I saved the entire sect by playing idly by letting things fall apart.

The sudden turn of events, with the thunderbolt heading towards Ye Qiao's side, was nothing short of a ghost story to Meng Liu.

He almost cursed aloud, then ran away without looking back, trying to get away from Ye Qiao and escape the eye of the storm. Seeing him abandon her and run off, Ye Qiao quickly chased after him, smiling sweetly, "Don't run away! What will I do if you run away?"

"Then you'd better explain to me clearly what's going on." Meng Liu's face turned pale, and he ran even faster. The two of them, one in front of the other, ran against a group of demons, seemingly oblivious to everyone else, in a race of speed.

Meng Liu, relying on his higher cultivation level than Ye Qiao, took the lead. Ye Qiao, who had a KFC to ride, quickly caught up with him.

Upon witnessing this scene, someone immediately wore an expression that seemed to say, "Sure enough, Ye Qiao is your old flame, Meng Liu!!"

"Meng Liu! You actually betrayed us for Ye Qiao of the Changming Sect."

"What? Is the righteous path so desirable to you?" someone mocked. "Even when a fish comes ashore, it still smells fishy. Even if you elope with Ye Qiao, do you think the righteous path will accept you?"

These people have such vivid imaginations that Meng Liu, who was running away, almost fell to the ground. Damn it, who would choose to be with Ye Qiao if they thought they were short of life?

Meng Liu and Ye Qiao escaped together, which further solidified the demons' belief that he had already joined the righteous path.

In an instant, the wave of pursuit against them intensified.

Meng Liu excels at assassination and intervention; his role in the team is roughly equivalent to a support/assassin.

The bell in his hand suddenly jingled, and the eerie tone made everyone pause for a few seconds. Before anyone could see it, Jun flipped it over in his palm, and several magic arrays rose up from the three petals.

All the demonic cultivators centered around him were instantly killed in three moves.

Meng Liu wiped away the bloodstains expressionlessly.

That's fucking ridiculous. If he had known that this person was Ye Qiao from the Changming Sect, he would never have come over even if you killed him.

Ye Qiao touched her face and, shamelessly, whispered, "I didn't expect my charm in the Demon Clan to remain so strong." She thought that after so much time had passed, the Demon Clan's hatred would have lessened.

Meng Liu had never seen anyone more shameless than her. The young man tilted his head and gave her a sinister look. "Because no one else is as hateful as you."

Even the number one righteous sect in the demon realm wouldn't cause such a commotion.

Caught between a rock and a hard place, Meng Liu licked his lips. He couldn't seem to kill them all, and the scene before him was making him increasingly frustrated. "What should I do?"

Ye Qiao pointed to the only deserted spot, "Look, do you see those four Nascent Soul cultivators who are about to break through to the Divine Transformation stage? If we go near them, no one will dare to come near."

"If you don't want to get ganged up on, that's the only safe place," she urged him as he continued to dawdle.

Seeing the wave after wave of attacks behind him, Meng Liu gritted his teeth and had no choice but to listen to her, quickly running towards the location of the four demons.

Just then, an unexpected change occurred.

He had just run over when the space beneath his feet was suddenly blocked. As he tried to take another step forward, a massive demonic aura slammed into his abdomen, piercing through his left shoulder and sending him flying backward to the ground.

Meng Liu's expression darkened slightly. He feigned fear and looked up. The black boots, the elaborate clothing, and the distinctive pattern on the hem made him immediately recognize the person who had stopped him.

The man seemed pleased with Meng Liu's surprised expression. He waved his hand, and a powerful suction force forcibly pulled Bu Jianjun away. Meng Liu tried to snatch him, but the next second he was forcefully pressed to the spot by the oppressive aura.

The sudden difference in their strength brought him to his senses. Meng Liu calmly clenched his empty palms, suppressing his resentment. "You're His Majesty's protector?"

Judging from his attire, he should be one of the Demon Lord's left and right protectors.

The Left Protector remained noncommittal, his gaze fixed on Meng Liu with considerable interest as he held the hand of Bujianjun.

He hadn't made a move mainly because he wanted to see the effects of the Unseen Ruler, but the effects Meng Liu produced clearly exceeded his expectations.

