Chapter - 28
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The sudden shift in atmosphere left both Lu Xiang and Sheng Jue stunned. Only Bai Rong, reacting on pure instinct, launched himself forward like a bolt of lightning, clutched Lu Xiang tightly, and leapt straight into the cave.
Meng Wan missed his lunge, and just as he turned toward Sheng Jue, the latter had already snapped out of his daze and bolted into the cave at full speed.
The moment Sheng Jue stepped inside, there was a deafening boom from behind.
Spinning around, Sheng Jue saw that Meng Wan had been slammed back by a glowing barrier at the cave entrance—a formation activated by the talisman Bai Rong had stuck onto the stone wall earlier.
They had originally thought the spirit talismans were just for protecting Qiao Han during his Foundation Establishment breakthrough. Turns out, they could enter and exit freely, but Meng Wan was completely shut out.
Now, staring at Meng Wan, his blood-red eyes glinting with madness, black demonic energy coiling and mending his wounds at terrifying speed.
They were still greenhorns in the cultivation world and had never seen someone truly succumb to demonic energy and fully transform into a demonic cultivator. But even they knew the textbook signs.
“D-…Demonic cultivator?!” Lu Xiang’s voice trembled as she collapsed into Bai Rong’s arms.
“He was totally normal just a while ago! How did he turn into that?!”
Even if she’d been their strongest fighter until now, she was terrified. No matter how much Meng Wan had failed her, he was someone she’d known since childhood. Watching him become a monster chilled her to the bone.
Sheng Jue was frozen in disbelief. He noticed Meng Wan lurking near the cave mouth, scanning it warily, seemingly probing for a weakness. Unable to breach the barrier—for now—Sheng Jue turned to Bai Rong.
“Bai Rong… what’s going on? You… knew something was wrong with him even before he acted. And these talismans—were you… Were you prepared for this?”
Bai Rong blinked blankly, then whispered, “I… I don’t know. It was Young Master Qiao…”
He pointed toward the innermost part of the cave, where Qiao Han sat, deep in meditation.
Right now, Qiao Han’s body was wrapped in a soft green glow. The light grew steadily stronger.
It was clear—he was at a critical stage of his breakthrough.
They couldn’t afford to disturb him.
All they could do was stay alert, keep watch on the possessed Meng Wan at the cave entrance… and listen as Bai Rong began explaining what little he knew.
Earlier, when Bai Rong was watching over Qiao Han, the young man had already warned him about a few things.
Qiao Han had told him directly that he sensed the presence of demonic energy nearby and was worried something unexpected might happen. Although Bai Rong had found it hard to believe, Qiao Han had spoken with uncharacteristic seriousness, instructing him to set up talisman seals at the cave entrance.
If anything seemed off, he was to gather everyone and retreat inside—the spirit talismans would block anyone tainted by demonic energy from entering.
Qiao Han had emphasized one thing repeatedly: Lu Xiang must be protected at all costs. As the daughter of the Yuxu Sect’s sect master, if the demonic faction targeted her, they could use her to endanger the entire cultivation world.
He’d repeated his instructions again and again. Even if Bai Rong hadn’t completely believed it at the time, he still obediently followed through.
Besides, being a spirit beast, Bai Rong was naturally more sensitive to dark or corrupted energies. That’s why, when Meng Wan showed up just now, Bai Rong had immediately picked up on the danger.
Sheng Jue was shaken. “How could someone at the Qi Refining stage sense demonic energy like that? That shouldn't be possible—unless it’s like earlier, when it’s clearly visible.”
“Maybe because he was on the verge of a breakthrough?” Bai Rong could only offer the best explanation he had.
Sheng Jue nodded slowly. “Then we’re really lucky Qiao Han chose to advance to Foundation Establishment at this time.”
As they spoke, Meng Wan had already begun attacking the barrier.
With a deafening boom, the entire cave trembled. Loose rocks rained down from the ceiling, and the glowing curtain at the entrance flickered, on the verge of collapsing.
“Meng Wan! Meng Wan, snap out of it!” Lu Xiang still couldn’t fully believe it. She called out to Meng Wan through the barrier, as if hoping her voice could bring back a shred of consciousness.
But Meng Wan only paused briefly, then turned toward her with a twisted smirk. His tone was laced with venom.
“Xiang… You were the one who told me to get lost, weren’t you? If you hadn’t… maybe I wouldn’t have been lured in by demonic energy. Maybe I wouldn’t have become this.”
The look in his eyes, the expression on his face—it was still Meng Wan’s face, but not his anymore.
