The Ancient Tree at the Outer Periphery of the Sky Demon Pavilion

Gu Changyuan had safely returned to his room on the top floor of the Heavenly Demon Tower, casually placing Xiaobai back into its little basket.

Even with the layers of the tower and spatial barriers separating them, he could still hear the miserable shrieks coming from the direction of the First Pavilion—shrieks belonging to Tushan Hanyan, filled with terror and pleas for mercy.

Listening to the faint commotion, Gu Changyuan felt no guilt whatsoever. Instead, he revealed a slightly mischievous, deeply satisfied, and brilliantly calculating smile, as if everything had gone just as planned.

Xiaoyan, oh Xiaoyan, you will have to thank your grandmaster properly later.

He muttered in his heart.

This is the first practical lesson on society that your grandmaster is teaching you.

Even the person who is closest to you and dotes on you the most might not hesitate to backstab you at a specific moment, letting you deeply experience the sinister nature of the world and the unpredictability of the human heart.

In Gu Changyuan's eyes, although Tushan Hanyan had experienced ostracization from her clan during her childhood due to the color of her hair and tail, her mind had not been fully mature at that time.

After being brought back to the Heavenly Demon Pavilion by Tushan Youyao, she was protected far too well. Her journey had been smooth sailing, lacking true lessons in adversity and an understanding of complex human nature.

For a disciple who might rule a region in the future, or even inherit part of the Heavenly Demon Pavilion's authority, this was not entirely a good thing.

Therefore, he went to great lengths, even at the cost of ruining his own lofty image, to teach her an unforgettable lesson.

Thinking about how he actually sacrificed the lofty, benevolent, and perfect grandmaster image he had painstakingly built in his grand-disciple's heart just to teach her a lesson...

Gu Changyuan instantly felt that he had truly sacrificed too much for the growth of the younger generation! He was simply too great!

As he thought about it, he could not help but laugh out loud again.

...

Time quietly slipped into the dead of night.

Gu Changyuan was sitting quietly on the top floor of the Heavenly Demon Tower holding Xiaobai, his fingertips gently combing through Xiaobai's soft fur, when he suddenly noticed a light figure quietly flying out from the Third Pavilion. The aura was extremely familiar—it was Luo Qingchen.

He did not make a sound. His divine sense gently enveloped the figure, his gaze following her all the way as she left the ten great pavilions of the inner circle and crossed the middle region.

Eventually, she arrived in the dense forest on the outskirts of the Heavenly Demon Pavilion, stopping beneath a towering ancient tree.

The tree had a thick trunk and silver-gray bark. Its canopy was incredibly vast, with lush branches and leaves. However, they were not ordinary green leaves, but a peculiar type of leaf that emitted a faint golden glow, shimmering in the moonlight.

When Gu Changyuan's gaze fell upon this tree, his heart stirred slightly.

So it is here...

If his disciples Tushan Youyao and Lu Jiuyi were ones he actively sought out and picked up from dire straits...

Then Luo Qingchen was a disciple who had truly delivered herself to his door.

A thousand years ago, when the Heavenly Demon Pavilion was first established with the Heavenly Demon Tower as its foundation, the Heavenly Demon Mountain Range was only considered lower-middle tier in the Demon Realm. It had no particularly outstanding features, and the demon races residing there mostly had average strength.

It was Gu Changyuan who used the ancient spirit vein given by the system to reshape the spiritual energy layout of the Heavenly Demon Mountain Range, allowing it to reach its current scale.

Not long after settling down his first disciples, Tushan Youyao and Lu Jiuyi, Gu Changyuan received another prompt from the system, locking onto a new target that met the criteria for taking a disciple.

Coincidentally, the target was being hunted down at the time, and her escape route happened to intrude into the newly designated outer area of the Heavenly Demon Pavilion.

Following the guidance, Gu Changyuan rushed over. Ultimately, beneath this ancient tree that already possessed a bit of spiritual awareness back then, he found his target.

A severely injured, dying young girl with silver hair, who was still struggling to stand up.

Her entire body was covered in wounds, her wings broken, and her clear eyes were filled with terror, pain, and unyielding resolve.

And those hunting her were several greedy demon cultivators who wanted to capture her for her rare bloodline.

Gu Changyuan made his move, easily dispatching those demon cultivators. Then, beneath this tree, he bandaged the little girl's wounds and fed her medicinal pills.

At first, she was full of vigilance, but perhaps sensing that Gu Changyuan harbored no ill intent, or perhaps because her injuries were too severe to resist, she eventually quieted down and let Gu Changyuan treat her.

This ancient tree witnessed their first meeting and became an important landmark in Luo Qingchen's memory.

It was evident that over the years, Luo Qingchen held a special affection for this tree.

For the giant tree to grow so lush and magnificent, apart from the increasingly abundant spiritual energy in the area, it likely could not have done so without Luo Qingchen's frequent care and spiritual nourishment.

At this moment, Luo Qingchen landed lightly on a thick, flat horizontal branch of the ancient tree, several dozen feet above the ground.

She did not use spiritual energy to maintain her balance. She simply sat down casually on the edge of the branch, letting her feet dangle and swing gently in the cool night breeze.

She raised her head, her clear golden eyes quietly gazing at the bright full moon hanging high in the night sky.

She pursed her lips slightly, a faint, unshakable melancholy clouding her brows. She seemed to be troubled by something, or perhaps she was just solitary savoring some unspeakable emotion.

Gu Changyuan's figure silently appeared beside Luo Qingchen. He sat down on the same thick branch, his movements so natural it was as if he had always belonged there.

"Is something on your mind, Qingchen?"

Gu Changyuan's voice was gentle, breaking the tranquility of the moonlit night and interrupting Luo Qingchen's thoughts.

"You seem a bit... down."

Her master's sudden appearance made Luo Qingchen's delicate body tremble slightly, clearly caught off guard.

She turned her head and, seeing it was Gu Changyuan, a flash of complexity crossed her eyes. Then, with a hint of helplessness and a coquettish pout, she softly complained:

"Master... can you not leave your little disciple some personal space?"

Her tone sounded like a complaint, yet it revealed their closeness.

Seeing her like this, an indulgent smile appeared on Gu Changyuan's face as he deliberately teased:

"What is wrong? It has not been that long, and you are already starting to despise your master, thinking I am in the way?"

"Of course not~"

Hearing his words, a faint smile could not help but surface on Luo Qingchen's face, and her little complaint from earlier vanished into thin air.

The swinging of her dangling feet grew a bit wider, and the sorrow on her face seemed to fade a little.

"Then tell your master, did you run into some trouble? Is your cultivation not going smoothly? Or do you have some thoughts regarding the pavilion's affairs?"

Gu Changyuan gently guided her, his gaze warmly fixed on her.

Luo Qingchen fell silent for a moment, her gaze returning to the bright moon, as if the moonlight could give her courage.

She slowly raised her right hand, reaching her slender jade-like fingers toward the moon, as if wanting to touch that unreachable radiance, but ultimately, her hand dropped down powerlessly.

"Master..."

Her voice was very soft, carrying a trace of imperceptible confusion and self-doubt.

"Do you ever feel like... I am actually quite useless."