Sometimes, a strong aura alone isn't enough to intimidate the opponent. The South End Demon Lord sneered disdainfully.
"You've got spirit, but it's not up to you."
He wasn't here to negotiate with Su Luo; he was here to take what he wanted by force.
"Confirm again, which one is the person you want?" the South End Demon Lord asked. With enough spirit stones, the service would naturally be thorough.
"It's her," Lu Xiezi pointed at Yun.
"I said I refuse," Su Luo declared.
"And I said I'm not asking for your opinion," the South End Demon Lord retorted.
With his immense power, the South End Demon Lord didn't need to bother with trivialities like etiquette or diplomacy.
He had worked hard to reach this position so that others would show him respect, not the other way around.
Since that was the case, there was nothing more to discuss. Su Luo raised his sword and pointed it at the South End Demon Lord.
"Young man, not everyone can be pointed at with a sword," the South End Demon Lord said, not minding the idea of teaching Su Luo a lesson. It would be a trivial matter, requiring little effort.
"South End Demon Lord, stop this," Jiang Ningshu appeared before them, removing her hat to reveal her face.
Her expression was cold, her piercing gaze seemingly able to penetrate one's soul. An overwhelming aura emanated from her, suffocating those around her.
The Demon Lord!
Lu Xiezi and the South End Demon Lord were undoubtedly shocked. Why was the Demon Lord here?
Lu Xiezi's puppets all bowed their heads. "Greetings, Demon Lord."
The South End Demon Lord also offered a greeting, though without much ceremony. In the past, he would have shown more respect, but the current Demon Lord? Well, that was another story.
Jiang Ningshu spoke emotionlessly, "Let this matter end here. Don't cause any more trouble."
"Yes," Lu Xiezi immediately agreed. Even if he was unwilling, he couldn't show it in front of the Demon Lord.
The South End Demon Lord, however, looked at the Demon Lord with slight surprise. Her performance was quite convincing this time, full of confidence, unlike the hollow bravado of before. It seemed her acting had improved significantly in such a short time.
The Demon Lord was impressive, indeed.
After a moment of thought, the South End Demon Lord also agreed, "Yes."
If the employer had given up, there was no point in pressing further. Although he looked down on the Demon Lord, who had lost her cultivation, he still had to maintain a facade of respect to survive in the Heavenly Demon Sect.
"Go back now," the Demon Lord commanded.
Her words were absolute, at least on the surface.
Without further questions, they left.
Outside, the South End Demon Lord turned to Lu Xiezi. "What do you think is the relationship between the Demon Lord and this Su Luo?"
"..." Lu Xiezi remained silent.
The South End Demon Lord continued, "It's quite fascinating. But this information will surely be valuable. It could fetch a good price."
Lu Xiezi still didn't respond. He didn't dare to discuss matters concerning the Demon Lord, especially not so close to her.
"By the way, I expect my payment in full," the South End Demon Lord said with a smile, though his tone made it clear he wasn't joking. Even though the mission had failed, he still demanded his reward.
"Of course, it will be delivered to your residence shortly," Lu Xiezi replied, not daring to provoke the South End Demon Lord.
"Good," the South End Demon Lord said, satisfied, before leaving.
The puppets remained motionless, as Lu Xiezi temporarily stopped controlling them, lost in thought.
There was nothing more to say about the failed mission. With the Demon Lord's intervention, what else could they do?
Now, he was curious. What was the relationship between the Demon Lord and Su Luo?
Why was the Demon Lord here?
It felt like there was a huge secret waiting to be uncovered. This Su Luo was truly extraordinary.
In that case, it would be best to build a good relationship with Su Luo in the future.
Lu Xiezi made up his mind. Once the Demon Lord left, he would talk to Su Luo. If necessary, he wouldn't mind apologizing.
A true man knows when to bend and when to stand firm.
Inside, Su Luo turned to Jiang Ningshu. "Thank you."
The Demon Lord shook her head. "This time, I might not have helped you. In fact, it might have made your situation worse."
Su Luo understood, but he still said, "We'll deal with the future later. For now, thank you."
"If you can't resolve it, call me anytime," Jiang Ningshu said seriously.
After all, it was because of Su Luo that she had regained her strength.
With a little more time, she would complete the second stage of her recovery. By then, she wouldn't have much to fear.
"Alright," Su Luo agreed, though he didn't plan to rely on the Demon Lord's help unless absolutely necessary.
"I'll head back now," Jiang Ningshu said, then left.
After what had happened, she no longer felt like taking a stroll. It was better to return and focus on restoring her strength.
Su Luo escorted her out briefly before returning.
"Is she really the Demon Lord?" Little Yu asked, watching Jiang Ningshu's retreating figure.
"Yes, what do you think?"
"She seems impressive, and so powerful and commanding."
"Of course, she wouldn't be the Demon Lord if she weren't strong."
Since she had just helped him, Su Luo naturally defended her image. Besides, once she fully regained her strength, she would indeed be formidable.
Yun then spoke up, "Su Luo, I had no idea she was the Demon Lord. When did you become so close to her?"
From the diary, Yun had a rough idea. Su Luo had given the Demon Lord a method to restore her strength, but wasn't that a watered-down version? Was the Demon Lord really satisfied with that?
Poor Demon Lord, being manipulated by Su Luo and still thanking him.
Nangong Xiyun felt a strange sense of superiority. Thank goodness she had the diary; otherwise, she would be just as clueless.
She might have ended up in the same pitiful state as the Demon Lord, and that would have been embarrassing.
Su Luo replied to Yun, "She just happened to be passing by. Our relationship is still just that of the Demon Lord and her unknown subordinate, nothing more."
"Really? I don't believe it. The Demon Lord said you could call her for help. How can you still call yourself unknown? Did something happen between you and the Demon Lord? Tell me," Yun said, her tone full of curiosity.
"Nothing happened. There are plenty of outstanding people in the Heavenly Demon Sect. The Demon Lord wouldn't take notice of me."
"That's not true. Su Luo is very talented," Little Yu chimed in.
"Right? I think so too, but the Demon Lord wouldn't see it that way."
This was also part of the general direction of the story. No matter what Su Luo did for the Demon Lord, she never truly acknowledged him.
Yun thought Su Luo was talking nonsense, but it didn't matter. Perhaps it would appear in the diary later.
For now, she would just take Su Luo's word for it.
"Even if the Demon Lord doesn't recognize your worth, I'll always stand by you, Su Luo! You've always been exceptional, and I'm sure you'll achieve great things in the future. The Demon Lord will regret underestimating you..." Yun habitually flattered Su Luo, trying to comfort him.
Though to Su Luo, it just sounded like awkward praise.
After a brief chat, Su Luo activated the formation.
It was time to get back to business. The people outside had been waiting long enough.

