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

The leaders of the major sects of Zhongzhou gathered together in the ancient and solemn Mingtang, where the mournful tune of the Xiqin (a type of zither) flowed through the air. The music was tragic and desolate, like a lonely moon hanging high in the desert, with the ancient city sighing under the wind and sand.

The melody of the Xiqin was mixed with an ancient and ethereal voice, telling the story of the rise and fall of the Lanju world, the cultivators' desperate struggle, the final sacrifice, and the people trapped in the formation, unable to dissipate their resentment, yet dazed and confused, with only one obsession left in their minds.

Prevent sacrifices.

"I've walked through the entire ancient city," Lin Du suddenly said. "Besides the sacrifice of lives, there's also a formation that gathers yin energy and nurtures resentment. From the very beginning, those people were prepared for both scenarios."

"A vengeful ghost possesses another body," the city lord continued. "They once said that if the Lanju Realm is destined to collapse into a small world, becoming a playground for those who come after, then those who come after will have to pay the price."

"This is where we grew up. Why should it become a secret realm that you abandoned after plundering our resources?"

"Since we're here, we should be prepared to be possessed by them."

"I just didn't expect them to grow tamarisk."

Among willows, the red willow that grows in the desert is the most ferocious.

"I have given my young friend Lin Du the complete list. I know that my fate has run its course, the past cannot be undone, but the future can still be shaped. I hope that you will not follow the same path as us."

The final sigh dissipated into the air, the music slowly faded to its end, and then silence filled the room.

Regret is not the same as a lingering soul. A lingering soul has more complex thoughts and interests, but regret only repeatedly clings to the deepest obsession in one's heart before death.

Yuan Ye raised his hand and wiped his eyes.

Feng Chao glanced at her, "She's just a child, why is she crying?"

Yuan Ye was too embarrassed to admit that he had just yawned and was sleepy, so he shook his head.

"But this city lord didn't personally witness Liu eating and vomiting people."

"Oh, regarding this, there is some indirect evidence." Lin Du tossed a handful of bones into the hall.

The elders all facepalmed. Lin Du truly lived up to his reputation. He really did pick up everything!

"There's something else. After the four of us from the Supreme Sect returned, we were attacked by a group of white-robed men. We had never seen the leader's technique before, and his cultivation level had reached the Qian Yuan Realm, but he was not one of the people recorded on the Chongxiao Ranking."

Feng Chao paused for a moment, then said, "If these people form an organization and mingle in various sects, they can use many methods to cover up their cannibalism."

For example, it is not uncommon for a disciple to die on the path of training.

"Why rush to intercept and kill my children when they're about to return? Considering the timing, perhaps there really is a ghost lurking among them, constantly monitoring them?"

All the sect leaders fell silent.

Those people are hiding themselves too well.

But compared to all the previous evidence, nothing reveals the truth better than the ambush of the Supreme Sect.

No one from Zhongzhou, or even from the Dongming Realm, would want to stop the Supreme Sect.

Those who think they can successfully intercept and kill the disciples of the Supreme Sect just because they have a large number of people and are well-equipped must be outsiders.

Putting aside everything else, Immortal Venerable Yanye and the former sect leader haven't ascended yet.

Those disciples scattered outside to train and gather resources constitute the Supreme Sect's largest intelligence network. Once they encounter someone wanted by the sect, they are killed on the spot, regardless of the cause or effect.

"So it seems that there are indeed ghosts from other realms who have wandered in."

"Then, let's find those people from back then and retrieve their souls?"

What followed was not something that junior disciples like Lin Du and Yuan Ye could hear. They were led by elders from other sects to the children's table to have tea and snacks.

Lin Du nibbled on the osmanthus cake, pretending to read the Heart Sutra in his hand. Yuan Ye saw his junior uncle being so serious, and after glancing at the elders from other sects around him, he felt a little guilty and also took out a book.

The elder glanced at it and sighed with some emotion, "It truly deserves to be the number one sect in Zhongzhou."

Yuan Ye glanced at his junior uncle unintentionally and suddenly felt that something was wrong with the page.

Whose Heart Sutra is so thick? And it even has two layers of spine.

He waited until the elders got up and went out to chat before he went over to take a look.

"Junior Uncle, what are you looking at?"

He squinted and only saw a few large characters at the top.

