Chapter 256- The Black-Bellied Demon Cultivator’s Senior Brother VS The Righteous Young Junior Brother (21)
Hearing that Hu Qi was actually a demon cultivator, and recalling that he had once deliberately approached him to befriend him, Mu Shaoyuan took a sharp breath. He still expressed some concern and said to Mu Jin, “You trust him that much? What if he’s deceiving you to gain your trust? If he truly doesn’t want demon cultivators to harm us human cultivators, why hasn’t he directly informed the sect leader?”
To his surprise, Mu Jin looked at Mu Shaoyuan with a hint of disdain and, with a serious expression, said, “I trust my instincts. There’s no need to focus so much on identities; there are bad people among human cultivators, and there are good people among demons and demon cultivators as well.”
“It’s understandable that Senior Brother didn’t tell the sect leader. His current situation is delicate. If people knew he was a demon cultivator, he’d be the first to be in danger. Besides, apart from the Demon Lord, most demon cultivators don’t want to be enemies with human cultivators.”
“Senior Brother himself is a demon cultivator. If he revealed our knowledge, we might end up attacking the demon side prematurely, which is something he doesn’t want to see. Senior Brother simply hasn’t come up with a perfect plan yet. Don’t worry, after we leave the secret realm, I will find a way to inform the sect leader with my Senior Brother.”
Mu Jin’s understanding of other demon cultivators’ intentions was derived from his thorough reading of the plot. Despite having fewer resources than humans, demon cultivators generally weren’t inclined to start a war. Most of them were rather lazy, merely envious of the good resources that humans had.
While explaining to Mu Shaoyuan, Mu Jin deliberately obscured the details of Hu Qi’s death, making Mu Shaoyuan believe that it was Ning Yizhou who killed Hu Qi to protect him. Since both Ning Yizhou and Hu Qi were demon cultivators, Mu Shaoyuan found it less suspicious that Ning Yizhou would kill other spies to protect Mu Jin.
Upon hearing Mu Jin’s words, Mu Shaoyuan fell silent for a moment. He couldn’t fully trust Ning Yizhou, but he had to admit that Mu Jin’s reasoning made sense. In comparison to the demon cultivators, he had no real animosity toward them.
Over the years, although the relationship between demon cultivators and ordinary human cultivators wasn’t particularly good, there was no deep-seated enmity. Ning Yizhou had always had a good reputation in the sect, and even Mu Shaoyuan himself had received care from him.
At this moment, they were facing the conflict between demon cultivators and human cultivators. Any mishandling could escalate the situation unnecessarily. As far as he knew, the Demon Lord had only recently taken office, and many people were still unconvinced by his authority.
The Demon Lord was ambitious, and demon cultivators were notoriously cunning. If they were merely using the demon cultivators to create a situation where both sides would be weakened while the demons benefited, it was clearly the outcome Mu Shaoyuan wanted to avoid the most.
Realizing this, Mu Shaoyuan agreed with Mu Jin’s view that it would be best to drive a wedge between the alliance of demon and demon cultivators. However, he was still somewhat embarrassed by the disdain Mu Jin had shown him, as if being belittled by a fool made him feel foolish himself.
He hadn’t expected that Mu Jin, who usually appeared straightforward, was actually more perceptive than he had anticipated. After weighing the pros and cons, Mu Shaoyuan decided not to expose Ning Yizhou’s identity for the time being and agreed to consider everything carefully.
As the protagonist of the small world who had experienced major upheavals, Mu Shaoyuan was relatively composed. After being persuaded by Mu Jin, he did not show any outward signs of dissent, but he did become more observant of Ning Yizhou.
He noticed that the interactions between Ning Yizhou and Mu Jin seemed particularly warm. The atmosphere between them was such that it felt like no one else could intrude.
Although this situation seemed somewhat strange, considering Mu Jin’s unwavering trust in Ning Yizhou, and the fact that Mu Shaoyuan was led to believe that Mu Jin knew the whole truth, it seemed quite normal for Ning Yizhou to treat Mu Jin differently and for the two of them to be closer than others. Thus, the four of them spent their final moments in the secret realm together, moving along at a leisurely pace.
When the secret realm reopened, everyone gathered at the entrance. Practicing in such environments always came with various risks. Even in this seemingly peaceful secret realm, it was inevitable that some would be injured or even lose their lives.
Therefore, the once spirited group had become particularly somber. Although only two or three cultivators had perished, they were fellow disciples who had trained together, which naturally brought a sense of sadness and reflection. While most had gained valuable opportunities, some had left their lives forever in the secret realm.
Fortunately, most of the remaining individuals had not sustained severe injuries. Some even obtained excellent inheritances, which would surely advance their cultivation.