And that finally broke Lu Xiang. Covering her mouth with trembling hands, she burst into tears.
“No… I didn’t know… Meng Wan, please come back! Let’s just pass the trial together… We’ll become inner sect disciples of Yuxu Sect, just like we planned.”
Lu Xiang thought this was her fault. That by pushing Meng Wan away, she had forced him to venture off alone and fall into danger, leading to his corruption. Her guilt consumed her.
Sheng Jue quickly stepped in.
“Lu Xiang, don’t listen to his nonsense. Demonic energy is formless by nature—it only takes root in those with weak Dao hearts. Even if he’d stayed with us, it wouldn’t have made any difference.”
Bai Rong nodded in agreement and gently pulled Lu Xiang farther away from the cave entrance.
“You… all of you just love making my life miserable… you all deserve to die!” Meng Wan’s tone turned violent once more.
Then, without warning, he broke into manic laughter. “Do you really think hiding in there will keep you safe?”
As the words left his mouth, the entire world trembled.
The three inside the cave stumbled and fell, struggling to stay upright. But their eyes widened in horror at what they saw behind Meng Wan.
The skies had changed.
The Qinglian Realm was suddenly swept up in a sinister wave of demonic power. Ominous black clouds churned in the sky like a plague, thunder clapped in the distance, and lightning split the heavens apart with a deafening roar. The world itself seemed to groan beneath the weight of something ancient, something catastrophic.
Even nestled inside a relatively safe cave, the sheer pressure made their hearts pound with fear.
“What the hell is going on?!” Lu Xiang’s voice trembled.
Sheng Jue immediately pulled out his jade token. “Something’s wrong. You two—crush your tokens and report this to the outside. I’ll stay and wait for Qiao Han to finish his breakthrough. If it gets worse, I’ll crush his token too.”
But the moment the jade token was in his hand, Sheng Jue’s face paled.
There wasn’t a shred of spiritual energy in it.
His expression twisted in shock. “You two, check yours!”
They did. No matter which sect the token came from, they were all… dead. No reaction.
They couldn’t leave.
Outside the cave, Meng Wan stood calmly, as if savoring their panic. Demonic energy surged from the earth, swirling around him, and he breathed it in hungrily.
His body began to change.
It no longer resembled a human. Skin twisted into grotesque ridges, eyes burned with a crimson gleam, and his form grew monstrous by the second.
Suddenly, he lashed out.
The cave shook violently. Cracks spidered across the protective barrier like shattered glass.
The three inside all went pale. That single strike—Meng Wan’s power had at least jumped to the Golden Core stage. He was now at least twice as strong as before.
And Meng Wan, drunk on his newfound power, wore a crazed, delighted grin. He pointed at Lu Xiang and laughed. “Once I get my hands on you, I’ll go looking for Xiao Jiuci. Let’s see if that man of yours is really as strong as you say!”
This was the first time the three had witnessed what it truly meant to fall to demonic cultivation—how it could twist even a weak-willed cultivator into a force of nature.
One more casual strike.
The protective screen at the cave mouth shattered into sparkling fragments, vanishing in the blink of an eye. As Meng Wan stepped inside, Lu Xiang and Sheng Jue had no choice but to stand and fight.
But their long-range spells? They barely rustled his hair, let alone injured him. At most, they tore his already ragged robes.
The staggering disparity in power nearly drove Sheng Jue to instant despair. And yet Lu Xiang clenched her teeth and kept going, pulling out artifact after artifact in a desperate attempt to hold her ground.
But after all, she was still in the Qi Refining stage. With just one lazy strike from Meng Wan, she was smashed against the cave wall, blood gushing from her lips.
At that moment, Bai Rong shouted, “Qiao Han said—if we can’t win, get into the formation. Stall him. He’ll handle the rest once he wakes up!”
Qiao Han wasn’t a combat cultivator. Even if he did break through to Foundation Establishment, he shouldn’t stand a chance against someone like Meng Wan. Normally, no one would believe such nonsense.
But after everything they’d been through, after all the impossible things Qiao Han had somehow pulled off… they couldn’t help but believe in him.
Still, the only functioning formation in the cave was the one Lu Xiang had set up earlier to guard Qiao Han while he cultivated. Right now, he was meditating at its center. The formation was indeed stronger than the protective barrier outside, but barging in posed its own risk.
“If we go in now,” Sheng Jue said grimly, “we might disrupt his breakthrough. It could all go to waste.”
