Having cultivated myself into an immortal, all I want to do is raise female disciples.

Xu Yanliu leaned against a thick bamboo pole, holding a wine gourd, her eyes cautiously scanning the surroundings: "More or less, I should say it's not just the Jin Yao Dao Alliance... Do you remember the street where our shop is located?"

"That street where there are hardly any people?"

“That’s right.” Xu Yanliu snapped her fingers, a look of emotion on her face. “Actually, there were still some people here originally, but most of them were independent cultivators without any faction or sect. They were lucky enough to encounter the Emperor Pavilion Master’s ascension to the throne, so they probably wanted to go there and join in the fun, and that’s why they all moved away.”

"Hey..." Hearing Xu Yanliu's words, Zhang Ruoxue roughly pulled the tender green spiritual plant out of the soil and put it into her storage ring along with the soft spiritual soil: "So you can join in the fun? Shouldn't this kind of thing only be allowed for important people?"

Xu Yanliu smiled and shook her head: "Do you think the Emperor Pavilion is a pretentious force like the Ash Demon Alliance? Because it is an unprecedented event, and with the Emperor Pavilion's financial and material resources, there is no need to impose any restrictions. It is said that when the Pavilion Master ascended the throne last time, the Emperor Pavilion specially set up three banquets in front of the mountain gate, inside the pavilion, and on the roof."

"Any cultivator can enter the banquet in front of the mountain gate. Most of the people there are independent cultivators. The dishes on the banquet mostly have the effect of invigorating blood and spirit, and some even contain a lot of pills."

"The banquets in the pavilion are for sects that are not particularly famous, and the food there is better than what ordinary rogue cultivators eat."

"As for the top of the pavilion, that's where some old men hang out. I heard it's full of treasures that you can't usually see or even hear about."

This goes beyond just being rich and powerful...

Zhang Ruoxue was not unfamiliar with the grand banquets held when the sect leader changed. Back when she was in the Lei Yu Sect, as one of the core disciples, she had also seen the banquets held when the sect leaders of other sects in Jinglin City changed.

She seemed to remember that the young sect leader had invited about forty sects from Jinglin City and several surrounding cities. It was truly a grand gesture, and it was said that it almost bankrupted their sect's resources...

With the Imperial Pavilion's imposing presence, there must be more than forty, if not forty.

It's a truly terrifying foundation just to think about.

Even Zhang Xiaohan couldn't help but open her sleepy eyes and call out in a daze.

"Woof~ (The Emperor's Pavilion... it's a world-renowned sect after all...)"

Xu Yanliu chuckled softly, "That's the sect of Empress Wu's descendants, how could it not be big?"

Faced with these sudden and somewhat inexplicable words, Zhang Ruoxue turned around and looked at Xu Yanliu curiously: "Were you talking to me just now?"

Realizing that Zhang Ruoxue seemed not to understand dog language, Xu Yanliu blinked and waved her hand: "No, it's nothing~ More important than that, you need to hurry up."

"Eh?"

Xu Yanliu narrowed her eyes, seemingly doubting whether she had made a mistake in her judgment.

"I think someone glanced at me just now. It could have been my imagination, but if it wasn't..."

"We may have been discovered."

…………

crunch--

The sound of the door being pushed open.

A young man dressed in a golden robe strode into the house with steady steps.

His gaze slowly moved upwards. The interior of the house was as simple as the exterior, but there was a hazy mist on the eaves. The table where delicious food was served was covered in dust. The candles in the distance had burned out, and with the never-ending night of the underworld, darkness easily took over the house.

The young man did nothing superfluous, but slowly walked to the deepest part of the room, to the bed that was by no means soft, and gazed at the person sitting cross-legged in the darkness, eyes closed, as if in a dream.

He knew that the old man in front of him was not asleep.

"master."

A soft call elicited only a slight lift of the old man's eyelids.

Those aged yet sharp eyes looked at him, and the old man's lips, which had been silent for so long, moved slightly: "You've come..."

"I have something to give you."

"Yes."

The young man had already guessed this, and he bowed slightly, facing the old man with humility.

The old man slowly waved his right hand, causing his storage ring to flash with light, and then flung out a round object, accurately handing it to the young man.

That was a golden compass.

The text above did not resemble the script commonly used during the Lingze era. The young man recognized it; rather, he studied and observed these characters from the era of a hundred sages almost every day.

The compass is engraved with thirty-six different characters on the outside, while the inside is engraved with dozens of intersecting magic arrays. These magic arrays are of different levels, but they have reached a common consensus at this moment, using each other without affecting each other, achieving a rather complex and subtle consistency.

Anyone familiar with array formations can see that such a complex array structure, if taken out and applied to a magical artifact, would at least be a king-level artifact.

"After many years, I have finally perfected this Demon-Slaying Disc. Now, it is time to pass it on to you."

"Thank you, Master..."

The young man gasped as he looked at the uniquely shaped Demon-Slaying Disc in his hand, which faintly emitted a holy golden light.

He knew this was the sect's most precious treasure; passing it on to him meant...

He had already gained the approval of the old man in front of him.

The old man noticed his hands trembling with excitement and smiled calmly: "You should know how to use this. It just so happens that the ancient demon has probably obtained some treasure that can conceal his unique aura, and this Demon-Slaying Disc should be able to detect the traces of that ancient demon."

