Old Refining Spirit

Inside the secluded courtyard on Luoxia Peak, the wind had stopped.

The nauseating smell of the sea and the stench of burning flesh in the air were completely burned away by Li Xuangeng's domineering and pure Samadhi Fire. In its place, the elegant fragrance of pre-rain Longjing tea rose gently from the teapot on the tea table.

Mu Wanjiao stood there blankly, staring at the spot on the ground where the third core disciple of the inner sect had scrambled and rolled away, and then at the white-robed blind Taoist priest in front of her, whose clothes were not even ruffled. Her mind went blank for a moment.

"Miss Mu, the tea is getting cold."

Li Xuangeng's gentle, warm voice rang out again, carrying a wonderful power to calm people's hearts.

Mu Wanjiao suddenly snapped back to her senses, her whole body trembling. She subconsciously put away the silver whip she usually used to show off, and like a little girl who had done something wrong and had been called out by the teacher, she walked stiffly and uneasily to the tea table and sat down in the armchair opposite Li Xuangeng.

Li Xuangeng lifted the purple clay teapot with fluid movements, and the tea, like a thin amber thread, steadily fell into the white porcelain teacup in front of Mu Wanjiao.

"Have some hot tea to calm your nerves." Li Xuangeng pushed the teacup forward.

Mu Wanjiao reached out to take it. In that instant of handing, her warm fingertips inadvertently touched Li Xuangeng's pale, slender fingers. The slightly cool touch from those fingertips, though devoid of any temperature, felt like a faint electric current, instantly striking Mu Wanjiao's heart.

The girl's heart suddenly raced, pounding like a drum, and she was unable to move for a long time. As if she had been electrocuted, she quickly withdrew her hand, a blush visibly spreading across her fair cheeks, even her glistening ear tips were tinged with a hot rouge color.

"I...I wasn't scared!" Mu Wanjiao hurriedly looked away, holding the slightly hot teacup, stammering as she tried to regain what little pride she had left. "Liu Ting, this...this disgusting monster, I usually find him disgusting, but...I just didn't expect you to..."

She secretly raised her eyelids, her gaze passing over the rising steam and landing on Li Xuangeng's profile.

His straight nose, his sharply defined jawline, and the mysterious three-finger-wide white ribbon covering his eyes... He was clearly a "useless rogue cultivator" without even a Heavenly Rank spiritual root, clearly a blind cripple, yet the oppressive aura emanating from him when he single-handedly crushed that terrifying tentacle—a feeling akin to a high-dimensional god looking down upon all living beings—was imprinted firmly in her mind.

That suffocating sense of security was something she had never experienced before, growing up in the eerie and predatory Xuantian Sect.

"I actually broke his arm, didn't I?" Li Xuangeng slowly sipped his tea, a gentle smile on his lips.

"You've gotten yourself into big trouble!" Mu Wanjiao finally remembered the important matter, slammed her hand on the table, and said anxiously in a low voice, "Liu Ting is the third senior brother of the inner sect, and his master is an elder of the Enforcement Hall! Although you are valued by Elder Qingxu, you openly injured someone here on Luoxia Peak. If the Enforcement Hall finds out, even if you have a 'Celestial Spirit Body,' you'll be in serious trouble!"

Li Xuangeng didn't reply. He just tilted his head and "looked" at Xiaoman, who was in the yard sweeping and fertilizing the old pine tree.

"Miss Mu, you are overthinking it." Li Xuangeng's voice was soft, yet carried an undeniable arrogance. "The Daoist sect has a saying: eliminate demons and protect the righteous path. What I killed was merely a deep-sea mutated octopus with a human face. How can it be considered 'harming a person'? In this Great Abyss Dynasty, humans are humans, and demons are demons. Even if a beast in human skin is killed, it is still considered acting on behalf of Heaven."

Mu Wanjiao was stunned.

She grew up in the Xuan Tian Sect from a young age. Her grandfather, Mu Tianxing, always taught her to uphold orthodox cultivation and not to touch those quick-fix "Great Abyss Immortal Techniques." However, the sect's overall situation was such that almost everyone was undergoing "Holy Blood Baptism" in pursuit of power, turning into monsters that were neither human nor ghost. Although she loathed it, she could only barely protect herself under her grandfather's protection, and even had to pretend to be arrogant to hide her inner fear.

But this white-clad man before them effortlessly tore through this facade of hypocrisy. He not only saw through the demons lurking in the room, but... he didn't even take these monsters seriously!

"Who...who exactly are you?" Mu Wanjiao murmured, her gaze towards Li Xuangeng unconsciously filled with a deep sense of admiration and inquiry.

"Just a wandering Taoist priest who knows a little bit about Taoist magic." Li Xuangeng smiled slightly.

He suddenly reached out and gently tapped Mu Wanjiao's forehead through the tea table.

Mu Wanjiao's body stiffened, and she felt an extremely pure and warm golden true energy flow from between her eyebrows into her limbs and bones. The stagnation in her meridians caused by Liu Ting's poisonous miasma was instantly swept away, and she felt completely comfortable.

"Miss Mu, your spiritual energy is very pure." Li Xuangeng withdrew his hand, his tone carrying a rare hint of admiration. "The heavens have pure energy, and the earth has impure energy. In this world of filth and mire, there are not many people who can maintain a clear mind and remain untainted by karmic obstacles. This is the foundation of cultivating the Great Dao."

This seemingly casual praise, coming from the mouth of a powerful individual who had just demonstrated his ability to deliver a devastating blow, was utterly destructive.

Mu Wanjiao felt a burning sensation in her heart, an indescribable throbbing gripping her soul. The sharp, prickly shell she had used to disguise herself was gently peeled away piece by piece under this man's tender gaze (though it was covered by a white silk veil).

She bit her lower lip, all her previous willfulness vanished, and her voice became as soft as cotton: "Then...then why did you agree to Elder Qingxu's request to participate in the 'Myriad Demon Secret Realm' baptism? My grandfather said that secret realm is not a blessed land at all; it's filled with monsters that failed to mutate throughout the ages! The sect leader opens it every ten years just to absorb the life essence of disciples like you with vigorous blood and energy! You...please don't go, okay? I'll have my grandfather find a way to secretly send you out of Qingzhou City!"

Seeing the undisguised worry in the girl's eyes, Li Xuangeng gently put down his teacup.

A faint, enigmatic, even morbidly fanatical smile slowly appeared on his gentle, compassionate face.

Secret Realm of Ten Thousand Demons?

Monsters that failed to mutate throughout history? A sect leader who devours the source of existence?

In Li Xuangeng's mind, these twelve words were automatically translated by the [Creation Furnace] into: a super original ecological luxury buffet restaurant that has stockpiled high-quality monster meat for over a hundred years and has been stewed to the perfect temperature!

He was craving the "ingredients" from that secret realm; his mouth was practically watering. What a delicious buffet that must be!