Chapter 71: The Young Master of the Demon Realm

  Since that day's conversation with Xi Zhong, Xuan Zhen had a long period of time where he was in a daze. The recovered memories, the hatred for killing his mother, the pain of being demonized and killing his fellow disciples, the news of his master's death, one thing after another, filled up his fragile mind that had just slowly healed from its severe injuries. The aftereffects of the seal being lifted also gradually appeared, and every time Xuan Zhen thought about those painful or joyful, tragic or happy events, he would feel a sharp pain in his head, and after several times, it made him even more troubled.

  The war did not cease due to the various events that occurred around him, and Tai Qing's death seemed to push the entire Qionghua Sect to the forefront of the situation. The six great guardians of the Huanming Realm lost four of them and were unwilling to give up easily. However, due to Yan You's severe injury and the chaos in Qionghua, the battle was temporarily halted. Nevertheless, whether it was the demons or humans, they all knew that this was just the last calm before the storm.

  After several days, Xuan Zhen's external injuries had all healed. It was only then that he realized what the demonic transformation meant for him, who was between a demon and a human. The nineteen years of accumulated Taoist cultivation were transformed into demonic energy flowing through his meridians in just one night, not only did the damaged organs heal rapidly under this demonic energy, but even external injuries healed several times faster than when he was human. At this time, although he could still maintain the appearance of being a Qinghua disciple, inside, he had become completely different.

  On this day, Xuan Zhen finished his cultivation and walked out of the side hall. Following his habit over the past few days, he went to the purple crystal forest behind the hall to practice his demonic arts. Perhaps due to Yuanyu's instructions before her closed-door meditation, on the second day after Xuan Zhen woke up from his coma, Xi Zhong brought him a scroll containing various demonic cultivation secrets of the Meng Jiang tribe. The scroll also mentioned that when cultivating, the Meng Jiang tribe often chose a place with rich spiritual energy to assist their cultivation, which greatly benefited the enhancement of their demonic powers.

  Inside the Huan Yin Palace is the source of the infinite spiritual energy of the Huan Yin realm, with a much denser spiritual energy than elsewhere. The purple crystal stone is also a crystallization of the spiritual energy of the Huan Yin realm, which is why Xuan Zhen always goes to places with the most purple crystal stones whenever he encounters demonic cultivators.

  A purple mist filled the air, with occasional glimpses of palace eaves and corners. Xuan Zhen walked along, the palaces becoming fewer and farther between, while the clusters of amethyst stones alongside the road grew thicker and more luxuriant. Following his memories, he arrived at a massive amethyst stone, over a person tall, where he used to meditate. Before sitting down, he heard a soft whispering sound behind him.

  In the realm of Huan Yin, Ri Huang Gong's status is like the back mountain forbidden land of Qiong Hua Sect. Normally, except for Gui Xie and Xi Zhong, Xuan Zhen had never seen any other demons here, but today he heard a voice that was clearly different from a man's tone. As soon as Xuan Zhen heard it, he turned around to look, and this glance made him even more stunned.

  Behind the cluster of amethyst stones, a tiny infant sat. The small face was no larger than half a palm, with delicate pink skin like a peach blossom in late spring, and a dot of vermilion between the eyebrows added to its charm. Two large eyes sparkled like jade, blinking at Xuan Zhen, with a clear gaze that showed not a hint of fear.

  The little girl had both small hands grasping a slender purple crystal, as if trying to struggle to get up from the ground, but unfortunately her legs were weak and she couldn't do it no matter how hard she tried. Xuan Zhen found this amusing and walked forward a few steps, picking her up in his arms.

  Xuan Zhen held the soft bundle in his arms, and the gloom on his face dissipated a little. As he comforted the girl, he secretly harbored doubts in his heart: The Huan Ming Realm was the gathering place of the Dream Weaving Demon Clan, and even great demons rarely came to this place, so how could he see an infant here? It was truly strange.

