Mortal: Starting by looting Han Laomo's entire herb garden

Lu Yan returned to his cave and took out the Myriad Demon Banner to examine it.

The banner was grayish-black, exuding a powerful spiritual aura, and faintly echoed with the howls of spirits.

Suddenly, a wisp of black energy burst forth from the banner, condensing into a hideous demonic soul with the aura of a Nascent Soul stage cultivator.

The demon's eyes were bloodshot, and when it opened its mouth, it was the voice of the old demon Che.

No one knew what secret technique the old demon Che had used, but he managed to transform a wisp of divine thought into this form, attaching it to the Myriad Demon Banner, its chilling aura piercing to the bone: "You brat, how dare you steal my Myriad Demon Banner! You're courting death!"

"Shut up, die." Lu Yan interrupted him and slapped the spirit beast pouch.

The crying soul leaped out, and the little monkey landed and transformed into a giant ape over ten feet tall. With a single breath, a yellow haze rolled out, swallowing the demon soul along with the old demon's divine sense into its belly.

The demon soul didn't even have time to scream before it fell silent.

"That voice..." Master Tianfu's voice emerged from the Soul-Nourishing Wood, tinged with surprise: "Isn't that Old Demon Che? You actually snatched him away too?"

Lu Yan placed the Myriad Demon Banner on the ground: "Are you very familiar with him?"

"Familiar my ass." Master Tianfu snorted.

"We've only met a few times. That old monster, relying on his status as a spirit, acted all high and mighty. I have no connection with him, nor any grudge against him; I've just seen him."

He paused, his gaze falling on the Myriad Demon Banner, his tone becoming more playful: "This is a replica of the Heavenly Demon Banner, isn't it? I didn't expect him to be able to replicate it."

Lu Yan picked up the Myriad Demon Banner and examined it again: "This thing is quite powerful. I was just in need of a replica of this magical treasure, so it's come at the perfect time."

"Its power is considerable." Master Tianfu changed the subject: "But this banner has been refined by Old Demon Che for many years and is connected to his mind. As long as this banner appears within a thousand miles of him, he can take it back with a single thought. If you're in the middle of a fight and suddenly find your hand empty, that'll be quite a sight."

Lu Yan frowned: "Is there a way to erase his mark?"

"Yes," said Master Tianfu, "but the price is high. Forcibly erasing the mark will cause irreversible damage to the Myriad Demon Banner, reducing its power by at least 30%. Moreover, even after erasing it, you will only be able to initially refine it; Old Demon Che can still follow your aura and chase after you."

Lu Yan remained silent for a moment, then a slow smile appeared on his lips.

"Then erase it." Lu Yan weighed the Myriad Demon Banner in his hand.

"Old Demon Che is in the Great Jin Dynasty, while I am in the Chaotic Star Sea, separated by the Boundless Sea. The spiritual energy is thin on the Boundless Sea, and there is no place to land there, so he can't possibly fly over to chase me. By the time he can cross the sea to find me, I will have already disposed of this banner."

Master Tianfu was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter: "You brat, Old Demon Che has probably never suffered such a loss in his life."

Suddenly, the banner shone with a bright black light, and another wisp of black energy shot out, the voice of the old demon Che still ringing out.

"Young man, do you think erasing a mark is enough?"

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the Soul-Nourishing Wood behind Lu Yan, and exclaimed in surprise, "Isn't this the Heavenly Talisman? You're still alive?"

As someone who constantly thinks about sneaking into the spirit world, Che Laoyao has always been interested in the Six Ding Heavenly Armor Talisman.

The voice of Master Tianfu drifted out from the Soul-Nourishing Wood: "None of your business."

Old Demon Che's demonic soul twisted in rage. He had never been so openly contradicted in his life, especially by a mere Nascent Soul remnant soul.

Back in the spirit realm, he was at least a demon cultivator at the Nascent Soul stage, and when he arrived in the human realm, he was even more unruly.

Now even a Nascent Soul remnant dares to be so disrespectful to him? He took a deep breath, as if the demon soul could inhale, and was about to unleash its power.

"Who do you think you are? Daring to talk trash to Brother Lu?" Yin Yue's voice suddenly interrupted, crisp and tinged with disdain.

Che Laoyao's demonic soul suddenly froze.

"Ling... the enchanting demon queen?!"

How could it be her?

She shouldn't be here... Old Demon Che's mind was in complete chaos.