"I didn't expect you to be interested in the Half-Immortal Flower." His expression remained relatively calm, but his body was already reflexively on high alert. Meng Liu hadn't had much interaction with the two protectors, so the appearance of a quasi-God of Transformation was truly unexpected.

Those who want the Half-Immortal Flower are those whose cultivation level is unstable. A strong person at the Quasi-God Transformation Realm has a stable cultivation level and has no need to take the Half-Immortal Flower, which can improve cultivation but has side effects.

"I have no interest in the Half-Immortal Flower. I'm here for this sword." The Left Protector twirled the seemingly ordinary staff in his hand, admiring it for a moment before clicking his tongue in amazement: "So this is the Demon Lord's sword?"

Those who want the Half-Immortal Flower are a bunch of useless trash; of course, he doesn't need it. He came here because of the Demon Lord's sword.

An elder who was present at the time witnessed the appearance of the Demon Lord's Sword. Upon hearing the news, the Left Protector rushed to Mengliu Palace, hoping to intercept it, but ended up empty-handed.

Finding Meng Liu wasn't difficult, but what surprised the Left Protector was that Meng Liu was actually with Ye Qiao.

The young master of the demon race eloped with a genius from the righteous path for love; that would be a scene straight out of a storybook.

Meng Liu had no idea what he was imagining. He could clearly sense that the Left Protector's eyes were gradually turning cold. He was so nervous that his palms were sweating. His cultivation was at the peak of the Nascent Soul stage. In theory, he had been working his way up step by step. He was only one realm away from the Quasi-God Transformation stage. But in the cultivation world, a difference of one realm was like heaven and earth.

Moreover, as far as he knew, the higher-ups of the Demon Clan hated traitors. Meng Liu was in a terrible predicament. No one had told him that these people were disciples of the righteous path. Now they were directly identified as traitors and had boarded Ye Qiao's pirate ship. Meng Liu thought that even if he wanted to get off, he would not be able to. He could only go all the way down the dark path.

"Meng Liu, do you know how the Demon Clan deals with traitors?" The Left Protector looked at him with disdain.

Meng Liu spoke calmly, "I can actually explain it."

The Left Protector's lips curled down, his tone chilling: "Explain? That Ye Qiao already gave you her natal sword, what else do you want to explain?" The importance of a natal sword to a sword cultivator is self-evident.

As a result, Ye Qiao was able to use Meng Liu, and the two were still together. What else could this be but an elopement for love?

Meng Liu: "..." Damn it.

Thinking he had caught Meng Liu red-handed, the Left Protector waved his hand, "Go to hell in peace. It's better to leave this spirit sword with me." He figured the Demon Lord would reward him once he brought the sword back.

Meng Liu clutched the bleeding wound on his left shoulder, couldn't help but grin, and popped a pill into his mouth to stop the bleeding. "How come I never noticed before? You really are the Demon Lord's good dog."

Meng Liu felt that the Demon Lord might not really want this spirit sword. A spirit sword that betrayed its master would be a headache even if he got his hands on it. But there were always people eager to curry favor with him. The Demon Lord was not someone to be trifled with, and Ye Qiao's things could not be taken away so easily.

The Left Protector's eyes almost turned cold. "Who gave you the audacity to speak to me like that, you mere Nascent Soul cultivator?"

The overwhelming pressure of the Nascent Soul stage cultivator tilted sharply, shattering Meng Liu's kneecaps, who was already kneeling on the ground.

"If you can't find me, come out and help me."

A black sword spirit emerged from the sword. He felt no pressure and was stunned for a long time when he saw his true form being held in the hands of such an ugly demon.

"I don't see Jun covering his eyes, looking arrogant. 'Ugly in a very creative way, isn't it? Meng Liu. I hereby appoint you as General Crow. Quickly, kill this ugly monster!'"

Meng Liu: "...Thank you."

He took out the defensive magic artifacts he could use, figuring he'd hold out for as long as possible. Meng Liu glanced at Ye Qiao in between glances.

What is Ye Qiao doing at this moment?

She tirelessly used words to provoke the four cultivators who were about to reach the Nascent Soul stage, trying to make their tribulations even more intense.

The four demons, facing the sudden tribulation of lightning, also turned pale, thinking they were doomed. The moment the first lightning bolt struck, they were already prepared to be reduced to ashes.

Who would have thought the thunderbolt would take such a wrong turn!

