When I become a demon king, I want to change my department to the Taoist sect.

Chapter 908 Running water never stagnates
Zhou Ju didn't say a word, but silently turned another lightning dragon around and attacked Cui Lu.

The Void Thunder Pool is a true yang spiritual treasure collected by Chiwen. The materials and items used are extremely luxurious. After being nurtured by Tang Yuan for many years, its spirituality has now been restored to its best state.

Cui Lu's Taotie Banner was merely a magical artifact with a shape-shifting ability; the difference between the two was even greater than the difference between Zhou Ju and Cui Lu.

Under the combined onslaught of divine lightning of at least the Purple Mansion and Heavenly Capital levels, the Taotie Banner only lasted a few rounds before being completely annihilated.

Without the protection of the spiritual treasure, Cui Lu's situation was naturally even more precarious.

"You Lian, what exactly are you trying to do!"

"Wasn't I clear enough?" You Lian feigned surprise. "Everyone knows that my lord was able to be reborn in the Nine Netherworlds only with the help of Sect Master Tang. This is an immense favor."

"Therefore, it is acceptable for me to deal with others, but it is absolutely unacceptable for me to do something as ungrateful as attacking the disciples of the Three Immortals Island."

Cui Lu rebuked him angrily in a deep voice: "You didn't just find out now that the target is the Three Immortal Islands. If you have so many things to consider, why did you accept this mission in the first place!"

“That’s both right and wrong. The task wasn’t assigned to me; it was given to me by the Nine Netherworld Sect.” You Lian said without changing her expression. “Moreover, this task was assigned to me when everyone knew about our clan’s affairs, and no one was even sent to assist me.”

"It seems that the demonic path does not agree with the theory that whichever a noble family sides with will win!"

Rumble!
"What a brilliant scheme." Cui Lu narrowly dodged a lightning dragon, his voice hoarse and slightly self-deprecating: "What merit do we have to have the Demonic Sect and the Daoist Sect join forces to set this up?"

“I advised the patriarch long ago that when the Five Emperors’ families were being targeted, they should have taken a strong stand. Otherwise, the first target of the Three Religions after they had finished purging the Five Emperors’ families would have been the Five Surnames and Seven Noble Families, and all the other great families.”

"But the ancestor insisted that compared to the Five Emperors' families, we were more closely integrated with the Taoist sect and the cultivation world. As long as we avoided their sharp edge, we could survive."

"Therefore, when faced with your coercion, all the noble families have retreated step by step, not only losing their interests and resources, but also their face. Even so, the Daoist sect, led by your Three Immortal Islands, still does not give up, and continues to nibble away at and undermine the foundation of my noble families!"

"They have forced us to the point of cooperating with the Demonic Sect!"

"Hahahaha!" Cui Lu's laughter was tinged with a hint of desolation. "I never imagined that even this last path would be a trap set by you!"

"Zhou Ju, let me ask you, what crime have our noble families committed that warrants such a death sentence, that you would target us like this!"

"I admit that many aristocratic families are spoiled brats, but they are not without good people as well."

"Those philanthropic scions of noble families, those diligent and hardworking scions of noble families, those chivalrous scions of noble families! Is it merely because of their surname and bloodline, merely because they were born into noble families...?"

"So they're judged to be born with original sin!?"

"And the people you speak of, those mortals, those rogue cultivators, are they all truly good people?!"

"Wrong, and terribly wrong!"

“No matter how prestigious the scions of noble families are, they are still bound by their families. But those rogue cultivators, those unruly weeds, will stop at nothing to satisfy their desires!”

"True Lord Yujue is knowledgeable and experienced, and should know that when it comes to the evil of human nature, how can our youths compare to him!"

"Moreover, the duality of good and evil is widespread among all races and beings, including my family. To judge me solely on this charge is utterly unjust!"

