After clearing the level, the fairies were reborn!

He had lived in this branch for hundreds of years and walked this road in front of it countless times, but he had never thought of it.

Someone... no, there will be a sword, and one sword will split this place in two.

Even the True Lord of Pills was dumbfounded.

He stood on the edge of the chasm, looking down at the darkness, his Adam's apple bobbing as he swallowed.

He was a cultivator in the Tribulation Transcending stage, who had lived for tens of thousands of years and had seen countless divine weapons and artifacts.

But I have never seen a sword that can be wielded and propelled by no one, but can be slashed with such force solely by its own temper.

If this sword were to strike him...

A chill ran down his back.

Even if he's at the Tribulation Transcending stage, he'll at least lose a layer of skin.

No, maybe it's more than one layer, and even some bones might be broken?

"Ahem, I was just possessed by a ghost and started babbling uncontrollably. Please forgive me, please forgive me..."

He silently squatted down and picked up the scattered strips of white cloth.

His hands were trembling as he began to wrap the white cloth strips back around the Zhan Yan sword, one loop at a time.

The sword is wrapped from the tip to the hilt, and then back from the hilt to the tip, neatly and tightly.

That look was absolutely hilarious.

A True Monarch in the Tribulation Transcending stage squatted on the ground, 'dressing' a sword.

Qin Ce wanted to laugh, but couldn't.

He simply stood there, watching Zhenjun wrap the sword into a white stick, then hold it with both hands and respectfully hand it to Xu Ze.

"Boy."

The voice of the True Lord Dan Sheng was hoarse, as if it had been rubbed with sandpaper, "If you see that blacksmith again, remember to tell him for me..."

"I'm done."

Xu Ze took the Zhan Yan Sword and carried it on his back.

Dan Sheng Zhenjun turned around and walked into the house.

He took a few steps, then stopped without looking back.

"I am going into seclusion."

His voice was low, as if he were talking to himself, "From today onwards, we will not accept any alchemy commissions from the Demon Alliance."

The door closed behind him with a dull thud.

The courtyard was quiet for a moment.

Qin Ce stood on the edge of the chasm, looking down at the dark abyss, remaining silent for a long time.

A gust of wind blew up from the bottom of the ditch, carrying a chilling aura that made him shiver.

“Fellow Daoist Xu,” he finally spoke, his voice still trembling, “did you just see that? The True Monarch…”

"I saw it."

Xu Ze's tone was indifferent, as if nothing had happened.

Qin Ce smiled bitterly.

He turned his head and looked at Xu Ze, his eyes filled with complex emotions.

There was awe, awe, and a touch of indescribable emotion.

"In his life, Zhenjun cared about two things the most."

"It's the same thing: alchemy, and it's the same thing: reputation." Qin Ce paused, his voice lowering, "Today, he lost both."

Xu Ze remained silent, knowing that Qin Ce wasn't referring to a competition.

He held back in the alchemy competition just now, so as not to embarrass the True Lord.

But that sword...

The Flame-Slaying Sword will not hold back.

It can't stand hearing others say bad things about it.

They have a temper, pride, and their own dignity.

They certainly won't talk to you about these social niceties or anything like that.

"You should know that True Lord has always considered himself to be on par with True Lord Thousand Forging."

"In the Demon Slaying Alliance, there are two seniors in the Tribulation Transcending stage, one a Pill Saint and the other a Weapon Saint, who are known as the Twin Masters."

"But today he learned that the Thousand-Refined True Monarch had already passed away before him..."

Xu Ze opened his mouth, wanting to explain.

He wanted to say that the materials for the Flame-Slaying Sword were extremely rare, both being ancient spiritual treasures that had been guarded by the demon race for thousands of years.

As for the sword embryo, it has existed for tens of thousands of years, and the sword spirit has also existed for a long time.

What Cheng Hao did was simply recast it.

But those words were never spoken.

The muffled voice of the True Monarch Dan Sheng came from inside the door:

"No need to say more, it's just that my skills are inferior."

Xu Ze remained silent.

Qin Ce tugged at his sleeve and lowered his voice:

"Forget it. Once a senior makes up their mind, no one can stop them."

"Since he is going into seclusion, I will take charge of this branch from now on."

He straightened his chest, and the expression on his face changed from emotion to solemnity.

"The Demon Alliance mainly deals with matters between itself and the demon race."

“Great beings like Senior True Monarch are not on the front lines of battle. They don’t need to think too much, so going into seclusion is common for them.”

"During this period, I will fulfill my duty of guarding the branch."

Qin Ce turned around and looked at Xu Ze, saying:

"Fellow Daoist Xu, why do you want to go to the Demon Realm? It's extremely dangerous there."

At this point, his voice became serious, and his brows furrowed.

"Even someone as ordinary as myself in the Fusion Stage wouldn't dare to venture in."

"Only a prodigy like Protector Zhou would dare to venture deep into it."

"Even at the Void Refinement stage, they possess combat power far exceeding that of ordinary Body Integration stage cultivators. Some of them, even after reaching the Body Integration stage, can even hold their own against the hall masters and True Monarchs..."

I glanced at the place where the True Lord was in seclusion.

Qin Ce paused, then lowered his voice even further:

"Even if they encountered one of the top five demon kings, they would only be able to run away."

"After all, the combat power of demonic beasts far surpasses that of human cultivators, and this is the front line."

He looked up at the distant rift valley swirling with purple mist.

"Throughout the Tianyuan Continent, most of the demon races in other continents are peace-loving."

"For example, the Nine-Tailed Fox Clan of the Southern Continent, the Ice Wolf Clan of the Northern Continent, and there was once a bloodline called the Spirit Serpent Clan..."

"They live in harmony with humans and even fight alongside them."

"But those in the desolate demon realm are different."

"They only recognize strength and killing."

As Xu Ze listened to Qin Ce's mutterings, he thought to himself that he knew all the races Qin Ce was talking about.

Moreover, they all have connections with me.

“I’m looking for an ‘Empress’,” he suddenly said.

Qin Ce was stunned.

"What did you say?"

“I said,” Xu Ze said, enunciating each word clearly, “I want to find the Empress of the Demon Clan.”

Qin Ce's eyes widened, his mouth gaped open, and his expression was as if he were looking at a madman.

He stared at Xu Ze for a long time, making sure he wasn't joking, before finally finding his own voice.

"That demon empress is at the 'Great Ascension Stage'!"

His voice changed, “On this Tianyuan Continent, I’m afraid only the Empress Dowager of the Central Immortal Continent and our Demon Alliance leader can be compared to that Empress.”

"Although you possess extraordinary talent, you are ultimately only at the Void Refinement stage..."

Xu Ze did not speak.

He simply stood there, his gaze calm.

Looking into his eyes, Qin Ce suddenly thought of someone.

Back then, Zhou Yan had the same look in his eyes, the same composure, the same certainty. And he truly did it.

With his cultivation at the Void Refinement stage, he killed a demon king.

But that empress is not someone that some demon king or the like can mess with!

Behind him, Tao Yaoyao's body trembled violently.

Her eight legs were curled up, her head was buried between her legs, and her whole body was curled up in a ball.

She is one of the twelve demon kings, but she is only ranked eleventh.

Among the demon kings, only the top three are qualified to be called the Empress's 'guards', while the demon kings ranked lower simply occupy their own territories.