Chapter Bonanza (9/10)

━━ 🐈‍⬛ ━━

Shisi rode his spirit beast anxiously toward Kunxian Mountain, but suddenly encountered Xiao Yibai at the foot of the mountain.

Xuan Yiling was leading a group of people as they made their way into the mountains. Upon seeing the blue-robed Immortal Lord flying overhead, he was instantly overjoyed and waved his arms, “Brother Shisi!”

Shisi was startled and quickly ordered his mount to land.

Upon closer inspection, he saw that behind Xiao Yibai were numerous Lu family disciples who had been in seclusion and had not emerged.

Shisi’s gaze swept over each of their faces; there were actually dozens of people in this group.

“Shisi,” Eleven waved at him.

“Brother Shisi,” the others shouted in unison.

“How come… you’re all here?” Shisi was taken aback as well. Although Eleven, Sixteen, and Nineteen were the lords of Immortal-Demon City, they rarely handled affairs. As for the others, they were all recluses who had withdrawn from the world!

Yet here they were, all gathered together.

“We received word from Zhanyu,” Eleven nodded. “Zhanyu said the village chief has returned. Did you know about this?”

Shisi felt a twinge of guilt. “…I, I know.”

Eleven’s eyes narrowed. “Oh, you know? You knew but didn’t say anything?”

Shisi cleared his throat, completely unfazed. “I only found out recently. After all, the Village Chief summoned me first, hehe…”

“Summoned you first?” asked Sixteenth, puzzled. That shouldn’t be right.

Shisi chuckled, “That’s right, I was the first one summoned.”

But why was he summoned? Hmph, Shisi wasn’t about to say.

“So you all came here because you received word from Zhanyu?” Shisi asked.

“No.” The three lords of the Immortal-Demon City had naturally come upon hearing the news, but the others had not.

Everyone grew serious. “Though we’ve retired to the mountains, we aren’t deaf or blind. We’ve heard about the events in the Jiecheng Secret Realm. That old man from the Guiyuan Sect has been going around recruiting people from the orthodox sects, and he ended up finding us.”

Almost everyone present was a sect master. Though they had retired, their sects still existed, and they were all venerable elders whose names were well-known in the cultivation world.

When the Guiyuan Sect went recruiting, they had come looking for them as well.

And indeed, they had come.

“I don’t really want to join the fight; I’m just here to watch the show,” said the Twentieth with a chuckle.

“I don’t believe you’d come all this way and leave without throwing a punch,” the Nineteenth teased him.

The Twentieth rubbed his nose. “If that old man from the Guiyuan Sect really dares to make a move, I won’t be able to let him off the hook. “Am I supposed to just stand by and watch them take on the Boss?”

Everyone fell silent.

That was true.

If they knew those people were out to get the Boss, how could they not come?

The Boss was locked up in the Confinement Prison. Who knew what kind of place that was? If it restricted his cultivation, he wouldn’t stand a chance against a few cultivators at the Union Realm.

None of them had notified the others. They hadn’t even known beforehand that the Village Chief had returned. They’d simply heard that someone was out to get Lu Yi, so they’d rushed over upon hearing the news. A bitter ache welled up in Shisi’s heart.

Even if the Village Chief wasn’t here, even if their stances differed, in the face of life and death, everything else was as fleeting as smoke.

No one could stand by and watch the Boss come to harm.

“With so many brothers in our family, not many of us are still keeping tabs on the news in the Cultivation Realm. I thought to myself, even if none of you came, I’d still have to come. After all, Big Brother and the Village Chief are the ones who took me in,” said the Twentieth with a smile.

“Big Brother took me in, too,” the Sixteenth Junior Sister added with a laugh.

“Me too.”

“Us too.”

Upon hearing this, Shisi sighed, “Me too.”

“Hey, you guys, can’t you go up there and chat?” A sweet, delicate voice suddenly rang out from the distance. Everyone turned to see a lovely female cultivator standing in the distance with her arms crossed, her brow furrowed with displeasure.

Xuan Yiling’s eyes lit up when she saw her. “Sister Jiujiu!”

Everyone exchanged puzzled glances.

Jiujiu had come too.

Or rather… even Jiujiu had come.

The lovely female cultivator walked over and patted Xiao Yibai on the head. “Hmm. Xiao Yibai, that robe doesn’t suit you.”

Xiao Yibai smiled but said nothing.

“Jiujiu, you’re here too?” Shisi felt a bit flustered.

Although Jiujiu was ranked ninety-ninth, she was, in fact, the Ninth Brother’s wife.

Just like Twelfth Brother and Eighteenth Brother, Ninth Brother and Jiujiu were a couple. They had become dao companions back when the village chief was still alive.

