Chapter 12: Lady Xuan Hou, please begin your performance

While they were speaking, the person arrived.

A cultivator in azure robes came flying in from afar on a sword. As she drew closer, it became clear that she was a stunningly beautiful female cultivator, dressed in luxurious attire, seemingly in her early twenties.

The otherwise ordinary Green Apricot Sect uniform had been adorned by her until it glittered with jewels, adding several degrees of noble elegance.

Xu Ke’s expression darkened. He turned to leave at once, but Lin Xi grabbed him.

Xu Ke wore a face full of question marks: ?

Lin Xi said calmly, “She’s already seen you.”

More precisely, she had already sensed the aura of the demon core on Xu Ke’s body.

Although Xuan Hou’s early Nascent Soul cultivation had been entirely forced up by swallowing pills and hadn’t even undergone a lightning tribulation—making her cultivation as watered-down as could be—she wasn’t so incompetent that she couldn’t sense the presence of a Nascent Soul–level demon core nearby.

Sure enough, Xuan Hou was heading in their direction.

When she saw Xu Ke, a mocking smile appeared on her face.

Wasn’t this Yue Chuyin’s little lackey? After cultivating for so long, he was still only at Foundation Establishment, yet he dared to come to the Demon Beast Forest seeking death. Truly didn’t know his own limits.

At that moment, Xuan Hou also realized that the aura was coming from Xu Ke.

Who knew what kind of dog-shit luck this kid had, to just happen upon a Nascent Soul–level demon beast’s core after its death.

Thinking this, Xuan Hou flew straight over on her sword: “Hand over the demon core!”

Xu Ke instinctively took two steps back, but did not argue.

He knew how much Yue Chuyin valued Xuan Hou. This was someone he absolutely could not afford to offend.

Lin Xi, however, pulled him aside and shot back directly, “That belongs to him. If you want one, go hunt it yourself. What are you yelling about here? You don’t have even a shred of the awareness a cultivator from a major sect should have.”

Listening from the side, Xu Ke had thought Lin Xi would bring up Shu Ling’s name to block her, but judging from the situation, he clearly had no intention of exposing his identity.

Xuan Hou was instantly enraged.

She was the vice sect master of the Green Apricot Sect, and enjoyed Yue Chuyin’s favor at every turn—yet this disciple, plainly dressed and only at early Foundation Establishment, dared to talk back to her.

Thus, she let out a cold laugh, flicked out a burst of spiritual light, knocked Lin Xi aside, and snatched Xu Ke’s storage pouch.

There was nothing of value inside other than a red sphere emitting a faint glow, enough to make one’s heart tremble.

A Nascent Soul–level demon core!

But why was there a crooked talisman stuck on it?

To conceal its aura?

Xuan Hou sneered.

Even if you conceal it, what good does that do?

“A mere lackey thinks he’s worthy of owning a Nascent Soul–level demon core?”

She tore off the talisman. Just as she was about to put it into her own storage pouch, Lin Xi suddenly lunged forward, barely managing to touch the demon core.

Xuan Hou flew into a rage. She swiftly withdrew the demon core, stuffed it into her own storage pouch, and sent a blast of spiritual energy that knocked Lin Xi flying several meters away.

Lin Xi suddenly slumped sideways onto the ground, as if he had fainted.

Xu Ke was startled and hurried over to him, “Are you alright?”

Xuan Hou was extremely pleased with herself. She hadn’t expected that a casual, almost offhand strike would knock that foolhardy cultivator straight to the ground.

So much for all those rumors saying she wasn’t worthy of the Nascent Soul realm. Clearly, she was no different from an ordinary early-stage Nascent Soul cultivator.

With that thought, she turned and prepared to leave. But Xu Ke abruptly stepped in front of her. “Wait! Lady Xuan Hou, you’re just going to leave after injuring someone?”

Xuan Hou sneered, “He brought it on himself. Even if he dies, he deserves it.”

She tried to leave again, but suddenly froze. In the distance, a massive demonic beast came charging toward them. A Golden Core–stage beast with considerable cultivation.

Xuan Hou was disdainful. Just a Golden Core beast, easy to deal with.

But when she saw the second, then the third, she was dumbfounded.

When the fourth and fifth arrived one after another, panic set in.

