“What snake meat?”

Song Yuanyuan and Chang Fei instinctively looked down at the dishes on the table, only to find that the stir-fried meat and vegetables, which had been emitting a delightful aroma just moments before, had now transformed into several thin, snake-like creatures, their red and green bodies slithering as they hissed, baring their fangs in an aggressive stance.

“I knew it! This is a black market restaurant!” Song Yuanyuan yelled.

Chang Fei couldn’t hold back any longer and jumped up, drawing his sword to strike.

The dozens of small snakes on the table lunged at them, but the innkeeper once again transformed into a snake demon, snarling with fury.

Yet, they weren’t sent out of the illusion as expected.

The innkeeper’s human body remained standing, but the severed head was connected to a long snake’s body, its green scales gleaming, and the red eyes coldly surveying the group.

“You mortals love to eat this kind of thing, don’t you?” the snake demon mocked, its mouth opening and closing as it sneered. “Well, today, I’ll let you have all you want!”

Chang Fei shouted, “Brothers, let’s go!” and led the charge toward the snake demon.

His sword energy surged, and with a single strike, he slashed through the paper door of a private booth.

The serving girl carrying the dishes in the hallway was injured and fell to the ground from the blow.

Black mist quickly spread, and in the blink of an eye, Chang Fei was sent out of the illusion, arriving at the door to the next trial.

Chang Fei: “…”

Frustrated, he exclaimed, “Why!?”

“You hurt an innocent person,” Xu Shen quickly assessed. “While we must rid the world of demons, we cannot harm ordinary people.”

“Then why could we fight in the restaurant and provoke it to reveal its true form?” Song Yuanyuan asked, confused.

Ling Luo explained, “Because the restaurant is the snake demon’s domain. We can only fight on its turf. That’s the rule set by the Tongtian Tower.”

Chang Fei turned to Ling Luo. “How did you know the dishes were all snakes?”

Ling Luo answered without missing a beat, “Use your brain. Do you really think a snake demon would serve you anything else at its restaurant?”

Chang Fei: “…”

He covered his mouth in exasperation.

So you’re saying I didn’t use my brain?!

Song Yuanyuan, scratching her head, added, “Snakes eat moles and frogs, so the dishes should’ve been those, right?”

Ling Luo mocked, “Are you stupid? You’re not its kind, and you’re a cultivator here to exterminate demons. It’d be an idiot move for it to serve you what it thinks is real food. You’d want to eat what it’s giving you, but it wouldn’t give it to you anyway.”

Song Yuanyuan and Chang Fei collapsed, clutching their heads in defeat.

Another typical day of being mocked by their genius junior sister.

Xu Shen once again pushed the door to the trial and entered the illusion, saying, “What we know for sure now is that we can only fight in the restaurant, and we cannot harm ordinary people.”

“Then let’s fight upstairs in the private room,” Song Yuanyuan suggested, glancing at the crowded first floor. “It’d be too chaotic to fight down here.”

So, led by the waiter, they entered a private room on the second floor.

As soon as the door closed, the waiter turned back and asked, “What would you like to order—”

“Die, you bastard!” Chang Fei drew his sword and slashed at him.

Black mist swirled.

Once again ejected from the illusion, Chang Fei, enraged, slashed at the portal with his sword, only to be stopped by Xu Shen. “Why did it fail this time?!” Chang Fei shouted in frustration.

Ling Luo, her face expressionless, replied, “He hadn’t revealed his true form yet.”

Chang Fei groaned, “Argh!”

“Calm down! Don’t be so impulsive!” Xu Shen urged.

Song Yuanyuan, slouching, muttered, “As expected of the Swallowing Heaven Tower, with its nonsensical mechanics. No wonder even the top senior brothers and sisters have only made it to around the 600th level after all these years.”

He tilted his head and glanced at Yue Liangze beside him, suspiciously asking, “Little Dad, are you falling asleep?”

Yue Liangze rubbed his eyes. “No.”

Song Yuanyuan was dumbfounded.

I saw it!

You totally just closed your eyes!

Ling Luo pushed the portal open again, saying, “This time, stay calm and don’t be rash. Once you understand the rules, it’s not that hard.”

Chang Fei, head drooping, followed reluctantly.

Having failed multiple times, he was utterly drained of his fiery spirit.

Returning to the restaurant’s private room once more, the waiter greeted them cheerfully, “Let me serve each of you a bowl of brewed tea to warm you up!”

“Scammer,” Chang Fei muttered weakly.

The waiter’s face twisted in rage as he revealed his true form. “Don’t call my restaurant a scam!”

Chang Fei positioned himself by the door, sword in hand, and declared, “This time, I’ll block him and make sure no one else gets hurt!”

But the serpent demon had no intention of staying put.

Its body stretched and twisted, smashing through the room’s structure as it lunged outward.

