In Qinglu Village, the disciple recruitment selection finally came to an end as the last villager on the list finished their test.
Peng Yue looked at the young boys and girls who had manifested spiritual roots, the corners of his mouth curving into a satisfied smile.
“One Heavenly Spiritual Root, one dual spiritual root, and one triple spiritual root. For such a small village to produce three people with spiritual roots, including a super genius with a Heavenly Spiritual Root… My luck this time is truly exceptional. Once I successfully bring them back to the sect, the higher-ups will definitely reward me handsomely.”
Thinking of this, the smile on Peng Yue’s face deepened.
At that moment, the village chief slowly approached and spoke respectfully.
“Immortal Master, it is getting late. We have prepared a banquet in your honor. Would you be willing to join us?”
Peng Yue was, after all, only a mid-stage Qi Refining cultivator and could not yet fast.
Moreover, he was currently in an excellent mood, so he readily agreed.
The banquet was quickly set up in the square.
Villagers brought out tables, chairs, and benches, laying out various dishes and wine.
People bustled about the square, creating a lively and festive atmosphere.
Once everything was ready, Peng Yue, seated at the head table, addressed the villagers.
“Today, our sect has recruited three disciples from Qinglu Village, one of whom is a top-tier genius. This is a tremendous blessing for both the Tianqing Sect and Qinglu Village. I offer a toast to all of you.”
With that, he drained the wine in his cup in one gulp.
The other villagers quickly raised their own cups in response.
“To the Immortal Master!”
While the crowd merrily toasted and drank, Bai Qiushui felt no joy in her heart.
Instead, worry filled her.
Strange. Brother Yao still hasn’t returned. Did something happen to him?
Even when Mo Yao was in a bad mood and went into the nearby mountains to clear his mind, he would always return to the village before dark.
Now, night had already fallen for some time, yet Mo Yao still had not come back.
Bai Qiushui’s worry grew heavier by the minute.
She turned to Peng Yue beside her and said,
“Immortal Master, Brother Yao still hasn’t returned. I’m very worried. May I go look for him now?”
Seeing the anxious look on Bai Qiushui’s face, Peng Yue thought that since the girl before him possessed a Heavenly Spiritual Root and would have an incredibly smooth cultivation path in the future, it would be wise to earn some goodwill from her while she was still weak.
He replied,
“Miss Bai, it is already dark. It would be unsafe for you to search alone. I will accompany you. With my flying sword, it will be much easier to find him.”
“Really? That’s wonderful! Thank you, Immortal Master.”
Hearing his answer, Bai Qiushui felt much more relieved and quickly expressed her gratitude.
“Then we shouldn’t delay. Let’s set out now.”
With that, Peng Yue summoned his flying sword, lightly leaped onto it, then looked back at Bai Qiushui and gestured for her to step on as well.
Bai Qiushui carefully positioned herself slightly behind Peng Yue.
Once she was steady, he immediately activated the flying sword and flew out of the village.
The villagers watched the two soar into the sky with amazement, marveling at the miraculous abilities of immortals and envying Bai Qiushui for experiencing the sensation of flight so soon.
Just as the pair was about to leave the village, a blood-red light screen suddenly appeared, blocking their path and enveloping the entire village.
Faced with this sudden change, Peng Yue focused his gaze and quickly realized what the crimson barrier was.
“This is… an array? When was it set up?”
While Peng Yue was still shocked, a black-robed man emerged from the darkness.
It was one of the men Mo Yao had encountered earlier.
“Fellow Daoist, this array disk was refined by a Foundation Establishment expert from our sect. With only your Qi Refining cultivation, thinking you could detect it is nothing more than a pipe dream.”
“Demonic cultivator!”
The moment the black-robed man appeared, Peng Yue sensed the sinister aura emanating from him.
He immediately put distance between them and flung out a talisman.
The talisman instantly transformed into a human-head-sized fireball that shot toward the black-robed man, forcing him to dodge.