“I’m not sacrificing someone else just to save my own life!” Lu Xiang snapped, blood still on her lips.
Bai Rong panicked. “But this is exactly what Qiao Han said! He told me he’d be fine—he made me promise to keep you all safe!”
The two looked at each other, hesitation plain on their faces. But with Meng Wan bearing down on them like a storm, they had no choice.
They rushed into the formation.
Immediately, Qiao Han’s brows twitched in his meditative state. His glow of wood-element spiritual energy flickered violently—clearly, their presence had disturbed him.
Still, thanks to the array’s power, Meng Wan couldn’t touch them right away. He roared in frustration and began to hammer at the formation, each blow shaking the very ground.
Inside, the three of them poured their spiritual energy into the array to keep it reinforced. As they drained themselves, they popped pills to recover and pushed their limits.
Thankfully, Bai Rong had a stash of high-grade Qingyun Sect pills Qiao Han had given him. Lu Xiang, being from Yuxu Sect, wasn’t short on supplies either.
So they held on—barely.
Eventually, Sheng Jue began to cough up blood. Still, he didn’t remove his hand from the formation’s node. The other two were also starting to falter.
Outside, Meng Wan seemed to lose patience. He began condensing demonic energy in his hands, compressing it into a pulsing orb of violent darkness. The pressure alone made the trio inside the array break into a cold sweat.
Then—Boom!
The formation exploded into thousands of glowing shards. The shockwave sent all three of them flying, their bodies broken, blood spraying in the air.
Meng Wan’s eyes gleamed with frenzied excitement. He lunged forward, straight toward the unconscious Lu Xiang.
Just as Meng Wan’s hands were about to hold Lu Xiang by her neck—
A sudden wave of spiritual energy erupted from within the cave. In an instant, dense wood-element aura surged through the space, like a spring bursting from the earth.
The power was so rich and restorative, it seemed to heal the air itself. The three who had been injured and half-unconscious stirred awake as if jolted by a divine spark.
Meng Wan hadn’t even processed what was happening when a giant leaf came out of nowhere and slapped him in the face.
He wasn’t truly afraid of it, but instinct made him dodge.
As he staggered back two steps, dozens of vines burst from the ground, twisting up his legs, trying to bind him in place. He roared and tore them apart with ease, but the very next moment—
A storm of razor-sharp leaf blades sliced through the air toward him. Though they lacked the bite to deal real damage, they were an endless nuisance, swarming in every direction. He had no choice but to release a blast of demonic energy, sweeping them all aside.
By the time the whirlwind settled and the dust cleared—
The cave was empty.
Not a single soul remained.
Meng Wan spun around violently and bolted toward the cave entrance.
Soon enough, he caught sight of four silhouettes fleeing in the distance.
His palm struck forward, unleashing a terrifying wave of demonic energy that surged toward them like a tidal wave.
But just then, a slender figure dressed in bamboo-green robes abruptly stopped, and without hesitation, turned to take the brunt of the attack straight to the abdomen.
Meng Wan, still nursing his grudge against Qiao Han, poured every ounce of hatred into that strike—he was determined to snap that boy in half.
Yet the moment their powers clashed, a blast of bone-deep cold, like it had come from the bottom of a ten-thousand-year glacial abyss, exploded outward.
Not only did it instantly neutralize Meng Wan’s attack, but that frigid force was so fierce that Meng Wan flinched back in fear, involuntarily pulling his hand away.
“Brother Xiao, you’re amazing as always.”
Meng Wan’s head jerked up—only to see Qiao Han, a smug grin twitching on his lips, one hand patting the Mo Yin Belt around his waist.
His expression was proud yet slightly twisted with pain. That earlier blow had been absorbed, yes—but the sheer impact had still left his body aching all over.
Still, the boy smiled defiantly.
“You think a weakling like you could threaten him? Yeah right. I’d never let that happen.”
As he spoke, Qiao Han whipped out his White Cloud Fan.
Earlier, the Qinglian Realm had limited the strength of offensive artifacts, but now that a true demon cultivator had appeared, the realm was clearly damaged. The restrictions? Gone.
With the power of a Foundation Establishment artifact, the White Cloud Fan could finally unleash its full might. While it wasn't strong enough to defeat the enemy outright, sending the opponent flying a hundred mile away to buy his team time to escape—that was entirely within reach.
After all, he knew the male lead had definitely arrived with backup by now. As long as he could protect Lu Xiang until then, everything would be fine.
The three people ahead didn’t abandon Qiao Han. They immediately halted and tried to come up with a plan.