  Just then, his scalp suddenly hurt, and it turned out that the little girl was lying in Xuanyin's arms, seeing a strand of black hair hanging down in front of her eyes, swaying back and forth. She stretched out a soft and fluffy small hand to pull this shiny new thing into her hands. Perhaps she thought Xuanyin looked quite pleasing to the eye, so the little girl's big round eyes narrowed, and she giggled with her mouth open, calling out unclearly: "Hong... Hong Gege..."

  Xuan Zhen's eyes widened as he looked down at the red robe on his body, and he couldn't help but feel a mix of emotions. Since he no longer belonged to the Qionghua Sect, it wasn't suitable for him to wear the blue and white Daoist robes anymore. So, Xi Zhong had found a new set of clothes for him. But when Xuan Zhen received the garment, his eyes widened in surprise. It turned out that the demon realm's sky and earth were a deep purple-red color, which was why the Meng Yu tribe favored this vibrant hue. The palace buildings were adorned with purple silk curtains, and even their clothing was mostly bright colors. The long robe Xi Zhong had given him was a deep crimson red, with purple crystal stones embroidered on the cuffs. It looked quite magnificent, but it made Xuan Zhen, who was used to wearing plain clothes, feel extremely awkward.

  However, this red dress, with its shoulder-length black hair, fair skin, and handsome eyebrows, was a perfect match. He himself didn't notice, but the little baby seemed to like it very much, and immediately let go of the green silk in his hand and grabbed the hem of his red clothes, laughing uncontrollably.

  Are all the women of the demon tribe extremely fond of this bright color, and even a little kid is no exception? Xuan Zhen suddenly remembered that when he lived in Xiahu Lake, his mother also liked to wear red clothes, and she was particularly good at wearing them, which made her look more elegant. However, not only did she dress herself like that, but she also insisted on making a similar garment for her son, which made it difficult for the young Xuan Zhen to move around, and every time he was seen by Ah Cai, he would be laughed at and said to look like a red bundle...

  Thinking of the fun things in his childhood, Xuan Zhen couldn't help but reveal a faint smile, with a hint of nostalgia and a few sighs. His handsome face looked even more gentle, like water, not only stunning the little girl in his arms, but also making Xi Zhong, who had rushed to this place, pause for a moment.

  Xuan Zhen turned his head to see Xi Zhong, and the faint smile on his face instantly disappeared. Xi Zhong didn't seem to mind either, his gaze swept across Xuan Zhen's face before shifting to what was in his arms. The originally calm expression suddenly revealed a hint of relief, saying: "So the young master had run all the way here, making it hard for Xi Zhong to find him."

  "Little master?" Xuan Zhen was taken aback, looked down at his chest, and that little girl seemed to have noticed something, giggling again.

  Xie Zhong stepped forward, reaching out to take the little girl, and explained to Xuan Zhen: "The young master is the only daughter of Yan You, because she hasn't seen Yan You for days, she misses her very much. That's why Gui Ye brought her into the Li Huan Palace, but he was too careless and let her run to such a remote place while playing with the young master. Fortunately, nothing happened, otherwise... hum."

  After Zixu was seriously injured, the affairs of the Dream City were all pressed onto the two existing guardians. Guishan was good at fighting and Xiezhong was good at strategizing, and they cooperated with each other tacitly. However, according to Xuanshen's observation, this General Xiezhong had never led the Mo Yao into battle, but his momentum was secretly above that of Guishan, only his temper was more introverted, deeply hidden and not revealed. At this time, due to the temporary disappearance of the young master, a thread of anger was exposed, which was even more shocking than Guishan's occasional violent rage.

  Now that the infant had been found, Xi Zhong finally put his mind at ease. He took the girl into his arms, but the little one's small hand still clutched onto Xuan Zhen's hem, causing the two grown men to draw closer together. Xi Zhong looked up at Xuan Zhen, a hint of a smile on his normally stern face, and said: "The young master seems to be quite fond of you, probably due to the fact that you both share the same bloodline..."

