The entire sect is obsessed with love, but I'm the only one who's truly insane.

After meeting Yan Ye, Lin Du returned to the Holy Disciple Tian Jing and sat there for a long time before setting off for Yujing Mountain.

Yuanling encountered her on the road, which was rather strange, "The Dao Ancestor is not preaching today."

Lin Du nodded. "I know."

"And you?" Yuan Ling paused at the foot of Jade Capital Mountain, glancing at her expression. "Have you come because of the defamation you suffered?"

Lin Du shook his head. "I have a question that I cannot answer, so I came to ask."

Looking at her fellow disciple, Yuan Ling's dignified face showed a hint of pity. "If it's for the sake of the world and people's hearts, it's not worth asking this question. The biggest difference between the people of the Immortal Realm and the mortal world is that everyone has their own system of dealing with the world."

"Having cultivated all the things of immortals, to reach the realm of immortals, one must already have one's own complete concept of the world. Sometimes it's not that they don't know right from wrong, it's just that the world is not only about right and wrong."

Yuan Ling patted her shoulder, "Take this path as your training."

"Even if it's clearly wrong?" Lin Du asked. "If outdated systems and ideas are no longer applicable, should we not endure the growing pains of change simply because of superficial peace and beauty?"

"So their cultivation will stop, and their lives will end there." Yuan Ling said calmly, "Ordinary people think that becoming an immortal is the end, but becoming an immortal is just the most insignificant threshold. Every realm and progress after that is like an insurmountable chasm. This is why many people in the Heavenly Palace have not been able to advance for tens of thousands of years. They have forever stopped awakening and reflecting, so they will never progress."

"You are clearly a perfect opportunity for them to advance, but they all see you as a major enemy."

Yuan Ling had a pair of very clear and kind eyes. She swept her gaze across Lin Du's face. "And you, my child, from the very beginning, you have far surpassed them because you are young and you will never stop thinking. You are willing to discard everything you have learned before, reshape what you have learned, and integrate it. So you have always been you, and you are a better version of yourself every day."

She took a step forward, raised her hand, and gently stroked Lin Du's forehead.

"The path of cultivation has no end; the way of the Tao is natural, so don't force them to keep up with your pace."

Lin Du felt a cool sensation on his forehead. When he looked up again, the spirit was gone, leaving only a sliver of light.

She stood there for a long time before finally walking up Yujing Mountain.

The education Lin Du received in both worlds did not allow him to remain aloof from the world.

Yujing Mountain can only be reached on foot, not by flying. With each step, one is cleansed by the pure, primordial energy, and the oppressive aura compels one to constantly reflect on oneself.

Lin Du stepped forward, one step at a time, and finally climbed the last step.

She walked to the front of the hall, bowed, and said, "Lingwei greets the Dao Ancestor."

"Are there still any doubts?" An ancient voice echoed from within the hall.

Lin Du straightened up. "You once told me to walk my own path. I understand what Senior Sister Yuanling taught me. Now that I am in the midst of this turmoil, I am unwilling to remain unaffected. This time, I have been thinking and reflecting on my journey up the mountain. I have come to understand myself, but I can only say one thing: even if I am shattered to pieces, I will still stand up for the world."

"You already have the answer, don't you?" The Dao Ancestor's voice was ancient and distant. "Once upon a time, there was a Star Lord who flew up to the Thirty-Sixth Heaven and forged a spiritual treasure with the blessing of the origin of heaven and earth. Any treasure blessed by the origin will far exceed what the creator seeks, so she could not control it."

"When Lingbao chooses a master, it chooses someone who can use it. Lingwei, you should know that it chose you because of your crystal heart."

"And you are the first person in the world to cultivate a heart of crystal from a mortal body through your own enlightenment."

"Glass is fragile, but what is tempered and reborn after being broken is the true heart of glass. Lingwei, you have reached this point, which is unprecedented and rare in the world. The right time, the right place, and the right people have forged you into one in a million."

"What is most precious about you is your spirit and character. You see the truth in the smallest details, and you help others while helping yourself. You are the only one who can do this."

"If you are ready, you may ascend to the Thirty-Sixth Heaven. This rope is called the Heart-Binding Rope."

Without a moment's hesitation, Lin Du bowed and kowtowed three times and nine times, saying, "Disciple listens to instruction."

She turned around, glanced at the sky, and finally descended Yujing Mountain, never heading upwards again.

Chu Guanmeng was initially puzzled, "These thirty-six heavens aren't places anyone can ascend. The Dao Ancestor gave you a chance, so why didn't you go?"

Lin Du's steps were not as light as when he went up the mountain. He remained silent for a long time before Chu Guanmeng finally spoke, "Come on, I'll take you to eat something delicious."

Chu Guanmeng was thus bypassed.

