Time passed in the blink of an eye, and the night quietly slipped away.
Qin Hao exhaled a breath of stale air, stood up, and stretched.
An entire night had passed, yet he had done nothing except meditate.
“Your injuries have recovered?”
Qin Mengya had appeared beside Qin Hao at some point. Looking at the refreshed and vigorous Qin Hao, she asked in surprise.
With a Damaged Heart Meridian, he should not have recovered so easily.
“I have a special constitution,” Qin Hao explained.
This only made Qin Mengya even more astonished.
Qin Hao had a special constitution?
She had not noticed anything unusual when taking his pulse.
However, Qin Mengya did not investigate further. After all, everyone had their own secrets.
“Today is the day of the three-sect assembly and the opening of the secret realm. Come with me.”
As Qin Mengya spoke, she extended her jade-like hand and handed Qin Hao something.
It was an ancient wooden token, bearing a boldly written character: “Demon.”
Qin Hao glanced at the token, and his gaze was immediately drawn to the character. In an instant, he seemed to be pulled into another world. In that world, demonic aura soared to the heavens. A phantom stood towering between heaven and earth, holding a withered ancient zither in his hands, wild and unrestrained, as though he intended to battle the heavens.
Qin Hao dumbly accepted the token, while the scene before his eyes remained unchanged.
However, at that moment, a strand of black aura emerged from the token and silently entered Qin Hao’s body.
Qin Mengya furrowed her brows and reached out, but then withdrew her hand.
“Perhaps he can comprehend something. Maybe the demonic aura can be put to good use by him.”
Qin Mengya believed that, given Qin Hao’s comprehension, he might comprehend something extraordinary. After all, Qin Hao had once uttered the astonishing words, “The Dao That Can Be Spoken Is Not the Eternal Dao.”
If he truly comprehended something, it would be an extraordinary fortuitous opportunity.
“A strand of Heavenly Demon Demonic Qi has been detected within the host. Considering that the host’s current cultivation level is insufficient for refinement, would you like to spend devouring points to forcefully refine it?”
The System’s notification brought Qin Hao back to his senses. However, the towering, wild, and unrestrained figure holding the withered ancient zither had been deeply carved into his mind.
“What is Heavenly Demon Demonic Qi?” Qin Hao asked.
“Heavenly Demon Demonic Qi is demonic qi that only supreme demonic cultivators can cultivate. It is extremely valuable and is also related to the divine ability known as ‘heavenly demon Disrupts the Ages.’”
“What is a divine ability?”
“A divine ability is a supreme technique that transcends spells!”
“Then refine it for me.”
Since this strand of demonic qi was extremely valuable and related to the so-called divine ability, Qin Hao naturally refined it without hesitation.
“The host currently has fifty devouring points, which can only refine one-thousandth of it!”
“Fifty devouring points can only refine one-thousandth!” Qin Hao nearly cried out in surprise. Just how valuable was this Heavenly Demon Demonic Qi? It was only a single strand, yet even fifty devouring points could refine merely one-thousandth of it!
“Then refine one-thousandth of it for me.”
The more difficult the Heavenly Demon Demonic Qi was to refine, the greater its value to Qin Hao. Thus, Qin Hao chose to refine it.
“Congratulations, host. You have consumed fifty devouring points to refine the Heavenly Demon Demonic Qi. Current refinement progress: one-thousandth.”
After being refined through the System, the strand of demonic qi that had entered Qin Hao’s body burrowed into his heart meridian and then settled there. It quietly remained within Qin Hao’s body, absorbing his spiritual power and strengthening itself.
Heavenly demon Mountain, a place where grass grew lushly, birds sang, and flowers bloomed.
A man sat alone beneath a parasol tree, drinking wine and playing the zither, utterly at ease. Yet in the next moment, a trace of surprise appeared in his expression.
“The Heavenly Demon Demonic Qi I left in Ya’er’s token was actually refined. Although only one-thousandth was refined, that is still remarkable.”
The man was somewhat delighted, but then he frowned and muttered to himself, “Something is wrong with this aura. It was not refined by Ya’er, but by a small Cultivator at the eighth layer of qi refinement—and a male one at that!”
“Hahaha, a little fellow at the eighth layer of qi refinement can actually refine one-thousandth of the Heavenly Demon Demonic Qi. The younger generation truly inspires awe. After Ya’er returns, I must see for myself what kind of extraordinary person he is.”
The man drained the contents of his cup and began playing an ancient melody on a whim.
“Thank you, senior sister.” Qin Hao bowed to Qin Mengya in gratitude.
“You do not need to thank me. Your ability to refine this strand of demonic qi is your own. It has nothing to do with me.”
Qin Mengya’s tone was cold, but she was shaken inside. She had not expected Qin Hao to be able to refine that strand of demonic qi.
Even refining only a tiny portion of it was astonishing.
“You cannot put it that way.” Qin Hao shook his head and waved the token in his hand. “Without the token you gave me, even if I possessed power capable of reaching the heavens, I would still be helpless without the necessary means.”
“Consider it my return gift. The Hantian Stalactite Milk you gave me before was also extremely precious.”
“Senior sister has already repaid me for the Hantian Stalactite Milk with the time it takes to drink a cup of tea. How could I take advantage of you? Just consider me indebted to you. If you ever need my help in the future, I will do everything in my power, even if it means walking through fire and water.”
Qin Mengya had intended to refuse, but seeing Qin Hao’s serious expression, she merely nodded slightly.
“Although the demonic qi has been refined, the token is still useful. Wear it on your body; it can save your life at a critical moment.”
Upon hearing this, Qin Hao looked at the wooden token in his hand and hung it openly from his waist.
“I will follow your instructions, senior sister.”
Qin Mengya said no more. With a gentle wave of her hand, the door opened. She then moved gracefully out of the room.
Qin Hao followed closely behind, always remaining one step behind Qin Mengya.
Outside the door, Mo Bufan had been waiting for quite some time. When he saw Qin Mengya emerge, a smile appeared on his face, and he was just about to step forward and greet her when he saw Qin Hao following close behind. His expression darkened, but he quickly returned to normal.
When the other disciples saw Qin Hao come out together with Qin Mengya, they were all indignant.
Why was Zhang San so fortunate as to receive such favor from the eldest senior sister, even living and traveling with her?
Seeing the murderous looks everyone directed at him, Qin Hao merely maintained a genial smile, appearing completely harmless.
Go ahead and be jealous. This is something you cannot envy your way into!
Qin Hao then glanced at Mo Bufan. When he saw the waist token at Mo Bufan’s waist, he slightly furrowed his brows.
“Is this the senior brother of the outer sect of the Heavenly Demon Sect?”
“Why does it feel like he has such deep hostility toward me?”
“Could it be…”
Qin Hao glanced at Qin Mengya. With his keen mind, he instantly understood what was happening.
He thought to himself, Qin Mengya was truly popular. She should be something like a goddess within the Heavenly Demon Sect; this could already be seen from Zhang San’s behavior earlier.
“Junior sister Mengya, let us go to Netherworld Mountain to attend the three-sect assembly.”
“Mm.” Qin Mengya gave a soft hum and began walking toward Netherworld Mountain.
Qin Hao had originally been following closely behind, only one step back. However, Mo Bufan cut in, took Qin Hao’s position, and cast him a provocative glance.
Qin Hao merely smiled, slowed his pace, and paid no attention to Mo Bufan’s actions.
His objective was not Qin Mengya, but the Netherworld Mountain Secret Realm!