When you’re needed, it’s all "brothers and sisters of Soul Fusion." When you’re not, it’s a "holy severing"—suddenly, nobody knows you.
Such a masterful display of casting aside allies once they’ve served their purpose was truly a sight to behold. One could hardly resist badmouthing a supposedly mighty Celestial God for committing such a morally bankrupt act.
Westheid, however, didn’t hold Emperor Qianlu in quite so much contempt. From Wan Qi, he had obtained firsthand, authentic intelligence about the Demons.
"The creation of a Celestial God’s Shadow is due to a betrayal of one’s original aspiration, a wavering of one’s will."
The weight of this wisdom, spoken by the first Demon in history after ten thousand years, was self-evident.
If Emperor Qianlu had harbored deceitful intentions from the very beginning, then the filth he expelled would never have beco Demons.
It was precisely because Emperor Qianlu felt guilty that the severance had to be so absolute.
The Ascension Ceremony tolerates no hesitation or doubt. To ascend to the Supre Heaven, one must beco an absolutely pure and noble existence. Any hesitation or regret is a betrayal of the Ascension. A Celestial God has no need for such things; a Celestial God walking the path of their own creation is Law itself, is Correctness itself.
’It’s even possible that the problem lay with the Demonic Spirits and Monsters of the Soul Fusion. Then again, continuing down that line of thought would be making excuses for Emperor Qianlu. Whatever the Ascender’s original intentions, the facts are undeniable.’
The expelled "impurities" beca Celestial God’s Shadows. Once they beca Demons, they were naturally opposed to the supre existences of the heavens. Having completed the holy severing, Emperor Qianlu sealed these shadows away with a clear conscience.
In the eyes of these Demons, Emperor Qianlu was a fucking ungrateful, glory-hogging bastard! To say nothing of the side effects of the holy severing, which left no room for rationality. The rage, suppressed and imprisoned for thousands of years, was about to erupt in this era.
’Oh, just brilliant! "Those who ascend first will help the others ascend later," you promised? And then you turned around and blocked the path, damning us to the abyss forever, is that it? Enchanter Sword Tomb! The realm you built was supposed to be ours! It’s ti you gave it back!’
’Just watch burn it all down and unleash thousands of years of pain and resentnt!’
Even the weakest Demon is a Celestial God’s Shadow, at least on par with a Holy Spirit. The stronger Great Demons are nearly unrivaled by anyone short of a Celestial God. For the Thousand Laws Royal Court to be "waited on" by multiple Demons at once—how could they consider this anything less than a great blessing?
"I see..."
Westheid murmured in acknowledgnt. Though he knew far more than Xavier opposite him, he asked nothing, simply nodding as if he understood perfectly.
"That does sound quite troubleso. I imagine the Royal Court’s army would struggle to handle them. It’s only natural to request outside help."
When Xavier saw not a hint of disdain on Westheid’s face, his opinion of the man soared. He breathed a sigh of relief and said:
"Indeed. As much as I hate to admit it, as the party requesting aid, we must inform you of the true situation... The Royal Court’s war effort is not going well. Our Warriors are at a distinct disadvantage."
And of course they were. A Transcendent who followed the Divine Ancestor Path would naturally be terrifyingly suppressed when facing the Divine Ancestor’s own shadows.
The Elf Execution Officer had yet to tell Westheid that the Royal Court had already dispatched two punitive expeditions, both of which ended in utter defeat and near-total annihilation. The Celestial God’s Shadows had not even developed many followers; by simply modifying parts of the Thousand Laws Ceremony and unleashing them haphazardly against the armies, they could cause the Transcendents of the Thousand Laws Path to go mad as their own powers turned against them.
If they hadn’t been completely out of options, the Thousand Laws Royal Court would never have broken an ancient tradition that had lasted for millennia.
"...I understand the situation. So, I’ll be fighting multiple Celestial God’s Shadows. I’ve fought the Chaos Hundred Forms ti and again, but I’ve never crossed swords with a Demon before. Interesting."
Westheid stroked his chin, his eyelids lowered as if deep in thought.
But his answer was already a foregone conclusion. Under Xavier’s anxious gaze, Westheid finally nodded and agreed:
"I will lend a hand. Demons may not be creatures of Chaos, but as long as they are a great enemy that threatens the Mortal World, there is no reason to shirk my duty."
"My deepest thanks. Then we can proceed to discuss the specific arrangents."
Xavier breathed another sigh of relief. He placed his hands on his knees and sat up straight.
At a glance from Luyetan, all uninvolved attendants departed the hall, leaving only the key figures for the eting. Only then did Xavier finally speak.
"First, please forgive my presumption. Though we know of your noble ambitions and your disdain for reward, the Royal Court is by no ans a recipient of charity. Therefore, the Royal Court wishes to invite Duke Qinghui in the capacity of a rcenary commander, and will pay a handso fee."
The Realms of Order were very concerned with their dignity; they would rather die than be seen begging for help. Hiring a foreign legion was the absolute limit of what their pride would allow. Westheid understood this clearly, so he didn’t object.
Besides, he had co with the intention of leveraging this favor for his own ends anyway.
"That’s understandable."
"I am glad you are so understanding. It is too early to discuss specific rewards, but at a minimum, the Royal Court will cover all of your legion’s expenses, as well as compensation for any casualties. Later, additional rewards will be determined based on how the war develops."
Xavier chose his words with care. "Most of the treasures and resources in the Royal Court’s possession can be offered as paynt."
’This paynt model... Are they really treating like a common rcenary?’
Westheid replied, "I have no objection. In fact, there’s no need for the Royal Court to be so extravagant. Even if our enemies are Celestial God’s Shadows, as long as we give it our all, I don’t foresee many casualties."
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