Chapter 80. Killing someone by destroying their spirit—Ji Fuguang's usual tactic…

Ji Fuguang would call Sheng Zhiyi to brew tea almost every day.

Every time she entered the main hall, Ji Fuguang's phoenix eyes would look at her with a sense of oppression, as if he were a ferocious beast ready to pounce on its prey. Sheng Zhiyi, however, lowered her brows and eyes, seemingly unaware.

Ji Fuguang always had a displeased expression, and even when his thin lips occasionally curled up, it was with a mocking and dissatisfied curve.

Sheng Zhiyi methodically prepared and served the tea, ground the ink, and stood by her side... until Ji Fuguang's eyes showed a hint of impatience, and he waved her away.

Despite his obvious annoyance, he insisted on ordering her to serve him.

Well, a madman can't be judged by common sense.

As the number of jade slips arriving from various places increased, the atmosphere within the Demon Palace became increasingly tense.

Sheng Zhiyi clearly sensed this change. In the past, although the atmosphere was solemn, the patrolling demon guards' steps were still relatively unhurried. But now, the sound of black armor clashing outside the window became more frequent and urgent, and the heavy footsteps were like dense war drums, pounding on the cold obsidian floor of the demon palace, and also pounding on everyone's hearts.

An invisible pressure seemed to permeate the air, making it hard to breathe.

When Huanlu brought in breakfast, her face was paler than usual, and she moved even more quietly, as if afraid of disturbing something.

"Miss..." She lowered her voice as she served the food, her voice tinged with barely concealed fear, "I heard... I heard things aren't peaceful outside. Those cultivators from the Immortal Sect... they've gathered a lot of people, right outside the Demon Realm, and since yesterday, they've... they've already fought several battles..."

Sheng Zhiyi's hand holding the chopsticks paused slightly, and her heart skipped a beat.

The immortal sects are attacking?

She naturally didn't think that the cultivation world had mobilized specifically for her safety. She was just a lowly servant, and even if she were promoted to an inner disciple, she would still be insignificant enough.

The sudden and massive attack by the immortal sects is likely due to their concern that Ji Fuguang has been hiding in the Tianyan Sect for a long time, and they fear that he may have mastered the cultivation methods and refined demonic arts, making him even more difficult to deal with.

However, this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for her!

Sheng Zhiyi lowered her eyelashes, suppressing all her emotions deep inside. When she looked up again, her expression was one of indifferent calm. She even gently picked up a soup spoon and focused on ladling herself a bowl of soup.

"Immortal sects? Demon race? What do they have to do with me? I am now nothing more than a thing in His Majesty's hands. Whether they live or die, what difference does it make?"

Huanlu seemed startled by her indifference, staring blankly at her, momentarily forgetting her fear.

Sheng Zhiyi said no more and ate her meal in silence, finding it tasteless, but she ate each bite with great care.

She knew that within these palace walls, countless eyes and ears were likely watching her. Any slight fluctuation in her emotions could be a death sentence, harming not only herself but also others.

Sure enough, when they went to brew tea again in the afternoon, Ji Fuguang was still in the hall.

He didn't sit lazily as usual, but stood in front of a huge map of the demon realm, his posture as upright as a pine tree, his profile cold and hard.

Several demon generals stood solemnly below, reporting military intelligence in hushed tones.

"...The Tianyan Sect and Lingxiao Palace have led their vanguard to the North Sea and have clashed with our advance force several times, with both sides suffering losses..."

"...Their reinforcements are still gathering, it seems they intend to wage a protracted war and gradually erode their strength..."

"There are also unusual movements in the direction of Xuan Yue Mountain. I fear that some villains may be trying to take advantage of the situation..."

Ji Fuguang listened quietly, his fingertips lightly tapping a point on the map, his expression unreadable.

Sheng Zhiyi held her breath, trying to minimize her presence, and quietly prepared the tea. She focused all her attention on her ears, trying to catch every word.

North Sea... Xuan Yue Mountain... Tianyan Sect...

She silently memorized these locations.

The tea was ready, and she bowed her head to serve it.

