NOVPUB“This place is creepy. Why didn’t I feel this way last time…?”
Mu Zhi’an looked around, a chill running down his spine as he rubbed his arms.
This was the Celestial Realm where the Primordial Demon Emperor had been sealed. Last time, with Yao Meng’s presence, it hadn’t felt so eerie. But now, with the Primordial Demon Emperor gone, and Yao Meng not here, the place felt sinister.
Mu Zhi’an calmed himself down and walked deeper into the hall.
The hall was vast and empty. The vines that had once bound the Primordial Demon Emperor were now withered and dry.
He felt a slight discomfort.
Demonic Qi!
The entire hall was filled with the Primordial Demon Emperor’s Demonic Qi!
Most cultivators couldn’t survive in the Demon Realm because they couldn’t absorb Demonic Qi into their Vessels.
As expected of the former ruler of the Demon Realm, even after his death, his Demonic Qi was still so potent.
Mu Zhi’an scanned the hall with his Spiritual Sense, but he couldn’t find the Primordial Demon Emperor’s storage ring.
An ordinary cultivator would have given up, but he possessed a pseudo-Innate Spiritual Body. Although it wasn’t as powerful as Ye Lingxuan’s, it was still useful in this situation.
Mu Zhi’an persisted, closing his eyes and focusing, sensing the Demonic Qi around him.
To his surprise, the Demonic Qi, which was normally harmful to cultivators, felt like ordinary Spiritual Energy to him, easily absorbed into his Innate Celestial Furnace.
And amidst the dense Demonic Qi, he finally sensed something different.
He slowly opened his eyes and walked out of the hall.
Two statues stood on either side of the hall, and beside one of them lay a withered purple flower.
Mu Zhi’an infused a wisp of Spiritual Energy into the flower, and it bloomed, a surge of Demonic Qi erupting from it as it transformed into a purple ring.
The Primordial Demon Emperor’s storage ring… left so openly beside a statue. If it weren’t for his pseudo-Innate Spiritual Body, who would have noticed it?
“I hope you don’t disappoint me. I wasted precious time with Ruoxi for this…”
Mu Zhi’an put away the storage ring and left the ancient hall.
In a pavilion above, the maid looked at him and said softly, “He’s coming out.”
Empress Luo Tan’s gaze fell upon Mu Zhi’an, who had just emerged from the Celestial Realm. Her beautiful eyes were clear and bright, her hair swaying gently in the wind, her long legs, clad in black stockings, faintly visible beneath her white dress with gold embroidery.
Although she was breathtakingly beautiful, her eyes held an air of authority that made it difficult to look directly at her.
“Should we invite him to see you tomorrow, Your Majesty?” the maid asked.
Luo Tan pondered for a moment. “The Ascension Ceremony begins the day after tomorrow, and the disciples participating in the Martial Realm trial will return tomorrow… Tomorrow will be too late. Invite him tonight.”
…
Garden of Heavenly Harmony.
Mu Zhi’an returned to his residence and went straight to his room.
He took out the storage ring he had just obtained from the Pilgrimage Palace.
“I hope the Primordial Demon Emperor isn’t too poor… The Ascension Ceremony is approaching. If I can obtain some power from this ring, I might be able to protect my ‘virtue’… If I can’t open it, I’ll have to ask Mengrou to wear her stockings and comfort me tonight.”
Mu Zhi’an muttered to himself, putting the deep purple ring on his finger.
Then, he infused a wisp of Spiritual Energy into it.
Whoosh!
A bright light erupted from the ring, and Mu Zhi’an felt a surge of Demonic Qi wash over him. Ancient characters flooded his mind, making him dizzy for a moment.
Then, the scene before him changed. The sky was ablaze, and beneath the burning heavens, a phoenix engulfed in black flames screeched. The ancient characters in his mind became clear.
He instantly understood their meaning.
“The Heavenly Phoenix Manual.”
This must be the Primordial Demon Emperor’s… first-grade cultivation technique!
Is there nothing else in this ring?
