When I woke up, the entire cultivation world was talking about my master.

The bond that had lasted for over a decade vanished in an instant, and a tremendous sense of loss arose out of nowhere, surging through Xiao Huandu's body. He looked up helplessly at his master.

Despite it being the result he wanted, Xiao Huandu seemed quite confused.

To everyone's surprise, Wei Jin remained remarkably calm. He put away his fire whip, didn't inquire about Xiao Huandu's purpose, and instead said, "You may leave."

Then, Wei Jin casually made a few marks on his body to create the illusion of a grappling fight.

"I will inform the outside world that the traitor Xiao Huandu has disobeyed his master. We will have a fierce battle, and our friendship will be severed."

Xiao Huandu swallowed hard, and subconsciously said in a flattering tone, "Disciple... there are still things I must do. After this matter is settled, if I am still alive, you may kill me or torture me as you please, Master, is that alright?"

"From now on, do not call me Master anymore." Wei Jin said no more and turned to walk into the red mist.

As Xiao Huandu watched his retreating figure, he suddenly felt as if he had been punched, like a mad dog barking wildly for a long time, but no one paid any attention, and he was doused with cold water.

But all of this is his own fault.

The relationship between master and disciple, spanning over a decade, was filled with lies, mixed with despicable and shameful sincerity. After all, if it were all false, why would the heart ache?

This farewell may be forever.

He murmured, "Master..." I'm sorry.

Xiao Huandu wanted to call out to Wei Jin and say something more, but the words stuck in his throat. His master was already merciful by not killing him, how could he dare to ask for more?

There's no turning back once the arrow is released; many half-demons are waiting for him to return to Peach Blossom Spring.

They never harmed anyone and just wanted to live a quiet life.

Even such a small wish was built from countless bloody corpses, and Xiao Huandu could not afford to fail at the last moment.

The ancient artifact, the Crimson Blade, cleaved open a spatial rift. Xiao Huandu suppressed all his emotions and turned back for one last deep look.

After leaving the secret realm, taking advantage of the weakened defenses of the imperial city, Xiao Huandu quickly organized his men to infiltrate the dungeon and carry out the rescue plan.

But soon they realized something was wrong.

The entire dungeon was too quiet.

The half-demons who should have been imprisoned have disappeared.

Xiao Huandu looked at the empty cell, his brows furrowed in a dark expression: "I said the plan would be postponed, but you still acted ahead of schedule?"

Several subordinates were clearly also unaware of the situation, shaking their heads repeatedly, "Master, we didn't."

Xiao Huandu's expression hardened. Had the palace noticed something amiss? Or had the Crown Prince done something else...? Who exactly had moved the half-demon first?

-

On the other side, at the Wanjianbei Square.

The first batch of rescued human disciples were brought out of the rift one after another.

Chu Xianlan breathed a sigh of relief, "That's great, it's Fellow Daoist Ji and the others."

The female cultivators of Xuan Yang Sect rushed forward and hugged their senior sister.

Ji Fuyao still had bloodstains on her face, but her expression remained relatively calm. Apart from excessive consumption of spiritual energy, there was no malevolent aura surrounding her, nor did she show any signs of losing control.

The others were the same. Exhausted after countless battles, they had been happily exploring the secret realm, only to end up with a near-death experience—it was truly unbelievable.

Reverse Butterfly tossed aside her travelogue, lay down on the ground, and exclaimed, "I'm incredibly lucky to be alive!"

This is truly fate!

He turned the tables again and gave Ji Fuyao a thumbs up.

If it weren't for Ji Fuyao's calm leadership in leading them out of the beast horde, who knows how many more people would have died. Ni Die was captivated by his senior sister's divine power and vowed that as long as he survived, he would write an epic biography for this princess of Nan Cang.

Chu Xianlan placed a talisman on the Reverse Butterfly, asking, "Are you all alright?"

The butterfly, barely breathing and shivering, pleaded, "Fellow Daoist Chu, open your eyes. Do I look alright?"

This is not what Chu Xianlan was referring to.

"I mean, none of you encountered any hostility?"

"Oh...you mean that strange red mist?" Ni Die lifted her eyelids. "Of course I accidentally got some on myself, but that stuff doesn't work on humans. It only drives demons and monsters crazy. It's pretty strange."

Chu Xianlan's expression went blank.

...The malevolent energy is harmless to humans, but it will only affect demons and monsters?

Why?

Next, the second batch of demons who entered the secret realm for rescue also returned.

The demons were in a sorry state, clearly having just gone through a fierce battle.

The Thousand-Condensed Cold Iron artifact that Ji Ran had prepared finally came in handy.

One by one, the demons that had transformed into their original forms were carried out, most of them unconscious and vomiting blood, their eyes rolled upwards, their limbs twitching, and they were placed in the healing formation.

The healers held their breath and stepped forward to use spells to try and dispel the malevolent energy.

Does not work.

The cultivators exchanged bewildered glances. With their current methods, the malevolent energy could not be eliminated, and the corrupted demons were no different from half-demons.

Just then, Fei Ling struggled violently, and a strange black and red mist overflowed from around him. He let out a rapid cry, his scarlet eyes were full of ferocity, as if he wanted to tear everything apart.

For a moment, everyone's expression froze.

"Half-demon!" shouted one of the human cultivators who harbored resentment.

"They can't turn back now, everyone retreat quickly, beware of attacks on the mind's core—"

Some people drew their swords without making a sound.

Noticing the change in everyone's expressions, the demon roared, "You're talking nonsense! He's not a half-demon, he's our young master! Are you blind?!"

For many years, the cultivation world has upheld the tradition of hunting down half-demons.

If it appears in the world, it must be killed.

So, does this tradition apply to half-demons formed later in life?

Faced with former clansmen, friends, and relatives, would you be able to kill them without hesitation?

"...Who knows? Maybe he was a half-demon all along, but he just kept it a secret." Some people felt it was better to kill the innocent than let the guilty go free.

The demons were even more enraged upon hearing this: "Who knows if the red mist is something you humans created to frame us? Otherwise, how could it be harmless to you?!"

Many demons sacrificed themselves in the secret realm to save their people, and now they feel very unbalanced. With nowhere to vent their emotions, they eventually turned into sharp blades and stabbed at the alien race.

"What did you say?!"

The conflict between humans and demons escalated rapidly, with hostility filling their eyes. Everything happened so fast that by the time Chu Xianlan came to her senses, some demon cultivators had already begun to attack.

Throwing a punch shows no martial ethics.

Some things, once they erupt, are uncontrollable. During the few days of the Tianyuan Gathering, many frictions had accumulated between the two races. Although they were not enough to cause deep-seated hatred, they were enough to trigger a war.

The situation quickly spiraled out of control, with several cultivators, both human and demon, battling each other amidst flashes of spiritual light and rampant sword shadows.

Yan Ling was dumbfounded. "They just start fighting like that? Have these guys gone mad?"

Chu Xianlan stared blankly at the chaotic battle before him until his location was affected by the magic. An ice-blue barrier immediately unfolded and blocked his way.

"What's wrong with you?" Yi Chen frowned slightly.

Given Chu Xianlan's reaction speed, it was impossible for her not to dodge this attack.

"Master, I'm alright."

Chu Xianlan pressed his forehead. Just now, as the surroundings became increasingly chaotic, he felt a kind of inexplicable palpitation that he didn't know how to describe.

Suddenly, a loud shout pierced the night sky: "Oh no! Something's happened at the palace! All the half-demons in the dungeon have escaped! Those monsters are charging this way!"