Chapter 550: Predecessors Dig Pits, Successors Fall Into Them

"Grandpa Ba, when you were young... did you ever cause trouble in the Demon Realm?"

"No way, I'm a very honest person. At most, I'd run errands or lend a hand. I wasn't the one who did the main bad things."

"I heard that the Dragon and Phoenix Clans are both friendly to humans. We should be able to go there, right?"

Lu Yang remembered meeting a Phoenix Clan member who sold their blood to create Phoenix Bloodstones back in Li Haoran's hometown. They had been quite welcoming after Lu Yang revealed his identity.

"Yes, we can go, provided certain minor incidents haven't been exposed."

"What minor incidents?"

"As the saying goes, 'dragon and phoenix bring prosperity' is a symbol of good fortune. Wealthy families also like to put up dragon and phoenix paper cuttings during weddings."

"Ninth Elder pondered this, saying, 'Isn't marriage just a couple announcing to everyone that they'll be consummating their union in the bridal chamber that night? So, the dragons and phoenixes in the paper cuttings should also carry this meaning. It's just that people haven't had the chance to witness dragons and phoenixes mating, which is why the paper cuttings aren't very realistic.'"

"Being a pioneer, Ninth Elder secretly found a dragon and phoenix couple, observed their mating process, recorded it, and compiled the firsthand information into a book called 'Dragon and Phoenix Transformations,' leaving it as a reference for future generations. I wonder if you've heard of it."

Lu Yang: "..."

How could I not have heard of it? The first book I found in the Scripture Library on my first day was 'Dragon and Phoenix Transformations,' hidden in a corner. I thought I had stumbled upon a great opportunity.

The senior disciple in the Scripture Library at the time was puzzled, wondering how the library had a copy of 'Dragon and Phoenix Transformations,' which was a banned book and couldn't be found anywhere else on the continent.

So, it turns out it was you who wrote it, Master!

Judging by the reaction of the Dragon and Phoenix Clans, they don't seem to know yet that Master was behind it, but it's hard to say what the future holds.

"What about the Bai Ze Clan?" Lu Yang had heard that the Bai Ze Clan was neutral and often acted as mediators or witnesses when disputes arose among demon clans.

"The Bai Ze Clan isn't much of a problem. It's just that back then, a few of us brothers caused a bit of a stir in the Demon Realm and were heavily pursued. In a moment of desperation, we disguised ourselves as Bai Ze to escape. Unfortunately, we were later spotted by a Bai Ze who insisted on bringing us back. In our urgency, Eighth Elder asked him, 'Since the Bai Ze Clan knows everything, do you know what you *don't* know?'"

"While he was pondering, we managed to escape. I heard that the Bai Ze who was asked that question by Eighth Elder has since become the clan chief."

"The Bai Ze Clan is just and kind. With so many things going on, they should have long forgotten about us."

"Caused a bit of a stir?" Lu Yang thought the 'stir' must have been quite significant.

"It wasn't a big deal. It just so happened that we stumbled upon a secret realm in the Demon Realm that opened once every five years. We went in hoping to find some good treasures. The entry requirements were quite strict; only pure-blooded beings could enter. Luckily, we were all pure-blooded humans, so we got in without any issues."

"Unexpectedly, once inside, the demons turned hostile. Even though the secret realm itself let us in, the demon cultivators specifically targeted us brothers—they ostracized us, tripped us up, played dirty tricks, and even tried to kill us. We thought, 'This is unacceptable! You can't bully people like this!'"

"So, I blocked the secret realm entrance with stones. Sixth Junior Sister created a fake entrance next to it using an illusion, and then we shouted to the outside that there was a problem with the entrance and we couldn't get out."

"Of course, the demons didn't believe us. They went to the fake secret realm entrance, entered, and found themselves not in the outside world but in an unknown space. They quickly returned, suspecting they had encountered spatial turbulence and were now trapped."

The fake entrance led to a specially made Beast Taming Sect storage ring that could hold living beings. He entered the storage ring, so it was naturally an unknown space.

Normal storage rings can only hold inanimate objects.

One demon tried and failed, so several high-ranking demons entered the fake secret realm entrance and came to the same conclusion: they had encountered spatial turbulence.

"The secret realm entrance was open for ten days in total. We left the secret realm at the end of the tenth day and told the people outside that the realm was dangerous and all the demons inside had died. That group of demons was trapped by us for five years, and when they got out, they searched the whole world for us."

"Seriously, why bother? Wouldn't it have been better for everyone to compete for opportunities fairly, instead of playing dirty tricks against us?"

Lu Yang: "..."

Meng Jingzhou: "..."

"As for the Taotie Clan... never mind. They're demons who naturally despise humans anyway, so it makes no difference whether we provoked them or not."

Grandpa Ba agreed deeply: "That's true. The Taotie Clan's dislike for humans has little to do with the Dao Seeking Sect. First Senior Brother merely visited the Taotie Clan's ancestral tombs out of a research interest, and was eventually discovered by them."

After questioning Grandpa Ba, the two went on to ask Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth Elders as well.

To their 'luck,' they discovered that Grandpa Ba had been downplaying things—the nine disciples of the Dao Seeking Sect had provoked demon clans far more often than Grandpa Ba had let on.

"These 'points to note' aren't just about not revealing we're from the Dao Seeking Sect; they're clearly telling us not to go to the Demon Realm at all!"

Lu Yang felt that the path ahead was perilous, fraught with murderous intent.

"It should be fine. Look, Third Senior Sister is doing well in the Demon Realm and even has the chance to research ancient history. We'll definitely be safe if we rely on her."

"I just wonder if portraits of the two of us have been spread in the Demon Realm."

"Probably not. See, we haven't even heard the names of any demon geniuses. Conversely, the Demon Realm probably isn't very familiar with the great talents of Grand Xia, at most knowing a few names."

"That makes sense."

After some discussion, the two decided to head to the Demon Realm.

As cultivators, how could they fear challenges?

The two went on a shopping spree, focusing on purchasing life-saving items, which they stored in their identity jade tokens. Traveling light, they boarded a flying boat to their old stomping ground—Demon Suppressing Pass.

Their Eldest Senior Sister had thrown them there originally.

The once-booming wig industry at Demon Suppressing Pass was now in decline; without Lu Yang's antics, wigs were no longer needed.

They no longer needed mosquito repellent pills either; with their Golden Core stage aura radiating outwards, no insects dared to approach.

A dense forest separated Demon Suppressing Pass from the Demon Realm, and it was in this very forest that Lu Yang had advanced to the Golden Core stage.

"Back then, those Golden Core stage demons posed a significant threat to us, and we had to flee for our lives if we encountered Nascent Soul stage ones. Now, they seem insignificant," two Venerable Elders at the eighth level of the Golden Core stage chatted cheerfully in the dense forest.

Tall trees blocked out the sun, and pairs of green, greedy, and bloodthirsty eyes stared at Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou from the dark undergrowth, filled with murderous intent.

However, after the two Venerable Elders casually struck down an early Nascent Soul stage demon, the hidden demons, realizing the difficulty, quietly retreated, and nothing further happened.

Even when they entered the territory of Nascent Soul stage demons, those with strong territorial instincts dared not show themselves, pretending not to see the two and secretly praying that nothing would happen.

No demon who had cultivated to the Nascent Soul stage was a fool. They had a clear understanding of themselves: they were merely mixed-blood demons with average combat power. These two humans, however, had combat power comparable to top-tier demon geniuses. How could they dare to provoke them?

The dense forest no longer posed a threat to Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou.

Before officially entering the Demon Realm, the two seized every moment to show off their power.