He neither wanted to be finished off by Qing Lian Immortal Lord as cannon fodder nor turned into the Demon Venerable’s bug’s dinner. Gu Changhuai decided to make the best of it, adhering to the principle that since he’d come this far, he might as well enjoy himself.
…
Kong Huai sidled up to Gu Changhuai and whispered, “This is such a great opportunity to follow the Immortal Lord—how could you not seize it? It’s been three whole days, and all you’ve done is eat. Are you here to improve yourself or just sightsee?”
His voice softened as he paused. “But looking at your hands, you don’t even have any calluses. You probably can’t handle hardship. Training is tough, so just endure it for now. When we get back to the sect, I’ll find a way to transfer you to the inner sect to serve there.”
With that, he sighed, glancing regretfully at Gu Changhuai before shaking his head.
What a fine appearance, but such poor aptitude and such a carefree heart. He’d spent three days of training just roasting spirit rabbits without cultivating. Without someone to protect him, how could he survive in the Cultivation World? He was bound to get snatched away to be used as a cultivation cauldron.
Kong Huai was the inner sect disciple who had pulled Gu Changhuai down from the tree a couple of days ago. Over these past few days, he’d gotten a rough sense of this group’s background and responded to him with casual “mm-hmms” and “ahhs” while listening absentmindedly.
Suddenly, a shadow flashed before his eyes! His gaze sharpened, his lazy demeanor vanishing as he stared intently at the bushes ahead with a solemn expression.
Seeing him like this, Kong Huai also grew serious and nervously looked toward the bushes.
The surroundings fell quiet. Gu Changhuai focused for a moment, then abruptly launched the stone he held in his hand. The thing that was hit collapsed with a thud.
He rolled up his sleeves excitedly, parted the bushes, and hauled out a plump spirit rabbit half the size of a person, shouting—
“Light a fire! Light a fire!”
In an instant, twenty or thirty disciples surrounded him. Some split wood with their swords, others conjured flames with spiritual energy, and those with water spiritual roots summoned thin streams of water to gut, disembowel, and skin the spirit rabbit. They divided the tasks efficiently, and in the blink of an eye, the half-person-sized spirit rabbit was cleaned and skewered over the fire.
Spirit rabbits might be large, but they were hard to catch on ordinary days. Their meat was fresh and delicious; when roasted, it sizzled with oil, and even the skin was crispy and tender with one bite.
“Junior Brother Gu, you’ve got skills!”
“Good, good! What a treat to enjoy such delicacy during training—perfect!”
Gu Changhuai accepted the chorus of praise without reservation. As the greatest contributor, he naturally claimed a rabbit leg.
Until he sensed an unignorable presence beside him. Gu Changhuai’s motion of dividing the leg paused, his peripheral vision clearly catching the hem of a dark cyan robe embroidered with subtle patterns.
“…” He slowly raised his gaze to meet a pair of deep, inscrutable eyes. Rong Ye’s voice betrayed no emotion as he asked, “Tasty?”
Gu Changhuai: “…Would the Immortal Lord like some?”
The fatal poison was already at his sleeve. If Rong Ye said yes, it would go down immediately.
At his words, Rong Ye’s expression didn’t change. He merely glanced at him silently again before turning and walking away without a word.
“Get your act together. How did you even pass the sect entrance exam? Every other attendant sticks to the Immortal Lord, but you’ve been off roasting rabbits with us for three days. The Immortal Lord noticed you weren’t keeping up and came back specifically to call for you.” Kong Huai pushed him and snatched the rabbit leg. “Hurry up and go. I’ll enjoy this leg for you, ha.”
Realizing too late, Gu Changhuai scrambled up and chased after Rong Ye.
…
They headed in the direction of Lingtai Slope’s inner region.
Over these past few days with the outer sect disciples, Gu Changhuai had learned from them just how perilous the inner region was. One careless step could land you in an illusion array set by some treasure-guarding cultivator, or you might wander into a demon beast’s territory. The demon beasts that survived in the inner region were mostly at the Soul Transformation stage.
Still thinking about the uneaten roast rabbit leg, Gu Changhuai followed Rong Ye, but he trailed behind at a leisurely pace.
