Nanmeng Creek. The flourishing beauty has completely faded; the green leaves have withered, and the once-clear waters now emit a deep, stagnant crimson, reeking of blood. The picturesque scenery from yesterday is nowhere to be found.

Thousands of cultivators have formed battle formations, stretching endlessly. Initially, the immortals and demons were separated by the creek, but now, battles rage along a three-hundred-mile stretch of the shore, making it impossible to discern the original divide.

Leading the demon forces are Bai Junming and two other demon generals. Although the immortal leader Ling Qingzi is absent, and both Shen Tongshan and Wu Yueshuang are dead, the remaining five celestial sects’ masters are formidable, and many of their disciples are exceptional. Thus, with the arrival of reinforcements, the immortals quickly gain the upper hand.

The cultivators’ formations unite, their chants merging with the surrounding immortal energy, suppressing the demonic aura and weakening the demon army. The immortals soon take the upper hand, surrounding the demon army with their great anti-demon formation.

“Bai Junming! Surrender now, and we may leave your corpse intact!” one immortal master shouted.

Bai Junming sneered, suppressing the surge of his weakened energy. Although the battle started abruptly, it was by no means unprepared. He had hoped to catch the immortal realm off guard and, if luck favored him, eliminate two immortal sects in one blow. However, the speed of the immortal reinforcements had exceeded his expectations.

Even so, he remained unconcerned.

Just as Bai Junming steadied himself to confront the immortals again, a sudden rumbling of thunder erupted from the sky. A massive silver dragon descended from the clouds, transforming into a human figure.

Xunhuang, wielding an ice spear, joined the demon army.

In an instant, the tide of battle shifted. The five immortal masters were divided into two groups, and under the immense strength of Xunhuang, two of them were slowly pushed to the brink.

As Xunhuang’s spear came down to decapitate one of the immortals, a new figure suddenly entered the fray, deflecting the ice spear and saving the immortal’s life.

“Yun Zhan?”

Upon seeing the newcomer, Xunhuang’s eyes lit up with excitement, as if he had finally met his long-awaited rival.

“I thought you wouldn’t dare show up!” he exclaimed.

Without a word, Yun Zhan summoned his blade, Bilu, and engaged Xunhuang in a fierce duel.

Yun Zhan’s strikes were swift, and Bilu’s form was ever-changing. Xunhuang’s counterattacks were precise and brutal. The two fought fiercely, their weapons flashing with cold steel and golden spiritual energy, making the sky and earth seem to swirl in chaos.

As Xunhuang’s spear came crashing down, Yun Zhan blocked it with his sword. Xunhuang narrowed his eyes, staring at Yun Zhan’s calm and fearless gaze. “If I didn’t know that person was truly dead and would never be reborn, I would almost think you were him.”

Yun Zhan didn’t bother asking who “he” was. He remained unmoved, defending like an unshakable mountain and counterattacking swiftly. The two quickly clashed again, their fight growing even fiercer.

While Xunhuang and Yun Zhan were locked in combat, Bai Junming was once again surrounded by the five immortal masters.

However, the brief respite had allowed Bai Junming to set a secret formation. With the help of Hesan controlling the formation, he countered the immortals’ anti-demon formation, giving the demon soldiers a chance to rally and break through the encirclement.

But despite his efforts, Bai Junming, facing five immortal masters alone, was ultimately struggling. Just as the immortals prepared to deliver their final blows, Bai Junming felt a chill in his heart. He quickly searched for the formation’s core, hoping to find a way to turn the tide.

In the midst of the deadly silence, the air seemed to freeze.

Suddenly, from the distance, the sound of string instruments, like the clashing of zither strings, rang out, deep and resonant, like the tolling of bells and drums. The sound echoed across the battlefield, completely shifting the momentum without warning.

The immortal formation wavered, as if a mere flick of the fingers could disperse it. The formation’s core was exposed.

Bai Junming immediately recognized who was behind it. A smile tugged at his lips as he took a sword strike from an immortal. Blood flowed from his palm, but he regained the power that had been suppressed by the anti-demon formation. With a twist of his wrist, he broke the sword.

Suspended in midair was a figure in purple, lazily plucking the strings of an unseen ancient zither. Seven gleaming purple strings hummed under his fingers, vibrating and reverberating through the minds of all who heard them.

In an instant, the battlefield seemed to distort, and even their minds felt seized.

It wasn’t until Bai Junming’s whip lashed out that the five immortal masters awoke, realizing they’d fallen under a soul-capturing spell.

They had laid down wards before the battle, specifically to guard against Bai Junming’s soul-capturing techniques. But they hadn’t expected someone even more terrifying to appear.

The five immortals quickly recognized the newcomer. “Bai Fanlu! So you truly are a demon!”

“No wonder Ling Qingzi didn’t come today. He really has aligned himself with the demons!”

Upon hearing the slander against Ling Qingzi, Bai Fanlu felt displeased but couldn’t be bothered to argue. The seven strings of his zither hummed once more, their sound sweeping across the battlefield like the roar of ten thousand horses charging.

Upon closer inspection, countless demon soldiers, exuding murderous intent, flooded into the immortal formation, instantly scattering it. It was as if the demon army had multiplied several times over, and the tide of battle shifted once again.

“It’s the Yin Yao Soul-Binding Technique!” one of the immortal masters exclaimed. “Bai Chuyu used this technique that day…”

The immortals looked at each other, realizing the gravity of the situation.

