Chapter 68
Chun Ma gradually raised his head to meet the gaze of the man standing before him.
Blue and black pupils clashed, and for a moment, a strange tension hung in the air. The standoff began and ended, just as quickly, with the Heavenly Demon laughing:
“You’re quite a strange one. Most people would cower the moment they met my eyes. But you… you’re different.”
“If you wanted me dead, I wouldn’t be able to resist. So why should I cower? If you’re going to kill me, then do it. If not, at least let me keep my dignity.”
“Oh?” The Heavenly Demon raised an eyebrow as he looked at Chun Ma. “You have no idea how close you are to falling through the thin ice.”
Chun Ma didn’t cower, he respectfully bowed his head:
“I wonder how the Heavenly Demon knew about my situation?”
“It wasn’t hard to find. I have eyes in all places,” the heavenly demon’s gaze went towards the chessboard in front of him. “The person you fought was a fallen disciple of the Buddhist sect.”
“Fallen disciple?” Chun Ma stood bowing, with his ears perked to not miss a single detail.
“That’s right. That monk is a fallen disciple of the Shaolin Temple, one of the Righteous Faction, and he ran away with a Divine Rebirth Pill of the Shaolin Temple and joined the Shadow Faction. But something unknown happened, which caused him to escape here, to our Demonic Faction, the Heavenly Divine Cult.”
“I am curious, Heavenly Demon, if you had eyes everywhere, why were you not able to locate him then?”
Chun Ma immediately asked his question.
“Haha,” the Heavenly Demon started to laugh loudly. “Want me to tell you? Come sit over here.”
He beckoned forward, to sit opposite to him.
Chun Ma obliged and sat on the cushion with curious eyes as he looked at the chessboard.
Not a single piece had been moved. While he was in black’s position, the Heavenly Demon was in white’s position.
“Do you know what is the most important thing in a fight if all your strength and speed are similar?” the Demon Lord asked while moving a single pawn two steps forward.
“Initiative.”
Chun Ma answered in the most straightforward way. “If it is a fight between equal strength, then it would be a matter of initiative. Those who have the initiative can fight and retreat at the same time.”
“Wonderfully said.” The Demon Lord clapped his hands. “But what if there was another third factor that the two didn’t know about, but was actually controlling the fate of the battle?”
Chun Ma’s finger paused. “Are you saying that you intentionally left him behind?”
The Heavenly Demon shook his head as he pointed towards the sky:
“Do you know about astrology?”
“Yes, stars are fascinating things.” As a modern man, of course, Chun Ma knew about it.
“The stars are changing, and fate is reversing. The three stars of heaven will soon change hands and merge into one.”
The Heavenly Demon looked at Chun Ma with a mysterious smile:
“You might be our way to conquer the Central Plains.”
“…”
Chun Ma was silent:
“How do you know it is me?”
“Your growth. Although the Shaolin’s Divine Rebirth Pill allows one to be reborn, after you are reborn, you have to start over again with no extra benefits.”
“Not only did you break the walls of the first trial with your sheer fist, but you are able to carry 140 kgs of weight with ease already. This is an accomplishment that even the cult founder couldn’t do.”
“Not to mention that you have already defeated experienced Martial Trainees and also competed with a Demonic Captain.”
“Just because of that?”
Chun Ma tilted his head.
“That’s right, just because of that. But you won’t be granted this throne so easily, you have to prove yourself.”
“How?”
“The Heavenly Divine Cult only followed one saying: ‘Strength rules above all.’ Prove your strength, and you shall rule the world.”
“I see.” Chun Ma was as calm as ever, even when he heard that there might be a chance that he could get the entire cult working under him.
“As expected of you, not even showing a sliver of emotion. I won’t ask you about your background, but know that from now on, you are Chun Ma from the Heavenly Divine Cult.”
“Okay.”
He nodded his head, although there was a faint doubt in his heart, why was this man trusting him so much?
They just met!
Just as he was contemplating, a book appeared in front of him.
“Take it.”
Chun Ma took the book and saw the title:
[Heavenly Divine Cultivation]
“This will help you reach further on your path after reaching the Third-stage Martial Realm. Hope you can succeed.”
“Thank you.” Chun Ma bowed.
“If you can successfully score the highest when you come out of the Demonic Cave, then you will be honoured to have any martial arts from the Divine Library,” the Heavenly Demon spoke while observing him.
‘Divine Library, huh…’
Chun Ma thought, then looked at the Heavenly Demon for any more instruction.
“There is none. You can retire now.”
Soon, Chun Ma left the place, and the Heavenly Demon stood up. Seeing the picturesque surroundings, he sighed:
“This one is quite pure. Does he even have the capability to not only reach this bloody throne, but also cherish the dream of our founder to rule the world?”
Either way, the Heavenly Demon could only wait and sigh.
Chun Ma returned and walked outside the castle, where the old woman was waiting for him:
“You still have to complete your Demonic Cave.”
“Yes.”
Soon, Chun Ma entered the Demonic Cave and settled in his room. Then he carefully turned the pages of the book given by the Heavenly Demon.
“Finally, I can advance again, and that prophecy… I feel like it isn’t as he thought it was.”
Shaking his head, Chun Ma focused on every detail of how to cultivate it.
Strictly speaking, this was only a way to create an inner core in his body, but it was divided into stages. With each stage, he would progress further as a martial artist…