"Who exactly are you?" the Taoyuan Village Cultivator murmured.

"You already have a conclusion in your heart, so go ahead and say it." I said.

The Taoyuan Village Cultivator was silent for a few seconds, his body trembling distinctly.

The mere tremor caused the iron chains threaded through his flesh and bones to inflict intense pain upon him. He gasped painfully for air, and then, as if he couldn't accept his own thoughts, he said strenuously, "…A few months ago, after Lushan Great Impermanence Zhuang Cheng attacked Taoyuan Village Headquarters, he disappeared without a trace. Based on follow-up intelligence feedback, it was confirmed that he hadn't perished in the battle. Later, through intelligence means, we comprehended his mana fluctuation characteristics and committed them to memory.

"And before the last reboot, when you killed me, I felt your mana piercing into my brain. It was completely consistent with the legendary Great Impermanence Manor Zhuang Cheng's mana fluctuation...

"At first, I thought you were a powerful Zhuang Cheng believer with mysterious spell techniques. However… according to my previous perception, this refuge should be under siege by tens of thousands of monsters led by our Taoyuan Village Great Success Rank power, which logically should have broken through by now. Yet, the reality is that the mana fluctuation of that Great Success Rank suddenly vanished without a trace, and even the reaction of so many monsters rapidly extinguished, replaced by you suddenly entering here… Is that related to you?"

"The genius Dong Che is standing beside you as if a servant. It's said that even the renowned Lu Chan couldn't command him. I've never heard of a Zhuang Cheng believer like you, unless… unless you are..."

He seemed hesitant to continue. He likely arrived at a more unbelievable conclusion after excluding all other possibilities.

How could Great Impermanence suddenly appear before him? A few months ago, the Taoyuan Village preacher might have had similar thoughts. Although the Taoyuan Village Cultivator appeared smarter, he was still bound by established notions.

"Since you've already guessed it, then I won't introduce myself. Next, please share the information we seek. How is Taoyuan Village's combat force deployed in this city? You should know, right? Afterward, I'm planning to sweep them all away, just like you did to everyone in this city." I said.

"You want me to betray my comrades?" The Taoyuan Village Cultivator clenched his teeth forcefully.

"I haven't requested your opinion."

I reached out, placing my palm on his face, unleashing vigorous flames that ignited his entire body.

He let out a wretched scream. The flames didn't damage his flesh or clothes but cruelly burned and diminished his soul, causing it to weaken rapidly.

Xiaoqiao seemed to involuntarily display a hint of mercy in her expression but kept her gaze fixed on him. The faction he belonged to was the butcher of thirty million people, even causing all of her family visit targets to perish. She had no reason to sympathize with such a person.

Jiaoshu laughed mercilessly at the enemy suffering retribution for directly killing several of his partners.

In the current situation, my Power of Word Spirit strength is insufficient, even dealing with Jiaoshu, a residence-level demon hunter, requires subtle spiritual invasion, let alone confronting this achieved-level monster before me.

Yet this minor issue doesn't stump me. Since the opponent is too strong, simply weakening him to a degree where spiritual domination can be easily accomplished is enough.

Using destructive flames to forcibly reduce the soul, it's easy to lose control and burn the soul to a state incapable of normal communication or even irreparably destroy it. Fortunately, I am now completely different from before. Previously, I often wielded immense power without skill, but now I don't have much power yet possess profound techniques beyond even most Great Success Rank Inconstancy.

I've burned quite a few souls and have experience in disassembling and reassembling my soul. Though not enough to say I'm an expert in the soul field, I have unique insights. At least in burning someone to extreme weakness but not to death, I have considerable confidence.

Soon, the Taoyuan Village Cultivator was burned to confusion, even losing the strength to scream. I dissipated the flames enveloping his body and then used the Power of Word Spirit to begin interrogating for information.

Under the compulsion of external force, he answered with the efforts of squeezing water out of a sponge. Watching this dying Taoyuan Village Cultivator, Dong Che showed no sympathy or pity, took out prepared paper and pen for recording, and the questioning baton passed from me to him. Dong Che also found a map in the room, placed it in front of the opponent, and had him indicate the positions of Taoyuan Village's force deployment.

