He confessed his love for his master in his later years, and his cheat ability finally arrived.

Half an incense stick later.

Ok.

I lit another half incense stick.

After an incense stick has burned.

Lu Changsheng rubbed his aching back while straightening his clothes.

I don't know if it's because of practicing the "Devouring Heaven Demon Art," but the treasured sword is becoming increasingly sharp.

Seeing that Mo Rou beside him was still dizzy and looking satisfied, Lu Changsheng roughly kicked her with his foot.

"Master...where am I?"

"..."

Lu Changsheng sighed, speechless.

"Stop being so lewd, hurry up and get dressed to go down the mountain!"

"Yes...yes, sir."

Mo Rou then remembered, and scrambled to her feet, brushing the mud off her body and straightening her clothes.

Lu Changsheng shook his head helplessly. This vixen is really getting better and better.

So capable, so knowledgeable, and so willing to go all out.

It made him almost reluctant to kill her.

Of course, just a little bit~

Before long, Mo Rou flew down the mountain with Lu Changsheng on her sword.

"Do you remember what I just taught you to say?"

As soon as the flying sword hovered, Lu Changsheng, seeing Mu Changming and the others gathering from a distance, gave them a somewhat uneasy reminder.

"Sir, please rest assured."

Mo Rou rolled her eyes at Lu Changsheng and brushed a stray strand of hair behind her ear:

"I just passed out from pleasure, it's not like I lost my memory~"

"..."

Tatata!

The sound of hurried footsteps grew closer, and soon Mu Changming arrived with three inner disciples and Princess Taiping, whose hands were bound.

"Lu Changsheng, why...why did you come back...?"

Looking at the lively Lu Changsheng in front of him, the outspoken Mu Changming almost said something wrong, until he saw Mo Rou beside Lu Changsheng and quickly questioned her:

"Ahem! Mo Rou, why are you with Junior Brother Lu?"

"Didn't I send Junior Brother Lu up the mountain to investigate the Tongtian Bandits? How come..."

Lu Changsheng ignored the group and walked up to Princess Taiping with a murderous look on his face. Without saying a word, he drew his flying sword and cut the ropes binding her hands.

The two inner disciples beside Mu Changming tried to stop him, but were frightened by Lu Changsheng's murderous gaze.

He's only at the Qi Refining stage, so why are his eyes so terrifying? He must be...

It must be because of his age!

"Senior Brother Mu, if you dare to attack a fellow disciple again, I'll take you down with me, even if it means my own death!"

As he spoke, Lu Changsheng's spiritual power surged wildly, exuding a murderous aura.

His cloudy eyes, like those of an eagle eyeing a wolf, stared intently at Mu Changming in front of him.

"Senior, I...I'm fine~"

Princess Taiping felt a lump in her throat and used her two small hands to hold Lu Changsheng's right hand, which was holding a sword, to stop him from acting impulsively.

"Hmph! As the person in charge of this mission, I, Mu Changming, will naturally punish any disobedient disciples!"

Mu Changming also lost his temper. He was a dignified inner disciple and a Foundation Establishment cultivator. He was actually taught a lesson by an outer disciple and a Qi Refining stage lackey. If this got out, how could he still have the face to stay in the Inner Immortal Academy?

Swish!

The two drew their longswords, facing each other with hostility, their swords poised to strike.

"Oh, it's no big deal~"

"Alright! Alright! Stop arguing!"

"We're all fellow disciples, what deep-seated hatred could there be? We're all just carrying out sect missions. We haven't even faced the Sky-Piercing Bandits yet, and if we start fighting, the Enforcement Hall will hold us accountable when this gets back to the sect!"

Mo Rou once again acted as a peacemaker. She knew that Lu Changsheng had been planning this for so long just to use one tiger to devour another. If they started fighting now, wouldn't that be a waste?

"Senior Brother Mu, didn't you just ask me where I went?"

"Hmph! You bunch of grown men, just finish arranging things and then go enjoy yourselves~"

"If I hadn't been careful and secretly followed Junior Brother Lu from behind, he would have been slacking off."

These words immediately caught Mu Changming's attention, and the atmosphere instantly eased.

"Junior Brother Lu originally planned to wander around the mountainside for a while and observe the Tongtian Bandits from a distance."

"But that won't do. Since Senior Brother Mu wants Junior Brother Lu to find out the details of the Heavenly Bandits, how can we find out without going up the mountain?"

