The Immortal Venerable’s spiritual energy exerted an overwhelming pressure on all cultivators except Xu Wanci.
Under this crushing force, even late Tribulation-stage Reverents found their spiritual power and perception significantly weakened.
The moment Ning Menglan and the others sensed something was wrong, the unexpected had already occurred. They barely had time to react before being swept into a small realm ravaged by demonic energy, scattering them apart from Xu Wanci.
This realm was no different from the Demon Realm itself. Once a cultivator entered, their cultivation would be severely suppressed, and their divine senses greatly restricted.
Not only was the demonic energy rampant here, but countless demonic shadows and blades prowled about. A single misstep could mean being struck by a demonic blade or ambushed by a shadow, suffering grievous wounds.
Ning Menglan’s expression grew unprecedentedly grave upon sensing the demonic aura.
He knew that the Demon Realm would not go to such lengths just for the Taiqing Sect alone. The true reason could only be—Wanci.
He had assumed the Demon Lord was still in seclusion and that the Demon Realm wouldn’t dare take such desperate measures. But he hadn’t expected…
If it were just ordinary demon cultivators, it might be manageable. What truly frightened him was… the Demon Lord’s emergence.
Regardless of his thoughts, Ning Menglan immediately steadied his mind:
They had to escape this demonic den as soon as possible!
Beside him, the three elders exchanged glances and moved in silent agreement.
After all, their cultivation levels were among the top Tribulation-stage Reverents of the era. Even surrounded by demonic energy, they were still formidable.
Using the formation as their eyes, the three elders deployed several arrays. While siphoning off the demonic energy, they also identified the key to breaking through this small realm.
However, breaking through this realm only led them into another one.
And the demonic energy here was even denser and more arrogant than before.
Their hands never ceased moving, but their hearts sank deeper with each passing moment:
Such a grand scheme—clearly, the Demon Realm was determined to succeed in this mission.
After breaking through four consecutive small realms, they finally returned to the place where they had been separated from Xu Wanci.
Seeing the desolation within several miles—no sign of life anywhere—their hearts instantly plummeted into the abyss.
After a moment of silence, Gu Yunqi’s face was colder than ever before.
She stretched out her hand, and her life-bound artifact, the Illusory Sea Stone, suddenly appeared suspended in midair.
In the desolate void where not a trace of spiritual energy remained, Gu Yunqi forcibly activated the Reversal Array, hoping to uncover what had transpired earlier.
After a burst of light, Xu Wanci’s figure gradually emerged within the Reversal Array.
Ning Menglan instinctively stepped forward.
Looking at the white-robed man beneath the Azure Emotion Tree, he said gravely:
“It’s Ye Xiao.”
This was one of Ye Xiao’s incarnations.
Hundreds of years ago, she used her incarnation and nightmare arts to seduce countless cultivators, tearing apart innumerable couples—regardless of gender, anyone could become her prey.
In the end, even when her identity was exposed, some cultivators remained torn between love and hate, unwilling to harm her.
Seeing this figure, the other elders’ faces also grew exceptionally serious.
Within the Reversal Array, Ye Xiao seemed to have no intention of hiding herself.
Though they couldn’t see the scenes within the nightmare arts, they could witness Ye Xiao’s incarnation alluring Xu Wanci with every possible temptation.
They also saw Xu Wanci’s calm and resolute demeanor as he wielded his sword.
Amidst the nightmare arts that could distract even Tribulation-transcending cultivators, Xu Wanci’s sword intent never faltered, not even slightly, when facing an incarnation so breathtakingly beautiful that even in the cultivation world, she could be deemed a peerless beauty.
It was only upon reaching the final incarnation that they finally glimpsed the faint sorrow hidden beneath Xu Wanci’s calm exterior.
Yet her steps remained unyielding. The sword pierced to the bone, breaking through the nightmare art.
Before Ning Menglan and the others could even exhale in relief, a wave of demonic energy silently swept across the scene within the time-reversal formation.
Even through the array, they felt an overwhelming threat.
In the next moment, the formation shattered, and Gu Yunqi suddenly coughed up a mouthful of blood.
The Second Elder beside her hurriedly pressed a pill into her mouth.
After swallowing the pill and briefly regulating her breath, Gu Yunqi straightened up, her voice heavy with unprecedented gravity:
“It’s the Demon Lord.”
The Demon Lord has arrived in person.
Upon hearing this, Ning Menglan immediately activated the Sect Leader’s Token to probe, then relaxed his furrowed brow slightly: “Xu Wanci’s life token hasn’t shattered—she’s still alive.”