Chang Fei intercepted it with his sword.

Though Xu Shen followed the sword path, his true strength lay in spell formations.

He quickly set up an array to trap the serpent demon and prevent it from escaping and harming anyone outside.

Seeing this, the serpent demon shifted its attacks toward Xu Shen, only to be stopped by Ling Luo.

After several rounds of combat, the serpent demon, battered and furious, roared, “You think this is the end?!”

It threw back its head and howled.

From its neck sprouted a second, then a third, then a fourth head—each serpent head of a different color, green, yellow, blue, and cyan.

All shared the same crimson eyes and exuded a menacing, vile aura.

“Nine heads?! That’s ridiculous! You’re cheating! Shameless! Depraved!” Chang Fei shouted angrily. “There are only five of us!”

The serpent demons laughed mockingly.
“Afraid?”
“If you’re scared, just run away!”
“Don’t leave! Stay and let me enjoy a feast!”
“What a delicate little girl. Why fight alongside these smelly boys? Come here, and I promise not to kill you.”

“Ugh! Your voice reeks of age, and you still dare to dream!” Chang Fei retorted, charging forward with his sword.

The sudden appearance of the nine serpent heads tipped the battle in their opponent’s favor.

One of the serpents sneered, “What a lovely fan. Snatch it for me!”

“Come and get it,” Ling Luo replied with a smile, infusing her spirit energy into her fan, Yingxi.

Five serpent heads darted toward her, scoffing, “You don’t know your limits!”

The blood-red fan unfolded, and falling firefly-like sparks landed on its surface, fading the intense crimson into a breathtaking painting of West Sea cherry blossoms.

The charging serpent heads were abruptly halted by an erupting cherry tree.

Simultaneously, brown branches sprouted from their bodies and the corners of the room.

Song Yuanyuan looked at his palm in shock as three or five cherry blossoms appeared there.

Within the range of Yingxi’s flower field, the life force of anything in its domain was drained, causing blossoms to sprout.

This energy was then absorbed to empower Yingxi.

This technique was called “Seed Spirit.”

Although Yun Shouxi had not yet formally taught Ling Luo this skill, she had long since mastered it on her own.

In an instant, the cherry trees sprouted buds, grew leaves, and bloomed into full flowers.

Ling Luo reversed Yingxi’s fan, exposing its falling blossom side.

The tinkling of a bell rang out, and all the cherry branches withered, scattering petals throughout the room.

The swirling petals represented an overwhelming convergence of spiritual energy, tangling around the serpent heads.

They left streaks of blood on the serpent scales, binding the creatures and driving them into a berserk frenzy as they thrashed and collided.

The cherry blossoms cascading from Yingxi’s fan were so abundant that they nearly filled the entire room with pink and white petals, resembling snow.

Chang Fei and Song Yuanyuan quickly hid behind Ling Luo.

“How much spiritual energy does this require?!” Song Yuanyuan exclaimed. “So this is the true power of Yingxi?”

“I used to think she just waved it around to finish off enemies instantly, never giving it a chance to show its spirit,” Chang Fei marveled. “Now I see—it truly deserves to be a supreme weapon.”

Having completed his array to prevent the carnage from spilling outside, Xu Shen wiped the sweat from his brow and said gravely, “Yingxi may be a supreme weapon, but it was the final masterpiece of West Sea’s Taichu master Zhan Qiong. Rumor has it that its power rivals that of divine weapons.”

But no one had ever witnessed its full potential.

When Yingxi was forged, it was entrusted to Eastern Island’s Tianji True Lord.

After Master Zhan Qiong’s passing, Yingxi had never been seen in action.

In fact, no one had ever seen Yun Shouxi wield Yingxi.

It was only when Ling Luo received the fan that Mu Ya and the others realized just how much Yun Shouxi doted on his young disciple.

While the others were discussing Yingxi’s terrifying power, Yue Liangze recalled seeing Ling Luo using Yingxi to crack chestnuts for porridge the other day.

His expression turned complicated, as reverence gave way to disbelief.

Countless cherry blossoms transformed into pure spiritual energy, shredding the serpent heads into pieces.

Blood sprayed everywhere, staining the pink and white blossoms and the room’s walls.

The serpent demon’s anguished screams echoed, but the storm of flowers subsided in an instant, leaving behind only a single bloodstained petal resting on Yingxi’s fan.

The fan’s painted forest once again turned blood-red.

Ling Luo closed the fan and turned to the others, frowning. “Why were you all hiding behind me? Why didn’t you join the fight earlier?”

Xu Shen calmly said, “I’m setting up the formation.”

Chang Fei couldn’t help but twitch his forehead. “I was just worried about disturbing you by rushing in.”

“And who knows if Sakura’s flowers might bite me too?” Song Yuanyuan muttered.

Ling Luo replied with a bit of irritation, “Sakura wouldn’t even think that way.”