He slashed straight down at Ye Qiao.

As things took an unexpected turn, the four gradually discovered that as long as Ye Qiao remained within a certain area, the lightning tribulation would not only target them, but would most likely also seek out Ye Qiao.

In other words, as long as Ye Qiao is captured and used to shield them from the lightning tribulation, they can both successfully reach the Nascent Soul stage and survive, achieving two goals at once.

"Then killing her wouldn't be a problem, would it? We could just dig out her spiritual root and offer it to the Demon Lord."

The lightning strikes are targeting her spiritual root, not Ye Qiao herself. So even if the spiritual root is dug out, her corpse can still be used as a lightning tribulation.

They had planned it all out perfectly, as if they could already see a future where they could kill three birds with one stone. Faced with the four men's murderous intent, she twitched her lips, "Could you please not say things like that in front of me?"

—If the four of them could have a next time.

"Quick!" Taking advantage of the fact that the second lightning tribulation was still brewing, the four of them immediately attacked her without hesitation.

"Kill her."

Without warning, she stepped on the person's head to gain momentum, then swung her sword down with a backhand strike. The sword energy materialized into a roaring wind beast that tore the person in two.

The light purple sword wind became a deadly weapon.

Ye Qiao left him a chance, because it's hard to find someone at the peak of the Nascent Soul stage these days. If these three Nascent Soul peak cultivators aren't enough for the tribulation lightning, she won't be able to find a fourth.

He cursed, "Damn Ye Qiao! You little bitch."

As expected, he can't speak human language. Ye Qiao narrowed her eyes and punched him on the head, then lifted the man up and shoved his head into the ground like a rice seedling.

It's better for demons to stay quiet.

Knowing they were weak, they didn't expect them to be this weak. The three demonic cultivators, who were about to reach the Divine Transformation stage, exchanged glances and chose to join forces. The trouble with their innate lightning-attracting physique was that they were at their weakest when struck by lightning, which was also the easiest opportunity for the enemy to take advantage of them.

"Capture her. Finish her off right here under the heavenly lightning." A half-step Nascent Soul cultivator coldly curled his lip.

One person can take on three half-step Nascent Soul cultivators. Even if the Demon Clan's foundation is weak, they are still three cultivators who are close to Nascent Soul.

The moment Ye Qiao was surrounded by the three, dark clouds rolled across the sky, and the four lightning bolts that were originally in different locations no longer split into four parts, but instead all became one and struck down towards Ye Qiao.

At first glance, it looks at least the size of three silver dragons. If it were to fall, someone would die, right?

Ye Qiao tried to dodge, but the precognitive inheritance within her body told her that she couldn't avoid it, and there was no way to escape this tribulation of lightning.

When there is no way to avoid it, we can only face it head-on.

"Sure enough, she ignores us as soon as the tribulation begins." Someone exclaimed in delight.

"Indeed." The man nodded. "The question is, was that our tribulation lightning, or hers?"

That's a good question. The three of them fell silent in unison. They glanced at their kin who had been impaled in the ground by Ye Qiao, and in unison chose to ignore them. The trash who had been killed by Ye Qiao in three moves did not deserve their rescue.

Taking advantage of this lull, they launched several bombing raids.

"I'll give it a try." Even under the lightning tribulation, one can launch a sneak attack. He took out a long sword and flew towards her. The next second, accompanied by the hum of the long sword, it collided with Ye Qiao's Jinghong Sword and shattered instantly under the weight!

Under the tribulation of lightning, magical artifacts can only be destroyed.

Ye Qiao was surprised that they still had the audacity to come looking for trouble. She narrowed her eyes and said, "Grab him."

The Frost Sword silently emitted frost from who-knows-where, freezing his legs and causing him to open his eyes wide in horror.

The combined lightning strikes sent the demonic cultivator flying more than ten meters away. The demon was enveloped and melted by an unknown ball of light and electricity, leaving a deep crater in the ground and scorched marks all around.

No grass grows.

Ye Qiao coughed twice. The four Nascent Soul lightning tribulations, coupled with the deliberate targeting by the Heavenly Dao, made the attack incredibly powerful. She took a moment to observe her spiritual root. Compared to the previous spiritual root, which was so weak that it was almost undetectable, it had grown up and was well-nourished. Ye Qiao tentatively wanted to see if she could break through to the mid-stage of the Nascent Soul realm first.