The Senior Elder stepped forward: “By now, she’s most likely in the Demon Realm.”
A Nascent Soul cultivator drained of spiritual energy, in the Demon Realm, must face the capricious Demon Lord Yan Shuo.
A fate of near-certain death.
Everyone’s expressions were uniformly grave.
If they wanted to rescue Xu Wanci, they would have to venture into the Demon Realm. But even Tribulation-transcending cultivators would find their powers severely suppressed there, with no way to replenish their spiritual energy.
Even if the entire Taiqing Sect mobilized, they would barely be able to handle a few Demon Generals, let alone the Demon Lord Yan Shuo—the second most powerful figure a century ago, just beneath the Immortal Venerable.
At this thought, Ning Menglan slowly exhaled: “In the name of the Taiqing Sect, we will invite the major sects and noble families to gather in Luolong City.”
The Second Elder guessed his intention and frowned: “But just because of cause and effect, I doubt the other sects will agree…”
Ning Menglan turned and walked forward, his voice calm yet resolute: “Tell them the Taiqing Sect has discovered a spiritual vein and wishes to share it with all the sects and clans.”
Pausing slightly, he added softly: “If the Buddha Disciple emerges from seclusion, it will trouble the Senior Elder to pay a visit then.”
*
Within the Demon Realm lie countless Demon Abysses, bottomless pits that can shift location once every seven days.
Each Abyss nurtures a top-tier demonic beast, which feeds on demon cultivators to grow stronger—a presence all demon cultivators avoid at all costs.
Yet today, several Abysses that had been restless for nearly thirty years were eerily silent, as if they didn’t exist at all. Even the usual leaking demonic energy was carefully retracted.
At this moment, they seemed more harmless than low-level demon insects, as if terrified of attracting some ill-fated star’s attention.
Not far away, the anguished roar of a demonic dragon from one Abyss echoed throughout half the Demon Realm.
The demonic beasts in other Abysses remained as quiet as chickens, the depths plunged into deathly silence.
In the abyss’s depths.
Yan Shuo looked down at the demonic dragon that had already lost its breath, his right hand releasing its throat with a hint of boredom. A surge of demonic energy erupted from his entire body.
In the next instant, the dozens-of-meters-long demon dragon was utterly destroyed in a single breath, its flesh completely annihilated, leaving behind only a pile of white bones.
Even after crushing three Demon Abysses, Yan Shuo's expression remained icy cold. The dark pupils of his eyes, marked by faint crimson veins, were tightly suppressed, giving him an air of cold, calculated rationality.
Yet the raging demonic aura swirling around him subtly betrayed the turmoil within his heart.
Yan Shuo turned and walked away from the Demon Abyss, his face expressionless.
Behind him, the blood-red demon orb emitted strands of crimson demonic threads, painstakingly dragging the demon dragon’s skeletal remains back toward the Demon Palace.
Inside the Phantom Demon Hall.
Five towering pillars, forged from condensed demon souls, stood tall within the hall. Embedded within each pillar were demon orbs that glowed with a faint, eerie white light, illuminating every corner of the chamber.
At the very front of the hall sat a throne formed entirely from bones.
The five Demon Emperors who once dominated the Demon Realm had long since become nothing but skeletal remains, silently and loyally becoming part of the throne. For three centuries, their presence radiated the overwhelming pressure of top-tier demonic cultivators, suppressing any who dared harbor rebellious thoughts against the Demon Lord.
Even in the Demon Lord’s absence, the seven great Demon Generals still stood trembling beneath the throne, not daring to raise their heads. Each wore a face marked by a mixture of reverence and... fear.
At that moment, a steady, unhurried set of footsteps approached from afar. Behind the footsteps came the sharp, grating sound of bones scraping against demon crystals.
That noise drained the color from the seven Demon Generals’ faces. Without looking up, they knelt in perfect unison:
“Greetings, Demon Lord.”
Yan Shuo didn’t spare them a glance. With a wave of his hand, the dozens-of-meters-long demon dragon’s skeletal remains were drawn forward by the demonic aura to the foot of the throne. The bones were compressed inch by inch by the demonic energy, gradually shrinking until they transformed into a single, crystal-clear bone segment, which was then embedded into the throne.
He narrowed his eyes ever so slightly, as if still unsatisfied. The demonic aura around him began to stir restlessly, sweeping through the entire palace.
The seven Demon Generals trembled involuntarily as they felt the overwhelming demonic energy.
Just as they were about to lose their composure, Yan Shuo finally settled onto the gleaming bone throne, withdrawing all the demonic energy back into himself.
