Chapter 62 Embryo of the Earth Fiend, Great King White Dragon

With a slight flick of his finger, a splash of mountain spring water cascaded down.

The sparrow spirit was drenched all over her head and face, choking on the water and coughing incessantly. As soon as she regained her consciousness, she instinctively flapped her wings, attempting to flee.

Before Xuanming even needed to make a move, the peach-wood sword suddenly soared into the air, its tip aiming straight between her eyebrows, exuding an air of "if you run another inch, I will poke a hole in you." It even deliberately left a clear path open, practically trembling with eager anticipation, as if afraid the sparrow spirit wouldn't try to run.

A chill ran down her spine. Realizing the situation was far more perilous than her own cultivation, the sparrow spirit instantly became obedient. With a flash of light, she transformed into a female demon clad in a red and blue dress, possessing a petite and exquisite figure with a cute, delicate face. Trembling in mortal terror, she dropped to her knees, looking completely horrified.

"This humble sprite pays respects to the Daoist Master."

Stroking his beard slightly, Xuanming didn't waste any breath and went straight to the point, voicing his doubt, "Why were you secretly tailing that flood-serpent?"

Seeing that the sparrow spirit remained silent, he added unhurriedly, "If you confess honestly, this poor Daoist might show mercy and spare your life. But if you conceal even the slightest detail, you will be executed without pardon."

The peach-wood sword chimed in a timely manner, dancing about with excitement as a terrifying intent washed over the area. The sparrow spirit felt as though she were a frail leaf tossed amidst towering waves, battered by immense surges, and in constant danger of capsizing and perishing utterly without hope of redemption.

Her scalp tingled as if she had plunged into an ice cellar, her entire body freezing cold. Daring not harbor any further tricks, she kowtowed in sheer terror and told Xuanming everything she knew without the slightest reservation.

"Reporting to the Daoist Master, this humble sprite hails from Azure Dragon Mountain. That flood-serpent is one of the offspring of the Green-Scaled Great King. After the Myriad Serpent Cave was breached, the White Dragon Great King issued an order to hunt down the remnants of the Green-Scaled faction and recover the lost treasures of Green-Scaled. Not long ago, we discovered the traces of the flood-serpent. Being adept at concealment, I originally intended to tail it in secret to ascertain its hiding place so I could report it to my superiors and claim merit and reward. Never did I expect to witness the flood-serpent attacking a human, and soon after, the Daoist Master arrived. I was directly tapped—ah, saved—by the Daoist Master, and when I woke up, I was already here."

Observing the sparrow spirit, who was clearly well-versed in the art of eloquent speech, Xuanming stroked his beard with satisfaction. However, even as his doubts were cleared, new questions arose: Who was the Green-Scaled Great King? And who was this White Dragon?

Although Floating Cloud Mountain was a branch range of Azure Dragon Mountain, it was home to numerous demons and monsters, and Qiuquan Temple knew very little about Azure Dragon Mountain. This presented a rare opportunity to learn more about it.

Bearing this in mind, Xuanming continued his interrogation.

With mortals acting as the butcher's knife and she as the fish on the chopping board, a sharp sword hung three feet above her head, eager to pierce a few holes through her body, the sparrow spirit dared not harbor any further cunning thoughts. In the face of Xuanming's inquiries, she answered every single question thoroughly, terrified that she might fail to satisfy the old Daoist before her, resulting in a single sword stroke ending her life and turning years of bitter cultivation into nothingness.

---

Inside the thatched cottage, the night was hazy.

One man, one demon; questions and answers flowed back and forth.

Half an hour later, having resolved the questions in his mind, Xuanming flicked his finger, and a ray of light pierced into the sparrow spirit's glabella.

Instantly, the sparrow spirit felt as if an invisible, intangible, yet undeniably real shackle had been placed upon her soul.

Having comprehended the Dao through the observation of scriptures, explored the mysterious portals, and previously devised techniques such as the *Eight Scenery True Arts*, Xuanming possessed considerable understanding and insight into the path of spirits and souls. This shackle was a spell he had devised himself, drawing inspiration from the art of commanding spirits—one of the legendary seventy-two earthly transformations from his past-life legends.

Though it was merely in its embryonic stage and far inferior in power to a genuine spirit-commanding and demon-subduing technique, it already possessed a fraction of the might required to bind spirits and marshal retainers.

---

For dealing with a Great Demon at the Zhou-Tian realm, it was more than enough.

"This is the unique spell of this old Daoist, specially designed to bind souls and shackle the mysterious portals. If you walk the straight and narrow, you will naturally remain safe and sound; but if you dare to be double-faced, your soul will scatter into nothingness. You should know well how to conduct yourself; do not force this old Daoist to start a massacre."

"Rest assured, Daoist Master, this humble sprite understands."

Watching the dejected sparrow spirit, Xuanming summoned Changshou, the spirit deer, and instructed it to take the demoness to the guest room to rest, while he remained behind to slowly piece together the information.

It turned out that the Green-Scaled Great King was none other than the flood-dragon that had previously undergone the tribulation of crossing water, and today's flood-serpent was one of its offspring.

The White Dragon Great King was a hornless dragon. Three years ago, he launched a campaign of conquest with the ambition to unify Azure Dragon Mountain.

