Back when he was dealing with the Demons.

Jiang Xu had once captured a Demon with a lower Cultivation.

He had wanted to use various methods to turn it back into a normal person.

But perhaps it was because Jiang Xu lacked the skill.

The Demon was tormented for a long time, but it showed no sign of turning back into a human.

However, there were instances where the Demonic Qi on their bodies could be suppressed.

For example, the Golden Light Spell, which had reached the Master Level.

An ordinary Golden Light Spell already had a certain deterrent effect against some evil entities.

This Mastery Level Golden Light Spell dealt even greater damage to Demons.

After using the Golden Light Spell, a shield formed of golden light would appear around Jiang Xu’s body.

When Jiang Xu approached a Demon with this layer of golden light, its skin would sizzle as if burned by flames, turning charred and black. At the same time, the Demon would become extremely pained, howling incessantly.

Another example was the Exorcism Talisman.

Jiang Xu flipped his palm, and more than twenty Exorcism Talismans instantly appeared in his hand.

After pouring in his Magical Power, he activated all of them, then waved his hand toward the crowd in the distance!

Instantly, intense white light erupted from the Exorcism Talismans, illuminating the entire battlefield like a blazing sun. Everyone present was stunned by the sudden, dazzling brilliance, and they all squinted or shut their eyes to block the blinding light.

However, this white light was more than just a visual assault.

Under the illumination of this white light, all the Demonic Qi on the surface of everyone’s bodies melted away like the first snow.

Even the Demonic Qi that had permeated the air vanished without a trace, cleansed by the white light.

The rage and killing intent within everyone’s hearts also vanished completely. Their minds became peaceful, all negative emotions purged by this pure white light.

After the white light dissipated, everyone snapped out of their daze. They looked at each other, their faces filled with confusion and surprise.

Although they didn’t know what that power was, they all clearly felt the change within themselves—the baseless rage and killing intent were gone.

Everyone stopped their attacks, silently observing the people around them. Their eyes were filled with gravity and vigilance, as if they had just awoken from a nightmare.

They began to reflect on their actions, realizing the Yellow Jade Fruit might have just been the catalyst for the conflict, while the true culprit was likely some unknown force.

During the fight, they seemed to have lost self-control, like puppets manipulated by invisible strings, unable to stop fighting.

This feeling filled their hearts with unease and doubt. They understood that something was definitely wrong; otherwise, they would never have attacked each other so frantically, as if they were mortal enemies.

After looking at one another, the Cultivators from the three sects realized the gravity of the situation. They cautiously retreated several hundred meters to a safe distance, then each chose a different direction and left.

They all knew in their hearts that this incident was no accident. There was a deeper conspiracy and crisis at play, and they had to investigate thoroughly before they could be at ease.

Seeing them leave, Jiang Xu did not relax.

The Exorcism Talismans were only a temporary fix, treating the symptom but not the root cause.

If they came into contact with Demonic Qi again, they would still be gradually corrupted by it.

The process had just been reset, going from 70% corruption back down to 0%.

...

「Some time passed.」

Inside the Secret Realm, Jiang Xu noticed that there were fewer and fewer people in the outer area.

’They must have all gone to the Inner Area,’ he thought.

Jiang Xu continued to scour the outer area for scraps, and the growth of his Spirit-Devouring Insects had stagnated.

But Jiang Xu thought it was fine.

It was safe, and he could still obtain a large amount of Spirit Medicine.

Even if most of it was low-grade, there were still some rare finds.

Because he hadn’t encountered any danger in the outer area for a long time, Jiang Xu had let his guard down a bit.

One day, Jiang Xu came across a cave.

He had already entered no fewer than ten caves before this one.

Just like before, Jiang Xu first released his Spirit-Devouring Insects to scout ahead.

After the Spirit-Devouring Insects reported that everything was fine, Jiang Xu checked again with his Spiritual Eye Technique.

There really were no problems.

Only then did Jiang Xu walk inside.

Upon entering the cave, Jiang Xu immediately felt a rush of cool, damp air on his face.

The cave’s interior was not as dark as he had imagined. Instead, a faint fluorescent glow emanated from some kind of ore on the ceiling and walls, providing a mysterious and hazy light.

The floor was covered with smooth stones and damp earth. He had to tread carefully with every step as he followed the winding passage deeper into the cave.

Jiang Xu kept his Spiritual Eye Technique active. He saw a Spiritual Power fluctuation ahead that was close to Tier Two, figuring it was a Tier One Peak Demon Beast. ’My Spirit-Devouring Insects can get a small boost,’ he thought.

After going deeper, Jiang Xu found the source of the Spiritual Power fluctuation, only to be stunned to find that it was not a Demon Beast.

It was a person!

And it was none other than Yan Chunyu!

Jiang Xu had a bad feeling, and he instantly broke out in a cold sweat!

He turned to flee, but the moment he looked back, he was shocked to find two more people standing behind him!

One of them was a middle-aged man of about forty with a cold face and eyes as sharp as a hawk’s, exuding an intense pressure.

The other was a stunningly beautiful woman who looked like a Fairy from a painting, so beautiful it was breathtaking. However, her face was pale, and her eyes held a trace of indifference and ill will.

Jiang Xu’s Spiritual Eye Technique couldn’t see through either of them; they seemed like mortals with no Cultivation at all.

But mortals couldn’t possibly appear unharmed in this Secret Realm.

’There’s only one explanation—these two are both Golden Core Ancestors!’

"Junior Brother Jiang? What are you doing here?" Yan Chunyu asked in surprise.

"I was forced... it’s a long story. Senior Sister Yan, what about you...?" Jiang Xu stood frozen, cold sweat dripping down his back.

Yan Chunyu seemed to be in much better shape than the two Golden Core Ancestors behind Jiang Xu. She hesitated, but before she could speak, a cold voice from behind interrupted her.

"Why waste words on a little Junior Cultivator? Either kill him or throw him out! But who knows if he’ll run to Elder Demon Su and expose us. I say we just get rid of him."

The hair on Jiang Xu’s neck stood on end, and his sense of crisis flared. Just as he was about to fight back, he heard a gentle female voice from the side:

"Fellow Daoist He, don’t be so irritable. It seems this young friend is an acquaintance of Yan Chunyu’s. How can we just kill him so casually?"

Jiang Xu didn’t dare turn around and remained frozen in place.

"The truth is, we’re here because we were ambushed by that Elder Thief Su," Yan Chunyu began to explain.

"Originally, under Elder Thief Su’s leadership, we were focused on undoing the core Grand Array.

But in the end, Elder He discovered that there was something wrong with the Array and decided not to continue breaking it.

But when that old thief saw this, he actually activated the Array he had set up long ago, trying to trap all of us here."