As the price for making Si Lingxi take the blame, that night, Lu Zheng belonged to Si Lingxi.

During the intermission, Si Lingxi's eyes suddenly flashed. She pulled over a brocade quilt and gently extended her jade-like hand, letting a Phoenix Divine Fire ignite in her palm, in the sparks, revealing the image of the Red Crane.

"Greetings, Palace Master!" The Red Crane, composed of flames, bowed respectfully.

Si Lingxi nodded, "What is it?"

"We have discovered the whereabouts of a demon in the Southern Border," Red Crane said. "The person is a disciple of Mist God Valley and was lured into falling, possessing True Desire Demonic Qi." 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

"Mist God Valley?" Si Lingxi slightly frowned, "Is it that Monk Caodeng who broke the Five Buddhist Precepts?"

Red Crane nodded, "It's under his sect."

Si Lingxi nodded, "The Heartless True Desire Demon Ancestor is particularly skilled at stirring desires. Sects that cultivate based on desires, if their mental state is unstable, are practically delivering themselves to the Old Fiend."

Red Crane asked, "Palace Master, shall we gather forces to destroy Mist God Valley? If the Heartless True Desire Demon Ancestor is also there, we can capture him too and await your judgment."

Red Crane had this confidence. Not to mention those faintly backed by Phoenix Mountain from various Demon Kings, who would surely respond immediately, just within several thousand miles, there were many Great Demons directly under the jurisdiction of Phoenix Mountain, loyal to Si Lingxi. If they acted together, even the Heartless True Desire Demon Ancestor wouldn't be a match.

However, Si Lingxi shook her head, "Do not underestimate the Heartless True Desire Demon Ancestor. This Old Fiend is an Upper Realm Celestial Demon. Though he lacks much power after descending to the mortal world, his ability to escape is considerable. If he hides his tracks, even I can't find him."

After a pause, Si Lingxi continued, "I will personally handle this. You continue the investigation."

"Yes!" Red Crane nodded, then bowed respectfully. Si Lingxi waved away the flames, pulling Lu Zheng close, stopping him from speaking.

The second half began.

...

"Oh? The Flower Cloud Sect? They were also taken by that Old Fiend?" Si Lingxi raised an eyebrow.

Lu Zheng mentioned this the next morning during breakfast.

"It is said that the leader of the Flower Cloud Sect was defeated by a disciple of the Heartless True Desire Demon Ancestor, then lured into falling, teaching a cultivation technique mixed with demonic skills to the entire sect, but it is well hidden and won't be revealed unless at a life-and-death moment," Lu Zheng said.

"Mist God Valley, Flower Cloud Sect, both sects lack a solid foundation, no wonder they couldn't withstand the Heartless True Desire Demon Ancestor," Si Lingxi nodded. "In that case, let's make a trip to the Southern Border and see if we can find a trace of that Old Fiend."

Lu Zheng took a bite of the steamed bun and drank some porridge, "I'll go with you."

Si Lingxi smiled slightly, nodding, "Alright."

Lin Wan said, "I won't go, but can you send me home first? I need to work tomorrow, don't be late."

"Sure!"

After breakfast, Lu Zheng took Lin Wan back to the modern world. Shen Ying, feeling it was uneventful staying in the modern world, didn't go either, instead returning to Peach Blossom Plain for some rest and cultivation. Liu Qingyan still had her duties at Renxin Hall and naturally couldn't go.

So the only ones going to the Southern Border were Lu Zheng and Si Lingxi.

Having everything arranged, they ascended in the clouds and flew straight to the Southern Border, traversing mountains swiftly, passing over Ling Mountain, crossing the barrier between the Central Plains and Southern Border, entering the realm of the Hundred Thousand Mountains.

"Mist God Valley was established by Monk Caodeng's master." Si Lingxi explained, "Several hundred years ago, his master obtained a Joyful Zen Secret Method from the Western Buddha Country, combined it with his own learning, broke the Five Buddhist Precepts, and created the Paradise Bewitching Divine Method. Unable to thrive in the Central Plains after some encounters with several temples, he came to the Southern Border and established Mist God Valley."

"About the same time as the Flower Cloud Sect?" Lu Zheng asked.

"Not as established as the Flower Cloud Sect," Si Lingxi shook her head, "Though both share the concepts of Yin Yang Replenishment, they fall far behind the Yin Yang Palace, Maiden Lineage, and Divine Maiden Sect, let alone the orthodox dual cultivation sects like Great Joyful Zen Temple, Heaven-Reaching Temple, and Profound Lady Mountain."

Lu Zheng was dumbfounded, "Are there so many dual cultivation sects in the Southern Border?"

"These are just the sects primarily focused on dual cultivation. There are even more sects with Dual Cultivation Techniques within them, as the harmony of Yin and Yang is fundamental to the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth." Si Lingxi chuckled, leaned closer to Lu Zheng, and softly reminded, "Lu Lang, don't forget, when we fuse our Phoenix Power, isn't it also a form of dual cultivation?"

"Hiss—" Lu Zheng took a deep breath, recalling the feeling of their Phoenix Powers merging, it was enough to make one's legs go weak.

Si Lingxi giggled, holding Lu Zheng, "The integration of our Phoenix Powers in cultivation, its harmony and dual cultivation effect, is even better than most dual cultivation techniques."

Lu Zheng nodded, "I agree with that."

Every time he and Si Lingxi fused, it consumed quite a bit of the Light of Fortune, with very little cooldown in their cultivation period. His cultivation speed was advancing by leaps and bounds, with the help of the Mind Jade Seal and Si Lingxi's selfless assistance. Adding in the one-time expenditure of thousands of strands of Light of Fortune during their first dual cultivation, his Dao Practice was approaching two thousand years, practically making him an emotionless cultivation machine.

Even Lu Zheng himself was terrified at this speed!

He's only been cultivating for just over six years, but already possesses a two-thousand-year Dao Practice. Master Qing Song even remarked that Lu Zheng could surpass him in twenty or thirty years. Doing the math, at this rate, it might not even take three years.

Of course, that's assuming there's enough Light of Fortune.

Recently, Lu Zheng's cultivation had been consuming Light of Fortune at an alarming rate, like water through a drain, flowing with a whoosh. If it weren't for slaying four demons and saving Si Lingxi, he might very well have encountered his "bottleneck period" by now.

...

The two of them discussed various factions in the Southern Border, quickly venturing deep within, reaching the target area.

Lu Zheng gazed ahead, seeing lofty mountains stretching endlessly, with mist swirling around, and among several towering peaks, a valley spread over dozens of miles. Above the valley, gray mist enveloped, mingling with faint spiritual fluctuations.

This was where Mist God Valley was located.

Mist God Valley, based on Buddhist Techniques, practiced Joyful Zen Method, plus some local techniques from the Southern Border, focused on the cultivation of Divine Soul Secret Technique, treading a perilous path, making magical combat decisions extremely dangerous.

However, against enemies with superior spiritual cultivation or mental fortitude, they were often at a loss, like the old monk who once used the "Paradise Heavenly Maiden's Bewitching Divine Realm" against Lu Zheng at Five Beauties Manor, feeling almost powerless.

"Is there demonic qi?" Lu Zheng asked, "I didn't sense any."

"There is, but it's very faint." Si Lingxi nodded, "Demonic qi hidden inside the body, masked by one's essence, is indeed hard to detect. At a distance, even I can't sense it."

With that, Si Lingxi waved her hand.

The next moment, the sky instantly turned red, as the Phoenix Sky Curtain descended, enveloping the entire Mist God Valley.