Among them, Mu Jin and Mu Shaoyuan were the most remarkable. Mu Shaoyuan obtained a valuable inheritance in the secret realm, which greatly advanced his mindset. However, due to the difficulty of breaking through to the Core Formation stage in the secret realm, he planned to wait until he returned to the sect to focus on that breakthrough.
Mu Jin’s progress was even more astounding. Originally at the Foundation Establishment stage, he managed to reach the late Meridian Condensation stage in just one year within the secret realm, just a step away from Core Formation. Such a rapid cultivation speed was truly jaw-dropping.
As soon as they left the secret realm, Ning Yizhou received a message from their master, Luo Kangde, urging him to hurry back to the sect with Mu Jin. It seemed that Luo Kangde was aware of Mu Jin’s unusually fast cultivation speed and was concerned about his unstable foundation. He had already prepared the necessary materials and jade slips, waiting for Mu Jin’s return to help stabilize his cultivation and assist with the breakthrough.
The heads of the various peaks had already arrived at the entrance of the secret realm, so they did not delay and quickly returned to the Clear Stream Sect.
Upon returning to the sect, Mu Jin was summoned by Luo Kangde. Ning Yizhou watched Mu Jin with a reluctant expression, smiling as he patted his head. He saw his junior brother leaving, frequently looking back as he followed his master.
Ning Yizhou, watching Mu Jin’s retreating figure, thought about how much Mu Jin enjoyed various delicacies. After more than a year in the secret realm, the best they had eaten was the meat of magical beasts. Although Mu Jin was good at barbecuing and occasionally they had tasted different spiritual fruits, it was far from the exquisite dishes prepared down the mountain.
With the emotional bond nurtured in the secret realm, Ning Yizhou clearly understood Mu Jin’s preferences better than before. He thought that after Mu Jin finished talking with his master, he would still have some time before his seclusion. He could prepare some delicious food for his junior brother, hoping to see his lovely smile again.
So, Ning Yizhou made a special trip to a town a bit further from Qingyun Mountain, gathering a variety of tasty treats and storing them in his Qiankun bag.
As he imagined his beloved’s round, doll-like face, Ning Yizhou’s smile softened involuntarily. Walking through the market, he drew blushing and flustered glances from the women around him, but he was completely unaware of this effect.
However, Ning Yizhou did not anticipate that, upon returning to the Clear Stream Sect with the gifts for Mu Jin, he would encounter Mu Shaoyuan, who was being ambushed by demonic cultivators in the mountains.
Mu Shaoyuan had spent the past few years within the Clear Stream Sect’s territory. Even when tasked with missions by the peak masters, the locations were usually not too far away, and he often had fellow disciples accompanying him.
This time, shortly after leaving the secret realm, he received instructions from his master to go to the nearby Shadowless Sect to retrieve an item. He quickly went to the Shadowless Sect and obtained the item. However, on his way back, he unexpectedly encountered a demonic cultivator.
Though there was only one demonic cultivator, he was at the Nascent Soul stage, while Mu Shaoyuan, at the late Meridian Condensation stage, was clearly no match for him and was already badly injured.
Even the demonic cultivator seemed to have mastered some dark technique, as he absorbed a significant amount of Mu Shaoyuan’s spiritual power, further weakening him.
When Ning Yizhou encountered this situation, he immediately thought of some rumors he had heard before. The demonic cultivators had long been making moves against the Duankong Sect, seemingly because of the treasured Xiaguang Stone within the sect.
However, after the destruction of the Duankong Sect, the Xiaguang Stone went missing, and no one knew its whereabouts. All clues were focused on the only remaining heir, Mu Shaoyuan.
Previously, Mu Shaoyuan had been staying quietly within the Qingliu Sect, making it very difficult for the demonic cultivators to take him. It was surprising that they were so bold as to intercept him here.
This location was still within the Qingliu Sect’s territory. Given the strength of the demonic cultivator and the lack of a large force sent to capture Mu Shaoyuan, if Ning Yizhou had not arrived, the demonic cultivator might have taken Mu Shaoyuan away without leaving a trace.
Although Ning Yizhou was sent to the Qingliu Sect by the Demon Lord, he had always distrusted the demonic cultivators.
While few people knew the exact use of the Xiaguang Stone, Ning Yizhou believed that if the demonic cultivators got their hands on it, it would undoubtedly be harmful to them. Without hesitation, he charged in to prevent the demonic cultivator from abducting Mu Shaoyuan.
Despite the demonic cultivator’s formidable strength, Ning Yizhou was no weakling himself. However, due to his need to maintain his human form and suppress his power, he was somewhat outmatched. Nevertheless, saving Mu Shaoyuan should be feasible.