It turns out, they were the main characters.

The sect token was platinum-gold in color, with a lifelike silver dragon engraved on it.

Luo Tan didn't know much about the Liangyi Sect, but he did know that the sect's tokens were roughly divided into five categories: sect tokens for disciples, special law enforcement tokens for the Law Enforcement Hall, and four types of tokens for elders and the head of the sect.

The fifth type of token is the most special.

There is only one such token, and only one person in the entire sect possesses it. Seeing this token is like seeing the sect leader; even elders must bow to it.

"How did the Spirit Dragon's token end up with him...?"

Luo Tan's eyes flickered slightly as she looked at the token in Mu Zhi'an's hand with suspicion.

"Owner……?"

The maid stopped in her tracks and looked up at the Empress, only to see her standing high above the pavilion in the sky, looking down in the direction where Mu Zhi'an was.

After a long pause, a faint smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

"No rush, let's take another look."

The Azure Emperor... indeed, he was hiding something.

Chapter 299 The Empress's Invitation (4K)

"This place is really eerie. How come I didn't feel anything when I came here last time..."

Mu Zhian looked around, feeling the biting cold creeping into his body, and couldn't help but rub his arms with his hands.

This place was originally a grotto used to seal the first Demon Emperor. However, because Yao Meng was there, it didn't look so gloomy. Now that the first Demon Emperor is dead and Yao Meng is no longer here, the place has become rather eerie.

Mu Zhi calmed himself down and strode into the depths of the main hall.

The main hall was incredibly empty. In the past, the first Demon Emperor was sealed here, but now the sealing vines have completely withered.

Mu Zhian looked around and felt a slight discomfort permeating his body.

Demon!

The entire hall was filled with the demonic aura of the first Demon Emperor!

Most cultivators cannot survive in the demon realm, and the reason for this is that ordinary cultivators cannot absorb demonic energy into their own cauldrons.

It's no wonder he was once the ruler of the demon realm; even though he has completely perished, his demonic aura remains so strong.

Mu Zhian used his spiritual sense to scan the main hall, but he did not find the storage ring left behind by the first Demon Emperor.

If it were an ordinary person, they would probably have given up by now. However, he has a pseudo-physical body with a natural spiritual body. Although he is not as good as Ye Lingxuan, he can still play a role at this moment.

Mu Zhian was not giving up. He closed his eyes and focused on sensing the demonic energy permeating the surroundings.

To his surprise, the demonic energy that cultivators could not absorb was like ordinary spiritual energy to him, which Mu Zhian could absorb into his innate furnace.

Amidst the pervasive demonic aura, Mu Zhian finally detected a unique item that differed from the demonic energy.

He slowly opened his eyes, turned around, and walked out of the hall.

On either side of the main hall stood a sculpture, and next to each sculpture lay a withered purple flower.

Mu Zhian raised his hand and infused it with a wisp of spiritual energy. The withered purple flower seemed to be nourished and quietly bloomed. A monstrous demonic aura soared into the sky, and the purple flower transformed into a purple flower ring.

The storage ring left behind by the first Demon Emperor was placed openly next to the sculpture. Who would have thought of this if they weren't born with a spiritual body?

"I hope you won't disappoint me. I wasted precious time with Ruoxi today because of you..."

Mu Zhian carefully put away the storage ring left behind by the first Demon Emperor, then turned and left the ancient hall.

In the sky pavilion, the maid looked directly at Mu Zhi'an and said softly, "He's out."

Empress Luo Tan calmly looked at Mu Zhi'an, who had just left the cave. Her bright and beautiful eyes were clear and captivating, her hair was blowing in the wind, and her slender legs in black stockings were faintly visible under her white dress with gold thread.

Although she possessed a stunningly beautiful face, her eyes and brows exuded an aura of authority that made people hesitant to look directly at her.

"Should we have him come to see you tomorrow?" the maid asked.

