In the treehouse made of vines and branches, Shen Huaxi looked pale and leaned tiredly against the bed, holding the reports of various losses.

After more than twenty years of endurance, pretending to be obedient and doing things against his will, today he could finally breathe a little easier.

But it wasn’t over yet; one last step remained.

He must find the woman bound by the Unity Gu with Qing Nangzi and kill her to completely end Qing Nangzi’s path to resurrection.

This time, because of the severe setback caused by Jiang Yuebai, Qing Nangzi wouldn’t recover for fifty years, and even if he did, his cultivation would fall to the Foundation Establishment stage.

With ample time and reduced danger now, it was enough for him to completely conclude this matter.

The only thing to be careful of were those evil cultivators of the Three Elements Sect loyal to the Ghost Clan, and Qing Nangzi’s hidden pawns within the Demon Clan.

Shen Huaxi’s eyes were deep, containing a hint of killing intent.

"Sooner or later, the Three Elements Sect must be uprooted, completely severing the Ghost Clan’s path to revival!"

Shen Huaxi hated the Ghost Clan, even though his body carried their blood, ever since Qing Nangzi incited his Ghost Clan mother to kill his Extraordinary father, the hatred towards the Ghost Clan was etched into his bones and blood.

In his childhood memories, regarding his mother, there was only beating and blame.

Only his father often took him flying high into the sky, escaping his mother’s control to see the vast mountains and seas, teaching him to keep hope in his heart and never be defeated by adversity.

But ever since his father died, Qing Nangzi broke his wings, and he could no longer fly high.

Whenever he tried to control the skies, he would uncontrollably feel dizzy and nauseous. He studied medicine for so many years, healed countless people, yet couldn’t heal himself.

"Cough, cough, cough!"

Shen Huaxi suddenly began to cough violently, an uncontrollable, violent surge of blood rushing to his head, his body flashing with a blood-red shadow, the world spinning around him, his head felt like it was about to explode with pain.

It was as if countless wronged souls were crying blood in his mind, within his Sea of Consciousness flashed images of ten thousand thunders splitting the sky, and he saw a fierce and terrifying Kui Ox staring angrily at him.

Crack!

The wooden table was broken by Shen Huaxi’s sheer force, Maque, returning from outside, heard the commotion and rushed in, seeing Shen Huaxi collapsed on the bed with his temple swelling as if trying to grow a pair of horns.

"Mountain Master!"

"Close the door!"

Shen Huaxi instructed with difficulty, and Maque hurriedly closed the door, sealing the entire room.

Shen Huaxi took out an elixir and swallowed it, slowly suppressing the rampant blood energy to calm down.

"It’s nothing, the blood energy in Qing Nangzi’s body is too violent, I need some time to completely digest it."

Seeing Maque so worried that he was about to cry, Shen Huaxi weakly explained.

Maque nodded, biting his lip, and helped Shen Huaxi pick up the scattered items.

Shen Huaxi leaned against the bed, "Have the people going to the Witch Clan reported any news?"

Maque sorted through the books on the ground and said, "We’ve already investigated the Five Great Villages but haven’t found any traces of Xuu Qingye yet."

Shen Huaxi nodded, "No problem, we already know the original name of his body, know he stayed with the Witch Clan for a long time, and understand that forming a Unity Gu is incredibly rare; throughout history, it’s been done less than ten times by the entire Witch Clan. As long as we follow the clues, we’ll find it."

After organizing everything, Maque took out a letter from his pocket and handed it to Shen Huaxi with both hands.

"This is a letter from Senior Tian Nanxing."

Tian Nanxing was a demon-transformed orchid from the Grass and Wood Demon Clan and once served the Qingqiu Divine Tree, which was a great honor among the Demon Clan. But no one knew what he did to be rejected by the Grass and Wood Demon Clan.

Tian Nanxing could only live among humans under a false identity, joining the Hundred Herbs Sect and becoming the president of the Kong and Fang Alchemy Master Guild.

