Gentlemen, it's time to enter the Banner of Ten Thousand Souls.

Chapter 103 Listening to the Great Serpent Tell Stories of the Past
Chen Ye never expected that his dream would be invaded by this crimson serpent. He couldn't help but ask in surprise, "Didn't I expel all the poison? How can you still enter my dream?"

The experts from the five major sects all came out and captured more than a dozen disciples of the Crimson Serpent Demon Sect.

After some stern questioning, they finally learned the antidote for the Crimson Serpent venom from these demonic sect disciples.

In the past few days, all parties have been working hard to refine the antidote and distribute it to everyone.

Chen Ye also took a dose, thinking that he would be free from worry, but the strange snake was still haunting him.
The red-banded serpent twisted its body and let out a sinister laugh: "I suppose you've guessed it. Now that I have attained enlightenment and become a Buddha, why would I need to use the venom of the red-banded serpent to enter my dreams? I can sense any resentment in anyone's heart."

"Unwilling to accept it?"

Chen Ye frowned slightly. Although he had been busy and tired these past few days, everything had gone smoothly. Why was he dissatisfied?

The giant snake flickered its tongue, its gaze seemingly able to see into people's hearts, and sneered, "You risked everything to save everyone, and you should have been able to command a huge following, but unfortunately, your cultivation is too weak, so you had no choice but to relinquish the position of leader of the loose cultivator alliance. You begged everyone to help you condense a new Buddha, but they made many excuses and refused to give you their full assistance. Although you didn't show it on the surface, there was still a trace of resentment in your heart. You can deceive others about this, but you can't deceive yourself."

Upon hearing this, Chen Ye remained silent.

Perhaps what the giant snake said was true, and deep down, he did harbor some resentment; or perhaps the giant snake was just making things up, and the antidote was probably not effective enough.

But whatever the reason, it's not something we can delve into right now. Chen Ye could only go along with the giant snake's words and say, "Perhaps, as you say, I do have a little bit of resentment in my heart. However, even so, don't expect me to recite your eulogy, let alone worship you, this Buddha."

Hearing Chen Ye's forceful words, the Crimson Serpent showed no anger whatsoever. Instead, its smile grew even more sinister: "The reason why mortals pray to gods and Buddhas is because they have desires in their hearts. And Buddhas have always answered all requests."

"You are unwilling to worship me simply because you feel I cannot give you what you ask for. But how do you know I cannot fulfill your wishes if you don't even try?"

Chen Ye shook his head without hesitation, his attitude resolute: "I have already said that what I seek is immortality and freedom, not to be a servant to others. Even if you can grant me immortality, I will not accept it."

Upon hearing this, the Crimson Serpent calmly replied, "You don't want immortality, so you don't want the method of gathering incense and refining yourself into a Buddha either?"

Chen Ye shook his head again, his expression calm: "Cixin Temple has already given me the relevant scriptures."

Upon hearing this, the Crimson Serpent let out a disdainful snort: "Heh, how could a mere Qi Sea Realm cultivator like you possibly use the Critical Heart Temple's refining method? Whether it's the Critical Heart Temple or the Nirvana Sect, the two who attained Buddhahood through incense offerings were both Void Return Realm cultivators."

"If the soul is a vessel for incense offerings and vows, then the cultivation of the Void Returning Realm is the power to channel those vows into it. You are now just an ant; how can you possibly fill a bowl with water?"

Chen Ye asked, "So, you were just a little demon in the Qi Sea Realm who got lucky and became a Buddha? Otherwise, how would you have taught me?"

The Crimson Serpent sneered, "Heh, don't try to play tricks on me. Do you think I'd let something slip?"

Chen Ye felt a little disappointed. He thought the Crimson Serpent would proudly reveal its secret, but it seemed that the other party was also a cunning and experienced old man who could not be fooled with just a few words.

Chen Ye simply cut to the chase and asked, "Since that's the case, then please tell me clearly, Snake Buddha, what do you want me to exchange for, and how can you guarantee that what you say is true?"

The Crimson Serpent said, "I think you are a talented person and would like to invite you to join my Crimson Serpent Holy Sect. If you agree, I will offer you the position of Vice Sect Leader and I will also take you as my personal disciple, guaranteeing to teach you everything I have learned in my life."

