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

"Peaceful coexistence is just a facade; the Demon King has no good intentions whatsoever! He's been plotting against us from the very beginning. Your Highness, we must leave here quickly, or it will be too late!"

The Crown Prince, with great composure, poured her a cup of tea, his brows furrowing slightly: "Don't rush, speak slowly."

Their original plan was to stay in the Northern Underworld for about five days. The Southern Cang royal family's visit to the demon race was to express their sincerity in the marriage alliance. The entire cultivation world was looking forward to peace and prosperity, and it involved more than just the crown prince himself.

With responsibilities on my shoulders, leaving rashly might render all previous efforts for peace between the two races futile.

But the news that A-Yue brought was shocking.

A-Yue only intended to casually explore and familiarize herself with the surrounding terrain, but she unexpectedly overheard a discussion among the Demon King's subordinates.

They first mocked the human race for being too naive, sending the Southern Cang Crown Prince to marry into a powerful family, which was clearly like lambs to the slaughter. They thought that this would bring peace between the two races, which was simply wishful thinking.

After all, the nature of the demon race is to be the strong prey on the weak, unlike the human race which only wants to live in a corner of the world.

"The Demon King doesn't care about the ceasefire between the two races at all. His recent act of being well-behaved is all an act, designed to lower the guard of the human race so that he can secretly make his move. The Demon King is currently trying to win over all the scattered half-demon forces and bring them under his control. His goal is to completely take over the entire cultivation world, unify the Northern Underworld and the Southern Cang Continent, and make the demon race the ruler of the world."

Ah Yue continued, "Your Highness... they also said that the Demon King... he has always longed to transform into a dragon!"

Chu Xianlan was startled.

True dragons have long been extinct in the world, existing only in legends and ancient texts as beings close to gods, even a thousand years ago.

Transform into a dragon? Are you crazy?

The demon king from a thousand years ago is going against the heavens!

"Those demon generals said that the Demon King has always believed in his heart that snakes are the original form of dragons, and that he himself is a pure-blooded snake demon with the potential of a dragon hidden in his bloodline... But he has tried countless times without success," Ah Yue said, becoming more and more agitated. "The Demon King is quite concerned about this matter, believing that it is because his own bloodline is not strong enough that he has not been able to break through the shackles, which is why he is so frantically breeding offspring..."

"Your Highness, it's all a lie! The Demon King wants to use the bloodline of the Heavenly Spiritual Root to breed the most powerful half-demon, so that the true dragon can appear in the world!"

Just then, a muffled thunderclap boomed!

Immediately afterwards, swords clashed, spiritual energy erupted, and screams and cries mingled together. Many dark figures landed in the courtyard, and clouds of blood mist exploded. Chaos had broken out outside the house.

"Enemy attack!"

"Ah—! Those wretched demons!!"

"Protect His Highness the Crown Prince!"

"Not good." A-Yue's expression changed drastically. She immediately drew her sword and rushed outside. As soon as she stepped out, she encountered a demon trying to break in. The girl's expression was cold and stern. With a swift movement, she slashed her sword, and blood splattered everywhere. Her figure quickly blended into the chaos outside the courtyard.

Seeing this, Chu Xianlan's heart tightened, and she subconsciously wanted to follow and help, but the moment she moved her feet, she suddenly felt dizzy, and when she opened her eyes again, the scene in front of her had changed.

It was extremely quiet around me; there was no chaotic fighting.

Chu Xianlan was sweating profusely.

He looked around blankly; there wasn't a ray of light, as if he were in a cold, damp prison. Just then, Yi Chen's calm voice suddenly appeared in his mind: "Are you feeling alright?"

Master's voice always brought a great sense of security, and Chu Xianlan's anxious heart calmed down a lot. She quickly rolled up her sleeves and looked down.

Fortunately, they were not separated this time.

The small snake on his wrist poked its head out from his sleeve, its tail gently rubbing against his arm as if to soothe him, sending a warm sensation against his skin.