Sheng Yan saw Lin Du again, and he was still the same as before. "Oh ho, what brings you here again? At the same table?"

Lin Du glanced at Chu Guanmeng, "Hmm, one table."

She sat at the table, listening casually to the sounds around her.

There are still some differences between the Heavenly Palace and the Immortal City. Outside the Heavenly Palace, very few people discuss it. Instead, they talk about where it would be better to cultivate. Recently, the construction cost of cave dwellings in the Immortal City, as well as the trivial matters of various clans and fiefdoms, such as competitions, engagements, and business deals, can all be discussed intensely for a long time.

Which immortals have been reincarnated after their deaths? What treasures have been unearthed from their abandoned caves? Which rogue cultivators failed to survive their tribulations? Where has a new small world been discovered, and who has become its master?

Lin Du watched Chu Guanmeng eat while listening to the chatter of the wandering immortals.

"Well, to be honest, if something really happens to those people in the Heavenly Palace, they might not be as good as us."

"That's right. We haven't seen much training. They just stay in the Heavenly Palace every day. Besides stability, what freedom and joy do they have compared to us?"

Lin Du took out the last jar of wine from his storage ring and, while Chu Guanmeng was engrossed in eating, tilted his head back and gulped it down directly from the white jade jar.

Even after three years, the honey is still the same honey, and it's never strong no matter how you drink it.

"But speaking of stability, it's not so bad. Do you remember that guy? The one who always liked to wander around carefree. I heard he died recently, and his body was never found. It was only because he picked up a spirit beast on the road that it escaped all the way to the gate of the immortal city that it was discovered."

"What ferocious beast devoured it whole?"

"Perhaps, who knows? The lives of wandering immortals are worthless, it's a common occurrence."

"If I had known, I wouldn't have ascended. After passing the Heavenly Tribulation, I would have dispersed my cultivation and stayed put. Thinking about it this way, it's no wonder that some people, even though they have reached the required level of cultivation, are unwilling to ascend. Their hearts grow old before they die."

"That's called lack of ambition! Heh!"

Upon hearing this, Lin Du tilted his head back and downed the last mouthful of wine, while Chu Guanmeng finished her boasting.

She stood up, her face still calm, and walked forward with an air of nonchalant grace. Her clothes fluttered in the wind, carrying a faint scent of alcohol, like drunken winter snow.

Sheng Yan suddenly called out to her, "There's something I need your help with. You don't need to pay today's bill."

Lin Du turned his head and laughed, "You bribed me with just one meal?"

Sheng Yan smiled. "The other day, Er Gou took a rogue cultivator to the forest to hunt demonic beasts, but they haven't returned. Does your Heavenly Palace have any ideas?"

Lin Du nodded. "Tell me your name, and I'll go to the Mansion of Fate to take a look."

Sheng Yan was relieved and said, "Thank you."

Lin Du glanced at her. "Are you being polite with me?"

Sheng Yan couldn't hide his heaviness. "Er Gou is... Tian Gou, you know. He's very strong. It's generally impossible for any ferocious beast to kill him. But the divination result I got with yarrow stalks... is very strange. It can almost be considered a failed divination."

Lin Du raised an eyebrow, turned his head and pondered for a moment, then said, "I understand."

Sheng Yan escorted Lin Du to the door, whereupon Lin Du suddenly turned to look at her. "I remember you, you are... a successor of the Candle Dragon Saber Technique? You have the bloodline of the Candle Dragon?"

Sheng Yan paused for a moment, then nodded.

Lin Du responded, "Okay."

What's so great about it? I don't know about this grand feast.

As soon as Lin Du stepped into the Siming Mansion, a young boy stopped her and said in a crisp voice, "The True Lord said that if a white-haired person who looks like my own son comes to see me, don't let her in. It's annoying."

Lin Du tilted his head and looked at the little boy for a while, then took out a handful of candy he had brought back from the Immortal City.

The Immortal City Market offers many specialties from various worlds, large and small, like a cherished memory for the ascended immortals.

The boy glanced at it and whispered, "No, I'm on my way to work."

"I'm not his biological son." Lin Du stuffed the candy into the child's mouth. "This is for you to eat after your business trip. Zhao Cai likes this candy the most."

The boy was stunned for a moment, and then a handful of candy appeared in his hand. Lin Du turned around and left, going directly to find Yan Ye's superior, the Nine Heavens Fate Master.

This was the first time that the Nine Heavens Fate Master had met Lingwei Daojun head-on. He almost thought that this man was going to target their Fate Master Mansion, just like he had done with the Siwei Mansion last time.

But Lin Du was polite, saying, "I've come here to ask Lord Si Ming to take a look at the life of the Heavenly Dog."

There is only one Heavenly Dog in this world. The Nine Heavens Fate Master paused, "A Heavenly Dog?"

