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Xie Shiyuan stood motionless, allowing the thick black demonic energy to swirl around him. The Phantom Light Night Lingti soared through the air, stepping on the very mist it commanded, rising to Xie Shiyuan's height. Its grotesque, snarling maw dripped with saliva, each droplet sizzling as it hit the ground.

"You fool," the beast spat. "Even Xuantian Daoist himself could do no more than seal me here! And yet, you—an insignificant snake that hasn't even cultivated for a thousand years—dare to stand against *me*?"

Xie Shiyuan calmly dusted off his shoulder. A golden-green light flashed across his body, and suddenly, the space around him became a vacuum. The demonic mist, as if possessing sentience, shrank away in fear, refusing to touch him.

He finally spoke, his voice indifferent.

"Oh? And what makes you so sure that what Xuantian Daoist failed to do... I cannot?" A low chuckle escaped his lips. "A foolish dog like you... The stench of your lowly demonic energy is *revolting*."

"YOU COURT DEATH!"

The Lingti beast lunged, using the thick black mist as camouflage, moving at incredible speed.

Yet the moment it appeared before Xie Shiyuan, a massive tail struck out with the force of a crashing mountain, slamming it straight into the ground.

Golden-green energy crackled along the beast's body, and just this single blow nearly shattered its condensed demonic aura.

Rage contorted the Lingti's face. It threw back its head and howled—an ear-piercing sound laced with an insidious power meant to erode the will of those who heard it.

Disciples of the Xuantian Sect stationed nearby paled, clutching their ears, fearing they would succumb to its mind-controlling effects.

But Xie Shiyuan simply looked down at the beast that had grown to ten times its original size, eyes glinting with disdain. He sneered,

"You've been sealed away for over ten thousand years, yet you *still* haven't learned to tuck your tail like a proper dog? Very well—this lord shall *personally* teach you once more!"

His golden eyes darkened into a deeper, more ominous hue. Just as the Lingti beast surged forward again, it suddenly *froze* in place.

The very air around it had turned into an impenetrable wall of force.

"*Spatial Laws?!*" the Lingti beast cried out in horror.

Xie Shiyuan had no interest in explaining. His tail, now charged with pure heavenly lightning, lashed out again.

Every strike shattered chunks of the Lingti's demonic aura.

It struggled, realizing in horror that it couldn't move up or down—trapped like an insect in amber.

It tried to cast a spell, to summon more of its corrosive magic—but found that its very essence refused to respond.

This *snake* was *unnatural*.

By all logic, he should be a creature of poison and darkness—yet he wielded *Spatial Law* and *Heaven's Wrath* thunder?

His cultivation... what realm had he reached? The Lingti beast couldn't even *perceive* it.

Xie Shiyuan glanced toward the horizon, sensing others approaching.

"Tch. How unfortunate... You're about to die so soon," he murmured.

His hands moved rapidly, forming intricate seals at a speed so fast they left afterimages.

The spatial prison surrounding the Lingti beast *contracted*.

"*Demonic or human—it matters not. To exist in this world, one must obey the laws of nature.*"

His voice was cold and distant.

"*Even if your demonic energy allows you to regenerate endlessly, let's see how you recover this time.*"

With those final words, he clenched his fist.

The air around the Lingti beast *imploded*.

The prison of space, unable to sustain itself, collapsed in a violent burst, shattering into countless fragments.

And with it, the Phantom Light Night Lingti was dragged into the endless void of the spatial currents.

Gone without a trace.

"Pathetic," Xie Shiyuan muttered, pulling out a silk handkerchief and slowly, meticulously wiping his fingers clean.

He cast one last glance at the entrance to the Wàng Xū Valley before turning in the opposite direction.

As he moved, the lingering demonic mist dispersed in his wake. The sun, once obscured by darkness, reclaimed the valley, returning everything to normal—save for the wilted, lifeless plants that bore silent testimony to the chaos that had transpired.

---

"Senior Brother! The demonic energy is *gone*!"

A young disciple rushed forward, his voice carrying disbelief.

"Gone?!" another disciple echoed. "Did that thing escape?"

"I don't know! But we've been here the entire time—we never saw anything leave the valley."

"Report back to the Sect Master first."

---

Qi Nan, the Sect Master of Xuantian Sect, frowned as he processed the report.

"The demonic aura has *vanished*?"

"Yes, Sect Master. Our disciples investigated the valley and found traces of battle. But the Lingti beast itself... it's as if it disappeared into thin air. No remains, no energy signature—nothing."

Qi Nan's brows furrowed deeper.

That beast had once fought Xuantian Daoist—a cultivator who had reached the *Great Ascension* stage. Even with his unparalleled swordsmanship, he had only managed to *seal* the Lingti, not kill it.

There was *no way* it was dead.

Which meant... it had either escaped—or someone had erased it.

Regardless, Qi Nan decided he couldn't take any risks. He sent an urgent message to the Tianji Pavilion's Grandmaster, Mo Shang, requesting his presence for a full-scale investigation.

Before he could even leave, another disciple ran up, pale-faced.

"Sect Master! *Disaster!* The leyline in Wàng Xū Valley has been *stolen*!"

Qi Nan exhaled sharply, his initial surprise quickly fading.

"Of course it was taken. If the beast fled, it wouldn't leave behind a resource as precious as a leyline. A creature that's survived for ten thousand years wouldn't be so foolish."

His gaze turned sharp.

"You are to stand guard. Mo Shang and I will be there shortly."

---

Qin Shu spent the rest of the day refining pills until the sun set.

When she finally checked the sect's announcement scroll, she nearly dropped her alchemy tools.

The demon beast had escaped.

Not only that—it had *stolen* a leyline from the valley.

Panic spread through the cultivation world. Every major sect and noble family immediately ordered their disciples to cease all outside training, fearing the unknown.

Without enemy casualties, no one knew the beast's whereabouts. The only confirmed deaths were three lower-rank Xuantian Sect disciples who had been tainted by demonic energy.

Qin Shu stroked her chin.

No wonder her divination earlier had shown *smooth sailing*.

If the beast had fled, then logically, there was no immediate danger.

But where had it gone?

She decided not to dwell on it. Packing up her alchemy supplies, she set off for her personal cave dwelling.

Unlike the sect's shared alchemy rooms, her cave was where she did her *real* cultivation. There, she could use her *innate spirit energy* freely—without anyone noticing her unusual physique.

But the moment she unlocked the barrier to her cave, something *felt off*.

The *density* of the spiritual energy was... *different*.

It had *increased*.

Drastically.

Her first thought—her master had finally taken pity on her grueling cultivation schedule and upgraded her training array.

But... even her master's cave didn't have spiritual energy this *dense*.

Suspicion flared in her mind. She cautiously pushed open the stone door—

And immediately spotted a long, elegant figure *lounging* on her stone bed.

A massive black tail draped lazily over the edge, its golden scales gleaming in the dim light.

The familiar sight made her breath hitch.

Meanwhile, her little companion, the tiny creature that usually occupied her bed, had been *tossed* onto her meditation mat, curled into a miserable ball, clutching its own tail in its sleep.

Qin Shu let out a slow breath.

"You're back?" she asked evenly.

She knew he was awake.

With his paranoia, there was *no way* he'd let her get close so easily.