Mu Zhi’an scanned the ring with his Spiritual Sense, but unfortunately, it only contained this technique. Nothing else.
“The Primordial Demon Emperor is much poorer than I imagined…” Mu Zhi’an complained inwardly.
Besides a first-grade demonic cultivation technique, there were no pills or other treasures.
It made sense. The Primordial Demon Emperor had been sealed in the Pilgrimage Palace for so long. Even if he had many pills initially, their potency would have faded after a hundred years.
As for Imperial-Grade Medicinal Herbs, most of them couldn’t be stored in a storage ring and required special environments to survive.
The Primordial Demon Emperor probably hadn’t expected to be sealed away for so long when he attacked the Eastern Realm.
Mu Zhi’an closed his eyes and examined the description of the Heavenly Phoenix Manual, gaining a new understanding of the Primordial Demon Emperor.
In a way, the Heavenly Phoenix Manual was similar to the Heavenly Phoenix Fruit juice he had… tasted on Yao Meng earlier.
The Heavenly Phoenix Manual allowed the cultivator to burn their Vessel and be reborn from the ashes when their Spiritual Energy was depleted. Cultivating it to the peak granted up to nine rebirths! And if one consumed the Heavenly Phoenix Fruit, the technique could even evolve further.
No wonder the Primordial Demon Emperor had chosen the Jade Pool Holy Land as his first target when he attacked the Eastern Realm… One of his goals must have been the Heavenly Phoenix Fruit.
However, he probably hadn’t expected the Jade Pool’s Holy Maiden to cultivate a sealing technique. The Pure World Azure Lotus was unstoppable at the same level, a true game-breaker.
Mu Zhi’an collected his thoughts and concealed the ring’s light.
“I can cultivate this Heavenly Phoenix Manual, but I can’t reveal it yet… Although it’s a demonic cultivation technique, it can still enhance my strength.”
Besides the Demon Realm Empress, who had a natural advantage due to her race, only Yao Meng possessed the ability to counter the Heavenly Phoenix Manual.
“If I master the Heavenly Phoenix Manual, the only one I’ll have to worry about is the Demon Realm Empress.”
The Demon Realm Empress’s true form was a giant python that could devour everything. The Heavenly Phoenix Manual allowed one to burn their Vessel and instantly replenish their Spiritual Energy, but the Demon Realm Empress could devour their essence while they were weakened.
This would render the Heavenly Phoenix Manual useless.
As for Yao Meng’s Pure World Azure Lotus… Mu Zhi’an wasn’t afraid.
Although she could counter the Heavenly Phoenix Manual, she couldn’t counter him.
If he wanted to, he could suppress her tonight.
Of course, he might need both hands. One wouldn’t be enough.
After all, her… assets were quite substantial.
Thinking of the fairy’s alluring demeanor in bed, Mu Zhi’an felt a surge of desire, almost wanting to find her and cultivate the Eight Chaos Dream Scroll right now.
However, the Ascension Ceremony was approaching. He needed to focus on improving his strength.
Mu Zhi’an put away the storage ring containing the Heavenly Phoenix Manual and was about to go to Bai Ruoxi’s room to cultivate when a knock came from the door. Then, Wei Mengrou’s cold and calm voice echoed from outside.
“There’s a letter for you.”
A letter for me…? Why didn’t they just come and see me…? Mu Zhi’an said, “Come in, Mengrou.” 𝔫𝖔𝖛𝖕𝔲𝔟.𝔠𝖔𝖒
…
Inside the room, candlelight flickered as Mu Zhi’an took the letter from Wei Mengrou and glanced at its contents.
It was an invitation from the Empress of Yu State’s maid.
The Empress’s name seemed to be Luo Tan…? And she was a Heaven-Grade Alchemist…
Mu Zhi’an recalled the beautiful woman in the white dress he had seen earlier, then he carefully read the invitation.
A thoughtful expression appeared on his face. Noticing Wei Mengrou’s gaze, he turned to look at her. “It’s an invitation from Yu State.”
Wei Mengrou glanced at him. “They shouldn’t know about your Innate Celestial Furnace. Why would they invite you?”