He toyed with the demon orb in his hand and spoke lightly, “Speak.”
Having served by Yan Shuo’s side for a century, the seven Demon Generals were well acquainted with his temperament.
No sooner had he spoken than Ye Xing, their leader, stepped forward without hesitation. Though his heart was pounding with anxiety, he reported clearly and precisely the movements within the Demon Realm over the past thirty years.
When it came to the situation at the Demon Abyss, his expression grew even more respectful.
As a Demon General, he understood better than anyone how perilous the Demon Abyss was. Even two Demon Generals acting together could barely suppress it.
And the Demon Lord...
Recalling the demon dragon’s skeletal remains he had just witnessed, Ye Xing fought back a shudder but remained focused in his report.
After Ye Xing, Ye Ting continued.
Yan Shuo listened with apparent indifference. Whether the news was good or bad, he remained silent.
But the demonic aura radiating from him never ceased to remind the Demon Generals that his mood was far from good.
When Ye Xiao finally spoke, Yan Shuo seemed to recall something. He lifted his head and cast a sharp glance downward:
“Is she still alive?”
Ye Xiao immediately realized what he was asking and quickly replied respectfully:
“Xu Wanci’s external wounds are no longer a concern; at present, there is no threat to her life.”
However, this was after all the Demon Realm, where all demonic medicines only benefited demon cultivators.
That day, after Xu Wanci fell into a deep sleep, she opened her storage pouch and found some pills to administer to her.
But her injuries were too severe; those pills only managed to heal her external wounds. As for the rest, even if she wished to help, there was simply no way.
Moreover, Xu Wanci was a cultivator, not a demon cultivator, so there was no need for her to care so devotedly for a cultivator.
She only needed to follow the Demon Lord’s words—to keep her alive was enough.
With that thought, Ye Xiao suppressed the faint discomfort in her heart and extended both hands respectfully, presenting a storage pouch before her:
“This is her storage pouch. All her magical tools and talismans are inside. Please, Demon Lord, have a look.”
Yan Shuo cast a cold glance at her.
Just one look, and the demonic energy within Ye Xiao surged uncontrollably. Her face turned pale, and though she held the storage pouch with both hands, she dared not move them.
The next moment, the storage pouch in her hands was pulled up by the Demon Orb and offered obediently before Yan Shuo.
*
On the demon bed, Xu Wanci slowly opened her eyes.
It seemed to be daytime in the Demon Realm. Although the palace remained dim, faint dark red light sources had begun to glow.
She seemed unaccustomed to the light and closed her eyes again, hiding all the surprise in them.
Before losing consciousness, her dantian and spirit sea had suffered faint cracks from overexertion. Such injuries were not much lighter than those she had sustained after the ancient battlefield.
But now…
She felt her dantian was intact. Her mind raced rapidly:
Could it be Ye Xiao?
Unlikely. With such injuries, even if Ye Xiao had kindly treated her, the effect could never have been this miraculous.
The Demon Realm could not possibly have such healing elixirs. Moreover, from her conversation with Yan Shuo that day, he would never have bothered to save her.
There were no such pills in her storage pouch either.
Xu Wanci instinctively scanned her dantian and noticed the Tianhua Ginseng and Tianling Pill inside. Her fingertips twitched ever so slightly:
Tianhua Ginseng… Could it actually heal the dantian and spirit sea like the Yin-Yang Twin Lotus?
In the original story, it only helped with breakthroughs.
She suppressed all her thoughts and slowly exhaled:
No matter what, this is a good thing.
The Demon Realm was fraught with danger for her at this moment—one wrong move could lead to ruin.
Although the spiritual energy in her dantian was limited, it was enough to protect herself in times of peril.
And her spirit sea, now fully restored…
As if recalling something, she instinctively reached to touch her waist, but before her fingers could move, she stopped herself, pinning her hand firmly in place:
She could no longer sense the presence of the Three-Leaf Lotus.
Ever since she had resonated with the Three-Leaf Lotus, she had always been able to feel its nourishment to her divine sense, even when her divine sense was severely injured.
The Three-Leaf Lotus was too important to her, causing her breath to halt for a moment.
She closed her eyes tightly and gradually controlled her breathing and heartbeat.
Not only the Three-Leaf Lotus, but the Nine Heavens Sword and her storage pouch were all gone from her side.
Xu Wanci forced herself to calm down.
In the original story, the Three-Leaf Lotus was one of the most precious treasures on the male lead Chu Qingchuan’s person. From beginning to end, no one ever discovered that the Three-Leaf Lotus could help its host break through illusions.
