How did a demonic witch become the leader of the righteous path?

Two days later,

Yu Zhao and his group embarked on their journey to Famen Temple, with the monk Huizhen accompanying them.

Originally, Monk Huizhen did not plan to go with them; he only intended to send his disciple with Yu Zhao and the others. However, things are different now. Yu Zhao has become a Buddhist disciple, which changes her status.

This made it worthwhile for him to make a special trip to use his connections to help Yu Zhao gain more attention at Famen Temple.

Yu Zhao vaguely guessed what this guy was thinking. To be honest, she didn't really like this monk Huizhen. She always felt that there was something wrong with him, but she couldn't quite see through him.

Therefore, she subconsciously thought to keep her distance and avoid any future involvement. As a result, Yu Zhao felt quite resistant to the other party's attempts to get close.

But she couldn't say anything. Firstly, the other party was close to Qingxuan, and secondly, the other party was a Golden Core cultivator. She couldn't offend him for no reason just because she didn't like him.

So he could only reluctantly let the other person follow.

Famen Temple is a thousand miles away from Wujue Temple, but this distance is not a problem for Yu Zhao and her group. They can get there quickly if they travel at full speed. However, they are not in a hurry, so the group treats it as a sightseeing trip and does not rush to continue their journey.

To make the journey more comfortable, the monk Huizhen even brought out a flying boat, a kind of ritual implement that has no great function but is simply used as a means of transportation.

However, the flying boat has a large interior space, flies steadily, and is quite impressive, making it very popular among Golden Core cultivators.

Most Golden Core cultivators have similar modes of transportation, except for Qing Xuanqiong, who usually travels by flying on his sword.

At this moment, the two elder monks, Qingxuan and Huizhen, were sitting in the main hall of the flying boat, drinking tea, playing chess, and chatting, while the young monk Kongxiang stood aside serving them.

As for Yu Zhao and Shen Yunshu, they stood on the deck of the flying boat, looking at the scenery in the sky.

To be fair, the aerial scenery in this cultivation world is indeed more beautiful than the scenery in the ordinary world of Yu Zhao's previous life.

From time to time, you can see birds with colorful feathers chasing and playing in the air, and occasionally you can see rainbows flashing in the distance.

This was a rainbow created by other cultivators flying through the air; it had various colors and added a few splashes of color to the blue sky.

You can also see the precious light emanating from the spirit stone veins. However, these veins all have owners. The Western Regions are inherently barren, with few mineral veins. Every time a vein is created, it is divided up by various temples.

Yu Zhao could only watch enviously.

As the two women admired the beautiful scenery and chatted occasionally, a strange little bird, about the size of a sparrow, with fiery red feathers, flew in through the spiritual energy shield of the flying boat.

The floorboards that landed in front of Yu Zhao tilted their heads and looked at her, their small eyes revealing a human-like curiosity.

Upon seeing the little bird, Shen Yunshu was immediately delighted and carefully picked it up. "Wow! It's a firefly! It's so cute and well-behaved!"

The little bird seemed unafraid of people. It was held quietly in Shen Yunshu's hands, not making a sound. Instead, it tilted its head and looked at her with interest, chirping softly.

The adorable cry instantly captured Shen Yunshu's heart. She held the firefly in one hand and gently stroked it with a finger in the other.

"Is this a demon?" Yu Zhao asked curiously.

"No." Shen Yunshu shook her head, then explained to her, "The Fire Cloud Sparrow is a kind of spirit beast. They are relatively common spirit beasts. They are gentle in nature and have a pleasant call, so some cultivators or wealthy mortals like to keep them as pets."

Even without cultivation, adult Firebirds can reach the Foundation Establishment stage. However, most Firebirds are not good at fighting and are a bit silly. If they are attacked, they will come back to see who attacked them after a while.

Cultivators generally don't provoke them.

After all, who would be so bored as to kill such an adorable firebird?

Yu Zhao: "..." Got it, the silly deer of the cultivation world.

"So, what's the difference between a spirit beast and a demon?" she asked immediately.

Shen Yunshu was already used to her senior sister's lack of understanding of basic knowledge, so she patiently continued to explain while playing with the little sparrow.

"Spirit beasts are favored by heaven and earth. Killing them will bring karma. Most spirit beasts are gentle in nature. As long as you don't provoke them, they won't provoke cultivators on their own."

However, the way of heaven is fair. Spirit beasts are favored, but their cultivation is difficult. Most spirit beasts only have a little intelligence and live their lives in a daze.

In contrast to spirit beasts, most demon beasts are extremely violent and bloodthirsty by nature. Only demon beasts that have transformed into human form can suppress this violent emotion.