"Oh right, the Heavenly Dog, I remember now." Jiutian Siming slapped his forehead. "It's gone back to the Heavenly Realm. I remember now. What happened? Did something happen to it?"

Lin Du nodded. "So we have to look for it. Although the Tengu is reckless, his death is no small matter."

Nine Heavens Fate hurriedly went to find Yan Ye.

When Yan Ye received the order, he met the gaze of his own dissolute disciple sitting high above him, and felt a headache coming on.

"The Tengu didn't die; at least, it's not recorded in the Book of Fate."

Lin Du took out the Floating Life Fan, and the Nine Heavens Fate Master immediately shouted, "Investigate further!"

Yan Ye: ...If I had known, I would have just invited this brat inside, closed the door, and then beaten him.

He swallowed his anger and said, "He's not dead yet. Maybe we can go to Si Xingchen's Dou Department and do some divination."

Lin Du sighed softly, "It's like a celestial dog eating the sun."

Yan Ye Yilin.

The Emperor of Fusang was originally the Fusang tree, upon which ten suns resided.

Although the Heavenly Dog Eats the Sun only absorbs the essence of the sun and moon, it actually has another talent: it is never afraid of the true power of the sun. With it present, the divine power of Fusang itself can be restrained.

Moreover, this thing should be extremely sensitive to the power of Fusang.

There's definitely something wrong with Fusang; it's too suspicious that Tengu disappeared at this time.

No wonder Lin Du came in person and went directly to the Nine Heavens Fate Master; he wanted to make a big scene so that the person behind him wouldn't dare to make any moves.

Lin Du then turned and went to the Thunder Department's Divine Firmament Palace.

Mo Lin followed behind Zhenjun and met Lin Du's gaze.

Lei Bu, who was in charge of patrolling the immortal realm, quickly agreed to the search upon hearing this.

Lin Du gave Mo Lin a look, then turned and went to the Supreme Sect's territory in the Immortal Realm.

The territory of the Supreme Sect is also inhabited by people from sects of the Dongming Realm. Most of them are not there, and those who are are in their caves for quiet cultivation, so it is still relatively peaceful.

Mo Lin arrived shortly after finishing his shift and found Lin Du and a group of people already sitting at a table, talking noisily about something.

"That's how it is." Lin Du crossed his arms. "The source of demonic energy from the Upper Realm is suppressed beneath my courtyard. Back then, fragments of fallen gods leaked from our Dongming Realm, and the Upper Realm also had some. The preliminary assessment is that it happened about ten thousand years ago, which is about right. The Upper Realm had problems first and was resealed, so some of it leaked down below."

All five of them showed expressions of surprise, but upon closer inspection, it made perfect sense.

"These so-called fragments of fallen gods in the upper realm are more of a product of the consciousness derived from the combination of divine power and the three poisons of the fallen gods of that time." Lin Du paused. "The fragments of fallen gods are not actually fallen gods, but a newly derived thing. Demons are also born from the souls of believers who died and were corrupted and trapped by the three poisons, losing their human or original consciousness."

The five people stared wide-eyed. Yan Qing wrote furiously, silently digesting the concept, not daring to interrupt his junior uncle's long-winded explanation.

"So my suspicion is that there are still fragments of fallen gods lurking in the Celestial Realm, only they are hidden more thoroughly. Our mission is to find these things and, incidentally, restore order to the Heavenly Palace."

All five of them straightened their backs at the same time, their eyes lighting up.

"Of course, that's dangerous. I'd rather protect you all. For example, I could kick you all out of the Three Realms and Nine Palaces and let you be wandering immortals in the Supreme Sect."

Lin Du glanced at the five faces that were about to burst out, "But I know you definitely won't agree."

All five people nodded vigorously at the same time.

"So I think I'll stay with you guys. After all, the six of us are the group with the earliest average age of ascension in the Supreme Sect. We've saved the world together, cleansed demons, and killed fallen gods."

Lin Du laughed, "Besides, there's no one else I can trust besides you."

People you raise from childhood are the ones you trust most, and you don't need to adjust to them.

"Yay!" Ni Jinxuan was the first to stand up. "I knew it! Junior Uncle can't abandon us!"

"Exactly, I'm not used to this peaceful life. Even though it's carefree, people still need to seek out some excitement, right? Otherwise, I'd be stuck performing for money in the Immortal City."

Yan Qing's gaze was resolute. "I must keep this secure job no matter what! If you, Junior Uncle, are even slightly dissatisfied, then it's my dereliction of duty!"

Mo Lin crossed his arms and spoke in the most serious tone, but with the weakest voice, "I also want to be transferred."

Xia Tian refused gently but firmly, "You can't. You have to stay in Shenxiao Palace. The Thunder Department's files are complete. If necessary, you can bring people over directly."

