Stop

Truly, a demon cultivator—his style of doing things is all about playing by no one's rules.

Don't even think about morally blackmailing us demon cultivators, because we have no morals at all!

Chen Yi had to switch his approach.

"Actually, what I want is your Sun-Moon Tower. I know things haven't gone well between you and the tower, but you won't let it go either.

How about this: you should know that the Five Elements Artifacts of the Void Realm can't go to the Real Realm.

Once we obtain the Ascension Path, since you can't take the Sun-Moon Tower with you, you could give it to me then—what do you think?"

Artifacts like the Nine Provinces Cauldron and the Heaven-Earth Mirror had originally moved from the human realm to the demon realm without affecting their original world or diminishing their divine power.

This was because the Void Realm was essentially a single world.

But the Real Realm was an existence completely separate from the Void Realm.

The Five Elements Artifacts were nourished and born from the Void Realm's plane; they only had divine power there. If taken to the Real Realm, they'd become nothing but scrap metal.

This information was Shen Yang's conclusion based on ancient texts and his own research.

In other words, the one who could truly accompany Chen Yi to the end wasn't the Da Chun who had helped him carry sandbags back by the Green River.

Instead, it was... the wicked Myriad Soul Banner!

And of course, the Refining Demon Pot.

However, the Refining Demon Pot was specifically effective against demons—if it actually went to the Real Realm, it would likely be reduced to a symbolic mascot.

Hearing Chen Yi's words, the Great Demon still snorted coldly.

"Talk about seizing the Ascension Path when the time comes! Lead the way!"

"First, come with me to Golden Sand Beach to gather our allies."

"I don't need allies! I can flatten that so-called Primordial Secret Realm all by myself! Lead the way now!"

"Less nonsense! If you want the Ascension Path, follow my lead! If you hold us back, I'll kick you out! What are you acting so tough for, a dead man like you?!"

Chen Yi had a hot temper himself.

Since the Great Demon's attitude was so bad, he saw no reason to be nice.

He pulled out his gleaming golden Myriad Soul Banner on the spot.

"Do you recognize this?!"

Who was the Great Demon?

A genuine demon cultivator!

How could he not recognize the supreme demon artifact, the Myriad Soul Banner?

In his era, perhaps this particular form of the Myriad Soul Banner hadn't existed yet.

But techniques for devouring souls and refining them to boost cultivation were utterly common among demon practitioners.

So as soon as he saw the Myriad Soul Banner, the Great Demon knew it was a soul-refining spirit artifact.

But how could this thing be gleaming with golden, saintly energy?

There was only one explanation.

The quality of this artifact was so high that it could flip black and white, disguising evil energy as celestial energy.

The Great Demon's attitude softened considerably.

"Golden Sand Beach, I understand. Let's set off now! But don't make me wait too long. I will stake everything I have left and go all in on this one!"

In his current state, the Great Demon had many limitations.

To remain for an extended time in a form where he could communicate with others and move around freely, he truly had to gamble everything.

Even though the stakes were high, he trusted Hua Wuyan.

Since the situation wasn't that urgent, Hua Wuyan didn't borrow the power of the Earth Spirit to teleport Chen Yi and the Great Demon instantly.

The three of them all possessed Martial God-level power and had their own speed-enhancing methods, so traveling was naturally fast.

Chen Yi rode his Immortal Shuttle, streaking across the sky like a meteor—too fast for the naked eye to catch.

The Great Demon had no human form; his entire forbidden land rose up, rolling black smoke hurtling across the air like a fast-moving dark cloud, disappearing thousands of miles away in the blink of an eye.

Hua Wuyan's movements were the simplest. She walked through the sky, leaning on her staff, but every step she took crossed thousands of miles.

"Stop for a moment!"

When they passed over White Cloud County, Chen Yi called the Great Demon and Hua Wuyan to a halt.

The Great Demon grew impatient.

"What now?"

Chen Yi's divine sense covered the entire county and located Shen Qingshan.

"I need to handle a small matter. Wait for me a moment."

The Great Demon urged him.

"Make it quick! I don't have much patience!"

At that moment, Shen Qingshan was in a mountain gully, leading his demon-hunting squad in pursuit of a bandit.

This bandit was a martial artist whose cultivation was only at the Spirit Gathering Realm, yet he wanted to defy all restraint anyway.

He had been helping himself to meals at whatever restaurant he pleased in the county, and sleeping with whichever girl he wanted.

Unfortunately, he was an outsider with no connections in the area. The local officials and the county's major families were all after him. Today, he had finally fallen into Shen Qingshan's hands.

"Spread out and chase him! Block his escape route! Don't let him get into White Cloud Ridge!"

Under Shen Qingshan's orders, the bandit was cornered in a valley.

A desperate fight broke out between them.

Knowing he couldn't outmatch the entire squad, the bandit fought recklessly, risking his life.

Most of the demon-hunting team hesitated to throw away their lives, so they couldn't easily subdue him.

Only Shen Qingshan gave it his all, pushing the Shen family martial arts to their limits. He endured a gash across the abdomen and managed to bind the bandit with chains.

"Take him away!"

Shen Qingshan tried to mount his horse but fell off due to his severe injuries.

"Captain Shen!"

A group of demon hunters stood helpless around Shen Qingshan as he bled profusely.

His lips turned white, his face pale, his vision darkening—he felt he might die here.

Of course, from the simulation results, Shen Qingshan wouldn't actually die here.

But this time, he was going to endure a great deal of suffering.

Fortunately, Chen Yi arrived in time, so he wouldn't have to go through that.

"Everyone step aside. I can treat him."

The crowd, assuming Chen Yi was a mountain doctor gathering herbs, made way for him.

Chen Yi took out a medicinal pill and fed it to Shen Qingshan.

Then, using pure energy, he forcibly sealed the wound and stopped the bleeding.

Before long, Shen Qingshan regained consciousness.

"Fourth Brother? Why are you here?"

"Good thing I was here, or you'd have been in big trouble."

"Alas... one often walks by the river, so how could shoes always stay dry?"

"If something happened to you, Third Sister and Shen Jia would have a hard time."

If Shen Qingshan had died, Chen Yi would naturally take care of his family.

But the pain of losing a husband and father would be an endless shadow, never fading for a lifetime.

Having simulated so many times, Chen Yi understood deeply: in a world with supernatural powers, the conflict between one's sense of responsibility and the incompatibility of one's own strength was the greatest inner torment for Shen Qingshan.

One was the Patriarch Shen, who couldn't bear to abandon a hundred thousand scholarly traditions of the human world.

The other was Shen Qingshan, whose noble character couldn't be matched by adequate power.

If these two didn't merge into one, Chen Yi always felt it would be such a waste.

Yet Chen Yi still left the choice to Shen Qingshan.

On the way back to the county, Chen Yi told Shen Qingshan everything about the Shen family, and that he was a Twin-Soul Sacred Body perfectly suited to Patriarch Shen.

"For now, the Shen family has agreed to go with me to the North Sea to fight for the Ascension Path. Patriarch Shen is an indispensable force, but he needs a more compatible vessel. Your Twin-Soul Sacred Body is the most suitable."

Hearing all this, Shen Qingshan was initially incredulous.

But when Chen Yi demonstrated flying through the air and took him to visit the Tripod Realm, Shen Qingshan had no reason to doubt anymore.

Now he faced a choice.

"Fourth Brother, to be honest, if I were alone today, I wouldn't hesitate to become the Shen Patriarch.

I could fulfill my ambitions and also grant the Patriarch a more enduring body to do more for the Shen family and the human world."

Chen Yi nodded.

I know you’re worried about Third Sister and Shen Jia.