Towards The Peak Layer

As she stewed on her thoughts, Elder Jing's transmission entered Xie Ya's mind.

'Elder Xie...I'm not sure...could this perhaps be a senior with a weird cultivation art that de-ages him and gives him tremendous combat prowess?'

'Could this mysterious expert be suppressing his cultivation?' The ninth demon prince sounded completely unsure in his guesses.

Xie Ya didn't have an answer for either of their guesses. But she quickly realizes there was no time to be questioning or confused.

A faint stirring was prickling her mind and soul. This appeared to be an opportunity of a lifetime!

'You two just don't say anything. You both lack more crass than me. I'll do the talking.' Xie Ya directly ordered.

Though they felt a little bit irked, neither Elder Jing nor the ninth demon prince disagreed.

With that, Xie Ya took the initiative to greet Lin Xiang first. She clasped her fist with a grateful nod. "Fellow brother certainly is amazing! We simply didn't even have the chance to run on our own. Who knows what could've happened? Our asses were saved, thanks to you. Please, fellow brother!"

A spatial ring had appeared in Xie Ya's hand. Her smile was captivatingly beautiful, brighter than the combined magical forces of fire-ice.

She tossed over the spatial ring, giving a genuine laugh. "Accept our thanks, fellow brother. And you don't have to worry about any orthodox or righteous practices. Our Blood Demon Sect simply respects powerful geniuses like yourself. We really don't have the time or care to consider those stuffy, stiff practices. This is a simple token of our appreciation!"

Neither did Lin Xiang consider himself to orthodox or righteous practices. Nor did he embrace demonic practices. He simply had his own Dao path.

But still, with his Heavenly Origin soul, he could tell that Xie Ya, Elder Jing, and the ninth demon prince just wanted to show their respect from the bottom of their hearts.

Most demonic sects, like theirs, place a higher value on suppressive strength than the teaching of ancestors or the way one behaves themselves.

Thus, Lin Xiang calmly accepted the spatial ring with a smile. "It really was nothing to me. Though I have to wonder, with you three being from the Blood Demon Sect, it's a bit unusual to appear here on Polaris Mountain."

"Eh." Xie Ya causally shrugged, already feeling calmer after Lin Xiang accepted the spatial ring. "The harsher the environment, the better for us. But of course, the harsh environment can't be too cruel, otherwise, it'll be a waste of training. This Polaris Mountain fit extreme, but not too extreme, where we have no opes in surviving."

Lin Xiang curiously curled his brows. "And facing a half-step Heavenly Ruler beast didn't change your mind?"

The Blood Demon sect members traded glances. A determined smile quickly filled their faces.

Turning back over, Xie Ya confidently stated, "Dangerous, to be sure. But, if we all paid a heavy price, it would've been possible for us to escape. And even when paying a price, we'll simply cultivate harder to overshadow the cost we made."

Amusement danced in Lin Xiang's eyes. These fellows really didn't care at all about admitting loss and coming back even stronger. The average cultivator is would have some hesitation outright admitting this.

"I see. That's the kind of mindset I value more than others." As Lin Xiang spoke, he began walking back up the mountain path. "Well then, I'm about to head up to the peak of this mountain. Your plans now? Any more training?"

At this point, Xie Ya, Elder Jing, and the ninth demon prince all pasued for a moment. Traces of worries flashed within their eyes.

With a more serious expression, Xie Ya said, "Fellow brother, up ahead may not be so predictable...you see, there are other sects on a similar level of power as us, higher up. These groups don't have superior cultivation bases, but their arts are quite troublesome to deal with. Moreover...one of those groups, in particular, has overt problems with us. Overt, as in, they would want to murder us on sight without any regard."

"Is that right? A more streamlined righteous sect, I presume?" Lin Xiang made an instant guess. Such things were almost too predictable for him.

As evident when Xie Ya, Elder Jing, and the ninth demon all let out weary sighs.

"What can I say? Relations have always been tense since our sect heavily delves into demonic practices. Only a few are indifferent or are genuine allies with us. Sky Holy City has an equal amount of opportunities and dangers for any demonic practices sects."