Ji Fuguang did not turn around, but only reached out one hand to take it. The moment their fingertips touched, Sheng Zhiyi tried her best to control herself and did not show the slightest abnormality.

He took a sip of tea, then suddenly spoke softly, his voice not loud, but clearly drowning out the demon general's report.

"It seems the Heavenly Evolution Sect hasn't forgotten you." He slowly turned around, his unfathomable phoenix eyes falling on her with a sharp scrutiny, as if trying to pierce through her feigned calm.

"Battle reports have arrived from the front; they even questioned the demon soldiers to see if they had seen you. It's a pity that all that fervor was for you to come here to die."

The hall fell silent instantly, and all the demon generals' gazes swept over Sheng Zhiyi, seemingly casually.

The pressure felt real, arriving suddenly.

Sheng Zhiyi curled her fingertips tightly at the bottom of the tray.

If he hadn't mentioned anything, she might have been able to suppress the thoughts that unconsciously surfaced within her and stay obediently in the Demon Palace. But once she learned that her former fellow disciples still intended to rescue her, everyone would feel anticipation and hope.

When hope reaches its peak, he will then let her watch helplessly as he extinguishes it with his own hands.

Killing someone by destroying their spirit is a common tactic used by Ji Fuguang.

Sheng Zhiyi raised her eyes to meet his gaze:

"Your Majesty is joking. I am merely a lowly inner disciple. How could I be so highly regarded?" She paused, then spoke each word clearly, "Your Majesty's strength is extraordinary. The demon army will surely be victorious. What is there to fear from the immortal sects?"

Ji Fuguang stared at her for a moment, then suddenly chuckled softly, the meaning of which was unclear.

"That would be best." He withdrew his gaze and returned it to the map, as if he were merely casually dismissing a trivial matter. "You may leave."

Sheng Zhiyi curtsied and turned to leave the hall. Only after she had walked a considerable distance did the piercing gaze behind her seem to completely disappear. Her back was covered in a cold sweat.

Back at Danyang Palace, Sheng Zhiyi was unable to calm down.

The great war between immortals and demons is about to begin, and the defensive forces within the Demon Palace have been redeployed. This is the opportunity she has been waiting for.

She spread out a blank sheet of paper, dipped her brush in ink, and, relying on her memory and observations over the past few days, began to sketch the general layout of the Demon Palace.

Danyang Palace, the main hall, the drill ground, the storeroom... each location was marked. Ji Fuguang had ordered her to serve him these past few days. Although she hadn't been able to uncover any confidential information, based on snippets of conversation, she had roughly deduced the patrol routes and approximate shift change times.

After finishing the drawing, Sheng Zhiyi put down her pen, picked up the paper, and looked at it intently.

Then place the paper over the candle flame, letting the flame slowly devour the map on it.

She cannot leave any trace.

In the dead of night, Sheng Zhiyi once again risked activating the "Bone-Eroding Technique".

The excruciating pain persisted, but she gritted her teeth and endured it, guiding the two conflicting energies to repeatedly strike the seal. More blood spilled from the corner of her lips, but what followed was that the crack continued to widen, and the spiritual power flowing out from her also became stronger.

She stopped channeling her spiritual power and instead pushed her demonic energy to its limit. At first, she was quite clumsy, her aura fluctuating wildly and easily detected. But after countless failures, she finally managed to disguise her aura to be about 70-80% similar to the faint demonic energy of a low-level servant in the Demon Palace.

At the same time, she persistently channeled her spiritual power into her dantian, attempting to awaken the sleeping spirit of the Jinghong Feather Sword.

"Wake up, wake up!" she cried silently in her heart.

This time, the response she received was not just a faint buzz.

A very faint voice struggled to reach us:

"...Where am I? It's so oppressive..."

Oops!

Divine power and demonic energy are inherently incompatible. The demonic energy within the Demon Palace is too strong for the sword spirit to withstand. If it were to emerge from the dantian, it would likely alert the demons.

Sheng Zhiyi quickly said, "Don't move, just stay put! Do you know what weaknesses exist inside the Demon Palace?"