For those like Twelfth Brother and Eighteenth Brother, they could die together and remain companions even in reincarnation. But for those like Ninth Brother and Jiujiu, where one dies and the other lives on…

That was simply too cruel.

Ever since Ninth Brother’s death, Jiujiu had withdrawn to the mountains and forests, rarely setting foot in the mortal world again.

Ninth Brother had perished in the Battle of Tongtian. So they secretly assumed that since this demon-slaying mission targeted the eldest brother, Jiujiu would likely not come.

“Fourteenth Brother, what are you saying? Can’t I come?” Jiujiu twirled a strand of hair at her temple. Though she was a female cultivator who had lived for a thousand years, she looked a hundred years younger and was even better preserved than her actual age.

“Although the Hehuan Sect isn’t as well-connected as the City of Immortals and Demons or the Qianji Divine Sect, we have our own informants. Brothers, you really look down on people!”

Lu Jiujiu, the Patriarch of the Hehuan Sect.

“Also, I have no idea what kind of stories you’ve been spinning about me all these years,” Lu Jiujiu said with a faint smile. “But I’ve never held a grudge against Big Brother. At most, I’ve resented him for not letting us go and seek revenge.”

When Ninth Brother fell, she had indeed nearly not recovered.

But now that her eldest brother was imprisoned, could she really just stand by and watch others deal with him?

“Besides, I was also rescued by my eldest brother and the Village Chief, you know.” Lu Jiujiu cracked her neck, ready for action. “Let’s go up the mountain. We’ll guard this Immortal-Trapping Mountain—let’s see who dares to come!”

“Let’s go! Let’s see who dares to come!” the crowd shouted in unison.

The group marched up the mountain in a mighty procession.

……

Meanwhile, Lu Wu had already arrived at the Immortal Restraint Prison ahead of them.

The four people sitting facing each other were now five, all staring at one another in silence.

“It seems I’m still a bit late,” Lu Wu said with a gentle smile.

“Why are you here too?” Wen Jue asked helplessly.

Lu Wu smiled. “I am a healer. A healer’s heart is compassionate; I cannot bear to see anyone die.”

Wen Jue was somewhat puzzled. Just who had taught his brothers to speak with such a double standard?

“Besides…” Lu Wu drew out the word, “I cannot stand by and do nothing if something happens to Big Brother.”

Wen Jue raised an eyebrow; it had been ages since he’d heard the term “Big Brother” come from Old Five’s mouth. Glancing at Qin Zhou, who was smiling faintly beside him, he instantly understood what had happened.

“Is the Dao-Protecting Alchemy Furnace finished?” Wen Jue asked Qin Zhou.

“Mm-hmm.”

“You sure are quick. In just a few short days, you’ve been to Yuanqing Mountain and Immortal-Demon City. “You’ve been all over the place, yet you didn’t summon me, did you?”

Qin Zhou detected a hint of displeasure in his voice and pinched Wen Jue’s finger. “I couldn’t summon you.”

“You went back to prison, so you couldn’t summon me.”

Wen Jue:?

“Is that so…?” It’s that damn Heavenly Dao meddling again, isn’t it?

“Well… I’ll forgive you for now. ” Wen Jue snorted lightly.

Qin Zhou just smiled.

The lighthearted, casual atmosphere between the two was downright suspicious. Lu Wu glanced at Lu Er and Lu Qi beside him, noticing that the two were even more on edge than he was.

Lu Wu smiled faintly, “Second Brother, Old Seven, why aren’t you saying anything?” Done pretending to be all lovey-dovey?

Lu Er: “……”

Lu Qi: “……”

Fifth Brother sure loves to watch the show.

No sooner had the words left his mouth than Shisi’s voice rang out loudly from outside—

“Lu Yi, you demon, I’ve brought you reinforcements!”

Wen Jue’s face darkened. Is this kid asking for a beating?

Wait, reinforcements? What reinforcements?

Wait a minute, it can’t be what he’s thinking, can it…

“It’s not like you brought reinforcements; we came on our own. Shisi, you little rascal, you sure know how to take credit!”

“Exactly.”

“Where did the Heavenly Dao lock up Big Brother? It’s pitch black in here.”

Various voices rang out from outside the cell, and the five inside all turned to look.

In the dim light, they could make out a vast crowd at the far end of the corridor.

Eleven, Shisi, Sixteen, Nineteen, Twenty… a dozen or so people. Almost every one of any standing still active in the cultivation world who knew about the Demon-Slaying Plan had come.

Wen Jue turned to look at Qin Zhou, his eyes slightly red.

