The Supreme Divine Creation Sect was nestled among towering mountains. What was once a majestic palace now lay in ruins, its valuables long plundered, leaving behind a field of bones.
Standing at the mountain gate, Qi Ze choked back a sob. "My father self-destructed, not even a trace of his body or soul remains in this world. Where would I even look for him?"
"Regardless, we had to come back and see for ourselves," Yan Junyu said, gently patting his lover's back.
"Then let's start with the burial," Qi Ze said, kneeling on the ground. He picked up the remains of his fellow disciples with his own hands, placing them into the iced coffins prepared in advance. He sighed, "I had planned to collect enough spirit roots and spirit bones to set up a blood sacrifice formation to repair the fragmented souls of my fellow disciples, sending them on to reincarnation. But you, by accident or not, tore through the barrier and let the demons in, so I won't have to seek revenge myself."
"It wasn't by accident," Yan Junyu said, kneeling beside him as he carefully cleaned the mud off the corpses.
"You've become quite the scoundrel," Qi Ze praised sincerely.
"Rub off on someone long enough, and they'll turn black. It's all thanks to little Ze's good teaching," Yan Junyu countered, his voice soft. "After we finish burying the bones, we'll burn three sticks of incense for father, letting the old man know we're back, and that we will carry on the legacy of the Supreme Divine Creation Sect."
"Fine, from now on, you're the Lady Patriarch of the Supreme Divine Creation Sect," Qi Ze said, casting him a quick glance.
"Whatever my wife says is law," Yan Junyu didn't mind the issue of titles at all.
Qi Ze, "..."
While the two flirted, many cultivators hid at the foot of the mountain, frequently probing with their divine senses but not daring to make any major moves. Half a month later, after they had finished burying the bodies and had absorbed the ruined palace into the Yin-Yang Five Elements Plate, they left on the wind.
News of this reached the Myriad Sword Sect, and the Heavenly Slaughter Sect Master sneered. "Love without suspicion? What a joke! The real strategy is to first trick Qi Ze into giving up his inheritance and treasures, then refine him into a medicinal pill. That's the most advantageous approach. What that demon's up to, I'm sure only Qi Ze is unaware."
"Under the pursuit of the entire cultivation world, anyone would easily fall for a bit of protection and kindness. If I had known, I should have tried that tactic," a young swordsman lamented regretfully.
"Hmph, just a little kid at the Golden Core stage. Capture him and interrogate him, it's not like it would take much effort. The people of the Demon Realm are all cunning sorts, always resorting to these underhanded moves," Heavenly Slaughter said confidently. "In a few days, Qi Ze will undoubtedly be tossed into a pill refinement furnace. Rebuilding the sect is just a ruse to get him to willingly face death."
"Dad, but he's a fusion body. Are you willing to let a demon reap such a huge benefit? Not to mention, his cultivation is already unfathomable. If he gets his hands on a heaven-defying elixir, who knows what kind of situation that will create?" the swordsman said, worried.
Heavenly Slaughter pondered for a moment, then waved his hand. "Right now, with the war between the two realms, I need to stay and oversee things here. It's not convenient for me to show my face. You and the elders should follow them, see if you can rescue Qi Ze."
"As it should be. A fusion body must not be allowed to fall into the hands of demons," the young swordsman immediately bowed. "Dad, I'm leaving right away."
But just as they arrived at Yan Junyu's location, they saw him floating in mid-air, sweeping his wide sleeves to place dozens of ruined palaces onto the vast desert. He then set up layer after layer of defensive formations. Soon, Qi Ze flew out of the palace, pressing a boundary marker into the heart of the formation and activating it with a finger.
"Didn't that boundary marker get destroyed by our Myriad Sword Sect?" the young swordsman was stunned.
Several elders took a closer look, also showing serious expressions. The boundary marker, which had its spiritual energy scattered by the Myriad Sword technique, now looked as it did originally, even more powerful and solid, completely securing the sect. They could feel the awe-inspiring pressure it emitted from a distance.
"I don't know if it's just my imagination, but that boundary marker seems extraordinary, surpassing the wall inscriptions left by the Sword Ancestor!" an elder was concerned.
"Do you have the same feeling as well?" another elder asked, his face pale.
"Since we all have the same feeling, we can't be wrong," another elder confirmed. "That boundary marker must have been nourished by sacrificial spirits, and not just once or twice. Otherwise, it wouldn't have grown so strong in just a month. When our sect captured this boundary marker, it took us three days and nights, with hundreds of disciples above the Core Formation stage. If we wanted to capture it again, we don't know what kind of price we would have to pay. Well, let's leave here first and think of a plan. In a short time, we have no chance of approaching Qi Ze."
"Hmph, that demon has really invested a lot to gain Qi Ze's trust! To nourish that boundary marker, who knows how many cultivators he abducted and how many souls he absorbed," the young swordsman said through gritted teeth. "Let's go, we'll think of a plan when we get back. One day, I will personally slay that demon, restoring tranquility to the Qianyuan Continent."
As they took one last look at the imposing boundary marker, they reluctantly left. However, they didn't expect that just after settling in a nearby small town, they heard that the demon and Qi Ze were planning a grand ceremony to celebrate their partnership, inviting a wide range of demons to participate.
"To actually hold a grand ceremony, this act is too real, isn't it?" the young swordsman said in disbelief.
"Regardless of whether it's an act or not, there are many people at the ceremony. We can disguise ourselves as demons and mix in, perhaps we can find an opportunity to take Qi Ze away," an elder was overjoyed.
"Good idea, let's do it."
