Ye Mu is a disciple of Shangxuan Sect. Although he hasn't been in the sect for long, having only joined ten years ago, he has already reached the eighth level of Qi Refining, demonstrating his exceptional talent.

This place is at the foot of Shangxuan Sect's mountain. Ye Mu and some other Shangxuan Sect disciples were assigned to patrol here. The sect did not intend for these low-level disciples to be cannon fodder against the demon beasts, so Ye Mu and the others' responsibility was merely to keep watch. If they encountered a surprise attack from demon beasts, they needed to immediately contact those above.

The seven peaks of the Beidou Mountain Range stand tall, shrouded in mist at dawn and haloed by rosy clouds at dusk. At the foot of the mountain are lush green forests and bamboo groves, displaying the beauty of all four seasons. immortal flowers and precious herbs release their fragrance by the clear spring streams. Exquisite fruits weigh down the branches. The clear waters of Zhanghe are so pure that one forgets to return after wandering here.

But no matter how beautiful the scenery, it becomes ordinary after seeing it too much. Ye Mu had been assigned to take turns keeping watch here three years ago, patrolling this area day after day. As time passed, he could point out the directions even with his eyes closed.

The foot of the mountain was very tranquil. Ye Mu walked back and forth, bored out of his mind, silently practicing a magic technique he had memorized yesterday. Suddenly, someone patted his shoulder.

Instinctively turning his head and seeing who it was, he couldn't help but let out a long sigh of relief. "Brother Huang, you scared me to death!"

Huang Wenjun laughed at him. "You're such a scaredy-cat!"

The two were very familiar with each other. Ye Mu rolled his eyes at him. "I was practicing a magic technique!"

Huang Wenjun said, "If there's anything you don't understand, let your senior brother teach you."

Ye Mu asked, "Hey, Brother Huang, I just don't get it. Although there are traces of demon beasts everywhere now, this is Shangxuan Sect. Our ancestral masters have such high cultivation, and there's a tight defense net set up all around. Would those demon beasts really dare to come here?"

When he first joined the sect, he happened to hear news of demon beasts attacking. But at that time, there were only scattered incidents across the Taichu Continent, not taken seriously by the major sects.

Who would have thought that as time passed, the number of demon beasts increased instead of decreasing?

Many common people in various states and prefectures suffered because of this. The states were at their wits' end and the people were in a panic. They had no choice but to seek aid from the cultivation sects in their own countries.

At the beginning of last month, the Sect Leader of Shangxuan Sect, Qinghe Zhenren, received a letter written by the Sect Leader of Tianyan Sect, the second largest sect on the continent. It mentioned that Tianyan Sect discovered traces of mid-level demon beasts and reminded Shangxuan Sect to be careful.

It wasn't just Shangxuan Sect. Qinggu Sect, Wanshan Sect and other major sects also successively received messages from Tianyan Sect. The major sects unanimously raised their vigilance. On Shangxuan Sect's side, Qingxuan Zhenren, the Peak Master of Tianxuan Peak, set up a defensive formation near the Beidou mountain range. Once the aura of demon beasts approached, the formation would automatically activate.

Huang Wenjun said, "It's just a precautionary measure. With the defensive formation in place, there's no need to be too alarmed."

Ye Mu pouted. "I'm not alarmed, I'm envious of those senior brothers who can go out and eliminate demon beasts."

No matter how great the authority of the imperial court, those soldiers were ultimately all mortals. So when demon beasts also appeared within the borders of Canghe, the emperor naturally thought of seeking help from Shangxuan Sect right away.

Shangxuan Sect dispatched a group of people to go help deal with the demon beasts in various places. This had only happened half a month ago.

Ye Mu held a blade of grass between his lips and leaned against a tree trunk, bored out of his mind. "To improve cultivation, you still need to increase practical experience. Being stuck here all the time is so lame!"

He loudly lamented, "A child without a master is like a blade of grass! If my master hadn't perished while forming his Golden Core, I wouldn't have been kicked to this place!"

The back of his head was promptly smacked by Huang Wenjun. "Stop complaining so much!"

Ye Mu sighed with an "Alas". "Isn't that the truth? Before I joined, my lifelong dream was to enter Shangxuan Sect, even if I became a miscellaneous disciple. Who would have thought that in the number one cultivation sect under the heavens, there would still be things like currying favor with superiors and stepping on inferiors!"

Huang Wenjun snorted with laughter. "It's not like your master was particularly fond of you either. It was just a title. If you want to talk about bad luck, I'm a hundred times more unlucky than you!"

Ye Mu had also heard about Mirror Sea Sect being absorbed into Shangxuan Sect. Hearing this, he also felt a bit guilty and chuckled, "Sorry Brother Huang, for bringing up your painful past!"

