A Beauty's Invitation

I've finally reached the second level!

Lu Li's heart leapt with joy, and he clenched his fist slightly.

From now on, with the Great Strength Vajra Dharma Incantation empowering him, every punch would unleash a hundred thousand jin of force. He could blast any demon or monster to smithereens!

As he was thinking this, a figure drifted over.

She was a petite young woman in yellow, with a sweet face.

Her cultivation was at the Foundation Establishment Late Stage.

"Junior Brother, congratulations."

The girl in yellow clasped her hands behind her back and smiled sweetly.

Two little dimples appeared at the corners of her mouth.

She looked quite adorable.

"Thank you. May I ask who you are, Senior Sister?" Lu Li asked with a smile.

"This servant is called Spirit Concubine."

The girl in yellow cast him a sidelong glance, her eyes lively, and asked with a smile, "Junior Brother Lu, after all that fighting, you must be tired. Why not come back to my cave and rest for a while? I can make you some noodles."

Hm?

Were women of the Demonic Sect really this forward?

Lu Li was just about to refuse.

Just then, a flash of green light shot over.

A young woman in green appeared, charming and adorable.

It was Green Lotus.

The moment Green Lotus appeared, she exclaimed in surprise, "Oh? Spirit Concubine, what are you doing here? That Senior Brother Lin, who's over a hundred years older than you, has been looking everywhere for you. I heard he got hold of a secret recipe for having children and has already refined a pill. He wants you to take it and bear him a child. Why are you still here, flirting with a junior brother?"

At that, the girl in yellow's face turned deathly pale.

"Hmph."

She gave a soft snort, turned, and drifted away, disappearing beyond the Stone Forest.

Lu Li could tell.

There was bad blood between the two.

"Junior Brother Lu, don't let that woman fool you. She's especially good at becoming the companion of cultivators who are on the verge of death. Then, as soon as they die, she swallows their entire estate."

Green Lotus smiled faintly as she warned him.

"Oh? So Senior Sister Spirit Concubine is a rich widow?"

Lu Li raised an eyebrow.

"That's right." Green Robe smiled meaningfully. "But Spirit Concubine has spent years being forced to keep old men company, and it's warped her mind a little. Quite a few new disciples have already died under her tortures. If you want to be her lover, Junior Brother, you'll probably have to suffer a bit."

"Senior Sister is joking. Thank you for the warning."

Lu Li straightened his expression and cupped his hands in gratitude.

"Hehe, there's no need to be so formal. I could tell you were no ordinary person from the start. I never expected you to have such nerve—to blow up a superior-grade magic artifact without a second thought. Impressive!"

Green Lotus's eyes brimmed with admiration.

At first glance, she looked like a girl gazing at the one she loved, her eyes full of admiration and yearning.

Most people would have been floating on air after such praise.

But Lu Li was on guard. He answered calmly, "You flatter me, Senior Sister. I'm only at the fourth level of Qi Refining. Naturally, I had to give it everything I had to stay alive."

Green Lotus smiled but neither confirmed nor denied it.

Then she beckoned with a delicate hand, drawing over a long stone slab and setting it down beside them.

"Come, let's sit and talk."

Green Lotus gathered up her sleeve, bent down, and carefully wiped the stone slab, smiling as she spoke.

"Senior Sister, you honor me too much!"

Lu Li's expression turned grave.

His guard shot straight to its highest level.

A woman being this humble had to mean she wanted something!

"These little things don't matter. Sit down. There's something important I need to tell you," Green Lotus said with a sweet smile.

"Then... all right."

Lu Li stopped refusing and sat down.

Green Lotus tugged at her skirt and sat beside him, her posture graceful. She looked just like a proper young lady from a noble family.

A delicate, dusky fragrance unique to young women drifted to his nose. It smelled lovely.

Hum.

The next moment, a green light floated above her palm. It was a jade-green, crystal-clear lotus, about the size of her palm.

As the Jade Lotus slowly revolved, it released a circle of green light that enveloped the area, blocking all prying eyes.

"Junior Brother, I'll get straight to the point. Are you... willing to be mine?"

Green Lotus leaned slightly toward him, a strange light shining in her clear eyes.

Good grief.

Were people of the Demonic Sect always this direct?

Lu Li froze for a moment, then flatly refused. "Senior Sister, I already have someone in my heart!"

"Oh? Who?"

Green Lotus's eyes lit up as she asked curiously.

