What is the system in Chapter 12? Soulfire

Before Mingjian could even ask who the other person in the system was, Gu Zhi, who was sitting to the side, clicked her tongue and said, "Why did Xue Ci provoke Xie Linzhao again? Doesn't he know that even a rabbit will bite when provoked? Especially a demon who has only had its teeth pulled."

Xue Ci?

Mingjian seemed to be deep in thought, realizing that this was the young master of the Thousand Machines Sect.

As for Xie Linzhao himself, Mingjian had absolutely no interest. If he could, he hoped he would never encounter him again in his life. After all, he simply couldn't imagine what kind of evil had possessed him to use the spirit stones he had painstakingly saved on a demon instead of on himself. He also couldn't imagine that Xie Linzhao would kill him with his own hands.

Losing both spirit stones and lives, it's no wonder so many cultivators choose to practice the Path of Ruthlessness these days.

The ancients were right: there are beauties like jade and houses of gold in books.

If not now, when?

So Mingjian became a spectator, drinking porridge while watching Xie Linzhao and Xue Ci confront each other.

"Xie Linzhao! If you dare to touch me in the slightest, my Thousand Machines Sect will never let you go!" Xue Ci spat out a mouthful of blood, then stood up as if nothing had happened. He took out two broken jade tokens from his robes and threw them on the ground, saying sarcastically, "You are nothing but a demon. Even if I kill you, no one will do anything to me. On the contrary, if I kill you, the other disciples of the cultivation world will only applaud."

Xue Ci's words were true; the cultivation world and the demon world were inherently incompatible. Fifteen hundred years ago, Xie Wuwang, the former Demon Lord of the Demon Realm, ruled over all demons, commanding countless demon generals, and the demon race reached its zenith.

At that time, the protective formations of several major sects in the cultivation world were broken, the spiritual veins used for cultivation were seized, and countless cultivators became materials for demonic cultivation tools.

The three realms are in turmoil, and people are filled with anxiety.

It wasn't until Ji Sui, the founder of Jianming Immortal Mountain, appeared that the cultivation world finally saw a turning point.

Ji Sui broke through all laws with a single sword strike, single-handedly venturing into the Demon Realm, slaying two of Xie Wuwang's demon lords, and forcing the demon army to retreat a thousand miles.

Subsequently, he united with several major sects, including the nearly destroyed Thousand Machines Sect, Xuantian Sect, and Taixu Pavilion, to form an alliance and wage a bloody war against the demon race for a century, eventually achieving a delicate balance.

This balance was broken a thousand years later.

The life lamp of Ancestral Master Ji Sui suddenly went out, and the bells of the eighteen peaks of Jianming Immortal Mountain rang throughout the sky. When the elders of Jianming Immortal Mountain rushed over, they saw that there was a hole in Ji Sui's chest, as if it had been torn open by a claw, and demonic energy swirled inside the cave. The three personal disciples who were with him were lying dead beside him, their deaths bizarre.

Around the four corpses, an ancient demonic sacrificial array was drawn in blood, a technique that, apart from the demonic tradition, could not be practiced by any cultivator.

The finger naturally points to the demon realm.

The elders of Jianming Immortal Mountain were all unable to accept this and rushed to the Demon Realm with their swords. Faced with the overwhelming killing intent of the elders, Xie Wuwang merely chuckled and admitted that he had killed them with his own hands. Of the dozen or so Mahayana stage elders who had gone to demand an explanation the day before, only three returned, and all of them had suffered damage to their Dao hearts and had to go into seclusion to recuperate.

Sword Bright Immortal Mountain is the anchor of the cultivation world. After suffering such a severe blow, the cultivation world is in turmoil, and the Demon Realm is beginning to stir again, showing signs of making a comeback.

Among the few on Sword Bright Immortal Mountain whose strength could rival Ji Sui's, Xiao Bumian was one of them. The sect leader, Shi Yan, knelt at the foot of Nevernight Mountain for a hundred days, begging Xiao Bumian to avenge his master.

