The fake prince was exposed at the beginning, and I took office as emperor on the spot

Chapter 172 You, the Master of the Path of "Love," then who am I?! (Two Chapters Combined)

This time, the Demonic Sect gathered at the Jiangnan Weichuan Chamber of Commerce, and there were still six Dao Lords present.

These are the six paths: "Death," "Work," "Righteousness," "Emotion," "Cause and Effect," and "Measurement."

Compared to last time, the leaders of the "Life" and "Reveal" paths each had important matters to attend to and could not spare the time to discuss how to kill Gu Fangchen and formulate a new plan.

Meanwhile, those involved in "work" and "emotion" made time to join the gathering.

However, this is the norm for the "Ten Ways" sect, which is known for its ability to gather all its members. In particular, the Dao Masters of "Hengchang" and "Mie" may not appear for hundreds of years, only instructing their subordinates to cooperate in the operation.

Daoist paths like the "Craftsmanship," "Righteousness," and "Emotion" have seen frequent changes in their leaders; it's possible that even after dozens of generations, no one has ever actually seen the leader of those two paths...

To truly gather ten Dao Lords, it might have to wait until the day the Demonic Sect's great undertaking of overthrowing the Great Wei is accomplished.

Conversely, this means that the Dao Lords may not be familiar with each other, or even know each other at all, and may never have met once.

This is one of the reasons why Gu Fangchen dared to come and raid their home.

The most important reason is that the current generation of "emotional" leaders is the weakest generation in the absolute sense!
The "Qing" Dao takes the collection of emotional changes such as joy, anger, sorrow and happiness as its path, and the succession of the Dao Masters in each generation is based on killing the previous Dao Master or tricking him into taking over the identity and stealing the other party's Dao lineage.

In theory, under this Darwinian mechanism of complete survival of the fittest, each generation of Dao Lords should be stronger than the last.

But this generation has encountered some problems.

Gu Fangchen's understanding of the Demonic Sect was definitely deeper than that of any of the Dao Lords present.

After all, he was a highly loyal minister of the Demonic Cult in the "Demons Descend to Earth" route, devoting himself to the cause until his death. He had access to information about the entire Demonic Cult, including several Dao Lords.

Naturally, this also includes the secrets of the Daoist Master of the "Emotion" Dao.

The current leader of the "Path of Love" is actually the daughter of the previous leader, Shang Zizhi.

The previous Dao Master's life was quite tragic. As the Dao Master of the "Love" Dao of the Demonic Sect, she was a true enchantress, yet she was harmed by the word "love" and fell in love with a righteous swordsman who was the least likely to fall in love with an enchantress of the Demonic Sect.

The swordsman's name was Ying Baishou.

Shang Zizhi claimed to know the ways of the world, and used her avatar to play in the human realm, experiencing it before leaving, and comprehending the way of "love".

But as we all know, it is often the people who are good swimmers who drown.

During her final incarnation, Shang Zizhi indeed overplayed her hand and stumbled with Ying Baishou.

At that time, Ying Baishou had not yet achieved the first rank. With the power of the Dao Master of "Love", she was initially deceived by Ying Baishou, and the two were a divine couple for a period of time. However, as time went by, she herself fell in love with Ying Baishou.

After Ying Baishou realized something was wrong, his heart was as firm as iron. He meditated for seven days, severed his emotional ties, and directly killed his wife to prove his Dao.

With the roles reversed, Shang Zizhi's Dao heart collapsed, and she gave birth to her daughter Ying Liangxin while being pursued by the righteous path.

—Judging from the fact that she named her daughter Ying, Shang Zizhi's Dao heart has completely collapsed and is beyond saving.

Clearly, Shang Zizhi herself knew this. In order to protect her daughter, at the end of her life, she took the initiative to let her daughter impersonate her, creating the illusion that she was still alive, thus deceiving her subordinates and the world.

When Ying Liangxin inherited the position of the Dao Master of "Emotion," he was only seven years old...

Clearly, at this age, she was simply not capable of taking over the lineage and relied entirely on the illusion array set up by Shang Zizhi to maintain her disguise.

Outsiders all thought that Shang Zizhi was simply exposed by Ying Baishou, and that she had tricked the Sword Saint, managed to escape unscathed after playing him, and had an outstanding record, so they dared not make any rash moves.

Even more coincidentally, not long after, Ying Baishou went to open the Heavenly Gate.

From then on, the only one who knew the truth was Ying Liangxin herself.

So cautiously, Ying Liangxin relied on the martial arts techniques her mother left her on her deathbed, and dared not ask anyone for guidance, so she could only practice haphazardly on her own.

However, as the descendants of two top-tier experts, Ying Liangxin's talent was not to be underestimated. After cultivating for over a hundred years, he reached the fourth rank of cultivation and finally gained some confidence.

The source of the internal strife in Jian Ge back then was that Xue Qi, the adopted son of Ying Baishou, was bewitched by the "righteousness" doctrine.

