Chapter 298: Back to Yuelin City

Xie Ningyuan couldn’t quite keep up. "Go?" he asked, puzzled. "Go where?"

"To find Ah Ming outside Yuelin City, of course."

Lu Sangjiu said, "During the three days you were fighting your Heart Demon, I told them about Ah Ming. They all agreed to help me find the people behind this Demon Cultivator trafficking business."

Xie Ningyuan was a little surprised. He looked at the other three. "You... you’re all really willing to help Demon Cultivators?"

Luo Linlang shook her head righteously. "I’m willing to help my Little Junior Sister, not Demon Cultivators."

Shen Yuzhao nodded beside her. "Everything Little Junior Sister says is right!"

Xie Ningyuan was speechless.

’So, did Lu Sangjiu feed them some kind of bewitching potion? They’re supposed to be her senior brother and sister, so why are they following their Little Junior Sister’s every command?’

In reality, the reason they trusted Lu Sangjiu so completely was simply because she had always treated them with genuine sincerity.

Not only had she found the medicinal herbs with her Eldest Senior Brother to save their master, but she had also desperately found a way to protect Luo Linlang during the perilous Sword Seizing Conference.

These acts were enough to earn Luo Linlang’s unconditional trust.

As for Shen Yuzhao... he really was just that naive.

He was simple-minded, and others in the sect would often scam and trick him. His Eldest Senior Brother and Second Senior Sister were too carefree to notice such things.

Only Lu Sangjiu, whenever she found out, would take him to get even, beating those who bullied him to a pulp.

Over time, no one in the sect dared to bully him anymore.

Thus, in Shen Yuzhao’s heart, Lu Sangjiu was the most special person of all.

’Bullying him was one thing, but bullying his Little Junior Sister? Absolutely not!’

After Luo Linlang and Shen Yuzhao finished, it was Yan Zui’s turn.

At least she wasn’t as flighty as the first two, spouting some nonsense about how looks equal justice.

She looked at Xie Ningyuan with a serious expression and replied, "Demon Cultivators are the public enemy of the Cultivation World. My stance on that has not changed."

"But... there is a truce between Immortals and Demons, and the Demon Cultivators haven’t broken the agreement. For someone to secretly go to the Western Demon Realm to capture and sell them as goods is a despicable act."

"I simply do not wish for such a cancer to exist in the Cultivation World. I am not doing this to help Demon Cultivators."

’Hmm... Now *that* was the expected answer.’

The conflict between Immortals and Demons had persisted for centuries. This was especially true for the younger generation who had just stepped onto the path of cultivation; they had been educated and indoctrinated with this view from childhood.

The idea that Demon Cultivators were evil was deeply ingrained. It would have been truly strange if Lu Sangjiu had managed to change Yan Zui’s perception in just three days with words alone.

’But that’s fine... As long as she’s willing to get involved, this is an opportunity to change her mind.’

’It would be too difficult for him and Lu Sangjiu to change the minds of all the Immortal Cultivators in the world on their own.’

’But if they could change the minds of prodigies from various sects—people like Gu Jue, Yan Zui, Chi Yan, and Feng Lin—that would be a good start.’

’It meant that in the future, the major sects might also be subtly changed by their way of thinking.’

Therefore, Xie Ningyuan had no objection to bringing Yan Zui along. He even took the initiative to suggest, "It’s been a while. I wonder if Mr. Chi and Feng Dao You are done with their business. Why don’t we ask them to join us?"

Lu Sangjiu knew what he meant, but she was somewhat hesitant.

There was definitely a major power backing this operation. Right now, with just the five of them, it only involved the Ten Thousand Buddha Sect, the Seven Emotions Sect, and the Joyful Union Sect. The chances of one of their own sects being the culprit were still relatively small.

But if they added Feng Lin and Chi Yan, that would bring the total to five major sects, and the probability would increase significantly.

It would be incredibly awkward if the investigation led back to any of their own sects.

Seeing her hesitation, Xie Ningyuan guessed her thoughts and said, "Even if you don’t tell them, if the investigation really does lead back to one of their sects and the situation blows up, they’ll find out anyway."

"Rather than having an ugly scene later, it’s better to just invite everyone to participate from the start. That way, they’ll have to accept the results, whatever they may be. They might even be willing to righteously expose their own and help point out a few things, which would be helpful to the final outcome."

Xie Ningyuan convinced her.

Lu Sangjiu gritted her teeth. "You’re right. I’ll contact them now."

She used Communication Talismans to contact Chi Yan and Feng Lin, and she made sure to contact her own Eldest Senior Brother as well.

Of course, she didn’t explain the specific situation in the talismans. She only said that she’d run into something in Yuelin City and that it seemed like it could be a huge matter if they dug into it. She asked if they were interested in investigating it together.

Not long after she sent the messages, Li Qiancheng was the first to reply.

"Little Junior Sister, how did you know I just came out of seclusion after breaking through to the Nascent Soul Stage?"

Lu Sangjiu was speechless.

’No, I didn’t know. I was just trying my luck.’

’But thanks to your ’casual’ boasting, now everyone knows.’

Still, Li Qiancheng successfully breaking through to the Nascent Soul Stage was a joyous occasion for everyone.

Breaking through to the Nascent Soul Stage at just over sixty years old, while not making him a top-tier genius, certainly put him far ahead of most people.

Consequently, Luo Linlang, Shen Yuzhao, and Lu Sangjiu all felt a sense of shared pride and offered their congratulations.

Li Qiancheng was also delighted, saying that he was in need of some practical experience anyway and would head to Yuelin City to find them.

Next was Feng Lin’s reply, which was very concise: "Okay."

Lu Sangjiu had wanted to ask if Feng Lin’s cultivation had improved, but seeing his terse reply, she decided against it. She would find out when they met anyway.

’He was at the Mid-stage Golden Core before. Even if he improved, he’d be at the Late-stage Golden Core at most. It’s highly unlikely he could jump straight to the Nascent Soul Stage in one go.’

Last was Chi Yan. "Sorry, Mr. Lu. I just accepted a sect mission with my senior brothers. I’m afraid I can’t make it this time."

Since that was the case, she couldn’t very well insist. Lu Sangjiu didn’t try to persuade him, just offered a few words of consolation before ending the conversation.

"My Eldest Senior Brother and Feng Dao You both said they’re coming. I arranged for us to meet up in Yuelin City."

"The Joyful Union Sect has already taken over the matter with the City Lord Mansion. Ms. Yan Zui has also contacted her sect in the last two days and explained the general situation. The Joyful Union Sect has no intention of making things difficult for us."

"So, relax. We just need to be low-key as we go back and find him."

A distance of over a hundred li wasn’t very far for Cultivators. After a few hours of Sword Flight, the group arrived back outside Yuelin City.

Without rushing into the city, Lu Sangjiu led the group directly to the spot outside the walls to find Ah Ming.

He had been obedient enough to wait there. After Lu Sangjiu called out a few times, he popped out of the ground.

"Ms. Ajiu!"

Seeing Lu Sangjiu, Ah Ming’s eyes lit up, and he rushed toward her with a joyful expression.

But before he could wrap his arms around her, a hand shot out and pressed down on his head.

Forced to a halt, Ah Ming finally noticed the several other people beside Lu Sangjiu. The one holding him down was the other male cultivator from that night.

His aura was a little frightening, making Ah Ming flinch. He shuffled backward, putting some distance between himself and the group.

His eyes were clearly filled with wariness. "Ms. Ajiu, these people are..."