Devil Venerable Also Wants to Know

Polis and Alkaid

Wenren È thought he really needed to have a conversation with Yin Hanjiang. Yin Hanjiang was the Left Protector of the first and foremost demonic sect. There was no need for him to be so timid that he had to wait until Wenren È was asleep to secretly sip some wine.

Back when he first picked up that child, Wenren È hadn't wanted a puppet.

He flicked his fingers, and the black robe discarded to the floor draped over Yin Hanjiang. Yin Hanjiang had just taken in the Snow Flame and was full of yang energy, so his wet clothes and hair had already dried. Yin Hanjiang stuck his arms through his robe, tied up his hair again, and got down on one knee before Wenren È, sword in hand, deferent and respectful.

Wenren È slowly said, "Protector Yin, back when this Venerable ordered you to become a sword cultivator, did you have any complaints?"

Back then, after Wenren È brought that child home to his sect, he had his fortune and aptitudes looked into. Yin Hanjiang had a pure metal spiritual root, and his birth had been influenced by Alkaid, the seventh star of the Big Dipper, also known as the Army Crushing Star, favoring offense and possessing great destructive power. In mortal armies, this was suited toward being a vanguard or suicide unit. Wenren È's star was Polis, also known as the General Star, and was the most suitable pairing with Alkaid.

With these kinds of aptitudes, Wenren È thought Yin Hanjiang was suited to being a sword cultivator as well as his vanguard, so handed him a sword and a manual he'd stolen from someplace. From then on, Yin Hanjiang became Wenren È's sword.

Yin Hanjiang rarely heard Wenren È reveal his thoughts to him. He raised his head to look at Wenren È, eyes shining like stars. "Venerable..."

He had something to say but hesitated. Wenren È knew Yin Hanjiang was stubborn and wouldn't say what was actually on his mind unless forced to, so he said coldly, "Speak."

After getting Wenren È's order, Yin Hanjiang spoke smoothly. "When this subordinate was five years old, foreign tribes attacked and slaughtered my entire village. This subordinate was fortuitous and barely survived. Seeing someone pass by, I thought the worst that could happen was that I would die, so I mustered up the strength to grab that person's robes. That's how this subordinate met the Venerable."

He rarely spoke so many words, so Wenren È sat and listened earnestly.

"There is something the Venerable doesn't know." Yin Hanjiang patted the storage belt on his waist, and an old sword spotted with rust appeared on the ground before him. It was the one Wenren È had given him. "When this subordinate was eighteen and had reached Foundation Establishment, I took the sword the Venerable had given me and left to find the foreign warriors who slaughtered my village."

That year... Wenren È absently thought back to something.

The corner of Yin Hanjiang's lips curved slightly, as if in a smile. He stroked that old sword and said quietly, "This subordinate saw the Venerable, wearing silver armor with a spear in hand, draped in a red cloak, leading a group of battered soldiers to face the invading forces."

Wenren È had raised his broken spear and spoken to those ragged soldiers, "We can flee, but do remember, behind us are the commoners living at the border. If the city wall falls, we can form a wall with our bodies, but if we flee, do you want the common people to use their bodies to protect us?"

Wenren È had not been using any superhuman powers. He'd sealed his spiritual energy, and alongside his comrades, fought off the enemy with the strength of a mortal man. After several days, they had successfully defended the borders and killed all the enemy tribesmen who had attacked the village that day.