CHAPTER 692: 154, EIGHTH RING

Lin Yue understood the meaning of the Second Prince.

What the Human Ancestor once experienced, how similar was it to the current situation?

Clan members who returned kindness with ingratitude, an ignorant and foolish group.

Such experiences placed upon anyone in this world would likely be unbearable, let alone for those who stood as pillars of their clan at the peak of power.

Surely some would question themselves in their hearts—

Are such kin and such a clan truly worth sacrificing everything to protect?

Some chose to stand by and watch indifferently, some chose to take revenge on their clan, some chose to save only those they valued, while great individuals like the Human Ancestor were willing to let bygones be bygones, shoulder the mission, and continue to lead the people.

"I can’t be as great as the Human Ancestor."

Lin Yue shook his head slightly and sighed softly, "Although I don’t like to kill the innocent indiscriminately, I also can’t return evil with good. Even Confucian Saints couldn’t do this step, could they?"

"It’s very normal." The Second Prince smiled and said, "If it were a more selfish person, they might even think the Human Ancestor was just a foolish stick-in-the-mud. Humans are inherently such contradictory beings. Even the Human Ancestor, after suffering from the betrayals of his people over and over again, once thought ’Maybe it’s better to just let the Human Clan be destroyed.’"

Lin Yue suddenly said, "No wonder... the Human Ancestor had to cut away his evil thoughts."

When he first opened the black jade coffin, what came out first was the Human Ancestor’s evil thoughts.

"That was the Human Ancestor’s heart of destruction."

The Second Prince said, "The path taken by the Human Ancestor in his Cultivation, like the will of Martial Arts, requires clear thoughts. But after experiencing the betrayal of the Human Clan multiple times, he also harbored disgust and hatred toward the clan. If he didn’t cut away his evil thoughts, his Martial Arts would be difficult to advance. However... evil thoughts were still a part of him. By cutting away his evil thoughts time and again, his insight diminished slightly. Add to that he was a pioneer, which is why he couldn’t grasp parts of the Ultimate Path at that time."

Lin Yue remained silent.

Although one cannot negate an entire race based on the actions of some, repaying evil with good as the Human Ancestor did is also against human nature.

No wonder the Human Ancestor had to cut away his evil thoughts. Otherwise, accumulated over a long period, either his progress in Martial Arts would stall, or he would end up destroying the Human Clan with his own hands.

"If Second Brother won’t use the Crown Prince’s method, what should be done?" Lin Yue asked.

"What should be done?"

The Second Prince looked at him and spoke softly, "I already mentioned the method. It’s a choice that must be made. The Crown Prince chose to slaughter billions of Mortals, whereas I choose to give up twenty percent of the national destiny."

"Give up?" Lin Yue couldn’t help but be startled.

"It’s not really giving up." The Second Prince shook his head slightly and said, "That’s the worst-case scenario. If we’re lucky and find the flaw in the real Dream or the person manipulating it, maybe we can preserve that twenty percent of national destiny."

Saying this, he looked at Lin Yue and said, "Besides that, is there any other way?"

Lin Yue fell silent.

Indeed.

That was, after all, the Treasure related to the Firstborn of the Deities in myth and legend, not something that could be easily resolved, right?

But...

Directly slaughtering tens of billions of Great Yong Mortals is also an unacceptable act.

That’s tens of billions of living lives.

If one does not wish to do so, they must risk sacrificing a portion of Saints, losing twenty percent of national destiny, and quickly find the flaw or manipulator of the real Dream.

"But..."

Lin Yue frowned slightly and said, "If because of this twenty percent of national destiny, the National Guardian Array is breached, then I’m afraid..."

Although it’s said that it would only affect the Crown Prince when national destiny falls below half of that of the Human Clan’s destiny, losing just twenty percent might be acceptable, but it could potentially trigger a series of chain reactions, right?

Eighty years ago the National Guardian Array was only damaged on the outskirts, so the impact wasn’t too great.

But if the Divine Array were completely breached, that would be an utter disaster.

"Don’t worry." The Second Prince said softly, "There won’t be such a day."

The Second Prince seemed very confident? Lin Yue pondered thoughtfully.

It seemed that the Second Prince or rather Great Yong still had some cards up their sleeve that had not yet been played.

Even if losing a part of the Saint powerhouses and twenty percent of national destiny, it was not completely unacceptable.

Only...

What was the Second Prince’s last resort?

And the Crown Prince had also remained silent all this time, allowing the Demon Clan to sow such discord among the people, but why?

...

In the blink of an eye, a month passed.

During this month, countless Cultivators burdened with sins were publicly executed in the real Dream, and four Demon Path Saints had died in succession.

Indeed, many Cultivators had once caused harm, and their removal did have a deterrent effect, which further justified the actions of the Divine Dream Envoy in the eyes of the people of the world.

Even many powerhouses, knowing it was a conspiracy of the Demon Clan, couldn’t find any links between this real Dream and the Demon Clan.

Without evidence, how could they openly tell the world that this was a Dream of the Demon Clan, expecting ordinary people to understand concepts like the Human Clan’s destiny and the Crown Prince’s control over Heavenly Dao, which even the vast majority of Cultivators didn’t grasp?

Moreover...

So far, this real Dream actually seemed to be removing harm. If they informed the world that this was a conspiracy of the Demon Clan, it could be seen as slander.

To speak the truth as if it were false is not difficult.

Even Mortals barely knew what the Demon Clan was. Even Lin Yue, when he first entered Di Hong City, didn’t understand the Demon Clan, let alone ordinary people.

So, they could only act according to the circumstances.

The Crown Prince, the Second Prince, and the Proving powerhouses were also trying their best to find the manipulator behind this real Dream.

But this real Dream obviously had the characteristic of being inscrutable. Even after so many people were killed, there was not the slightest trace of sin, and it was impossible to deduce its whereabouts.