Just how much had they underestimated him… A mere handful of worthless Merge Realm cultivators—could they really pose a threat to him?

Qin Zhou smiled. “What’s wrong with that?”

Lu Wu looked at the crowd and smiled.

They were all the same.

They might be stuck in the past, but none of them dared to gamble with Big Brother’s life.

They would all come.

Of course, except for a few brothers who hadn’t received the message.

Lu Wu suddenly thought of something and asked, “Didn’t any of you tell Third Brother?”

“What would Third Brother be coming here for?” Lu Qi asked instinctively.

Surely not to come and work the forge…

Lu Er clearly shared Lu Qi’s thoughts.

Among the villagers of the Lu Clan, those skilled in combat made up roughly two-thirds of the population, but most had perished in the Battle of Tongtian, leaving only a small remnant.

As for the villagers who weren’t skilled in combat, they had long since retired to a life of seclusion, cultivating their inner peace. This group of villagers was generally not well-informed about news from the cultivation world.

“You didn’t tell him the Village Chief is back?” Wen Jue was also surprised.

Setting aside whether Lu San would come this time, the question was whether he even knew the Village Chief had returned. If he knew the Village Chief was back, he would certainly have come down the mountain to see for himself.

Lu Wu, Lu Er, Lu Qi: “……”

Wen Jue was at a loss for words.

The last time they returned to the village to farm, no one had invited Lu San. He hadn’t expected that, even after all this time, no one had still invited Lu San.

“Given Third Brother’s temperament, he shouldn’t hold it against us,” Lu Wu said with a somewhat forced smile.

Lu Qi nodded emphatically, “That’s right.”

Lu Er: “……Hmm.”

“It’s fine,” Qin Zhou said with a faint smile. “I’ll call him over.” It was a rare chance for everyone to gather, and he wanted to see Lu Sa,n too.

[Do you want to teleport ‘Villager—Lu San’ here to… ‘serve time’? (The small village is currently Level 3; only one villager can be summoned.)]

Qin Zhou didn’t read the details; he just tapped—

【Yes】

A surge of spiritual energy rippled through the air, and a vortex of spiritual energy suddenly appeared in the dim cell.

In less than two seconds, the surrounding spiritual energy began to compress and contract, and the space started to tear apart.

Seeing this, everyone took a step back.

Immediately afterward, a figure suddenly materialized from the center of the vortex. A burst of light radiated out, followed by a thunderous crash—

Lu San’s massive, mountain-like figure appeared before them.

Immediately afterward, a force imbued with the laws of heaven and earth yanked him down into a sitting position.

Lu San stumbled and plopped down inside the cell.

The two iron chains that had originally bound Wen Jue began to move of their own accord, then with two sharp clicks, fastened themselves around Lu San’s wrists.

Lu San looked up in bewilderment:?

……

At that very moment, the Ancestor of the Guiyuan Sect, a cultivator at the Union Realm, was also approaching with his followers.

Gazing from afar at the highest peak of the Confinement Immortal Mountains to the east, he was confident.

He had originally assumed that, given the notorious reputation of that demon Wen Jue, few would be willing to answer the call of this demon-slaying campaign. Yet this time, not only had he recruited cultivators from other righteous sects who had previously suffered at the hands of Wen Jue and his cohorts within the secret realms, but he had also enlisted several formidable, reclusive Ancestors.

Among them was even a master of soul-stealing from the era of the Lord of the Heavens.

“Are you worried? Rest assured. This Ancient Demon-Slaying Formation, which I have refined, combined with your numerous Core Formation cultivators, will surely yield twice the result with half the effort.”

“This junior dares not doubt the senior. With the senior’s assistance this time, we will surely slay that demonic fiend and lock him away!”

Seeing that the Gu Yuan Ancestor was actually flattering a Nascent Soul cultivator, the other cultivators immediately looked on with disdain.

“He claims to be the ‘Soul-Seizing Ancestor’—let’s hope he isn’t just some con artist!”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” someone said, pulling the other back. “We’re here to kill that demon. As long as he’s truly capable of bringing us fame throughout the cultivation world, even if he’s a Soul-Seizing Ancestor at the Nascent Soul stage, we’ll gladly address him as ‘Senior’.”

“Hmph.”

Hearing the other cultivators’ words, the Gu Yuan Ancestor narrowed his eyes.

Whether he’s a con artist or not, it doesn’t matter. As long as he can produce something formidable and kill the demon lord in prison, he’s a bona fide Soul-Seizing Ancestor.

If this man proves useless, he still has several Core Formation Ancestors standing by.

This demon-slaying plan is bound to succeed!