At most, people only noticed that it was a spiritual treasure capable of nurturing one’s divine awareness—nothing more.
Otherwise, Chu Qingchuan wouldn’t have been able to navigate the countless illusions between the Immortal and Demon realms so effortlessly.
Even when he entered the Demon Lord’s demonic domain, it was still by relying on the guidance of the Three-Leaf Lotus that he painstakingly broke through the demonic domain.
Later on, Yan Shuo never detected anything unusual about the Three-Leaf Lotus, and Xu Wanci assumed that was still the case now.
She let out a barely perceptible breath of relief.
As long as Yan Shuo didn’t notice anything amiss about the Three-Leaf Lotus, she would have confidence.
With that thought, she finally opened her eyes.
The demonic aura from the demon bed beneath her was creeping into her body strand by strand, attempting to consume her flesh and spiritual energy.
Xu Wanci paid no mind. She quietly sat up and calmly stared at her own hands.
At that moment, a gentle voice came from outside the door:
“Are you looking for them?”
Yan Shuo stood shrouded in shadows, his gaze icy yet laced with endless malice as he looked at Xu Wanci.
A terrifying, oppressive demonic aura spread bit by bit throughout the entire palace. One tendril of that aura grasped her chin, forcing her to turn her head to face the doorway.
Though restrained by him, Xu Wanci’s expression remained calm. Her eyes held neither fear nor the pain and madness of that day.
She simply looked at him quietly, but her gaze seemed to pierce through him, reaching toward the boundless horizon beyond.
Yan Shuo stared at Xu Wanci, who seemed as unaffected by pain as ever. In his pitch-black pupils, the crimson veins appeared once again.
What a troublesome expression.
It was so aggravating that it made him want to see her eyes filled with despair and sorrow.
With a flick of his fingers, a ninth-grade defensive magical artifact appeared before him.
“Looks like the Taiqing Sect treats the Immortal Venerable’s beloved quite well.”
One after another, magical artifacts from his storage pouch appeared before Xu Wanci’s eyes.
Whether they were top-tier artifacts and talismans or rare spiritual plants and elixirs that appeared once in a millennium, her gaze remained steady and unshaken.
Until the seemingly ordinary Three-Leaf Lotus appeared—nothing special except for its delicate craftsmanship.
Suddenly, Xu Wanci clenched her hands tightly. The aura around her fluctuated, causing the surrounding demonic energy to surge in instantly. Drops of blood seeped from her fingertips, falling onto the demon bed, where they were greedily absorbed without leaving a trace.
She knew this was Yan Shuo’s test.
She never intended to hide anything.
The Three-Leaf Lotus was far too important to her—so important that even if she tried to conceal it, she might slip up somehow in the process.
Moreover, only something truly precious would give her a reason to risk everything to retrieve it again.
Yan Shuo glanced at the blood on Xu Wanci’s fingertips and narrowed his eyes ever so slightly.
“So, it’s this after all.”
In that instant, all the other magical artifacts hanging in midair shattered into pieces, leaving only the unassuming fourth-grade Three-Leaf Lotus intact.
He reached out his hand, gently brushing over a leaf of the three-leaf lotus.
“A magical artifact capable of nourishing the spirit—such things are indeed rare.”
Xu Wanci watched his movements, one hand propping herself up on the demon bed, her gaze betraying a tension and worry even she hadn’t realized.
Though she had seen the scene she longed to witness, the coldness in Yan Shuo’s eyes only deepened.
With a wave of his hand, the magic on the demon bed pulled Xu Wanci before him.
He grasped her chin with one hand, the crimson patterns in his eyes growing ever more distinct.
When he saw that Xu Wanci’s eyes reflected nothing but his own image, his hand traced along her jaw, slowly enclosing her neck, a cruel smile curling at the corners of his lips.
“Tell me, do you think a fourth-grade magical artifact can withstand a single strike from me?”
Seeing her pupils shrink slightly, he chuckled softly and continued,
“Or do you believe that the artifact he forged could resist the corrosive power of the Phoenix Immortal Water?”
Phoenix Immortal Water—capable of burning away everything in the world.
Immortal-grade artifacts, tribulation-crossing corpses, even divine relics born from the heavens.
Xu Wanci’s gaze landed on the pitch-black demon vial that appeared beside Yan Shuo. Abruptly, she gripped his wrist with both hands.
She spoke each word deliberately:
“Demon Lord, what must you do to return the three-leaf lotus to me?”
The demonic energy surged wildly along her arms, burrowing into her flesh and blood. Yet her expression remained unchanged, stubbornly fixed on Yan Shuo, awaiting his answer.
