The soles of Yan Zhengming's shoes were about to get stuck, but Cheng Qian was still looking at him hesitantly from three steps away, seeming a little at a loss and a little helpless.

Yan Zhengming was like this when he was a child. He thought the stool was cold and refused to sit. He just stood there with an unhappy face, not saying a word, waiting for the many maids and Taoist children to guess his feelings. Anyway, among so many Taoist children, there would always be one or two smart ones who could react and save him the trouble.

Unfortunately, Cheng Qian is the only one here, and no one tolerates his bad habits.

Yan Zhengming struggled with his conscience for a moment, and suddenly he figured it out in his "desperate situation". He made up his mind and thought: "Since he dared to say such words in the stone mustard seed, what can I do if I lose my shame?"

So Yan Zhengming raised his head and drank the wine in the jade pot in one breath. The wine made him bolder. He turned the boat around and walked past Cheng Qian with a dignified and calm face. He walked straight through the courtyard of Qing'anju and announced to Cheng Qian bluntly: "I'm not leaving today."

His expression changes faster than turning the pages of a book, without any change.

Cheng Qian didn't react: "Uh...ah?"

Yan Zhengming glanced at him and asked, "Why, do you have any objections?"

Cheng Qian had no opinions, only intentions.

Yan Zhengming ordered without hesitation: "Tell your little Taoist boy to prepare the bath water for me."

Cheng Qian stood there for a moment, and before he knew it, he began to daydream. His heart was pounding, and he turned around and left in a panic.

There is a small pond in the backyard of Qing'anju. It is filled with running water that is crystal clear and sweet. There is a purification talisman at the bottom of the stream upstream of the pond, and the water in it can be drawn up and drunk.

Cheng Qian did not disturb the Garcinia, nor did he ask anyone else to help him. He drew a circle of talismans by himself, stroke by stroke, somewhat clumsily, to heat the water in the small pool. In just a moment, the pool was filled with clouds and mist, as if in a fairyland.

Cheng Qian squatted by the pool and tested the water temperature himself. After working for a long time, he suddenly felt as if he had raised a cat that was difficult to take care of. Although it was extremely troublesome, he still enjoyed taking care of it.

He was about to stand up when Yan Zhengming stood silently behind Cheng Qian.

Yan Zhengming, with the help of a little bit of alcohol, mustered up his courage and hugged Cheng Qian around the waist before he could fully stand up.

His palms were actually full of sweat, but he quietly wiped them on Cheng Qian's belt, and at the same time, he dragged out a lazy tone, pretending to be indifferent, and said: "Your place is nice, don't you want to wash together?"

Cheng Qian was silent for a moment, and couldn't help but blurt out: "... Senior Brother, why are you trembling?"

Yan Zhengming: “…”

By the pool filled with fairy air, the two were speechless for a while.

Cheng Qian realized that he seemed to have said the wrong thing in a hurry, and hurriedly tried to make amends: "No, that..."

Before he could finish his words, he was suddenly attacked by a strong force from behind. The angry senior brother hugged him and jumped into the pool. The water was too warm for Cheng Qian and soon soaked his clothes and wrapped around his body. Cheng Qian trembled violently. Before he could open his mouth, Yan Zhengming had already pressed him to the edge of the pool, staring at him with burning eyes.

Yan Zhengming held up Cheng Qian's face with one hand and gently stroked his wet face with his fingertips. His mind went blank for a moment, and he was drunk from the hot water.

At this point, he decided to go all out and kissed her without saying a word.

The water was hot, and the eldest brother's palm was even hotter. Cheng Qian suddenly felt a little breathless and couldn't help but struggle a few times. However, with just this little movement, Yan Zhengming immediately let him go, with a bit of cautious retreat.

Cheng Qian was not much more sober than him. He was like a fish thrown out of the water. He took a few deep breaths, feeling a little pain in his chest. He met Yan Zhengming's uneasy gaze - filled with unspeakable desire, but not daring to go beyond the line.

