Xuanjian: I am the tenth son of Zhenchi, and I plot to seize the throne from Zhenlong.

At first, Lin Chuan's face was filled with a smile and cruelty, but as time went on, his eyes began to grow anxious as the female demon was fleeing into the sea.

Although his status as a demon general under the dragon's tutelage allows him to roam freely in the near seas, it also restricts him from ever venturing into the open ocean.

If it weren't for the sweet scent carried on the wind and the ever-closer distance between the two demons, he would have stopped chasing long ago.

Finally, another beam of azure water struck, and the female demon couldn't dodge it in time. The light beneath her feet shattered, and her body fell diagonally downwards.

The slight unease in Lin Chuan's heart was washed away by the blood that bloomed in the air from the monster. He laughed loudly and rushed towards it, but suddenly stopped moving at a certain moment.

"This is... a formation?"

He opened his palm, and raindrops dripped into it. The cloudless sky just moments before had transformed into an endless curtain of rain in the blink of an eye.

"This array is called... [Distant Sky Turbid Curtain]. There is a Liu Changdie in Yishan City in the Southern Frontier. I asked him to design it, and then I used a lot of spiritual resources to make this array plate."

Lin Chuan quickly looked in the direction of the sound and saw that the female demon who had just fallen had somehow donned a feathered robe and risen into the air, holding a long sword and smiling.

"Southern Frontier? You are... a demon from the Canlufu Sect!"

Lin Chuan looked around, his heart sinking to the bottom. He couldn't see through the rain curtain, and he didn't know how to get out.

Why?

He simply couldn't understand why the other party would go to such lengths to kill him. Even if they stripped off all the scales and flesh from his body and sold them, they wouldn't be worth as much as this array plate.

"I heard that [Taiyin] can enlighten the green and harmonious, and it falls with the water of Bingzi, which is the color of the lake moon. It should be used as the foundation for immortality and called [Lake Moon Autumn]. Unfortunately, [Taiyin] is not visible now, so I naturally cannot see the person with this foundation for immortality."

"But...you are [He Shui]," Ming Hua chuckled, his eyes unreadable. "I don't know which lord sent you to me, but it suits me just as well!"

"Clang~"

The longsword was drawn, and the rain in the sky intensified, pouring down in a torrent, mixed with a vibrant green hue. Minghua's voice was muffled.

"Azure Fragrance Mountain Gate, Vast Splendor."

"Fellow Daoist, take this sword strike. If you survive, I will let you go!"

Lin Chuan wore a bitter smile. The other party hadn't explained anything before asking him to take a sword strike, and had made such a big fuss about it. He really didn't have much confidence that he could survive.

He sighed, then activated the magic bead in his hand to its maximum, quietly watching the demon's movements.

Contrary to her usual behavior, the [Turbid Rain] in Minghua's hand did not produce a single drop of water, and the rainwater in the sky had already spontaneously avoided her within three zhang.

She closed her eyes and pondered for a moment, carefully recalling Su Ming's sword strike from a few days ago. Finally, she caught some senses, then opened her eyes and flicked her hand.

"Ding~"

A drop of water was flicked from the tip of the sword, but it quickly dissipated after leaving the sword.

Seeing this, Lin Chuan, who was not far away, was already extremely nervous. He quickly activated his magic bead, and a blue water shield appeared around him. However, after waiting for a long time, he heard the woman say:

"Oh, that sword strike just now failed."

She chuckled softly and thrust out her sword. Suddenly, water shimmered on the [Turbid Rain] sword, and drops of milky white dew transformed into fine sword energy that slashed out, then turned into a curtain of blue rain that dripped onto the Linchuan Water Shield.

The azure water shield was instantly riddled with holes, and blue raindrops fell on Lin Chuan's body, causing him to be slowly tortured, with streaks of blood blooming on his body.

Lin Chuan was horrified, blood seeping from the corner of his mouth. Not only were his physical injuries worse, but he also felt his Dao foundation gradually crumbling under the blue raindrops. What was even more terrifying was that, in this state, he didn't even know how to block or neutralize this attack.

He stopped using the magic beads and focused all his energy on suppressing the collapse of his immortal foundation. He swallowed several pills one by one, and his aura finally stabilized as it weakened.

"I can live! Just like that, I can survive!"

As the blue rain began to subside, his eyes lit up with excitement, but the secret joy in his heart vanished in the next instant.

Before he knew it, Minghua appeared beside him, her emerald green sword already piercing his abdomen, shattering his immortal foundation.

Lin Chuan was filled with shock, and his breath gradually subsided. Only then did he recall that the sword had been hidden within the falling rain and had struck him.

The woman drew her longsword, a hint of disappointment on her face. She sighed softly, "Unfortunately, this is technique, not swordsmanship."

"I focused too much on blending. The sword should be more pure. This path should be cultivated by that [Fire Combination] technique."

The rain stopped, and Lin Chuan's human form had transformed back into a demon body, covered in azure scales and enormous in size. Ming Hua could not recognize what kind of demon it was. The corpse fell onto the sand and began to disintegrate, turning into blue water that flowed into the sea.

Minghua tossed a magic bead into the air, composed himself, cupped his hands in a gesture of respect towards the demon corpse, and then flew back into the sea.

------

Moon Lake.

"Senior Su, the Xiao family has replied. This spiritual fire should be called [Gathering Yang Remnant Flame]. It is dark reddish-brown and emits no flame light."

"According to the Xiao family, this spiritual fire needs to be constantly nourished by other spiritual fires or placed into the fire vein in order to have sufficient power, which is extremely rare."

In a small pavilion by the lake, Su Ming took a sip of tea, carefully channeling some fire into the jade bottle. He was pleased to see the reddish-brown flame inside swallowed.

Then Li Yuanjiao lowered his voice and said, "The Xiao family specifically instructed that... if this kind of spiritual fire is properly nurtured, it may one day become a spiritual object in the Purple Mansion."

"However, it involves enormous expenses and requires the support of spiritual resources from other lineages... so it absolutely must not be exposed!"

Su Ming raised an eyebrow, quickly put it into his storage bag, and took a sip of tea to calm his excitement.

Li Yuanjiao composed himself and took out two more storage bags, saying, "These are the spiritual resources Senior Su needs. With the fall of the Eastern Fire Cave Heaven, all kinds of fire-related items are much cheaper. The remaining spirit stones and accounts are all inside."

Upon returning to Wangyue Lake that day, the two opened all the storage bags. The spiritual resources inside were originally intended to be divided 50/50. However, the cultivation techniques inside were useless to Su Ming, but the newly built fire vein provided him with resources for cultivation. Li Yuanjiao, on the other hand, obtained the foundation-building magic weapon and a spiritual fire and water. After a final discussion, they decided to divide the resources.

The spiritual resources and spirit stones were converted into a 40/60 split. Su Ming copied a few techniques and spells that he might be able to use. He didn't want any magic weapons, only a feather robe and a small shield.

Both sides got what they needed and were satisfied, so the deal was settled.

"How long will your seclusion last this time, Senior?" Li Yuanjiao asked after Su Ming finished reviewing the accounts.

Su Ming carefully sensed the throbbing in his heart, and pondered for a moment: "It should be... about half a year."