Shen Huaxi read the letter through, "It seems I can’t reach an agreement with him."

"So, are we still going to the Demon Clan?" Maque asked.

Shen Huaxi said, "Of course, Qingqiu is ultimately the territory of the Fox Clan. The Tushan Clan and the Yousu Clan of the Fox Clan have always been at odds. We have Yu Qing’er with us, we can use her to enter the Demon Clan."

Maque nodded, eyes filled with hope, "As long as the Mountain Master can be accepted by the Demon Clan and recognized as one of them, you can lead the entire Feather Clan as a new branch of the Demon Clan. Then we’ll have strong protection."

Shen Huaxi looked out the window, Maque’s thoughts were simple, yet he profoundly understood that even if he gained acknowledgment from the Demon Race Divine Tree, he’d still have to face the real Feather Demons within the Demon Clan.

The Phoenix, Roc, Bi Fang, Chongmingia, Vermilion Bird, those true Divine Bird descendants won’t easily accept him, or accept someone like Maque—a little, tiny sparrow.

Unless he could become an existence above all Feather Demons.

He had a long way to go.

Shen Huaxi took a deep breath, refocused, Qing Nangzi’s matter went so smoothly, there’s someone who deserves great credit, without him investigating those secrets, the breakthrough wouldn’t have been found.

"Tell Ning Luo, she did a great job, and I will give her the method to break through the bloodline restriction and advance to the Golden Core stage."

Maque’s eyes flashed with complicated emotions, recalling the innocent cat-eared girl.

"Mountain Master, Ning Luo said... she said she doesn’t want the method to breakthrough, she only asks that you keep her secret and let her and Ghost Face leave together."

Shen Huaxi was clearly stunned for a moment, Ning Luo was who he placed by Ghost Face’s side, to let Ghost Face see the world’s beauty, freedom, and brightness, making Ghost Face develop a yearning for the world and the thought to leave the Ghost Clan.

Everything was just for utilization and calculation, but now Ning Luo actually gave up on the originally agreed reward?

Shen Huaxi mocked himself with a bitter smile, "So true feelings still exist in this world, unlike my parents."

Shen Huaxi lowered his eyes despondently, recalling how Xie Jingshan fought desperately with him for Jiang Yuebai, remembering the friendship between the two supporting each other, and reminiscing about his time in the Heavenly Interence Sect.

If he were just an ordinary disciple of the Heavenly Interence Sect, never leaving it, could he have become their life-and-death partner? Could he have met someone like Ning Luo, willing to give up the chance to advance for him?

Shen Huaxi closed his eyes, cutting off his unrealistic fantasies, silently experiencing the dull pain in his heart.

"Give the method to break Gu to Ghost Face, and the method to advance to Ning Luo, let them go. You also leave, I want to be alone for a while."

Maque looked at Shen Huaxi with heartache as he leaned quietly against the bedhead, appearing tired, thin, and pale, as if even the blanket covering him would crush him.

Throughout the Iron Feather Country, everyone honored him as master, yet he never had a close friend to confide in.

"Shan..." Maque opened his mouth, bit his lip, and, summoning courage, said, "Brother Huaixi, Xiaoque will always be here and will always accompany you."

Having said that, Maque blushed and fled.

Shen Huaxi turned, looking at Maque’s departing figure, a slow smile tugging at his lips, and mist welled up in his eyes.

At that moment, in the tree village on the outskirts of the Iron Feather Country.

Xie Jingshan sat cross-legged outside the wooden hut where Jiang Yuebai was resting, his sword laid across his knees, eyes closed and focused, never straying an inch in his vigil.

Inside, Jiang Yuebai, free from the torment of severe poison, had consumed the top-grade elixir given by Xie Jingshan and had fully recovered within merely an hour.

However, what troubled her now was the Water Thunder swirling inside the Condensing Light Mirror.