Upon hearing the words "Ancient Heavenly Demon," the young man's expression immediately turned solemn: "This disciple will certainly strive to find the traces of that Ancient Heavenly Demon and annihilate it!"

"it is good."

The old man looked at his only disciple with satisfaction: "You should also know that since Zhuang Hai left Xiaojinyu Temple, you are the only one in our temple with the qualifications to inherit his mantle."

Upon hearing Zhuang Hai's name, the young man immediately pictured a Buddhist disciple who looked no different from a child, and his expression became somewhat complicated.

He hesitated for a long time before asking in a low voice, "Master, there is something I am not sure if I should ask."

"Ask away." The old man seemed to have expected this, and did not show much surprise.

"Senior Brother Zhuang Hai, why do you want to leave Little Golden Feather Temple?"

A knowing look appeared in the old man's eyes—he had clearly guessed that his disciple would ask such a question.

He paused for a few seconds before explaining in a slow, deliberate tone.

"Zhuang Hai went there for the Divine Sea Golden Feather Scripture."

"The Divine Sea Golden Feather Scripture?" The young man was taken aback. "Isn't that from our temple..."

"Our temple only has half a scroll of the Divine Sea Golden Feather Scripture. The other half has long since disappeared. He left Little Golden Feather Temple in search of the other half of the Divine Sea Golden Feather Scripture."

The answer emerged from the water.

But the young man frowned, because he still couldn't understand: "Master, if I remember correctly, the Divine Sea Golden Feather Scripture in our temple..."

"Is it the Evil Asura Sutra? Isn't it forbidden for anyone to study it?"

A cold glint flashed in the old man's eyes, but it quickly disappeared.

Instead, a gentle smile appeared.

"Indeed, the Divine Sea Golden Feather Scripture can transform a person into an Asura, but Zhuang Hai's intentions were not bad. The reason he cultivated the Divine Sea Golden Feather Scripture was for the Abyss of the Demon Race—"

"As you should know, strange phenomena have recently occurred in the Abyss of the Demon Clan. Even demons like the Devouring Demon have broken free from the Abyss of the Demon Clan. How can we, the Buddhists, turn a blind eye to this?"

"That's true..."

The young man's expression suddenly became somewhat confused: "But you said that to master the Divine Sea Golden Feather Scripture, one must drink the blood of 100,000 people and devour the souls of 100,000 people... Does Senior Brother Zhuang Hai really intend to...?"

With a gaze sharp as a knife, the old man stared at the hesitant young man: "For the sake of all living beings, what's wrong with sacrificing some?"

……

The young man remained silent, simply keeping his head down, not even daring to glance at his master.

Seeing this, the old man first took a deep breath to calm himself down, and then continued to speak.

"Forget it, let's not talk about this anymore. You should try the Demon-Slaying Disc first."

"……Yes."

With a complex expression, the young man held the Demon-Slaying Disc in his palm. He took a deep breath, and the pure spiritual energy within his body slowly emerged, merging into the disc in an extremely complex pattern.

In an instant, the thirty-six characters on the outside of the compass lit up with golden light, and at the same time, the magic array inside it began to change violently.

The young man's expression hardened slightly as he stared at the constantly changing characters on the compass: "This is..."

"What's wrong?" The old man closed his eyes again, without looking at the young man.

"No... Master..."

The young man hesitantly handed the compass to the old man and asked uncertainly.

"Instructions from the Demon-Slaying Disk..."

"It shows that the ancient demon is currently within the Jin Yao Dao Alliance!"

69. Bad luck

"Hurry up."

An ominous premonition resurfaced. Although Xu Yanliu did not accurately detect any approaching presence, the feeling of being spied on still made her uneasy.

Who knows what might happen if we stay here any longer!

Although Zhang Ruoxue didn't understand what Xu Yanliu had sensed, she still trusted Baiheji, with whom she had little time left. So she quickened her pace, not caring whether the spiritual plants would be damaged, and focused on getting all the necessary herbs at once!

Quiet.

Apart from the sound of Zhang Ruoxue pulling weeds, there was no other sound.

The wind did not stir the delicate grass and trees in the forest, nor did it ruffle Xu Yanliu's long black hair. The surroundings were deathly silent, with only her own faint breathing and the sound of Zhang Ruoxue quickly collecting medicinal herbs and spiritual plants.

This silence, ironically, made people feel somewhat uneasy.

Her gaze fell on Zhang Xiaohan, who was lying obediently not far away. Without the slightest hesitation, she walked over and roughly picked up the small dog.

"Woof?! (Hey, what are you doing?!)"

When hugged by someone other than Zhang Ruoxue, Zhang Xiaohan naturally tried to struggle.

However, Xu Yanliu returned his gaze with a cold expression, her voice unexpectedly low: "Don't shout, hide first."

The voice just fell.

Zhang Xiaohan was carelessly tossed into the path they had come from, as if he were trash, by Xu Yanliu. He rolled around in the mud several times before finally coming to a stop.

Zhang Xiaohan, huddled in the alley, glared at Xu Yanliu with dissatisfaction. Just as he was about to say something, a chill suddenly crept up his spine.

That's what it feels like to be watched.

As an ancient demon, although he no longer possessed his former cultivation and strength, his instinct for hostility remained. At this moment, Zhang Xiaohan was almost certain—