You're just a single demon beast? I have a whole army of beast tamers!

The two were at similar levels in terms of their laws, both having reached the minor completion stage. The competition was about the thickness of their immortal spiritual power and the timing of its application.

Shui Chenyuan arrived first despite being behind, and three azure sword beams shot out from his sleeve, targeting Qiu Rang's head, chest, and abdomen.

Qiu Rang grabbed with one hand, and the law of earth solidified into a thick wall in front of him.

The sword's edge struck it, leaving only three white marks.

With his other hand, he pressed down, and the soil on both sides of the street seemed to be controlled by an invisible hand, transforming into hundreds of earth pythons that strangled the abyss.

Shui Chenyuan's expression remained unchanged as he moved swiftly through the earthen pythons, his body moving like a fish.

Each time he stepped on it, a patch of water would appear on the ground.

In just a few breaths, the water stains suddenly burst open at the same time, and countless tiny water needles shot out from below.

The earth python was pierced by the water needle and turned into large pieces of mud that fell down.

Qin Shou could see it clearly from inside the teahouse.

He leaned against the window, with the cup of tea that had gone cold beside him.

Shuiyao stood behind him, her face tense, but she still spoke defiantly:

"That old man is quite bold; he actually dared to make a move at the city gate."

"It's just a test," Qin Shou said in a low voice.

"A test?"

"Neither of them used any means outside the laws of nature, nor did they reveal a single immortal artifact," Qin Shou said. "It's less of a fight and more of a test of strength between them."

Shuiyao nodded, seemingly understanding but not quite.

Qin Shou offered no further explanation.

His gaze remained fixed on the two intersecting figures in mid-air.

Shui Chenyuan and Qiu Rang's laws were only at a minor level; they had only mastered the basic laws.

One is water, the other is earth; they fought for more than ten rounds, neither able to gain the upper hand.

However, in Qin Shou's view, this level of combat, apart from the reserve of immortal spiritual power, didn't offer much to offer.

"If I break through to the True Immortal realm, fill all six orifices with immortal spiritual power, and then combine multiple laws, facing this person shouldn't be a problem."

Qin Shou made a mental comparison and then withdrew his gaze.

Neither side revealed their true intentions.

The more Qiu Rang pressed, the less Shui Chenyuan could retreat, because there were five cultivators watching from the city, and if he retreated, he would never be able to hold his head up again.

The two exchanged another blow, each retreating more than ten feet.

Qiu Rang did not pursue them.

With a flick of his sleeve, he pressed all the overturned bluestone back to the ground, and said coldly:

"Shui Chenyuan, I'll ask you one more time, Shen Liuli, will you hand it over or not?"

Shui Chenyuan remained calm: "There's no one I can befriend."

"Alright." Qiu Rang nodded. "Since the Shui family is determined to protect Shen Liuli, they need to think carefully about the consequences."

He turned and stepped back onto the bone boat, giving Shui Chenyuan no further chance to explain.

The bone boat rose into the air and disappeared into the hazy sky in a few breaths.

The city gate was eerily quiet for a moment.

Shui Chenyuan stood still, gazing in the direction where the bone boat had disappeared. After a moment, he said, "Pack up and invite the other four families to a meeting."

After he finished speaking, he returned to his residence with two gray-robed elders.

The Shui family began cleaning the streets and repairing the city bricks affected by the laws.

Qin Shou also left the teahouse and took Shui Yao back to the villa.

Shui Yingyue was holding Qin Yan in the courtyard. When she saw him return, she hurriedly asked:

"Has something happened outside? I just heard a loud noise."

"A Mystic Immortal from the Myriad Demons Sect has arrived and exchanged a few blows with the Water Clan Chief at the city gate." Qin Shou sat down and gave a brief account of the events.

Shui Yingyue's face turned pale: "They won't break in, will they?"

"Not for now," Qin Shou said. "The five families are closely connected. If a war really breaks out, the Shui family won't be the only one to bear the brunt."

However, the Shui family cannot hand over Shen Liuli, and the Myriad Demons Profound Sect will not give up so easily.

When he mentioned the name "Shen Liuli," he couldn't help but feel a little uneasy.

