Inside the spirit crystal mine, over a hundred demon tribesmen led by the Golden-Haired Rat King were locked in a fierce battle with the Sword Sect disciples.

The demon tribe had greater numbers and superior strength, completely dominating the fight in what could be called a one-sided slaughter.

The Sword Sect was steadily losing ground.

The disciples could have scattered and fled for their lives, but to protect the miners with low martial prowess, they held their ground, fighting desperately to escort the miners to safety first.

But judging by the current situation, they would likely all end up dead at the hands of the demons together.

"How come our fellow sect members haven't arrived yet?! Didn't you use the jade token to call for help??"

"We did! At a time like this, who would be stingy with that thing!"

"Brothers and fellow disciples, even if we die today, we must not disgrace the spirit of the Sword Sect! We cannot embarrass the Sword Lord! Killing one breaks even, killing two is profit!"

At the mere mention of the Sword Lord, the remaining half of the Sword Sect disciples seemed to be injected with adrenaline.

Their fighting spirit soared, and even while wounded, they fought on without retreating, unleashing combat power far exceeding their usual level.

But in the end, it was like trying to put out a cartload of burning firewood with a cup of water—utterly insufficient to stem the enemy's fierce onslaught.

Just as everyone was about to be completely annihilated, your dashingly handsome figure descended before them.

You hovered in the air, and this posture, in the eyes of the humans present, was equivalent to having "Martial King" plastered all over your body.

You took out the Demon Refining Pot, and this Immortal Artifact, in the eyes of the demons present, was equivalent to them having "doomed" plastered all over their bodies.

"It's a Martial King Realm martial artist! And he has the Demon Refining Pot!"

"What?! That's the Demon Refining Pot?! When did the Sword Sect obtain it? Wasn't this object in the hands of the Great Wastes' Founding Ancestors?!"

"Stop asking stupid questions! Run! In a moment, you won't even be able to let out a fart!"

You activated the Demon Refining Pot while simultaneously channeling the Stellar River Divine Art to control the gravity of the entire area, making it impossible for the demons trying to flee to move an inch.

The Demon Refining Pot, eager to achieve merit, created an enormous commotion.

"I am the Demon Refining Pot, destined to suppress all demons!"

A torrent of demonic flames engulfed the mine, trapping over a hundred demons inside and greatly diminishing their combat power.

The Demon Refining Pot sucked from east to west, then from west to east again. The illusion of a vast sea of blood within the pot blotted out the sky and covered the earth, terrifying the gathered demons.

The more afraid the demons were, the more severely they were suppressed by the Demon Refining Pot, and the less capable they were of resisting its power.

During this time, the Sword Sect disciples all joined the effort, using their last bit of strength to push the demons into the Demon Refining Pot.

Working together, they turned the tide of battle, snatching victory from the jaws of defeat.

The Golden-Haired Rat King and his ambitions were both buried within the Demon Refining Pot, soon to be refined into blood water.

"I will definitely be back!!"

The Golden-Haired Rat King said this just before being sucked into the pot.

After the battle ended, you lightly raised your hand. The Demon Refining Pot flew to your palm, bobbing up and down.

"Master, under your brilliant command, I have captured all the enemy demons into the pot! It will only take seven times seven, forty-nine hours to refine them all into blood water!"

You gave a slight nod.

"Well done."

The Ten Thousand Souls Banner interjected.

"Don't waste the dead souls, remember to transfer them to me."

The Sword Sect disciples in the mine all held their swords and knelt on one knee, paying their respects to you.

"Thank you, Senior, for saving our lives! We earnestly hope you will stay. Our sect's elders will arrive soon, and the Sword Sect will surely offer generous thanks!"

You put on a venerable, old-fashioned demeanor.

"No need. I come from the Great Qian Dynasty in the Central Plains, heading to the Great Wastes in search of the Holy Lands. I was just passing by, saw you in trouble, and lent a hand. No thanks are necessary."

The looks of admiration in everyone's eyes gazing up at you increased.

Just as you were about to fly away, you suddenly spoke to the Demon Refining Pot.

"You want spirit crystals? I just gave you a pile last time, you've used them up already?"

You wore an expression of difficulty.

Seeing you in a predicament, the Sword Sect disciples hurriedly said.

"Senior, if you need spirit crystals, please wait a moment. There are ready-made ones in the mine warehouse, we will fetch them for you."

"How could I possibly accept your spirit crystals?"

"You saved us, Senior. What do a few spirit crystals matter?"

"Ah, it's all this Demon Refining Pot's fault. Next time I go out, I'll definitely bring enough crystals." 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

You found an excuse to stay, waiting for the Sword Sect people to arrive.

Soon, the Sword Sect reinforcements arrived.

The first to arrive was the Sword Lord himself.

After hearing the disciples' account of what happened, the Sword Lord, his eyes slightly red, rushed to you and gave you a solemn salute.

"Thank you, fellow Daoist, for your righteous intervention. If not for your rescue, losing a mine would be a small matter, but the loss of these disciples' lives would be a great tragedy. How would I ever face their families then! Please come to the Sword Sect, allow our sect to express our gratitude properly!"

"You overpraise me, Sword Lord. I still need to hurry to the Great Wastes to search for the Holy Lands... By the way, if I could have a map of the Great Wastes to facilitate my search for the Holy Lands, that would be wonderful."

This trivial matter, the Sword Lord gave you on the spot.

He still warmly invited you to the Sword Sect so the entire sect could express their thanks to you.

Unable to refuse such earnest hospitality, and since you also wanted to use this opportunity to get more familiar with the Sword Lord, you agreed.

You were very familiar with him.

But for this face of "yours," it was his first meeting.

You stayed at the Sword Sect for a month.

Every day, the Sword Sect hosted feasts in your honor. The sect's senior management took you on tours of the entire Sword Sect, experiencing the unique characteristics of the sect's various locations.

Every few days, the Sword Lord held a lecture on the Dao, sitting with you to discuss the Dao while the entire sect's disciples listened, also taking the opportunity to publicize your heroic deed of saving people, encouraging the disciples to learn from you.

For a time, you became the most famous person in the Sword Sect, second only to the Sword Lord himself.

When it was time to leave, the Sword Sect gifted you a large pile of spirit crystals, alchemy materials, artifact forging materials, sword path insights, and so on as tokens of gratitude.

You also performed the ritual of declining three times before reluctantly accepting, finally opening your storage ring and taking everything.

"Please return, Sword Lord. I really must be on my way."

"It's truly a pity you are leaving, Brother Chen. I had hoped to continue discussing sword path insights with you, but it seems it cannot be..."

"There will be opportunities. I am going to the Holy Lands to find relatives, and I will return to the Five Regions."

After days of interaction, the Sword Lord and you had developed a mutual admiration. As you left, he alone escorted you for three hundred miles.

"Sword Lord, though you escort a guest a thousand miles, you must part eventually. Please return."

The Sword Lord looked back.

Then he said abruptly.

"Brother Chen, are you really going to the Holy Lands to find relatives this time, and not because you've taken a fancy to some treasure of theirs?"

You were stunned for a moment, then suddenly realized.

Your expression changed several times, finally settling into a bitter smile.

"I don't know how the Sword Lord recognized me. Although I bear some resemblance to Yi Qianjun, there are many people in the world who look alike."

"Last year in the Starry Domains, I left a mark on you."

You remembered the Sword Lord doing this.

You just didn't know how he left the mark, and you hadn't noticed anything extra on your body.