"Greetings, True Lord Liuyu."

Upon seeing Liu Yu, Cheng Yuan, who had been wary of Fu Zi'ang, instantly relaxed considerably.

After all, his master and this True Lord Liuyu were actually good friends. His master would often go to see him for tea and would often secretly talk about him in private.

However, apart from himself, the direct disciple, no one else knew about this matter.

This is why Cheng Yuan's attitude changed so significantly.

Liu Yu wasn't too surprised by this, and nodded in response to Chao Chengyuan.

He quickly gathered everyone together, bypassed the patrol team and the illusion he had just set up, as well as the barriers left by the demons, and arrived directly in front of the secluded cultivation room.

None of the patrol teams noticed that a group of people had just passed right under their noses.

Occasionally, one or two people with keen senses would feel uneasy and glance at the entrance of the seclusion room several times, but they would not notice anything amiss and would give up.

Meanwhile, Cheng Yuan was suddenly brought to his master's secluded cultivation room. Looking at the familiar door of the secluded cultivation room, he was still somewhat incredulous.

After a brief moment of astonishment, he immediately clasped his hands together and thanked Liu Yu, saying, "Thank you, True Lord, for bringing this junior here."

After speaking, he bowed very respectfully, which stunned Liu Yu, who then tried to distract him with a headache.

"No need for thanks, let's see if we can contact your master."

"yes."

Then he received a very respectful response and a bow.

Not only was Liu Yu stunned, but even Lu Li and the others were speechless.

Shushu stared at him with wide, curious eyes, wondering to herself: Are all the monks at Tiancan Temple this polite? She remembered that Chengyuan seemed to be the same way.

Cheng Yuan, unaware of the sentiments expressed by the master and disciple, bowed respectfully.

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, he took out something that resembled a copper coin and began to silently move his lips to contact Huineng Zhenjun.

No one knows what he was muttering, but before long, the copper coin suddenly emitted a burst of light, followed by a clear and loud "quack!"

The sound came suddenly, startling Shushu. He looked at the copper coin with a puzzled expression, then at his fellow disciples, and they all looked at each other in confusion.

Cheng Yuan and Liu Yu, however, both breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing the voice, as if they had been relieved of something. Clearly, they were aware of the situation.

As for the other bald men, they all looked calm, and Shushu couldn't glean anything from their expressions.

Cheng Yuan continued to fiddle with the copper coin for a while, and then, listening to the occasional 'croaking' sound, as if he had received some kind of prompting, he spoke to several disciples of the Heavenly Silkworm Temple.

"Fellow disciples, please wait here for a moment. I and the fellow Daoists of Liuyue Sect will be right back."

The disciples of Tiancan Temple always followed his lead, and after hearing this, they all responded in unison, "Yes."

Immediately afterward, Cheng Yuanchao bowed respectfully to Liu Yu again, saying, "I'm troubling you, True Lord." Then, he stood behind Liu Yu, as if waiting for him to lead the way.

"It's alright, let's go." Liu Yu nodded in agreement, first glancing at his disciples, then finally focusing on Lu Li: "Lu Li, come along and walk ahead."

After saying that, without waiting for everyone's reaction, he pushed open the heavy stone door and went inside.

Upon hearing this, Lu Li said nothing and followed after him, clearly having no objection to Liu Yu's instructions.

Following him were Cheng Yuan, Gu Borong, and Xu Ruoyun, with Fu Zi'ang coming in last.

After everyone had gone inside, the stone door that Liu Yu had pushed open closed again.

After the stone gate closed, the disciples of Tiancan Temple each found a place, sat cross-legged, and looked like they were preparing to meditate and cultivate while waiting for someone to come out.

They didn't care at all about what was behind the stone gate, or why they weren't allowed to go in.

Meanwhile, Liu Yu led the group on a leisurely stroll through the secluded training room, as if taking a leisurely walk. As they went deeper into the training room, Shushu began to feel the chill.

This chill wasn't the cold of snow and ice, but a malevolent, eerie cold, as if being watched by something ominous, making one unconsciously feel a chill run down one's spine.

The further they went, the stronger this feeling became. By the end, Shushu even started to get restless.

As a qualified guardian, Lu Li noticed Shushu's unusual behavior immediately and gently patted her back, soothing her softly, "Don't be afraid."

The familiar, gentle tone, coupled with the warm palm, seemed to possess a divine power, instantly dispelling the unease that had just welled up in Shushu's heart. She recovered and stopped being restless.

Lu Li's hand, which had been gently patting Shushu, did not go down again, protecting Shushu and giving Shushu a sense of security.

Liu Yu, who was ahead, was naturally aware of Lu Li and Shushu's actions, but he didn't say anything and calmly continued walking inside.

About fifteen minutes later, they arrived at another stone gate. The chilling cold was palpable even through the heavy door, and they could even see the black mist churning inside through the cracks.

If it weren't for the restrictions on the stone gate, the black mist would probably have overflowed. Seeing this, Liu Yu raised an eyebrow, and after roughly confirming what was inside, he stepped back and gestured for Lu Li to come forward.

Lu Li understood his meaning, and with a thought, the little fire spirit appeared and floated in through the crack in the door.

"Ooh! Ah!"

Soon, various shrill screams came from inside, like ghosts wailing and wolves howling. The chilling coldness from before also dissipated rapidly, replaced by warmth.

In a short while, the stone door opened, and the little fire spirit floated back, clearly indicating that it was the one who opened the door.

As soon as the little fire spirit appeared, it circled around Lu Li with a happy expression, as if seeking praise. Only when Lu Li reluctantly threw it a fire crystal did it continue to fly ahead and lead the way.

Then, everyone watched as the little fire spirit bravely cleared the way, burning all the way to the last stone door of the secluded cultivation room, burning all the demons that were guarding the passage to ashes.

What others would consider an incredibly difficult journey was made possible by the presence of the little fire spirit, allowing them to reach the finish line effortlessly without lifting a finger.

Standing before this last stone gate, everyone knew that the True Lord Huineng they were looking for was inside.

So everyone tacitly made way for Chengyuan, leaving him to knock on the door.

Cheng Yuan didn't hesitate. Under everyone's watchful eyes, he calmly walked to the door and took out the copper coin.

No one knows what he said, but the door opened automatically from the inside the next moment.

Then, everyone was almost blinded by a burst of intense golden light. After they finally adjusted, what they saw was a giant golden toad lying in the center of the stone chamber.