Deep within Eastern Mausoleum.

There stands a large mountain, several peaks overlapping to form a trident-shaped range, extending outward on both sides, with the middle peak standing straight.

Few people inhabit around, almost no living beings come here.

A few thatched huts are set up, positioned on the summit of the high peaks.

Two people live here: an old man with white beard, short in stature but with a glossy face, his vitality not waning, eyes bright and sharp.

At the moment, he appears extremely anxious, one hand behind his back, pacing back and forth in front of the hut, occasionally sighing lightly, sometimes murmuring "Oh dear!"

Nearby...

There’s also a little girl in a blue dress, about five or six years old, with a tender face and fair skin, appearing clean and tidy.

She lies on a giant stone, her jet-black eyes resembling gemstones, fixed on the old man pacing back and forth, muttering: "One hundred thirty-one, one hundred thirty-two, thirty-three..."

How strange.

This old man is usually calm and composed, utterly unperturbed; even if the sky in the Void God Realm were to fall, he remains steady.

Yet now, he appears so anxious.

As he reaches over one hundred fifty paces, the little girl can’t help but speak: "Master, is it that your past romantic debts have been exposed?"

She often hears the old man bragging about how, in his youth, he was a handsome young man, capturing the hearts of countless women. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Thus leaving behind a huge pile of romantic debts, eventually compelled to reside in the Void God Realm.

Those so-called "romantic debts", their origins are astonishing, if they truly learn of the old man’s whereabouts, they’re likely to storm in with Supreme Tao weapons.

"Go, go, go..." the old man retorted irritably: "What do you know, little brat?"

Not that?

The little girl instantly grew intrigued: "Or perhaps, they bore the children conceived in those days, recognized each other, and started a battle?"

"..."

What kind of logic is this?

The old man was so angry his white beard stood up, his eyes widened, snorting without speaking.

Clearly, the matter he is about to face is far more terrifying than "romantic debts" and "children fighting each other" could ever be.

"I understand." The little girl got even more excited: "Back then, you cuckolded the titled gentleman, and now it’s been discovered."

"Shut up, this matter is not to be spoken of." The old man panicked a bit, hurriedly rushing over to cover her mouth.

Actually, these stories are not something he intended to share; it was during drunken ramblings that he unintentionally babbled to the little girl.

Upon sobering up, the old man felt utterly exposed.

He couldn’t understand why a little girl appearing to be five or six years old would know such things? And occasionally bring them up in conversation with him.

The old man’s eyes flickered, scanning the surroundings, then extending his Divine Sense to confirm no one is nearby, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief, glaring fiercely at the little girl: "If you dare spout nonsense again, I’ll throw you into the Supreme Tao Abyss for the monsters to eat you."

The little girl snorted, retorting in a childish voice: "There are no monsters in the Supreme Tao Abyss."

"Who says?" the old man glared.

"You did."

"I never said that."

"Once, while drunk, you talked about visiting the Supreme Tao Abyss, meeting its master, and developing an affair with his enchanting wife, saying she didn’t actually love him, living daily in hell, long wanting to leave the abyss, and you... as a righteous Demon Emperor, naturally wanted to extend the hand of justice to rescue her."

"Be quiet!" The old man’s face reddened, immensely guilty.

In his youth, he was truly handsome, possessing an extraordinary aura akin to a celestial being, with a jade-like face and impeccable attire.

Moreover, as a Spiritual Beast in Tao Verification, he possessed an inexorable charm that ordinary women found irresistible upon meeting him.

And the Demon Emperor, by nature flirtatious, just happened to love this appeal.

Hmm!

Others’ belongings.

Thus in his youth, he accrued quite a few romantic debts, explaining them away: things belonging to others bear no responsibility.

Conversely, once those young women became involved with him, their loyalty and ethical constraints troubled him greatly.

Of course, once these romantic debts accumulated to a certain extent, they evolved into terrifying vendettas.

Once their identities were revealed, various kinds of pursuits and attacks descended on him.

"Beware the emperor’s wrath." The old man pretended to sound fierce, glaring menacingly at the little girl.

She smiled cheekily, completely unconcerned, retorting: "If you dare kill me, and fail at first attempt, I’ll expose you, fetching supreme Heaven Rank figures and Supreme Tao Abyss, and all those titled martial artists to seek you out."

"..."

"Wouldn’t you hate being utterly disgraced?" The little girl with an old soul and jet-black eyes turned, exuding intelligence and cunning.

Damn!

The old man cursed internally: "Shameless!"

A girl of merely five or six understood all this?

He released the little girl, still scrutinizing her, analyzing intently; interestingly, he found her three or four years ago.

Back then, she was as big as she is now.

Not growing?

His sharp gaze bore down on the little girl, as though trying to uncover the secrets hidden within her.

Yet, it was shrouded in mystery; even a Demon Emperor couldn’t discern anything, having to shake his head in lament: "Old, oh truly old."

The little girl laughed: "Master, you’re immortal, how could you be old?"

The old man shook his head: "You don’t understand."

He’d lived a lengthy life, though his vitality remained robust, not drying up, yet his body’s functions were aging.

Perhaps not for long.

Unless he unlocked the next Five Visceral Divinity, pushing his limits.

Upon this thought, the old man’s gaze grew profound: "During your recent outing, did you notice anything unusual?"

The little girl shook her head: "No, all normal."

"Not even a bit?"

"Probably not."

"Are you aware the dojo has dissolved?" The old man fixed his stare on her, particularly wanting to give this irresponsible disciple a good spanking.

The little girl acted sheepishly, her eyes evasive: "Is it? Oh, the dojo’s dissolved, how vexing, I didn’t know."

She had been dispatched to investigate the situation, but given her playful disposition, she wandered through various family domains, merely sightseeing without doing anything impactful.

Certainly no stealing...

Absolutely not.

Regarding the dojo, she’d merely glanced at it, heard rumors of its impending activation.

Hmph!

Only fools wait around there.

The old man said, his tone melancholic: "Not only has the dojo dissolved, the Heaven Rank guardian inside, along with the deity on the Old Kui Tree, has been defeated as well; young girl, your peaceful life is over."

"Master, I think it’s your peaceful life that’s ended." She retorted.

"Oh? Really!" Upon saying this, the old man displayed a gentle demeanor, kindly saying: "Lan Yi, how does your master treat you usually?"

"I’m not going." She loudly objected, shaking her head repeatedly, then began to retreat; should anything seem out of order, she’d flee immediately.

The old man said with an amiable tone: "Come back, it’s not as you imagine, the one imprisoned in the dojo, is actually my friend, hmm, we share a good relationship, having once fought alongside one another, bonded by life and death; now, when he’s freed, he’ll surely seek me out."

Lan Yi remained alert: "And then?"

"Nothing much required from you, just cooperate with me in a little act." He grinned broadly.

"Is that all?"

"Of course, given our years of master-disciple bond, you don’t trust your master?"

"Sounds reasonable." Lan Yi nodded.

"What a kind kid you are."

"Well, master, first put down the sword..." Lan Yi said: "Given our years of teacher-student relationship, the disciple is sure to cooperate fully in this act."

"Sword? What sword?" The old man quickly stowed away the sword, smiling widely: "Come, let’s review the script."