Cheng Qian racked his brains for a long while, and asked in a low voice with some difficulty: "Brother, do you want to... practice dual cultivation with me?"

Yan Zhengming was speechless. He felt that at this moment, it would be more appropriate for him to turn around and run out to cry.

"You understand so well that you even know what double cultivation is," he roared, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. "Double cultivation bullshit! I just like you and want to be close to you, is that not okay?"

Cheng Qian: “…”

After Yan Zhengming finished yelling, he stared at him nervously, leaned over and pecked the corner of his mouth, then asked without hesitation, "Will you regret it?"

The word "close" perfectly evoked the scene that Cheng Qian saw when he opened his eyes in Zhaoyang City. He did not have a good impression of it. He took a quick look at it and felt it was unbearable.

This unbearable thing ignited thoughts that were beyond the norm in his heart, just like when he was a teenager going to the mountain cave and passing through the Heart Demon Valley. When he looked down from a high place, he clearly felt the unspeakable danger, but still couldn't help but look down.

Cheng Qian said, "You're too long-winded."

With this excitement arising from the taboo, he tore off Yan Zhengming's wet clothes in an inappropriate way according to his cursory impression. After finishing, he felt a little confused and didn't know where to start. So Cheng Qian paused and racked his brains to recall how others did it.

He suddenly felt a little regretful that he had not read it carefully at that time - for the first time in his life, he felt what it meant to "regret not having read enough when you need it."

...until he was pressed against the pool wall by the eldest brother without any explanation.

Yan Zhengming had been suppressing his emotions for too long and had endured for too long, so he no longer wanted to be polite to him.

From then on, someone began to call himself the owner of Qing'an Ju.

On the first day Yan Zhengming stayed in Qing'anju, Cheng Qian slept late for once. When he opened his eyes and saw him, he felt very sweet in his heart. Although he felt a little awkward, it was not a big deal. The eldest brother only showed his true feelings occasionally. Just for this, Cheng Qian felt that he could do anything.

Yan Zhengming had been staying in Qing'anju for the third day, and Cheng Qian began to feel a little impatient. Yan Zhengming had made his Qing'anju neither peaceful nor quiet, and he was extremely clingy - Sect Leader Yan had his own way of clinging to others, and his clinginess was not ordinary. He would always just give a hint and ask others to cling back immediately after receiving it, so that he could act like a big shot who said, "I am your senior brother, so I should coax you."

In case Cheng Qian doesn't react, or is just too lazy to pay attention to him occasionally, he should be prepared to be picked on all day long.

As the saying goes, "It is easy to invite a god, but difficult to send him away." Master Yan stayed in Qing'anju for half a month, and Cheng Qian could no longer bear it and was about to go crazy. Thinking back to the time when he would rather face the wall beside the ice pond than chat with Nian Mingming, who came to visit, it can be seen that in addition to his strong will, he also likes quietness.

The arrogant Sect Leader Yan was repeatedly ignored by him and finally got angry: "Didn't you say you would never betray me? You're tired of me after just a few days! You've been an ungrateful person since childhood!"

Cheng Qian felt a headache and said, "Big Brother, please let me live a few more years."

Sect Leader Yan was so angry that he ran to the bamboo forest to practice swordplay, turning the bamboo forest of Qing'anju into a bald patch. He wanted to just leave, but he couldn't bear to do so. In the evening, he ran back angrily in the drizzle, waiting for Cheng Qian, who had come down the mountain to see Han Yuan, to come back and reflect on himself.

Time flies, and in the blink of an eye, the rainy season has arrived in the Fuyao Mountain area, and it drizzles all day long.

That day, Cheng Qian was about to go down the mountain when he was stopped by Yan Zhengming.

"Take this to him." This was the first time Yan Zhengming mentioned Han Yuan, and he threw out a small bean-sized bead.

Cheng Qian reached out to take it, feeling its coolness to the touch, and the dampness from the drizzling rain on his body instantly dissipated.

"I got a few water-repellent beads that flowed out of the West Palace in the early years." Yan Zhengming said, "The fifteenth agreement made by Tang Zhen is about to expire. Don't let him embarrass himself by getting soaked like a drowned chicken."

