After I stopped trying, a rich woman trained me into a demon emperor.

Xu Yun gently tapped the wooden table.

Two young Taoist boys dressed in indigo robes moved at the sound, lowered their heads and eyes, and walked into the empty hall with small steps.

"Take it to the Taiyi Green Wood Formation in the back mountain and water it with spiritual spring water day and night."

Xu Yun's voice was calm and unassuming, devoid of any hint of worldly concern.

"Never let worldly impurities taint its spiritual essence."

A young Taoist priest reached out his hands and carefully picked up the unassuming, cracked flowerpot.

The white fungus in the flowerpot has shriveled and dried up like dried tangerine peel, no longer showing its previous lively and energetic appearance.

The young Taoist's movements were extremely gentle; he was not holding a withered mushroom, but a fragile and rare treasure.

They bowed deeply to the old Celestial Master and Zhou Ran, then bowed and slowly withdrew from the main hall.

The atmosphere inside the hall did not relax in the slightest despite Bai Xuan being properly settled.

Having resolved one issue, Master Xuyun then steered the conversation to another matter.

His gaze was fixed on the Yin-gathering banner that had been torn apart by the halberd, and his two gray eyebrows furrowed deeply.

He remained silent for a long time, only shaking his head.

"She has been clinging to life for a thousand years thanks to a single act of good karma."

Now, his soul is shattered and nearly vanished, more fragile than a candle flickering in the wind.

The old Celestial Master lowered his voice, and the light in the hall dimmed slightly as a result.

"Moreover, she has been immersed in the underworld for a thousand years, and has long since clashed with the laws of the mortal world."

"This forced intervention in the cause and effect of the mortal world is already an act against the heavens, and the body of the Yin spirit is facing the risk of complete collapse."

These words made Zhou Ran catch her breath.

He spoke, his voice somewhat deep:

"What exactly is this deadly ingredient?"

"To reshape her Yin spirit is beyond the reach of any mortal being."

Xu Yun uttered four words.

Each word seemed to press the air in the hall downwards by three degrees.

"The aura of a true dragon."

The aura of a true dragon?

Zhou Ran's breathing paused for a beat.

Dragon.

That was a mythical era that has long been buried in the dust of time.

"Only by gathering the purest and most yang true dragon energy and using the Nine-Turn Rejuvenation Needle, a technique lost by our Taoist sect, can we infuse it into the core of the soul."

Only then can it be revived, allowing the foundation for reincarnation to be rebuilt.

"Can……"

The old master sighed heavily, his voice filled with a sense of desolation and helplessness.

"True dragons have been extinct for a thousand years; where can we find them now?"

The hall fell silent once again.

The last wisp of smoke in the incense burner dissipated, and no new smoke rose.

The true dragon, that supreme being that exists only in ancient books and myths, is long since an unverifiable legend.

Master Xuyun's condition sounded like a death sentence for Li Zhiyao.

Zhou Ran sat there, his face not showing the despair one would expect. The purple-gold light in his eyes swirled, making it impossible to tell what he was thinking.

He was silent for a moment.

A memory steeped in bloodshed and greed surfaced from the depths of his mind.

That was the scene of "a dragon walking in the dragon palace" that was imprinted deep in the soul of the one-eyed dragon during the soul-searching and persuasion session.

A flash of purple-gold light appeared in Zhou Ran's eyes, and the corners of his lips turned up, revealing a section of gleaming white teeth.

"There is no true dragon."

Zhou Ran raised his head, his pair of purple-gold demonic eyes staring straight at Xu Yun.

"But what about the dragon core that is about to transform into a dragon?"

"A dragon core?!"

Upon uttering these two words, the serene expression that had remained unchanged for a century on the withered face of the Celestial Master Xuyun was finally broken.

He suddenly looked up and stared intently at Zhou Ran.

Those cloudy eyes suddenly sharpened, as if something inside them exploded.

"How do you know that beneath the eye of the Yangtze River, an old dragon is about to transform into a dragon through the water?!"

This matter is a closely guarded top secret between the Taoist sect and the Pai Sect.

The two sides have been locked in a standoff for a century, waiting for this once-in-four-thousand-years opportunity.

