Start slaying demons from the proficiency panel.

After the dragon completely disappeared from their sight, everyone couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

The sense of oppression was overwhelming.

His outfit was completely soaked with cold sweat from seeing the dragon appear. The mountain breeze was quite refreshing and cleared his mind.

Just as someone was about to step forward and say something, another figure suddenly flew past in mid-air—it was a man sitting cross-legged on a black lotus platform.

The moment this man appeared, everyone felt a heavy pressure weighing on their shoulders again, and they couldn't utter a single word, for fear of attracting his attention.

The Demon Buddha glanced down at the ground, then looked away and chased after Ning Xiu in the direction he had gone.

With his strength, the people from the Dragon Tiger Hall were no different from ants; he could crush them with a single hand if he wanted to.

After the Demon Buddha left, the members of the Dragon Tiger Hall breathed a sigh of relief and slumped to the ground, wiping their sweat. They said, "That was close! If we had been discovered, it would have been troublesome. Those two looked fierce and menacing; you could tell they weren't good people."

"How come so many strange people have suddenly appeared in these mountains? Now that they've taken the Lan Hai Dragon Crystal, there's no way we can get it back."

"Hopefully, the leaders will believe our story, otherwise we'll be in trouble."

Faced with the combined pressure of Ning Xiu riding a dragon and the Demon Buddha sitting on a black lotus, the Dragon Tiger Hall members were completely demoralized and unable to muster any resistance. They had no choice but to accept the truth that Ning Xiu had taken the Lan Hai Dragon Crystal.

All the arrogance and ambition he had shown beforehand, along with his determination to reclaim the Lan Hai Dragon Crystal, vanished in an instant.

……

Each prefecture within the Great Shang territory has a prison specifically for imprisoning evil spirits or demons, and its level of security is not much different from that of the Demon Suppression Prison of the Demon Subduing Division in Jingzhou.

Generally, valuable evil spirits or demons need to be sent back to the Demon Subduing Division for interrogation. They are temporarily imprisoned in the state prison, waiting for a Demon Subduing Captain to escort them back to Chaotian Capital.

Previously, Ning Xiu had Chang Fenghai escort the Mountain God to the East Sea Prefecture while he went to find the Demon Buddha. Now that the mission was accomplished, he had to go to the prefecture to tell Chang Fenghai and assign him some tasks.

Ning Xiu naturally couldn't bring his team members with him on this trip to the Four Symbols Continent in the outer realms. These people were the future elites of the Demon Subduing Division, but their current strength was insufficient to accompany him on the mission outside the Great Shang territory.

Ning Xiu left the dragon and the demon Buddha to stay in the mountains outside the prefecture, and went into the city alone to find Chang Fenghai at the local government office.

Unexpectedly, before they had walked far in the city, a gray mouse suddenly ran to his feet, jumped down and sat down next to Ning Xiu, looking up at him.

Even the boldest rat wouldn't do such a thing on a broad day in broad daylight. Ning Xiu himself wasn't afraid of these animals, so he felt there must be a reason for it and looked down at the rat to observe it.

The other party immediately jumped off Ning Xiu's feet, swished its tail, and ran towards a nearby alley.

Seemingly worried that Ning Xiu wouldn't follow, the rat would occasionally glance back, its intention quite clear.

"Ah! A mouse!"

"Damn it, where did this rat come from that dares to come out in broad daylight!"

After a group of passersby noticed the strangely behaving rat, they immediately grabbed any available rat-catching tools and began their operation to drive it away.

The rat had no choice but to scurry into the alley in fright and disappear without a trace.

Ning Xiu found the matter rather strange, and after thinking about it, he decided not to go to the yamen for the time being, but instead walked into the alley to see what was going on.

Once they were deep in the alley and no longer being chased by passersby, the rat reappeared and ran in front of Ning Xiu to continue leading the way.

Soon, following the rat's winding path, Ning Xiu arrived at a small, dilapidated house nestled in a deep alley.

"Cough, cough, cough!"

A coughing sound came from inside the tiled house, which sounded like an old woman. The rat scurried straight into the house, so it must have had some purpose in leading itself there.