She didn't ask for much; she just wanted to be on par with her fellow students.

The previously saturated spiritual energy began to circulate again, and Ye Qiao felt a slight sense of relief, which meant that she could break through to the early stage of the Nascent Soul realm.

She was aiming for the Nascent Soul stage. Ye Qiao wasn't lacking in spiritual energy; she had already accumulated enough for the Nascent Soul stage in one go during the South China Sea event. So why not try a few more times?

After being struck by lightning, she sat up as if nothing had happened and pondered the question of cultivation. The other demonic cultivator's soul, left behind by the frost, seemed to have been struck away and crawled away shakily.

"He's still alive?"

Fei Xian explained gently, "He has something that can save his life."

A cultivator who has lived this long must have some trump cards. She was overjoyed, "It's so good that I didn't die." Every time one of her mobile batteries dies, she loses one. It would be best if all four were together.

Noticing Ye Qiao's inexplicably happy mood, all three Nascent Soul cultivators were watching her closely.

"We'll make our move when she's being struck by lightning." He realized that Ye Qiao was easiest to deal with when she was struck by lightning; otherwise, there was no way to find a way to attack her.

Ye Qiao's body was numb from the second strike. By the time she recovered, the other three Nascent Soul cultivators had also finished preparing, and three neat blades slashed toward her neck. The third bolt of heavenly lightning arrived as expected.

Ye Qiao thought the three of them would dodge, but to her surprise, they chose to withstand the third lightning tribulation head-on. The bright lightning tribulation light intensified violently, and without a doubt, this one was aimed at her alone. Ye Qiao kicked down one of the demons and drew her Flying Immortal Sword.

The scorching white light suddenly refracted, and the demonic cultivators touched by the light visibly weakened. Seizing the opportunity, she grabbed one with each hand and, mimicking the force Elder Duan used to use when he bumped into her and Mu Chongxi, slammed them together mercilessly.

She was clearly more than capable of defeating three near-Nascent Soul cultivators under the lightning tribulation. Even with a Nascent Soul lightning tribulation, one's realm is only truly stabilized after the tribulation ends. In other words, the four of them weren't even half-Nascent Soul cultivators; they were just a group of Nascent Soul cultivators with weak cultivation.

There's always someone stronger than you; she's invincible at the same level.

After knocking three people down in a row, the third blow struck hard on his back.

As the lightning tribulation struck, Ye Qiao did not forget to take out the Jinghong Sword to temper it.

Of all the swords, the Jinghong Sword best matches her attributes, and it is likely to be the next sword spirit to take human form.

She hadn't been training for long when her consciousness suddenly trembled slightly. Sensing that Bujianjun had been scattered back into its sheath, Ye Qiao realized that something might have happened to Meng Liu.

……

Ye Qiao's solo fight against four half-step Nascent Soul cultivators caused quite a stir; even the Left Protector's divine sense detected the situation. He looked down on most people below the Nascent Soul stage, but that didn't stop him from being astonished: "Are cultivators really this abnormal?"

He fought four opponents single-handedly under the lightning tribulation and won easily.

Meng Liu clicked her tongue, thinking, "Is she the one who's abnormal?"

How could a normal person be struck by lightning while simultaneously beating up four half-step Nascent Soul cultivators?

Wow, four in a row!

Both of them were distracted by observing Ye Qiao's battle. Getting back to the main point, Meng Liu could only struggle desperately throughout his fight against the Nascent Soul cultivator.

Under the relentless pressure from the Left Protector, he lowered his head, twirled the knife in his hand, and suddenly shook the bell. Taking advantage of the Left Protector's momentary lapse in attention, the broken blade, inlaid with red spirit stones, silently pierced into his neck. Covered in his demonic energy, it would be a serious injury even if it didn't kill him.

Meng Liu's act of resistance further enraged the Left Protector. He sneered and shook off the broken blade, his eyebrows furrowed in a menacing manner. His figure disappeared and reappeared in front of Meng Liu the next second. "How dare you resist me!" He grabbed him with a force that seemed capable of crushing his throat.

Meng Liu's face gradually turned pale.

