Of course, there were elixirs in Xuan Nü’s ring to solve this kind of problem. Lu Xingzhou silently found one and fed it to Jiang Yuan, who was in heat. Finally, Jiang Yuan fell into a deep sleep.

Lu Xingzhou turned to look at Yuan Muyu, his expression unreadable.

Seeing his expression, Yuan Muyu’s heart skipped a beat, and she suddenly understood.

There was medicine in Xuan Nü’s ring, and with Lu Xingzhou’s intelligence, he should have thought of it. So, was his failure to consider that direction earlier due to being flustered, or was it a deliberate oversight?

If it was the latter, then Lu Xingzhou was clearly taking advantage of the young girl, or at least subconsciously had such a thought, which she had ruined.

At this thought, Yuan Muyu’s expression also became strange.

Is Lu Xingzhou this wicked now?

No, that’s not right. Lu Xingzhou was already quite wicked back then, always secretly taking liberties with her.

It’s just that now he does it with many people, but no longer with her.

The two exchanged complex glances for a while, and Yuan Muyu sighed helplessly, “It seems… I’ve done something bad?”

“No,” Lu Xingzhou said, a little embarrassed, “Perhaps subconsciously… hmm, but rationally, I didn’t think that way. It’s certainly good to be able to solve the problem.”

This conversation was inexplicably awkward and stuttering. The little white-haired girl’s clear blue eyes darted strangely between them. “You two are quite in sync, aren’t you?”

Lu Xingzhou also realized that he and Yuan Muyu were indeed extremely in sync. Almost as soon as one opened their mouth, the other knew what was implied. Ten years of habit had left an indelible mark.

Yuan Muyu also thought of this, and the atmosphere grew even more silent.

Du Gu Qingli felt the atmosphere was off. “Your Excellency Yan Jun isn’t here to kidnap Lu Xingzhou again, are you?”

Yuan Muyu didn’t answer that question, instead saying indifferently, “I am your Shishu. Is that how you speak to me?”

Du Gu Qingli said, “The sect has not informed its disciples, and Your Excellency has not returned to the sect.”

Normally, given the Tianyao sect’s attitude towards Yan Jun, this was indeed how it should be. Yuan Muyu was silent for a moment, then directly pointed out the essence, “You don’t need to deliberately create a concept of an unfamiliar Shishu to apply to Ye Zhuoyu. I am me, she is her. How you deal with your relationship with her, don’t drag me into it as a reference.”

Du Gu Qingli’s eyes widened. “You crazy person actually know what I’m thinking? And it’s such a complex problem, one I deeply thought about for three days and three nights.”

Lu Xingzhou also held back a mouthful of unspoken words, unsure how to speak.

When Yuan Muyu wasn’t being erratic, she was a very wise Demonic Dao Overlord. It had been a long time since he had seen Yuan Muyu in this state. Is Du Gu Qingli’s recent rampage causing Heaven’s Dao to re-match her with an opponent? But how did it match her with this form of Yu?

Yuan Muyu’s single sentence caused the little white-haired girl to freeze, as if she had done something trivial. She said casually, “As your Shishu, I have an obligation to remind you—your situation is much more complex than that beggar in this ancient world. Do you think you are immune to Xuan Nü’s influence?”

Du Gu Qingli introspected, not feeling any enchanting influence on herself. Hadn’t she been immune?

Yuan Muyu said indifferently, “It’s just that the demonic cultivation she inflicted upon you has been covered by your Ice Devil’s demonic nature. Once it acts up again, the rebound will be more severe than that beggar’s earlier.”

Lu Xingzhou was startled and reached out to take Du Gu Qingli’s pulse, but couldn’t diagnose anything.

Yuan Muyu said, “You can’t diagnose the demonic nature deeply hidden within her either, don’t bother. In any case, prepare the medicine for her, and she should take it directly when it acts up next time.”

Du Gu Qingli found it somewhat difficult to understand. “You… why are you helping me?”

Yuan Muyu said, “No matter what, I am still your Shishu.”

Ji Wenchuan stood behind, hands clasped, mentally complaining, *Nonsense, of course, Yan Jun doesn’t want Lao Lu to use this excuse to get involved with you.*

It’s just that she had no standing to say that now; it instead turned into a Shishu’s concern for her niece.

Yuan Muyu said, “Also, your inability to control the intent of the Ice Devil is a very dangerous thing… Judging from the Great Sea Competition, it may not require a Xuan Nü-level entity to stir up your demonic intent. You can’t expect a man to kiss you every time you fall into a demonic state.”

