"Master!!"

The young disciple clutched his master's lifeless body, howling in unbearable grief.

"Senior brother, senior sister....."

Di Nü Feng returned to Li Xuanxiao's side, her expression visibly uncomfortable as she surveyed the sect compound Li Xuanxiao had once again annihilated.

"I will kill you! I swear I'll kill you......"

The young disciple's forehead bulged with veins, his face flushed crimson, eyes wide with rage as he glared at the man before him.

Li Xuanxiao met the disciple's scorching gaze calmly, taking a deliberate step forward.

Just as his foot was about to land, a jade-like hand suddenly grasped his arm.

Turning, Li Xuanxiao saw Di Nü Feng staring at him with wide, conflicted eyes.

Her vermilion lips parted slightly. "Li Xuanxiao, you..."

Li Xuanxiao approached the young disciple and raised his hand.

It hovered above the youth's head.

"Seeking revenge? Come find me then.

I am Li Xuanxiao, disciple of Mount Shushan. Remember this name well!"

Tears welled in the young disciple's eyes as he glared hatefully.

"Mount Shushan...I'll never forget!!"

".........."

A gentle breeze swept through as Li Xuanxiao and Di Nü Feng walked side by side along the mountain path, their footsteps crunching on loose stones.

"We should stop here. Continuing further risks exposing our tracks," Li Xuanxiao said.

Di Nü Feng seemed to suddenly relax at these words, exhaling quietly in relief.

Noticing her reaction, Li Xuanxiao abruptly suggested:

"Shall we take a few days to enjoy ourselves? Didn't you always want to visit Jiangnan?"

"Really? Yes!"

(^o^)/~

Di Nü Feng immediately cheered with excitement.

"..........."

Jiangnan had always been a land of prosperity.

Picturesque scenery nurtured outstanding talents.

The catastrophe thirty years ago hadn't spared Mount Shushan alone.

Jiangnan too had suffered its share of turmoil.

Yet it retained its unique charm.

Abundant delicacies and fine wines could still intoxicate the senses.

Several evenings later, Di Nü Feng lounged lazily across a soft bed.

Her gaze accidentally fell upon her bare feet—

pale as snow, with adorable rounded toes.

But something was missing from their usual adornment.

The pendant that normally hung from her ankle was gone.

Frowning slightly, Di Nü Feng tried recalling when she'd last seen it.

Then she remembered—it must have fallen during that fight days ago.

With this realization, her figure vanished from the room.

She raced toward Zhu Rong's sect compound they'd recently visited.

At her Tribulation Transcension cultivation level, her speed was tremendous.

She arrived at the ruined sect in no time.

"Where did I drop it?"

While searching carefully, Di Nü Feng suddenly froze.

Beneath the fallen leaves lay a corpse.

The young disciple's body.

Seeing this, Di Nü Feng murmured softly.

"Really...really...how much has changed~"

"..........."

Inside the inn.

Li Xuanxiao sat upright on his bed.

Before him floated the Myriad Soul Banner, its dark crimson patterns resembling dried bloodstains shifting without wind.

As he performed hand seals and chanted, the red patterns seemed to come alive.

Li Xuanxiao guided the banner's sinister energy to merge with his own power.

The malevolent force caused his qi to surge violently.

Blue veins bulged beneath his skin as his silver hair whipped wildly.

Li Xuanxiao resisted the energy fiercely.

He needed to fuse with it while preventing it from consuming him.

Now he understood the old emperor's difficulties.

The Myriad Soul Banner wasn't easily controlled.

Through internal vision, he observed his spiritual energy clashing with inky malice in his dantian.

Gradually, the two forces merged.

More vengeful spirits shrieked as they surged into his consciousness, flooding his mind with countless illusions.

Veins throbbed at Li Xuanxiao's temples as he bit his tongue, using the pain and vital blood to maintain clarity.

After tremendous effort,

the two energies condensed into a dark golden core floating in his dantian.

Yet the core wasn't perfect—covered in web-like cracks.

"Not enough...still not enough!!"

The effort required just to reach this incomplete Golden Core stage was immense.

How could this be?

More souls were needed.

Li Xuanxiao reopened his eyes, gaze icy.

The Myriad Soul Banner withdrew into his body.

"Knock knock!"

"Honored guest, the roasted lamb the young lady ordered—"

"GET OUT!!" Li Xuanxiao roared.

He swept everything from the nearby table onto the floor.

"Eating! All she thinks about is eating!"

"It's all Di Nü Feng's fault...."

"Too damn slow!!"

"Chattering nonstop throughout the journey! A demon sect member showing such weakness—I could've absorbed so many more vengeful souls otherwise."

"I'd definitely have formed a complete Golden Core by now......definitely......"

Li Xuanxiao muttered feverishly.

Suddenly he clawed at his hair in frustration.

"Why blame her? How can I blame her?"

"What's wrong with me?"

"Have I gone mad?"

"When did I become like this?"

The image of the young disciple he'd killed surfaced in his mind.

"I shouldn't have killed him...he was innocent...shouldn't have acted...

Even sparing him would've changed nothing...shouldn't have...tsk!"

"It's all illusion! Li Xuanxiao, have you forgotten the master's teachings?"

"I've lost myself again! Yes! Lost myself again."

"I've lost perspective—can't cling to these fleeting illusions."

Gradually, Li Xuanxiao's agitation subsided.

........

Jiangnan.

Extreme Demonic Hall.

"Green Cloud Temple, Morning Cloud Sect—six sects exterminated! None spared."

"Normally this wouldn't warrant concern, but all six participated in Mount Shushan's destruction."

"Could Shushan remnants truly have returned?"

"If Shushan's dregs dare return, we'll exterminate them again! The nearest Morning Cloud Sect was in our vicinity—the perpetrator likely remains in Jiangnan."

"Dispatch investigators. Cultivators leave traces. Whether genuine Shushan disciple or impostor, bring them back."

The Extreme Demonic Hall was established by Zhongzhou's premier astrologer Goushengzi.

Now the paramount power replacing Mount Shushan was the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion.

Extreme Demonic Halls spread across Zhongzhou like Shushan's former branches,

though far less dominant.

"Capturing a Shushan disciple would make our fortunes!"

Years ago, Elder Kuaihuo's faction offered immense rewards for Shushan remnants.

This led many to falsely claim Shushan affiliation for profit.

Nearly all were frauds.

But capturing a genuine one offered rewards even Transformation Spirit cultivators would covet.