The two dragons had clashed in battle once. As to the outcome, other demons remained clueless, until the flood-dragon underwent its water tribulation to transform into a true dragon. Only then did the demons surmise that the Green-Scaled Great King must have been at a slight disadvantage; otherwise, it would never have suddenly attempted its transformation without warning.

As for the actual outcome, Xuanming was well aware: the flood-dragon had been jointly suppressed by the True Immortals of the Purple Mist Sect and found itself unable to break free.

With the lips gone, the teeth feel cold; one stroke affects the entire body. When the news reached Azure Dragon Mountain, the Myriad Serpent Cave under the flood-dragon's command was also seized upon by the White Dragon Great King, who led his forces to breach it, resulting in heavy casualties.

The descendants either perished or fled in disarray, some escaping Azure Dragon Mountain altogether, while others skulked about in the mountains, barely surviving and daring not show their faces.

Having acquired the legacy and territory of the Myriad Serpent Cave, the White Dragon Great King's strength and prestige skyrocketed, making him the most powerful great demon in Azure Dragon Mountain.

Ambitious and driven, he sought to integrate the atmospheric luck of Azure Dragon Mountain to break through his current realm, cross into the Spirit-Training realm, and become a true demon king.

As for the sparrow spirit, Red Bean, she was originally a demon general under a Golden Elixir avian demon. A year ago, after her master was defeated, she and the rest of the surviving subordinates surrendered and transferred to the allegiance of the White Dragon Great King.

"In that case, Azure Dragon Mountain is currently undergoing internal turmoil and has no time to look elsewhere."

Xuanming pondered with deep concentration.

For Qiuquan Temple, this was a mixed blessing.

The advantage was that the more chaotic Azure Dragon Mountain became, the safer Qiuquan Temple would be. The disadvantage was that once the White Dragon unified Azure Dragon Mountain and stepped into the Spirit-Training realm, his ambition would likely stir up monstrous waves.

It was entirely possible that Qiuquan Temple would be caught in the crossfire.

Fortunately, the unification of the Azure Dragon demons was no overnight matter. He didn't need to worry overly much; he simply needed to make ample preparations alongside his daily cultivation.

When all was said and forth, everything still depended on strength.

Having figured this out, Xuanming stood up, left the thatched cottage, and walked over to the spot where the flood-serpent's corpse was placed. He unleashed his spiritual perception to carefully sense and explore it.

According to the sparrow spirit, more than two years ago, when the remnants of the flood-serpent faction fled, they had taken a portion of the treasures from the Myriad Serpent Cave. White Dragon's order to hunt down the flood-dragon's descendants was not only to eradicate the root to prevent future trouble, but also driven by the desire to recover those lost treasures.

That flood-serpent was one of the flood-dragon's most promising offspring, and it was highly likely carrying heavy treasures upon its person. Xuanming had come here to try his luck: if there were treasures, fantastic, it would be a windfall; if not, it didn't matter, as it would simply be unearned wealth anyway. While he harbored expectations, he didn't obsess over it.

---

A moment later, Xuanming paused his beard-stroking hand, directed the peach-wood sword to carve out the counter-scale, and opened his palm. With a slight beckoning motion, the scale landed in his hand. He then waved his sleeve to reseal the flood-serpent's corpse, returning to his dwelling in high spirits.

With the surrounding wilderness deserted and the night profound and still, he walked along the mountain path with his hands clasped behind his back, humming a tune without any recognizable melody. At this moment, rather than resembling a mountain Daoist, he possessed the rustic simplicity of an old farmer in the fields—stripped of any aloofness from the mortal world, and radiating a sense of returning to natural simplicity.

---

The lingering heat of summer clouds dissipated, and gentle, lingering autumn breezes arose.

Early the next morning, after gathering the purple Qi of the rising sun and finishing his morning meal, Chang'anzhi was the first to enter the Inquiring Dao Courtyard.

With a respectful bow, he first expressed his genuine emotions, thanking Uncle-Master Xuanming for his cultivation and guidance, and then produced a pair of meticulously prepared gifts: an antique oil lamp and a volume of jade slips.

Beneath the pine tree, beside the stone table.

Looking at the two items, Xuanming felt a deep wave of emotion, his gaze towards Chang'anzhi filled with gratification.

Everyone loves a grateful junior.

He was no exception.

"You have put your heart into this!"

Xuanming smiled, making no effort to decline.

These two items were of immense value.

One was a damaged spiritual artifact.

The other was the insight into Qi-training at the Innate realm, something only the top five participants of the Dao-Origin Assembly could acquire.

To secure these two items, Chang'anzhi must have gone to considerable lengths and expended a great deal of effort.

"The smallest of favors should be repaid with gushing springs. Uncle-Master's kindness to me is as heavy as a mountain; it is only natural for this disciple to show filial respect."

Chang'anzhi said with joyful sincerity.

Xuanming nodded. Having accepted the gifts, he proceeded to untangle the cultivation bottlenecks for Chang'anzhi. With such a filial nephew, he, as the uncle-master, naturally had to invest even greater care into his guidance.

Half an hour later, the third-generation Daoists arrived one after another, while the fourth-generation Daoists—including Changchunzhi, Chang'anzhi, Changqingzi, and Changning—listened attentively.

Xuanxu and the others first chatted about various occurrences at the Dao-Origin Assembly before steering the conversation toward several key topics.