No one attempted to stop Demon Lord Yueying as he fled with effortless grace.
A late-Nascent Soul great cultivator—how could he be so easily intercepted? If they weren't careful and allowed him to pick them off one by one, they would only have themselves to blame.
Jing Xingzhi deliberately chased after him, shouting, "Senior, you'd better watch your step. Don't trip and die!"
"..." Mo Tiange shook her head. "Are you bullying the elderly?"
Jing Xingzhi grinned like a rogue. "The kind of 'elderly' who lacks dignity—I've always enjoyed bullying that sort."
"I'd say you're kicking a dog when it's down," Nie Wushang shot him a glare. A dignified late-Nascent Soul Demon Lord had just been classified by her as a drowning dog.
She was still dressed as Tian Can but hadn't disguised her voice. Ling Yunhe frowned slightly upon hearing it. "Fellow Daoist Tian Can?"
Nie Wushang straightforwardly removed her bamboo hat, revealing a delicate and pretty face. "My apologies, Fellow Daoist Ling. My true name is Nie Wushang."
"..." Ling Yunhe looked at her real appearance, somewhat surprised, and finally sighed. "What does it matter, true name or false? I only recognize that one of you is Fellow Daoist Qin Wei, and the other is Fellow Daoist Tian Can."
His words inexplicably saddened the two of them. Time had flown by; a hundred years had passed, and they had both stepped onto the Great Dao of Nascent Soul. The Carefree Valley of those days still felt like yesterday.
Speaking of which, among the six people from the Carefree Valley back then, aside from the two who perished at the time, the remaining four had all formed their Nascent Souls. Recalling the past truly evoked emotion.
The five of them stood facing each other. Qin Xi looked at Jing Xingzhi, who was surrounded by sword energy as if within a sword formation, and said, "You've actually reached the mid-stage?"
"Why so surprised?" Jing Xingzhi glanced at Mo Tiange. "Mo Qingwei formed her Nascent Soul not long ago, and she's already at mid-stage. Why can't I?"
Only now did Nie Wushang notice, her face lighting up with pleasant surprise. "Tian Ge, you're at mid-stage?"
Mo Tiange smiled and nodded. "I advanced not long ago, also thanks to a heaven-defying opportunity."
"Hmph!" Jing Xingzhi was utterly jealous. They always encountered great opportunities, while he could only scavenge leftovers behind them. Fortunately, the White Tiger and the Sword Cave were his, or he'd be green with envy.
"Everyone," Ling Yunhe said, "this isn't the place for conversation. Let's leave first."
An hour later, they were seated within Ling Yunhe's magical treasure ship, slowly sailing toward the coast.
"Demon Lord Yueying doesn't have any accomplices, right?" Jing Xingzhi asked after circling around inside the treasure ship.
Nie Wushang said, "Aren't you worried a bit late?"
"I've been worried all along, so I took extra time to prepare."
Nie Wushang turned her head to glare at him. "Weren't you afraid I wouldn't hold out until you arrived?"
Jing Xingzhi grinned cheekily. "How could you die so easily? Look at you, covered in bad luck—you probably couldn't die even if you wanted to, you jinx!"
Nie Wushang gritted her teeth. "Yes, not as impressive as you, covered in swords. Sword (scoundrel)!"
Mo Tiange watched them with a smile. This time meeting, Nie Wushang was even more relaxed. She called her by name and joked with Jing Xingzhi like this. It seemed she had completely escaped the shadow of Master Songfeng and been reborn.
After some idle chatter, everyone caught up on what had happened since they parted. Jing Xingzhi said he had been in seclusion in the Sword Cave of Windrest Valley for fifteen years, fully comprehending the sword intent of Perfected One Ziwei before emerging. Finally, he said smugly that he wasn't afraid of Qin Xi anymore.