Linglong Demon Consort, a renowned figure among the demon race in the spirit realm, someone even he had to show some respect to, how could she appear here?

How could he be hanging out with a human in the early Nascent Soul stage? Shouldn't he be trapped in Kunwu Mountain?

What he found even more unacceptable was that the Demon Consort Linglong actually spoke up for this human.

"You... how could you..." Old Demon Che's voice was broken and intermittent, completely lacking the arrogance he had just displayed.

Lu Yan said unhurriedly, "You mean to say that she should have been sealed in Kunwu Mountain, so how did she end up here?"

Old Demon Che was still in a daze, staring blankly in the direction of Silver Moon.

Lu Yan continued, "Where were you when the three elders of Kunwu sealed Yuan Sha and Linglong together? Were you involved?"

Old Demon Che's demonic soul trembled violently, shaking his head repeatedly: "Slander! Boy, don't slander me! This old man has nothing to do with this!"

In short, he absolutely cannot admit it.

Lu Yan looked at him suspiciously: "Then why didn't you think about saving her all these years?"

Old Demon Che was speechless, and the demon soul's face showed a "Are you kidding me?" expression:

"Do I have that ability? The Holy Ancestor Yuan Sha is sealed inside. If I go in, wouldn't I be delivering food to her?"

Furthermore, those few Nascent Soul stage monsters from the human race wouldn't possibly watch my true form leave the Valley of Ten Thousand Demons. What do you think they're doing keeping an eye on the Valley of Ten Thousand Demons every day? It's to prevent me from going out and causing trouble!

Silver Moon sneered, "That's easy for you to say. Are you just afraid of dying?"

Che Laoyao opened his mouth, wanting to say something in his defense, but in the end he didn't say anything.

The demonic soul twisted a few times on the banner, its voice becoming much softer: "Fellow Daoist Linglong, this old man... this old man is truly powerless."

Lu Yan looked at Che Laoyao, a slight smile playing on his lips: "Since that's the case, if you won't save him, then I will. But you can't just do nothing, can you? Why don't you give me the Myriad Demon Banner? I'll do what you can't do, and I'll save the people you can't save."

"Old Demon Che's eyes widened. You're giving me the Myriad Demon Banner? Can I get it back? Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"

He paused, his tone softening slightly: "Kid, don't dream. At most... at most I'll lend it to you for a while. That's only because of the Demon Consort Linglong."

Lu Yan said unhurriedly, "Fellow Daoist, what treasure is there in a Myriad Demon Banner? You should know that with the status of the Linglong Demon Consort in the Spirit Realm, let alone this imitation, even a genuine Tongtian Spiritual Treasure would be within her grasp."

Old Demon Che sneered, "Isn't she unable to return to the Spirit Realm now? Kid, you should be grateful. If it weren't for the sake of the Exquisite Demon Consort, I would have already..."

He didn't finish his sentence, but his meaning was clear.

Lu Yan was not annoyed. A flash of light appeared in his hand, and a small blue halberd appeared in his palm.

"Let me tell you the truth," Lu Yan said casually, toying with the Pinghai Ge. "I still maintain contact with the Spirit Realm. If you know what's good for you, give me the Myriad Demon Banner, and I can give you a ride when I return to the Spirit Realm."

Che Laoyao's pupils suddenly contracted as he stared intently at the small blue halberd: "This is... the Pinghai Halberd? It's not an ordinary spiritual treasure, but one that's listed on the Chaos Myriad Spirits Ranking..."

That's not right! None of the cultivators from the lower realm brought Pinghaige down with them, so it should still be in the Spirit Realm, right?

Could it be... that you can really still contact the spirit world?

Lu Yan smiled slightly, offering no explanation.

He put away Ping Haige and said in a calm tone, "Brother Che Dao doesn't have much time left, does he? If you don't return to the Spirit Realm soon, your time will be up."

Che Laoyao's face darkened, and he remained silent.

Lu Yan continued, "Rather than dying of old age in the mortal realm, why not use this Myriad Demon Banner to exchange for a chance to return to the Spirit Realm? Or are you planning to gamble on a spatial node? I don't need to elaborate on the dangers of that place, do I?"

Che Laoyao's breathing quickened, and his eyes flickered uncertainly.

He stared at Lu Yan for a long time, seemingly trying to determine whether what he said was true or false.

Why should I believe you?

Lu Yan shrugged: "Believe it or not. But I'm warning you, you only get one chance."