"I then revealed myself, flew on my sword, and went up the mountain with Junior Brother Lu."

"This bandit group has three Foundation Establishment cultivators: the leader, the second leader, and the third leader. The other three or four hundred bandits are mostly mortals and Qi Refining cultivators, not a threat. With Senior Brother Mu and a few of us, we can definitely..."

Before Mo Rou could finish speaking, Mu Changming narrowed his eyes, looked at her suspiciously, and questioned her:

"Since you two went up the mountain and even met with the three leaders, how did you manage to come down unharmed?"

"Junior Sister Mo is a Foundation Establishment cultivator, so it's understandable that she can fly on a sword, but Junior Brother Lu is just a mere Qi Refining stage cultivator..."

Mo Rou rolled her eyes at Mu Changming and said irritably:

"Senior Brother Mu, what are you saying?!"

"Does it have to be that Junior Brother Lu and I come back missing limbs for it to be considered normal?"

"..."

Mu Changming gave an awkward laugh and waved his hands repeatedly.

Although Mo Rou's strength is not as good as his, Mo Rou's Daoist partner, Qian Feng, is a terrifying powerhouse at the tenth level of the Foundation Establishment stage, a prominent figure in the Inner Immortal Academy, and only one step away from breaking through to the Golden Core stage. Mu Changming cannot afford to offend him!

"We were lucky. After a brief exchange, as soon as I revealed my identity as a disciple of Shangyuntian Palace, the leader of the Tongtian bandits knelt on the ground and surrendered."

"They even said they wanted to repent and reform, wanted to join our Shangyun Heavenly Palace, and wanted to be recruited by us~"

"This matter is of great importance, and I cannot make the decision myself, so I have arranged to discuss it again tomorrow. I have returned first and left it to you, Senior Brother Mu, to decide."

Upon hearing this, Mu Changming's suspicions were largely dispelled.

Knowing that the Heavenly Thieves were being targeted by the Immortal Holy Land and that their destruction was inevitable, their surrender was only natural.

Looking at Mo Rou and Lu Changsheng, their clothes were somewhat disheveled, and there were even some broken leaves in Mo Rou's hair, which was consistent with the traces of a brief fight.

Unexpectedly, Lu Changsheng was so lucky that he was so focused on stopping Princess Taiping that he forgot about Mo Rou and foolishly followed her up the mountain.

If it weren't for Mo Rou, a Foundation Establishment cultivator, accompanying him, the Heavenly Thief would have torn that old codger Lu Changsheng to shreds...

"Bandits are bandits! Don't listen to their nonsense about reforming themselves!"

"Besides, our mission is to wipe out the Sky-Piercing Bandits, not to offer them amnesty!"

Mu Changming naturally looked down on these bandits, and immediately snorted coldly, waving his hand:

"Tomorrow we will go up the mountain and slaughter all the bandits, leaving no one alive!"

The three inner disciples and Mo Rou quickly bowed and agreed, while only Lu Changsheng and Princess Taiping turned their heads away.

Mu Changming's decision was naturally within Lu Changsheng's calculations. As a disciple of the immortal family and extremely arrogant, how could he possibly accept the bandits' offer of amnesty?

War is imminent!

"Lu Changsheng and Princess Taiping will be on night watch; the rest of you should get some rest!"

Mu Changming glared fiercely at Lu Changsheng, then forcibly suppressed his murderous intent:

"Tomorrow, we'll take the first route into the mountains to suppress the bandits!"

With Mo Rou around, he couldn't directly attack Lu Changsheng, otherwise he would inevitably be investigated by the Enforcement Hall when he returned to the sect.

The only way to defeat Lu Changsheng is through the help of the Heavenly Thief.

I don't know what's wrong with Mo Rou. After staying in the Inner Immortal Academy for so long, she actually thinks highly of such a trivial task as eliminating the Heavenly Bandits and insists on getting involved...

Amidst Mo Rou's jealous expression, Lu Changsheng and Princess Taiping walked side by side into the dense forest to begin their patrol.

The entire Tongtian Peak is equipped with sensing arrays on all four sides, so as long as someone rushes out from the top of the mountain, it will be alerted, and there is no need to keep watch at night.

But Lu Changsheng and Princess Taiping also wanted to go further away to avoid seeing Mu Changming's disgusting face and feeling nauseous!