Luo Tan pondered for a moment, then calmly said, "The Ascension Ceremony will begin the day after tomorrow, and the disciples who participated in the Martial World Assessment will return tomorrow... If it's too late tomorrow, go and invite him to see me tonight."

……

Tianhe Garden.

After returning to the villa, Mu Zhian went straight into his room.

Immediately afterwards, he took out the storage ring that he had recently obtained from the pilgrimage temple.

"I hope the first Demon Emperor won't disappoint me too much. The Ascension Ceremony is just around the corner. If I can obtain some power from this storage ring, I can preserve my chastity... If I can't open the storage ring, I'll have to ask Sister Mengrou to wear black stockings to comfort me tonight."

Mu Zhian muttered something and put the deep purple storage ring on his finger.

Immediately afterwards, a wisp of spiritual energy was infused into it.

Whoosh!

Almost instantly, the storage ring emitted a strong light. Mu Zhian felt as if a monstrous demonic aura was rushing towards him, and ancient characters flooded his brain, making him feel as if he were about to faint for a moment.

Then, the scene suddenly shifted, and the entire sky was ablaze. Beneath that burning sky, a phoenix engulfed in black flames let out a sharp cry, and the ancient characters in Mu Zhian's mind clearly appeared.

The previously incomprehensible text was now clearly imprinted in Mu Zhian's mind, and he realized almost immediately what it said.

"Celestial Phoenix Technique".

This must be a first-grade cultivation technique left behind by the first Demon Emperor!

Is there nothing else in this storage ring?

Mu Zhian used his spiritual sense to search through the storage ring for a while, but unfortunately, there was only this one cultivation technique in the ring, nothing else.

"The first Demon Emperor was much poorer than I imagined..." Mu Zhian thought to himself.

Apart from a first-grade cultivation technique for demon cultivators, there were no good pills or other valuable items.

But thinking about it carefully, it makes sense. The first Demon Emperor was sealed in the Pilgrimage Hall for so long. Even if there were a lot of pills at the beginning, most of them would have lost their spiritual energy after a hundred years.

As for those imperial-level medicinal herbs, most of them cannot be carried on one's person and need to be cultivated in a specific environment.

When the first Demon Emperor attempted to conquer the Eastern Continent, he probably never imagined that he would never return.

Mu Zhian closed his eyes again and observed the description of the Heavenly Phoenix Technique. Soon, he gained a new understanding of the First Demon Emperor.

The Heavenly Phoenix Technique, in a sense, is similar to the Heavenly Phoenix Juice he licked off Yao Meng yesterday.

The Heavenly Phoenix Technique allows cultivators to ignite their own cauldron when spiritual energy is depleted, reborn from the ashes. At its peak, it can even allow for nine rebirths! Furthermore, if one consumes the Heavenly Phoenix Fruit, the Heavenly Phoenix Technique can undergo further evolution.

No wonder the first Demon Emperor chose Yaochi Holy Land as the first destination for conquering the Eastern Continent... One of his purposes in conquering the Eastern Continent was probably for the Heavenly Phoenix Fruit of Yaochi Holy Land.

However, he probably didn't expect that the Empress of Yaochi Holy Land cultivated the art of sealing. Once the Pure Lotus of Purification appeared, no one in the same realm could stop it, making it a bug among bugs.

Mu Zhian slightly collected his thoughts and raised his hand to cover the light of the storage ring.

"I can cultivate this Heavenly Phoenix Technique, but I must not reveal it unless absolutely necessary... Although it is a demon cultivator's technique, it can still improve my strength in any way."

Aside from beings like the Demon Queen who possess inherent racial advantages, only Yao Meng has the ability to restrain the first Demon Queen.

"If I master the Heavenly Phoenix Technique in the future, the only thing I need to worry about is the Demon Queen."

The Demon Queen's true form is a giant python capable of devouring everything. The Heavenly Phoenix Technique can burn the cauldron and instantly regenerate spiritual energy, but the Demon Queen can also devour the essence of a cultivator of the Heavenly Phoenix Technique when they are seriously injured.

