Chapter 3

This sudden arrival was a woman of extraordinary beauty, but the aura she exuded made Li Xuanzong's forehead break out in a cold sweat.

Powerful!

Unimaginably powerful!

It was a power that even Li Xuanzong, at the peak of his previous life, could not match—a power that surpassed the limits of martial arts!

Of course, these things were not important; what mattered most was how to handle the current situation.

Not only had he been branded with the Black Mountain Mark, but this stunningly beautiful and immensely powerful woman was also speaking to him in a questioning tone.

His mind raced, and Li Xuanzong suddenly thought of something. He seemed to have guessed the identity of the woman before him.

In his memory, a major event had actually occurred a few months ago.

The vast territory of several large counties in the east was under the jurisdiction of the Sea-Covering Demon Sage Ao Zheng. Most of the demon lairs and cultivation sects in this area were also under his command, though mostly in name only.

For example, the Black Wind Old Demon, while showing respect to Ao Zheng on the surface, still maintained his autonomy, merely using a submissive attitude to gain a protective title.

A few months ago, a demon from one of these lairs, for some unknown reason, had a conflict with an external cultivation sect and swallowed the entire sect.

It was just a small sect, but it was a direct vassal of the Supreme Dao Sect, which cultivated medicinal herbs for the Eastern Spirit Province.

The Supreme Dao Sect directly captured the demon and imprisoned him under the Demon Suppression Tower. However, the demon still arrogantly claimed that he was under the command of the Sea-Covering Demon Sage and that the Demon Sage would definitely come to his rescue.

By involving Ao Zheng, if Ao Zheng did not come to his aid, where would the face of the seven great demon sages of the demon race be?

So, even though he knew that the demon was not his direct subordinate and was just borrowing his name, he had to come to maintain his authority.

It was said that the battle was earth-shattering, with five of the seven elders of the Supreme Dao Sect fighting Ao Zheng. Ao Zheng even used great magic to bring the waters of the Eastern Sea, nearly flooding the Supreme Dao Sect.

In the end, both sides reached some kind of agreement, and Ao Zheng finally led the demon back from under the Demon Suppression Tower.

However, before the demon could even thank him, Ao Zheng slapped him to death and warned all his subordinates to behave themselves for a while, or they would face the same fate.

The Black Wind Mountain was the lair of the Black Mountain Old Demon. This woman had the audacity to fly openly over the Black Mountain Old Demon's head, clearly indicating that her status was higher than his, at least to the point where he dared not offend her.

Moreover, she had mentioned the word "father."

There were indeed some small human kingdoms within a thousand miles, but even a princess of a small kingdom, even if she were a cultivator, would absolutely not be this powerful.

Therefore, she was most likely the daughter of the Sea-Covering Demon Sage Ao Zheng!

In his previous life, although Li Xuanzong had the Mystic Law Ring to refine his cultivation techniques, he was not initially the notorious Evil King who shook the martial world. He had climbed from the lowest ranks to become a giant in the martial world.

After thinking about this, Li Xuanzong quickly came up with a plan. He bowed solemnly and said, "This subordinate greets the princess."

Ao Zheng's daughter looked at Li Xuanzong with interest. "You've guessed my identity?"

Li Xuanzong nodded. "In the entire Eastern Sea, who else could have such grace and beauty besides Princess?"

Whether human or demon, no woman dislikes being complimented on her beauty. Her expression softened slightly.

"Less flattery. How do you explain this matter?"

Li Xuanzong said solemnly, "This subordinate did not intentionally provoke trouble, but was afraid that these brainless pig demons would cause trouble for Lord Ao Zheng, so I acted to nip it in the bud.

Although I am a human cultivator, I have survived under Lord Ao Zheng's protection and must always think of Lord Ao Zheng's interests."

As he spoke, Li Xuanzong pointed to the three girls inside the hall. "These pig demons only think of beauty and blood, completely ignoring the current situation.