Qiao Han raised the White Cloud Fan, ready to strike at Meng Wan—when suddenly, a tornado dropped from the sky, like a dragon formed from pure wind. It swallowed Meng Wan whole and smashed him into the ground with an explosive boom.
A massive crater opened in the earth. The surrounding vegetation was swept away almost entirely.
Qiao Han’s eyes widened in shock. He looked up and saw Lu Zhui’s figure appear abruptly, descending straight toward them.
“Brother!” Lu Xiang cried out in surprise from behind.
At that moment, Lu Zhui’s expression was stern—completely devoid of his usual carefree and lazy attitude. As he neared the ground, Meng Wan had already leapt up, and the two began to clash in an instant.
Although Lu Zhui was shocked to see that the opponent was Meng Wan, his expression only grew more solemn, and his strikes didn’t hold back in the slightest.
The Cloudwind Sword carried with it sharp, cutting winds, transforming into countless wind blades that sliced away Meng Wan’s demonic energy layer by layer.
Meng Wan seemed to realize he couldn’t match Lu Zhui. He turned to flee but they were deep in the forest. The moment he stepped on a tree, it seemed to come alive. Branches lashed out, binding him tightly.
Though it only held him for a moment, it was enough to give Lu Zhui the opening he needed. A flash of white light—everything froze on the tree.
The Cloudwind Sword pierced through Meng Wan’s body, pinning him to the trunk. Immense spiritual power surged forth, dispersing the last traces of demonic energy within him.
In that instant, Meng Wan seemed to regain clarity. He stared blankly at Lu Zhui, fear gradually overtaking his face—then, in the next breath, his head slumped forward.
Lu Xiang, who had just rushed over, saw this and suddenly covered her mouth. “Brother…”
Lu Zhui’s face was grim as he withdrew his sword, reaching out with one arm to hold his weeping sister close.
A person tainted by demonic energy could still be saved but once one had completely fallen and become a demonic cultivator, there was only one rule in the cultivation world: all demons must be slain.
By nature, Lu Zhui wasn’t the type who believed that being linked to demons meant one had to die. But if the person acted with malicious intent, harmed others, or posed a threat—then they had to be eliminated. There was no choice.
To Lu Zhui and Lu Xiang, killing Meng Wan was a painful act.
But for Qiao Han, it was finally a moment of relief.
The plot had changed.
In the original story, it was only mentioned that a disciple corrupted by demonic energy was lurking near Lu Xiang, waiting for a chance to act. In the end, he not only held Lu Xiang hostage, but also released the long-dormant Gray Demon Crocodile, a high-tier Earth-ranked demon beast.
The beast rampaged through Qinglian Realm, shattering the defensive formations set up by both sects. This forced Xiao Jiuci and the others to forcibly break in and rescue the trapped disciples.
A creature of that level wasn’t something Xiao Jiuci could defeat even if he risked his life. He never intended to fight it directly—only to delay it and extract the others.
The plan was to evacuate everyone, seal the Qinglian Realm, and wait for senior elders from all sects to arrive and reseal the Gray Demon Crocodile together. That was the wise move.
Unfortunately, in the original story, Lu Xiang was captured and thrown toward the Gray Demon Crocodile by the corrupted disciple. In order to save her before she was devoured, Xiao Jiuci was forced to push himself past his limits to rescue her alone.
Originally, a so-called “number one cultivator of the younger generation” wasn’t worth the attention of the Demon Realm. In their eyes, the cultivation world was full of self-aggrandizing nonsense—endless empty titles and flashy names.
They only paid attention to those at or above the Nascent Soul stage. No matter how famous or talented Xiao Jiuci was, the Demon Realm would not care.
But this time, a Foundation Establishment cultivator had actually managed to snatch someone from the jaws of the Gray Demon Crocodile, land a heavy blow, provoke its fury—and still retreat unscathed. That definitely caught the attention of the Demon Realm.
Qiao Han couldn’t guarantee that all the future disasters would stem from this, but he was absolutely sure this was the fuse. If they hadn’t attracted attention, they wouldn’t have been so aggressively targeted later on.
But now, Lu Xiang was safe, the demonic cultivator had already been killed in advance, and everything would unfold according to the male lead’s original plan—save people, evacuate, seal the realm. No drama, no twists, just a plain, uneventful resolution.
Qiao Han finally exhaled. The tension drained from his body all at once. Having just broken through to Foundation Establishment and then immediately pushed his wood-element spiritual power to the limit while assisting in battle—he had clearly gone past his threshold.
