Cui Baiquan and the Mountain Spirit's Visit

A few days later, those who were going to leave Su Luo's side had all departed.

However, overall, the number of people remained greater than before.

Some believed that Su Luo was cold-hearted and lacked humanity.

While these might seem like flaws, in the Heavenly Demon Sect, weren’t these traits actually advantages?

After all, who in the Heavenly Demon Sect doesn’t have a few dark personalities?

And with strength combined with cold-heartedness, isn’t it kind of cool? It even adds some face when you talk about it.

Yet, there were also those who decided to wait and see how things would unfold.

They felt that Su Luo might not be that bad.

Of course, there were also some who had nowhere else to go since the other Seven Sons looked down on them.

As a result, Yun’s responsibility increased as he had to manage more followers.

But Su Luo didn’t interfere, fully handing everything over to Yun.

Yun’s management style was similar to Su Luo’s, rarely interfering and occasionally sending them to their deaths.

A few days later, Cui Baiquan and Shan Gui came knocking.

Meanwhile, Su Luo was lazily soaking up the sun and sipping tea, enjoying a peaceful moment.

Cui Baiquan chuckled, "Yo, Su Luo, it looks like you’re living quite comfortably these days."

"I can’t compare to you lot," Su Luo replied.

Cui Baiquan, an ambitious man, had naturally used the Demon Lord’s summoning of the Seven Sons to his advantage.

He had recruited quite a few capable members of the Heavenly Demon Sect, including even a titled Heavenly Demon, which made him quite pleased.

Shan Gui, on the other hand, hadn’t fared as well. He wasn’t particularly skilled at winning people over and had only managed to improve his situation marginally.

Cui Baiquan, with his friendly demeanor, said, "So, how about collaborating with me? You won’t regret it. I’m always open to your joining."

His confidence stemmed from the good news he brought, something he believed Su Luo would be interested in.

This was also his gesture of goodwill to promote their cooperation.

Su Luo, who already knew the purpose of their visit, got straight to the point, "Spare the pleasantries. What do you want from me?"

"I have some news about Wan Xibo. Interested?"

"Naturally."

Wan Xibo, in simple terms, was a grandmaster of formation techniques, someone who, by virtue of being a master, excelled in formations, and whose reputation was widespread.

Seeing that Su Luo was interested, Cui Baiquan felt the news was worth it. But, as was his habit, he decided to tease a bit, knowing that the easier something is to obtain, the less valuable it seems.

"Surely you can’t expect me to just give it away, right?"

He was waiting for Su Luo to beg or offer something in return.

"Heh, let me guess. You’re planning to recruit Wan Xibo and then head to the Eternal Ruins."

Cui Baiquan’s smile froze for a moment. He hadn’t expected Su Luo to know everything already.

But he quickly regained his composure.

"You know, as expected of you. In that case, how about we team up?"

Cui Baiquan still extended his invitation, realizing they needed to accelerate their partnership. Otherwise, Qing Bukuang’s advantage would only grow.

He had used the Demon Lord’s summons, but Qing Bukuang could do the same and probably with even better results.

After all, Qing Bukuang had been the first to enter and had spent the most time inside.

It was clear who was more promising.

And this time, Cui Baiquan felt that he and Shan Gui might not be able to handle it alone and needed one more person.

"Sure," Su Luo agreed without hesitation.

"It’s settled then. Look, the weather’s so nice. How about we take a stroll?" Cui Baiquan began preparing to discuss their plans.

He also wanted to build some superficial camaraderie, knowing that appearance was enough.

In the original story, Su Luo had indeed formed a formal partnership with them here, confirming their collaboration.

But this time, Su Luo only said, "Leave."

A direct dismissal. Why would he want to walk with them? If they were handsome... well, he’d still reject them. Male femininity? What’s that? Even more of a no. Doesn’t matter if they’re fragrant or not.

Cui Baiquan showed no sign of discontent. "Not in the mood for a walk? That’s fine. Then let’s just briefly discuss how to...”

Before he could finish, Su Luo cut him off, "Don’t bother. Think about it, who are we? The Seven Sons of the Heavenly Demon Sect. Do we even need a strategy? Just push them forward."

Bro, we are the Seven Sons of the Heavenly Demon Sect, yes, but we aren’t invincible!

Seeing Su Luo’s impatience, Cui Baiquan decided to stop. He figured Su Luo’s confidence must come from some hidden strength.

In that case, Cui Baiquan wouldn’t waste any more words. He’d wait until they started their journey and see if Su Luo’s confidence was warranted.

"Then I’ll take my leave. Goodbye."

Shan Gui, who had been watching quietly for a long time, was filled with anger. He couldn’t understand how Cui Baiquan could tolerate this.

He had offered his courtesy repeatedly, only to be blatantly disrespected.

If Cui Baiquan could endure, Shan Gui certainly couldn’t.

He suddenly let out a bizarre sound, something familiar to those who knew him well—a prelude to his attack.

"Shut up!"

Su Luo roared with a Lion’s Roar Technique, directly interrupting Shan Gui’s sound.

It even caused blood to flow from Shan Gui’s ears.

A single sound left Shan Gui stunned, momentarily forgetting what he was about to do.

Cui Baiquan, too, wasn’t faring well, but his reactions were quicker. He managed to dodge the brunt of the attack with a defensive spell, though his heart was still pounding from Su Luo’s roar.

"Quiet is better. Now leave," Su Luo said without sparing them a glance.

Cui Baiquan nodded and forcibly dragged Shan Gui away, knowing that if he didn’t, Shan Gui would lose it completely.

Halfway down the path, Shan Gui finally couldn’t hold back any longer. "Why are we acting so subservient?"

"I’ve told you many times, stay calm. We’re people who aim for great things," Cui Baiquan replied.

"But there’s no need for this. I’m not happy."

"Su Luo is necessary. Without him, we’re not a match for the other Seven Sons."

"..."

Seeing Shan Gui’s silence, Cui Baiquan continued, "Bear with it. I think there will be many more times we’ll have to swallow our pride. But, I promise you, someday, I’ll push him into the abyss and make sure he dies a horrible death."

"I understand."

Shan Gui and Cui Baiquan had been through a lot together, so Shan Gui had a bit of trust in Cui Baiquan.

After sending them off, Su Luo knew that it was once again time for him to step on stage and get humiliated.

He opened his diary.

[The Demon Lord hasn’t made any moves lately. Things have finally quieted down, which is great.]

[I should take some time to go out and give her the second half of the method, just in case she starts making a fuss again.]

[If she interrupts me while I’m in the middle of a plot event, that would be troublesome.]

[But she’d never expect that the method I gave her is a heavily edited version. Even with the second half, it’ll take her a long time to recover even a portion of her strength.]

[The genuine technique doesn’t even require passing through the He Gu point; the proper route should be...]

[And the auxiliary herbs should be Xingchuan Water...]

[This is the real first step. Recovery would be much faster.]

[It’s not nice to deceive people, but tricking the Demon Lord? That gives me a bit of a sense of accomplishment. She probably won’t be able to figure out anything.]

[If she finds out I’ve deceived her, she’ll probably be furious. So at least for now, she can’t find out.]

[She even gave me her own sword. For a moment, I felt a tinge of guilt, but no, deception is necessary.]

[It’s the Demon Lord’s own fault for handing it over. I never asked for it, it’s her mistake.]

[Ah, I guess the Demon Lord just always gets betrayed.]

[Never mind, there’s nothing else to write about her. Better to talk about the upcoming plot.]