"Yes, we were invited by the Third Elder to come to the Puppet Sect as guests."

The man who spoke was a scholar dressed in blue, with a rather elegant demeanor. "Let me introduce myself. My name is Liu Yi. I've heard of Xia Hou Ke Qing's great name for a long time. I finally get to meet him today, and he truly lives up to his reputation."

"...Oh, you really know how to talk."

Jiang Deng raised his eyebrows slightly.

There were more than thirty guests present, five of them were cultivators in the Spirit Transformation Realm, and the rest were cultivators in the Nascent Soul Realm. Her cultivation level was not high among them, and she was quite inconspicuous.

But if we were to say who is the strongest, it would be Liu Yi who spoke. He is actually in the middle stage of the Spirit Transformation Realm, and his strength is not much inferior to that of the Third Elder himself. Yet, he has become a guest official under the Third Elder?

It seems that his purpose is not so simple...

"Xiahou Guest, how about we talk while we walk?"

"casual."

Jiang Deng said nonchalantly.

Upon hearing this, Liu Yi didn't do anything yet, but the guests behind him immediately became unhappy.

"Brother Liu sincerely invites you, how can a female cultivator like you be so powerless?"

"That's right! You're just a mere Nascent Soul cultivator. We have a ton of late Nascent Soul cultivators of the same level as you here. Why are you so arrogant?"

"Isn't it just that the Third Elder looks at you with special regard? Do you really think you're a dish?"

…

These guests have lived in Lingfeng for a long time and are very familiar with each other. They are very unhappy that Jiang Deng offended Liu Yi, whom they regard as their big brother.

"Hey," Liu Yi quickly spoke up to stop them, "Please don't misunderstand me. Xiahou Keqing must be used to speaking quickly. He has no other intentions. The leader is still waiting for us in the mansion. We'd better leave quickly."

"Hmph, then I'll just listen to Brother Liu."

Although everyone stopped targeting Jiang Deng with words, they glanced at him with a hint of dissatisfaction, and then followed Liu Yi down the mountain.

"Oh……"

Jiang Deng was at a loss for words. These people were forming cliques just to be guests. Was there something wrong with them?

"Xiahou Guest Official?"

Liu Yi's reminder sounded from the front.

"Here I come."

Jiang Deng came to Liu Yi's side and walked side by side with him despite the envious and jealous gazes of Liu Yi's group of younger brothers behind him.

She had no good feelings towards Liu Yi.

Liu Yi looks like a good person, but in fact he is essentially the same kind of people as his gang of younger brothers. What he just did was just to intimidate her.

The reason why Liu Yi's bad intentions cannot be seen for the time being is simply that he is responsible for playing the good guy and his younger brothers are responsible for playing the bad guy.

This intrigue might be to wait until they enter the Demonic Secret Realm so that she can obey Liu Yi's orders.

Haha, does she look like someone who can be tamed so easily? You must be kidding!

Sure enough, Liu Yi soon revealed his true colors.

Liu Yi smiled faintly, "I wonder if Guest Xiahou knows why the leader is looking for us?"

Jiang Deng very cooperatively asked, "I don't know. What's going on? Why is it so grand and requires all our guest officials to come out?"

"Ahem, it must be because of the upcoming opening of the Demon Ruins."

Liu Yi coughed lightly and said earnestly, "Since Xiahou Keqing and I are both under the command of the Third Elder, I will not hide it. The reason why we, as casual cultivators, joined the Puppet Cult was to enter the Heavenly Demon Ruins."

"Um?"

Jiang Deng asked curiously, "Is it possible that independent cultivators are not allowed to enter the Heavenly Demon Ruins? Are only members of the three major sects allowed to enter?"

"That's not the case. The main reason is that we, the independent cultivators, can borrow the names of the three major sects. It's safer than fighting alone. Moreover, the sects send many people into the Heavenly Demon Ruins, so we can look after each other."

"In that case, why don't you go to the number one ranked Tianmo Sect and the number two ranked Longyin Sect?"

Liu Yi smiled awkwardly. "That's because the other two sects have higher requirements for recruiting guest members. Although I can join them, I can only be a subordinate who obeys others' orders. If I join the Puppet Sect, I will gain more training resources and have more say."

"oh……"

Jiang Deng nodded thoughtfully, "I understand. It's better to be the tail of a phoenix than the head of a chicken."

Liu Yi's mouth twitched, "...Xiahou Keqing, it's better to be the head of a chicken than the tail of a phoenix."

Jiang Deng waved his hand and said, "It's all the same."

Liu Yi: “…”

A lot different, okay?

The vein on his forehead throbbed, and Liu Yi took great pains to maintain a polite smile. "Since Xiahou Guest Official and I are both guests of the Third Elder, would you be willing to join us? When we enter the Heavenly Demon Ruins, we can fight side by side and share the treasures we obtain."

Jiang Deng sighed pretentiously, "Alas, I'm not even an evil cultivator yet. I don't know if I can pass the assessment assigned by the leader and be selected to enter the Heavenly Demon Ruins. It's too early to talk about this now."

"Not too early, not too late. Such an important matter requires early planning. I also think someone like Xiahou Keqing will definitely pass the assessment!"

"Alas, Brother Liu, your words are too biased. I haven't even taken the test yet, and you are so sure that I can pass. Are you more powerful than the leader?"

“…”

The veins on Liu Yi's forehead throbbed even more violently after receiving this accusation. "That was not my intention. Please don't misunderstand me, Mr. Xiahou."

"Whether you mean this or not, I believe the Master will definitely be able to tell. Then... I'll leave first!"

After saying that, Jiang Deng quickly walked away from Liu Yi and headed towards the leader's residence as if he was familiar with the route.

The smile on Liu Yi's face finally disappeared. He stared at Jiang Deng's back, with a hint of ruthlessness in his eyes.

If this person cannot be used by him, it will be embarrassing!

——

Jiang Deng, Liu Yi and others arrived at the leader's residence one after another.

At this time, a group of people were gathered in the hall, waiting for the leader's arrival.

The Third Elder has a large number of guests under his command. Together with the guests from the Second Elder's side, as well as the Puppet Sect's original disciples at the Nascent Soul stage and the Spirit Transformation stage, there are actually more than a hundred people.

Among them, Jiang Deng also saw the figure of Shen Hui, the head of the Human Resources Department.

Shen Hui leaned lazily on a female cultivator with a long sword hanging from her waist. The female cultivator stood as straight as a pine tree, while Shen Hui exuded a sense of laziness from head to toe.

In particular, she didn't know if she was tired of waiting, but she hung her head, her eyes half closed, and looked like she was about to fall asleep.

“…”

Jiang Deng was a little surprised. Why did this lazy guy come here?

"The leader is here!"

Following the guard's notification, Chu Xiuping, dressed in a dark blue robe, walked into the hall.

"Welcome, Master!"

Everyone in the hall bowed their heads in salute.