In this way, the Heavenly Phoenix Technique becomes useless.

As for Yao Meng's Pure Lotus... Mu Zhian wasn't too afraid.

Although that fairy could counter the Heavenly Phoenix Technique, she could not counter Mu Zhi'an.

He could easily suppress a mere fairy tonight if he wanted to.

Of course, it might require two hands to do it; one hand isn't enough to control her.

After all, she has a big heart.

Recalling the alluring expression of that pure yet seductive fairy in bed, Mu Zhian felt a surge of heat in his heart, and even had an impulse to go find the fairy right now to cultivate the Eight Desolate Dream Diagram.

However, with the Ascension Ceremony just around the corner, even a little improvement in strength is better than the Eight Desolate Dream Map.

After carefully storing the Heavenly Phoenix Technique in the ring, Mu Zhian got up and prepared to go to Bai Ruoxi's room to focus on his cultivation.

Just then, a soft knock came from outside the door, followed by Wei Mengrou's cool and indifferent voice.

"I have received your letter."

My letter...? Couldn't the other party just come to me directly if they had something to say...? Mu Zhian looked up and said, "Come in first, Sister Mengrou."

……

The candlelight flickered in the room. Mu Zhian took the letter from Wei Mengrou, opened it, and glanced at it.

It was an invitation letter written by a maidservant of the Empress of Yuzhou.

That empress seems to be named Luo Tan...? And she's a top-grade alchemist...

Mu Zhian recalled the beautiful woman in the white dress he had seen that day, and then carefully read through the contents of the invitation.

Upon reading the last part, Mu Zhian's eyes showed a thoughtful expression. Noticing Wei Mengrou's gaze beside him, he turned his head and said, "An invitation from Yuzhou."

Wei Mengrou glanced at Mu Zhian casually: "The other party shouldn't know that you are a natural furnace cauldron, so why would they invite you out of the blue?"

These so-called geniuses have certainly seen many in the past and present. Apart from geniuses like Ye Lingxuan and Bai Ruoxi who can be described as monstrous, most of these 'geniuses' are definitely not worth their attention.

However, it is truly unbelievable that the other party would have their maid write a letter to invite Mu Zhian...

Whether influenced by the Primordial Witch or something else, when Wei Mengrou looked at Mu Zhi'an, her gaze involuntarily lingered on his face, and for a moment, her usually proud and beautiful eyes seemed to have a touch of bewilderment.

She quickly came to her senses, secretly shaking her head to clear her mind of those chaotic thoughts, and asked in a cool tone, "Are you planning to go?"

Mu Zhian slowly put away the invitation and smiled, "Since they've invited me, of course I'll go. There will be an alchemy competition afterwards, and to be honest, I'm quite interested in the prizes...maybe I can even bribe the judges beforehand."

The tribulation brought by Bai Ruoxi's Refining Spirit and Returning to Emptiness, as well as the demonic energy under the tribulation, cannot be completely concealed even by the array of Tianhe Garden. However, if there is a Concentrating Spirit Pill, there will be no such problem.

Moreover, if she obtains the Mind-Concentrating Pill, she will have a greater than 90% chance of safely entering the Void Returning Realm.

"Do you really think that just by going there, you can get the prize for the alchemy competition to be given to you?" Wei Mengrou raised her eyebrows slightly.

"Of course not, no matter what, the other party will definitely act according to the rules."

Mu Zhi paused for a moment, glanced at the maid's smooth, jade-like legs, and said absentmindedly, "However, there will always be a way."

In the past, he wouldn't have had many thoughts about spending time with Wei Mengrou in private. However, after Wei Mengrou took the initiative that day, Mu Zhian slowly activated some of his previously hidden special interests.

Adding to the fact that he was already feeling awkward after kissing Wei Mengrou today, he naturally had some bold ideas at this moment.