Du Gu Qingli asked, “Does Shishu have any suggestions?”

Yuan Muyu was silent for a moment, then handed over a jade slip. “When we cultivate Demonic Dao arts, killing intent and bloodlust can easily corrode the mind. Therefore, there are some emergency methods to maintain a sliver of clarity during a demonic state, in order to resolve it. You can refer to it, but as for whether it will be useful in your situation, I’m not entirely sure.”

Du Gu Qingli took it and bowed solemnly. “Thank you, Shishu.”

Ji Wenchuan: “…”

*Believe me, your Shishu really just doesn’t want you to get involved with Lao Lu.*

Yuan Muyu turned the little white-haired girl into an obedient one, then turned to Lu Xingzhou and said, “Check if there’s a complete set of Cha Nü Xuan Gong in Xuan Nü’s ring… She might not carry the core methods with her, as there’s no need. What she carries is likely only for teaching the sect. Check if that’s the case.”

Lu Xingzhou quickly found a jade slip in Xuan Nü’s ring. He glanced at it, and it was indeed the kind Pei Chuyun practiced, not involving the avatar technique or more profound matters.

He thought Yuan Muyu wanted it, so he tossed it over. “Jiejie needs this?”

Yuan Muyu took it, browsed through it, and pondered for a moment. “I’ll keep it for now.”

Ji Wenchuan hesitated to speak.

*You were clearly looking for it for Lu Xingzhou, so why is it yours now?*

Yuan Muyu glared at him, and Ji Wenchuan shut his mouth tightly.

“Lao Ji, what are you doing? Always hesitating to speak, then wanting to speak again.” Lu Xingzhou asked, “By the way, why are both of you running here? Aren’t you working on the matters of Yanluo Dian?”

Ji Wenchuan said expressionlessly, “Yan Jun heard Yin Feng Laoren’s report and was worried you might provoke the Ice Devil…”

“No,” Yuan Muyu quickly interrupted. “Bingyu Zong’s research on the Ice Devil is useful to me. If you capture Ling Qixuan’s divine soul, release it; I have questions to ask.”

Ji Wenchuan felt that the atmosphere was deathly strange when these people were seriously communicating. Whatever he said was wrong, and just standing there was also wrong, so he quietly slipped away. Then he saw Si Han sitting on the steps, pouring and drinking by himself, so he went and sat next to him on the steps, pulling out a bottle of wine.

Si Han glanced at him sideways. “…Can you give me back my bone dragon?”

Ji Wenchuan said, “Look further ahead. Bingyu Zong possesses a large number of Han Chuan’s secrets. Now Yan Jun and Lao Lu are prying open Ling Qixuan’s mouth; there’s plenty for you to plunder.”

“It might not even be on the same level as that bone dragon, something that’s hard to come by.”

“You’re not cultivating the art of Yin Shi puppets… Oh, can’t we talk about something else?”

“Then let’s talk about this: as a heartless and ruthless peerless killer of Duan Hun Zhui Ming, how have you spent all these years watching the melodramas between your superiors and brothers?”

Ji Wenchuan: “Let’s talk about the bone dragon again.”

Inside, Lu Xingzhou took out the Wan Hun Fan and probed his consciousness into the banner.

Ling Qixuan’s ghost was fighting Huo Liancheng.

Being imprisoned by the Wan Hun Fan was an inescapable torment for intelligent ghosts. They would become increasingly restless and fierce within it, and their destructive power would be even greater when occasionally released. Now that two intelligent divine souls were together, they naturally vented their frustrations on each other, fighting fiercely.

Unfortunately, Ling Qixuan couldn’t defeat Huo Liancheng and was being beaten down.

Lu Xingzhou restrained Huo Liancheng and rescued Ling Qixuan. “Sect Master Ling, I need the full story. The process of your interaction with the Ice Devil, how you communicated with it, and the psychological shift from venerating Qingli as the Ice Lord to ambushing us. And if you conceal anything, it won’t be just Huo Liancheng beating you.”

Ling Qixuan looked at Du Gu Qingli and sighed. “We weren’t worshipping a specific entity… we were merely pursuing the power of the essence of ice. Lord Lu should know this.”

“Hmm. But logically, supporting Qingli to gradually replace the Ice Devil is the most stable approach. Qingli has humanity and wouldn’t casually destroy you. Colluding with the Ice Devil is like playing with fire. Don’t you understand this? I even told Qingli earlier that you should be reliable. I truly didn’t expect you to be so irrational, making me lose face.”