He obviously cares about me, but he always looks disgusted and ungrateful. It's pretty amazing.

Before Cheng Qian saw Han Yuan when he came down the mountain, he ran into Tang Zhen near the foot of Taiyin Mountain.

Tang Zhen was a very worry-free guest. Except for the first day when he arrived at Fuyao Mountain and was personally led by Li Yun to tour the mountain, he basically stayed at home and seldom left the courtyard of the guest room.

Tang Zhen held an oil-paper umbrella in his hand and did not waste his true energy to keep out the rain. His robe sleeves were wet, but he did not care and walked leisurely in the rain.

Cheng Qian let the frost blade fall to the ground and greeted, "Brother Tang."

Tang Zhen asked, "Are we going to the Ten Direction Array? Let's go together."

Neither of them said much, and without flying swords, they walked slowly on the clean path in the mountains. The sound of wind and rain was soft in their ears, as if everything had slowed down.

Cheng Qian said: "With Brother Tang by my side, I feel less anxious about everything."

Tang Zhen said: "Mortals spend their lives in mediocrity, being chased by fame, wealth and power. Although cultivators have a hundred or a thousand times more time, they are still chasing after their cultivation and realm. They are all swimming against the current between heaven and earth. If they slack off for a moment, they will be one step away from the great way. So they dare not be impatient - I am a walking corpse, there is nothing to ask for, so of course I am more leisurely than others."

These words made Cheng Qian feel slightly puzzled. He thought to himself, "If you don't want anything, why are you rushing here?"

However, the doubt passed in a flash. Cheng Qian didn't have many friends, so he didn't want to be suspicious of his friends. He continued indifferently, "I think that taking a slow walk occasionally is a change of pace. If you live this leisurely every day, wouldn't you be living like an old turtle? That's meaningless."

Tang Zhen smiled and changed the subject, "The appointment on the 15th is coming soon. I wonder what your head brother thinks? In this battle, the Demon Dragon surrendered, Tian Yan fell, the Four Saints declined, and more than half of the elites of Mulan Mountain were destroyed. The other small sects are not worth mentioning. Fuyao Mountain may become a new force. The major sects will be reshuffled. You should also make plans early."

Cheng Qian said with a smile: "Our head brother has no ambition to command the whole world and have people from all directions come to congratulate him. He just wants others to stop bothering him. He is too lazy to go out. After so many years of wandering outside, I think he will become even more aggressive after he comes back."

Tang Zhen said: "Brother Yan is quite unique whether he is the head of the sect or a sword cultivator. His willingness to go with the flow is quite in line with the true meaning of the Great Dao. Coupled with his outstanding aptitude, perhaps he will be able to achieve immortality in the future."

Since the beginning of the Fuyao self-established sect, it has never demanded immortality, and has always regarded itself as "humane". It is as brilliant as Tong Ru, and it also puts the inheritance of the sect before personal cultivation. However, Tang Zhen is an outsider after all, so Cheng Qian did not say much, only said: "Thank you for your good words, brother Tang."

Tang Zhen said: "But when it comes to immortality, you are truly blessed."

Cheng Qian: "What do you mean?"

Tang Zhen said: "Practice and refining are sometimes the same thing. The Third Prince refined himself into a bone-melting array for a reason. Practitioners practice to fight for their lives. If their practice stagnates, the new energy cannot be circulated into the true essence, and their life span will come to an end. But you are different. The Gathering Spirit Jade can naturally absorb the essence of heaven and earth."

Cheng Qian said indifferently: "Jade is like a human being, neither can decay with the heaven and earth. When it comes to the stage of the primordial spirit, they all end up in the same place. I don't think there is any difference."

"There is still a possibility," Tang Zhen said calmly, "You have forged the Soul Gathering Jade into a physical body, and after going through the heavenly tribulation, you are already a semi-immortal body. If you are willing to cultivate in the ice pond of Mingming Valley, the ice pond will continuously supply you with the same true essence as your physical body. Your cultivation will never stagnate. You may not necessarily ascend to heaven, but you can also live forever - Oh, don't misunderstand what I am trying to persuade you, it's just a fact."

