Then, upon hearing that the Demon Sea had opened, Lu Nanfeng’s heart stirred.

Since Junior Sister Ye was safe, he could rest easy.

’Why not enter the Demon Sea and improve my strength? Maybe I can even advance to the Golden Core stage and continue to keep pace with Junior Sister Ye.’

Filled with this wonderful hope, Lu Nanfeng followed the crowd into the Demon Sea.

The Demon Sea was a vast region, a fragment of a world that had appeared out of thin air hundreds of thousands of years ago. It had chosen a Demon Cultivator to be its Guardian.

Since then, the Demon Clan has had a Demon Lord, a title passed down through the generations.

Everyone entered the Demon Sea with great excitement. At the entrance, they eagerly split up to find their own paths.

They were all filled with anticipation, hoping to find a great opportunity within the Demon Sea that could change their lives.

「Three days later.」 The entrance to the Demon Sea was sealed. No one could enter or leave. They would have to wait until the Secret Realm’s time limit was up before those inside could be released.

...

In a cave, Mo Yuan slowly regained consciousness. He stared at the meditating figure beside him, his heart a swirl of complex emotions.

’Senior saved me again.’

’That bastard struck so heavily. I wonder how many Elixir Pills Senior had to use to save me.’

The thought sent a surge of emotion through him.

Perhaps his gaze was too intense, for Song Wanning frowned and opened her eyes. "You’re awake?"

"Yes!"

Mo Yuan nodded, averting his eyes in embarrassment. Only then did he take a moment to survey his surroundings.

This was his first time in the Demon Sea, and it was completely unfamiliar to him.

Yet, deep down, he felt a sense of intimacy, a gentle current flowing through him.

He stood up and paced around the cave a few times, his gaze finally landing on a spot on the wall.

Walking over, Mo Yuan pressed his injured hand against the wall. A red light flashed instantly, and complex patterns appeared once more.

A familiar aura, a familiar gate... but inside was a whole new world.

Mo Yuan’s heart leaped with joy. He quickly called Song Wanning over and led her through the gate without hesitation.

Behind the gate was a secret chamber. Inside the chamber was nothing but a sand table.

"Is this a map of the Demon Sea?"

Mo Yuan leaned in closer, a flicker of curiosity in his eyes.

’Mother said everything would be under my control. I wonder what she meant by that?’

Hearing this, Song Wanning also walked over, her gaze sweeping across the sand table.

When she saw the familiar Demon Cave, Demonic Qi flashed in her eyes, bringing with it a hint of chill.

She stared intently at the Demon Cave, her expression shifting several times before she finally regained her composure.

In her Sea of Consciousness, the Golden Small Sword sensed the fear etched into Song Wanning’s Divine Soul and couldn’t help but worry.

The Demon Flame in the Demon Cave wasn’t just a physical torment; it was a spiritual one.

It was like a cauldron of boiling oil in the Underworld, torturing everyone who fell in.

And in that place, you weren’t even allowed to die. There was no escape, no other choice but to endure that inhuman agony.

"Senior, allow me to figure this out. Mother wasn’t very clear back then; she only said I would understand once I entered the Demon Sea."

Mo Yuan had finally found a chance to prove himself in front of Song Wanning, and he certainly didn’t want to miss it.

’Senior is so exceptional. Whether it’s her Cultivation or her Alchemy, she’s completely out of my league.’

He had never imagined that Senior would develop any other feelings for him, but his desire to follow her grew stronger by the day.

Even if only as a follower, he would be content just to be by her side.

"Mm. Don’t mind me."

Song Wanning nodded, her expression cold and detached.

She circled the sand table, studying it continuously as scenes from her past life surfaced in her mind.

Near the Demon Cave, at Blood Water Cliff, Song Wanning had discovered an incredibly precious Seven-Petaled Flower.

The Seven-Petaled Flower had seven petals of different colors, each containing immense Spiritual Power.

Legend had it that for Spiritual Objects like the Seven-Petaled Flower, a single petal could raise one’s Cultivation by an entire rank. However, a person could only consume one petal in their lifetime; a second one would cause their body to explode.

At the time, Song Wanning thought her luck had finally turned. Stumbling upon such a treasure, she was so overjoyed she almost cried.

If she just consumed a petal, her stagnant Cultivation would grow, and her chances of survival would increase.

But just as she reached out to pick it, she encountered a demon beast on the verge of advancing to the fifth rank.

A fifth-rank demon beast was equivalent to a human cultivator at the Divinity Transformation Stage. This meant the demon beast had, at the very least, a Peak Nascent Soul Cultivation.

Song Wanning was horrified. Gritting her teeth, she put up a desperate fight, engaging the demon beast in a life-or-death struggle.

After finally managing to slay the demon beast, she was so gravely injured she couldn’t even stand.

But the opportunity was right in front of her. She would crawl if she had to.

Yet, the moment her hand touched the Seven-Petaled Flower, a sudden attack came from none other than Ye Chuxue.

Ye Chuxue not only snatched the Seven-Petaled Flower but also threw the severely wounded Song Wanning into the Demon Cave.

"Winner takes all, Song Wanning. You can only accept your fate!"

"I am the chosen daughter of destiny! Vicious side characters like you only deserve to go to hell!"

Ye Chuxue’s voice echoed endlessly in her ears. At that time, she couldn’t understand what those words meant at all; her heart was just filled with hatred.

Recalling it now, Song Wanning’s eyes turned bloodthirsty, a sinister red glinting within them.

She had fought to the death, only to do all the work for someone else’s benefit!

Ye Chuxue had long been aware of her special status. No wonder she always acted so recklessly, daring to barge into even the most dangerous places.

Song Wanning lowered her gaze. She didn’t know what world Ye Chuxue had transmigrated from, nor did she know the Heavenly Dao’s criteria for choosing someone.

’But since I’ve been cast in the role of the vicious side character, I might as well live up to the name.’

’I’ll show them what true viciousness looks like!’

She withdrew her gaze and began observing the sand table again. The Demon Sea was vast, but in her past life, she had been trapped in one corner. To be honest, she had never been to any of the other areas.

So, she roughly memorized the locations before her, planning to explore them all later.

About fifteen minutes passed. Mo Yuan, trembling with excitement, came before Song Wanning, took out a pearl, and tossed it into the air.

In an instant, the pearl transformed into countless colored bubbles. Inside each bubble was a human figure—the cultivators currently in the Demon Sea.

Below the central pearl, an altar gradually emerged. The black altar glowed with a dim light, and mysterious patterns flickered across its surface for a moment before quickly fading.

THUD!

The altar landed in front of Mo Yuan.

"Senior, this is what my mother meant by controlling the entire Demon Sea!"

Mo Yuan’s eyes reddened. He was sick of the days spent hiding and running. He had finally gotten a chance to turn his life around.

Scenes of being bullied and hunted flashed before his eyes. His gaze, filled with hatred, locked onto four of the bubbles.

The Demon Lord, Qu Shang, Ye Chuxue, and Gu Qingyuan.

’Those four must die!’

At the same time, Song Wanning also saw those four. In another bubble, she spotted a familiar face: her obedient disciple, Lu Nanfeng.

’Heh.’

’What a coincidence.’

’As followers of the female lead, Lu Nanfeng and his ilk have always had good fortune. It seems that hasn’t changed.’

She stared at Lu Nanfeng’s figure, the corner of her mouth curling into a sneer.

’In that case, I’ll just deal with them all here in the Demon Sea.’