Shaking her head, a thought soon emerged in Xie Ya's mind. Her expression returned to fiercely determined. No hesitation or wavering made her tone quiver in the slightest. "Still, if fellow brother is insisting on heading up the path, we should travel together! Of course, we won't be foolish enough to be a burden to you or expect you to wipe our ass. We'll deal with our own personal problems and lend whatever assistance fellow brother needs."

Instead of responding, Lin Xiang stopped and gave those from the Blood Demon Sect a thorough look over.

When concerning relations between righteous or demonic practices, Lin Xiang never put too much thought into seeing which side is better or anything concerning their morals. He much rather focuses on his own Dao path and desires.

But no matter who it is, overbearing cultivation masters on either side irked Lin Xiang. Those who believe they can force their ideals and values onto others because they wholeheartedly believed it's the correct path to take.

Those kinds of situations can breed righteous or demonic sects where those cultivation masters behave with an overbearing, oppressive force that makes it impossible for anyone lower to act against.

Those actions never did sit right with Lin Xiang. Thus, he causally nodded at Xie Ya, saying, "Since you're so insistent, then come on. With how you speak of the others, I'm quite curious to see if they fit the bill."

He then promptly walked back on the path in his same unbreakable, calm stride.

Truthfully, it really isn't as if Lin Xiang wants to seek out troubles from the top powerhouses in the world. But in order to reclaim everything and go beyond his past self, he knows he absolutely couldn't slouch off for even a second.

The longer he waits, the bigger the unpredictability of the future!

This is why Lin Xiang didn't even consider taking it slow in this city. His new grand future wouldn't wait simply by for him.

At this time, Xie Ya traded a brief glance back to Elder Jing and the ninth demon prince. She calmly asked, 'Do you feel wary about going with him? I wouldn't put it past either of you. He still is an unknown none of us can completely trust.'

Both Elder Jing and the ninth demon prince simply sighed. Elder Jin said back, 'And just go back to the sect without achieving anything? Like you said, better to push ourselves even at extreme risks and danger. Better opportunities for breakthroughs this way.'

'Mn. I agree. That expert at least seems to have an inclination toward demonic practices...hm? What is he...?' As the ninth demon prince spoke, he suddenly noticed Lin Xiang abruptly stopping.

He, Elder Jing, and Xie Ya all looked over as Lin Xiang turned around and slowly said, "That's right. You don't have to keep calling me fellow brother. Just Lin Xiang would suffice. Now, come on. Are you going to come with me or not?"

That jolted Xie Ya, Elder Jing, and the ninth demon prince out of their dazed stupors. They hurriedly walk forward while Xie Ya said, "Coming right along! Brother Lin, you won't regret taking us along."

With a slight hum of agreement, Lin Xiang continued forward, the Demon Sect members trailing right behind him.

Their walk forward was casual, but not to a foolish degree. Nobody completely let down their guard. They had already met a half-step Heavenly Ruler beast. Another one could pop out at any moment.

Thus, Xie Ya, Elder Jing, and the ninth demon prince weren't too chatty with Lin Xiang. None of them wants to be just added burdens to him.

Still, Xie Ya did manage to strike up another conversation a few minutes into their walk. She smiled with honest intention, asking, "Brother Lin? Could you possibly be from a clan or family in Sky Holy City? Given the sheer size of that place, there are always unknown experts with just terrifying prowess lurking. I've had the unfortunate encounter of running into a few of them with, well, unruly attitudes."

Lin Xiang lightly chuckled. "I'm not from around that city. I had mainly spent my time in this city, Lin Family Manor, before deciding it was time to go. Rest assured, I have a more reasonable attitude than most others."

"That's a relief to hear." Xie Ya let out a genuinely relaxed sigh. "Our demon practices allow for so much more freedom, but so many of them have this brazen attitude towards life. Some of them make me wish I was dealing with those almighty nobles. At least they are easier to read than some of these wild folks."

Hearing that honestly piqued Lin Xiang's intrigue a bit.