Sovereign of the Three Realms

The fact that Xia Tianze kept beating around the bush told Jiang Chen that the decision made must have been a radical one. And that decision had shaped the layout of the human domain even today.

It was difficult to tell if the decision was the right one. To Jiang Chen however, history seemed to have proven the figureheads wrong.

"Look at the scowl on your face, Jiang Chen." Xia Tianze cackled. "You disapprove, don't you?"

Jiang Chen had forgotten that the sixth palace was capable of exposing his emotions. He laughed awkwardly instead of trying to hide his feelings. "The results don't seem particularly ideal, do they?"

"Haha, it's good that you're honest. However, it's exactly what they intended for you to believe that."

"It's exactly what they intended?" Jiang Chen was baffled. "What do you mean, senior?"

"Divine Veluriyam wanted future generations to hold that belief. After discussing with the other figureheads, they concluded that the human domain couldn't take conventional routes after the war.

"If they chose to let life drift back to normal, the major factions were bound to end up fighting one another. If they chose to invade other planes, they wouldn't have the power to back themselves up and would instead attract more trouble. Therefore, the figureheads chose a radical path. A decision that others wouldn't understand and were kept in the dark about."

Xia Tianze's self-satisfied tone suggested that there was more to the matter.

"You've seen the boundary steles, haven't you? That's one of the measures they've decided on. Although the figureheads weren't involved in the construction throughout, they were the ones to give the order.

"More importantly, they made use of their formidable power to seal and hide the spirit veins in the human domain, creating the illusion that the veins had been destroyed in the final battle against demons. On the surface then, the human domain had won the final battle but lost the war. All its spirit veins were destroyed and all major factions in ruins, losing either their members or heritage.

"That's all a deliberate illusion. The various heritage wasn't lost, but simply sealed. The spirit veins were merely hidden instead of destroyed. The figureheads were simply too powerful for others to see through the illusion they created."

Jiang Chen gaped in disbelief. If Xia Tianze hadn't been the one telling him, he wouldn't have entertained for a second that the human domain as he knew it was all a carefully crafted lie.

"Why would they do that, senior?" he asked tentatively. "Please enlighten me." He really couldn't figure it out.

"Why?" Xia Tianze sighed. "You weren't there. You aren't familiar with the situation the human domain was in. The common belief back then was that the demonic army was on the verge of destruction after the Great Formation of Heavenly Soul Confinement had been activated. Only a few leaders knew that the formation hadn't sealed the demons, but just their puppets."

That, Jiang Chen did know. He'd stumbled into the formation back in the underground world in the Eastern Kingdom. He'd met Mang Qi, trapped in the formation.

The beast mentioned that the cultivators trapped there had little to no demonic blood in them. They had been captured by demons and used as puppets, and that Mang Qi was in the same boat.

Now, it turned out the ancient figureheads had known the truth.

"Though the formation didn't trap the main forces of the demonic army, it still took out a good portion of them. After a number of arduous fights, a part of the elites were dealt with. However, the final battle wouldn't be an easy one, and the great experts knew that. They also knew that if they died, the current order in the human domain would be toppled.

"The second tier factions that'd already started pulling back would exploit the war for their own gains. When the ten leading factions fought to their deaths, the opportunists would benefit. They would stick their fingers into the foundation and heritage left by the major factions, effectively destroying their legacy. The subsequent infighting would send the human domain into endless conflict, accelerating its destruction. The consequences would be catastrophic.

"Rather than leaving the foundations for those vultures, it was better to hide all of the heritage from them."

Jiang Chen was beginning to understand.

He was reminded of how a majority of the cultivators began to hold back when they fought Lightford, because they foresaw the old demon's impending doom.

If the same thing had happened in the ancient times, it would be grossly unfair to the leaders of the ten major factions. More importantly, Great Divine Veluriyam's concern would become reality.

No one wanted to let others claim and even make a mess out of the foundations they'd risked their lives to protect.

Divine Veluriyam and the other figureheads might not have been completely selfless, but their collective decision was just. Once the ten major factions fell and the opportunistic factions rose, the human domain would be fractured and fall into chaos to be further fractured.

Humanity would've survived the demonic onslaught, but ended up destroying themselves.

Jiang Chen now understood the decision. He would've done the same thing if he'd been in their shoes. Would he be willing to leave Veluriyam Capital to factions that were up to no good? Of course not. He wouldn't and he couldn't.

Who knew what they would do to the capital?

Human cultivators were prone to infighting, which would easily lead to decline. As an example, countless powerful cultivators had died in the fight between Veluriyam Capital and Pillfire City.

Suddenly, what Great Divine Veluriyam had done made great sense.

Jiang Chen's reaction didn't escape Xia Tianze's notice. "Haha, it seems that you've come to understand the divine master too, young man."

Jiang Chen sighed faintly. "Given the circumstances, his foresight is admirable. I have another question, though."

"What is it?"

"If the spirit veins have simply been sealed rather than destroyed, does that mean the human domain can recover its past vitality after the seals are lifted?"

"Of course." Xia Tianze laughed. "Once the seals are lifted, the spirit veins will recover, and the ten leading factions from the ancient time will resurface as well."