The Thunder Department's combat power is higher than all other Siwei Prefectures, and it is directly under the Changsheng Emperor. When necessary, it can still send reinforcements.

"So what is our plan?" Yan Qing asked excitedly, picking up her pen.

Lin Du shook his head. "The plan requires waiting for someone first."

"Who is it?" Yuan Ye thought seriously for a moment. "My master seems to have gone out for a stroll, the sect leader of Fengchao absolutely refuses to work, and my fifth uncle is isolating himself in the Heavenly Medicine Department, so we can't count on him... Could it be! Grandmaster Uncle Yan Ye?"

Lin Du shook his head. "Wei Zhi."

Yuan Ye: Huh?

"Wait until he finds enough evidence to make me explode." Lin Du stroked the Floating Life Fan. "And also, give myself some time."

Ni Jinxuan asked, puzzled, "When? During cultivation? While setting up the formation?"

Lin Du looked at the various but always kind faces before him and smiled. "It's nothing, just that I need to cultivate and think about some other things."

"Because I'm a little reluctant to part with her." She gently patted Ni Jinxuan's head, just like she had done a long time ago.

Ni Jinxuan smelled a faint, lingering scent of alcohol.

"Alright," Lin Du stood up, extended his hand, clenched his fist forward, and asked, "What is our goal?"

"Find the fragments of the Fallen God!" Mo Lin spoke first, his voice firm enough to be that of someone from the Thunder Department.

"Purge the Heavenly Palace!" Yan Qing responded enthusiastically.

"Save the world!" Ni Jinxuan shouted excitedly.

"Follow Junior Uncle! Let's keep everyone's jobs!" Yuan Ye chuckled.

"Be careful," Xia Tian added.

The six men clashed fists; their bones were hard, yet they all laughed.

When Lin Du returned to the Holy Disciple's residence, he suddenly noticed that his defensive array had changed somewhat.

She reflexively summoned the Floating Life Fan, and Chu Guanmeng also jumped out, transforming into a giant white tiger and roaring.

Beneath the precious tree, a slumped figure came into Lin Du's view.

Lin Du frowned. A strong, demonic aura, carrying a strange, bloody smell, assaulted his senses. Even the wind felt humid and hot. "Kaiyang?"

Kaiyang sat under the tree, covered in blood, his azure brocade robe tattered and torn. He looked at Lin Du with difficulty, his voice hoarse, "I... I never thought that in the end, I would have to run to the cave of the person I hate the most in order to survive for a moment."

Chu Guanmeng let out a low growl, and Lin Du glanced at his own formation.

No wonder Kaiyang's mastery of formations is extremely high. The fact that he could safely enter her defensive formation and keep the defensive functions active speaks volumes.

"Lin Du..." Kaiyang held a broken sword in his hand, his chest heaving, showing signs of impending death.

Lin Du gathered his strength and walked over, noticing the rapid loss of life force in Kaiyang's body. He finally squatted down and said, "Stop talking nonsense and get to the point."

Kaiyang chuckled, blood gushing from his throat, making it increasingly difficult for him to speak. His pupils were on the verge of dilating. "I'm...sorry...for causing you so much trouble."

"I can't say... but you're so smart, you can guess, right?"

Lin Du frowned, immediately picking up his disciple token to try and find Xia Tianwu and Jiang Liang, "A silencing spell?"

It seems Kaiyang can't reveal the truth of this matter.

Kaiyang slowly raised his broken sword. "It's just a pity about my...boy."

"Mo Lin is right... I guess I really was wrong..."

It turns out that no one's life can be taken lightly.

He choked out the last drop of blood and slowly closed his eyes.

Another voice came from outside the defensive formation.

"I am Yao Guang, here to arrest the traitor. Please open the gate, Daoist Lord."

Lin Du lowered his eyes and placed his hand on Kaiyang's body, feeling a sharp, burning pain in his wrist.

"The Three Poison Seal?" Lin Du murmured softly, "How is that possible?"

Kaiyang did not have the three poisons on his body before.

"Lord Lingwei! Lord Lingwei!" Yaoguang's voice became even more urgent. "May I ask Lord Lingwei, has the rebellious Kaiyang escaped into your residence? This person is extremely dangerous, please be careful, Lord Lingwei."

Lin Du quickly set up the formation, then poured a bottle of spiritual liquid he had brought up from the lower realm into Kaiyang's mouth. He then got up and activated the defensive formation of the cave.

Just as Yao Guang was about to knock on the door again, he realized that the barrier had been broken.

Lingwei Daojun stood inside the door, his azure robe stained with mottled bloodstains. Due to the special material of the robe, the blood slowly coagulated and rolled down without leaving a trace.

But that face, which usually carried a slight smile, was now devoid of any smile. He looked down at people with his chin slightly raised and his eyelids drooping, his gray eyes unusually cold.

"He's dead."

Three words, frozen in time.