It seemed the Demon Pearl hadn’t attached itself to any of these newly admitted disciples!

Could it be that the damaged compass had malfunctioned and was displaying incorrect readings?

But seeing Qin Lingxiao’s face pale from vomiting, he truly looked pitiable. While lost in thought, Cui Xiaoxiao casually handed him a cup of tea.

Qin Lingxiao accepted the fragrant tea Cui Xiaoxiao offered, drinking a few sips to finally suppress his nausea.

He looked at the young girl deep in contemplation. When she lowered her head in thought, her eyes half-closed and long eyelashes fluttering slightly, she appeared much more serene—one really couldn’t tell she was such a mischievous little girl.

Qin Lingxiao stared at her directly, finally speaking in a low voice: “Now that you’ve had your fun teasing me, we’re even. Can you stop holding my previous wrongdoing against me?”

Xiaoxiao suddenly snapped back to reality, blinking her eyes before understanding that Qin Lingxiao was referring to his earlier betrayal of her as a demoness in front of others.

It seemed Qin Lingxiao also knew she had been deliberately making things difficult for him, yet he had endured it all.

But Xiaoxiao considered herself and Qin Lingxiao to be walking different paths entirely—what was there to forgive or not forgive?

With this thought, Xiaoxiao changed the subject: “Since we can’t detect the demon pearl-possessed person using yin-cold objects, could the compass have been wrong? Maybe the Demon Pearl isn’t among these people at all?”

Qin Lingxiao had considered this question early on and immediately replied: “Impossible. This compass is an ancient sacred artifact, most accurate at detecting demonic nature. If it weren’t for you and another Demon Pearl being too close together, creating mutual interference, the compass wouldn’t have shattered on its own! Moreover… not everyone present that day underwent the test!”

Hearing Qin Lingxiao’s meaningful words, Xiaoxiao slowly raised her head, eyes widening as she looked at him.

Because he was right. Among the crowd at the foot of the mountain that day, besides the disciples seeking masters, there were several other people.

Namely, Wei Jie and Tang Youshu, who had gone down the mountain to purchase supplies!

Including the fox clan man who accompanied them on their shopping trip, there were four people in total!

And at tonight’s yin-cold feast, apart from Tang Youshu, who had accidentally eaten a few bites after being angered by Yu Ling’er, the other three hadn’t eaten at all.

At this thought, Xiaoxiao’s heart seemed to plummet like iron, sinking.

The other two fox clan members would be easy to test.

But Wei Jie was a descendant of the Wei family, naturally unafraid of yin-cold foods. Using fish and shrimp from the River of Forgetfulness wouldn’t reveal whether he bore the Demon Pearl!

Moreover, she had already told him about another Demon Pearl hidden among the mountain’s people. If Wei Jie had prepared defenses in advance, what could she do to him?

Xiaoxiao knew that compared to others, Wei Jie’s constitution was more suitable for demonic possession.

Especially since the Demon Pearl of Wrath, like the Greed Pearl, had both been refined from within Wei Jie’s body. Once that Demon Pearl attached itself to Wei Jie, it would return to its original host—the consequences were unimaginable!

Xiaoxiao didn’t know if the other Demon Pearl would be as loose-lipped as the Greed Pearl, revealing to Wei Jie the heavenly secrets from the original timeline that should not be disclosed.

Once Wei Jie learned of his original fate, whatever he did would change the course of events. What kind of consequences might this cause, even Heaven’s Way might find difficult to control.

At this thought, Xiaoxiao couldn’t help but pace in place. Thinking of Wei Jie’s recent cold-faced sarcasm made her increasingly uneasy!

If Wei Jie truly became demonized, given his nature, his demonic development would advance by leaps and bounds daily. Wouldn’t all her previous efforts be in vain?

Xiaoxiao felt anxious and had no mind to continue talking with Qin Lingxiao.

Afterward, she tested the two fox clan men with the fish meat and found they also reacted, causing her heart to sink further!

This meant that among those present that day, only one person hadn’t undergone the trial… Xiaoxiao dared not think further.

Because of this gluttonous feast, all the newly admitted disciples of the Talisman Sect had collapsed and couldn’t get up.

At least the mountain had regained some of its former tranquility.

After the banquet ended, Xiaoxiao thought it over and decided to seek out Wei Jie to probe the truth.

