Outside the White Bone Cave on Skull Mountain, beyond the market. A streak of escaping light concealed itself within the mountain forest, revealing three figures. Two of them were Wu Zhichong and Duanmu Yuan, who had previously attacked the market only to flee back in disgrace.
The third person was an old man with a full head of white hair.
"Elder Ouyang."
Wu Zhichong spoke cautiously, afraid that this elder at the Perfection of the Qi Refining Realm before him might do something irrational. Ahead of them lay a dragon's lair and a tiger's den.
"Rest assured, I know what's important."
Ouyang Feng's expression was stern. Although his eyes were filled with bone-deep hatred as he looked toward the market, his tone was exceedingly calm, without the slightest ripple.
"That Demon is a Ninth-Grade Formation Master. He has laid down an inner and an outer formation in this market, which are not something an ordinary person can break. It's no wonder he has been able to remain at large until now and even build up a reputation as the so-called 'Blood-Robed Pavilion Master'. However, he is not truly at the Perfection of the Qi Refining Realm. In the end, his foundation is a castle in the air."
"But Elder Ouyang, the Supreme Firmament Mirror also fell into that person's hands."
Wu Zhichong quickly chimed in, then said in a low voice, "The Supreme Firmament Mirror is mysterious and unpredictable. If that Demon can control it, I'm afraid he would be no weaker than someone at the Perfection of the Qi Refining Realm."
"I have naturally considered this matter as well."
Ouyang Feng sneered, "The Supreme Firmament Mirror is, after all, a Spiritual Treasure of my Divine Martial Sect. How could it be used by a mere Demon just because he has it? If he dares to use it, so much the better!"
"I have already invited Master Yang Yezhi, who originally refined the Supreme Firmament Mirror. He is also furious that the mirror has fallen into the hands of a Demon and has agreed to come to Skull Mountain to reclaim the Spiritual Treasure and set things right. With him here, if that Demon dares to use the Supreme Firmament Mirror to fight me, he will be courting his own death."
Although Ouyang Feng was enraged, he had not lost his reason. Moreover, with Ouyang Haoze's failure as a cautionary tale, it was impossible for him to charge into the formation again. After much thought, he decided it was better to lure Lu Yang out of the formation.
"When does this person usually leave the market?"
"Uh..."
Faced with Ouyang Feng's question, Wu Zhichong and Duanmu Yuan looked at each other, rendered speechless. Seeing this, Ouyang Feng immediately frowned and said with displeasure, "Haven't you two been staking out the market for a long time? How can you not even know such a small detail?"
"Reporting to the elder, this person has not left the market a single time to this day."
"... He hasn't?"
Ouyang Feng was taken aback.
"Did you not pass the news of the Witch Ghost Secret Realm into the market? Does he not know that Skull Mountain is currently teeming with opportunities?"
The two looked aggrieved.
"We passed it on long ago."
"Then is it because the reinforcements from the Primordial Saint Demonic Sect haven't arrived, and the demonic path is weak, so he doesn't dare to leave?"
"In fact, the Demonic Sect's reinforcements arrived three months ago and have been very active on Skull Mountain. But this person alone has not left from beginning to end."
"What?"
After hearing the report, Ouyang Feng finally revealed a look of bewilderment.
"I won't be going out."
Inside the Blood-Robed Pavilion, Lu Yang and Fairy Feixia sat opposite each other. While politely declining Fairy Feixia's invitation, he handed her a cup of spiritual tea.
"Junior Brother, you really are..."
Fairy Feixia looked at Lu Yang, her beautiful face suddenly in a bit of a daze. Once upon a time, she had been endlessly disappointed by this junior brother's cowardice, but it was he who, by taking one careful step at a time, had built the formidable reputation of the Blood-Robed Pavilion Master.
One must know that every cultivator is contending with the heavens for their destiny. One slow step, and the result is death when one's lifespan runs out. Even with the so-called reincarnation, firstly, one might not have the fortune to walk the Immortal Path after being reincarnated, and secondly, one might not be oneself after reincarnation.
Therefore, it was difficult to rely on. But seeing him again this time, Lu Yang was just as he had always been. Indifferent, serene, as if nothing in the world mattered to him.
