"Who did I think it was? Fellow Daoist Changsun De, what brings you here? You're a senior at the Six-Unity Realm, so you shouldn't have to sneak around behind a junior like this, should you? What if you scared me into having some kind of problem? What would you do then?" From the voice alone, I should have remembered who he was. But he had arrived so suddenly that disbelief welled up in me.
Wasn't this old thing supposed to be arranging his disciples at Azure Heaven Mountain? How had he found the time—and the scheming—to come looking for me?
"Putting everything else aside, you've used it for so long and killed so many Earth Immortals. Isn't it time you returned the Demon-Sealing Stone?" Changsun De stood gloomily behind me, but did not come any closer.
"Heh. Do you know how many heavenly tribulations the Ancestral Dragon has devoured lately? Are you trying to force it out again? Or do all the Earth Immortals under your command think they can escape the siege of marrow-devouring maggots?" I spoke coldly. The old fellow wasn't very bold; a little scare would be enough to make him freeze.
"Fellow Daoist Xia, do you really think the same trick will work twice?" Changsun De's face darkened, but he soon continued, "This old Daoist has no intention of bullying you. I'm merely curious about what's below. I know the things beneath are connected to you. Why don't you take me down there for a look?"
Whenever he had the chance, Changsun De seized me and asked about the Demon-Sealing Stone. Yet for the moment, I had him shackled by all sorts of methods, which was truly frustrating for him. Since coaxing and deceiving no longer worked, he had simply washed his hands of the whole