Hongjun: My Damn Mental State Has Collapsed!

"Valley Master! Valley Master! We found someone acting suspiciously!"

"It's this white-haired old man, sneaking around like a thief."

"Following your instructions, we knocked him out and brought him here."

"..."

Qin Xi set down his bowl and chopsticks, then turned his gaze toward them.

Because the Heavenly Dao Dojo stood at the border between the Dragon Clan and Phoenix Clan territories, Monster Clan members often wandered in. He had practically grown used to it. As long as they bore no ill intent, he would send them back.

If they had malicious intentions, they generally would not leave alive.

They either became Qin Xi's meal or nourishment for this land.

"Withdraw."

"Yes."

The two Taiyi Golden Immortal Jade Rabbits respectfully retreated.

In their hearts, the Valley Master's orders were absolute. No one could replace him, not even a Quasi-Sage powerhouse.

Splash—

Yu Xue, who stood nearby, seemed to understand at once.

She formed a ball of water with her bare hands and hurled it at the unconscious Hongjun's face.

With a shudder, Hongjun rose groggily from the ground, the back of his head still throbbing faintly. His bewildered gaze swept over his surroundings: a Great Luo Golden Immortal Jade Rabbit, a Heaven Immortal Dragon Girl.

Yang Mei, the Chaos Demon God of space; the incarnation of the Sun Star; and a being whose cultivation he could not see through at all!

Wait! Why was the incarnation of the Sun Star lying so affectionately in that being's arms? And the master of this valley did not seem to be Yang Mei, but rather this being whose origins he could not discern?!

A terrifying thought instantly arose in Hongjun's mind.

"Introduce yourself."

"This humble Daoist is—"

"I'm not interested in your name. I only want to know why you came here."

Qin Xi interrupted Hongjun and said.

Over the past few decades, if not ten thousand, then at least eight thousand Monster Clan members had accidentally entered the Heavenly Dao Dojo.

Most of them were nobodies, and Qin Xi had no interest in remembering every one of their names. Thus, when questioning them, he only asked why they had come.

If they had wandered in by accident, like Little Dragon Girl Ao Xin had.

Qin Xi was not someone who enjoyed slaughter, so he would generally let them go.

But if they had come with malicious intent, then they could not blame him for being ruthless.

"This humble Daoist came for her."

Hongjun looked toward the incarnation of the Sun Star as he spoke.

If the Sun Star had not abandoned her post without permission, he would not have personally come all this way.

"Hm?"

Qin Xi frowned.

From Flame Spirit's words, he had learned that there was a "Black-Hearted Contractor" who had been exploiting her labor and forcing her to work.

Moreover, even Ao Xin of the Dragon Clan was deeply wary of that Primordial Great Expert.

He had not expected that the Black-Hearted Contractor would come knocking so soon. He even dared to try and seize Ao Xin right before Qin Xi's eyes. He truly did not know the meaning of death.

In the outside world, Great Luo Golden Immortals and Quasi-Sage experts might be invincible.

But in the Heavenly Dao Dojo, dragons had to coil and tigers had to crouch. Otherwise, they could only die and have their Dao dissipate.

"She bears grave responsibilities and cannot abandon her post."

"Why? Flame Spirit is still a child."

"I..."

Hongjun was left speechless.

This being of unknown origins had made Yang Mei, the Chaos Demon God of space, yield, and had made the incarnation of the Sun Star so intimate with him.

He had to be a Primordial Great Expert who had lived in seclusion for many years. He might even be a Chaos Demon God who had survived to this day.

Was the Sun Star a child...

Judging by her transformed appearance, she indeed did not seem very old.

But aside from beings who had lived from the age of Chaos until now, it seemed no one was older than the Sun Star.

"Leave now, and I'll spare your life."

"Go back and tell your master that I will protect Flame Spirit no matter what. Whoever comes, it will make no difference."

"Do you understand?"

"..."

Qin Xi spoke in a deep voice.

His deep black eyes shimmered with an elusive Hongmeng hue.

An unprecedented sense of danger spread throughout Hongjun's body. Before this being whose origins he did not know, he might die horribly, perhaps without even the ability to fight back.

Could he really take the incarnation of the Sun Star away from this reclusive expert?

For a moment, Hongjun's mental state nearly collapsed.

He had thought Quasi-Sage experts were already the pinnacle of combat power in this era. Yet this valley had clearly shattered his understanding. First, his cultivation had been suppressed; then a whole group of Taiyi Golden Immortal Jade Rabbits had knocked him unconscious.

And after reaching the center of the valley, he had encountered two Big Bosses from the age of Chaos.

Each of them possessed the strength to beat him senseless.