After being pampered by a younger, more ruthless man.

Yuan Ye paused for a moment, then asked, "Junior Uncle... what is this?"

This was a sample of a new storybook the bookstore owner had written for her. Lin Du swallowed the last bite of osmanthus cake, gulped down a mouthful of tea, and asked, "Want to see it?"

Yuan Ye nodded.

"Here you go, it's Miao Bi Ke's new book. I only gave one copy to your second senior sister, this is the second one."

"Senior Sister Tianwu has this hobby?" Yuan Ye's eyes widened. "She doesn't seem like the type to enjoy reading these kinds of stories."

"Oh, I can let her use it as firewood after she finishes reading it."

Although there's no way to spoil the plot, Lin Du could write a hundred stories based on the original plot logic. This second book is specifically written for his second nephew. As long as they can understand it, they'll at least learn something.

Although those stories were somewhat melodramatic and outrageous, filled with hypocrisy and affectation, they were really addictive.

Just by looking at the monthly revenue sharing, Lin Du knows that these storybooks are selling quite well.

Yuan Ye took it and looked at it. As he looked, his bared teeth disappeared, and he looked at his junior uncle with teary eyes.

"Judging from the title, I thought it was a love story about keeping a mistress in a gilded cage, but it turns out they started eating people later on. This is too scary."

"Yeah, pamper them, fatten them up, then eat them." Lin Du shrugged. "Just like raising pigs and geese."

In a physical sense, it means actually eating.

Yuan Ye scratched his head. "Is this what pampering is like? I thought you were some kind of frivolous storyteller, but it turns out you've come to expose the wickedness of human nature?"

"So, in that story, the little wolf demon really never liked the little grass demon? Was it really just to raise her well, nurture the spirit fetus in her womb, purify its medicinal effects, and then feed it to his tribe?"

Lin Du raised his voice, "It was for this purpose from the very beginning, and they took action in the end. If you're asking whether there was ever any love..."

She chuckled. "Even if I really love it, I'll still eat it without hesitation."

Yuan Ye fell silent. "But the little wolf demon taught the cold, hard grass what laughter, heat, cold, and emotion are, and in the end, he didn't even know what these things were, right?"

Lin Du thought the boy was teachable; no wonder Yuan Ye was just an insignificant cannon fodder in the original story and was hardly ever mentioned.

The original author didn't mention anything about the perfectly normal people.

Lin Du patted Yuan Ye on the shoulder with a sigh, "What a wise man you are."

Perhaps because her facial expression was too moved, Yuan Ye was somewhat apprehensive. Just as he was about to speak, he heard the door open again.

Lin Du calmly turned a page of the Heart Sutra, while Yuan Ye, in a flurry of activity, caused the storybook hidden in the "Treatise on Laws and Calendars" to fall over.

Feng Chao, who came to pick up her child, immediately noticed the book cover that had fallen to the ground.

After being pampered by a younger, more masculine man

Yuan Ye collapsed to the ground with a thud, covering the cover in the process. "Oh dear, the Sect Leader is here! Junior Uncle, let's go."

"...There's no need for such a grand gesture." Feng Chao helped the person up and then used his spiritual power to slip the book into his sleeve.

"By the way, Lin Du."

Lin Du calmly closed the Heart Sutra. "Senior Sister, please speak."

Do you like to read the Heart Sutra backwards? How do you turn the pages from the right?

Lin Du's hand holding the Heart Sutra trembled slightly.

Careless.

The books in the cultivation world are written in the same way as ancient books, with the left side representing Yang, the right side representing Yin, the top representing Yang, and the bottom representing Yin. Pages are turned from left to right, which is the opposite of modern books.

She wasn't reading seriously, so she retained modern habits and subconsciously opened the pages from right to left.

Feng Chao smiled as he looked at the two pretentious children. "Instead of studying properly, you've learned to pretend and deceive yourselves."

She straightened her sleeves, slightly raised her chin, and her smile concealed a sense of pressure. "It just so happens that the magical tools used for farming in the sect need to be repaired in winter. One of you is an array master and the other is studying the Lu Ban Book, so you both have a use for them. Repair them for me within this month, and I will personally inspect them."

Lin Du and Yuan Ye exchanged a glance and silently bowed their heads in agreement.