Zhou Ju pointed his finger, and the thunder in the sky gradually subsided, the nine dragons transforming into a net that slowly enveloped Cui Lu. He finally spoke his first words, "This is true. Good and evil are not determined by wealth or poverty, nor by family background. More importantly, they will gradually change with time and the issue of one's position."

"Of course, we cannot simply conclude that the powerful families are evil and the rest are good. Moreover, we are not chivalrous people who punish evil and promote good when we see injustice."

"Therefore, the reason why aristocratic families must perish is naturally not because of good or evil."

"Then why?!" Cui Lu questioned.

Zhou Ju looked down at him and said slowly, "The spiritual energy of heaven and earth should circulate endlessly, creating all things. This is the true principle of the way of heaven."

"However, in today's Immortal Realm, ninety percent of the spiritual energy is occupied by aristocratic families and sects, leaving only the remnants for the wandering cultivators to share."

“The sacred mountains and marshes, the blessed lands and grottoes, all have great formations to capture spiritual energy. Even the dissipated energy of the mountains and rivers is decreasing day by day. The spiritual energy that an ordinary cultivator can absorb in a hundred years is less than the energy that a noble family’s cave dwelling can gather in the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.”

"The spiritual veins of aristocratic families are stored in secret treasure troves to 'suppress their fortune,' but in reality, this severs the natural flow of spiritual energy."

"Of the spiritual energy in the Earthly Immortal Realm, almost half is stagnant within aristocratic families, like a glacier that appears majestic and magnificent but is actually freezing cold and cuts off all life."

"If the spiritual energy of heaven and earth does not flow into the hands of the largest group of independent cultivators in the world, there will be inflation of tokens and soaring prices of Dao resources. Then the markets will wither and all industries will decline."

"Faced with such a scene of moral decay, financial ruin, and a dead end, people will be plagued by inner demons and fall into the demonic path."

"The major families and sects will also turn to more brutal internal struggles, facing each other to the death. As the saying goes, if there is no new growth, then it will be a battle for the existing ones."

"Until the spirit is exhausted and the Way collapses, and wealth stagnates and the world is in chaos."

"Aren't all these signs the beginning of the final calamity?"

“You noble families hoard spiritual energy to enrich yourselves, just as you build high dams to block rivers. The higher the dam, the drier the downstream becomes. When the dam collapses, the vast land of water will be flooded, and no one will be spared.”

"Faced with this crisis, all sects have changed their ways, each offering spiritual treasures to jointly forge the Hunyuan Central Hub, and have joined forces to establish the Dao Alliance Lower Court in order to save the world from collapse."

"But only you aristocratic families are still thinking about how to usurp and exploit under this new system, taking without giving back."

"Running water never stagnates, and a door hinge never rusts. Blockage leads to stagnation, and stagnant flow leads to collapse. If even aristocratic families cannot understand such a simple principle, then naturally they no longer need to exist."

"Moreover, you are attempting to sow discord within the sect and cause a catastrophe. Even my descendants will not be able to escape this vicious cycle."

“Fellow Daoist, you yourself said that we cannot tolerate you.”

"For the sake of the common good of the world, we can only ask your noble families to make this sacrifice."

Cui Lu grew increasingly desperate as he listened, because what Zhou Ju described was not a conflict between an individual or a clan, nor a simple opposition between good and evil.

It is a fundamental conflict, like fire and water, that cannot coexist!
"If our noble families are willing to give up all their wealth, is there any way for us to survive?" Cui Lu asked in a sorrowful voice.

"If you had this realization a thousand years ago, it would not have been too late. But now that the [Ling Shu Dharma Realm] has been established and the era of great strife is about to arrive, it is a bit too late for you to think about getting on board now."

“However, we will naturally not cause too much bloodshed.” Zhou Ju pointed with his fingers and said calmly, “It’s just that the Five Clans and Seven Noble Families, the powerful clans and the like, have gone through several eras and it’s time for them to retire from the Earthly Immortal Realm.”