A huge swarm of demonic beasts was rushing towards them at lightning speed.

F*ck!

This was a Fenghu demon core! Among all demon cores, it had the strongest attraction, and that attraction changed with the cultivation level of its holder.

Even Xu Ke, only a mid–stage Foundation Establishment, would become a living target if he carried it—let alone Xuan Hou, a Nascent Soul cultivator.

Although Xuan Hou was a demonic cultivator who had fallen into demonic possession, a puppet of the demonic path, her soul had not yet been completely devoured. She still retained many human emotions.

Fear instantly flooded her heart.

It’s that demon core!

Something’s wrong!

She hurriedly fumbled for her storage pouch, desperately trying to pull the demon core out. But to her horror, it was as if the core had fused to the pouch—it wouldn’t come out at all!

At that moment, a group of Golden Core–stage demonic beasts lunged at her, some of them even at late-stage Golden Core.

Lin Xi, who had been “lying unconscious” on the ground, now climbed to his feet. Under Xu Ke’s shocked gaze, he smiled and flipped a middle finger at Xuan Hou.

Alright then, Lady Xuan Hou—please begin your performance.

Xuan Hou was truly terrified now.

There were too many demonic beasts to fight off. Facing such a horde, even a proper early–stage Nascent Soul cultivator would struggle, let alone someone like her whose cultivation was hollow and unstable.

Xu Ke stared at Lin Xi. “What terrifying thing did you do to her?”

Lin Xi: …

Please, don’t look at me like that. You’ll make me embarrassed.

Clearing his throat, Lin Xi said with a grin, “Nothing much. I just used a Concealment Talisman together with an Adhesion Talisman.”

First, the talisman concealed its form; second, it bonded the core to the storage pouch. Xuan Hou could only wait for the talisman’s effect to wear off, or for the person who placed it to voluntarily cancel it.

Golden Core–stage demonic beasts had a high drop rate for demon cores. Before long, several demon cores had already appeared.

Still more Golden Core-stage beasts kept pouring in.

Standing off to the side, Lin Xi wasn’t noticed by a single beast. Feeling perfectly at ease, he casually set up a strange-looking formation, snagged a small demonic beast, and roasted it to eat.

He even paired it with a handful of sunflower seeds to watch Xuan Hou’s performance. It couldn’t have been more satisfying.

“Want some?” Lin Xi tossed Xu Ke an olive branch in the form of roasted meat and sunflower seeds.

“Isn’t this… kind of wrong?” Xu Ke asked somewhat uneasily.

After all, Xuan Hou was Yue Chuyin’s lover, which was basically half a superior.

Yue Chuyin had saved his life and raised him, so bowing his head to Xuan Hou was only natural in his view.

So that’s what this is about?

Lin Xi took one look at Xu Ke’s expression and immediately knew what he was thinking.

“Then let me ask you something,” Lin Xi said. “Sect Master Yue has shown you kindness, right?”

Xu Ke nodded.

“But has Xuan Hou ever shown you any kindness?”

Xu Ke shook his head.

What Xuan Hou had given him seemed to be nothing more than sarcasm and disdain.

Lin Xi slapped his thigh. “Then doesn’t that settle it? Yue Chuyin showed you kindness, and you’ve repaid him for years. You’ve probably done a lot for him, haven’t you? But Xuan Hou has never given you anything, yet she’s demanded so much from you. Don’t you think you’re getting the short end of the stick? That demon core was something she insisted on taking herself. I just added a little surprise—what’s there to make such a fuss about?”

Xu Ke stared at Lin Xi, gradually and successfully getting brainwashed.

So… what were they supposed to do now?

Lin Xi stood up, took out his spirit sword, and pulled Xu Ke onto it.

The next instant, the spirit sword shot out of the formation with a whoosh.

At that moment, the swarm of demonic beasts had gone completely berserk, attacking Xuan Hou nonstop. Not a single beast paid them any attention.

A pile of demon cores floated in midair, but the occupied Xuan Hou had no time to collect them.

Lin Xi directly took out a storage pouch, and demon cores flew into it one after another as if they cost nothing.

Some demonic beasts did attack them, but every strike was blocked by Lin Xi with effortless familiarity.

Thus, he flew on the sword beneath his feet, grabbing demon cores with his right hand while blocking attacks with his left.