However, while the actions were outwardly motivated by "righteousness," the true intentions were revealed by "emotion," and the secret about Xue Qi's background was also disclosed by Ying Liangxin.

This can be considered her revenge for her mother.

However, the cultivation technique that Ying Liangxin obtained was not Shang Zizhi's, but Ying Baishou's.

In other words, she was a sword cultivator as orthodox as could be...

He can absolutely be called the most incompetent "love" Daoist master in history!

On the other hand, she was also the most qualified leader of the "emotion" path, having forcibly impersonated Shang Zizhi since she was seven years old, and had not been exposed for over a hundred years.

However, due to unforeseen circumstances, I was unable to obtain the correct cultivation method back then.

If you pick the right one, who knows, another enchantress comparable to Shang Zizhi might be born.

Unfortunately, she didn't get it...

For over a hundred years, he relied solely on remaining silent and pretending to be an expert. In any case, the people below would handle things on their own. Given the chaotic management of the Demonic Sect, there was basically no need for any command.

Until now, because the focus of the Demonic Cult's plan has shifted to Jiangnan, the leader of the "Love" Dao has had to come out and participate in a gathering.

Ying Liangxin originally thought that this was just a formality.

Before they could even get to the bottom of things, they were just listening to others talking about how outrageous Gu Fangchen was.

She was thinking to herself, how outrageous could it be?
When she turned around, the secret room was opened by Guan Yue, one of her subordinates, and the person following behind was clearly Gu Fangchen!

Ying Liangxin was stunned. Before she could even be shocked at why this guy had come to walk right into their trap, she heard Gu Fangchen's resounding words:

"You brat, how dare you impersonate me!"

Upon hearing these words, Ying Liangxin, who was hidden behind the smoky illusion, instinctively stiffened.

Is she, this fraud, who has been the leader of the Dao for over a hundred years, about to be exposed today?

But then she realized what she meant.

Wait a minute, I'm impersonating my mother, but she died over a hundred years ago. The person opposite me can't possibly be my mother, so why is he accusing me of impersonating him?!

Ying Liangxin immediately mustered his strength and coldly rebuked:
"Gu Fangchen! You've really lost your mind! You're the Dao Master of the 'Love' Dao, so who am I? How dare you walk into our trap? Do you really think we, the Ten Dao Sects, are without anyone?"

"Let us all join forces and solve this once and for all!"

Gu Fangchen stood with her hands behind her back, exuding an even stronger aura than her:
"Oh? Then do you dare to admit that you are Shang Zizhi?"

He didn't respond and continued playing his own game.

In martial arts, speed is the ultimate weapon. Similarly, to gain the upper hand in communication, speed, accuracy, and ruthlessness are essential.

Ying Liangxin was immediately taken aback by the question, then her pupils contracted, and she realized something was wrong!
The name Shang Zizhi is unknown to outsiders...

Her subordinates always called her Dao Master, and she could deal with them casually.

However, the other Dao Lords must have people who know this name, such as the Dao Lord of "Cause and Effect" and "Six Star Lords".

Although the "Six Star Lords" here are only one of the causal lines, they are genuine second-grade cultivators and top experts in the field who are proficient in the art of cause and effect.

Previously, because they didn't see it coming from the shadows, they didn't consider this possibility and therefore didn't suspect anything.

However, now, Gu Fangchen has directly launched a fatal attack. If she admits it, and the cause-and-effect technique is used to test it, wouldn't that cause an immediate explosion? The problem will definitely be discovered.

If they don't admit it, there's no way to explain it!

No, she doesn't mention or admit to the problem. Even a second's hesitation now will be seen as a guilty conscience by others!

What was originally a sure thing, without any doubt, has become questionable due to Ying Liangxin's suspicious silence.

The other Dao Masters, who were all about to make a move, suddenly turned their heads to look at Ying Liangxin, their eyes filled with doubt and inquiry.

With his vital points firmly grasped, Ying could only continue to endure, letting out a cold snort:
"So what if I'm not Shang Zizhi? Wasn't the position of Dao Master of the 'Path of Love' obtained through deception?"

Gu Fangchen chuckled:
"That's right, so that's why you wanted to take over my identity while I was being tricked?"

Ying Liangxin: "...?"

Her eyes widened. Wait, wait a minute!
How come she seemed to have been swayed by just a few words, which in turn gave the other side a way to gain a foothold?!
In just one short exchange, the entire cause and effect of the matter were revealed.

Ying Liangxin was immediately plunged into a state of existential doubt.

Although she wasn't the true master of the "Love" Dao, she had been influenced by it for a hundred years; otherwise, she wouldn't have been able to intimidate her subordinates.

How could this guy be more troublesome than those "love" elders?
Is it you who is on the path of "love," or am I on the path of "love"?

Gu Fangchen dared to be so bold partly because Ying Liangxin was easy to manipulate.