He’d originally been standing on a branch he'd controlled, but now his whole body gave out and he collapsed.
If Sheng Jue and Bai Rong hadn’t caught him, he’d have eaten dirt face-first.
Lu Zhui descended as well, still carrying Lu Xiang in his arms. “Are you alright?”
Qiao Han managed a weak smile. “Where’s Brother Xiao?”
Lu Zhui gave a helpless smile, his expression shifting back into that familiar, unreliable rogue persona.
“He’s holding back the demon beast so everyone else can escape. Don’t blame him for not coming to get you. Once he sensed where you were, he pointed me in your direction. I came specifically to pick you guys up.”
Qiao Han rolled his eyes. “Like I’d blame him. Come on, let’s move. This place isn’t safe. Time to scram.”
When it came to saving his own hide, Qiao Han was very proactive—he had no intention of being the guy who dragged the whole party down.
Lu Zhui didn’t waste time either. He summoned a flying artifact and gathered everyone aboard, flying straight toward the exit of Qinglian Realm.
The journey was long, and it would take some time to reach the exit. As they passed through different areas, everyone on the flying artifact was left in shock.
The once-lush green mountains and crystal-clear waters of Qinglian Realm were now shrouded in a thick layer of dark mist. Even the spirit beasts were fleeing in panic—it was like the end of the world had come.
“Why is this happening? Wasn’t Qinglian Realm supposed to be the safest of all trial realms? How could it be so saturated with demonic energy?” Sheng Jue was completely shaken.
“Brother, is Brother Xiao fighting that demon beast right now? Is it… is it a really powerful one?” Lu Xiang asked anxiously.
Lu Zhui gave a quick explanation, though what he said wasn’t entirely accurate. The only person here who knew the full truth… was Qiao Han. But unfortunately, he couldn’t speak up.
The Demon Realm was indeed sealed within the Sea of Cangming, but that seal had never been airtight. Demonic energy still leaked through—especially in places like trial realms. These realms existed independently from the main cultivation world and were far more susceptible to invasion.
While such events had happened a few times before, the cultivation world never took it seriously. It wasn’t until much later—after a massive assault—that people finally realized: trial realms were the true backdoors to the Demon Realm.
As for Qinglian Realm this time, the demonic incursion wasn’t random. The Demon Realm had caught wind of the joint recruitment trials being held by the two great sects. In high spirits and ever fond of sabotage, they flooded Qinglian Realm with demonic energy.
Their goal? Choose a weak-willed participant, infect them, and turn them. Once a low-cultivation target succumbed, even if some of their original personality remained, they were basically a puppet of the Demon Realm.
Qiao Han figured that in Meng Wan’s mind, Lu Xiang was important.
That’s probably why he had specifically chosen to target her—and why he’d obeyed the command to break the seal on Qinglian Realm’s strongest demonic beast, unleashing it to ravage the realm, destroy the formations, and turn the whole trial zone into a cage for mass slaughter—a killing field for the next generation of cultivators.
Thank heavens the male lead had stepped in when he did. Otherwise, none of the new disciples trapped inside would've made it out alive.
As Qiao Han was thinking this, he suddenly felt someone scoot behind him. He turned his head, and sure enough, there was Bai Rong, trying to hide behind his back.
Honestly, when Qiao Han had asked Bai Rong for help, it had been a gamble. Lu Xiang was stubborn and wouldn’t trust him easily, but Bai Rong? Easy to fool, and as a member of the spirit beast clan, he could never be the hidden demonic cultivator from the original novel.
The original setting worked in his favor this time. Thank god he had believed in this little bunny just enough to stall until he could break through.
Now, seeing the bunny look so frightened, Qiao Han blinked and followed his gaze, only to spot Lu Zhui watching them with a very leisurely smile.
Qiao Han’s heart skipped a beat. Wait… did Lu Zhui figure something out? That couldn’t be. In the original, wasn’t Bai Rong supposed to be undercover for quite a while?
He didn’t let the silence linger. “Brother Lu, why are you looking over here?” Qiao Han asked with a straight face.
Lu Xiang, noticing her brother staring at Bai Rong, instantly remembered how the he had saved her and quickly repeated the story.
Lu Zhui chuckled, full of sunshine. “I know. I saw the whole thing from the Water Mirror. That’s why I was wondering how best to thank Fellow Daoist Bai.”
Bai Rong peeked at Lu Zhui from behind Qiao Han’s back. Every fuzzy instinct in his small animal body screamed “this guy is a dangerous human”. He’d even heard Lu Xiang say her brother liked to eat rabbits! Absolutely terrifying.