Lord Ao Zheng has just fought the Supreme Dao Sect. Although I do not know the details, it is clear that Lord Ao Zheng paid a great price to bring the fool back from under the Demon Suppression Tower.

But when Lord Ao Zheng killed him in anger, it caused some dissatisfaction among the great demons around the Eastern Sea, thinking that Lord Ao Zheng was too strict, not realizing that Lord Ao Zheng was doing it for their own good.

The Supreme Dao Sect is the most hypocritical of the great sects, always seeking fame and glory, and a single word from them can cause trouble.

If they learn about the abduction of these girls for blood, they will blow it out of proportion. Therefore, we must be extra cautious and not give them any chance to find fault!"

As the daughter of Ao Zheng, she would not be idly flying around the sky, only to come down and scare him after seeing him kill a pig demon.

The most likely scenario was that Ao Zheng had sensed that the recent situation was not right and had specifically sent his trusted subordinates and his daughter to patrol the Eastern Sea region to prevent his subordinates from causing trouble and giving the Supreme Dao Sect a chance to exploit it.

The woman looked at Li Xuanzong with a hint of surprise, her azure eyes blinking several times.

The words of this unremarkable low-level cultivator matched exactly what her father had been worried about, explaining the situation in great detail, as if he had witnessed it firsthand.

"So, what do you think should be done?"

"Simple: kill!"

Li Xuanzong raised his eyebrows and said solemnly, "With all due respect, Lord Ao Zheng's control over these great demons is too lenient.

These demons are disrespectful and fear power rather than virtue. They need to be dealt with harshly to set an example.

The subordinates of the demon that Lord Ao Zheng killed must still have some influence. Find a reason to eliminate them.

But it should not be Lord Ao Zheng who acts personally. It would be best if a human cultivation sect under his command did it.

This will show everyone that this is the price of causing trouble, and that there are many more willing to listen to the Sea-Covering Demon Sage if they do not behave."

The daughter of Ao Zheng had only asked out of habit, not expecting Li Xuanzong to actually give her an answer.

And this answer seemed to make some sense.

After thinking for a moment, her eyes grew brighter, and a smile appeared on her lips.

But she quickly hid the smile, her azure eyes focusing on Li Xuanzong.

The next moment, the surrounding spiritual energy enveloped Li Xuanzong like water, making him feel suffocated.

He even felt as if his mind was completely exposed to her.

"You, a human cultivator, dare to speak so boldly about the situation in the entire Eastern Sea and even speculate on the thoughts of the Sea-Covering Demon Sage. Do you know that the Five Directions Mountain is even stronger than your Black Wind Mountain?"

If it were another low-level cultivator, this woman could have shattered their mental defenses with a single glance.

But Li Xuanzong, having lived two lives and experienced many battles in his previous life, had a mental fortitude far beyond that of ordinary cultivators.

Even though cold sweat was already seeping from his forehead, his gaze remained calm and composed.

"We humans believe in serving our lord faithfully and worrying about his concerns.

Since I am a cultivator under the command of the Sea-Covering Demon Sage, I must always prioritize Lord Ao Zheng's interests."

The woman stared at Li Xuanzong for a long time, finding no flaws, and then withdrew her gaze.

The thick spiritual energy surrounding Li Xuanzong instantly dissipated, and he couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief.

"Kill that pig demon. You should have the Black Mountain Old Demon's seal on you. Here, take this to avoid trouble. If the Black Mountain Old Demon asks, tell him I ordered you to kill it."

As she spoke, the woman threw Li Xuanzong a token that seemed to be carved from blue crystal, then leaped into the air and flew away.

Watching her back disappear into the sky, Li Xuanzong looked at the token in his hand.

It was adorned with intricate patterns, like an array formation, and two ancient characters were engraved in the center: Ao Ya.

This woman's power was terrifying, so terrifying that Li Xuanzong could not even imagine it, and he could only entrust his life to her whims.

Of course, this feeling was not pleasant, and he had never experienced it in his previous life.

