What Are the Eighteen Demon Sects of Zhongzhou

"Missing your sweetheart is just missing your sweetheart. Your master hasn’t said anything about it."

Bai Xuanling chuckled lightly as she glanced at Xie Lingyu. "Our sect doesn’t forbid taking a Dao companion. But you should at least tell me who it is, shouldn’t you?"

"There’s no one," Xie Lingyu replied with a hint of helplessness.

"Ah, our bond must have grown cold." Bai Xuanling lifted her sleeve, pretending to wipe away nonexistent tears from the corners of her eyes before continuing, "Or perhaps you’re still blaming me for what happened?"

Xie Lingyu shook her head gently. "No. That matter… I wasn’t calm myself—"

"Calm?!"

Bai Xuanling’s expression darkened instantly as she cut her off sharply:

"Remember this—you did nothing wrong."

"That idiot sect leader was the one who lost his mind, thinking that becoming a permanent overseer of the Central Continent’s Law Enforcement Hall would let him achieve great things with little effort while also polishing his reputation."

"He’s grown too comfortable, forgetting the past. He believes that once rules are set, he can rest easy."

"But has he ever stopped to think—was the Tianyan Sect’s spiritual vein secured through rules?"

"The corpses we’ve piled up are taller than all the mountains in our sect combined!"

"And now he wants us to ‘follow the virtuous tide’? Back in the day, savages from other continents would kneel when they spoke to us. But now? There are even people daring enough to argue principles with me?"

"Pathetic! I cultivate the Great Dao not to debate it with barbarians."

"If I hadn’t been in seclusion at the time, I would’ve ripped that old fool’s beard off and personally scrambled his brains."

"Exiling you? I say we should’ve slaughtered them all."

"Let those damned savages witness the true face of the Central Continent’s Eighteen Demon Sects."

Xie Lingyu sighed inwardly. Her master’s seclusion wasn’t due to a cultivation bottleneck.

In the past, the cultivation world had been far less peaceful than it was now.

Her master, Bai Xuanling, had once been a ruthless killer, her bloodlust so overwhelming that at her worst, she annihilated seven sects in a single relentless campaign.

Leaving not a blade of grass behind.

It wasn’t until the Tianyan Sect’s leader and the elders intervened that she stopped.

To Bai Xuanling, many problems could be solved with slaughter—thoroughly and permanently.

Upon her return, Xie Lingyu had heard rumors.

After emerging from seclusion, her master had drawn her sword on Tianyan Peak, nearly cleaving the sect’s main mountain in half.

Ignoring the elders’ tactful pleas, she spent an entire day and night hacking at the sect leader without restraint.

Only then did he reluctantly concede, promising to find a way to shorten Xie Lingyu’s punishment and allow her early return.

Truthfully, the Tianyan Sect had already shown immense favoritism toward Xie Lingyu in that incident.

After all, she had killed many that day—some of whom held considerable status.

Yet the sect’s response to outside pressure was unwavering:

"This is an internal matter."

Perhaps out of fear of Bai Xuanling, the sect never questioned or punished Xie Lingyu internally.

They simply told her to rest.

Later, the punishment came directly from the sect leader—a brief explanation before sending her to Yuzhou City for a short stay before returning.

A mere formality.

In these times, the Tianyan Sect still needed to maintain some semblance of reputation.

For safety, the sect leader personally inscribed a powerful divine technique onto Xie Lingyu—claiming it was protection—before vowing to cross realms himself if needed.

What Xie Lingyu didn’t know was that he had lied.

There was indeed a protective spiritual barrier around her, activating only in dire emergencies.

But layered beneath it was an indiscriminate annihilation technique, capable of obliterating everything within a thousand zhang—friend or foe.

Two additional safeguards were hidden as backups.

Only then would the sect leader intervene directly.

The Tianyan Sect hadn’t always been one for reason.

But as the winds shifted, with the eighteen major factions dividing the world and stability favoring the victors, order became convenient.

The winners could afford to be civil—they had already claimed the greatest spoils.

Over time, newer and more obscure sects began losing their fear of this seemingly amiable giant.

They started believing it was a sect that could be reasoned with.

Only the older sects remembered the moniker "Central Continent’s Eighteen Demon Sects."

Only they understood how merciless these madmen could be when the killing began.

Order sometimes eroded reverence.

Prolonged peace had made the cultivation world forget the mountains of corpses and rivers of blood from the past.

At least, that was Bai Xuanling’s belief.

Bai Xuanling seemed to realize she had spoken too harshly. Her disciple was flawless in every way—except for being too soft-hearted.

Not ruthless or decisive enough in killing.

If she had even a tenth of her master’s bloodlust, she’d never have suffered such indignities.

Her expression softened, and she smiled again:

"Let’s talk about your sweetheart instead. Which top Central Continent sect is he from?"

"I told you, there’s no sweetheart."

"Fine then, your ‘friend.’ At least tell me about this ‘friend.’ You were practically raised by me—don’t break your master’s heart."

Xie Lingyu glanced at her master. This tactic of twisting words was something Chu Xingchen wielded far more skillfully than Bai Xuanling.

In her younger days, she might have fallen for it. But now?

Her tone remained steady. "I don’t know what you’re talking about."

Bai Xuanling’s eyes narrowed. Without hesitation, she pinched Xie Lingyu’s cheek:

"You’ve corrupted my precious Lingyu! And you still deny it? You used to be so honest! Out with it—who’s the little rascal?"

Xie Lingyu frowned slightly, her voice tinged with displeasure:

"What exactly are you implying, Master?"

In the past, this demeanor would have made Bai Xuanling back off sheepishly.

But not today.

Bai Xuanling smirked, her gaze piercing as she uttered three words:

"Chu Xingchen."

Xie Lingyu met her master’s eyes. Since she knew the name…

Her voice stayed flat. "And?"

Bai Xuanling’s smile didn’t waver. "An insignificant little rogue cultivator from the wilds. Surprisingly cunning."

Xie Lingyu ignored the remark, removing her master’s hand from her face before turning to leave.

Chu Xingchen had once said: The more you explain, the messier it gets. Sometimes silence is the right answer.

She found the advice fitting for this moment.

Bai Xuanling watched Xie Lingyu’s retreating figure calmly before speaking again, her tone suddenly composed:

"If you insist there’s nothing between you, then I suppose you wouldn’t care to hear about him either?"

Xie Lingyu paused mid-step, hesitating briefly before stopping.

She didn’t turn around, standing still as she asked evenly:

"What trouble has he stirred up now?"

Bai Xuanling smiled in satisfaction, spinning on her heel to leave while teasing lightly:

"Nothing too serious. Just some amusing antics in Sunset Valley. He’s quite an interesting boy. Why not bring him to meet me sometime?"

Xie Lingyu turned back, only to see her master strolling away leisurely.

Truly, when it came to scheming minds, her master and Chu Xingchen were far too alike.