Seeing the bunny’s wide, watery eyes and soft, cuddly look only made Lu Zhui’s inner gremlin stir. He suddenly had a strong urge to tease him even more.
But just as he was about to speak, Qiao Han interrupted with a strange expression: “Wait… did Brother Xiao see it too?”
Lu Xiang instantly tensed, staring at her brother in panic. She definitely didn’t want Xiao Jiuci to have seen that scene especially the part where she almost got assaulted.
Meanwhile, Qiao Han’s mind went completely blank.
Wait… Wasn’t he… naked at that time? And didn’t he also…?
Lu Zhui raised a brow and chuckled. “Qiao Han, ah… sigh, never mind. Just go talk to Jiuci later.”
He even gave a dramatic shake of the head, wearing that I-know-but-I-won’t-say expression that made Qiao Han’s scalp tingle. His face immediately began steaming.
Why did he suddenly not want to see the male lead?
“I’m already dead. I should burn some offerings for better after life,” Qiao Han thought bitterly.
But just as the atmosphere finally started to relax, Lu Zhui’s expression suddenly changed. He gritted his teeth and poured all his strength into the flying artifact to accelerate—but it was already too late.
A flash of blue light exploded ahead. Before anyone could react, a tall figure appeared like a graceful bamboo swaying in the wind, standing protectively in front of them. An icy blue barrier instantly rose—just as a violent shockwave slammed into it.
The barrier shattered into a thousand shards of ice, the wind howled past, smashing into everyone.
The entire flying artifact crashed to the ground with them.
Only now did everyone realize—
They’d had the bad luck of flying straight into the path of a demonic beast’s rampage.
Fortunately, Lu Zhui had cast wind-type spells at the last second to cushion the fall, so the landing wasn’t too rough.
Xiao Jiuci only had time to sweep his gaze across the group. When his eyes passed over Qiao Han, something flickered in them but in the very next instant, he was already charging back into the fray.
When Xiao Jiuci moved, it was like an unsheathed sword—sharp, unrelenting, unstoppable. The Ice-Scaled Armguard on his arm glowed faintly, forming countless ice-based barriers that materialized around the Gray Demon Crocodile, trying to block its forward momentum.
The demon beast was heading straight toward the exit of Qinglian Realm—where a large group of disciples had already gathered. To the newly awakened Gray Demon Crocodile, they were nothing more than a feast.
Even with the constantly forming ice shields, it was impossible to slow its advance for long. In Xiao Jiuci’s hands, the Frost Ring had transformed into an icebone longbow.
He summoned arrow after arrow of pure ice, continuously firing them at the beast, hoping to at least redirect its movement.
At that moment, Lu Zhui finally got a good look at the demon beast. When he realized it was a Earth-ranked Gray Demon Crocodile, his face paled. He knew—even if he joined forces with Xiao Jiuci, they wouldn’t be able to defeat it in battle.
The only viable solution now was to evacuate everyone as fast as possible—only then could Xiao Jiuci retreat safely.
Lu Zhui didn’t dare delay. He called out to everyone, “Get ready!”
As he spoke, the longsword in his hand transformed into a fan—it looked like he planned to send them flying toward the exit with a gust. Even if they suffered internal injuries, it was the safest way to preserve their lives right now.
Unfortunately, the speed wasn’t fast enough.
Just then, the Gray Demon Crocodile suddenly reared its head and let out a deafening roar. The sonic shockwave immediately disrupted Lu Zhui’s spell, scattering his wind-element spiritual energy.
It seemed the beast had finally grown irritated by Xiao Jiuci. Its cold, vertical pupils began to shift, gradually turning white—with eerie circular patterns emerging across the surface.
Xiao Jiuci’s expression changed drastically. He launched a barrage of attacks toward the beast’s eyes, but each strike was blocked by an invisible membrane.
It was useless. His attacks couldn’t pierce it.
As he furiously traced talismans across his forehead, Xiao Jiuci began retreating toward the others, shouting a warning to those who hadn’t moved fast enough: “Lu Zhui, its spiritual sense attack—!”
Lu Zhui cursed under his breath and formed a quick formation with both hands. “Everyone, get over here!”
A burst of radiant light instantly enveloped the group.
Almost simultaneously, a formless, soundless, shapeless wave rippled outward from the Gray Demon Crocodile like water across a still pond.
How did they know it was an attack? Because the moment the wave swept over them, all their senses were forcibly torn away.