Ling Qixuan said, “If everyone were absolutely calm, there wouldn’t be so many impulsive or arrogant things happening. We certainly hoped that Miss Du Gu could steadily replace and become the Ice Lord, but that was too slow. I didn’t know how many years we would have to wait. The fastest way for the Ice Lord to descend was for Miss Du Gu to resonate with the Ice Devil and completely transform into the Ice Devil. Unfortunately, Listening to the Waves Zhenren was too cautious and wouldn’t allow Miss Du Gu to contact us…”

Yuan Muyu interjected coldly, “She wouldn’t know how to do anything else. If I were her, I would have wiped you out first and controlled your methods of communicating with the Ice Devil myself. That would be a stable approach.”

Ling Qixuan: “…”

*But didn’t you still ally with us?* Ling Qixuan swallowed his anger and didn’t reply, merely saying, “Some things weren’t done by us. The Ice Devil has been trying to escape for many years, and over time, the space beneath the ice began to fluctuate due to its struggles. Our ability to communicate with it was also achieved through these spatial fluctuations. However, previously, we could only occasionally and with great difficulty get a few words. It was only about half a year ago that we received more definite guidance.”

Lu Xingzhou said, “It sent you to that small town.”

“Yes,” Ling Qixuan said. “Actually, we also knew that nothing good would come of it, and there was a high possibility of being corrupted, but…”

He paused, a wry smile on his face, “We have pursued the essence of ice our entire lives. Even knowing it was an enticing poison, we couldn’t resist drinking it. Sure enough, from then on, we gained the means to borrow the Ice Devil’s power.”

Lu Xingzhou said, “I’m afraid you don’t see it as poison. You relish it, believing you can touch the essence of the laws of ice through it, and thus become more obedient to its commands.”

Ling Qixuan fell silent.

Du Gu Qingli: “Fool.”

Ling Qixuan shook his head slightly. “Miss Du Gu is exceptionally gifted; naturally, she doesn’t know the hardships of ordinary people pursuing power.”

“Even if you give your life to the Ice Devil?”

“Yes, even if I can feel that I once grasped the law before I die.” Ling Qixuan’s expression was somewhat fanatical. “What do we cultivate for? They say for longevity, but I certainly don’t.”

Lu Xingzhou slapped him on the head. “You’re getting proud now?”

Ling Qixuan shut his mouth.

Lu Xingzhou said, “You said it started half a year ago. So the subsequent rise of the royal city was due to your operations, following the Ice Devil’s instructions?”

“Yes, originally, it wasn’t so easy for the Ice Devil to push the royal city up; it would have taken at least a few hundred years to slowly push it up. We used various formations and manipulations, toiling for half a year, repeatedly, to reach today’s extent. I never expected that as soon as Marquis arrived, he would suppress it back down.”

“Why did you want the royal city to break through the ground?”

“Because the royal city has a large population, and a lot of the Ice Devil’s demonic intent remains. Once the ice people inside emerge and run rampant, the demonic intent can spread throughout Tianshuang, which would help the Ice Devil escape.”

Du Gu Qingli said coldly, “Aren’t you afraid that Han Chuan will collapse and the people of Tianshuang Guo will suffer?”

Ling Qixuan’s mouth twitched slightly. *We are from the Demonic Dao; when have we ever cared about that?*

He sighed, simply saying, “We’ve already been very careful, raising it slowly in many batches, precisely to avoid too much commotion that would cause Si Han to seek out the Tianyao Shengzhu… Logically, as long as the earthquakes weren’t too obvious, Si Han, for the sake of his face as the Guo Zhu, wouldn’t approach the Shengzhu for such a minor matter. He would try to handle it himself. But he certainly wouldn’t find the cause, and by the time he reported it to the Tianyao Shengzhu, it would probably be too late… But I never imagined that for such a small matter, you two would actually come…”

Outside, Si Han, who was drinking, “…”

Du Gu Qingli said expressionlessly, “You guessed one thing wrong… The Tianshuang Guo Zhu indeed didn’t directly seek out the Tianyao Shengzhu for the sake of face, but Frozen Moon Han Chuan is not only adjacent to Tianshuang Guo. Another kingdom under the rule of an empress also suffered disaster. We were never sent by Tianyao Shengdi; rather, someone volunteered to come to curry favor with his pregnant wife.”

Ji Wenchuan clinked his wine bottle with Si Han’s. “You wouldn’t have thought, would you? A third-rate melodrama saved your country.”