Song Ciwan questioned the Fox Demon relentlessly, backing it into a corner. However, there was one point it stubbornly held onto.

The Fox Demon said, "I have heard a parable from Human Race Buddhism. A hawk was chasing a dove, intending to eat it. The dove begged for its life, but the hawk said, ’If I spare you today, I will starve to death.’"

"The hawk refused to release the dove. Shizun, taking pity on the dove, rushed to its rescue. But having saved the dove, he feared the hawk would starve, so Shizun carved off his own flesh to feed the hawk."

The Fox Demon asked, "Shizun pitied both the dove and the hawk. This shows that in the eyes of the gods and buddhas of the Human Race, all living things in heaven and earth are meant to be equal. The hawk is pitiful, and the dove is also pitiful. Thus, Shizun chose to save the dove and feed the hawk with his own flesh. If that is so, then shouldn’t the insects on the ground and humans also be equal?"

"The cart driver crushed an insect’s leg, so I exchanged his limb for the insect’s. Are my actions not in accordance with the Dao?"

As its voice fell, the wind and sand swirled on the official road again, and a loud, piercing chirp suddenly echoed from the nearby grass.

A green insect half as tall as a man leaped out from the grass. Its wings spread, its mouthparts buzzing, and its appearance was already utterly ferocious.

But what was even more bizarre was that on its long, narrow body, among its lower four insect legs, one of its upper limbs was not an insect leg at all—it was a human arm!

Who could look upon such a sight and not be horrified?

The Escort Masters of the Escort Agency were well-trained and fared better, but many of the common folk traveling with the group couldn’t handle the shock and immediately began to scream in panic.

Song Ciwan felt an immense pressure. She immediately mobilized the single drop of One Element Heavy Water within her Vast Sea Grotto Heaven.

Over the past half-month of travel, Song Ciwan had not only gained a great deal of worldly experience, but her own Cultivation had also grown with incredible speed.

Within her Heaven and Earth Scale, many clusters of emotional energy had been stored.

There was energy from the Xu Mansion servant Yu Shu, as well as from Aunt Jin Hua’s family. Each time she sold one of these emotional clusters, it provided her with a substantial amount of Cultivation.

After half a month of these transactions, although the many emotional clusters stored in the Heaven and Earth Scale were depleted, Song Ciwan’s Cultivation had risen to the very peak of Qi Transformation Perfection!

She was just waiting for the right opportunity to break through the Qi Transformation Stage and officially become a Cultivator in the Qi Refining Stage!

Her experience with the Sutra of Sitting and Forgetting had also increased rapidly. The Insight Technique panel displayed:

Song Ciwan:

Age: 15 (Lifespan: 95 years)

Main Cultivation Method: Sutra of Sitting and Forgetting (First Layer, Skilled 8916/10000)

Cultivation Realm: Refining Essence and Transforming Qi (Qi Transformation Perfection 9978/10000)

At this stage, Song Ciwan’s True Qi was not only as viscous as lead and mercury, but there were also faint signs of clouds gathering to form rain above her Dantian.

Her True Qi reserves had surged once more, allowing her to gain preliminary control over the drop of One Element Heavy Water in her Vast Sea Grotto Heaven.

It would be difficult to defeat the Fox Demon blocking their path with her own strength alone, but if she could deploy this drop of One Element Heavy Water, the outcome would surely be different.

Song Ciwan held the One Element Heavy Water in reserve as her trump card. With a flick of her right hand, she suddenly formed a brand-new Finger Technique.

A thread of clear light shot from her fingertip and landed on the giant green insect. With a soft POP, the insect instantly shrank.

This Magic was called the Sun and Moon Transformation Skill, and Song Ciwan had obtained it after selling that Great City Level Mysterious Ghost Spirit!

This skill worked similarly to the Beast Creation Skill, but its scope was broader and its uses more varied. Best of all, perhaps because the Mysterious Ghost Spirit that provided it was of an extremely high Level, this Sun and Moon Transformation Skill wasn’t like some of the other Magic she’d previously acquired, which only came with the First Layer.