Oddly enough, ever since he realized he’d transmigrated into a book, he’d subtly inquired among the outer sect disciples over these days and hadn’t heard of Qing Lian Immortal Lord taking any disciples.
Had the plot not started yet?
As he pondered, a sudden pain struck his head. Gu Changhuai hissed instinctively and clutched his forehead, only to find that Rong Ye, walking ahead, had stopped at some point. He’d bumped into Rong Ye’s back.
Gu Changhuai froze for a moment, then looked up at Rong Ye’s inscrutable expression. Tentatively, he reached out and patted the spot he’d collided with, saying awkwardly, “…Sorry, sorry.”
Rong Ye glanced at him and spoke in a low voice. “Too slow.”
Before the words finished echoing, Gu Changhuai felt a sudden upward pull. His feet lifted off the ground abruptly, his vision blurred, and then he found his footing again. He shifted uncomfortably.
Rong Ye released his grip on Gu Changhuai’s collar and said coldly, “Stand steady.”
“…” Gu Changhuai looked down and realized he was standing on a long sword, its blade gleaming with chill light. After a thought, he recalled this was Qing Lian Immortal Lord’s sword—the one that revealed heaven and earth with its sharpness… the Qiankun Sword.
This was also the sword that had cleaved off thousands of demon clan heads in one go.
Oh ho!
Gu Changhuai immediately straightened with respect, no longer panicked. He cleared his throat and couldn’t help but puff out his chest a bit more.
Progress! He’d mounted his enemy’s lifebound sword.
Who among the demon clan could top that?
He couldn’t help but grin silently, squinting his eyes contentedly as he tucked his hands into his sleeves and enjoyed the breeze.
Blissful.
Rong Ye paused, his gaze darkening as it swept over Gu Changhuai.
The Demon Realm truly declined with each generation. This shadow demon they sent couldn’t even hide his demonic aura, didn’t stir up trouble, and instead blended right in with the outer sect disciples.
Rong Ye even suspected that if he hadn’t sought out this shadow demon, it could have just tagged along with the outer sect disciples indefinitely… making his intentions impossible to fathom.
Recalling two days prior, when the shadow demon had stomped and slashed on Blood Night City’s streets, drawing his blade with lethal grace—his strength was not to be underestimated. Rong Ye furrowed his brow subtly, deciding it was better to keep him in sight to avoid unnecessary trouble.
…
The Qiankun Sword flew toward Lingtai Slope’s inner region. Sword flight took a while to arrive, so Gu Changhuai leisurely enjoyed the scenery.
The closer they got to the inner region, the more he sensed the lurking dangers around them. Finally, as another man-eating bird streaked by nearby, Gu Changhuai’s laid-back nerves finally reacted. Compared to the outer sect disciples’ trembling efforts just to catch a spirit rabbit… his demeanor really clashed with the atmosphere here.
“Ah!” He let out a feigned frightened shout and suddenly stepped forward to hug Rong Ye’s waist. “I’m so scared that bird might eat me. Immortal Lord, you have to protect me.”
Rong Ye: “…”
False.
He silently lowered his gaze to the slender, pale hands around his waist and closed his eyes in forbearance. “Let go.”
Look at that—such a cold person. Gu Changhuai really wanted to draw his blade and enlighten Rong Ye right there, but he didn’t dare. In a direct confrontation, he wasn’t Rong Ye’s match.
Gu Changhuai reluctantly pulled back and probed, “Does the Immortal Lord have important business in the inner region?” A mild “mm” responded from ahead, the low voice giving nothing away.
Afraid of arousing suspicion, Gu Changhuai didn’t speak again afterward, striving to act like an utterly ordinary outer sect disciple of Xinnan Immortal Sect.
The Qiankun Sword flew straight into the inner region and kept going deeper, finally landing not far from a frigid pool. The area felt unusual; within three li around the pool, it was eerily silent.
Such situations usually meant one of two things: either someone had cleared the area, leaving no demon beasts within three li, or a greater danger lurked, keeping the beasts away.
Sensing the faintly surging undercurrent in the air, Gu Changhuai figured it was the latter.