She had never suspected him before, but if he truly was possessed by the Demon Pearl, snake scale characteristics would appear on his body.

At worst, she could make an excuse about helping him change clothes or something similar, and thoroughly examine him from head to toe…

But Wei Jie was nowhere to be found at the moment. Xiaoxiao searched the quarters thoroughly but couldn’t locate him, so she could only circle the corridors looking.

When she reached the small path behind the quarters, she encountered Tang Youshu emerging from the bushes, clutching his stomach.

Lingshan’s latrines were too in demand tonight. Tang Youshu hadn’t managed to secure a spot for his last few visits, so he had no choice but to violate his master’s new sect rules and slip into the woods.

He didn’t expect to run into Xiaoxiao. Tang Youshu quickly apologized to his master, begging for her forgiveness.

Xiaoxiao’s new rules weren’t meant to punish Young Master Tang, and she was currently anxious to find Wei Jie, so she quickly interrupted Tang Youshu’s nervous apology and only asked: “Did you see your master just now?”

Tang Youshu pointed toward the path leading to the back mountain: “The Master seemed to head toward the back mountain earlier.”

Hearing this, Xiaoxiao quickly headed for the back mountain. Tang Youshu, seeing how dark it was, hurriedly took down a lantern from a nearby lamp post and chased after his master.

When Xiaoxiao reached the back mountain, near the cave where she used to practice with her master, Tang Youshu, she immediately saw Wei Jie lying unconscious on the ground with his eyes tightly closed.

Xiaoxiao recognized Wei Jie at once and immediately rushed over, calling out urgently: “Wei Jie! What happened to you?”

There were obvious signs of blunt trauma on the back of Wei Jie’s head. Someone who knew he couldn’t use his true qi at this time and that his alertness was greatly diminished had ambushed him.

No matter how loudly Xiaoxiao called to him, he didn’t open his eyes, but fortunately, his breathing was steady—he had likely just fainted.

The ground at night was both damp and cold, and Wei Jie’s back clothing was soaked through. Just then, Tang Youshu arrived, panting and carrying the lantern.

Xiaoxiao had Tang Youshu help move Wei Jie to a nearby large rock, then used her outer robe as a pillow for Wei Jie’s head.

Anyone capable of ambushing Wei Jie possessed considerable skill. That they didn’t kill Wei Jie but only knocked him unconscious—what were their intentions?

Tang Youshu was also heartbroken that his master had been ambushed. After checking his pulse and confirming his master was unharmed, he took the lantern to search for the culprit.

Just then, by the lantern’s light, Xiaoxiao spotted a clear set of footprints on the ground where Wei Jie had been lying, leading straight into the dark cave.

Could the person who ambushed Wei Jie be hiding in the cave?

After confirming Wei Jie’s breathing was steady and he was unharmed, Xiaoxiao took the lantern from Tang Youshu and cautiously approached the cave.

But as she neared the cave, Xiaoxiao felt a subtle resistance at the entrance, as if there was some kind of barrier.

This cave would be Tang Youshu’s retreat cave two hundred years later. Xiaoxiao had once entered the cave with him for closed-door cultivation, and there had been no such barrier!

Her thoughts stirring, she formed hand seals with one hand and directed water from a nearby pond toward the cave entrance. Under the water’s effect, an invisible barrier net with orderly spacing appeared.

Although bats and insects could still enter and exit the cave opening, people of much larger size obviously couldn’t pass through this net-like barrier.

When they had stayed outside the back mountain cave last time, because Yu Ling’er was afraid of bats, they hadn’t entered at all and hadn’t discovered this hidden barrier at the entrance.

The footprints lingered here—could the person who ambushed Wei Jie be hiding inside the cave?

At this thought, Xiaoxiao became alert. She had Tang Youshu watch over Wei Jie while she tentatively used her true qi to break the barrier.

But after she struck twice, her neck suddenly grew hot. The five phoenix marks suddenly emitted scorching heat, and needle-point colored light shot out. The barrier sealing the cave entrance suddenly dispersed as if it had encountered its master.

Xiaoxiao frowned slightly, conjuring palm fire for illumination, and slowly entered the cave.

Unlike the well-ordered cave two hundred years later that had been renovated, this place was full of stalactites and stalagmites.

In the center of the stone cave stood a stalagmite three zhang high. At the tip of the stalagmite was carved a phoenix bird, and in the phoenix’s forehead was embedded a mysterious five-colored gemstone.