Zhou Ran chuckled.

"You know perfectly well why I'm asking this!"

"I'm afraid the master already knew I was aware of this matter."

"Master, just tell me, is the dragon energy in this Flood Dragon Pill pure enough, enough to save lives?"

"enough!

"Of course it's enough!"

He leaned forward slightly and spoke slowly and deliberately.

"Legend has it that the old dragon was a strange species left over from the time when Yu the Great controlled the floods. It had been lying dormant at the bottom of the river for nearly four thousand years, and its essence had long since been transformed."

Its dragon core contains the most primordial and purest wisp of 'Innate True Dragon Qi'!

"If we succeed, let alone reshaping the Yin Spirit, even ascending to the heavens and achieving the position of Ghost Immortal would not be difficult!"

"That's fine then."

Zhou Ran received an affirmative answer, and the murderous intent in his chest began to surge once again.

This trip to Longhu Mountain was very rewarding.

They not only found the only way to save Li Zhiyao.

Even the miraculous "main ingredient" he needed perfectly matched his goal of intercepting and eliminating the religion.

"I guess what the old master said earlier could kill me wasn't the dragon pill, but this trip to retrieve it?"

"I wonder what task the Celestial Master will assign to this junior?"

Zhou Ran picked up his teacup and said slowly.

"Young friend, you are truly intelligent."

"This matter is far more complex than you think."

"Oh?"

Zhou Ran raised an eyebrow, intrigued.

"That old dragon may be strong, but it is ultimately a beast."

The real trouble lies with people.

The old master's expression became very serious.

"For this dragon-walking event, the 'Paijiao' sect, which has been passed down for thousands of years, has almost mobilized its entire force."

They laid a trap along the Yangtze River, even enlisting the help of experts from the "Black Witch Village" to stir things up behind the scenes.

"I know about coaching."

"As for Black Witch Village..."

The image of the woman from Southern Xinjiang who had used a curse on Su Qingling flashed through his mind.

A madman whose face turned red and eyes became glazed after being slapped by himself.

Xiaorou.

That woman was the Holy Maiden of Black Witch Village.

"A bunch of scoundrels who play with poisonous insects."

Zhou Ran dismissed this with disdain, his words revealing absolute confidence in his own strength.

"Young friend, you are mistaken."

Xu Yun shook his head, his expression extremely solemn.

"The Pai Jiao are skilled in naval warfare. On the Yangtze River, their strength will be multiplied several times, making them extremely difficult to deal with."

"And Black Witch Village is not as simple as you imagine."

"What they worship is a wisp of the spirit of the 'Extraterrestrial Demon' that has been passed down since ancient times."

"Their Gu techniques are bizarre and unpredictable, specifically designed to corrupt people's hearts and souls, and are extremely vicious."

Even a highly accomplished Taoist master can fall victim to a trap and die an unexplained death if he is not careful.

Extraterrestrial demons?

Zhou Ran's interest grew stronger.

My cheap master, Ye Futian, would probably really like to eat this.

"Since I've already set my sights on them, I don't care if they're a religious sect or a witch village."

The Celestial Master wants to use me to eliminate the sect's persecution and avoid karmic consequences.

Xu Yun smiled and said nothing more, which was taken as tacit agreement.

Zhou Ran stood up and stretched his newly grown Taihuang left arm, the joints making a series of popping sounds.

His aura expanded outwards, causing the candlelight in the hall to tilt to one side, and even the flames seemed to carry a chill.

"Slaughter them all, then dismember and dismember them!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the candlelight in the hall was violently shaken by the pressure of the air, with the flames almost touching the wicks.

Outside the window, thick dark clouds had gathered, causing the sky to darken prematurely, and a mountain rain was imminent.

Just as Zhou Ran was about to ask more questions about the Black Witch Village, his eyes caught a glimpse of the entrance to the main hall.

The flock of white cranes that had been startled when he forced his way through the mountain gate still circled in the distance, not daring to land.

He remembered something.

"Oh, right."

He looked at Master Xuyun again.

"Where is Zhang Xuansu, the Taoist priest who used to be so imposing in Jianghai, the one who shielded me from missiles?"

"I made such a commotion, why didn't he come out to greet the guests?"