After the Meal, the Truth Came Out

"Strange, could it be that another Devil Cultivator is performing rituals in Huai'an Village?" The crowd gathered around the withered old man, completely baffled.

The First Elder coughed quietly, sending a telepathic message to Lu Yang and Tao Yaoye.

"I know some information about Huai'an Village. According to the Immortal Cult leader, he set up a slaughterhouse in Huai'an Village, Liangzhou, and disguised puppets as villagers."

Dai Bufan was managing the mission hall and intelligence on behalf of his master; the actual manager was the Grand Elder.

Although the Grand Elder liked to build his own tomb, he wasn't completely indifferent to everything. He knew about what happened in the Mission Hall and the information Dai Bufan possessed, including the confession of the Immortal Cult Leader.

Lu Yang: "..."

Tao Yaoye: "..."

Elder, you knew about the situation in Huai'an Village all along, and you've been watching us running around doing all this?

The elder thought to himself, "I've been looking for the most eye-catching way to make my entrance. How am I supposed to find a chance to shine if you don't come to Huai'an Village?"

The Grand Elder was still thinking that Vice Sect Leader Shi was going to attack Lu Yang and Tao Yaoye, but at the critical moment, he appeared while reciting a poem and saved the two.

It's a pity I never got the chance.

The withered old man still gave them face.

The information the Grand Elder knows cannot be shared with Vice Leader Shi. This is not information that the Heavenly Court Sect should possess, as it might arouse Vice Leader Shi's suspicion about their identities.

"Well, having this ancient cultivator is a gain, so this trip wasn't a complete failure," Lu Yang said, indicating that there was no need to stay in Huai'an Village any longer.

"Master Shi contributed significantly to this process; how about you handle this person?"

Vice Leader Shi couldn't believe his ears. The withered old man, who was clearly captured by the Netherworld King, was being given to him.

"This... this isn't appropriate, is it?"

Lu Yang chuckled, hands behind his back, "What's wrong with that? Our two sects are partners, so consider this a small gift to mark our cooperation. Your Nine Nether Sect has far more intelligence than we do, so the information you receive from this young man will be far more useful than what our Heavenly Court Sect receives."

Vice Master Shi nodded secretly. Indeed, their Nine Nether Sect also possessed information on other ancient cultivators. Combined with the information from the withered old man, they could further understand the actions of the ancient cultivators.

Information about ancient cultivators is of utmost importance; it might lead to the discovery of their treasure troves and enrich their coffers.

The Heavenly Court Sect's indifferent attitude towards ancient cultivators shows that they don't really care about them at all.

The Heavenly Court Sect must possess terrifying depth and power.

Was Young Master Lu's move an attempt to curry favor with the Nine Nether Sect, or a deliberate show of force?

Vice Leader Shi couldn't figure out Lu Yang's attitude, but he felt that the other party was indeed worthy of being the young leader of the Heavenly Court Sect, and his profound thoughts were beyond what his peers could match.

Vice Leader Shi understood the situation and clasped his hands in thanks, saying, "In that case, thank you very much."

The Grand Elder put away the brick-like object and handed the withered old man to Vice Master Shi.

"Damn it! This perfectly good pillow is being used as a pillow!" The Immortal Fairy was indignant. She could clearly see that the Grand Elder was holding her own celestial treasure, the Yellow Millet Pillow.

These are spoils of war seized by the Ask Dao Sect when Master Liu and Master Gao, who run a barbecue restaurant, invaded the Ask Dao Sect. They can force people into a state of sleep.

"Farewell!" Vice Sect Leader Shi took out a flying boat, sealed the withered old man's cultivation, threw him onto the boat, and sailed away.

The elder took out a traditional Chinese ink painting of a waterfall from his sleeve. The painting depicted a waterfall cascading down, and although there was no sound in the painting, Lu Yang and Tao Yaoye seemed to hear sounds upon seeing it.

The First Elder laughed and said, "This is Law Treasure I often use when traveling, the 'High Mountains and Flowing Water' painting. It contains a universe within it, a unique grotto-heaven. I asked my fourth junior brother to paint it for me."

Tao Yaoye hesitated; she had never seen such Law Treasure before and didn't know how to use it.

"Should we jump in?" Lu Yang remembered that he had seen Ji Hongwen, the eldest disciple of the Fourth Elder, use a similar method.

Indeed.

The Grand Elder jumped into the painting, and Lu Yang and Tao Yaoye followed suit, jumping in as well.

As soon as they jumped in, they heard the rushing sound of the waterfall. When they looked up, they found themselves standing next to the waterfall, which was cascading down from the sky, creating countless splashes of water.

The two squatted down to observe the vegetation on the bank. The vegetation was lush and green, with water droplets on the leaves, making it impossible to tell if it was real or not.

Is this a painting, or does it contain a smaller world within it?

Seeing the two's shock, the Grand Elder was overjoyed and showed no intention of answering them. He manipulated the scroll and flew towards the Ask Dao Sect.

"Huh, it's the Way of Painting? I didn't expect that the practitioners of the Way of Painting in this world are quite capable." The Immortal Fairy was slightly surprised. Sages, Confucianism and Daoism have existed since ancient times, and there were many great practitioners who studied the Way of Painting in High Antiquity times.

"Are these plants, trees, mountains, and water features real or fake?" Lu Yang asked.

"It's fake, but it's already very close to the real thing. If you infuse it with the spirit of plants and trees, it will be real. This kind of skill was extremely rare even in our time."

"Can the fairy paint Daoism?"

The immortal fairy waved her hand, showing an indifferent expression. "That's trivial, something only poor, pedantic scholars would use. I, this immortal, don't even bother learning such things."

The Grand Elder, as if recalling something, turned his head and asked, "Speaking of the Dao of Painting, I once read a record in an ancient book. In High Antiquity, there were two immortals, one a demon immortal and the other a wood immortal. The demon immortal was imprisoned in a painting by the wood immortal, and the two immortals fought fiercely. The immortal light shone brightly, shocking the universe. If it weren't for the intervention of the ancestors of the Dragon and Phoenix clans, who knows how many stars would have been shattered. Several ancient books record this to varying degrees."

"Lu Yang, you're familiar with High Antiquity history, have you heard of this?"

Lu Yang shook his head; this was the first time he had heard of it.

Are the Demon Immortal and the Wood Immortal the Qilin Immortal and the Time Immortal?

It's time to use cheat codes.

"Fairy, have you heard about this?"

The Immortal Fairy thought for a moment, then suddenly realized. "I remember now! Once, after the Time Immortal finished eating my meal, he spoke the truth and mentioned this matter!"

"You've come to the right person; if you ask anyone else, they really wouldn't know!"

"... Putting everything else aside, why did the Immortal of Time speak the truth after eating your meal?"

The Immortal Fairy found it strange that Lu Yang would ask such a question, and said matter-of-factly, "Isn't this a very common thing? People get sleepy after eating and drinking their fill. Immortal Ying Tian and Immortal Sui Yue often feel dizzy after eating my food, and they slam their heads on the table, muttering to themselves. When you ask them anything at this time, they will say it, but they don't remember what they said afterward."

"Please continue."

The Immortal Fairy continued, "I have no interest in learning the Way of Painting, but the Time Immortal is quite interested in it and has some skill. Even I find it hard to distinguish his paintings from the real thing, after all, he is a spirit of the Jianmu tree, standing at the pinnacle of plant spirits, and naturally has a natural affinity for paper."

The second update will be around 11:30 PM.