One theory suggests that spirit beasts are formed from the pure energy of heaven and earth, while demonic beasts are formed from the turbid energy of heaven and earth, thus their personalities are exactly opposite.

Yu Zhao, a "Nine Leaks in the Immortal Cultivation World," said she had learned some new knowledge. She reached out and gently touched the little guy. The little guy seemed to like Yu Zhao more. As soon as she touched him, he flew away from Shen Yunshu's hand and landed on Yu Zhao's shoulder.

It gently pecked Yu Zhao's face with its beak. Seeing this, Shen Yunshu was so cute that her eyes lit up. She cupped her hands in a heart shape and blinked her big eyes at Yu Zhao, "Senior Sister~"

She called out to Yu Zhao sweetly.

Yu Zhao naturally understood her little scheme, picked up the little guy and put it back in Shen Yunshu's hands, saying, "If you want to raise it, you'll be responsible for taking care of it. I won't interfere."

"Okay! I knew Senior Sister was the best!" Shen Yunshu returned a sweet smile, then held the little guy and spoke to him in a high-pitched voice, "Little guy, would you like me to be your master? If you don't say anything, I'll take that as a yes!"

Yu Zhao: "..."

This reminded her of the female college student she had seen in her past life who kidnapped a kitten.

It's the same approach.

"By the way, junior sister, what is a demon cultivator?"

"Demon cultivators are generally the term used to refer to demon beasts who have cultivated themselves. However, if other races cultivate demon techniques and consider themselves demons, they are also demon cultivators."

Therefore, the distinction between demon cultivators and cultivators lies in their cultivation philosophy, not in their race.

"Are there other races?"

"Of course there are." Shen Yunshu took out spirit rice from her storage ring to feed the bird, and continued, "In this world, besides humans and demons, there are also dragons, giants, and merfolk in the sea. These are the larger races."

There are also some smaller races, such as the Fire Spirit Clan, whose true form is said to be fire, and the Demigod Clan.

Oh, and there's another kind of being born from a human and a demon. These people are called half-demons. There are quite a few hybrid races like this in the world.

Some cultivators believe that children born from intermarriage between different races will possess the innate advantages shared by both races, while others believe that this is simply a mixture of human blood.

Therefore, people with bloodlines from other races are considered outsiders by pure-blooded humans.

What Shen Yunshu said struck Yu Zhao as fascinating; the world was far more complex and exciting than she had imagined.

"Then why haven't I seen cultivators of other races?"

Yu Zhao then asked.

Shen Yunshu replied with a smile, "That's because cultivators of any race can transform into human form. Unless you're a whole realm higher than them, you can't see through their true form."

Other races' cultivators capable of taking human form must be at least at the Golden Core stage, so unless they say so, the two of us naturally won't be able to see through it.

As soon as she finished speaking, Shen Yunshu knew what her senior sister was going to ask, so she spoke first:

"I guess you want to ask why we need to transform into human form. It's said that it's because we humans are born with spiritual bodies, and the human form is more conducive to comprehending the Dao. But the truth is something I can't know."

Although Shen Yunshu couldn't articulate anything deeper, Yu Zhao deduced a lot of information from her words.

For example, there are bound to be many cultivators of other races hidden in human territory, which shows that the relationship between humans and other races is not necessarily one of fighting to the death.

But she deduced that sooner or later this strange balance would be broken.

The contradiction arises because some people believe that only pure-blooded humans are truly human.

Thinking of this, Yu Zhao immediately worried about her future life, and she judged that the world would inevitably be in chaos.

There are too many contradictions. The world today is like a powder keg, just waiting for that one spark.

The conflict between good and evil, the conflict between races, the power struggle between major and minor sects, and even the conflict of interests between sects and independent cultivators.

Damn it, thinking about it like that suddenly makes me feel hopeless about life.

Yu Zhao longed for a peaceful life, ideally in a prosperous and peaceful era, so she could cultivate immortality in peace and strive to see the view from the top.

But it's clear that this world can't satisfy her, and this world is bound to be filled with bloodshed in the future.

Thinking of this, Yu Zhao couldn't help but reveal a kind of sadness in his eyes, a sadness for the helplessness of a small cultivator under the circumstances.

"Junior sister, you must cultivate diligently," Yu Zhao couldn't help but say with emotion.

This remark left Shen Yunshu somewhat bewildered. She didn't understand why her senior sister had changed the subject so quickly, but she still nodded obediently, "Senior sister is right, I will work hard!"

After saying that, she went back to playing with the little fire lark.

Looking at the carefree, silly grin of this little green tea girl, Yu Zhao shook her head, inwardly complaining that she was truly unambitious. So many days had passed, and her cultivation was still only at the eighth level of Qi Refining... Wait a minute! How did she reach the eighth level of Qi Refining?