This gemstone, illuminated by Xiaoxiao’s palm fire, refracted mesmerizing light that lit up the entire cavern.

The phoenix appeared ready to take flight, its talons grasping a giant python that seemed about to soar skyward. Its cold, piercing gaze made one hesitant to approach.

Xiaoxiao dared not look too long and only wanted to first confirm whether there were any suspicious people in the cave.

But after searching around, there were no footprints in the cave. The mysterious person probably hadn’t been able to pass through the earlier barrier.

Only then did Xiaoxiao finally look at the cave walls…

Xiaoxiao clearly remembered that two hundred years later, the cave walls were covered with many colorful paintings. They included scenes praising her master Wei Jie’s territorial expansion, Tang Youshu’s solitary adventures, and many legends of ancient deities.

Those colorful paintings varied in color depth and artistic style. Many were sketched by her master during boring moments of retreat, but another portion was said to have been preserved from ancient times.

By the lantern’s light reflecting on the damp stone walls, the stone cave now still contained many paintings with faded, mottled colors.

However, these murals lacked the paintings that Tang Youshu would later add, praising Demon Lord Wei Jie’s great achievements. Only those ancient deity stories remained.

Without her master’s later additions, these originally inconspicuous ancient legends became particularly prominent.

But what most caught Xiaoxiao’s attention was a mural depicting a phoenix tree and phoenixes. Because that phoenix tree… was identical to the one she had seen in the Phoenix Secret Realm!

Xiaoxiao focused her gaze. The tree branches in the mural also perched five colorful phoenixes, but above the treetop circled a phoenix much larger than the five phoenixes.

That phoenix was entirely black, painted with some unknown pigment that seemed to glimmer with golden light under the lantern’s illumination.

After looking for a while, Xiaoxiao moved to another mural. This painting also featured a black phoenix, but it was circling in the sky, seemingly crying out with spread wings.

Standing opposite the black phoenix was a man of imposing stature.

The man wore black robes with strange flame patterns on his forehead, standing in the clouds, holding a sword in one hand, with brilliant light radiating from behind him—the appearance of a celestial god.

However, this celestial god was raising his sword toward the black phoenix, as if to strike it down!

Tang Youshu, seeing that Xiaoxiao hadn’t emerged, also entered the cave. He walked to Xiaoxiao’s side, looked at the murals, and suddenly made a strange sound: “This… isn’t this the ancient legend of Emperor Gu Yan battling the evil phoenix?”

Xiaoxiao turned in surprise: “Emperor Gu Yan?”

She had heard of this ancient emperor’s great name. Emperor Gu Yan governed all demons and ghosts under heaven and was lord of the underworld’s Mount Feng.

All six realms of ghosts and spirits were under his management after death. He controlled reincarnation and balanced the three realms.

Why would such an ancient, great god draw his sword against a phoenix? Did he also consider black phoenixes inauspicious?

Tang Youshu’s life, aside from studying medical texts and pharmaceutical classics, was devoted to various supernatural histories and mystical studies.

Hearing Xiaoxiao’s question, he shared the wild historical legends he had read.

It was said that this Emperor Gu Yan once had a dispute with another celestial god to save the collapsing underworld.

The two gods disagreed and fought a great battle. Its intensity was no less than the heaven-and-earth battle between Gonggong and Zhurong.

Both Emperor Gu Yan and that celestial god suffered severe injuries and had their divine status stripped. To escape his enemy, Emperor Gu Yan could only transform into a black-scaled giant python and hide beneath lotus ponds.

Unexpectedly, his enemy devised a clever plan, releasing an evil phoenix to patrol. It immediately found Emperor Gu Yan’s hiding place and used its sharp talons to drag him out from under the lotus leaves.

However, when Emperor Gu Yan battled the black phoenix, he revealed his human form. His beautiful and pure appearance shocked the evil phoenix, allowing Emperor Gu Yan to escape safely.

The evil phoenix was therefore punished by the celestial god, who sealed its soul in the Eternal Valley.

Such an earth-shaking battle naturally disrupted the heavenly and earthly order. So while Emperor Gu Yan’s divine status was damaged, he also had to accept punishment—his divine memories were erased, and he was cast into reincarnation. Only after offsetting his karmic sins could he restore his divine status and return to the underworld.

