Cultivation Online

”We greet the Divine Paragon!”

Yuan could feel the very air vibrating from their voices alone, yet he offered no response and calmly walked down the path they had left open for him, eventually arriving before a raised platform where a majestic chair awaited.

He calmly took his seat while Yan Hara stood beside him like a loyal aide.

After briefly sweeping his gaze across the scene, Yuan finally spoke, ”Be at ease.”

The Demon Sealers raised their heads at command and stood up a moment later.

”Before I begin,” Yuan started speaking shortly after, ”Allow me to introduce myself, even if all of you already know me to some extent.”

”My name is Tian Chenyu, the first leader of the Demon Sealing Clan. Many of you know me as the Divine Paragon, but quite frankly, I don’t like it. It is too grand for someone like me. So from now on, if you wish to address me directly, use my name.”

”...”

The Demon Sealers listened with dazed expressions, their eyes flickering with awe as they subconsciously examined Yuan’s appearance and compared it to the statue of the Divine Paragon that had stood within the Grand Library for as long as they could remember.

”First and foremost, let me address the current state of the Demon Sealing Clan and you Demon Sealers,” Yuan continued.

”Although the Demon Sealing Clan has always been somewhat disorganized—even during my era—it was never this chaotic. Demon Sealers respected one another and would willingly risk their lives for each other, regardless of whether they had argued or even fought the day before.”

He paused briefly before his gaze sharpened.

”Meanwhile, compared to them, all of you are like a group of children pretending to be Demon Sealers. Frankly speaking, it is both deeply disappointing and disgraceful.”

”...”

A heavy atmosphere instantly descended upon the Grand Library as every Demon Sealer subconsciously lowered their heads like children being scolded, none daring to meet Yuan’s gaze any longer.

”Even if demons are no longer the overwhelming threat they once were, that does not mean they are harmless or incapable of threatening the world again. As long as you bear the title of Demon Sealer, your highest priority should always be dealing with demons.”

Yuan’s gaze turned colder as he continued, ”Yet all of you are too busy fighting amongst yourselves, treating the Demon Sealing Clan like some sort of joke.”

”Not only did you bastards turn the Demon Sealing Clan into a complete mess, but you even allowed someone like Qian Chu to become your leader. Are none of you ashamed of yourselves?”

Despite his harsh criticism, not a single Demon Sealer dared to speak up.

”...”

After a moment of silence, Yuan continued, ”Why are you all staying silent? I want you to say something, even if it’s just excuses. You’re not mute, after all.”

Eventually, one of the Demon Sealers who used to be Qian Chu’s supporters raised his hand, requesting to speak.

Yuan shifted his gaze to the man and said, ”Speak.”

”N-None of us could’ve anticipated Qian Chu would work with the demons like this. He was an exemplary Demon Sealer in the past, working harder than anyone to reach his position.”

”An exemplary Demon Sealer?” Yuan sneered.

”Had any of you even bothered to examine him, we wouldn’t have this situation. After all, Qian Chu is not human.”

”W-What?!”

The Demon Sealers exclaimed in shock at Yuan’s claims.

”He was a demon this entire time?! That’s impossible! He can wield Demon Sealing Aura, and it can only be wielded by humans!”

Yuan shook his head and explained, ”Qian Chu is not a demon, but neither is he human. He is similar to the artificial demons you created, though far more advanced and sophisticated—a product born from the Demonic Realm itself.”

”As for why he can use Demon Sealing Aura…” Yuan closed his eyes and released a low sigh before continuing, ”He did not learn it through normal means, but through sacrifices. His kind cultivates by consuming others, turning their powers into their own like parasites.”

”That’s…”

The courtyard fell silent once again as the Demon Sealers pondered this information.

”Now that I think about it, Demon Sealers have started disappearing around the time he joined,” muttered one of the more senior Demon Sealers, who had been there even before Qian Chu.

”Did you investigate their disappearance?” Yuan asked.

The Demon Sealer lowered his head and replied in a shameful voice, ”No… I simply assumed they had given up on being Demon Sealers, since anyone is free to join or leave whenever they wish.”

The Demon Sealing Clan was more akin to a volunteer organization, its members consisting mostly of people who willingly chose to fight demons. Although recruitment did occur occasionally, it was exceedingly rare.

However, even outside of this situation, people disappearing or dying was not uncommon. Such incidents were not exclusive to the Demon Sealing Clan and occurred throughout the world all the time—especially within sects, where death was practically an everyday occurrence.

”I won’t blame you for failing to investigate,” Yuan said as he shook his head, ”but had you exercised even a little diligence, perhaps you could have exposed Qian Chu before he became the leader of the Demon Sealing Clan and began slaughtering his own people behind the scenes.”

”I will also broaden all of your understanding today,” he continued with a solemn expression. ”Demons… are actually capable of wielding Demon Sealing Aura.”

”…Huh?”

The Demon Sealers’ eyes widened with shock and disbelief at the sudden revelation. Had those words come from anyone else, none of them would have believed it for even a moment. However, because it was the Divine Paragon speaking, not a single person questioned it and accepted it immediately.

”Before I explain that, I should first reveal the truth behind the demons’ existence—where they came from, why they invaded us, and the current situation within the Demonic Realm.”

Yuan’s gaze swept across the silent crowd before he continued, ”Today, I will reveal everything to you.”