The Sun and Moon Transformation Skill was a complete tome of Magic!

However, Song Ciwan’s current realm was low, so she couldn’t use this Magic to achieve a true Sun and Moon Transformation.

It was less of a transformation and more of an Illusion Technique.

Compared to the Fox Demon, who could turn a human hand into an insect’s leg out of thin air, her ability was still far inferior.

Of course, only she and the Fox Demon knew just how inferior it was.

As the saying goes, the layman enjoys the spectacle while the expert sees the technique. In the eyes of the Escort Agency members, Song Ciwan’s display of Magic was nothing short of stunning.

The commotion and chaos in the crowd gradually subsided, and all sorts of emotional energy clusters flew toward Song Ciwan.

The people were surprised, but more than that, they were delighted!

The Heaven and Earth Scale materialized beside her. Song Ciwan raised her hand, formed another seal, and the Magic changed again.

The small insect on the ground flapped its wings and suddenly dove into an illusion floating in the Void.

Within the illusion were green plains, fields, a bright spring Wind, and a vast expanse of fertile, vibrant earth.

Everything seemed peaceful and harmonious—until that single small green insect appeared.

The small insect joyfully dove onto this flourishing land. Like a mouse that had fallen into a rice jar, it faced the abundant food and began to feast.

It ate the crops, the fruit, the blades of grass—it ate everything.

Once full, it began to rapidly lay eggs, and those Insect Eggs quickly hatched into more insects.

With no natural predators, these small insects began to multiply at a terrifying rate across the green plains. Their reproductive ability was so horrifying it would make anyone’s skin crawl.

And so, the insects ate and reproduced, ate and reproduced... in an endless cycle.

An eternity seemed to pass, and yet it felt like only an instant.

The green plain had changed!

It went from prosperous to barren. The insects devoured everything they could, down to the roots of the grass. Finally, the earth cracked open, and with nothing left to eat, they began to feed on each other, a cannibalistic Devouring.

The simple insects had no capacity for thought. They possessed only the instinct to survive and to devour!

And so, they ate and ate, until at a certain moment, on that barren land, only a single living insect remained.

And that insect was the very first one—the one with a human arm.

It stood alone on the vast wasteland, with no more food, no more of its kind, and no more enemies.

Finally, it died too.

It collapsed onto the land it had utterly destroyed, no longer able to flap its wings, buzz, or move with life as it once had.

Song Ciwan withdrew the Magic.

The entire scene fell deathly silent.

An unspeakable, profound shock began to reverberate in the hearts of all who had witnessed the light and shadow play out.

It wasn’t just the Escort Team that was silent; the Fox Demon before them was silent as well.

Although it had kept its back to the crowd the entire time, it had clearly "seen" Song Ciwan’s Magic in its entirety.

An unknown amount of time passed before a cool breeze drifted over from the Hengshui River.

Song Ciwan spoke slowly, "All living things are interconnected; none can survive alone. All exist within a cycle. Fellow Daoist, this being the case, do you still insist on exchanging a human arm for an insect’s leg?"

The Fox Demon said, "I am still not convinced, but I have gained some understanding."

Song Ciwan replied, "The Dao of Heaven benefits without harming. The Dao of a Saint is to act without contending. In a debate on the Dao, there is truly no victory or defeat. To rejoice upon hearing the Dao is the mark of a true Seeker."

The Fox Demon said, "Since I have gained some understanding, what harm is there in showing this person some mercy?"

After speaking, the Fox Demon slowly turned its head, glanced at Song Ciwan, and then vanished before everyone’s eyes like a wisp of smoke.

As it disappeared, Senior Brother Feng of the Escort Team, the one who had been forced to trade his hand for an insect leg, suddenly cried out in joyful surprise, "My hand! My hand is back!"

Lan Qiuyan breathed a sigh of relief. Overjoyed, she quickly turned to find and thank Song Ciwan.

But after searching left and right, she could find no trace of Song Ciwan.

With the disappearance of the Fox Demon, Song Ciwan had vanished as well!