Chu Xianlan raised her hand and looked into the little snake's round eyes.

"Master, is this... still an illusion from a thousand years ago?"

"Hmm. Perhaps the illusion is fluctuating."

Chu Xianlan touched his chest, still seemingly lingering with the excitement of the battle. The illusion was too real; even knowing it was fake, it felt as if it truly existed in the real world… Especially after hearing his grandmaster's impassioned words, he was somewhat caught up in them and felt quite indignant.

"The recurrence of illusions is irreversible," Yi Chen explained softly, as if sensing the fluctuations in his emotions. "Everything we just experienced actually happened a thousand years ago. We cannot interfere with the outcome of the illusion."

"So, we can only watch?" Chu Xianlan asked.

"good."

Although a part of the illusion was missing, looking at the gloomy and secluded prison in front of her, Chu Xianlan could already guess what had happened.

The Demon King coveted the Heavenly Spiritual Root bloodline in the Crown Prince, and the demon race must have already laid an ambush. The palace's forces would likely be no match for the demons. Currently, the Crown Prince is probably imprisoned somewhere in this jail.

The demon king from a thousand years ago was truly cunning.

It's more like a worm than a dragon.

Chu Xianlan wished she could scatter glutinous rice with her left hand and spit out realgar wine with her right to ward off evil spirits.

They thought the two races were genuinely friendly, but they ended up setting up a series of traps to corrupt the demonic path. No wonder the relationship between the human and demon races has remained strained for a thousand years, with deep-seated estrangement and mutual suspicion.

Humans took the initiative to show goodwill, but suffered such a great loss. How could they possibly trust the demon race without reservation again? If it weren't for the devastating chaos between the half-demons that forced both sides to put aside their grudges and join forces, the conflict between the two races would probably never have been resolved.

Speaking of the chaos caused by half-demons... Chu Xianlan frowned.

So far, the half-demons in the illusion have all acted perfectly normally, so where does the source of their malevolence lie? And how did the chaos among the half-demons occur?

In short, let's find the crown prince first.

Chu Xianlan looked around, raised her hand to touch the iron gate in front of her, and her hand actually passed right through it.

His pupils dilated in shock, and he stammered, "Master, I... I've become a ghost?"

In a flash of inspiration, Yi Chen appeared beside Chu Xianlan in his usual familiar form, dressed in white, with a face as handsome as jade. He expressionlessly reached out and touched the iron gate, mimicking his disciple's gesture.

The palm passed right through without any resistance.

Yi Chen's eyes widened slightly, revealing a rare look of surprise. The expression was brief, but Chu Xianlan still caught it.

Chu Xianlan suppressed a smile, a strange amusement rising in her heart. It was hard to imagine that even the composed Master would be surprised by something... cough cough cough.

Yi Chen withdrew his hand and pondered for a moment: "It's probably a characteristic of illusions. We are not physical entities at this moment."

Chu Xianlan understood, and her soul left her body.

This made it even easier for the two to move around freely, allowing them to become complete bystanders in the illusion of memory.

The dungeon was narrow and the air was thin, becoming increasingly cramped the further you went in.

The master and apprentice walked on the seemingly endless road. Chu Xianlan took a soft breath, trying to overcome her fear of the confined space.

A weakness is called a weakness because it can always be magnified unintentionally. Chu Xianlan closed her eyes in annoyance, not wanting to hold anyone back at a time like this.

Suddenly, a real tactile sensation covered the back of my hand.

Yi Chen didn't say anything, but took his hand.

Chu Xianlan never expected that the two illusory figures, who could not touch anything in the illusion, passing through walls and people, could actually... meet each other.

It was like the only anchor point to grasp in a vast illusion.

He was lost in thought, recalling how his master, though always a man of few words and few words, had always been able to easily discern his emotions since childhood. A pastry glanced at while passing the dining hall would be neatly placed on his table the next day. A sneeze unintentionally during cultivation would result in an extra layer of warm, soft bedding in his bed that very night.