Song Yuanyuan huffed, “Then you hold my little ‘father’ and let me exterminate the demon! I learned the sect’s superior sword technique a few days ago!”

“Sure,” Ling Luo said, passing the hand of Yue Liangze to her and tilting her head toward the door that appeared ahead. “Then this round is on you.”

Song Yuanyuan eagerly stepped forward to open the door. “Little ‘Dad’ watch me!”

Yue Liangze yawned, looking like he was about to head back.

It was another layer of illusion.

The same ten-mile-long street, boundless night, and they found themselves standing at the riverbank.

A white-clad woman jumped into the river with a splash.

Chang Fei was stunned. “What’s going on?”

“Should we save her?” Song Yuanyuan was also confused, caught off guard by the sudden turn of events.

Xu Shen responded, “Save her!”

He was the first to jump into the water.

Ling Luo, still holding Yue Liangze’s hand, glanced at him.

Seeing his slightly furrowed brows and pale face, she asked, “Your spiritual power didn’t increase?”

Yue Liangze replied, “It increased a little.”

“Really?” Ling Luo was suspicious. “But you don’t look too well.”

Yue Liangze met her gaze, his eyes calm. “I’m hungry.”

Ling Luo: “…”

I’ve been busy exorcising demons and haven’t gotten hungry yet!

But you, who’ve been lying down winning, are already hungry!

“This layer’s almost over; we’ll eat once we’re out,” Song Yuanyuan said. “No wonder after the hundredth layer, my little ‘father’ has gained a lot of spiritual power.”

Chang Fei nodded. “I’ve gained a lot too. No wonder the senior brothers say the Tongtian Tower is one of the best shortcuts for cultivation.”

A splash of water echoed, and Xu Shen emerged from the river, carrying the white-clad woman who had jumped in.

Song Yuanyuan and Chang Fei hurried to help pull her up.

The woman was covering her face, crying softly, “Why must it be like this? I, I just want to die, why do you have to—”

Her voice was filled with sorrow and resentment.

Xu Shen went to shake the water off, ignoring her, while Chang Fei, with his warm heart, said, “Miss, if you have any troubles, tell us. We can help you. You mustn’t take your life.”

“Really?” The white-clad woman lowered her hands, and when she looked up, tears were falling from her long black lashes, leaving marks on her pale, delicate face, making her seem even more pitiful.

Seeing this beautiful, sorrowful woman, Chang Fei was stunned for a moment.

The young man blushed slightly, stammering, “Re-really!”

Ling Luo rolled her eyes in the background.

Yue Liangze was on the verge of dozing off, clearly uninterested.

Only Song Yuanyuan stepped forward with a smile and asked gently, “What should we call you, miss?”

“I… You can call me A Chu,” the woman replied, shivering from the cold wind. “What I did today… I had no choice…”

Seeing her shiver, Chang Fei nudged Song Yuanyuan. “Give her your cloak!”

“I only have this sect uniform! If I give it away, what will I wear for the next round?” Song Yuanyuan whispered. “If you want to, you give it!”

Chang Fei glared. “I only have this too!”

They looked over at Xu Shen, who shot them a side glance, drenched from head to toe. What did they think he could do?

They then looked toward Ling Luo and Yue Liangze.

Ling Luo smirked. “Your little ‘father’ is weak and cold. What are you planning to do?”

“No, nothing,” Song Yuanyuan shook her head repeatedly.

Chang Fei didn’t have the courage to ask Ling Luo, as she was also a girl.

So Chang Fei said, “How about you use a fire technique to warm her?”

Song Yuanyuan tried to form the fire seal but fumbled, as she hadn’t practiced it well.

Ling Luo came over and performed the technique, drying A Chu’s wet clothes and hair, making her comfortable again.

Xu Shen, holding his wet clothes: “…”

Ling Luo also dried his clothes, then asked A Chu, “Why did you jump into the river?”

Tears welled in A Chu’s eyes as she choked on her words, “I was once betrothed to Yuan Lang. We grew up together, made promises, but one day he went up the mountain for sightseeing and was seduced by the mountain demons!”

“Everything in the past was meaningless. I watched as he married a mountain demoness, and I had to watch them indulge in pleasure every day. My heart couldn’t bear it!”

“Mountain demoness?” Xu Shen raised an eyebrow. “How do you know?”

A Chu’s face twisted with grief. “The demoness revealed her true form before me, sowing discord and making Yuan Lang think I was spouting nonsense. He broke off our engagement.”

“Could it be a fox demon?” Chang Fei muttered, “They love these romantic entanglements.”

“Do you have a prejudice against fox demons? A mountain demoness is just that, a demoness. There are many demons who like to absorb men’s energy to cultivate, and fox demons are always the unloved ones!” Song Yuanyuan defended the fox demons. “I don’t think it’s a fox demon this time!”