Taking a deep breath, Li Xuanzong turned his attention back to the three girls.

He dared not delay and immediately sent them away, fearing that more trouble might arise.

After Ao Ya left, she did not continue her patrol but transformed into a blue dragon several dozen feet long in the sky, with a slender body and a blue crystal horn on her head.

She flew towards the Eastern Sea at her fastest speed.

At the coast of the Eastern Sea, a massive cliff stood by the shore, and the waves crashed against it, forming a huge whirlpool.

In the center of the whirlpool was a magnificent and vast blue crystal palace, shining brilliantly in the seawater.

This was the lair of one of the seven great demon sages, the Sea-Covering Demon Sage, the Crystal Palace of the Edge of the Sea.

Ao Ya transformed back into human form in front of the crystal palace, and countless shrimp soldiers, crab soldiers, and night patrol demons bowed to her, calling her princess.

Among them were even some human cultivators, holding books and ledgers, like civil officials.

Ao Ya nodded coldly and walked into the depths of the crystal palace. In the vast hall, there was only one chair, a seven-colored coral chair.

On the seven-colored coral chair sat a middle-aged man in blue dragon-scale armor, with a majestic and awe-inspiring appearance and eyes as blue as the sea.

Beside him stood a dragon-headed spear emitting a deep cold aura, taller than a person, with a dark blue body and a blood-red tip.

"Father."

Ao Ya called out, her cold expression softening, even with a hint of coquettishness.

This was one of the seven great demon sages who ruled the Eastern Sea, the Sea-Covering Demon Sage Ao Zheng!

Seeing Ao Ya return, Ao Zheng's furrowed brows relaxed slightly. He asked in a deep voice, "Are those guys behaving?"

Ao Ya shook her head. "Some are, but most are still complaining about you, Father."

"A bunch of fools!"

Ao Zheng's face showed a hint of anger.

However, Ao Ya smiled. "But on the way, I met an interesting person. His suggestions seem worth trying."

As she spoke, Ao Ya recounted Li Xuanzong's plan to Ao Zheng.

After listening, Ao Zheng's eyes also lit up.

He had previously considered eliminating the subordinates of that demon, but it was out of anger, as the demon had caused him to fight the Supreme Dao Sect, resulting in heavy losses.

But later, he held back, fearing that if he went too far, his other subordinates would rebel, leading to even worse internal strife.

Now, following Li Xuanzong's plan, he wouldn't have to act himself, shifting the blame to other cultivation sects. This way, he wouldn't have to worry about rebellion and could warn them that if they didn't behave, there were others who would.

As a demon sage, Ao Zheng's most trusted subordinates were naturally demons, just as human cultivation sects would only accept demons as mountain guardians.

But now, he needed to consider balancing the power among his subordinates.

"Who gave you this idea? Was it Huang Tianqing of the Five Immortal Mountains? That old fox is known for his cunning."

Ao Ya shook her head with a puzzled look. "No, it was a low-level human cultivator, but his methods don't seem like those of a human cultivator; they are more like ours."

Ao Ya had seen Li Xuanzong kill the pig demon.

Human cultivators, also known as Qi Practitioners, typically used pre-drawn talismans or low-level spells to fight at the Qi Practitioner stage.

But Li Xuanzong chose to engage in close combat with the demon, using ruthless and precise moves, which was different from her impression of human cultivators.

While the Dao Sect had mystic techniques and the Buddhist Sect had the Vajra Guardian, these were only achieved in later stages and were rare.

It was because of this that Ao Ya had curiously descended to question Li Xuanzong; otherwise, she would have just sent a message to the Black Mountain Old Demon to handle it.

Ao Zheng, upon hearing this, was not too concerned. He simply shook his head. "Human cultivators have their own advantages, and their minds are sharper than those fools.

This is a good plan. I will have it done immediately."

Li Xuanzong, however, was unaware that his casual suggestion had led to a demon lair, comparable to the Black Mountain Old Demon's, being bathed in blood in an instant.