Even with the protective formation and gares. Even with Xiao Jiuci standing ahead to block the blast—Sheng Jue and Bai Rong were still the first to collapse, blood trickling from every orifice.
The artifact atop Lu Xiang’s head flared brightly before she too passed out. Qiao Han felt his headband suddenly heat up, scalding him so badly it nearly burned his scalp.
In just a few seconds, his vision darkened, his mind spinning wildly. But Qiao Han didn’t care about that.
He’d been watching the entire time as Xiao Jiuci flew ahead to shield them.
And he saw it clearly the man’s body wavered, countless icy-blue light fragments scattered from him as he dropped to one knee, finally unable to hold on.
Lu Zhui’s formation collapsed with him. The resulting backlash knocked him unconscious on the spot, and the entire group—Xiao Jiuci included—was hurled backward by the impact, scattered across the battlefield.
Qiao Han knew he couldn’t hold on much longer. But Xiao Jiuci had collapsed nearby, and instinctively, he wanted to crawl over to him.
Yet before he could, a terrifying pressure slammed down on him. Another roar echoed—it was preparing for a second spiritual sense attack?!
[Ding! Host’s life is currently in danger. Please redeem a life-saving item.]
This wasn’t just his life in danger, everyone present was facing imminent death. Even with the male lead’s protagonist halo, Qiao Han was terrified.
But what could he do to save everyone?
[Friendly reminder: You may spend Emotional Points to redeem a “Spiritual Sense Rebound Talisman,” which can effectively suppress the Gray Demon Crocodile.]
Qiao Han’s eyes lit up. That’s it! He tapped immediately. “Redeem it!”
[“Spiritual Sense Rebound Talisman” successfully redeemed. Emotional Points -1. Remaining: 8.]
In that moment, Qiao Han’s mind cleared. It felt as though a surge of powerful spiritual consciousness had been injected into his soul.
At the same time, Xiao Jiuci who was relying solely on sheer willpower forced himself to stay awake. An attack of this magnitude… it was likely that no one except him had survived it unscathed. And even he was at his limit.
If he passed out now, no one would make it.
With the last of his spiritual energy, Xiao Jiuci summoned the Ice Soul Sword. That sword held a sword spirit—it could carry the others away.
It was the only viable option left.
Just as Xiao Jiuci was preparing to make one final stand, a slender figure in bamboo-green robes suddenly stepped in front of him.
Xiao Jiuci’s solemn expression went blank in an instant.
Qiao Han… how could he still be standing?!
But the next second, Xiao Jiuci’s pupils contracted sharply.
As the Gray Demon Crocodile launched its second spiritual sense attack, the mist-colored hair ribbon tied around Qiao Han’s long, ink-black ponytail snapped with a soft snap and fluttered to the ground.
The backlash from the rebounded spiritual assault knocked Xiao Jiuci out cold on the spot, while the Gray Demon Crocodile—though wounded—instantly flew into a berserk rage.
It charged madly toward Qiao Han and Xiao Jiuci. Qiao Han paled in shock, cursing the system in his heart.
[The Gray Demon Crocodile, after being severely injured, would instinctively target the person with the highest spiritual power in the vicinity to devour them and restore itself.]
And the one with the highest spiritual power… was clearly Xiao Jiuci.
Goddamn it. Even if there’s no difficulty, you still have to manufacture some for the male lead, huh?!
Qiao Han cursed nonstop as he hoisted Xiao Jiuci onto his back and started sprinting like mad.
Fortunately, the Gray Demon Crocodile’s speed had dropped after being injured, allowing Qiao Han to put some distance between them.
But at the rate he was burning through his spiritual energy, he couldn’t last much longer. He had no choice but to charge into a group of spirit beasts, hoping to throw off the crocodile’s pursuit by mixing up their auras.
Only when he couldn’t run anymore did he finally stopped. He quickly swallowed a few pills, then shoved a few down Xiao Jiuci’s throat as well. Without bothering to think too much, he immediately activated his spiritual energy to start healing Xiao Jiuci.
Spiritual light seeped continuously into Xiao Jiuci’s body. It seemed to be working. Qiao Han could only pray the male lead would recover quickly—otherwise, both of them were screwed.
By the time Qiao Han had pushed himself to the edge of collapse, he finally stopped channeling energy.
But the tremors rumbling from the ground now and then kept testing his fraying nerves. He could only hide in a concealed spot nearby and begin setting up talismans to mask their presence.
Qiao Han was dizzy from exhaustion, his vision blurred, and his hands began to shake.
