Purple Mansion Continent Elders Lead the Way in "Breaking the Law"? This Slap Echoes Loudly!

Three days later.

Outside Mount Sumeru, it was still deathly still, the cold wind rolling gravel, making it seem as though it had truly been isolated.

The spies sent by East King Duke lurked in the shadows, observing for a long time. Seeing not even a ghost, they returned satisfied to report that the Western Lands had become a dead zone.

But in secret, the underground world of the Primordial World was already seething with undercurrents.

At this time, the Dragon-Phoenix Calamity had only just passed, and the Primordial World was thick with dense Innate Sha Qi.

For cultivators, this Sha Qi was like a bone-deep curse. The higher one's cultivation, the more Sha Qi they inhaled, and the greater the risk of qi deviation.

Even a Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal had to go into seclusion for years, spending vast amounts of time polishing their Dao Heart and expelling Sha Qi. One misstep meant death and dissolution.

It was like a slow, terminal illness hanging over everyone's head.

And the [Merit Water] introduced by the Western Lands hit that pain point dead-on with its slogan—it was practically a lifeline!

Purify Sha Qi? Eliminate heart demons?

If this stuff was real, offending a mere figurehead like East King Duke was nothing. Even if it meant offending the Heavenly Emperor himself, they'd still buy it! After all, one's own life came first!

Finally.

A small Loose Cultivator in a tattered black robe, wrapped up tight with only a pair of shifty, rat-like eyes showing (in truth, a disguised Golden Immortal powerhouse), sneaked along the earth veins and crept to the foot of Mount Sumeru.

"Th-That... is that water really real?"

His voice was pressed so low he feared being overheard, his eyes darting everywhere. "I've got some ten-thousand-year Cold Iron here, and a few Ice Soul Grasses dug from the depths of the North Sea. Can I trade for a bottle?"

Liuguang Daoist, who was minding the gate, didn't even lift his eyelids. Following Taiyuan's instructions, he tossed over a small jade bottle.

"Try before you buy, fair and square. If it doesn't work, then your fate is sealed."

The Loose Cultivator tremblingly uncorked the bottle. Just one sniff of the crisp, clear aura—and the black miasma that had plagued him for years, tormenting him endlessly, instantly faded a trace. His once restless Dao Heart calmed.

"Divine medicine! Divine medicine!"

The Loose Cultivator nearly knelt in excitement. This effect was better than a century in seclusion!

Without a second word, he dumped out his entire storage pouch, clattering a pile of treasures onto the ground.

"Trade! Trade it all! Got more? I've got friends who want some too!"

With the first brave soul to take the plunge, no matter how careful he was, the news spread like wildfire.

In less than half a day.

The once desolate foot of Mount Sumeru suddenly swarmed with countless "passing" cultivators.

Some disguised themselves as mortal woodcutters, others used illusion techniques to mask their faces as beasts, and a few even tunneled in from underground.

In short, one word—buy!

East King Duke's Prohibition Order? At this moment, it was nothing but scrap paper.

"Give me ten bottles! I've got North Sea Black Ice! I risked my life stealing it from right under Kunpeng's nose!"

"I want a hundred bottles! Here's South Bright Lihuo Essence! Fresh out of the forge!"

"Don't push! I was here first! This three-legged Golden Toad hatchling is yours—just trade me a bucket of that water! I need to take it back to extend my ancestor's life!"

The scene spiraled out of control, even sparking duels over who got to buy first.

Liuguang Daoist and Jieyin and Zhunti were run off their feet, keeping order on one side and raking in payments on the other.

And right in the middle of this frantic buying frenzy.

An old man in an extremely ornate purple Daoist robe—clearly wealthy and noble—but wearing a jarring, ferocious ghost-face mask, was shoving his way forward.

As he pushed, he cursed in a slightly authoritative voice: "Stop shoving! I am... ahem, I'm in urgent need! Move aside! Move aside!"

After much struggle, he finally reached the stall.

The old man furtively glanced left and right, making sure no one was watching, then pulled a storage pouch embroidered with golden cloud patterns from his robe. Lowering his voice to Zhunti, who was collecting payments, he said:

"Hey there, give me two buckets of that special edition. This is top-grade Pure Yang Jade, excellent quality, absolute hard currency."

Zhunti took the storage pouch, swept his divine sense over it, and his eyes suddenly narrowed. The smirk on his lips widened instantly.

Top-grade Pure Yang Jade?

