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

This question happened right into their area of ​​expertise. Mingxuan stretched out his hand and immediately said, "I didn't expect you to see through us. We are your disciples. Quickly give us the map. The task of saving the cultivation world now depends entirely on us."

"Once this is accomplished, the cultivators of the cultivation world will not forget your contributions."

Mingxuan spouted nonsense in an attempt to trick his way into getting the map.

To be precise, it wasn't exactly a scam. They were indeed direct disciples, and they had a mission in the Cloud and Mist Secret Realm. Without a map to give them a general direction, how would anyone know where to go in such a vast secret realm?

"If you were my personal disciple," the woman's expression changed, she looked Mingxuan up and down, then covered her mouth and laughed, "then I would be the Emperor himself."

"You can't just say things like that." Duan Hengdao shuddered. No matter what, they truly revered the Heavenly Dao. They didn't even dare to mention it easily, for fear of being perceived as disrespectful.

Mingxuan realized that this woman was discriminating against him.

"How did I offend you?" he wondered.

"Vixen." The woman gave a forced smile.

Mingxuan's smile froze, then hardened again: "You son of a bitch..."

Seeing this, Ye Qiao held back Ming Xuan, who was trying to argue, and spoke quickly, "Then let's trade. What do you want? We can trade. Or, how about you let me take a look at the map?" She negotiated seriously, "Just one look is fine."

To be honest, Ye Qiao's request wasn't too demanding. Besides, judging by their clothes, they were all from wealthy families. Perhaps the Changming Sect members were dressed in rather ordinary and unremarkable attire.

But the group from Chengfeng Sect was quite eye-catching. Duan Hengdao and the other weapon cultivators had all sorts of magical artifacts hanging on their bodies, and even their shoes were made of top-grade magical artifacts.

They are clearly wealthy people from prominent families or major sects.

Logically speaking, few people would refuse such a sucker.

"No." The woman looked at them warily and refused coldly, "I don't care what your purpose is, I'm not giving you the map."

"Why? If you really can't, just name your price." Su Zhuo frowned. "Just let us see the map. You won't lose anything."

His quality has improved significantly, otherwise Su Zhuo would have already tried to snatch it. After all, the rule of the cultivation world is that the strong prey on the weak, and even if a fight breaks out, those people will definitely not be able to outmaneuver him.

What?

You ask him why he's so confident? Because they have the only powerful figure in their team.

With the support of three sword cultivators, Su Zhuo regained his former confidence.

The woman didn't want to waste words with them, so she rolled her eyes and turned to leave.

This was clearly a refusal to communicate. Duan Hengdao couldn't help but chuckle softly. Qin Huai thought they were too useless and gently patted Duan Hengdao to stop them from moving forward.

Qin Huai smiled slightly and took the initiative to speak with the elderly man who seemed to be the leader. He bowed slightly and said, "Senior, we are cultivators who came here for training. Because we were in such a hurry to enter the secret realm, we didn't have time to prepare a map of the Cloud and Mist Secret Realm. We wonder if we could travel with you so that we can look after each other?"

Qin Huai was far superior to everyone else, both in his speech and tone.

The man in blue spoke arrogantly, which annoyed them. Qin Huai, on the other hand, seemed much more normal. As the saying goes, one doesn't hit a smiling face, so the old man didn't refuse but instead glanced at them all thoughtfully.

"Young friend, may we discuss this for a few minutes first?"

Qin Huai naturally nodded in agreement.

The talisman cultivators had already silently spread their divine senses, preparing to eavesdrop on their conversation.

"Will we encounter any danger entering the secret realm at this time?"

"Yeah, I heard that the demon race and the monster race are fighting fiercely with the cultivators right now. Isn't it too risky for us to come here?" These questions were asked by a group of very young boys and girls.

Someone comforted them, "What are you afraid of? With so much power, the sky won't fall."

"Yeah, I heard that the Changming Sect has a senior uncle who's at the Integration Stage. Tsk tsk, the Changming Sect is full of hidden talents? They really know how to put on an act. With them around, don't be afraid."

"I feel like those guys with eyes that practically point to the sky look familiar. Especially their clothes." The group of people were all quite good-looking, and he felt like he'd seen them somewhere before.

"Maybe all good-looking people look alike? Clothes? I have those clothes too, they probably buy them all wholesale."

Song Hansheng and the others, who were intently eavesdropping, subconsciously glanced down at their sect uniforms. Clothes can be wholesaled?

"Haha, right. At this time, instead of thinking about how to deal with the demons who are besieging the city, who would come to the secret realm now?"

"Master, should we bring those people along?"

The old man pondered for a moment, "Their cultivation levels are all at the peak of the Golden Core stage. The peak of the Golden Core stage is the highest level in the secret realm. If the Bodhi tree blossoms and bears fruit at that time, it will surely attract a group of cultivators and demonic beasts to fight over it. Having them follow along will provide more protection."

The female cultivator quickly echoed, "Master is absolutely right."

Mingyi frowned and didn't listen any further.