Those who remembered the events of the great war five hundred years ago suddenly felt fear creeping into their hearts.

That war had dark secrets. Given Bai Chuyu’s power, he should not have fallen so easily, leading to such a devastating loss for the demons. Now, seeing the forbidden technique of the demon sovereign reappear, the five immortal masters knew this battle would be no simple matter.

Still, one of them refused to give up. “What are we afraid of? Even if it’s him, can he truly defeat all five of us?”

Bai Fanlu smiled faintly. “Why don’t you try and see?”

His soft words stirred up a thousand waves, reverberating with the zither’s melody. It was as if the vast universe had gathered in his hands, forming a bright purple light that shone like a galaxy.

The sheer force of his presence made their legs tremble.

But there was no turning back now. The five immortal masters exchanged glances and poured all their strength into their assault on Bai Fanlu.

Bai Junming, though injured, rejoined the fight, standing shoulder to shoulder with Bai Fanlu.

On the other side, Yun Zhan, though entangled with Xunhuang, had been watching Bai Fanlu ever since he appeared. Despite his engagement with Xunhuang, he kept a close eye on Bai Fanlu’s movements.

Even with his awakened demonic blood and immense strength, Yun Zhan could tell that the five immortals, unable to defeat Bai Fanlu head-on, had started using underhanded tactics.

Sure enough, what he feared came true. Bai Junming was wounded, and just as Bai Fanlu managed to repel one of the immortals, three others attacked him simultaneously from above, below, and behind.

Bai Junming was the first to notice, deflecting one of the sword strikes, but the immortal quickly followed up with another blow. Bai Fanlu reacted, but not before a sword pierced his ankle.

It was clear that the assassin had aimed to sever his Achilles tendon, driven by deep hatred as evidenced by the force of the strike.

Bai Fanlu felt a coldness in his heart. Without hesitation, his attacks became fiercer, and any remaining thoughts of ending the battle without bloodshed vanished in that moment.

Between immortals and demons, there would never be peace! He had been too naive!

Since he was a demon, there was only one path left to take!

The Yin Yao Soul-Binding Technique reached its peak, causing the immortal formation to emit a thunderous sound. Tens of thousands of flying swords, condensed from demonic energy, shot out like a storm of lightning, raining down mercilessly.

At his command, even the most powerful in the formation would find it impossible to escape the onslaught.

But just as Bai Fanlu prepared to give the order, he glanced at the cultivators still locked in battle with the demon soldiers. Suddenly, he pulled back his wrist, redirecting the demonic energy swords toward the five immortal masters instead.

In an instant, the tide turned.

As Bai Fanlu took a few steps forward, a brilliant blue light shimmered on the horizon—it seemed someone else had arrived.

Ling Qingzi descended from the clouds, grabbing Bai Fanlu’s arm.

“Master?”

“Come with me.”

The five immortal masters had already fallen, with the last one barely hanging on before he, too, perished.

The demons, though victorious, had suffered injuries, with Bai Junming seriously hurt. Meanwhile, Yun Zhan had driven back Xunhuang, preventing the demons from gaining any further advantage. Thus, the demon army temporarily retreated to their capital.

Yun Zhan rushed to the Tianshu Sect but found no trace of Bai Fanlu or Ling Qingzi at Sanmu Pavilion. However, he noticed that the jade incense burner on Ling Qingzi’s desk was missing.

He remembered the past—Ling Qingzi’s odd behavior towards Lu Lingjue and the changes in Bai Fanlu’s appearance. These subtle clues filled him with unease.

Yun Zhan thought of the cave at the top of Lingjue Peak, where he had awoken after his tribulation. Although he didn’t know the entrance, he managed to break the seal with some effort.

But when he entered the cave, it was empty. Even the red flowers and Lu Lingjue’s body were gone.

Could they have gone somewhere else?

After searching in vain, Yun Zhan descended Lingjue Peak. By then, the disciples of the Tianshu Sect had returned from Nanmeng Creek. With three of the five immortal masters dead and two severely injured, the immortal realm had many matters that required Yun Zhan’s attention.

He had no choice but to temporarily abandon his search for Bai Fanlu and tend to the affairs of his sect before resuming his search.

Hidden behind a “curtain,” Ling Qingzi watched Yun Zhan search in vain and leave. Beneath the floating jade bed lay a hidden chamber, known only to Ling Qingzi himself.

Ling Qingzi turned back to the figure lying beside him—Bai Fanlu.

Bai Fanlu lay with his hands folded on his chest, a crimson Pu Du flower between his fingers. Were it not for his demonic purple robe, woven from magic feathers, Ling Qingzi might have mistaken him for the real Lu Lingjue.

Indeed, Bai Fanlu’s face had completely transformed into that of his father. What was once merely a resemblance had now become an exact likeness—the face of the former most beautiful being in the three realms. Even in sleep, his appearance was breathtaking.

But to Ling Qingzi, this was still his junior brother, Lu Lingjue, regardless of the appearance.

For three hundred years, the Pu Du flower planted within Bai Fanlu had finally bloomed. By absorbing the twin blood curse from Lu Lingjue’s body, the flower had successfully “transformed” Bai Fanlu into his father.

Now, only one step remained.

Ling Qingzi raised his hand, and the jade incense burner slowly appeared in his palm.

He gazed at the flickering light within it, his expression tender and obsessive. In a soft voice, he said, “Xiaolu, come back.”