It was unknown whether Tang Zhen meant what he said, but Cheng Qian, the listener, ignored his words and just smiled and said, "I am just borrowing the Soul Gathering Jade to live. I am a good person and I don't really intend to turn into a piece of jade."

Tang Zhen looked at him deeply, said nothing, and just agreed, "That's right."

Cheng Qian said, "Speaking of spiritual objects, Brother Tang is very knowledgeable. I wonder if you have ever heard of 'Listening to the Universe'?"

Tang Zhen's expression changed, and he asked back: "How do you know that 'Ting Qiankun' is a spiritual being? And not a person or a technique?"

Cheng Qian smiled calmly and said, "It feels like that. Why?"

Tang Zhen said: "Oh, that's an ancient legend. Some people say that if you hold the Ting Qian Kun, you can hear the voice of the upper world. No one knows whether it's true or not."

Then, he changed the subject and said, "Master Han has gone astray. I'm afraid he can escape death but cannot escape punishment for his crime. I will do my best on the 15th. Even if I have to imprison and suppress him, I will try to keep him on Mount Fuyao."

Cheng Qian could only sigh and said, "Thank you very much."

Unfortunately, good ideas may not necessarily be realized.

On the fifteenth day, when the people from the Fuyao Sect arrived at Taiyin Mountain, there were already people from many other sects there.

The people who came this time were more quality than quantity. All factions went back to recuperate and only sent one or two representatives to express their stance. The major sects sat scattered around, clearly separated from each other, but the position in the middle was reserved.

Cheng Qian glanced at Tang Zhen, who nodded and said, "Yes, that is for your sect."

Yan Zhengming thought to himself, "If they stay, should I just sit there and take the seat?"

Without saying a word, he walked around the crowd, still acting the same as before, without caring about other people's face at all. He found a corner where he was not in the same crowd as everyone else, and Lingnian threw a mustard seed to separate himself from the crowd, and walked in as if no one was around.

Tang Zhen shook his head and called Liu Lang to walk to the Ten Direction Formation Platform. After all, it was he who convened this meeting, and he couldn't just stand by and watch like the Fuyao Sect did.

Shi Jiezi stood out from the crowd with his unique and independent character. Liu Lang could not help but feel a little envious and said to Tang Zhen, "I hope I can become someone like Master Yan one day."

Tang Zhen tilted his head patiently and listened to him as he walked.

Liu Lang continued, "I heard from the Taoist children on Mount Fuyao that Master Yan was like this when he was young. He just wanted to plant flowers and play with birds on Mount Fuyao. Later, by chance, he went down the mountain for a hundred years. He suffered a lot along the way and became a great man. But when he returned to the place where he started, he still did not change his original intention and was not moved by the world at all... No matter whether his original intention seemed unpromising or not, I admire him very much."

Tang Zhen listened and nodded expressionlessly, "It's really rare."

However, he immediately raised his head and glanced at the monks indifferently. Tang Zhen said with a hint of grimness, "It's a pity that he is not moved by the world. The world may not tolerate him. People like him usually don't have a good ending."

After he finished speaking, without waiting for Liu Lang's response, he flicked his sleeves and walked towards the remains of the Ten Direction Formation.

Tang Zhen said a few simple polite words and then went straight to the point: "Tang dare not make decisions on his own, so I would like to trouble you to discuss the rules today. Personally, I think that revenge is not necessarily a good thing, and death may not be able to atone for one's sins. What do you think?"

As soon as he finished speaking, an elder from the White Tiger Villa spoke first, "The Nine Saints of Nightmare Walker died in the Ten Directions Formation, and the Demon Dragon is detained here. Now no one cares about the demon cultivators, big or small. The blood oath binds the Nine Saints and the Demon Dragon, but it cannot bind those lawless demons. They are unrestrained and are causing chaos on their own, which makes the situation even worse. I think it would be better to..."

