for the time being,” To increase her credibility, Mo Xiao handed the storage ring to the city lord.

“Alright, I’ll have my advisors study it later to see if there are any clues,” the city lord solemnly accepted the ring.

“As for this…” After giving the storage ring, Mo Xiao then took out the storage pouch containing the black-robed boss’s body. “City Lord, this is the body of the dead cultivator. Why don’t I hand it over to you for the time being?”

To be honest, Mo Xiao always felt that it was a bit impolite to give someone a corpse. But the situation was special now. It was definitely more appropriate to hand it over to the city lord than for them, a few outsiders, to keep it.

“You two have been very thoughtful. I really don’t know how to thank you,” The city lord had calmed down by this time. After accepting the storage pouch, she directly bowed to the two of them.

“Thank you, two fellow Daoists. After this matter is investigated, I will definitely reward you handsomely!” the city lord solemnly promised.

Mo Xiao did not dodge, but accepted the salute together with Zuo Wuyi. “City Lord, these are all the clues we have collected so far. We will leave the follow-up handling of this matter entirely to you.”

“It’s my duty. This happened near my Nanfeng City, so it is naturally my responsibility,” The city lord was also very satisfied with their performance. Such true-tempered people were what she admired.

Then the city lord asked for some more details, such as the black-robed boss’s moves and how he appeared.

After asking enough, the city lord got up and prepared to leave. “You two, I have to go and discuss this matter with my advisors first, so I must take my leave.”

“Then we won’t disturb you either, City Lord,” Mo Xiao also stood up from her chair and said politely, “We should be in Nanfeng City for the near future. If you need our help with anything, just say so.”

The city lord nodded and personally saw the two of them to the door, once again thanking them solemnly. “I will remember your kindness.”

As they were about to return to the inn, Zuo Wuyi bumped Mo Xiao’s shoulder. “Do you really want to help that city lord? Do you think she’s an upright and good person?”

Mo Xiao’s figure barely moved, only tilting slightly with Zuo Wuyi’s force. “What do you think?”

“If you ask me, I think you saw an injustice and drew your sword to help,” Zuo Wuyi said, turning her head to look at Mo Xiao, observing the expression on her face.

Mo Xiao smiled. “Not entirely. The city lord is indeed a good person, and she seems very righteous.”

“Then what other reason is there?” Zuo Wuyi pressed.

“The demons are currently on the opposite side of us. As righteous cultivators, we have an obligation to deal with them,” Mo Xiao said. “And your background determines that you are very likely to become a demon in the future.”

“Only by knowing yourself and your enemy can you win a hundred battles. We can use this situation to gather information about the Demon Realm,” Mo Xiao said, glancing at Zuo Wuyi. “Demons are cruel by nature, and they respect the strong. Although you told me that you eventually became the Demon Lord, I think you must have gone through a lot of twists and turns, right?”

“If entering the Demon Realm and becoming the Demon Lord are inevitable, then we will clear out the enemies in advance. At that time, whatever you want to do will be much more convenient and easier.”

Zuo Wuyi was stunned as she listened. She could still understand what Mo Xiao had said at the beginning. After all, demons and cultivators had always been on opposite sides. But what were those words that followed?

What do you mean by knowing yourself and your enemy? What do you mean by very likely to become a demon? What do you mean by clearing out the opponents in advance?

“Mo Xiao, in your heart, am I already the future Demon Lord?” Zuo Wuyi managed to regain her thoughts and asked with a slight stutter.

Mo Xiao nodded. “Didn’t you say so? Your biological father was the previous Demon Lord, and he only has you as a child. If you were in the Demon Realm now, you would probably be the Young Lord of the Demon Realm, right?”

Zuo Wuyi coughed twice. “Actually, the current Demon Lord should still have a few adopted sons, but they are all busy with internal strife, and the Demon Lord doesn’t like them.”

Most importantly, their ambitions would grow larger and larger, and eventually some of them would even have the thought of seizing the throne. That was why the Demon Lord would completely despise them and turn to find her, the child he had once ruthlessly abandoned.

“Understood,” Mo Xiao nodded. “Your enemies are those so-called adopted sons. Can you deduce their current cultivation levels?”

“Huh?” A question mark slowly appeared above Zuo Wuyi’s head. “Mo Xiao, what did you just ask me?”

“Their cultivation, the current cultivation of those adopted sons,” Mo Xiao repeated.

“…” Zuo Wuyi said with a complicated expression, “If I remember correctly, they should all be at the Nascent Soul stage now. When I went over, one was at the early Spirit Transformation stage, one was in seclusion to break through to the Spirit Transformation stage, and the others were still at the mid-to-late Nascent Soul stage.”

“Alright,” Mo Xiao calculated the time in her head. In two hundred years, the strongest of them would be at the early Spirit Transformation stage. Then two hundred years ago, the strongest among them should only be at the Nascent Soul stage.

“What’s so ‘alright’ about it?” Zuo Wuyi asked, a ridiculous guess in her heart. “Mo Xiao, you’re not thinking of going directly to the Demon Realm and killing those people, are you?”

Hearing Zuo Wuyi’s words, Mo Xiao looked at her with a very strange expression. “Wuyi, have you gone mad? I just said ‘alright’.”

“And what kind of place is the Demon Realm? There is no source of spiritual energy there. If we were to go, we would have to be fully prepared,” Mo Xiao said. “I’m not so arrogant as to think that I can flatten the Demon Realm with just myself and a sword.”

At the very least, it should be when I reach the Mahayana stage and have cultivated the complete way of the sword.

“Don’t you plan to take the opportunity to get rid of them?” Zuo Wuyi retorted. She didn’t believe that Mo Xiao would ask these things for no reason.

“If the opportunity is right, I might consider it,” Mo Xiao stroked her chin. “For example, if the mastermind this time is one of them, then he might leave the Demon Realm, and then I can strike first.”

Zuo Wuyi did not speak. She used her silence to express her shock, trying hard to revise the rigid impression she had of Mo Xiao.

They say it’s easier to change mountains and rivers than to change one’s nature. Perhaps she had misjudged from the beginning, deceived by that person in the white shirt with a gentle and refined face.

Wuwu, but I seem to like this seriously evil Mo Xiao even more!