"You're in the Demon Palace now?!"

The sword spirit was so agitated that it suddenly became much clearer.

Sheng Zhiyi quickly activated her cultivation technique, circulating demonic energy to conceal its traces.

"Don't move!"

After things calmed down a bit, the sword spirit's voice came intermittently: "I've heard of it before... the northwest corner... the ancient well... you can try it..."

It knew it was not advisable to expose itself at the moment, and with the demonic energy suppressing it, it obediently continued to sleep.

Sheng Zhiyi suddenly opened her eyes. Northwest corner? An ancient well?

That's right! Huanlu mentioned it a few days ago during a casual chat. There's an old garden in the northwest corner of the Demon Palace that's been abandoned for many years. There seems to be a dry well inside. Because it's remote, almost no one goes there on weekdays.

Could that be the weak point in the Demon Palace's barrier?

Overwhelmed by the surprise, Sheng Zhiyi took a few deep breaths and secretly warned herself to stay calm. When the gods fought the demons, they must have obtained a lot of information about the demons, but so much time had passed, and she didn't know if the situation had changed. She couldn't act rashly; she had to find a way to confirm it first.

The opportunity will come soon.

The following afternoon, several squads of demon guards were urgently transferred outside the palace, creating a brief vacuum in the palace's patrols.

Sheng Zhiyi's heart suddenly raced.

She took a deep breath and said to Huanlu, "I feel a bit stuffy staying in the palace all day, so I'll take a walk in the corridor outside the palace gate to get some fresh air."

Huanlu, without suspicion, nodded in agreement.

Sheng Zhiyi walked out of Danyang Palace, seemingly strolling casually, but in reality, she had a clear direction, heading towards the northwest corner.

As she walked further and further into the remote areas, the number of patrolling guards indeed decreased. She deliberately chose secluded paths, her whole body tense, each step teetering on the edge of danger.

Just as she was about to approach the moon gate of the abandoned old garden, a patrol of demon guards suddenly appeared from around the corner.

The two sides collided head-on!

The head of the demon guards frowned and shouted sternly, "Who goes there? No one is allowed to approach!"

Sheng Zhiyi's blood almost froze instantly. She subconsciously wanted to circulate her spiritual power, but she forcibly held back.

In a flash, she lowered her head abruptly, releasing the disguised demonic energy around her to its maximum. Her voice was deliberately hoarse and low, filled with fear: "This servant...this servant is a new servant, I'm...I'm lost...I'll leave now, I'll leave now..."

As she spoke, she bowed and turned to walk back, her heart pounding in her throat.

The captain of the demon guard stared suspiciously at her retreating figure for a moment, seemingly not entirely dispelling his doubts. Just as he was about to step forward to question her further—

"The fighting at the front is critical. What are you doing here instead of being on duty?!"

A cold and authoritative voice came from behind.

Sheng Zhiyi froze in her tracks. It was the demon general she had seen in the main hall!

The patrolling guards immediately saluted respectfully: "General, we have discovered a maid acting suspiciously..."

The demon general's gaze swept over Sheng Zhiyi's retreating figure, seemingly not recognizing her. He merely waved his hand impatiently: "A lost maidservant, is that something to make a fuss about? Get back to your posts! Any further negligence will be punished according to military law!"

"Yes!" The patrol team dared not say more and hurriedly left.

The demon general gave Sheng Zhiyi another cold glance: "Get out of here!"

Sheng Zhiyi felt as if she had been granted a pardon and almost ran away.

Only after turning several corners and returning to Danyang Palace did she dare to sit down, leaning on the edge of the table, panting heavily, her legs so weak she could barely stand.

That was too close...

But she succeeded!

She confirmed that the northwest corner did indeed exist, and that it was so heavily guarded that even a demon general had to personally patrol it, which in turn confirmed that there was something special about that place.

Sheng Zhiyi picked up her teacup, about to drink, when there was a sudden knock on the door, and a servant's voice came through:

"His Majesty commands you to proceed to the main hall."

Her hand suddenly froze.