The Hehuan Sect cultivates alchemy; my senior sister helps me refine alchemy throughout the world.

Back at Cangwu Mountain, Shen Yifei distributed all sorts of treasures to the women. These treasures from the sea were rare on land, and everyone found them fascinating. Even Gu Yunyan couldn't put them down.

Shen Yifei used dragon scales in combination with other spiritual herbs to refine an antidote for Xueying, and then took the pill to the depths of the demonic vein in the back mountain.

Blood Shadow was sitting cross-legged next to the Demon Vein, cultivating. Surrounded by black energy, he looked much more energetic than before.

"Old Blood, I'm back." Shen Yifei walked up to him and handed him the antidote pill. "Take this, and the restrictions in your body will be lifted."

Blood Shadow saw the pill in Shen Yifei's hand. "Young Master, this...this was made from the golden scales of the Dragon Clan?"

"Yes, it took a lot of effort to get the golden scales shed by the Dragon Queen." Shen Yifei stuffed the pill into his hand. "Stop talking nonsense and eat it quickly. I still need to go back and arrange things in the Demon Abyss Secret Realm."

"The Demon Abyss Secret Realm?" Blood Shadow took the pill but didn't eat it immediately. "Young Master, are you referring to the Demon Abyss Secret Realm, the site of the human-demon war?"

"Yes, the seal will weaken in half a month, and I plan to go in."

Blood Shadow's expression was somewhat solemn. "Young Master, that place is extremely dangerous. During the great war between humans and demons, countless powerful demons died there, and their resentment is extremely strong. It is said that some powerful demons are sealed inside, and it is unknown whether they are dead or alive."

"It's alright. I have the blood of the demon royal family flowing through my veins. Maybe when I get there, it will feel like home."

Blood Shadow thought about it and realized that this made sense. The Demon Clan's royal family was of the same lineage, and it would be dangerous for other humans to go in, but he might be fine.

Seeing that he had made up his mind, Xueying stopped trying to persuade him and put the pill into his mouth.

Shortly after the pill entered his stomach, a series of crackling sounds came from inside Blood Shadow's body, as if something inside had exploded.

He jolted violently, his face flushed red, and veins bulged on his forehead.

Shen Yifei stood aside, ready to help him channel the medicinal effects at any time.

After about half a cup of tea's time, Xueying exhaled a long breath, feeling as if a thousand-pound burden had been lifted from his body, and he felt much more relaxed.

"The restriction is lifted." Blood Shadow opened his eyes, his gaze filled with excitement. "Young Master, your restriction... your restriction is completely lifted!"

"That's good." Shen Yifei nodded. "Old Xue, you should continue cultivating here and stabilize your realm. Our Tianyan Sect now has two experts at the Tribulation Transcending stage, including you. However, one is a demonic cultivator and the other is a demon. If anything happens to the Tianyan Sect, you must protect it."

Upon hearing this, Xueying knelt on the ground with a thud. "Young Master, rest assured, your subordinate will do everything in his power to protect the Tianyan Sect!"

Shen Yifei helped him up, saying, "Old Xue, you are my mother's protector, which means you are my elder. Don't kneel down so easily."

"Young Master, this won't do..."

"If I say it's okay, then it's okay." Shen Yifei patted his shoulder. "You can cultivate in this demonic vein first. When the time is right, I'll take you to the Golden Crow Sect to settle accounts with Lu Ya."

Upon hearing the name "Lu Ya," Xue Ying's eyes flashed with a cold light. "Young Master, that old bastard has wronged me greatly. I must settle this score with him."

"Don't worry, there will be opportunities." Shen Yifei then remembered something, "Old Xue, I brought someone with me, can you find out who she is?"

With a thought, Shen Yifei sent a flash of white light, and Hongxiu appeared in front of the two.

Hongxiu had just steadied herself when she saw the man in black standing in front of her and froze.

Those eyes, that face—though thinner than she remembered, that familiar aura—she would never mistake him.

"Blood...Lord Blood Shadow?" Hongxiu's voice trembled.

Blood Shadow was also stunned. He stared at Red Sleeve for a full three breaths. "Red Sleeve...you are Red Sleeve!"

"Lord Blood Shadow!" Tears welled up in Hongxiu's eyes instantly, and she knelt on the ground with a thud. "Your subordinate... your subordinate thought she would never see you again in this lifetime!"

Blood Shadow strode forward, grabbed Red Sleeve's shoulders, and pulled her up. "Get up, get up! How... how did you get into this state? What happened to your cultivation? What happened to your demonic root?"