  Xuan Zhen was taken aback, only then remembering that this child was Yan You's daughter, and by relation, his own younger sister. He stared blankly at the small hand still clutching his hem, a softness rising up from the bottom of his heart.

  Just as he was about to say something, a massive earthquake like a mountain collapse came from underfoot and shook the place in all directions.

  "Rumble——" It was as if the sound of thunder was rumbling, and it also seemed like rocks were rolling down the mountain. Every loud noise caused a tremor in the ground. Xuan Zhen and Xi Zhong exchanged a glance, both seeing surprise and doubt in each other's eyes.

  Xie Zhong's eyebrows furrowed, and he said in a low voice: "The Li Huan Palace is located in the deepest part of Xuan Meng City. In theory, external sounds should not be able to reach this place easily, unless..." Before he could finish speaking, his face had already changed greatly, and he didn't even care that he was still holding the young master in his arms. With a tap of his toe on the ground, his entire body suddenly rose into the air, charging into the swirling purple mist above his head.

  Xuan Zhen was taken aback for a moment, and then hastily followed with his sword.

  Xuanmeng City is as its name suggests, with roads that spiral throughout the city. The houses of the Meng people are distributed along the spiraling roads, while the Huanmi Palace at the center of the city is located at the very end of the road, also the bottom of the spiral. Inside the Huanmi Palace is like a city under the city, hidden in the deepest part of Xuanmeng City.

  Xuan Zhen and Xi Zhong had just passed through the purple mist into Xuanmeng City when another massive shockwave hit, causing them to lose their footing and almost fall to the ground.

  Rumble...

  In an instant, the entire city of Xuanmeng seemed to shake with it, and a series of explosions came from the highest point of the city wall, as if a giant thunderbolt was bursting above their heads, each shockwave triggering a violent earthquake.

  "Oh no, barrier—"

  Xuan Zhen supported himself against a cluster of purple crystals in front of the Huan Yun Palace and had just steadied his body when he heard Xi Zhong's low shout, and to his surprise, there were a few hints of panic in that voice.

  He followed Xi Zhong's gaze to the top of his head, and suddenly held his breath. The original shroud-like barrier that covered Xuanmeng City had dimmed significantly, and the purple light that originally enveloped it was becoming thinner and darker with each intense shockwave, its flow rate also slowing down.

  Xuan Zhen's heart skipped a beat as he recalled that Xuan You had once said that the seal outside Xuandu City was entirely supported by the demonic power of the clan leader. Now that Xuan You was seriously injured, this seal would naturally... But what about the massive earthquake?

  "What exactly happened?" Xuan Zhen asked.

  Xie Zhong looked at him and was about to respond when another shout interrupted him.

  "General Xi Zhong, it's not good!" A huge Qiong demon fell from the sky and landed in front of them, saying urgently, "Just now, a group of humans arrived outside the city of Xuanmeng. Three white-haired people used strange giant swords to strike our boundary, and our boundary is about to be broken!"

  Three white-haired men? Xuan Zhen's mouth tightened, and the faces of the three elders of the Qionghua Sect flashed before his eyes, knowing that he was overwhelmed with emotions for a moment.

  "Damn the human tribe!" Xizhong looked up at the seal, his face growing more and more enraged as the patterns on his face expanded, looking extremely terrifying. "Lady Yuanyu... if Lady Yuanyu hadn't been injured, they wouldn't have been able to shake my Dreamweaver City in the slightest!"

  As they spoke, another tremor came, and the light of the seal above their heads also dimmed a bit. Xuan Zhen saw it with his own eyes, knowing that if he held on for a little while longer, the seal would be broken, and the entire city's Taotie demons would usher in a new round of slaughter... Would he have to watch again?

  P.S. Suddenly feel embarrassed, originally planned to let junior brother appear, but... delayed again