They found transformation pills and demon seeds, disguising themselves as demons. After much effort, they managed to blend into the group of a small sect and nervously arrived at the Supreme Divine Creation Sect. The dozens of dilapidated palaces that were in ruins three days ago were now beautifully renovated. The lustrous tiles shimmered under the sunlight, looking incredibly splendid. A boundary marker was set at the mountain gate, and walking past it, one would feel the weight of Mount Tai pressing down and thunder in the sky, making one extremely uncomfortable, if they had any ill intentions.
They quickly sealed their sea of consciousness and withdrew their spiritual energy, disguising themselves as ordinary demons with low cultivation. Only then did they manage to pass through smoothly.
"What a powerful boundary marker! It's no less impressive than the Sword Wall of our Myriad Sword Sect," an elder communicated telepathically.
"Hmph, formed from the souls of thousands of cultivators, how could it not be powerful?" the young swordsman was filled with resentment, but he had to put on a cheerful expression.
They walked to the front of the hall, set down their gifts, and were about to investigate when they saw a pair of handsome figures walking down a long red carpet. One had a noble appearance, the other an extraordinary bearing. It was the demon and Qi Ze. Hand in hand, they came to the open space in front of the main hall, exchanged some heartfelt words, and sat down side by side. He straightened his robes for her, she poured wine and set out dishes for him. Although they didn't utter a word of endearment, the love in their eyes was undeniable.
When the drinking reached its height, a great demon in the Tribulation Transcendence stage raised his voice. "Demon Lord, the war between the two realms is imminent. In terms of cultivation, we're not afraid, but the cultivation world has spirit weapons in abundance, while we are empty-handed. It's too much of a disadvantage."
"If you want spirit weapons, trade with demon crystals," Qi Ze said indifferently.
Yan Junyu didn't speak, only pouring wine for his lover.
"What's your plan, Demon Lord?" The great demon didn't even look at Qi Ze, nor did the other demons take this young man seriously. He was just a stray dog, relying on the Demon Lord to survive. The Demon Lord may fancy him now, but who knows if he'll boil him and eat him tomorrow.
Yan Junyu held his lover's wrist and said word by word, "Don't ask me about anything. I'm just the Lady Patriarch of the Supreme Divine Creation Sect, I can't make decisions. You want spirit weapons but aren't willing to pay the price, isn't that just taking things for free? Is there such a good thing in this world?" As soon as he finished speaking, a wave of pressure swept through the entire palace, inside and out. The high-cultivation cultivators bent their backs and groaned, while the low-cultivation ones bled from their seven orifices and fainted on the spot.
Several swordsmen were also pressured to the point of bulging veins and churning blood and qi, almost kneeling down halfway.
"So strong!" an elder communicated telepathically.
"How does it compare to my dad?" the young swordsman asked unwillingly.
"Several times stronger!" With this statement, all fell silent, a sense of fear quietly spreading in their hearts.
The demons, however, were clearly not focused on this. After the pressure dissipated, the great demon who had spoken earlier asked in disbelief, "You said you're the Lady Patriarch?"
Yan Junyu didn't look at him, only whispering intimately in his lover's ear, "What do you say I am?"
"You're my man," Qi Ze pinched his chin and gave him a kiss on the lips, his eyes filled with amusement.
Yan Junyu laughed softly, leaning in to savor him thoroughly. A strong wave of affection flowed from their eyes, making others realize that they were genuinely in a partnership, not just using or scheming against each other. The great demons, who had never taken Qi Ze seriously, now raised their cups to toast him, indicating that they would bring out high-quality demon crystals to trade for spirit weapons.
The Sixth Elder of the Thousand Corpse Demon Marsh, the newly appointed Patriarch of the Thousand Corpse Sect, fawned, "I heard that Heavenly Slaughter is planning to set up a Immortal Slaying Formation to deal with the Demon Lord. I also have an exquisite ancient formation called the Yin Sha Formation, which uses the evil qi of heaven and earth to transform into countless Yin troops, perfectly countering the extremely Yang Immortal Slaying Formation. If the Demon Lord doesn't mind, I'll offer the formation layout." As he spoke, he walked to the front of the hall, knelt halfway, and held out a hide scroll with both hands.
"Dragon hide scroll?" Qi Ze raised his eyebrows in surprise.
"Patriarch has a keen eye," the Sixth Elder showed a proud expression.
"Indeed exquisite, but to set up the formation, we need to find a Ten Thousand Ghosts Soul Devouring Pennant to serve as the formation eye. Who has one?" Qi Ze was knowledgeable in formations and quickly grasped the key point.
"Our sect happens to have one, I'll offer it to the Patriarch," the newly refined blood swamp hadn't aged enough to cultivate disciples of high cultivation. In the next few hundred years, the Thousand Corpse Sect's strength would be weaker than other sects, and they had to find a powerful backer. The Sixth Elder had always been sharp-eyed, quickly seeing through the Demon Lord's "wife as the boss" nature. Thinking that it would be better to please the Demon Lord's wife than the Demon Lord himself, he offered the Soul Devouring Pennant to Qi Ze.
Yan Junyu was indeed delighted, personally descending from his seat to take the Soul Devouring Pennant, indulgently saying, "Little Ze loves to tinker with these tools. The Patriarch is thoughtful."
Qi Ze was also excited, quickly channeling spiritual energy into the Soul Devouring Pennant to see its power. But unexpectedly, he overestimated its grade, channeling too much spiritual energy, and ended up tearing the pennant fabric. With a crisp tearing sound, a quasi-divine artifact was destroyed, causing silence in the hall and outside.
At first, everyone was stunned, then they secretly pondered with lingering fear: This Demon Lord's wife seems to be quite powerful!