Although all cultivators in the cultivation world know that Xiao Bumian also emerged out of nowhere hundreds of years ago, unlike Ji Sui, who was in the midst of turmoil, when Xiao Bumian first distinguished himself among the disciples, the war between the cultivation world and the demon world had already subsided. Therefore, people only know that Xiao Bumian's cultivation is unfathomable, but no one knows exactly how far his cultivation has reached.

Because Xiao Bumian's indifferent attitude was so different from that of the indignant elders, many cultivators in the Spirit Mirror at that time rebuked Xiao Bumian. It wasn't until the 101st day that Shi Yan knelt on the long steps that Xiao Bumian came down from Evernight Mountain.

That day, the sky of the Demon Realm was like a sea of ​​blood, demonic clouds surged, and the souls of countless demons were scattered. Demon Lord Xie Wuwang also died under Xiao Bumian's sword.

Xie Wuwang's youngest son, Xie Linzhao, who was only a hundred years old, was also crippled by Xiao Bumian, who cut off his path to cultivation and took him back to Jianming Immortal Mountain.

Rumor has it that Xiao Bumian was severely injured. After handing Xie Linzhao over to Shi Yan, he placed a restriction on him and went into seclusion to cultivate in the Evernight Mountain.

From that time on, without Xie Wuwang, the Demon Realm was like scattered sand, constantly fighting among itself, and the Demon Race's status in the Three Realms became lower and lower.

Therefore, Xue Ci's words were indeed correct; Xie Linzhao, as a member of the demon race, had no say in the cultivation world.

"You can kill me," Xie Linzhao said coldly, sheathing his sword. "Don't disgust me."

After saying that, he didn't give Xue Ci another look and left the inn.

Mingjian: "...?"

Okay, I didn't understand.

Seeing Xie Linzhao leave, Xue Ci was about to follow when suddenly a male voice came from the top-tier room, "Xue Ci, that's enough."

Xue Ci's body stiffened abruptly. He stretched and muttered, "Okay, I'm coming up now."

As he went upstairs, he seemed to remember something, took out a bag of high-grade spirit stones from his pocket, and threw it to the innkeeper who was standing in the corner with a pained expression. "Here, this is for you. The railings of your inn are too crude. They break with the slightest bump."

The shopkeeper, who had initially felt a pang of regret, immediately changed his tune after seeing Xue Ci throw away the money pouch, smiling obsequiously, "Oh, thank you so much, young master Xue."

Xue Ci clicked his tongue and went up.

After he left, the shopkeeper then instructed the waiter to clean up the sawdust scattered all over the main hall.

Song Heyu frowned and glanced at the top-tier room. "Xue Zhen is here too."

Gu Zhi's playful expression vanished. "Why is he here too?"

Xue Zhen is a true disciple of the Thousand Machines Sect's leader and the only person in the sect who can control Xue Ci.

Song Heyu: "Perhaps the Thousand Machines Sect leader wants him to keep an eye on Xue Ci, but I don't think so. I suppose he's here for the Heavenly Treasure."

"Who knows?" Gu Zhi stood up, her brows, which had been furrowed, now relaxed. She said indifferently, "We're not going there for a top-grade treasure anyway. Let's leave such important sect matters to Shi Lian and the others. Let's focus on finding Bing Tan."

"Xue Zhen's cultivation is already at the late Foundation Establishment stage, just one step away from the Golden Core stage. I wonder if Shi Lian and the others can handle it," Song Heyu said with some concern.

Gu Zhi stretched and chuckled, "Don't worry, Xie Linzhao is here with us, isn't he? As long as Xie Linzhao is here, do you think Xue Ci will obediently follow Xue Zhen? The Yunlai Immortal Mansion is fraught with danger; one wrong move and you could lose your life. Do you think that old codger from the Thousand Machines Sect didn't tell Xue Zhen to protect Xue Ci?"

These words left Mingjian bewildered. He asked, puzzled, "What is the relationship between Xie Linzhao and Xue Ci?"

Gu Zhi paused, turned to the side with an incredulous look on her face, "You didn't know?"