She turned to the others and said, "They want to take advantage of us for free, to use us as free thugs."

Ye Qiao seemed to be deep in thought. "Freeloading from us? Freeloading from us what?"

While they were still wondering if Mingyi had missed something, the old man finished his brief discussion with the others in the group and then spoke to Qin Huai, "We came to the Cloud and Mist Secret Realm to find the Bodhi Tree, I presume you are too?"

Qin Huai remained calm and nodded in agreement. In fact, out of the old man's sight, he was frantically exchanging glances with Song Hansheng the whole time, wondering what the hell the Bodhi tree was.

Their purpose in coming here was not for any tree; they wanted to stop the demon kings from releasing the powerful demons from the secret realm.

The old man smiled confidently. "In that case, would you like to travel together?"

Song Hansheng gestured for Qin Huai to calm down. He knew about the tree and thus took the initiative to speak. The young man looked somewhat surprised: "There's a Bodhi tree in this secret realm?"

As the saying goes, "A flower is a world, a leaf is a Bodhi tree."

The Bodhi fruit contains the cultivation of hundreds of years within a single fruit. Normally, if Song Hansheng heard that there were Bodhi fruits in this place, he would immediately lead his junior brothers and sisters to seize them. But now, he simply doesn't have the time.

The old man smiled and nodded: "Let's team up. If all goes well, we'll each get half of the Bodhi Fruit?"

Song Hansheng did not answer, but was already thinking about how likely it was that he could simply snatch the map.

In any case, the quality of their disciples is generally low, so teaming up with independent cultivators at this time would undoubtedly be a waste of their time.

We can just snatch it and let Ye Qiao take a look, memorize the general location of the map, and then return it.

It's unethical, but it's efficient.

"Wait a minute, old man, let's discuss this for a bit before answering your question." Mingxuan waved his hand and pulled Song Hansheng back.

A group of people huddled together, and Shen Ziwei cautiously asked, "What do you think is the likelihood that those demon kings will gather at the Bodhi Tree?"

"The allure of this sacred fruit to demonic beasts is undeniable. Although their goal is to lead the powerful demons out of the secret realm, I don't believe they wouldn't try to snatch it if a sacred object capable of instantly breaking through their cultivation level appeared in the world."

Plunder is in the nature of demon beasts. When the Bodhi Fruit appears, those demon kings will definitely come to get a share. After all, the secret realm is a carnival for demon beasts, and their cultivation level will not be suppressed.

Ye Qiao realized: "No wonder that even in this turbulent time of the cultivation world, there are still rogue cultivators forming teams to enter the Great Secret Realm. It turns out that fortune favors the bold."

Even with a map of the Great Secret Realm, they might not be able to find the traces of those demon kings, so waiting under the Bodhi tree would be a good option.

"So, should we agree to this team-up? It's just teaming up with independent cultivators, we've done it before."

"Can."

Seeing that they had no objections, Song Hansheng reluctantly turned to chat with the rogue cultivators. He didn't like trading with them, feeling that spending time with them was a waste of time, but clearly, his opinion didn't matter at all.

"We agree." Song Hansheng nodded slightly to the old man. "So, is it a pleasant cooperation?"

"..." The old man hesitated for a moment, feeling that their words sounded very familiar, just like the words his disciples used when they cooperated. He nodded: "It's a pleasure to cooperate with them."

The two teams, each with their own ulterior motives, reached an agreement, maintaining a superficial balance. In fact, even if they were to break off relations, they wouldn't be the ones panicking.

"Why are there only two female cultivators in the group?" There were eleven people, but only two female cultivators. This combination was rather strange.

Moreover, in a group with too few female cultivators, people always feel that these two people got in through some improper relationship.

Mingyi instinctively tilted her head back, and the moment his finger touched her, she almost snapped the man's finger on the spot.

The girl pursed her lips and replied, "Because the other female cultivators aren't here."

For some reason, the male cultivator's fingers felt cold. Meeting Ming Yi's slightly cold gaze, he dared not underestimate him any longer and said awkwardly, "I see."

Ye Qiao kept rummaging through the mustard bag, taking out something from somewhere for ages.

"Junior Sister, what are you looking for?"

"The sect's protective formation was activated earlier." Ye Qiao searched for a long time before finally finding the sect leader's token. She glanced at it briefly for Ming Xuan. "Then Elder Zhao temporarily entrusted the token to me for safekeeping. I'm looking for where I put the token."

"When did you return to the sect?" Mingxuan quickly touched the sect leader's token; it was heavy. He tossed it up and down with interest: "When did the elder give it to you?"

"It was given to me yesterday." Ye Qiao snatched the token and put it away: "A large number of demonic cultivators have entered our sect."

Seeing Mingxuan's expression change, Ye Qiao quickly added, "However, I've temporarily resolved the matter."

Incidentally, he also acquired a sect leader token that was of little use.

She made it sound simple, but Mingxuan felt things couldn't possibly be that easy. He pursed his lips and asked in a low voice, "Are the elders alright?"