Qin Xi merely smiled. Upon meeting this time, he could naturally tell that Jing Xingzhi was different from before. The old him was sharp and imposing, like an unsheathed sword. Now, the sword intent around him was completely withdrawn, not a drop remaining, but he could transform into a sword at any moment if he wished. Perfected One Ziwei truly lived up to being a sword cultivation prodigy. Not only were his achievements astonishing in life, but after death, he also preserved his lifelong learnings in the Sword Cave and passed them down.
Jing Xingzhi always said that the great opportunities were theirs, and he could only scavenge leftovers. But in truth, for a sword cultivator, neither the Yang Spirit Pearl nor the Bow of the Vermilion Bird could compare to the Ziwei Sword Cave. Moreover, he had previously gained the recognition of the White Tiger Pearl as its master—something even Fei Fei hadn't accomplished.
As for Nie Wushang, after returning to Yunzhong, she went into seclusion to study the Origin Demon Great Art. Later, for some reason, she was targeted by Demon Lord Yueying, who demanded she hand over the Origin Demon Great Art.
After Nie Wushang finished recounting how she had been pursued by Demon Lord Yueying, Mo Tiange frowned slightly. "Strange, how would he know about the existence of the Origin Demon Great Art?"
"Yes, that's what I can't figure out either," Nie Wushang said. "But no matter how I asked, he didn't reveal even a hint."
Qin Xi lightly tapped his knuckles. "Your demonic energy is extremely profound; that's fundamentally impossible to hide. Now that Yunzhong and Tianji have reestablished contact, the events in the Far West might have spread to Yunzhong—could it be that Demon Lord Yueying learned you were Master Songfeng's disciple?"
That Master Songfeng cultivated the Origin Demon Great Art wasn't a secret; most high-level cultivators in Tianji knew. And Master Songfeng's last appearance was in the Far West.
"Could it be Demon Lord Yeshuang?" Jing Xingzhi suggested. "Last time, among the people from Yunzhong who came, only she returned. Perhaps she leaked information about Wushang to Demon Lord Yueying."
Nie Wushang thought for a moment, then shook her head. "Probably not. Both Demon Lord Yeshuang and Demon Lord Yueying are late-Nascent Soul demonic cultivators, their strength roughly equal. If Demon Lord Yueying wants to seize the Origin Demon Great Art, he must be aiming to break through the late stage and advance to Soul Transformation. Would Demon Lord Yeshuang give such a good thing to someone else? The relationships among the various Demon Lords aren't exactly harmonious."
"If it's not her, then how did Demon Lord Yueying learn about the Origin Demon Great Art?" Qin Xi said. "The last person in Yunzhong to cultivate the Origin Demon Great Art was that City Lord Mei Feng of Starfall City, who I killed in the Guixu Sea. The matter of the Origin Demon Stele hasn't been leaked either..."
At this point, he suddenly stopped.
"Yang Chengji," Mo Tiange slowly uttered the name. "The matter of the Origin Demon Stele was known to Demon Lord Guifang. That's why he secretly infiltrated the underground palace in the Guixu Sea. In the end, he failed at the last moment, and the Origin Demon Stele was ultimately obtained by Yang Chengji."
Nie Wushang was startled. "Demon Lord Guifang perished decades ago. Yang Chengji disappeared without a trace; there hasn't been any news of him..."
Mo Tiange said, "That day when we emerged from the secret realm of the Guixu Sea, we parted ways with Yang Chengji. Where exactly he went, none of us know."
"He couldn't have been captured by Demon Lord Yueying, could he?" Nie Wushang proposed a possibility, then after thinking, rejected it. "But that doesn't make sense either. If he were captured, there would be no need to come after me."
Everyone fell silent, each lost in thought.
"Everyone," Ling Yunhe suddenly spoke up, "if you want to investigate the reason, could it wait until later? I didn't come here for this matter."
"Oh, apologies," Nie Wushang said with a regretful smile. "What did Fellow Daoist Ling wish to ask?"
Ling Yunhe said, "What about the matter Fellow Daoist Tian Can promised earlier?"
Nie Wushang replied without hesitation, "Naturally, I will fulfill it. Let's go now."