Although Ying Liangxin was in the Demon Cave, she was more naive than most righteous people... She had been pretending to be a Dao Lord since she was seven years old. No one taught her how to conduct herself in society. She relied entirely on silence and some secrets that Shang Zizhi had told her to deal with things.

Others thought that the Daoist Master had experienced the tribulation of becoming old and gray, and had become even more unfathomable. They all made up their own interpretations, and over time, she herself began to believe that she was quite capable.

But I'm sorry to say, today you are facing the only loyal follower of the Demonic Cult!

Gu Fangchen could infiltrate the Demonic Sect more easily than the righteous path!
Having already received instructions, Guan Yue immediately stood up and said indignantly:
"Exactly! If it weren't for the Dao Lord seeing through the deception and returning in time, all of you Dao Lords would probably have been fooled by this brat!"

The reason why the Dao Masters present did not make a move immediately was because Guan Yue, a familiar face from the "Love" Dao, brought Gu Fangchen in.

Moreover, it does not appear to be threatened or controlled.

At this moment, Guan Yue spoke up to testify that this was originally an internal conflict in the "Emotion" Dao, vying for the position of Dao Master.

The Dao Lords suddenly realized, "So that's how it is."

In matters of the heart, this kind of thing is all too common!

These people take pleasure in toying with others all day long. It's not surprising that they would take advantage of the gathering of the evil cult to lure people away and then take their identities!
If successful, the emotional fluctuations caused by deceiving those Dao Lords would be enough to make the deception seem real.

This move is risky, but the chances of success are high!
The "Six Star Lords" looked at Gu Fangchen, his hands already forming hand seals to calculate cause and effect, his eyes narrowed:

"If that's the case, why did you appear in Gu Fangchen's appearance?"

Gu Fangchen was not afraid at all, and raised an eyebrow, saying:
"I have recently mastered the 'Mirage Formation' technique and improved it to disguise myself as Gu Fangchen. However, I only used it to confirm my identity."

He looked at the "Six Star Lords" with a smile:
"How is it? Master Feiguang, have you found any clues?"

The hand gesture of the "Six Star Lords" paused abruptly.

In this life, he happened to become a disciple of a protector of the Way of Cause and Effect, and briefly served as a Taoist priest with the Taoist name Feiguang.

This guy in front of me... actually knows.

Compared to the ever-silent leader of the "Love" sect beside him, such a composed and at ease demeanor was indeed more like that of someone from their demonic sect...

The "Six Star Lords" stopped what he was doing, frowned, and couldn't figure out the cause and effect of the guy opposite him.

If there was no deliberate interference, then it means that the other party's cultivation level was comparable to his, making it difficult to discern his true abilities.

Gu Fangchen has now entered the Jiangnan region, and he cannot pinpoint her exact location... making it truly difficult to determine her identity.

Before Gu Fangchen came out, she asked the Imperial Preceptor to temporarily conceal her karma.

The Grand Preceptor and the "Six Star Lords" were evenly matched in the art of cause and effect. They went back and forth, neither able to do anything to the other, so naturally the other could not calculate anything.

"The Degenerate Duke" had a cold look in his eyes, and suddenly spoke slowly:
"Since it's an impersonation, it can't just be Gu Fangchen, right?"

He was actually the only one among them who could easily tell that the person opposite him was Gu Fangchen herself, but he wouldn't expose it.

Instead, I wanted to see what this guy was up to...

Ying Liangxin took a deep breath, as if he had seized a chance to turn the tide, and said:
"Indeed, you claim to be disguised using a 'mirage array,' but I can't sense any array fluctuations on you. How do you explain that?"

Gu Fangchen sneered and lectured:
"Ignorant brat! How could someone with your shallow cultivation level possibly comprehend the mysteries of the 'Mirage Formation'?"

His tone was so old and monstrous, it was as if he were reprimanding eight hundred juniors every day.

Ying Liang was momentarily dazed, wondering if it was really because one of the elders in the "Love" Path disliked her and wanted to seize the throne.
Gu Fangchen proudly raised her chin, speaking with extreme arrogance:
"If you Dao Lords can see through my disguise in person, then my cultivation of the Dao of Love will have been in vain!"

Upon hearing this, the leaders of the "Work" and "Righteousness" paths all turned their heads in surprise.

They were also well aware of the power of the "mirage formation".

Over the years, they have all been studying and refining their understanding of the "Tao," but they have lost the drive they had in their youth.

Hearing Gu Fangchen say this, he was immediately filled with a competitive spirit.

Gu Fangchen smiled and said:
"Everyone, now that I've disguised myself as the Dao Master of the 'Destruction' Dao, how many flaws are there in my disguise?"

After saying that, he directly revealed the enormous golden wheel within his soul.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

P.S.: I copied it too fast and the last paragraph got messed up, but I've fixed it!
(End of this chapter)