"It's really nothing," Ye Qiao replied. "Look, Elder Zhao even gave me the token, telling me to give it to my senior brother when I run into him."

Ye Qiao felt that this token, apart from taking up space, was only good for intimidating people. For example, when Qin Huai and the other future sect heirs saw the sect leader's token, their eyes almost popped out.

"How did you get it? Did you steal it?"

"What do you mean 'stolen'?" Ye Qiao replied, "The elder gave it to me."

"You're actually the next sect leader of the Changming Sect?" Duan Hengdao blurted out, "Holy crap, doesn't that mean your Changming Sect is doomed?"

His thoughtless words earned him a beating from Ye Qiao. Duan Hengdao covered his head and whimpered. They were still shocked that the sect leader's token had been given to Ye Qiao.

"It's just for my safekeeping. My senior brother will be the next sect leader." Ye Qiao stuffed the token into the top of the mustard seed bag, speechless at Duan Hengdao's reaction. "Am I some kind of unreliable person? Why is becoming a sect leader like the end of the world?" She thought she was quite capable, and was well-liked by both the inner and outer disciples of the Changming Sect.

"If you want to be the sect leader, it's not impossible." Song Hansheng looked at her for a few seconds, then shrugged. "Anyway, we have no objections."

Qin Huai agreed, "That's right." He and Song Hansheng were the sect's designated successors.

Most people assume that Zhou Xingyun will be the successor of the Changming Sect, but in reality, they wouldn't object if Ye Qiao wanted to be the successor. Jokes aside, she would be quite reliable if she were to become the sect leader.

Ye Qiao shuddered. "No, I've noticed that Master is already bald."

She didn't want to end up like Qin Fanfan, who was crushed by life, at such a young age.

"That's normal." Mingxuan cupped his face and casually drew out his voice: "The five sect leaders are all competing with each other. We finally got the first place in the sect. Master had to work very hard to suppress the dissatisfaction of the outside world towards Changming Sect. Moreover, as the head of the five sects, he also had to deal with all sorts of trivial matters."

So Qin Fanfan became stronger, but also went bald.

"..." This kind of good fortune should really go to the eldest brother.

The old man in front wanted to hear what the group of cultivators who had joined in halfway were whispering about, but he didn't know if they had used a soundproofing talisman, because no matter how hard he listened, he couldn't hear a sound at all.

"What are they whispering about?"

"Who knows?" a female cultivator sneered. "A bunch of people pretending to be mysterious."

She always felt that the group of people was strange; they were in large groups and didn't look like good people at all.

There was still a long way to go to reach the Bodhi Tree. In order to cope with the strong winds and heavy rain at night, almost all the teams were traveling together in groups. Ye Qiao's team was too large, which meant that no monsters dared to approach easily for a while.

The journey was fairly smooth.

"Ye Qiao, if you're ever considering finding a Daoist partner, take a look at our family's gossip." Shen Zi smiled and pulled her junior brother over, winking. "Our Chengfeng Sect allows marriage into one's family!"

Fang Zhiyao: "Huh??"

He was a little confused.

Mingxuan grabbed Shen Ziwei by the neck and shook her violently: "No, I don't agree to this marriage!!"

Shen Ziwei: "...Let go of me, you fucking idiot."

Mingxuan sneered: "You're finished. You dare to seduce my junior sister? Just wait until my senior brother beats you to death."

As the two were exchanging pleasant words, Duan Hengdao sneaked over and, seeing Ye Qiao's indifferent expression, said, "Our Chengfeng Sect allows marriage between men and women. We don't have a single female disciple in our sect yet! You're the first one here."

Ye Qiao kicked away Duan Hengdao, who was stirring up trouble everywhere, and began to observe her surroundings. She could sense that demonic beasts had gathered nearby, and as she got closer to the Bodhi tree, the spiritual energy of the sacred fruit became increasingly concentrated.

The fact that there's already such a commotion even before the tree has blossomed makes it entirely predictable what a sensation it will cause when the Bodhi tree flowers and bears fruit.

Ye Qiao was pondering how to devise a foolproof plan to capture the Demon King and the Bodhi Fruit in one fell swoop.

As a result, the Chengfeng Sect members kept pestering her like glue, asking what she thought of her junior brother.

Ye Qiao slapped him away, casually replying, "I'm not planning to find a cultivation partner because I already have a cultivator I like. Are you satisfied now?"

Who is it?

Wow, that's exciting!

Everyone immediately perked up their ears.

Ye Qiao hadn't expected these fools to take it seriously. She clutched her chest and said solemnly, "The person I love doesn't like me, so I shouldn't bother them."

"Forehead……"

Shen Ziwei blinked. "It's okay, you should say it out loud if you love someone."

Mingxuan: "Ah, right, right. So, who is it?"

Upon hearing this shocking revelation, Duan Hengdao was visibly shaken and immediately cheered her on, "Why are you so timid, Ye Qiao? You're the number one among our five sects!"

"Don't be afraid, listen to me, just be bold then." As he spoke, he somehow became excited: "Conquer his city, get into his bed, undress him, and become his king!"

"...???"