Dao Integration experts had seen countless geniuses throughout their long lives. Besides prodigies like Ye Lingxuan and Bai Ruoxi, most ‘geniuses’ wouldn’t catch their attention.
Yet, she had sent her maid to deliver a letter to Mu Zhi’an… It was strange.
Whether it was because of the Primordial Witch’s influence or something else, Wei Mengrou’s gaze lingered on his face, a strange longing appearing in her usually cold eyes.
She quickly snapped out of it, shaking her head to dispel her thoughts. “Are you going?” she asked coldly.
Mu Zhi’an put away the invitation and smiled. “Since they’ve invited me, of course I’ll go. There’s going to be an alchemy competition, and I’m quite interested in the prize… Perhaps I can even bribe the judge.”
Even the formations in the Garden of Heavenly Harmony couldn’t completely conceal the demonic aura from Bai Ruoxi’s future Nascent Soul tribulation. However, with the Soul Condensing Pill, it wouldn’t be a problem.
And if she obtained the pill, her chances of safely reaching the Nascent Soul Realm would be over 90%.
“Do you really think they’ll give you the prize just because you visit them?” Wei Mengrou raised an eyebrow.
“Of course not. They’ll follow the rules.”
Mu Zhi’an paused, glancing at her smooth, jade-like legs. “But… there’s always a way,” he said, his voice trailing off.
In the past, even when he was alone with Wei Mengrou, he wouldn’t have any inappropriate thoughts. However, after her bold move that day, he had gradually awakened some… hidden desires.
And after their kiss earlier, he couldn’t help but have some… bold ideas.
Wei Mengrou seemed to sense his gaze. She pursed her lips, then raised an eyebrow, a look of disdain in her eyes. “Don’t you have anything better to do than think about such things all day? If you had focused on your cultivation, you would have reached the sixth-grade Core Formation Realm by now.”
“I’ve been cultivating diligently ever since leaving Tianxuan City… These thoughts are… force majeure,” Mu Zhi’an said helplessly, spreading his hands.
Wei Mengrou glared at him. “What ‘force majeure’?”
“Because you’re here, it’s force majeure,” Mu Zhi’an said with a smile.
“You have that kind of effect on me, Mengrou.”
His words, although simply expressing his desire, sounded poetic and romantic, even tugging at her heartstrings. Even Wei Mengrou was momentarily speechless.
Although he was being sincere.
Among the girls in his ‘fish pond’, Wei Mengrou’s legs were the most beautiful, their skin the fairest. He had confirmed this during their earlier… encounter.
Seeing her silence, Mu Zhi’an was about to speak when a disciple’s voice suddenly came from the jade slip on Wei Mengrou’s waist. “Junior Sister Wei, Master wants you to collect your resources and pills for the next half month.”
It was a communication jade slip from Metamorphic Jewel Peak. Since she had awakened an Artifact Spirit, they could communicate through it as long as they weren’t too far apart. The disciple who had spoken must be outside the Garden of Heavenly Harmony.
But Wei Mengrou had just collected her resources and pills a few days ago. It wasn’t time yet. Why were they giving her more?
“Metamorphic Jewel Peak really values you, Mengrou. As expected of a genius,” Mu Zhi’an said teasingly through voice transmission.
Noticing his playful tone and his gaze lingering on her body, Wei Mengrou glared at him disdainfully.
Then, as if thinking of something amusing, a playful smile curved her lips, and she replied softly, “I have some matters to attend to. Tell Master I’ll go to Metamorphic Jewel Peak later.”
The disciple outside was stunned. “Do you need any help?”
“No, thank you.”
Wei Mengrou smiled faintly, glancing at her teasing young master. She slowly moved her hand up her smooth, fair leg, her finger gently hooking the hem of her skirt.
Sensing his heated gaze, Wei Mengrou, or rather, the maid influenced by the Primordial Witch, smiled mischievously, lifting her skirt slightly, her eyes seductive.
“It’s just a matter of dealing with a worm. It won’t take long.”
“What do you think, Master?”