【Prologue: The Beginning of It All – Use holy water to heal the saintess tainted by demonic energy, then converse with her.】 Shen Nian stared at his older sister sipping yogurt, lost in thought. So you’re telling me my sister is the saintess, and yogurt is the holy water? 【Main Quest 1: Brave Youth, Become an Adventurer! Reward: Rookie Adventurer Title.】 【Side Quest 1: Find the Adorable Kitty! Reward: 1000 Gold Coins.】 Shen Nian: "Wait, I’m a high school senior here—did some guy who got isekai’d accidentally bind his system to me?" Hold on, completing quests gives gold rewards? Titles even boost stats? Is this for real? (A lighthearted, absurd campus comedy—not a revenge power fantasy.)

lities. One day, Qi Yuan was buying groceries when he unfortunately came face-to-face with a monster. Just when he thought he was going to die on the spot, he suddenly heard the monster's thoughts... "This aura, he's definitely not an ordinary master!" "So terrifying, so terrifying." "A fight with my back against the wall, I can't take it anymore." Qi Yuan: Ah, no one told me that my awakened ability isn't telepathy, but rather the stronger my enemies imagine me to be, the stronger I truly become. PS: Zhou Hai in the first chapter is not the protagonist.

ing gift was a patch of barren land, and disciples were all picked up along the way. He spent fifty years diligently building three "ramshackle little sects," thinking he could finally live a carefree life relying on his disciples. But right at the fifty-year mark, he was suddenly swept away by a spatial rift and exiled to the Chaos Desolation, the Disorderly Ruins. There was no spiritual energy there, only slaughter. Relying on the cultivation feedback from his disciples, Gu Changyuan hacked his way through a sea of blood for eleven hundred years. When the system finally fished him back out, he discovered the ramshackle little sects he'd built back then had developed a rather... unusual style. Hold on... I vanished for a thousand years, so how did my ramshackle little sects become holy lands?!

transmigrates into the world as the sect master of the Heavenly Yan Sect, which is on the verge of being wiped out. He binds a system that grants him cultivation power based on the number of disciples he has: for each disciple, he automatically gains a year's worth of cultivation every single day! Take one disciple: every day he gains 1 year of cultivation power. While others struggle through a year of bitter training, he gets the same just by sleeping through a single night. Take ten disciples: every day he gains 10 years of cultivation power. Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul—he breezes through all bottlenecks without lifting a finger. Take one hundred disciples: every day he gains 100 years of cultivation power. Even a Soul Transformation Venerable before him can’t survive a single blow. Take ten thousand disciples: every day he gains 10,000 years of cultivation power! With a wave of his hand, he topples empires. With a single step, he crushes the sacred grounds of the universe. ... While others fight tooth and nail for secret techniques, Lin Yan casually hands out Nascent Soul-level cultivation manuals as beginner textbooks. While others strain to find talented recruits, Lin Yan opens his doors to anyone—so long as they’re human. In just three short years, the Heavenly Yan Sect went from a backwater sect made up of three crumbling huts to a sacred land that every cultivator under heaven would kill to enter. ... One day, otherworldly demon gods invade, with a million demon soldiers pressing down upon the realm. Lin Yan, yawning, rises from his lounge chair and glances at the system panel: [Current Disciples: 1.28 million] [Daily Cultivation Increase: 1.28 million years] He waves his hand casually, and the countless demon soldiers are reduced to ashes in an instant. “So noisy… interrupting my fishing.”