“Miss Bai, this man is a demonic cultivator. From the looks of it, he came from outside the village. Mo Yao likely encountered him and fell victim. I will hold him off here. You must return to the village immediately and tell the villagers to hide however they can. Also, this is an emergency communication talisman from our sect. Infuse it with spiritual energy for a short time to activate it and call for reinforcements from my sect.”
“You already managed to draw qi into your body while practicing the Qi Induction Technique earlier. You only need to familiarize yourself with the flow of spiritual energy within you to control it. Once you do, you will have officially stepped into the Qi Refining stage. Use this talisman as soon as possible. We don’t know if this demon has accomplices, so you must activate it quickly.”
While retreating, Peng Yue rapidly explained all this to Bai Qiushui.
He then sent both her and the communication talisman down to the ground.
Afterward, he summoned a small sword and several talismans before charging at the demonic cultivator with a loud shout.
“Demonic scum, face me!”
“Still thinking of protecting those mortals? Fine. Then you can all die here together!”
Seeing Peng Yue rush forward, black energy surged from the black-robed man’s sleeves and transformed into two short swords to meet him.
Watching the two engage in battle, Bai Qiushui immediately ran toward the village square.
Although she was extremely worried about Mo Yao, she could not leave the village now.
Her priority had to be completing the task Peng Yue had given her.
Please be safe, Brother Yao!
She prayed continuously in her heart while speeding up toward the square.
At the same time, she focused on familiarizing herself with the flow of the spiritual energy she had drawn into her body.
If she could break through to the Qi Refining stage now, the village would have a better chance.
A short while later, Bai Qiushui reached the square.
The villagers had already noticed the red light screen in the sky and the sounds of explosions in the distance.
They were gathered there in panic, with the village chief barely maintaining order.
Seeing Bai Qiushui return, the village chief asked,
“Qiushui, thank goodness you’re safe. That red screen in the sky and those explosions earlier scared everyone. Where are Mo Yao and the Immortal Master?”
“We were blocked by this barrier in the sky and couldn’t go find Brother Yao. The Immortal Master is currently fighting the person controlling the barrier. He told me to have everyone in the village hide to avoid being found by any possible accomplices of that demon.”
“Yes, hide, we should hide… But I must correct one thing. It’s not ‘possible accomplices’—it’s ‘definitely has accomplices.’”
Hearing this voice, Bai Qiushui was about to ask something when she suddenly realized it did not belong to anyone she knew.
She quickly turned around.
A black-robed man was now sitting on a chair, appearing out of nowhere.
He looked at the villagers with a playful, mocking expression and said,
“Right now, I’ll generously allow you all to hide for the time it takes half an incense stick to burn. Once that time is up, I will come looking for you. And if I find you…”
His words stopped abruptly.
A black banner suddenly appeared in his hand.
A sinister wind howled as a skull emerged from the center of the banner and shot straight toward a person beside him.
The skull opened its mouth and swallowed the person whole before they could even scream.
The person’s body instantly turned into a pool of blood that spilled onto the ground and soaked into the earth.
At the same time, sharp, piercing shrieks rang out from the black banner, filling everyone present with terror.
“That is what will happen. Run! Run quickly! If you hide well, you might live a little longer. Hahahahaha!”
Under the man’s sinister laughter, the villagers were overcome with extreme fear.
They screamed and scattered in all directions, plunging the square into chaos.
Lü Yang and the other person with spiritual roots saw the scene and immediately shouted,
“Everyone, don’t panic! Let the elderly and children go first!”
Just as they tried to help maintain order, the village chief and several middle-aged men blocked their path.
“You two should run as well. You both have spiritual roots. Your lives are far more valuable than ours ordinary mortals. Leave these matters to us old bones.”
Hearing the village chief’s words, the two were momentarily stunned, seemingly wanting to say something more.
“The village chief is right.”
Bai Qiushui spoke up, her clear, cool voice reaching everyone’s ears.
“The Immortal Master gave me a communication talisman. By infusing it with spiritual energy, we can call for reinforcements. We must make the best use of our time. If we can break through to the Qi Refining stage, we will have a better chance.”
She then turned to the village chief and bowed slightly.