Suddenly, killing intent surged. He hadn’t guessed wrong—the Qiankun Sword hadn’t even landed when the frigid pool erupted in waves. Then came a roar that was dragon-like but not quite, whipping up a gale with endless pressure, comparable to the Tribulation Passing stage.
The instant the wind hit him, goosebumps rose on Gu Changhuai’s skin, and he shivered involuntarily. A bit cold. After jumping off the Qiankun Sword, he wisely dodged to the side, leaving the battlefield to Rong Ye.
By rights, a real outer sect disciple standing there would have spat blood at that roar. After hiding, Gu Changhuai sneaked peeks at Rong Ye’s reaction.
By now, Rong Ye had recalled the Qiankun Sword and charged at the ice flood dragon emerging from the frigid pool, seemingly oblivious to him. Gu Changhuai quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
Then he got a bit angry. How could an Immortal Lord disregard an outer sect disciple’s safety? If a real outer sect disciple had been standing there, wouldn’t they have been gravely injured by now?
Gu Changhuai frowned as he watched Rong Ye battle the ice flood dragon in midair. His own lifebound saber flickered faintly behind him, but after a moment’s thought, he sighed and made it vanish again.
Forget it.
As an assassin, he had to strike openly and honorably. How could he stoop to dishonorable third-party ambushes like some scheming lowlife? No rush for this moment.
The instant his saber vanished, sword qi erupted across the sky. Gu Changhuai looked up in shock to see Rong Ye standing indifferently, hands clasped behind his back without moving, as vast sword qi coalesced.
Then Gu Changhuai’s vision blurred, as if a flash of icy light pierced the ice flood dragon’s body. The beast roared and thrashed for a moment before plummeting stiffly, its massive form shattering into countless pieces midair.
One sword.
Just one sword.
Gu Changhuai’s pupils quaked. Good thing he hadn’t struck amid the chaos… Suddenly, his gaze sharpened.
The ice flood dragon’s body had shattered, but its huge head remained. Midway through its fall, the dragon horn on the head burst open like a flower.
Two ice spikes containing the ice flood dragon’s full spiritual power shot out from the horn, radiating destructive force like a world-ending strike. A Tribulation Passing stage full-power attack at such close range—and Rong Ye had his back turned… Gu Changhuai’s expression tightened. Without hesitation, he dashed forward and leaped.
Feeling the wind from the oncoming ice spikes behind him, Rong Ye raised his hand to form a seal but sensed Gu Changhuai pouncing over.
Rong Ye’s movement paused. In the next instant, he was tugged by the leaping shadow demon and shifted position.
Gu Changhuai asked with concern, “Immortal Lord, Immortal Lord, are you alright? That huge ice flood dragon—gone just like that! You’re truly amazing!”
The two ice spikes whistled past them. His eyes flicked, and a black longsaber materialized from the void, instantly cleaving the turning spikes in two.
The ice spikes shattered with a faint sound, dissolving into two wisps of mist in the air. Gu Changhuai casually withdrew his gaze and looked at Rong Ye, saying with lingering fear, “That ice flood dragon was so vicious—it scared me to death. Were you injured in the fight just now, Immortal Lord?”
A long silence.
Rong Ye’s expression was unreadable as his gaze lingered on Gu Changhuai for a good while.
“…”
Gu Changhuai’s heart thumped twice. Now he was truly a bit scared. Had he slipped up somewhere? No, that couldn’t be—his performance along the way had been flawless! That casual tug and pull had perfectly embodied a weak attendant’s concern for his Immortal Lord. Textbook acting! He couldn’t panic.
After a moment, Rong Ye looked away. A jade box appeared in his hand, and a crystalline, chilling ice core from midair dropped into it and was stored away.
“Let’s go.”
Hearing Rong Ye speak, Gu Changhuai finally breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
Looks like the Immortal Lord’s vigilance wasn’t that high after all.
The assassination still had a shot.
![Hundreds of Assassination Attempts on the Immortal Venerable [Transmigration Book]](https://i1.wp.com/dobynovels.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/tr.jpg?resize=151,215 "Hundreds of Assassination Attempts on the Immortal Venerable [Transmigration Book]")