Chen Ye shook his head and said, "I have a close relationship with the Qinghe Sword Sect, as you should know. If I were to become a minor demon of the Crimson Serpent Demon Sect, that sect leader's sword would be slashing down on me. Besides, I don't necessarily need this forging method. At worst, I can simply not take this shortcut and cultivate step by step. I'm losing out too much in this deal."

The Crimson Serpent laughed, "So you're not refusing outright, but instead trying to bargain with me? Fine, then why don't you name your price? How can I get you to join my Crimson Serpent Holy Sect?"

Chen Ye laughed and said, "I've only just heard of this Holy Sect's name. How can you expect me to set a price? Anyway, this is a dream, and we have plenty of time. Why don't you ask the Snake Buddha to explain in detail what the Crimson Serpent Holy Sect is?" Chen Ye looked like he wanted to hear a story, which made the Crimson Serpent somewhat puzzled.

This kid is quick-witted and wouldn't do anything pointless. What's the purpose of asking these questions? If he avoids the topic, then there's no way to continue the conversation.

Originally, he intended to demonstrate his abilities by entering dreams, but unexpectedly, he turned the tables on him after just a few words.

The Crimson Serpent spoke up: "Fine, since you want to hear it, then I will tell you about the origins of the Crimson Serpent Holy Sect. A thousand years ago, when the Demonic Sect was at its peak, you should have heard of that."

Chen Ye nodded and laughed, "The eighteen Demon Lords killed most of them in their own battles. This joke has been around for a thousand years, so it's impossible not to know about it."

"Hehe, outsiders find it unbelievable, but it's not surprising at all. You see the Demonic Sect as one entity, but in reality, in that era, cannibalism was the norm, everyone practiced that way, but that doesn't mean we're one family. The eighteen Demon Lords are just a name given by later generations; the geniuses of that time had their own names."

"The Crimson Serpent Demon Lord's real name was Sang Xiao. The Crimson Serpent Holy Sect he founded used the Crimson Serpent as its totem. However, he was later injured by the Wujiu Demon Lord and then besieged by the five righteous sects. In the end, he was defeated and died."

Chen Ye was listening attentively, but suddenly sensed something was wrong and quickly interrupted, "Wasn't Demon Lord Wujiu the first to be killed? How did it become that he ambushed Demon Lord Chilian?"

According to Mo Ci, the Demon Lord Wujiu died from a plot by the righteous path. It was only through the sacrifice of a low-level cultivator that he was sealed away, allowing the leaders of the five major sects to escape unscathed.

This alibi caused the various demon lords of the Demonic Sect to become suspicious of each other and then turn on each other.

The Crimson Serpent Demon Lord clearly died later, so how could he have been ambushed by the Wujiu Demon Lord?

The Crimson Serpent did not explain, but instead asked, "Where did you hear this from?"

Chen Ye, of course, wouldn't mention Mo Ci's name, and casually replied, "That's what everyone's saying."

The Crimson Serpent laughed and said, "Things from a thousand years ago are not so simple. Even Zhang Qi of the Qinghe Sword Sect was probably manipulated by others. If you want to know the truth, you can go to Green Coffin Mountain and see the corpse of the Demon Lord Wujiu. If you can see it, you will know that what I said is true."

Chen Ye was speechless; he feared he would never go to Green Coffin Mountain in his lifetime.

Wei Changsheng was executed not long ago, his very soul destroyed. Chen Ye has caused the Incense Burning Sect such a disgrace; how could he dare go to their territory? He'd probably be skinned alive and refined into a blood pill the moment he jumped off Black Whirlwind's back.

"Let's get back to the main point. You said that the Crimson Serpent Demon Lord was ambushed by the Impure Blame Demon Lord, so why did they end up killing each other?"

Chen Ye initially thought it would just be a matter of listening to the Crimson Serpent recount some ancient secrets and broadening his horizons.

However, the next sentence from the Crimson Serpent left him speechless.

The Crimson Serpent slowly said, "The two are fighting over a secret technique from a celestial book."

Chen Ye exclaimed in shock, "Heavenly Book Secret Technique?"

Seeing this, the Crimson Serpent sneered, "It seems you've heard of this name. That's right, this is exactly what the Incense Burning Sect has been searching for. Legend has it that as long as all the secret techniques of the Heavenly Book are collected, one can control this world. Now, the Incense Burning Sect has already collected most of them. Once they collect the complete set, the Incense Burning Sect will probably be the only sect left in the world."

(End of this chapter)