“Grandpa Village Chief, I entrust my family and the villagers to you.”
Afterward, she took Lü Yang and the other youth and ran into the distance.
Watching the villagers scatter in all directions under the direction of the village chief and the others, the smile on the black-robed man’s face deepened once more.
“Hee hee hee. These mortals actually think they can survive by hiding. But that’s fine. Giving them a sliver of hope before plunging them into complete despair makes it so much more entertaining. Panic! Despair! The more you do, the higher quality the living souls my soul banner will harvest!”
Without hesitation, Bai Qiushui led the two to the back of a divine statue inside a village shrine.
There was a small hidden compartment in the wall here—one she and Mo Yao had discovered while playing hide-and-seek years ago.
It was extremely well concealed.
Once they were hidden, all three focused entirely on sensing and controlling the spiritual energy within their bodies.
Under these dire circumstances, they devoted themselves completely to the task.
They were only one step away from reaching the Qi Refining stage.
“Time’s almost up!”
A loud shout echoed throughout the entire village, sounding like a death knell for the villagers.
Immediately, streaks of fire shot from the man’s hands, setting houses ablaze.
Skulls burst out from the banner, devouring people.
The sounds of burning, shrill screams, and agonized cries rose and fell continuously.
Fear spread rapidly with every sound.
At the same time, Peng Yue, who was fighting the other demonic cultivator, noticed the situation on this side.
He tried to fly over to provide support, but was immediately blocked by his opponent.
“Your opponent is me. Don’t even think about helping those mortals.”
“Tch.”
Unable to break free, Peng Yue could only hope that Bai Qiushui would activate the communication talisman soon to call for reinforcements.
Even then, he knew most of the villagers’ lives could not be saved.
We can only sacrifice some people… Damn it.
Peng Yue gritted his teeth and summoned his two flying swords once more, slashing toward the demonic cultivator.
***
In the mountains outside the village, Mo Yao’s pinned arm had long since lost all feeling.
The chilling yin energy coming from his wounds and the horrific scenes playing on the Shadow Recording Stone constantly reminded him that all of this was his fault.
He watched the images transmitted by the stone—houses in the village being burned, villagers dying one after another at the hands of the black-robed man.
The anger and regret in his heart grew stronger with every passing second.
Damn it.
At this rate, Qiushui will be killed too.
Mo Yao regretted everything.
He regretted telling the black-robed men about the village.
He regretted leaving the village to clear his mind.
Most of all, he regretted being unable to protect Qiushui right now.
The thought of Qiushui hiding alone, the thought of her being in danger, the thought of her possibly being killed; the thought of all the important people in the village—the people who had cared for him, the people he knew and loved—being destroyed by these black-robed men.
And he could only watch helplessly as it all happened.
Damn it! I don’t want this! I don’t want things to end like this!
Overwhelming emotion forced Mo Yao to cry out.
Suddenly, he felt the protective charm on his chest growing hotter and hotter.
All his intense emotions seemed to converge into a flowing river, rushing straight toward the charm.
At that moment, a gentle female voice sounded in his mind.
“If you could obtain the power to change everything right now, would you accept that power?”
Hearing the sudden voice, Mo Yao felt no suspicion.
Instead, he trusted its source from the bottom of his heart and answered,
“As long as I can save Qiushui and everyone else, I am willing to accept any kind of power.”
“Even if this power comes with risks?”
“I don’t care!”
“Then please do as I say. Hold the gem on your chest and state your wish.”
Mo Yao used his free hand to gently grasp the protective charm and whispered,
“Please give me the power to protect the people by my side.”
“I have received your wish!”
Suddenly, a brilliant light that illuminated the night burst forth.
The transparent gem sank into Mo Yao’s body.
It then condensed his intense emotions and wish into reality, using itself as the core to reconstruct a brand new pink gem.
The next moment, a soft pink glow shone between Mo Yao’s fingers.
A delicate, seed-like gem appeared in his hand.
“Now, repeat after me!”
The female voice spoke a single word.
It carried immense power.
“Transform!”