Hongxiu tearfully recounted what happened back then. When she mentioned that the Demon King had extracted her demonic root, Xueying's face turned ashen, and he slammed his fist into the stone wall next to him, creating a large crater.

"Demon King... How could he treat you like this! You are the princess's personal maid, and you have served her for hundreds of years. How could he be so cruel!" Blood Shadow's voice trembled with anger.

Hongxiu wiped away her tears and forced a smile. "Lord Blood Shadow, I am already content to have seen the young master alive. Cultivation level and such are not important."

"Nonsense!" Blood Shadow glared. "How can someone like you, who has lost even the root of demonic energy, cultivate? You won't live past two hundred years; you'll die of old age!"

Shen Yifei stood aside, listening to the conversation between the two, and felt a little uneasy.

He coughed lightly. "Old Blood, is there any way to restore Hongxiu's demonic root?"

Xueying remained silent for a moment, glanced at Hongxiu, then at Shen Yifei, and hesitated before speaking.

"Old Xue, just say what you want to say," Shen Yifei urged. "I'm willing to try anything to save Sister Hongxiu."

Blood Shadow took a deep breath. "Young Master, there is a way, but... it's very difficult."

"Old Blood, stop dawdling! No matter how difficult it is, I'll find a way to get it! Look, I even managed to get the Dragon Queen's golden scales, is there anything harder than this?"

Blood Shadow shook his head. "Young Master, we need three things: a drop of pure demon royal blood; a ten-thousand-year-old cold marrow; and a phoenix tail feather!"

After listening, Shen Yifei secretly made his own calculations.

The blood essence of the Demon Clan royal family—his blood flows with the blood of the Demon Clan royal family, so there shouldn't be any problem. Ten-thousand-year-old Frost Marrow—the Northern Underworld is rich in such treasures. With Mo Yu and the Northern Underworld Token, even ten-thousand-year-old Frost Marrow shouldn't be a problem.

As for the phoenix's tail feathers, they sound similar to dragon scales; you can just pluck one.

He had never even heard of the phoenix.

Xueying saw Shen Yifei's concerns. "Young Master, of these three items, the most difficult to find is the phoenix tail feather. The Phoenix Clan completely disappeared after the great war ten thousand years ago, and no one knows where they went. Some say they went to the Outer Heavens, while others say they are hiding in a small world. Finding them is harder than climbing to heaven."

"Hmm, phoenix tail feathers are hard to find... No problem, as long as the phoenix clan hasn't ascended to heaven, I'll dig it up even if I have to dig three feet into the ground!"

As Hongxiu listened from the side, the hope that had been ignited within her dimmed even further.

She knew Blood Shadow was telling the truth.

The Phoenix Clan is even more arrogant than the Dragon Clan. At least the Dragon Clan would trade with humans in the Dragon Market, but the Phoenix Clan wouldn't even show their faces.

Xueying and Hongxiu chatted for a while about Princess Youlan's whereabouts. They agreed that Youlan was definitely still alive, but not in the Demon Clan's territory.

Seeing that it was almost time, Shen Yifei put away his red sleeve and comforted Xueying, telling him to focus on his cultivation here in the demonic vein.

Back at his residence, Shen Yifei began visiting other people's homes. He was now at the peak of the Mahayana realm, and apart from Gu Yunyan, the others were no match for him.

For several days in a row, he spent his time in dual cultivation. In his spare time, he refined a lot of various kinds of pills, especially the Dragon-Tiger Pills prepared for Yun Zhonghe, refining a batch of high-grade ones and several bottles of top-grade ones.

After much thought, Shen Yifei remembered Xie Liaochen as the person who should deliver the elixir to Chang'an.

Since arriving at Cangwu Mountain, my father-in-law has done nothing but spend his days playing chess, playing with birds, drinking tea, and chatting, living a carefree and leisurely life.

When Shen Yifei asked him to go to Yong'an City to find Yun Zhonghe and deliver the Dragon Tiger Pill, he hesitated, saying that he was old and had difficulty moving around.

Shen Yifei said that these pills were for brothels, and that these businesses belonged to the Tianyan Sect. Upon hearing the word "brothel," the old man immediately perked up, summoned two elders from the Qingyun Sect, and hurried off to Yong'an City.

Ten days passed in the blink of an eye. Shen Yifei felt that he was ready, so he bid farewell to the women and headed to the Demon Abyss Secret Realm.