Yan Shuo stared at Xu Wanci’s reckless determination over a mere artifact. The crimson patterns in his eyes deepened, as if they could devour everything around them.
Very well. Let him see just how far she would go for the artifact forged by Xiao Yuyan.
With a wave of his hand, a pitch-black demonic abyss suddenly materialized before Xu Wanci. The pressure of top-tier demonic beasts emanated from the abyss, an overwhelming threat enough to scare away most demon generals.
Yet Xu Wanci was nothing more than a severely wounded Nascent Soul cultivator, utterly incapable of harnessing spiritual energy.
To enter was certain death.
He gently brushed her cheek, his gaze resting on her face, now nearly pale from the ravages of the demonic energy. Softly, he said, “If you come out alive, I will return it to you. How does that sound?”
There was no pleading, no bargaining. She didn’t even ask if he was telling the truth.
The moment his words fell, Xu Wanci turned without hesitation, stepping forward to let herself be swallowed by the abyss.
Within the chaos, Xiao Yuyan took a step forward the very instant Xu Wanci turned.
He listened to the strange heartbeat in his chest, a faint, almost imperceptible trace of confusion flickering in his usually indifferent eyes.
The surrounding void seemed to sense something, swirling chaotically. The once pale blue gradually deepened and spread.
Within the Demon Realm.
Yan Shuo watched Xu Wanci’s perilous journey through the demonic energy, his gaze growing colder by the moment.
He utterly failed to understand what so-called love was.
Love?
But seeing Xu Wanci covered in wounds yet not retreating an inch, an unprecedented fury surged within Yan Shuo. His surrounding demonic aura stirred violently, and the nearby palace instantly turned to ashes.
Willing to die for a three-leaf lotus?
It was just a magical artifact!
An artifact he himself had forged!
Yan Shuo clenched his fists tightly, his eyes stained with crimson veins:
Xiao Yuyan.
Who did he think he was?
How could it be that even after a hundred years of death, there was still someone willing to risk everything for one of his artifacts?
His gaze pierced through the abyss, fixed unwaveringly on Xu Wanci.
It went without saying that the supreme demon lurking in the abyss was terrifying enough, but even the demonic aura within was enough to overwhelm Xu Wanci.
Yet she had long since grown accustomed to this kind of danger. The more perilous it was, the calmer she became.
Facing countless demonic blades hidden within the aura, she carefully conserved her spiritual energy, trying to survive with the bare minimum.
Though difficult, there was still a faint glimmer of hope.
As she struggled forward in a sorry state, she suddenly sensed an overwhelming threat emanating from the earth beneath her. She exhausted all her spiritual energy to barely fend off a tentacle before her.
But for the attack behind her, she no longer had a shred of strength to resist.
In the chaos, Xiao Yuyan’s hand moved imperceptibly, a faint power of the heavens gathering at his fingertips.
He, who had always let all things grow and perish as they would, for the first time harbored a desire to keep someone alive.
Within the demon realm, watching Xu Wanci remain calm even on the brink of death, Yan Shuo’s face darkened to an extreme:
Want to die?
How could he possibly allow her to die so easily?
Suddenly appearing in the demon abyss, with a wave of his hand, countless supreme demons that terrified all demonic cultivators were instantly obliterated, leaving not even a bone behind.
It was just a magical artifact—he could give her a hundred, a thousand of them!
If he wished, he could grant her all the treasures in this world!
She simply hadn’t seen anything better yet.
Once she did, she would, like everyone else, discard that useless artifact without hesitation!
He used his demonic aura to pull Xu Wanci before him, gripping her wrist tightly and dragging her straight into the demon realm’s treasure vault.
Inside the vault lay countless supreme treasures.
Top-tier demonic relics, the bones of ancient divine beasts, divine-grade artifacts, immortal-grade spiritual plants, even treasures comparable to the Nameless Divine Stone.
Obtaining just one could easily break through bottlenecks and become someone admired by all.
This place was the dream of every cultivator in both the immortal and demon realms.
Yan Shuo released Xu Wanci’s wrist and looked down at her battered form. He crouched, his voice filled with coaxing warmth:
“You wanted magical artifacts, didn’t you?”
Gently brushing the dirt from her cheek, he forced her to look around at all the treasures, his voice tender as if speaking to his beloved:
“All the artifacts here are yours to choose from. How about that?”
Xu Wanci coughed lightly, blood trickling from the corner of her lips.
Her voice was barely a whisper:
“Can you return the three-leaf lotus to me?”