Yu Zhao hadn't noticed before, but now, upon closer inspection, he realized that this little green tea had silently cultivated to the eighth level of Qi Refining.

She remembered that this guy had only reached the third level of Qi Refining just a few days ago. Goodness, you've cheated too?

The problem is that this little green tea didn't really put much effort into cultivation, so how did she even reach the eighth level of Qi Refining?

Yu Zhao was confused and deeply shocked, ultimately attributing it to the terrifying power of the chosen one.

Yu Zhao was discouraged and lost all interest in sightseeing. He decisively turned around and returned to the quiet room on the flying boat, intending to seize the time to cultivate.

But not long after, she lay down in the bronze coffin and fell asleep.

What a load of crap! Meditation and breathing exercises are less efficient than sleeping in a bronze coffin.

Yu Zhao was initially skeptical of the claim that the spiritual energy in the Western Regions was scarce, wondering how scarce it could be.

Now that I believe it, it is indeed very thin and full of impurities. Taking a sip feels like inhaling smog in a past life.

That's outrageous! Does the cultivation world also have smog?

……

The night was peaceful.

The next day, the flying boat arrived at the area where Famen Temple was located.

Famen Temple is located in a place called Prajna City in the Western Regions, but it is not in the city; it is on a mountain.

The mountain is called Mount Doruo, a very strange name.

Yu Zhao guessed that it probably came from Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi, but she was curious whether there was such a saying in this world.

She saw this Buddhist term in her previous life, and she's unsure if it exists in this world as well.

But that wasn't important, so she didn't ask the two monks.

The flying boat did not land directly on Mount Tarara, but instead landed outside Prajna City.

After the group stepped off the flying boat, Monk Huizhen spoke to Qingxuan, saying, "This Prajna City is a large city in the Western Regions. Junior sisters, you haven't seen it before. Let me show you around."

"It's all up to you, Senior Brother," Qingxuan replied politely. They were guests, so they should follow the host's lead.

After entering the city, Yu Zhao found it to be very lively, and he could see many cultivators from other places.

As for how to determine it?

Simply put, the local cultivators in the Western Regions are mainly monks. Those who are not monks are all independent cultivators, and independent cultivators have lower cultivation levels.

Foundation Establishment stage cultivators are rare. The spiritual energy in the Western Regions is problematic, making it difficult for cultivators other than Buddhist practitioners to achieve anything in the Western Regions.

In this Prajna City, Foundation Establishment cultivators were everywhere, and Yu Zhao even saw a few Golden Core cultivators.

These are naturally foreign cultivators.

But what are so many foreign cultivators doing in Prajna City in the Western Regions?

"Senior brother, is there some grand event taking place in Prajna City?"

Yu Zhao and her two elders were shopping together when Yu Zhao, one of the three younger members, asked the little monk Kong Xiang beside her a question out of curiosity.

Upon hearing this, the young monk Kongxiang raised his face, looking quite proud, and said, "There really is. The Ullambana Festival, which is held at Famen Temple every thirty years, is about to take place, which has attracted many cultivators from outside the Western Regions."

"Oh? What kind of grand event is this Ullambana Festival? Could you please tell me more about it, senior brother?"

"Of course." Yu Zhao's humble and polite demeanor pleased the young monk Kong Xiang greatly. He cleared his throat and said in a measured tone:

"This Ullambana Festival is one of the three major festivals in our Western Regions, and the only one that has caused a sensation throughout the world, because this festival is not just a festival for our Buddhist community."

This is also a grand event for the entire Dayan Empire. During this event, our Buddhist sect will pray for all sentient beings and send out invitations to talented individuals from all over the world to discuss the Dao and contribute to the prosperity of our human cultivators.

"Senior brother, tell me what benefits this grand event will bring to other cultivators."

Shen Yunshu was getting a little impatient with his roundabout way of speaking, so she couldn't help but urge him on.

Why say so much useless stuff? Does it make you seem like a Buddhist who saves all sentient beings?

She had never heard of the Ghost Festival before, and she was very curious about it.

"Junior Sister Shen is still so impatient. Don't rush me, I'm about to say something."

After comforting Shen Yunshu, the young monk Kongxiang finally got to the point:

"During the Ullambana Festival, cultivators under the age of thirty will compete in a tournament, and whoever wins the championship will receive a prize."

"Only age is restricted, not cultivation level?" Yu Zhao asked.

The young monk Kongxiang nodded. "That's right."

"What if someone reaches the Core Formation stage at this age? How will others fight them?"

"Junior sister is joking. How could anyone possibly form their core at the age of thirty?"

Yu Zhao: "..."

I feel like I'll be able to get married before I even turn thirty.