"Uh... that Golden Core True Person who was covered in black gauze just now."

Lu Li felt a little embarrassed.

In truth, he couldn't think of anyone to name on the spot, so he used that alluring married woman as a shield.

"So Junior Brother has designs on Lady Yusha."

Green Lotus nodded in understanding, tilting her head with a smile. "Junior Brother Lu, do you know that Lady Yusha already has a partner?"

"Oh? Is that so? So that Golden Core True Person has a husband. Now I'm even more interested."

A glimmer of excitement appeared in Lu Li's eyes.

"Huh?"

Green Lotus's eyes widened instantly.

Then she burst into laughter, her eyes curving like crescent moons as she stared at Lu Li. "When I first met you, Junior Brother, I thought you seemed rather honest. I never expected you to be a homewrecker! But you've misunderstood me. When I said I wanted you to be mine, I meant that I wanted to win you over and have you join my side."

"Win me over?"

A trace of confusion appeared on Lu Li's face.

"That's right."

Green Lotus drew up her feet and gazed at the gloomy sky over the Ten Thousand Ghost Cave. "Junior Brother, you should know that the Buddhist Sect and the Dao Alliance are preparing to attack Ten Thousand Demon Mountain. The world is about to be thrown into chaos!"

Could something like that really be happening?

Lu Li's spirits lifted.

If the Buddhist Sect and the Dao Alliance joined forces to invade Ten Thousand Demon Mountain, wouldn't he be able to escape right away?

Wait, no!

He was a member of the Demon Sect now. If he ran into those righteous disciples, they'd probably kill him before he had a chance to explain.

At that moment, Green Lotus continued, "This is a crisis for the Demonic Sect, but it's also a golden opportunity!"

"What opportunity?"

Lu Li was curious.

"The opportunity to unite the entire Demonic Sect!"

Green Lotus's clear, bell-like voice carried a hint of excitement.

"What does that have to do with you trying to win me over, Senior Sister?"

Lu Li didn't understand.

"Of course it does! Because I want to become the first female Demon Emperor of the Demonic Sect!" Green Lotus's voice rang clear and strong, a strange light shining in her eyes.

"..."

Lu Li was taken aback by this unexpected declaration. He looked at the young woman before him, somewhat astonished.

She might not have much of a bosom, but she certainly had lofty ambitions!

"So I'm going to win over the geniuses of the Yin Underworld Ghost Sect, then climb higher and higher, step by step, until I reach the very top. I'm going to become the first female Demon Emperor of the Demonic Sect!"

Green Lotus clenched her delicate fists, her voice filled with unshakable resolve.

"Senior Sister, what ambition!"

Lu Li gave her a thumbs-up.

"So, Junior Brother, are you willing to let me win you over? To be mine?"

Green Lotus turned to him, her smiling eyes curved like the willow-shadowed moon over a riverbank.

Those words left plenty to the imagination.

Lu Li hesitated, then frowned. "Senior Sister's ambition is so great. I'm only a small fry with little strength. I'm afraid I can't help you."

The Demonic Sect was a bottomless pit!

If he got dragged into it, there'd be no good ending.

Besides, he had a system cheat. If he kept his head down and cultivated, he'd reach the Golden Core sooner or later. Then he could simply run away. There was no need to get involved in the Demonic Sect's struggles and serve as someone's lackey and hired muscle.

More importantly, he couldn't trust Green Lotus.

That was why Lu Li refused.

"Why be so modest, Junior Brother?"

Green Lotus smiled. "Just as you said, you're blessed by fate. You're sure to achieve great things one day."

"That was just something I made up. You can't take it seriously."

Lu Li shook his head.

"No, it's true. Most people might not find a single Spirit Ghost in ten years, but you found two in less than a month. If that isn't being blessed by fate, what is? You're a man of great fortune!"

Green Lotus gazed steadily at Lu Li, a trace of longing in her eyes.

She looked as if she were gazing at a precious jade treasure.

"It was only luck."

Lu Li refused again.

Green Lotus seemed to have expected this. Smiling, she drew a Glazed Medicine Bottle from her sleeve. "Junior Brother, there's a Blood Poria Pill in here. Once you take it, it'll raise you by one cultivation level, with no risks or side effects. If you agree, the pill is yours."

"And if I really do become the first female Demon Emperor of the Demonic Sect one day, you'll be the man behind the First Under Heaven female Demon Emperor!"