Oh. My. Fate?! (Bl, Volume 10, Part 1)

176 Not Up-to-Date

Xiao Li requited her gaze and gave a faint smile. Would he answer some of her questions? Well, what was he supposed to say? Even if he didn't like it, he would still have to because this was his lover's senior martial sister and also the first disciple of the Sect Master. That kind of person, they couldn't just be ignored.

No matter how cynical his thoughts might be, Xiao Li wouldn't show that. Since Ao Wen had asked if he wanted to and didn't just order him to, it was a good opportunity to show that he was on their side. "Senior martial sister Ao does not need to ask. Of course, I will answer if it is something I know. Just go ahead!" He motioned for her to start, not forgetting to pull Hua Lin Yu back into his arms when he got the opportunity. His status in the sect relied on this youth. Of course, he had to continue to brush up his good feelings.

Ao Wen nodded and sat down next to them. "Well, this realm is linked to the demonic faction."

Xiao Li nodded but then showed an apologetic expression. "Your second junior martial brother already mentioned that and I was aware from my time in the Hei Dian Sect. I'm just afraid I don't know any details either. Otherwise, I already would have provided him with information."

He looked to She Fen who had just sat down next to her but that martial brother didn't say anything in return.

Ao Wen already shook her head anyway. "I know that. My second junior martial brother told me what happened so far. It is just that we were just talking and wondering about the demonic faction's general structure right now. Do you have any more information on that?"

Xiao Li showed a troubled expression. "Well, I don't think I have any recent news. After all, I already left them around the time when that matter with the demon-hunting sects started. That has already been a long time ago now so I'm afraid whatever I know might not be that up-to-date."

Ao Wen nodded. Indeed, Xiao Li had already been a part of the Jian Yi Sect for quite some time and from what she had heard, he had been traveling around to learn before that. "Ah, I think your general understanding would already help us, even if there were some changes. Right now, the one leading the demonic faction should be the Hei Dian Sect, right?"

Xiao Li nodded at that. "It definitely was when I was still part of them. Although ... 'leading' might be the wrong word to describe it. The demonic faction is not organized like the righteous one. Usually, the sects keep to themselves. There are hardly any alliances, no cooperations even for specific missions, or regular meet-ups to measure their strength. As a result, there isn't really a ranking and nobody feels like they need to listen to any of the others.

"The Hei Dian Sect is one of the biggest sects though, and thanks to their Grandmaster, they are probably the strongest. At the very least, they are the strongest that I know of."

"Yes, I figured. Grandmaster Shen is very well-known." In fact, the Hei Dian Sect itself was very well-known. She didn't have an accurate grasp on it either because the demonic sects were so reclusive but they should at least have the strength of a first-tier sect if they couldn't even rival a premier sect like their Jian Yi Sect.

Xiao Li thought for a moment and then figured that saying a few more words couldn't hurt. The more information he provided, no matter how small, the more sincere he would seem. "I'm not completely clear on the details but it is said that the Hei Dian Sect has a long history.

"They are actually intent on teaching their disciples about that but the information we received was usually confined to the divisions we were part of. For example, I was in one of their practitioner divisions so I learned most about Ancestor Feng but hardly anything about the other founders.

"Regarding its creation, I really only know the gist. But it should have been one of the earliest sects that were founded in the demonic faction. I think at that time, the distinction between the factions wasn't all that clear. Whether it was cultivation or other practices, influences were still taken from everywhere and everyone only slowly developed the practices they finally wanted to follow. Who was a demonic sect and who wasn't ... I think for some sects, it isn't all that easy to say."

Ao Wen's brows furrowed slightly at that. Yes, this distinction, by now, it had already become something that was ingrained in people's minds. But actually, the difference between their side and the other wasn't all that big. So she could very well imagine that once upon a time, people hadn't paid too much attention to that.

They had looked at the little information they had gathered from the immortal races or had been able to glean from their own experiments. In the end, what they came up with could only be classified in one of two ways, none of which was inherently better or worse than the other.

It was just that over time, with one of them being referred to as 'demonic' sects and some sects actually committing atrocious acts, both sides had gotten a certain reputation with the common people. And the demon-hunting sects had eyed the demonic faction warily because they didn't mind taking in people that hailed from the demon race or the demonic beasts.

This reputation, in many cases like with the Hei Dian Sect, it wasn't deserved. But after such a long time, nothing could be done about that. Also, she figured that people like the Hei Dian Sect's Grandmaster Shen were too lazy to care about what other people thought about them. So why would he bother to clarify? No, he'd just let matters go on like that, doing his own thing just as he and his sect had always done.

In a sense, it reminded her of their own sect and their Grandmaster Leng who also hadn't seemed like he cared much for what the world actually thought of him. Maybe that was just how people became when they reached a certain level.