Xuan Hou’s streaks of sword qi collided with the beasts’ attacks, bursting into star-like flashes of light. Spiritual energy scattered wildly, and anyone caught in the crossfire could easily be injured.

Those star-like motes of energy moved incredibly fast. Xu Ke knew that he could never block them all himself flawlessly.

Yet Lin Xi—who was a whole minor realm lower than him—managed to collect the endlessly spawning demon cores while fending off attacks, all while flying the sword at astonishing speed!

This talent for splitting his focus three ways and his sheer escape speed was simply absurd.

Even an ordinary Golden Core–stage rogue cultivator probably wouldn’t be able to deal with him quickly if they ran into him.

Bouncing unsteadily on the spirit, Xu Ke stared in disbelief. “How do you do it?”

Lin Xi replied, “By cultivating, of course!”

Xu Ke protested, “You don’t understand cultivation!”

What he meant was that ordinary cultivation simply couldn’t reach this level.

The other man let out a mournful sigh. “You don’t understand Gui Ying.”

---

After harvesting a wave of demon cores and seeing that the drop rate was steadily decreasing, Lin Xi simply returned to the formation. He watched the motes of spiritual light fly about while casually fiddling with talismans.

Xu Ke looked at him with an expression that said: How can someone be this ridiculously overpowered?

The feeling of having an enemy turn into a fanboy was indescribably satisfying.

At that moment, however, Lin Xi sensed a familiar aura approaching.

The other party seemed anxious as well, as if gripped by panic over something.

Thinking carefully, he understood.

Almost simultaneously, he and Xu Ke spoke: “Yue Chuyin.” “Sect Master Yue.”

Xu Ke couldn’t help but grow worried again.

With Sect Master Yue here, things probably wouldn’t end so easily. After all, Yue Chuyin’s favoritism toward Xuan Hou was well known to all the sect’s disciples.

Lin Xi yawned.

Even better that he came. This way he could freeload a few more demon cores.

He casually tossed out a Sleep Talisman. Xuan Hou immediately collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

At the same time, he cut off the connection to the Concealment Talisman and the Adhesion Talisman. The demon core instantly revealed itself, floating in midair.

The demonic beasts immediately stopped paying attention to Xuan Hou and charged straight at the demon core.

One Golden Core–stage giant beast opened its mouth to swallow it, only to have it snatched away at the last second.

Tossing the demon core in his hand, Lin Xi flashed the beasts a standard Bi’An Sect–style smile. “Sorry, I’ll be taking this demon core with me!”

The beast froze for a moment, about to give chase, when Lin Xi suddenly stumbled and fell straight to the ground.

Demonic beast: ?

I don’t think I even attacked yet?

However, the smile on Lin Xi’s face never faded.

In the next instant, a powerful pressure descended, and the entire swarm of demonic beasts wilted.

Lin Xi looked up, wearing an expression of someone who had finally received reinforcements after surviving extreme danger: “Senior Brother Yue!”

He had already smeared demonic beast blood all over himself. His white robes were torn beyond recognition.

In reality, all of it had been ripped by his own hands.

Xu Ke subconsciously looked down at himself, only then realizing he’d somehow been made to look the same way.

Yue Chuyin swept his gaze across the scene, and the moment he saw Xuan Hou, he instantly blew up.

“What on earth happened?!”

Yue Chuyin didn’t even have time to bicker with or scold Lin Xi, this junior brother. He hurried over and hoisted Xuan Hou up—

Yes, hoisted. Straight onto his shoulder.

No wonder no female cultivators except Xuan Hou—a half–demonized puppet demonic cultivator—would give you the time of day! With behavior like this, you deserve to be single for life!

Lin Xi nudged Xu Ke, signaling him to speak.

After all, he had long since lost any credibility with that Yue-something.

“Just now… just now we ran into demonic beasts, and then… Lady Xuan Hou. T-There were beasts laying siege to us, and we were all injured,” Xu Ke said.

It was his first time telling a lie, and the words were stiff and unpracticed.

Lin Xi quickly added from the side, “The selfless and righteous Lady Xuan Hou stepped in to protect the weak, but unfortunately our cultivation was too low, and we ended up causing her to be so seriously injured!”