It was precisely because the lord of the underworld was absent that families like the Wei needed demon-suppressing guardians to protect the underworld entrance at Mount Qilao, preventing chaos in the underworld’s Mount Feng during the true lord’s absence.

Hearing this, Xiaoxiao’s thoughts stirred slightly, suddenly recalling what Grandmother Wei had said about a god with damaged divine status who had deceived the Xia royal family for two hundred years of imperial fortune.

Could that fraudulent celestial god be the one who fought Emperor Gu Yan? Emperor Gu Yan was demoted and punished with damaged divine status, while the celestial god seemed completely unharmed. Could he have used his deceptive skills to trick the foolish Xia family, promptly repairing his divine status and avoiding reincarnation’s suffering?

Looking at it this way, Heaven’s Way was truly biased and unfair. Two people had fought, so why punish only one?

But when Xiaoxiao asked which celestial god had disputed with Emperor Gu Yan, Tang Youshu shook his head, indicating that those supernatural histories were also unclear in their accounts.

Xiaoxiao had once dreamed of a black phoenix in her dreams, though it was just a tiny newly-hatched one. Could it be… that unfortunate evil phoenix who was blinded by masculine beauty and sealed as a result?

This showed that whether human or bird, one must not be too lustful, or else one misstep leads to eternal damnation… She just wondered what the true appearance of Emperor Gu Yan was like to be so enchanting?

There were many more murals about these deities, but Xiaoxiao had no mind to continue looking, as Wei Jie was still lying outside the cave.

When Xiaoxiao and Tang Youshu emerged, Qin Lingxiao, Yu Ling’er, and several fox clan members had also arrived. They had been helping Xiaoxiao search for Wei Jie.

Qin Lingxiao had probably seen Tang Youshu running toward the back mountain with a lantern and followed.

Perhaps due to the surrounding noise, Wei Jie finally slowly opened his eyes. But the moment his eyes opened, they were bloodshot throughout—the appearance of demonic possession.

Qin Lingxiao had long suspected the Demon Pearl of Wrath was attached to Wei Jie and had been secretly vigilant.

Now seeing Wei Jie’s eyes truly red, he immediately shouted: “Careful!”

At the same time, he quickly moved to Xiaoxiao’s side, grasping her hand to prevent her from approaching Wei Jie.

But when the red-eyed man saw Qin Lingxiao’s large hand reaching for Xiaoxiao, he became completely enraged!

The next moment, Wei Jie’s temple veins bulged as he suddenly leaped toward Qin Lingxiao, extending his fingers to claw at him.

Qin Lingxiao quickly raised his qi sword to block, but Wei Jie’s palm shattered the qi sword with one strike, directly attacking his throat.

Consider that the white woman at the silk farm in Feixian County was merely an ordinary woman, yet once possessed, she became quite formidable. Now, if it were attached to Wei Jie’s body, it would truly be like giving a fierce tiger another set of man-eating claws!

Qin Lingxiao, somewhat embarrassingly parrying, could only turn and shout to Xiaoxiao: “He’s already demonized and will go on a killing spree. When that happens, everyone on the mountain will die! You have the Heaven’s Punishment Sword that can subdue demons. You must split his skull and extract the Demon Pearl!”

Hearing this, Tang Youshu immediately cried out: “Master! Absolutely not! Master will die!”

Hearing this, Qin Lingxiao was so frustrated that his teeth ached.

Among these people, only he had truly experienced the terror of Demon Lord Wei Jie’s demonic outbursts!

When Wei Jie’s demonic nature reached its peak, even killing him would become impossible! Such women’s compassion, when the time came, wouldn’t everyone on the mountain become ghosts under Wei Jie’s blade?

At this thought, Qin Lingxiao suddenly turned to seize the Heaven’s Punishment Sword that Xiaoxiao wore.

This sword carried Heaven’s punishment power that demonic beings couldn’t resist. Only by splitting Wei Jie’s spiritual platform as he had done in his previous life could he destroy this murderous demon!

Unfortunately, Xiaoxiao had already anticipated that he would seize the sword. In desperation, she immediately activated a fire-summoning talisman, causing Tang Youshu’s lantern to suddenly burst into flames, then formed a fire ring that attacked Qin Lingxiao.

Having no choice, Qin Lingxiao could only retreat repeatedly. This completely exposed Xiaoxiao to Wei Jie’s view.