The interrogation process was exceptionally smooth, hence it ended quickly. Dong Che obtained all the desired information, contentedly put away the paper and map. The spiritual influence of the Power of Word Spirit gradually subsided, the Taoyuan Village Cultivator seemingly realized what he'd done, despair coloring his face.

"Do you... do you know what you are doing?"

He dared not speak to me, instead looking at Dong Che and Jiaoshu, speaking in a hoarse voice: "Why must you oppose us? As long as you join our dreamworld, any wish can be fulfilled. Isn't the Governance Ideology of your Luo Mountain also pursuing harmonious coexistence between monks and mortals? In the real world, that is an impossible wish, only in the dreamworld can it be achieved!"

Jiaoshu was dismissive, while Dong Che furrowed his brows.

"That's just your perspective. Don't impose your own belief in impossibility onto us," Dong Che said seriously, "Moreover, it seems that you people from Taoyuan Village aren't really fighting for everyone's welfare, but just want to create a dreamworld where you can be happy."

"Can you really say with confidence that you are fighting for everyone's happiness? The pain of being burned by flames must be intense, but compared to the countless ordinary people who were tragically devoured alive by beasts, your pain is insignificant. I truly cannot understand how you can justify doing such things with a clear conscience."

The Taoyuan Village cultivator opened his mouth, seemingly wanting to retort, but the influence of the Power of Word Spirit still lingered slightly, and he couldn't speak against his will.

He closed his mouth in dejection, then asked after a moment: "…Have you ever been loved?"

Dong Che was bewildered.

"...Of course, you can't understand us," the Taoyuan Village cultivator gazed in a trance at the handsome young man before him, "Outstanding looks, exceptional talent, great mentors... even leaving your school you're always welcomed back, and valued and accepted by the New God. Someone like you, as if favored by the heavens, naturally finds the real world to be wonderful... How could someone like you understand us?"

"That cannot be your reason for framing the innocent," Dong Che said.

"I admit, not all of us are like the Taoyuan Village Master, with the aspiration to save everyone. More of us just want to save ourselves. It's more about believing in 'Paradise' than the Taoyuan Village Master," the Taoyuan Village cultivator said, "But the Taoyuan Village Master does truly want to redeem everyone. I cannot lie now, these are my heartfelt words."

"He had no intention of massacring everyone. Otherwise, during his battle with Xuanming, those affected by the aftermath wouldn't have been able to revive after the Reboot."

This was true. In fact, in the past, hundreds of thousands in the Eastern Coastal City died from the aftermath of my and Fa Zheng's battle with the Three-headed Great Demon, and were in an irrecoverable state. Because the Great Demon initially aimed to kill all humanity, and attacked the city directly upon appearing, those who died weren't purely innocent victims of collateral damage.

"The Taoyuan Village Master genuinely believes in 'Paradise', in the supreme God above all gods, who can bring redemption to everything... nothing he said or did was a lie," the Taoyuan Village cultivator spoke as if cursing, "So... you will regret it, you will perish in remorse for abandoning happiness that was within your grasp."

This seemed to provoke Dong Che, who muttered as if to himself, "Taoyuan Village Master... believes in 'Paradise'?"

Now that we had all the information needed, it was unnecessary to remain in the interrogation room. After leaving, Dong Che seemed deeply absorbed in the previous conversation, appearing distracted.

Perhaps because his position was different now, Dong Che was the leader of all demon hunters in the refuge. Even in name only, it was perhaps a heavy burden for him. So now he seemed more composed and steady than the Dong Che I remembered.

At this moment, however, his focus on his inner world softened his previously calm demeanor, making him resemble more the innocent and lively person I remembered him to be.

"What are you thinking about?" Jiaoshu suddenly spoke, "Could it be you were really taken in by what that Taoyuan Village cultivator said?"

Dong Che snapped out of it, gave Jiaoshu an annoyed glance, and corrected him: "No, it's not like that... I just felt a bit inspired."

"Inspired?" Jiaoshu was puzzled.

"To those Taoyuan Village cultivators, the Taoyuan Village Master and 'Paradise' are often seen as one entity, with the latter being the Taoyuan Village Master's future divine form. Conversely, 'Paradise' is also seen as the Taoyuan Village Master's own belief. Self-belief...," Dong Che pondered, "This idea... could serve as a breakthrough in restoring Senior Zhuang Cheng's powers."