This kind of supreme Yang-attributed spiritual material, warm and lustrous like sunlight, infused with Pure Yang Qi, came from only one place in all the Primordial World—Purple Mansion Continent.

And though this old man had used secret techniques to mask his aura, that unmistakable scent of Pure Yang cultivation techniques—only acquired from long-term bathing in a Pure Yang grand formation—was far too familiar.

Zhunti's eyes spun, and he was overjoyed inside: What a catch, a face begging to be slapped, why not take the shot?

"Oh my!"

Zhunti suddenly bellowed at a volume that carried across the entire crowd, so loud it made the old man flinch and nearly drop his storage pouch.

"Isn't this the famed Enforcement Elder of Purple Mansion Continent, Daoist Pure Yang Zi?"

Whoosh!

That single shout hit like a paralysis curse.

The noisy crowd around them instantly fell silent, so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

All eyes—whether of those buying medicine or those just watching the commotion—snapped toward the old man wearing the ghost-face mask.

The old man went rigid, as if struck by lightning, terror flooding the eyes beneath the mask.

"You... you've mistaken me for someone else! This old man is but a mountain wild Loose Cultivator..."

Flustered, he tried to deny it, turning to flee, not even bothering to take the bag of priceless Pure Yang Jade.

"No mistake! I'd recognize that aura even if it turned to ash!"

Zhunti wasn't about to let such a golden chance to slap faces slip by. His form flickered, blocking the old man's path, and he grabbed the man's sleeve with blazing enthusiasm, like he'd found a long-lost relative.

"Daoist friend, this Pure Yang Jade of yours is such fine quality—where else could it come from but the core mines of Purple Mansion Continent?"

"What's this? Didn't that East King Duke issue the strictest Prohibition Order, saying anyone who buys our goods deserves death?"

"As an enforcement elder of Purple Mansion Continent, you're usually the most impartial and iron-faced. How come you're leading the charge to patronize our shop today? Could it be... that East King Duke himself has a guilty conscience and was too embarrassed to come, so he sent you to buy on his behalf?"

This barrage of questions was like a knife to the heart, every word cutting deep.

The surrounding Loose Cultivators froze for a moment, then, as realization dawned, burst into roaring laughter.

"Hahaha! The enforcement elder breaks the law himself!"

"I'm dying of laughter! Turns out that East King Duke's ban was only meant to screw over us nobodies!"

"Looks like even the folks from Purple Mansion Continent don't buy their own crap—why should we be scared?"

Pure Yang Zi was now overwhelmed with shame and fury. Beneath that mask, his old face was probably red enough to drip blood. He felt like he'd been stripped naked and put on display in a crowd.

"You brat! Going too far!"

He roared, yanking himself free of Zhunti's grip. He didn't even bother with the bag of top-grade Pure Yang Jade. Covering his face, he transformed into a streak of Pure Yang Escape Light and fled in disgrace, moving so fast he seemed to be burning his own essence blood.

He didn't dare leave behind even a harsh word, afraid that one more sentence would have his whole dirty laundry aired out.

That flight sealed his identity for good, and it also stomped the so-called "Head of Male Immortals" face of East King Duke deep into the mud, grinding it underfoot.

"Tch, no spine."

Zhunti weighed the heavy storage pouch in his hand, tossed it into the warehouse with satisfaction, and spat in the direction the old man had fled.

"Gifting me a bag of treasures—these Purple Mansion Continent folks sure are generous. Come again anytime!"

Inside the Bamboo Hut.

Taiyuan watched the scene through the window, laughing so hard he nearly fell off his Carefree Chair.

He'd expected this to happen, but not with such perfect effect.

That Pure Yang Zi—he wouldn't have an easy time of it back home either.

"Dagu... no, Liuguang."

Taiyuan waved a hand, his smile fading as his gaze turned through the window toward the eastern sea, a chill flickering in his eyes.

"Go. Write another letter to East King Duke."

"Ask him—does he still want that elder, Pure Yang Zi, or not?"

"If he's too embarrassed to keep him, or plans to clean house, then give him to me. I just expanded my outhouse, and I'm short a man of status and rank to sweep the latrine. That Pure Yang aura of his is perfect for sterilization and deodorizing—it'll even get rid of the stink in our Western Lands' privy."

"Tell him, pay is daily, meals included."

Liuguang Daoist shuddered at the words, barely suppressing a grin, then eagerly ground ink and lifted his brush.

If this letter was sent...

East King Duke would probably cough up three pints of blood in rage and fall straight into qi deviation, wouldn't he?

This wasn't a letter.

This was a death warrant!