......

Nothing was said that night. As the golden sunlight pierced through the gaps in the leaves, it shone on Princess Taiping's face.

Princess Taiping rubbed her eyes, then yawned and stood up.

"S-senpai, I...I..."

Princess Taiping then realized that she had been sleeping on Lu Changsheng's shoulder all night, and her face instantly turned red.

The seniors are all so old, and I'm still...

"Alright, let's go!"

Lu Changsheng got up, stretching his old arms and legs as he spoke:

"Get ready to go up the mountain, or Mu Changming will cause trouble for the two of us again."

Swish swish!

As soon as he finished speaking, Mu Changming and several other inner disciples appeared in front of Lu Changsheng and Princess Taiping, riding on flying swords.

"Junior Brother Lu, hop on my flying sword, I'll give you a ride!"

As if anticipating Lu Changsheng's impending death at the hands of the Tongtian Bandits, Mu Changming surprisingly revealed a slight smile:

"Junior Sister Mu, please give Junior Sister Bai a ride. Let's hurry up the mountain and suppress the bandits!"

Lu Changsheng and Princess Taiping are both at the Qi Refining stage and cannot fly on swords, so Mu Changming's suggestion is reasonable.

The reason he personally gave Lu Changsheng a ride was, of course, because he was worried that the old man would run away. He wanted to keep an eye on him so that, at the crucial moment, he could deliver Lu Changsheng to the bandits' knife.

Lu Changsheng smiled and did not object; Mu Changming's suggestion suited his taste perfectly.

Swish swish!

The flying sword pierced the air and instantly reached the mountaintop.

"Something terrible has happened!"

"They're coming up! They're coming up!"

"Fire arrows! Load the crossbows!"

......

As soon as they reached the mountaintop, arrows rained down upon them, hurtling towards them.

buzz~

At the same time, attack arrays were activated, unleashing various flames, water waves, and gales...

They all charged towards him in unison.

"court death!!"

Mu Changming's cultivation at the sixth level of Foundation Establishment erupted instantly, and with a single sword strike, the sword energy stretched for dozens of meters.

With a single sword strike, he tore apart dozens of formations and killed hundreds of bandits.

"See what I told you? A bandit is a bandit!"

"This isn't about wanting to be recruited; it's purely to lull you guys into a false sense of security so we can prepare a trap tonight!"

Mu Changming snorted coldly, his eyes filled with mockery and disdain for Lu Changsheng and Mo Rou:

"Quickly, join me in this attack! Kill them all without mercy!!"

As he spoke, the flying sword in his hand unleashed boundless sword light, and he slashed out again at the bandits who were fleeing in terror:

"The Sun and Moon Sword Technique, kill them all!"

With a single sword strike, sword energy burst forth from his body, transforming into a gigantic form tens of meters tall, descending from the sky with overwhelming power.

"Hmph, do you really think I'm immune to all opportunities?"

Just as the sword energy was about to strike, the leader, Qiu Rang, rushed out with his second and third leaders, wielding flying swords and unleashing several slashes to neutralize the terrifying sword energy.

"Fifth level Foundation Establishment? You dare to be so insolent in front of me, Mu Changming!"

Mu Changming sneered, his flying sword emitting a deafening clang, and then coldly gave orders to Lu Changsheng behind him:

"Lu Changsheng, I hereby order you, in my capacity as an inner disciple, to go and kill the leader of the Heavenly Bandits!"

"If you don't go, I will use the sect rules..."

Pfft!

Before Mu Changming could finish speaking, he suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood.

A sharp blade suddenly pierced through his chest from behind!

"Senior, you truly keep your word! Haha! I knew I hadn't misjudged you!"

Seeing that Lu Changsheng had actually stabbed Mu Changming in the back, Qiu Rang's eyes widened in disbelief. When he finally came to his senses, he roared to the sky.

"Lu Changsheng! How dare you collude with bandits! You deserve to die!!"

Mu Changming was completely numb. He endured the excruciating pain, pulled out his flying sword, and retreated dozens of meters.

"You think you can defeat me by stabbing me once? How naive! How laughable! How..."

Lu Changsheng smiled, wiping away the blackened blood dripping from the sword, and said calmly:

"Yes, that's why I also poisoned the sword."

"Then guess again, why did I deliberately avoid vital points instead of just piercing your heart with my sword?"

"..."