After doing these things, he always appears calm and indifferent, making people feel that he didn't take it to heart at all and was just doing it casually.

Chu Xianlan had always thought that she was immature and that her emotions were always written on her face, which was why she always gave herself away in front of Yi Chen. Now that she thought about it, it was clear that her master was very observant.

For example, right now, these are all subconscious actions.

He was so naive in the past, deliberately risking his life by going to the back mountain for the sake of the master-disciple contract. How could his master, with his keen insight, not see through it? But he still got his wish.

You are the most precious.

In this world, only his master had ever told him, "You are the most precious." Only his master had ever granted him every request.

If Yi Chen had said these words to him a few months ago, Chu Xianlan would have been trembling with fear, her eyes wide, wishing she could kowtow to Yi Chen for his kindness.

But now... he feels that he is truly precious in his master's heart.

Really? Probably.

Chu Xianlan felt a little lightheaded and soft-hearted. Without even realizing it, he had already taken the initiative to hold Yi Chen's hand tightly, their ten fingers interlocking perfectly and swaying back and forth.

As long as his master is by his side, he will never be without support, no matter where he goes.

Yi Chen glanced at him with his eyes lowered.

His emotions were written all over his face again.

This time, even he couldn't immediately understand why his disciple was in such a good mood.

Chu Xianlan suddenly said, "Master."

Yi Chen: "Mm."

Chu Xianlan said again, "Master."

Yi Chen: "Hmm?"

Chu Xianlan smiled and looked up, saying, "It's nothing."

Yi Chen: "Okay."

Meanwhile, on the other side of the cage, the prince gradually woke up, and through the door and walls, countless eyes were staring straight at him.

Even though the evil creatures and monsters in the cultivation world are all kinds of strange things, he had never seen such a strange creature.

Those monsters all possessed characteristics of both humans and snakes. Some had human bodies but three snake tails, covered in foul-smelling pus and blood; others had deformed, limp bodies with limbs still attached, but flesh would fall off with every movement, and were covered with tiny snake eyes from head to toe; still others were enormous, reaching straight to the ceiling; and some had human heads, their entire bodies like mutated giant pythons, slowly writhing on the filthy ground. All of these creatures seemed mindless, with empty eyes.

The stench was mixed with an indescribable, strong, and pungent odor.

The crown prince took a slow breath.

He slowly got up and sat up from the ground, his movements somewhat slow due to several sword wounds on his body.

As soon as he moved, the monsters moved too, their heads turning, and strange, viscous sounds echoed endlessly in the empty prison.

The prince subtly extended his spiritual senses, only to be immediately repelled by a force. Sure enough, he could see faint ripples of spiritual energy on the surrounding walls.

Here, a spirit-locking seal, specifically designed by the demon race to suppress human cultivators, has been set up.

"Earth Spirit," he whispered.

The next moment, a small figure shimmering with a soft, pale yellow light emerged from his sleeve.

This is a small item he found not long ago.

A thousand years ago, the spiritual energy of the world was turbid, making it difficult to nurture the spirit of heaven and earth. Over the years, the prince had only seen one such creature. Seeing that it was just beginning to develop intelligence, he took it with him and nurtured it.

Seeing how badly he was injured, the earth spirit immediately cast a healing spell. She glanced back and was so frightened she shrank into the prince's palm. "Ah Li, it...they are..."

Half-demon.

These monsters were all half-demons, but they were the most deformed and ugliest half-demons.

--------

(I've been a bit busy lately, so I haven't had much time to write and I'm trying to keep the quality high. That's why I've been combining two updates into one for the past few days! I need to get back into a good state of mind, everyone. Thank you for your understanding and the little gifts every day. The data for this book isn't very good, and without your encouragement, I definitely wouldn't have made it this far. Love you all 030)