He didn’t notice that the man behind him had moved, slowly regaining consciousness.
Xiao Jiuci’s memory still lingered on the last scene.
The hair ribbon he had gifted Qiao Han… had snapped.
That mist-colored ribbon was an artifact designed to protect against spiritual sense attacks.
Even if damaged by such an assault, it would never fall off—it would simply lose its effect.
There was only one scenario in which it could break:
That was if spiritual power surged outward from the wearer’s own sea of consciousness—that alone could snap the ribbon.
Not even Xiao Jiuci himself, nor the Sect Master of Qingyun Sect, had ever mastered spiritual sense attacks. Only his master had dabbled in it slightly.
That was something only the most powerful cultivators could achieve.
For someone like Qiao Han… a freshly advanced Foundation Establishment cultivator—no matter how freakishly talented—this was absolutely impossible.
And there was only one scenario where an ordinary cultivator could pull that off. That is… if the spiritual sense wasn’t originally theirs—in other words, possession.
Possession was a demonic cultivation technique. A successful possession meant the invading spirit was overwhelmingly strong, and spiritual sense attacks were a walk in the park for them.
From how Qiao Han was completely unaffected by the Gray Demon Crocodile’s spiritual assault… to the moment the ribbon snapped—
Everything was crystal clear.
Qiao Han was no longer Qiao Han of the Qiao family. He was someone possessed by a demon clan soul. No wonder… he’d changed.
Xiao Jiuci had mentally prepared himself for this possibility, but that didn’t stop the dull ache from spreading in his chest.
Most possessed cultivators wouldn't expose their spiritual prowess so easily. That ribbon had been Xiao Jiuci’s fallback plan—an indirect safeguard.
He couldn’t verify his suspicions any other way—he was afraid of hurting Qiao Han.
This kind of demon couldn’t be detected by standard methods; they emitted no demonic energy. Only those close to the host might notice behavioral anomalies because demons couldn't inherit memories of the original.
If anything seemed off, one could request a Nascent Soul-level cultivator to perform a spiritual probe—but even that wasn’t guaranteed to work. The most reliable method was using artifacts or formations that target the spiritual sense… but they came with a massive risk to the subject. If he was wrong, he’d ruin Qiao Han’s future forever.
That’s why Xiao Jiuci had hesitated—he’d come up with this plan instead.
It was supposed to be the least detectable method. Any halfway intelligent demon wouldn’t expose themselves like this… and yet it had played out before his very eyes.
At that moment, Xiao Jiuci slowly closed his eyes. The faint yet unique memories he had shared with Qiao Han gently faded away. When he opened them again, only a decisive coldness remained.
A demon-possessed body. An abrupt outburst of demonic energy in the secret realm. The unsealing of a demon beast.
Too many coincidences.
Had he walked right into a trap? He was the one who brought Qiao Han into this place.
It was all a setup from the start. The demon clan truly was the master of deception.
No matter what Qiao Han intended to do, no matter his purpose—duty and responsibility told Xiao Jiuci what he needed to do.
Xiao Jiuci’s face was as cold as frost, his eyes void of emotion; only a deep, black stillness remained. He stood up, and from all directions, ice-blue light slowly gathered in his hands. The Ice Soul Sword, shimmering with silvery light, reformed once again.
The blade, flowing with dark blue blood, slowly lifted and pointed directly at the busy figure of Qiao Han.
Qiao Han stirred and stood up.
Xiao Jiuci knew it was time to strike. He couldn’t give the demon any chance to react—if it launched another spiritual sense attack, even he wouldn’t be able to withstand it.
And then, in the very next moment, Qiao Han’s clothes fell loose, as if they wouldn’t stay in place. He fumbled around, tugging in a panic.
Xiao Jiuci’s mind went blank. He glanced down—wrapped around his own waist and abdomen was dark silver.
It was the protective artifact he’d personally given Qiao Han.
In that instant, the killing intent shattered like fragile glass, leaving behind only hesitation that shouldn’t have existed.
Qiao Han remained completely unaware. He only felt waves of cold coming from behind—but hey, the male lead was an ice-type cultivator, right? Of course, it felt like that. Nothing unusual.
So after awkwardly fixing his clothes, he turned around to take a look.
And the moment he turned, a flash of silver-blue icy light surged forth. Qiao Han’s pupils shrank, and his body froze instinctively. He felt the oppressive pressure of a Golden Core cultivator laced with ice-elemental force instantly condense the very air in a direct line, slamming toward him head-on.
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Thank you for new chapter 🙏
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