Yang An refused to believe that Elder Zhuan Yu wanted to take him as a disciple for no reason, just from seeing him and his Techniques at first glance.

Given how easily Elder Zhuan Yu had recognized his abilities and how much he knew about the Great Virtue Temple, Yang An had a very bad feeling.

'When all is said and done, could this still be about the Great Virtue Temple?!'

'Is he pretending to take me as a disciple, only to drag me back to the Golden Thread Pavilion for torture?'

'But that's not necessary. With Elder Zhuan Yu's power, dealing with me would be ridiculously easy.'

'Could he have seen through my secret—that I don't have to bear the backlash?'

Yang An suddenly realized a problem: he didn't have to bear the backlash, and he had no idea if Elder Zhuan Yu had seen through this.

'It seems a little test is in order.'

The two were now in the center of Ten Directions City: the Ten Directions Palace.

Elder Zhuan Yu descended toward the Ten Directions Palace first, and Yang An followed closely behind, landing on the ground.

But the moment his feet touched the ground, several rays of golden light shot from his body, piercing through his limbs and torso and leaving behind a series of bloody holes.

At the same time, an expression of agony appeared on Yang An's face, and his body began to tremble uncontrollably.

The Golden Radiance was like insects flitting around his body, constantly piercing through him. As soon as the flesh healed, new bloody holes would appear.

It was as if his very blood had been dyed gold, and the pain began to cycle over and over again.

Transforming Karma Golden Zen, using karma to incinerate the body; suffering the torment of the Golden Zen piercing the body day and night until the body is shattered and bones rot, ultimately dying by the consumption of Karmic Fire. If Flesh and Blood Rebirth occurs, the cycle repeats, an endless reincarnation.

This was the price one had to pay for practicing the Great Brightness Buddha Golden Zen Spell.

Yang An didn't need to bear the price, but he knew the backlash for his Techniques like the back of his hand, so he could fake it.

Although he was only pretending to suffer the backlash, the pain wracking his body was real. Yang An didn't hold back on himself, all to make his test of Elder Zhuan Yu more convincing.

Noticing Yang An's state, Elder Zhuan Yu said nothing. He merely gave him a passing glance before looking away, clearly finding the onset of a technique's backlash to be a perfectly ordinary, unremarkable event.

Yang An took note of Elder Zhuan Yu's attitude and felt a little more at ease.

'It seems my true secret hasn't been discovered by Elder Zhuan Yu. In that case, he must want me as a disciple because of the Great Virtue Temple!'

Having reached a conclusion, Yang An endured it for a little longer before controlling the Golden Radiance and letting it slowly dissipate. He pretended to be extremely weak as he recovered, his breathing becoming heavy and ragged.

All the while, Elder Zhuan Yu was still waiting for him, clearly wanting him to enter the Ten Directions Palace together.

Once Yang An's "condition stabilized," he finally straightened up and followed behind Elder Zhuan Yu, walking into the Ten Directions Palace.

As they stepped through the gates of the Ten Directions Palace, two people came to greet them in the main hall.

Both were dressed in silver-blue robes and appeared to be in their forties or fifties, still middle-aged. They were the two Elders sent by the Golden Thread Pavilion to oversee the defense against the Demon Fiend calamity.

One was slightly taller, his eyes shot with blood, his expression filled with exhaustion.

The other was slightly stooped, leaning on a black staff.

The two stood before Elder Zhuan Yu. Next to his nearly three-meter-tall frame, they looked like two children standing before an adult.

"Greetings, Elder Zhuan Yu!"

In terms of status, although both were also Elders of the Golden Thread Pavilion, there was a vast gap between them and Elder Zhuan Yu.

They were responsible for coordinating matters between the various states, going wherever they were needed. They were essentially field personnel, also known as External Affairs Elders, and were equivalent to the superiors of the State Lords.

In contrast, Elder Zhuan Yu was a core figure in the Golden Thread Pavilion. His status was second only to the Pavilion Master. He was known as an Internal Affairs Elder, which made him the superior of their superiors.

Thus, the moment they saw Elder Zhuan Yu, their attitudes became extremely respectful and constrained, completely lacking the imposing aura they had while discussing matters in the hall earlier.

"A mere Demon Fiend calamity, yet you can't even handle this small matter. I had to come all the way here myself. You're all becoming more and more useless."

Facing the two, Elder Zhuan Yu's attitude was not good. He immediately berated them before clasping his hands behind his back and striding deeper into the hall.

As the central hub of Ten Directions City, the Ten Directions Palace was magnificently decorated.

When Yang An entered, he even had the illusion of stepping into an imperial palace.

In comparison, this place seemed to have a sense of extreme disconnect from the world outside.

Outside, a life-and-death battle was raging, leaving devastation in its wake. Yet here, it was adorned with dazzling jewels, shining brilliantly, filled with an unreality, as if they were two different worlds.

But on second thought, there were no dynasties in the Treasure Temple Domain. As one of its overlords, wasn't the Golden Thread Pavilion's authority absolute within its domain? How was that any different from an Emperor?

This was a privilege only the powerful could enjoy. It had nothing to do with those at the bottom.

He followed Elder Zhuan Yu into the hall, brushing past the two men, not knowing their identities.

The two Elders also noticed Yang An, and they too couldn't understand why Elder Zhuan Yu would bring a young man here.