With his current strength, and considering that this was the capital of Donghai Prefecture, Ning Xiu was naturally not flustered at all. He walked directly into the house, intending to see who was controlling the rats and had invited him to this place.

Upon entering the house, a dilapidated scene immediately came into his view.

A strong smell of herbs filled the room. A blind old woman sat on a bamboo chair, coughing and taking medicine. Beside her...

Squatting there was a little girl with skin so white it seemed to glow, but her body was extremely thin. She looked to be only about twelve or thirteen years old. Her greasy hair was tied up with a bamboo rope, and her face was covered in dirty black ash, clearly indicating that she hadn't washed her face in a long time.

"What brings you two here?" Ning Xiu asked, taking the initiative to speak.

【111】The Mysterious Old Woman's Terrifying Supernatural Powers

"Lord Ning has arrived."

Upon hearing the sound, the old woman spoke weakly. Although she was blind, she still looked precisely in Ning Xiu's direction.

Even a blind person can do this, let alone this old woman who seems quite unfathomable.

Ning Xiu realized that the other party even knew his surname, so he must be very clear about his identity. The fact that the rat had invited him here today must mean that there was something he needed Ning Xiu to do for him.

"Lord Ning, please sit down. Aying, hurry up and wipe the chair for Lord Ning, lest his robe get dirty," the old woman said.

The little girl squatting next to her immediately stood up and did as she was told, wiping the stains off the bamboo chair next to her with her sleeve, and then carefully placing it in front of Ning Xiu.

"Just say what you have to say. I have things to do and can't linger here any longer."

“I know you are busy, Lord Ning, but I would be very grateful if you could sit down and listen to what I have to say. If you can help me, I will be extremely grateful and will repay you handsomely in the future.”

Ning Xiu sat down on the bamboo chair and said calmly, "Then you speak."

At the same time, he secretly used his Qi Observation and Qi Recognition Technique to see what was going on with the old woman in front of him.

The moment three lines appeared before Ning Xiu's eyes, his vision was immediately filled with a red light.

Ning Xiu's expression changed slightly upon seeing this; the old woman's luck line was actually a mixture of red and purple! Red with purple and purple with red, it was no small matter.

Since acquiring the ability to read auras and predict fortune, this is the person with the strongest fortune that Ning Xiu has ever seen.

Most ordinary people are classified as having the light blue color of their destiny. Those with light blue destiny lead ordinary lives, experiencing minor illnesses and disasters, and enjoying peace and harmony in their families. However, they find it difficult to become wealthy and remain mediocre throughout their lives.

Those with a deep blue complexion tend to have higher fortune and career prospects than ordinary people, making it easier for them to achieve something significant. This type of fortune is common among shopkeepers, wealthy merchants, scholars, and county magistrates.

Those who are light red are more likely to rise in rank, unlike some officials who remain minor county magistrates even after retiring to their hometowns.

If one goes into business, one can become wealthy and famous throughout the region.

If one cultivates, minor opportunities will frequently arise, and the cultivation speed will be far faster than that of ordinary people. Furthermore, one will likely encounter helpful people in their life, making everything they do go smoothly.

Light red luck is considered one in a thousand, but once you reach the level of deep red luck, very few people can possess it.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that one in 100,000 people would be selected.

Those with a deep red aura are either high-ranking officials, generals, or wealthy individuals, or they are prodigies who achieve great things at a young age, whose strength and abilities far surpass those of middle-aged and elderly people who have been immersed in certain fields for decades.

The things he has done and the achievements he has made in just a few years are enough to leave the world speechless and astonished.

For example, some people practice the immortal path for thirty years and are still only at the seventh or eighth rank, but some geniuses can reach the fourth or fifth rank, or even higher, in just one or two years.

For example, some people spend fifty years to reach the rank of first-grade official, while some geniuses can achieve the same status as them in just three or four years.

Regardless of talent, this is precisely the power of luck, because having talent is also a part of luck.

That's why people often say that when you're down on your luck, you'll choke to death even if you drink water, but when you're on good luck, you'll find money just by walking a few steps down the street.

Those with great fortune will find everything going smoothly, and their actions will bring them success. Even a casual gesture can trigger opportunities.

Such wondrous things are beyond the comprehension of ordinary people; only those who understand the principles of destiny can grasp even a fraction of them.