Ming shook his head. "I don't know."

Gu Zhi, no longer bothered by Ming Jian's words, turned to the side and said, "I don't know what Xue Ci's eyes are like. He probably fell for that demon boy at first sight. Hmm, Xie Linzhao is so angry, he must have been tied up by Xue Ci again."

Mingjian saw the porcelain bowl in his hand slam down on the wooden table with a loud crash, and exclaimed in shock, "Huh?"

-

Inside the top-tier room.

A rosewood table with upturned ends sits by the window, on which sits a white porcelain vase with a few sprigs of winter plum blossoms inserted diagonally.

Xue Zhen knelt before the desk, on which lay a fine steel file and several pieces of black iron. Hearing footsteps outside the door, he didn't even raise his head. "Xue Ci, have you forgotten what Master said?"

Xue Ci pouted and said indignantly, "Senior Brother Zhen, I haven't forgotten. I'm just angry at Xie Linzhao. If it weren't for me last night, he would probably have been bullied to death by those people from Jianming Immortal Mountain. I clearly saved him, but instead of repaying the kindness, he turned around and blamed me. If it weren't for the many protective magic treasures I have, I'm afraid my soul lamp would have been extinguished."

“I didn’t pay attention to you yesterday because I thought you were just helping him out. Although I despise the demon race, I wouldn’t take the life of someone who can’t cultivate.” Xue Zhen stopped what he was doing and glanced at Xue Ci. “But I didn’t tell you to bring him here behind my back.”

His tone was serious and cold, which startled Xue Ci so much that he unconsciously shrank his neck.

Xue Ci was somewhat unconvinced, "But it's so cold outside, he'll freeze to death out there."

"Heh," Xue Zhen scoffed, "He's a demon. Putting aside the fact that demons have soul fire within them and are not afraid of the cold, do you really think others need your kindness?"

Xue Ci recalled Xie Linzhao's attitude earlier, and the words she wanted to say to Xue Zhen suddenly stuck in her throat. She turned her head away in grievance and remained silent.

Xue Zhen sighed, "Xue Ci, don't forget the purpose of our trip. Don't let a small thing ruin the big picture. If you really like him, I'll talk to my master when we get back and ask him to come to Jianming Immortal Mountain to give him to you. But he's just something to amuse yourself; don't take it too seriously."

Upon hearing this, Xue Ci's dejected expression vanished, and he said with a grin, "Then Senior Brother Zhen, you've agreed! Don't go back on your word."

Xue Zhen shook her head helplessly, "Yes, I agree."

-

Now let's talk about the other side.

Mingjian was still in shock; he couldn't believe that Xue Ci was actually in love with Xie Linzhao.

Are people nowadays all about fighting and killing?

In comparison, Xiao Bumian may be a bit of a pervert, but he only likes to secretly watch him and occasionally take advantage of him; he never really thought about killing him.

Mingjian silently sighed in his heart.

"System, why didn't you tell me beforehand that I would meet Xie Linzhao today?" Mingjian suddenly asked.

The system is too quiet today.

[Host, I'm starting to find this a bit strange too. Logically, your first meeting with Xie Linzhao should have been in the secret realm of Yunlai Immortal Mansion. However, it's also possible that Xiao Bumian or my arrival created a butterfly effect, which influenced the plot's direction.]

Mingjian nodded, not taking it to heart.

Instead of thinking about Xie Linzhao, it's better to think about where Xiao Bumian is.

He woke up this morning and didn't see Xiao Bumian. He thought Xiao Bumian was downstairs, but he didn't see her when he went down.

Just now, Song Heyu and Gu Zhi said that Yunlai Immortal Mansion was about to open and told them to pack their things and leave. But now, Xiao Bumian hasn't even shown up.

What is a system?

As Mingjian was thinking, he suddenly felt a chill on the back of his neck, a familiar coldness quietly creeping to his ear. Then Xiao Bumian's voice came softly, so close that it was almost touching his earlobe, causing a slight shiver to run through him.

A note from the author:

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