As External Affairs Elders of the Golden Thread Pavilion, they were familiar with all of the Pavilion's personnel, but they had never seen Yang An before.

The two exchanged a look. Since Elder Zhuan Yu had berated them the moment he arrived, they both tacitly agreed not to ask any questions.

Elder Zhuan Yu walked straight to the main seat and plopped down. Yang An obediently stood behind him, quietly observing Zhuan Yu and the two men.

Only these two were here. He didn't see anyone else; they had evidently all gone to help defend against the Demon Fiends.

"If I hadn't arrived in time, Ten Directions City would have been destroyed at your hands. If the Immortal Origin Land falls under the control of these Demon Fiends, you won't be able to bear the responsibility, even if you manage to take back Celestial Jing State in the end."

Elder Zhuan Yu picked up a teacup from a side table with one hand, casually flicked out the tea inside, then reached the cup into the bloody hole in his chest, ladled out a full cup of bright red blood, and drank it in one gulp.

He spoke in an icy tone, his slightly cloudy eyes fixed on the two men.

With Elder Zhuan Yu before them, the two didn't dare act presumptuously. Naturally, they didn't dare to sit either, so they could only stand there obediently and listen.

"The Elder's lesson is correct. If not for your intervention, Elder, I fear we would have been in grave danger!

Who would have thought the Demon Fiends would launch such a massive assault on Ten Directions City, mobilizing their entire force."

They first agreed with Elder Zhuan Yu, then went on to mention the strangeness of the Demon Fiends' actions this time.

"If the entrance to the Immortal Origin Land were somewhere else, they would have no need to fight us for it. But if the entrance is going to appear in Ten Directions City, that would explain why the Demon Fiends have surrounded the entire city!"

"They may have already discovered clues to the entrance of the Immortal Origin Land. It must be within Ten Directions City!"

The two said with great certainty.

Hearing them repeatedly mention the "Immortal Origin Land," Yang An remained expressionless, but waves were crashing in his heart.

'Is it the Xian Origin Land? Or the Immortal Origin Land?'

'Judging by their pronunciation alone, it's impossible to tell which one it is.'

'But from the Seal remnant I obtained, the information box showed that as long as I master the Earth Spirit Stele, I can gain control of the Xian Origin.'

'There must be a connection between the two.'

Yang An had long wondered why, in the Life Crane Sect, Cultivators cultivated not to become Immortal, but to become Xian.

'The Earth Spirit Stele, the Summoning Incantation, the Xian Origin... they all use "Xian" (仚)!'

'But the other Cultivators I've met strive to become a different kind of "Immortal" (仙)! It's completely different.'

'Looking at the characters' structure, 'Immortal' (仙) is written with the component for 'man' next to the component for 'mountain.' But 'Xian' (仚) is written with the 'man' component *on top of* the 'mountain' component!'

'Could it be that Xian (仚) is a concept of a higher order than Immortal (仙)?'

'Perhaps that question can only be answered after the Earth Spirit Stele is fully restored and I have mastered it.'

'The character for Xian (仚) is definitely related to the Earth Spirit Stele. Only those in the Life Crane Sect who practice the Cultivation Technique from the Earth Spirit Stele would have contact with it; other Cultivators might not even know about it.'

'Therefore, based on what I know, these people must be talking about the Immortal Origin Land!'

'So that's the reason for the Demon Fiend calamity, and also the goal of the Golden Thread Pavilion.'

'This matter has nothing to do with me, because I only arrived in Celestial Jing State after the calamity broke out.'

'So, what is this Immortal Origin Land? And how is it different from the Xian Origin I know about?'

Yang An remained impassive and continued to listen. He suddenly realized that being taken as Elder Zhuan Yu's disciple wasn't entirely a bad thing. At least he could openly listen in on these secrets.

This was something he never would have had access to before.

"The matter of the Demon Fiend calamity is trivial. I knew you wouldn't be able to completely fend it off, which is why I came. And as expected, I was right.

As for the Immortal Origin Land, since you already have clues, just send people to search for it after the calamity subsides."

Elder Zhuan Yu's attitude toward the matter was dismissive. To others, the Demon Fiend calamity was a disaster that was difficult to resist, but to him, it was nothing special.

As an Internal Affairs Elder of the Golden Thread Pavilion, he wasn't some useless, decorative vase like these good-for-nothings.

"Elder, will the Demon Fiend calamity subside?"

Both External Affairs Elders seemed a little worried.

"Heh, if they don't retreat, I'll just have to strike twice more with my sword. What's there to worry about?"

Elder Zhuan Yu let out a cold laugh.

Just at that moment, a figure rushed in from outside the Ten Directions Palace.

"Elder, the Demon Fiends are retreating!"

The man was one of the six State Lords dispatched by the Golden Thread Pavilion to resist the Demon Fiend calamity. He reported immediately upon entering, but when he looked up and saw Elder Zhuan Yu sitting on the main seat, he immediately fell to his knees in fearful reverence.

"Greetings, Elder Zhuan Yu!"

Hearing the news, Elder Zhuan Yu, who was sitting in the main seat, couldn't help but smile. He drained the blood from his cup in one gulp.

"See? Didn't they retreat obediently?"

He looked completely confident.

Everyone present extended their senses and indeed discovered that outside Ten Directions City, the massive horde of Demon Fiends that had been besieging it was now rapidly disengaging from the battlefield and speeding away.