The Azure and Crimson realms represent the upper limit of fortune that ordinary people can access, while the Purple and Gold realms are extremely rare. To encounter even one of them is considered to have been blessed by the chosen ones.

Ning Xiu estimated that the founding emperor of the Great Shang Dynasty, who possessed purple fortune, must have been at this level. Without such powerful fortune, one could not have accomplished such a feat of establishing a nation.

As for the golden fortune, Ning Xiu had never even considered it. There was probably not a single person in the entire Shang Dynasty who could possess such a destiny.

The old woman's luck line is already 'red to the point of turning purple,' a sign of transformation. She has a great chance to make a leap in the future, turning into a light purple luck line, achieving unimaginable success.

Ning Xiu's mind raced as he pondered why such a person would take the initiative to seek him out.

"Lord Ning, you are already a third-rank martial artist at such a young age, but I see that your luck is only a deep blue color. Logically speaking, you should not have achieved such success. I suppose you must have obtained some great opportunity. I have high hopes for your future achievements, so I would like to ask you to help me with this matter."

The old woman's words immediately stunned Ning Xiu.

The other party was also able to see the luck line!

I rely on the art of observing qi and predicting fate, but what about the other party?

Under heaven, only those who follow the Path of Destiny possess such abilities. However, the threshold for cultivating the Path of Destiny is extremely high. While there are countless martial arts lineages, the Path of Destiny is probably too numerous to count on one hand.

As far as Ning Xiu knew, only the Shang Emperor was known to be a member of the Qi Destiny Path; there was no other known member of the Qi Destiny Path.

“Your background and connections must be as vast as a mountain range. Why would you need to ask a mere Martial Daoist like me to do anything? With your abilities in the Qi Luck Dao, you can easily send a message and many people will rush to do things for you,” Ning Xiu said.

Ning Xiu's concealment technique has only been improved to the level of shielding below the second rank. The fact that the other party could see his true strength level at a glance means that this old woman is above the second rank.

It's truly unexpected that such a mysterious master was hidden in a dilapidated tile-roofed house within the capital of Donghai Prefecture.

"Time is running out..." The old woman looked up at the sky and sighed, "There is something I need to do, but my granddaughter cannot come with me. I am really worried about leaving her here, and there is no one I can trust to entrust her to. Lord Ning, you are one of the few people I trust. Since you are the first among them to come here, I would like to trouble you to take care of my granddaughter. When I return, I will reward you handsomely."

Ning Xiu frowned: "One of the few? Did you notice me a long time ago, senior?"

“No, this is the first time I’ve met you, the first time I’ve learned your name, and the first time I’ve learned about your identity,” the old woman said, shaking her head.

"This...this is impossible." Ning Xiu's face was full of disbelief.

"Everything is in the hands of fate. Time will tell me what I want to know, but sometimes even time cannot see clearly what is going on." The old woman put down the bowl of medicine she was drinking. "I have said everything I need to say. I entrust my granddaughter, Aying, to Lord Ning's care."

She stood up, and her body began to blur, gradually becoming more and more ethereal and transparent, like a mirage dissipating.

"Senior! I don't know how to address you yet!" Ning Xiu hurriedly called out.

But it was too late. White mist rose all around, the world spun, and the walls and tiles twisted.

Ning Xiu felt a sudden white light before his eyes, and he instantly lost consciousness.

……

"Wake up."

As a soft shout rang in his ears, Ning Xiu suddenly opened his eyes, and his consciousness returned.

Looking around, he found himself standing at the city gate, with a city guard walking towards him and shouting at him.

"What are you doing standing there motionless? If you want to get into the city, hurry up and get in. Don't block the road and delay others."

"I'm... not even in the city yet?" Ning Xiu looked around in surprise, his expression one of utter disbelief.

He had just passed through this place when he entered the city. He had been walking on the street for a short while when he was attracted by the rat and eventually found the old woman's house.

But how did I end up back here in the blink of an eye?

Ning Xiu was completely baffled; he had never heard of such a method before.

As Ning Xiu stepped back into the city and looked at the incredibly realistic surroundings, he couldn't help but wonder if what he had just witnessed was a dream or if the old woman had cast some kind of spell on him.