Ge Nianlan’s eyes widened.

“The Dragon Tree functions as a heart for the Dragon Veins,” Nie Chenhui said. “Even if the other parts of the matrix fall, so long as this tree remains, the world will be balanced. If it is destroyed, then another bout of chaos will descend upon the Mortal Realm.”

Ge Nianlan shuddered. Then, that was why Huai Zhen had flattened Yunkong Pavilion first!

“Following that, the devil cultivators were driven out and the gods were merciful enough to split this land into two,” Nie Chenhui said with a smile. “That is why we are now divided into Yinxue Region, where the majority of people practice devil cultivation, and Yunheng Region, where the majority practice righteous cultivation.”

Ge Nianlan slowly nodded. “I have a question.”

“Go ahead.”

“Why is…Yunkong Pavilion the one who watches over the Dragon Tree?” Ge Nianlan asked.

“Because the woman who sacrificed herself to create the Dragon Tree was the Sect Master of the predecessor to Yunkong Pavilion. A few hundred years after her death, her sect fell, and a new one rose in its place, bearing her name as its namesake,” Nie Chenhui said.

“Lord Hanjing is the Dragon Tree Guardian, is he not?”

“Correct.”

“But…now the Pavilion Master is someone else,” Ge Nianlan said.

Nie Chenhui hummed. “We’ll have to start from the beginning again.”

Ge Nianlan nodded.

“Curiously enough, the only people who can maintain and communicate with the Dragon Tree are descendants of the person who sacrificed herself. They have to be a member of the Baili Clan,” Nie Chenhui said. “The main reason the first sect fell was because the Baili Clan member decided that doing both was too tiresome, so they decided to place themselves as an elder, while someone else became the leader of the sect. Afterwards, members of the Baili Clan dedicated themselves solely to maintaining the Dragon Tree and the Dragon Veins until their successor is able to succeed them or until they pass away due to old age.”

Ge Nianlan silently drank in the information. He fiddled with his pen. “Has there ever been an instance where someone was not able to have an heir?”

“Not at all. They have always had an heir. If something like that happened, I’m sure the Dragon Tree would have wilted,” Nie Chenhui said.

“So, it’s very important to maintain the Dragon Tree?”

“Of course!”

“Even for us?” Ge Nianlan asked.

“Dragon Veins, in essence, represent a balance in the world. If the balance isn’t there, the world will end, no matter what,” Nie Chenhui said. “This is what we have concluded after such a long time.”

“Oh…”

“Why? Were you planning on killing Lord Immortal Hanjing?”

Ge Nianlan paled. “No! Why would I?!”

Nie Chenhui shrugged. “I don’t know. You’re kind of freaky.”

Ge Nianlan stared at him speechlessly. He quickly recovered himself and asked another question. “Then, has there ever been an instance where someone who wasn’t a member of Baili Clan took over? I mean, there must be something like a mentor and apprenticeship, right?”

“Nope. Not at all.”

Ge Nianlan frowned.

If Huai Zhen returns to Black Mane Palace, the world ends; if Ge Nianlan doesn’t return to Yunkong Pavilion, the world could also end! Then, would it be better to go to Yunkong Pavilion and keep Huai Zhen at his side? But that lunatic has the potential to become the Supreme Devil God! Just thinking about it makes Ge Nianlan shudder!

Then…could he kill him?

…What an outrageous pipedream, for someone who couldn’t even lift a sword or control the flow of Qi throughout his body!

“What are you thinking about?”

Ge Nianlan screamed and jumped back in his chair. Nie Chenhui laughed happily and crawled down from the table with a light smile on his face.

“What is it? Are you interested in Lord Immortal Hanjing because he gave you a spirit beast?” Nie Chenhui asked.

Ge Nianlan glanced at the black pile of feathers sitting nearby. “Kind of. He looked very scary, but he played with me all afternoon. He even gave me a gift.”

“Oh, children. So easily bought!”

Nie Chenhui poked the bird’s butt. “Still, I will agree that you are impressive.”

Ge Nianlan stared at him. “Impressive?”

“Yeah,” Nie Chenhui said. “It’s difficult to make a contract with a spirit beast. They’re finicky, often have a horrible personality, and they generally just don’t obey humans well. If they’re birds, it’s especially bad. Birds are a very proud species, so if they don’t think you are worthy, you won’t even have a chance! There are very few people in history who have had a bird as their spirit beast.”

Ge Nianlan glanced at Sigu. “Well…he’s just a baby, so it was probably easier to convince him.”

Nie Chenhui let out a long hum. He observed Ge Nianlan silently before shrugging. “If that’s how you see it, then fine!”

Ge Nianlan glanced at Nie Chenhui. “You still never answered why people from a prominent righteous sect came to visit Father.”

“Oh, right! We got so side-tracked!”

We.

“So, the devil cultivators and righteous cultivators have separated in this fashion for centuries,” Nie Chenhui said. “But that does not mean we have coexisted peacefully during that time. Even when devil cultivators aren’t doing anything, the righteous sects are always jumping up to ‘defeat evil’ or whatever. You know, most of the ‘evil’ they should deal with actually comes from their own backyard?”

“Why?” Ge Nianlan asked.

“Because righteous cultivators who are greedy often turn to devil cultivation!” Nie Chenhui laughed. “The irony!”

“So…Yunkong Pavilion wants to make a treaty with Black Mane Palace?” Ge Nianlan asked.

“Now, this goes into another bit of history,” Nie Chenhui sighed. He sat down on the table and brought his legs up so that he could cross them. “Point to Black Mane Palace on the map!”

Earlier today, Ge Nianlan had learned the characters that made up Black Mane Palace. He looked around the map for a while before pointing.

“Now, do you see any other major sects in this area?”

Ge Nianlan let his eyes travel across the map. They moved for a long time before they saw other sects but, even then, they were marked in a different color to indicate their insignificance.

“You see? Black Mane Palace is Yinxue Region’s most prominent and infamous sect,” Nie Chenhui said. “It’s easier to make an alliance with one group, who will uphold the treaty, than to try and gather the ragtag group of devil cultivators.”

“I see,” Ge Nianlan mumbled. “So, is Yunkong Pavilion the same as Black Mane Palace is to Yinxue Region?”

“Nope! Over in Yunheng Region, they have a large alliance between some of the most prominent sects and clans, called Eternal Pagoda,” Nie Chenhui explained. “It is Eternal Pagoda who wants to make an alliance with Black Mane Palace. But Yunkong Pavilion was sent as their representative, because they are the home to the Dragon Tree. By having such important people come for a treaty and a potential alliance, it shows their sincerity.”

Ge Nianlan had sat there and listened for more than ten minutes now, but the only thought that circled his mind this entire time was the fact that this treaty had not been mentioned in the cursed artifact at all.