"It's alright," Huang Wenjun pillowed his hands behind his head, leisurely gazing at the sky. "Speaking of which, it's my own incompetence. Among the good friends who grew up with me, aside from one who went missing, the other has already cultivated to late stage Foundation Establishment."

Ye Mu gossiped, "The late stage Foundation Establishment one you mentioned is Senior Sister He Yun, right? Actually, Senior Sister He is quite pretty. Why haven't you considered... Hehe!"

"Hehe your head!" Huang Wenjun glared at him. "Don't say such things that sully a woman's reputation in the future!"

Ye Mu was used to joking around with him and didn't take it to heart. "But I heard you used to have a sweetheart who was your childhood friend. Is that the one who went missing?"

Huang Wenjun's expression changed slightly but quickly returned to normal. "No, the one who went missing is called Zhou Yin. He's a man and also someone who grew up with me and He Yun. His life or death is unknown now."

"Then what about the childhood sweetheart?" Ye Mu stuck his head over, determined to get to the bottom of it.

"She got married," Huang Wenjun said indifferently.

"Returning the bright pearl with tears streaming down both cheeks, hating not to have met before the wedding... Oh no, it should be, deeply resenting that the human heart is not like water..." Ye Mu sang off-key there, wriggling his eyebrows.

With Ye Mu messing around like this, Huang Wenjun's bit of melancholy flew off to the ninth heaven.

"You little..."

Before he finished speaking, his expression suddenly changed.

Ye Mu had yet to realize something was off, squinting his eyes and humming a tune, looking content.

But his collar was suddenly grabbed by a great force. Huang Wenjun snatched him up and then fiercely shoved him away.

"What are you..."

With a boom, a big pit appeared where they had been sitting.

"Run!" Huang Wenjun's voice had changed.

While retreating, Ye Mu subconsciously looked up.

A giant snake over ten feet tall when reared up was flicking its tongue at them.

Half of the snake's head had a human face while the other half had snake scales. Its eyes were blood red, almost oozing blood.

That pit just now had been lashed out by the strange snake's tail. If Ye Mu had reacted a bit slower, he would have been smashed to bits.

The two of them took off on their flying magic tools without a second word.

"Damn it, what the hell is this thing!" Ye Mu roared while throwing a talisman behind him.

The talisman hit the giant snake and ignited flames. The giant snake flicked its tail and the flames were immediately extinguished.

"Nüyue!" Huang Wenjun shouted back.

He immediately recognized it - this creature was the demon beast that Zhou Yin and the others had encountered in the Mirror Sea Mountains years ago. After so many years, that feeling of being on the brink of death with nowhere to escape had returned.

This female snake was even slightly larger than the one they had seen back then. Huang Wenjun knew that with his and Ye Mu's cultivation level, there was no way they could defeat it.

"Senior Brother, hurry and take action!" Ye Mu urged anxiously.

"Take action my ass, hurry and report the situation!" Huang Wenjun was also sweating profusely.

Wasn't there a defensive formation here?

Just as this thought flashed by, he heard Ye Mu cry out in a mournful voice: "I, I can't find the signal flare!"

He was rummaging around in a fluster, his body nearly losing balance and falling off the flying magic weapon.

Hearing this, Huang Wenjun almost vomited blood. "You idiot, hurry up and find it!"

It just so happened that he had forgotten to bring his own signal flare today.

He turned and slashed with his sword, the sword light striking the snake's scales and dissipating without effect.

The two felt that their time of death was approaching.

The snake opened its mouth and Huang Wenjun and the others smelled a strong fishy stench.

"Oh no, I can't take it anymore. If we don't get bitten to death, we'll be suffocated to death!" Ye Mu shouted.

"Go over there, there are fellow disciples on guard there too. With more people it will be easier to deal with!" Huang Wenjun said, flying southeast.

In just a flick of a finger, they had gathered nearly all of their life's cultivation on the flying magic weapon. In times of crisis, human potential is limitless. Their flying speed had increased slightly because of this, getting a bit further from the giant snake.

The two held their breath and flew for a long time. Along the way, they saw four or five corpses below and their hearts turned cold.

"They're dead, they're all dead..." Ye Mu muttered in disbelief.

These people were all disciples of the Shangxuan Sect who were on patrol duty today, just like them. But they never expected them to die here silently.

Why, with such a big commotion, did they not notice, and why did no one from above come down to check?!

Ye Mu lost focus for a moment and his body tilted, nearly falling off the flying magic weapon.

The giant snake quickly caught up. Its body lunged forward, opening its mouth, fangs bared, saliva dripping, just able to reach Ye Mu.