Immortality and cultivation begin at age forty, starting with Foundation Establishment.

When Ye Hongyi arrived under the locust tree, she saw Chen An and Yu Peiyao embracing tightly.

She wasn't jealous or envious; she had always felt that this was how it should be.

The rest of the Demon Wolf Legion all felt that Chen An and Yu Peiyao were meant to be a couple, and no one would find it strange if they became Daoist partners.

After this incident, Ye Hongyi was even more glad that she had chosen Chen An, whose cautious nature made her feel at ease.

As for why Chen An brought Yu Peiyao along instead of her, she hadn't considered it; she felt that was just how it should be.

Ye Hongyi didn't think she was weaker than Chen An. If she encountered danger and needed Chen An to help her escape, she would feel resentful.

Based on the comparison on the battlefield, Chen An's overall strength was greater than Ye Hongyi's.

However, Ye Hongyi was not convinced. Chen An's strength relied on the magic weapon. If Ye Hongyi also had a suitable top-grade magic weapon, she would definitely be able to surpass Chen An.

Ye Hongyi wouldn't let Chen An help her find more powerful magical artifacts; she felt that she had to walk her own path of cultivation on her own.

She could reach a temporary consensus with Chen An, but if she really put all her eggs in one basket and asked him to provide her with top-quality magical artifacts, she would feel uncomfortable.

Just as Ye Hongyi did not want to rely on other Golden Core cultivators, what she wanted was to be treated equally and to be able to make her own decisions.

Because of her innate talent as a Heavenly Spiritual Root, Ye Hongyi has never been anxious about her cultivation level.

What others struggled to take, Ye Hongyi could easily overcome. While others prepared for Foundation Establishment for a month or several months, her cultivation reached a critical point and she would naturally break through.

Golden Core and Nascent Soul are luxuries for most people.

But for Ye Hongyi, it was a constraint on freedom; the Golden Core realm, which she was kept in captivity by others, was something she didn't want.

Ye Hongyi's mindset remained at the level of a rogue cultivator. Sometimes she even felt that the deceit and treachery of rogue cultivators were much better than the two-faced nature of sect cultivators.

Compared to the struggles between sect cultivators, the struggles between independent cultivators appear more honorable.

Rogue cultivators are nothing more than a group of people with lowly fates and meager blessings.

Chen An and Yu Peiyao are best at developing within the sect, acquiring more resources at a very low cost.

When Yu Peiyao released Chen An, she caught a glimpse of Ye Hongyi out of the corner of her eye. Her face immediately turned bright red. She wanted to explain, but didn't know how to say it.

Chen An also saw Ye Hongyi; the two simply smiled at each other without needing to speak.

Some things are better said at night.

"Let's go back to our base first. Uncle Chen has already gone to deal with that third-tier demonic beast. Our Demon Wolf Squad suffered heavy casualties this time, and we need to readjust our previous arrangements."

Seeing that Ye Hongyi didn't say anything, Yu Peiyao breathed a sigh of relief, but a sense of loss welled up inside her.

Why can't Chen An fall at her feet? As long as Chen An is willing, Yu Peiyao is willing to let Chen An form his core first, and then help her form her core.

On their way back to their base, the three of them traveled swiftly on their swords.

Chen An and Yu Peiyao received a lot of messages from the Song family, inquiring about information about third-tier demonic beasts.

Yu Peiyao said worriedly, "Oh no! Martial Aunt Chen went to find a third-tier demonic beast all by herself. She's someone the Song family is protecting. If anything happens to Martial Aunt Chen, we'll be in big trouble!"

Chen An frowned. He hadn't expected Chen Ying to be so foolish at this time, abandoning the Song family elders and going alone to hunt down a third-tier demon beast tainted by malevolent energy.

Logically speaking, a Golden Core cultivator at the early stage of the third rank could not possibly defeat a third-rank demon beast. If anything were to happen to Chen Ying, the Song family would definitely hold a grudge against her.

If the elders of the Song family cannot survive, Chen An and Yu Peiyao will probably not fare any better.

"Find Wang Rulong, give him my one-time use magic weapon, and let him take some people on a trip!" A sinister glint flashed in Chen An's eyes, then disappeared in an instant.

"But……"

Yu Peiyao trembled upon hearing this. She had no doubt about the correctness of Chen An's choice of Wang Rulong, even though Wang Rulong's strength seemed to be relatively low in the team.

In reality, if only a few people survive each dangerous battle, then Wang Rulong must be among those who survive.

Danger was always behind Wang Rulong.

Yu Peiyao hesitated for less than three seconds before agreeing to Chen An's decision. She would be responsible for contacting Wang Rulong to do ideological work, while Chen An and Ye Hongyi would be responsible for contacting the other Foundation Establishment cultivators.

As for Qi Refining disciples, they are not qualified to participate in battles involving Golden Core cultivators.

Upon receiving the message, the Foundation Establishment cultivators all looked troubled, as they had no other choice.

In particular, Wang Rulong, Zhu Fan, and Wu Feng, while receiving benefits from Chen An, also signed a contract with a short term.

If nothing happens within the contract period, they don't need to take any risks. But if there is danger within the contract period, they will definitely have to step up.

As the strongest Foundation Establishment cultivator besides Chen An and Ye Hongyi, Wu Feng agreed to Chen An's order without much hesitation.

Because Chen An told Wu Feng that as long as he could come back alive this time, Chen An would help him resolve the malevolent energy brought to him by the Ten Thousand Souls Banner and help him to completely and stably control the Ten Thousand Souls Banner.

Wu Feng might not believe what others said, but he had personally witnessed Chen An wielding the Myriad Souls Banner to control a Foundation Establishment Ghost, yet he remained completely unaffected by the banner.

Completely controlling the Myriad Soul Banner means that Wu Feng, in the early stages of Foundation Establishment, perfectly possesses power comparable to that of the late stages of Foundation Establishment, allowing him to acquire more resources and advance his cultivation more quickly.

Even if he loses an arm, he can still hope for a bright future.

Next is Wang Rulong. His favorability towards Chen An has remained around forty, neither decreasing nor increasing.

It wasn't that Wang Rulong harbored ill intentions towards Chen An; it was because he was indifferent to everyone, and a favorability rating of forty was already the highest level of courtesy he could show.

Of the three people who received the Foundation Establishment Pill from Chen An, Wang Rulong valued the spirit of the contract the most because he genuinely wanted to explore the path of the Golden Core and was full of hope for the future.

Therefore, Wang Rulong cannot break the contract.

Zhu Fan's expression was the most unpleasant. He had just entered the Foundation Establishment realm and hadn't even had a chance to enjoy his senior status before having to take a risk. He was extremely unwilling.

But how can we escape?

The other Foundation Establishment cultivators trained by the sects all wanted to escape, but they dared not.

One person escapes, and the whole family suffers.

More importantly, there's no way to escape.

Wu Feng raised the Myriad Soul Banner high and shouted, "Let's go!"

Wang Rulong was happy to see someone taking the lead.

Zhu Fan followed behind the two.

In order to ensure their survival, all the Foundation Establishment cultivators chose a captured demonic artifact, the Ten Thousand Soul Banner, which was originally the least popular, but now became the object of everyone's scramble.

Especially those Foundation Establishment cultivators, they wished they could control more Foundation Establishment Fiends than Wu Feng.

As long as I can survive, what does it matter if I go crazy?