Such a temperament, rare to find among cultivators, suddenly brought a phrase to Fairy Feixia's mind: Water benefits all things yet does not contend, thus nothing in the world can contend with it. But in this life, if you do not contend, how can you seek the Dao? The next life?
Thinking of this, Fairy Feixia could not help but sigh.
"... I am ashamed. I'm afraid I will never reach Junior Brother's sublime state of mind in my entire life."
"Senior Sister overpraises me."
Lu Yang smiled faintly.
"Didn't we agree before you came? This time, we will not discuss major affairs, only the Dao. I will teach Senior Sister formations, and Senior Sister will teach me talisman arts."
"I will naturally teach you everything I know."
Fairy Feixia's vermilion lips pursed slightly. Her fair hand lifted her veil, revealing a peerless face that could topple nations. Beneath her thin rosy gown, mountains rose high and her hips curved like the moon.
Even her voice unconsciously became gentle and soft.
"Speaking of which, I have yet to thank Junior Brother for saving my life before..."
The next day, late in the morning. Within the market, a downcast-looking young man was pacing in his cave residence, his face a mask of struggle. It was none other than Lu Yang's old friend, Zhao Xuhe.
"How could it be like this? How could it be?"
At this moment, Zhao Xuhe had reached the peak of desperation.
"The news of the Witch Ghost Secret Realm is known to everyone now. If I don't make a move soon, I'll lose my chance!"
As he thought this, Zhao Xuhe's aura suddenly erupted. He was no longer at the sixth level of Qi Refining as he was when he first arrived at the market, but had broken through to the seventh level of Qi Refining, the late stage.
It was precisely because he had broken through a bottleneck that had troubled him for years that he had the idea to venture into the secret realm and gamble for an opportunity. But having the idea did not mean he had the strength.
Without the opportunities from Coiling Dragon Island, he could only cultivate the Yin-Yang Great Pleasure Ode from Heaven Mending Peak. His True Qi was merely fifth-grade, and his divine abilities and magical artifacts were all inferior. Under these circumstances, trying to contend for opportunities was simply courting death.
After much thought, Zhao Xuhe finally gritted his steel teeth and took out a jade slip that had been sealed in dust for a long time. He infused it with magical power to contact that person he had not seen in a long time. A halo of light spread from the jade slip.
After a long while, a voice came through.
"Who is it?"
The voice was tinged with laziness and a hint of dryness, but it made Zhao Xuhe feel exceptionally nostalgic. He could not help but whisper, "Feixia... It's me, Xuhe."
That's right, he and Fairy Feixia had a past. However, to say they had a past was really just to say they were once acquaintances. But after he was chosen by the Heaven Mending Peak Master to be his son-in-law, he had cut off contact with her to avoid suspicion.
He had thought their paths would never cross again, never imagining that he would now be asking for her help. Zhao Xuhe clenched his jaw and said in a low voice, "Feixia, I want to ask you for a favor. My Path of the Dao is now hopeless, and I plan to leave the market to make one last gamble."
He knew that Fairy Feixia most admired the act of burning one's bridges for the sake of seeking the Dao. So only by saying this could he move her.
"But I have no contribution points now, and I can't afford to buy magical artifacts and divine abilities. In this situation, even if I have the heart to burn my bridges, I'm afraid I will only be sending myself to my death."
"So... so... for the sake of our past connection, lend me some..."
As he spoke, memories of his past with Fairy Feixia surfaced in Zhao Xuhe's mind, and an indescribable hope began to sprout in his heart. However, in the next second, a basin of cold water was poured over him.
"Sorry, I don't know what you're talking about."
The gentle voice, which had been full of warmth, instantly turned ice-cold and indifferent.
"Also, please don't contact me again in the future."
"I am currently discussing the Dao with Junior Brother Lu, and I don't want him to misunderstand."
Crack!
In the next moment, the jade slip shattered. Zhao Xuhe stood there dumbfounded, unable to recover for a long time. Only after a long while did his face gradually contort, and a roar of fury escaped from between his teeth: "No—!!!"