A fierce battle had just taken place here—an assault launched by the elders of the Youjian Sect who had rebelled against Youjian Immortal Lin Qiyou, with the latter emerging victorious.
The land was ravaged, littered with the bodies of other cultivators. The sight of ghastly wounds and shattered flesh bore silent witness to the brutality of this deadly conflict.
Lin Qiyou, dressed in white robes fluttering in the wind, slowly sheathed her sword. Her cold eyes swept across the desolate battlefield—these people no longer needed to feign kindness as they once had.
“Hoo…”
Lin Qiyou exhaled deeply, regulating the surging spiritual energy within her. At that moment, even the wind ceased.
“Are you alright, Qiyou?”
Qin Shuang, who had fought alongside Lin Qiyou, approached with a furrowed brow.
“What’s wrong?”
“I’m worried about Qin Feng. These people managing to find this place—does it mean Qin Feng has been exposed?”
Since the rebellion erupted within the Youjian Sect, Lin Qiyou and Qin Shuang had chosen to lie low here, allowing Lin Qiyou time to heal her injuries before dealing with the traitors.
Logically, only a handful of people knew of this location.
Yet somehow today, the rebels and their accomplices had discovered it, so Qin Shuang’s worry about Qin Feng was understandable.
Either Qin Feng had joined the rebels, or he had been captured and broken under torture, revealing secrets.
“Don’t rush. Let me think of a way. I won’t let anything happen to Qin Feng.”
For the rare time, Lin Qiyou showed a flicker of emotion, signaling Qin Shuang to rest easy.
“I… Qiyou, tell me—you’re not really conspiring with the demon race like those elders claim, are you?”
Qin Shuang’s question caught Lin Qiyou off guard, but she did not answer. Instead, she met Qin Shuang’s gaze with a calmness like still water.
After a moment, Qin Shuang sighed and said, “I understand.”
Later, Lin Qiyou sat alone in meditation inside the cave. A giant corpse mite crawled onto her robes and settled in her palm.
Lin Qiyou opened her eyes and raised her hand. Instantly, a mental voice echoed in her mind:
“Youjian Immortal, how are things now? Has the fox demon been found?”
Lin Qiyou: “Our pact has been exposed. The Youjian Sect is in rebellion. I need more time before I can go after the fox demon.”
“That’s truly unlucky. The fox demon has been nurtured at your side all these years. Just when you’re about to accomplish something big, she escapes!”
Lin Qiyou: “I will find her. After all, she is the key to reviving Qingmu.”
“Let’s hope so. You want to strip the fox demon down to revive Qingmu, while I only desire the knowledge sealed within Qingmu’s Qi Decision.”
Lin Qiyou: “I understand perfectly, Benji, the Demon King.”
Benji smiled and bade farewell as the corpse mite in Lin Qiyou’s palm disintegrated into dust.
…
……
“Click!”
A shattering sound rang by his ear as Benji, the Demon King, flying above the sky, fixed his attention on the earth below.
He sensed a familiar yet thrilling power here.
This power was called Qi.
Qi was not the spiritual energy used by cultivators, but a peculiar kind of aura. Benji knew of its existence because he possessed a tome titled Qi Decision.
Qi Decision was not unique to him. According to Youjian Immortal, her master also held a copy, but her sect had fallen into decline, her master had vanished, and that copy’s whereabouts were unknown.
Youjian Immortal had also said that although her master and the Qi Decision were missing, one person understood its mysteries—the deceased Qingmu.
It was said that missing persons were more useful than the dead. Searching for her master would be ideal, but fortunately, Benji possessed the means to bring the dead back to life.
This method was recorded within his own Qi Decision.
Therefore, Benji sought to ally with Youjian Immortal. The key to reviving Qingmu was a fox demon.
This fox demon had devoured Qingmu’s flesh and blood. Qingmu had practiced the Qi Decision, so coincidentally, the fox demon could be revived in a “certain” state.
All of this sounded complicated, but for the knowledge of the Qi Decision, Benji was willing to toil.
Yet today, he was able to sense the aura of the Qi Decision here?
Though faint, he could still detect it.
Like a spark landing on dry grass, it excited Benji like a wildfire blazing across the wilderness.
The aura of the Qi Decision was like a hook to the soul. His soul, a hungry fish, bit the hook and was drawn in.
From a distance, he spotted a mountain. The aura on the mountain wasn’t just Qi Decision, but also a strong demonic presence mixed with chaotic spiritual energy.
Descending slightly, Benji witnessed a battle.
A two-tailed fox demon was fighting several cultivators, and behind her stood a man emitting the very Qi Decision aura he had longed for.
Who was this man?
Lin Qiyou’s master?
Impossible. He sensed no spiritual energy from him at all.
Qingmu, Lin Qiyou’s lifeblood?
No chance. Qingmu’s bones had been completely crushed, and besides, there was no such thing as reincarnation in this world.
Then this man must be some reclusive master?
But it seemed both the reclusive master and the little fox demon he raised were in trouble.
At this, Benji decided to intervene.
His transformed appearance was that of a scholar dressed in black, radiating a shadowy aura but lacking aggression.
When he suddenly appeared before the fox demon and the cultivators, both sides froze.
“Who are you?”
The cultivators demanded, while the fox demon sniffed the air, sensing a kindred presence but remained silent.
“I am not human.”
Benji smiled coldly at the cultivators. With a wave of his hand, the earth broke open and corpse mites swarmed forth, overwhelming the cultivators who screamed in agony as they perished.
Their cultivation was shallow; Benji solved the problem with one move.
Turning his gaze back to the fox demon and the man, both were now on high alert.
“I am Benji, the Demon King. Who are you?”
Benji wore a friendly smile.
He took in the pair—a fox demon likely under a hundred years old, in her transformed form she was attractive, faintly exuding the aura of an ancient great demon, though her cultivation was also weak.
The man looked to be in his thirties, with no sign of cultivation talent and visibly hungry. Yet the Qi Decision aura around him grew ever clearer!
“Hmm…”
The fox demon was a little shocked by Benji’s power. She took two steps forward and stood protectively in front of the man.
“I’m here to help you. Don’t be alarmed.”
Benji stepped back two paces and asked again, “Who are you?”
With the fox demon’s support, the man stood and bowed to Benji, grateful:
“I am Qingmu. This is the fox demon, Nongli. Thank you, Demon King, for your rescue.”
“Qingmu.”
Benji repeated the name coolly, his face unreadable, but inside, a storm was raging.
Interesting…