Wei Jie, red-eyed and seemingly not recognizing anyone, suddenly pounced toward Cui Xiaoxiao.

Xiaoxiao dared not dodge, fearing he would attack Tang Youshu and the others, so she could only steel herself and engage Wei Jie in battle!

Although Cui Xiaoxiao had taken Wei Jie as her disciple, she had never deeply understood her disciple’s cultivation and abilities. She only knew Wei Jie was exceptionally talented, a rare immortal cultivation prodigy, but such talented prodigies often didn’t reveal their potential limits until the most critical moments.

Even Wei Jie himself probably wasn’t entirely clear about his cultivation level.

Now Wei Jie had completely lost consciousness, his expression murderous, muscles tense throughout his body, clearly in the madness of fighting for his life.

So his every move used full strength, leaving no room for mercy.

Since knowing him, Xiaoxiao had never even sparred with him as master and disciple, yet their first fight was such a desperate, thrilling encounter. For a moment, she was overwhelmed and flustered.

Qin Lingxiao naturally wouldn’t let Xiaoxiao face the enemy alone, so he again condensed a qi sword to fight the crazed Wei Jie alongside Xiaoxiao.

For a time, the three fought together in close combat, exchanging moves, spiritual energy surging violently, the oppressive wild winds forcing others to retreat repeatedly.

Xiaoxiao discovered that when Qin Lingxiao wasn’t involved, things were somewhat better, but once he stood beside her, Wei Jie’s killing intent became more intense, his qi shield pressing over like mountains and seas, even the spikes on the qi shield suddenly grew several times larger…

So Xiaoxiao made a quick decision, shouting to Qin Lingxiao: “Quickly withdraw and find somewhere to hide. Don’t let Wei Jie see your face!”

Huh? Qin Lingxiao was stunned. In his two hundred-plus years of subduing demons and devils, he’d never heard of this tactic of hiding one’s face when fighting demons!

But Cui Xiaoxiao wasn’t joking. Seeing Qin Lingxiao’s lack of response, she shouted again, even conjuring more flames to burn Qin Lingxiao’s behind.

Forced into it, Qin Lingxiao had to temporarily withdraw and hide in nearby bushes.

After Qin Lingxiao disappeared from Wei Jie’s view, Wei Jie’s offensive indeed slowed considerably, though he remained agitated and continued attacking Xiaoxiao.

Xiaoxiao had once been possessed by a Demon Pearl during her fight with Wan Lian Shi, losing consciousness and temporarily becoming demonized. She knew that feeling best.

But facing this red-eyed Wei Jie, Xiaoxiao felt something was wrong…

Why did she always feel her supposedly demonized, talented disciple was more interested in her clothing buttons and sash, seemingly impatient to tear open her clothes?

This being the case, Xiaoxiao paid closer attention to his techniques. After several exchanges, she was certain her beloved disciple was using nothing but the moves of a scoundrel flower-picker!

He was indeed desperately trying to tear her clothes!

Under everyone’s watchful eyes, what kind of demon had Wei Jie become possessed by? A lustful demon?

Looking at his blood-red eyes, Xiaoxiao’s cheeks flushed with embarrassment and anger. Even knowing he didn’t want her life, she still dared not breathe too freely!

After all, with everyone watching, if she slowed her movements and Wei Jie suddenly tore her sash, wouldn’t she have a wardrobe malfunction and lose all face as the Talisman Sect’s leader?

Moreover, Xiaoxiao noticed that although Wei Jie’s eyes were red, his fingernails hadn’t turned black from demonization—very different from her demonic episode.

His urgent manner of wanting to tear her clothes was somewhat similar to his reaction in the secret passage of Prince Can’s mansion when he’d inhaled the aphrodisiac powder, only much more intense this time.

Just then, Yu Ling’er, watching from the side, saw what was happening. She covered her eyes with her hands, then peered through her fingers at the battle, shouting: “This… did Wei Jie secretly practice Hehuan Sect techniques and suffer qi deviation? Xiaoxiao, be careful your sash doesn’t get torn!”

If circumstances allowed, Xiaoxiao wanted to roll her eyes. Pressed ever more urgently by Wei Jie and unable to use water summoning spells, she desperately called to Tang Youshu and Yu Ling’er: “Quickly get some water and splash it on Wei Jie!”