Han Yuan refused to cooperate and interrupted him without any appreciation, saying, "The Nightmare Walkers themselves do not control their subordinates. You should blame yourselves for being incompetent and not being able to manage your own territory. Don't expect me to recruit you."

This elder didn't know Han Yuan either, but he was asked to say a few nice words. It was the first time he saw such an ungrateful person, and he was choked for a moment.

A person nearby said coldly, "Since this devil himself said so, what else can we expect? We might as well kill him."

The one who spoke was Xuanwu Hall Master Bian Xu. Someone of Bian Xu's status and position should not have come in person to intervene, but the hatred of killing one's son was irreconcilable - Bian Xiaohui had been dead for only a year, and Bian Xu's hair and beard were already white, and he looked a bit depressed as his life was coming to an end.

This was a saint of his generation, and it is really sad to see him end up like this.

Han Yuan responded sharply, "That's right. It would be better if all the trash and demons were killed, so that only people like you who are well-educated and devoted to the Tao would be left in the world."

In the stone mustard seed, Yan Zhengming said to Li Yun: "Can you make that bastard shut up?"

Li Yun frowned: "Bian Xu? That's a bit difficult."

Yan Zhengming: "...I mean Han Yuan."

"Yes." Li Yun turned to Cheng Qian and said, "There is a big sycamore tree opposite Han Yuan. Did you see it? Xiao Qian, go with Junior Sister, and he will definitely shut up."

Yan Zhengming: “…”

After a moment, the puddle turned into a giant bird, carrying Cheng Qian out of Shijiezi and landing under the big sycamore tree opposite Shifangtai, in a position where he could stare at Han Yuan.

The fiery red feathers of the red crane drooped, making it particularly conspicuous. Han Yuan, who had been speaking loudly on the Shifang Stage, was instantly silenced when he saw the two of them, and actually remained silent.

Li Yun said proudly: "Junior brother has had a rough life, and can be said to be full of blood and tears, but if you really count it, it was actually Xiao Qian's death that hit him the hardest. Have you noticed that his inner demons become weaker every time he meets Xiao Qian... And then there is Junior sister. Junior sister was his best friend when they were young. That day, he was in a state of demonic nature and said he wanted to take out her demon bone. He felt a little guilty about her, so he would naturally restrain his inner demons when he saw her."

Li Yun shook his head and felt that he was really good at prescribing the right medicine.

Yan Zhengming hit him with his fan bone in annoyance and squeezed out a few words from between his teeth: "I didn't find it, shut up."

Li Yun was silent, feeling as if he had accidentally made someone jealous.

After all, Bian Xu was in a high position, so he couldn't lose his composure. As long as Han Yuan stopped quarreling, he would be alone. After a while, he stopped fighting and only said, "Forgive me for my inadequate cultivation and my inability to let go of the hatred for the murder of my son. My Xuanwu Hall and this man will never reconcile, and we must kill him!"

As soon as these words came out, everyone's hatred towards Han Yuan was aroused, and everyone in the field started talking.

At this time, a voice suddenly came from a distance, saying: "The evil dragon's guilt is obvious, and the world knows it. If all of us have no grudges against him, there is no need to gather here with all our forces, and there is no need to mention these grudges. I think what Master Tang said makes sense. What's the point of letting him die and end everything? It's better to let him live to atone for his sins."

Everyone looked together and saw a middle-aged man with several disciples walking towards them from a distance. It seemed as if his figure flashed and appeared before their eyes in the blink of an eye. The middle-aged man was very graceful and elegant.

The elder of White Tiger Villa who had just spoken came out immediately and said, "Master."

He turned out to be the owner of Baihu Villa.

The owner nodded, gathered his sleeves, and bowed to Bian Xu: "Brother Bian, long time no see."

Cheng Qian frowned and looked at the person coming from the treetop for a moment, and suddenly his eyes widened - isn't this the old madman Ji Qianli on the Locking Immortal Platform?

How come he suddenly behaves like a human being?