"Right," Mo Tiange asked, bringing it up, "the message you had Fellow Daoist Ling relay was 'Sacrificial Temple has emerged, come quickly.' What does this have to do with the Sacrificial Temple?"
Nie Wushang pursed her lips into a smile. "Actually, I said that on purpose to make you take it seriously and come quickly."
"..." Mo Tiange shook her head. "Knowing you were in danger, we would naturally come as fast as we could."
Hearing this, Nie Wushang was momentarily stunned, warmth spreading in her heart. She added, "But the matter is also true. Before encountering Demon Lord Yueying, I emerged from seclusion and attended a demonic cultivator trade gathering, where I obtained the news. It hasn't spread yet, but we'd better hurry. Who knows when others might find out."
Mo Tiange nodded. "The Xuanwu Sacrificial Temple—it's still in the Carefree Valley, right?"
"How did you know?" Nie Wushang was surprised. "At that demonic cultivator trade gathering, I connected with a former elder of Starfall City and exchanged some information with him. That's how I learned that City Lord Mei obtained the Origin Demon Great Art from the Xuanwu Sacrificial Temple. That's why he lured us Core Formation cultivators together back then, to feed us to the Origin Demon he created, hoping to ascend to heaven in one step. Unexpectedly, his plan failed. The Origin Demon was devoured by me, wasting all his efforts."
The events of Starfall City could be said to have changed Nie Wushang's life. If they hadn't been trapped by Mei Feng with no way out, Nie Wushang wouldn't have devoured the Origin Demon, transitioning from martial arts to demonic cultivation and becoming a true demonic cultivator.
Mo Tiange said, "You could say fortune's wheel turns. The Origin Demon Stele in your possession originally belonged to Mei Feng."
"I guessed as much," Nie Wushang smiled, then turned to look at everyone. "So, what do you say? Head to the Carefree Valley immediately, no objections?"
Qin Xi and Jing Xingzhi went without saying; Mo Tiange didn't need asking either. Only Ling Yunhe stated his position: "I came on this trip fully prepared."
Nie Wushang revealed a smile. "Good."
"But..." Ling Yunhe added, "since we've decided to go immediately, could Fellow Daoist Tian Can inform us what kind of place it is?"
Nie Wushang hesitated, unsure how to explain. Mo Tiange then said, "Fellow Daoist Ling, you've entered the Vermilion Bird Sacrificial Temple before. You should know."
Ling Yunhe frowned. "The Xuanwu Sacrificial Temple you speak of—is it the same kind of place as the Vermilion Bird Sacrificial Temple?"
"Correct," Mo Tiange nodded.
Ling Yunhe pondered. "Since there's a Vermilion Bird and a Xuanwu, could there also be an Azure Dragon and a White Tiger?"
No one answered. The matter of the Sacrificial Temples involved both great opportunities and secrets related to the great chaos of the world. How could Mo Tiange speak of it lightly? If they went to the Xuanwu Sacrificial Temple and Ling Yunhe encountered his own opportunity, it would count as repaying his assistance.
Thinking of this, a thought stirred within her. Xuanwu corresponded to water. Among the four of them plus their spirit beasts, only she and Xiao Fan had water spiritual roots. Would the opportunity not fall to Ling Yunhe?
"By the way, Fellow Daoist Ling, you mentioned earlier that you know about the cataclysm that destroyed heaven and earth. Can you tell us now?"
After these past few days, Ling Yunhe had completely calmed down. He had just been suppressing things for too long—both the Nine Sages Sect and the Ling family weighed heavily on him. Now, with a great secret pressing on his heart, his emotions had fluctuated, but he hadn't truly intended anything. In fact, even if Mo Tiange had responded, he would have had to consider carefully—Daoism advocated following the natural way of the Dao; matters of affection should also develop naturally. Feelings seized by force neither begin well nor end easily and hinder cultivation.
Now, hearing Mo Tiange ask him this, he said, "This matter starts from the Immortal Palace of the Guixu Sea..."