“We’re peers—call me brother,” Xiang Xian said quickly. “Don’t use titles; those are for fooling officials.”
Exorcists indeed cared little for official ranks, instead sharing the bad habit of famous sects—seniority over all. Xiang Xian came from a prominent family and studied under Grand Demon-Exorcist Shen Kuo, so Zhen Yue spoke politely to him. With mortals, he’d show no such courtesy.
“Then, Brother Xiang,” Zhen Yue said seriously. “May I ask if your current goal is to drag out Demon King Mu Tianzi, storm his lair, and use the Wisdom Sword and Heart Lamp to purify the Heavenly Demon?”
“That’s the plan for now,” said Xiang Xian. “If Brother Zhen has a better idea, I’m all ears.”
Xiao Kun arrived just as he prepared to summon the Golden Dragon. Seeing Zhen Yue had more to say, he stood by and listened intently.
“Have you two considered,” Zhen Yue sighed, “where the Demon King’s power comes from?”
Xiang Xian fell silent. They knew full well. Though the Demon King’s emergence would make him the Heavenly Demon, unstoppable in another year or so, his power ultimately stemmed from human baleful qi.
Hearing this, Xiao Kun grasped Zhen Yue’s point. From their interactions, he judged Zhen Yue steady. His words reflected the Jiangnan Zhen Family’s view, put mildly: “The Deputy Emissary and I have considered this seriously. Let’s speak as we go.”
With that, Xiao Kun summoned the Golden Dragon, which carried the three into Kuaiji’s skies.
Even Zhen Yue, worldly as he was, couldn’t help but marvel: “This is the first time in my life I’ve overlooked Shenzhou Great Land from the air!”
Xiao Kun stood at the dragon’s head, slightly bowed, hands gripping its horns as he deployed the Wind-Averting Rune. They flew westward over layered ridges, leaving Jiangnan behind. Xiang Xian still gazed at his homeland with reluctance.
“The Demon King’s power came from human baleful qi,” Xiao Kun said. “Shouldn’t the Exorcism Division devote more strength to protecting the masses? As long as we resolve Shenzhou’s crisis, the Heavenly Demon won’t obtain enough baleful qi and naturally won’t be able to reincarnate.”
“Exactly,” Zhen Yue said. “Look at the drought on the land. If we don’t address the root cause, we can only treat the symptoms, not the disease.”
The drought disaster had been spreading, slowly extending from the Central Plains southward beyond the Yangtze River. In the summer, many rivers had dried up, the skies were cloudless for thousands of miles, the blazing sun scorched relentlessly, and farmland lay barren across the earth.
Xiao Kun said, “The best outcome would be to eradicate the drought while resolving this earth veins anomaly and locating the Heavenly Demon Palace.”
“Mm, my mother deduced,” Zhen Yue said, “that if the demon has a hiding place, it must be in the fissures.”
Xiao Kun and Xiang Xian both knew the tales of the “fissures”—cracks that had existed in the world since its creation. Ordinary people could only reach them by rare chance and coincidence.
“The Qingyu Golden Chalice is precisely a magic treasure that connects to the fissures,” Xiang Xian said, “opening up nearly infinite space. The Zhen Family must have studied it extensively.”
“Yes,” Zhen Yue said gravely. “Recovering the Qingyu Golden Chalice is also the mission my mother entrusted to me.”
Xiao Kun did not interject, pondering in his heart: with their current combat strength, if they found the Heavenly Demon Palace now and fought the Demon King with everything they had, what were their odds of victory? Hulü Guang’s Heart Lamp was not yet reliable for major tasks, Xiang Xian’s Wisdom Sword could not be wielded freely, and though the White Deer had inherited ancient divine might, its battle prowess seemed limited. As for Chaosheng and Wu Yingzong, they could help in critical moments but had their weaknesses.
Each companion seemed to possess peerless skills, yet forging them into a united team to shoulder the heavy responsibility of purifying the Heavenly Demon would require a long road ahead.
“Will Brother Zhen come with us to Bianjing?” Xiao Kun suddenly asked.
“No,” Zhen Yue said. “I must investigate Dongting Lake. Please just drop me off in Yuezhou.”
Zhen Yue took out a compass and surveyed the land from above, saying, “Allow me to scout the area ahead for you two.”
“Then, after we rest briefly in Bianjing, we’ll come meet up with Brother Zhen,” Xiao Kun said. He brought the Golden Dragon down outside Yuezhou City. Zhen Yue leaped down and waved to them. Xiao Kun added, “We’ll surely arrive before the fifth day of the fifth month.”
Xiang Xian clung to Xiao Kun’s back and earnestly called down to Zhen Yue below: “If you encounter demons or monsters, be sure to act within your capabilities.”
Zhen Yue clasped his fists and bowed, then departed leisurely.
“Truly embarrassing,” Xiang Xian laughed. “We don’t care about the drought, yet the Zhen Family sends someone to handle it.”
Xiao Kun grunted in acknowledgment. Ever since meeting Zhen Yue, he had been troubled by the shortage of manpower.
“I need to rebuild the Exorcism Division,” Xiao Kun said to Xiang Xian, “and formally recruit everyone. We can’t manage it alone.”
Xiang Xian sat cross-legged on the dragon’s head and said, “Reform the unreliable bunch into a proper team?”
“How can you call our companions unreliable?” Xiao Kun was utterly astonished by Xiang Xian.
“This is what you said,” Xiang Xian replied. “You’ve always thought that, haven’t you?”
Xiao Kun immediately clarified, “When did I ever say that?”
“You didn’t say it out loud, but you thought it,” Xiang Xian said casually.
“I…” Xiao Kun had no choice but to admit it. “Fine, I just feel that some things shouldn’t fall on Chaosheng and Yingzong to bear.”
“Now we have Mu Qingshan and Hulü Guang as well,” Xiang Xian said. “I haven’t seen the White Deer fight with my own eyes, but it defeated the Black-Winged Great Peng. As for Hulü Guang’s abilities, we’ve both witnessed them. The only issue is whether Qingshan is willing.”