Several dark shadows appeared out of thin air and silently entangled him. The Unseen Ruler's ability could control everyone present for a short time, but it was extremely taxing with a large number of people. The boy whispered, "Meng Liu. Kick him in the groin. Quickly!"

Meng Liu immediately and precisely kicked the opponent's sensitive area, then did a backflip after getting away, landing panting. He met the Left Protector's murderous gaze, and his face paled.

"It's alright." Just as the Left Protector was about to make his next move, his wrist was bound by silk threads. He didn't expect that Bujianjun would be so protective of his master. He frowned, dodged the several silk threads filled with killing intent, and mercilessly struck Bujianjun away with a palm strike. "You will soon understand that the laws of the righteous path are not suitable for you."

The injured Left Protector was caught in the turbulent flow of energy, and Meng Liu bore the brunt of his rage. His body was slashed and bloodied, and blood flowed uncontrollably from the corner of his mouth.

Indeed, no man can tolerate that area being attacked.

Meng Liu's face was pale. He had done all he could to delay, and now he could only do his best and leave the rest to fate. Ye Qiao had just finished fighting four half-step Nascent Soul cultivators, and now she was encountering a Quasi-Nascent Soul cultivator. This kind of bad luck was just unbelievable.

"Make way!" Just then, an indistinguishable male or female voice rushed over, and the Shadow Sword wailed as it slashed through the air in a sharp arc, separating the two.

The pale purple spirit sword sliced ​​through the barrier and plunged into the ground without warning, moving so fast that it was difficult to catch. By the time the Left Protector could see what it was, the sword was already in front of him.

"Aww, you're really not gentle at all, Qiaoqiao!" The Shadow Sword dragged a light purple arc, howling as it teleported to the left protector's front, hurriedly preventing Meng Liu from having his neck snapped.

The pale purple sword shadow moved with the speed of the wind, swiftly piercing through the barrier he had erected. As a sword without a spirit body, Shadow Strike naturally wasn't afraid of a Nascent Soul cultivator.

Three spirit swords twirled effortlessly in her hands. Ye Qiao smiled, "Want to continue?"

After learning about the personality of the sword spirit, Shadowfall, she lost all compassion. Such speed was too good to be wasted on throwing darts. A sword that had gained sentience would even return on its own after being thrown.

Ye Qiao is indeed a genius in weapon crafting in a certain sense; she can throw a spirit sword around in a variety of ways.

She used the Shadow Sword as a hidden weapon the whole time, hitting the target every time.

One is a swift glimpse, the other a fleeting shadow. One is used to attract and avoid lightning, the other is used as a hidden weapon. That's not how you use a spirit sword, you know.

Mu Lizhong commented frankly: "Being your spirit weapon is so miserable."

Ye Qiao: "It's alright, but the sect is too poor, so poor that I can't sleep. We're just making the most of everything."

Mu Li was speechless again.

Ye Qiao watched the Left Protector without showing any emotion. She had calculated before she came that the effects of the four Nascent Soul stage lightning tribulations were very strong, more ferocious than she had expected. At this rate, it would take more than a dozen more to successfully help her break through to the next realm.

But there wasn't enough time.

A quasi-god-level cultivator was eyeing her covetously, his words filled with malice towards Ye Qiao. He clearly wouldn't watch her break through to the next realm. All around her were demonic groups secretly observing, preparing to encircle and annihilate her. Why was it so difficult for her to peacefully undergo tribulation and break through to the next realm?

The best way is to get rid of them.

Or, to put it another way, use some special method to intimidate them and prevent them from making any rash moves.

"Ye Qiao, are you here to die?" The Left Protector stared at the rampaging Shadow Sword for a few seconds, then smirked, "Or do you not want this spirit sword anymore?"

"As expected, those in the Nascent Soul stage speak with more authority than us. They can just snatch the spirit sword whenever they want." Ye Qiao changed her attack stance to defense. Before, she probably didn't see Jun because she was in a state of self-sealing, and she looked ordinary. As her form changed, her features became more and more obvious, and these demons rushed over to claim kinship.

She didn't need to worry about the safety of Lueying and Bujianjun.

Ordinary people cannot control a spirit sword, and neither can just anyone control one.

Since even Ye Qiao, the sword master, can't use this staff form, there's only one option left to activate the Unseen Monarch.

—The First Demon Lord, Mu Li.