Shen Liuli is now hiding in his Zhenyuan Immortal Mansion, and has even given birth to Qin Jiuqing for him.

The Shui family had no idea from beginning to end that the person they had been struggling to explain was actually living in a personal immortal abode of someone from another family.

The Shui family took the blame for Qin Shou's actions, and they did so very well.

"My lord, what will we do if the Shui family and the Myriad Demons Sect go to war?"

Shuiyao asked.

"Naturally, we'll stay and watch the show," Qin Shou said. "The five families won't fall easily. We just need to refine the pills well and mind our own business."

The three women exchanged a glance and nodded.

In the middle of the night, the Qin beast entered Zhenyuan Immortal Mansion.

Shen Liuli had prepared some spiritual fruits and was playing with Qin Jiuqing in the courtyard.

Upon seeing Qin Shou appear, Qin Jiuqing was the first to run over and grab his hem:

"Daddy, is it fun outside?"

"Today wasn't fun. I'll take you to see the fish at the Spirit Spring another day."

Qin Shou picked her up and walked to Shen Liuli.

Shen Liuli asked, "What happened at the city gate during the day, was it related to you?"

"A Mystic Immortal has arrived from the Myriad Demons Sect, forcing the Shui family to hand over to you."

Qin Shou briefly recounted the battle between Qiu Rang and Shui Chenyuan.

After listening, a cold smile appeared on Shen Liuli's lips:

"When I sought refuge with the Shui family, they took me in, not out of consideration for the old relationship with the Shen family."

They only covet my bloodline and want to use me to bear offspring with the Wood Spirit bloodline.

Now that the Demonic Sect has come knocking, the Shui family is stubbornly insisting that I'm not here.

That's ridiculous.

"They really can't produce you right now."

Qin Shou said, "They're going to take the blame for this."

Shen Liuli chuckled softly, a rare hint of joy appearing in her eyes:

"That's good. Let them know that some advantages aren't so easy to take."

"If a real fight breaks out, the Shui family might not necessarily lose."

Qin Shou put Qin Jiuqing down and let her play by herself, saying, "The five families will join forces."

No matter how powerful the Myriad Demons Sect is, it is unwilling to fight to the death against five Myriad Immortal Clans at the same time.

This battle will likely drag on for a long time.

"The longer it drags on, the better it will be for you," Shen Liuli said.

"That's right," Qin Shou said. "I need time."

"At the grand alchemy gathering twenty years from now, if one can break through to True Immortal before then, many things will have more room for maneuver."

Shen Liuli nodded and then asked about the situation at Wanxiang Pavilion today.

Qin Shou recounted the story of selling pills, tokens, and the shopkeeper's promise of the Nine Souls Immortal Pill.

After listening, Shen Liuli pondered for a moment and said:

"If there is indeed a Golden Immortal power behind the Myriad Manifestations Pavilion, they might be able to help you find the Nine Aperture Spiritual Soil."

However, these kinds of people don't help for no reason.

"They want elixirs with four or more runes."

Qin Shou said, "After some time, I plan to take a few Five-Line Patterns to try."

Shen Liuli pondered for a moment and said:

"A first-grade immortal pill with five patterns is almost never seen in Wucang Immortal City."

Once you bring it out, the other party will definitely value you more.

But at the same time, they'll be even more eager to poach you from the Shui family.

"Then let them think about it."

Qin Shou said, "Whether it's the Shui family or the forces behind the Myriad Manifestations Pavilion, they all just want me to refine pills for them. I won't really side with either of them."

Shen Liuli gave him a deep look, but said nothing more.

As Qin Shou had predicted, things went exactly as they had in the days that followed.

After Qiu Rang returned, the Myriad Demons Sect began to target the Shui family's herb gardens and mines outside.

First, three small mines on the western edge of the region were destroyed, resulting in heavy casualties among the monks guarding them.

Then a medium-sized medicinal herb garden to the north was burned down, and hundreds of medicinal plants in the garden were uprooted and taken away.

When the True Immortals sent by the Shui family to provide reinforcements arrived, they only saw scorched earth and a few mutilated corpses.