"Puff!"
Blood splattered from Lin Zhujie's chest. The Demon Ancestor's finger was filled with surging demonic energy, instantly engulfing Lin Zhujie's entire body. Even though Lin Zhujie was a dignified Twelve-Realm Great Sword Immortal, he had no room to resist. The pupils of his eyes contracted violently as a vital life thread began to be refined by the demon race.
"Great Demon Ancestor..."
Lin Zhujie endured the searing pain, his gaze fixed on the Demon Ancestor's eyes, and said softly, "In the past, Lin Zhujie was fortunate enough to be appreciated by the Great Demon Ancestor, to be able to enter the Ancestral Mountain Council Pavilion and cultivate in the Ancestral Mountain Blessed Land. Lin Zhujie will never forget this in this life. It's just that... the conflict between the human and demon races, Lin Zhujie privately believes there is no need for it, nor should there be. Lin Zhujie has also drawn his sword against human cultivators, but only unwilling to kill them... Now, the Great Demon Ancestor wishes to take my life, and Lin Zhujie will never resent it. It's just that I'm sorry, I've ultimately disappointed the Great Demon Ancestor..."
"..."
The Demon Ancestor's arm trembled slightly. Looking at Lin Zhujie, he seemed to recall the scene of him leading that young boy in green robes up the mountain back then. The boy's eyes were filled with innocence, devoid of any demonic energy, calling him "Grandfather Demon Ancestor" over and over. In those days, the Demon Ancestor had seen Lin Zhujie's talent and brought him up the mountain to cultivate. However, Lin Zhujie was born close to the Dao, inherently distinguishing between good and evil, which led to increasing divergences with him. But was he truly in the wrong?
At this moment, the Demon Ancestor's heart softened.
He slowly withdrew his finger, pulling a vital life thread from Lin Zhujie. As the cyan thread was extracted, the Demon Ancestor directly crushed it. Lin Zhujie cried out in agony and stumbled back, instantly falling from the peak of the Twelve-Realm to the early stage of the Twelve-Realm. His cultivation was precarious, almost dropping to the Eleventh-Realm.
"You may go."
The Demon Ancestor looked at Lin Zhujie and said, "From now on, you are forbidden to step foot in the Ancestral Mountain. From this day forth, you, Lin Zhujie, are expunged from the Demon Realm. Should we meet again, we shall be enemies. Any demon cultivator may kill Lin Zhujie, and naturally, you, Lin Zhujie, may wield your sword and kill any demon. If you wish to uphold that so-called righteousness, then go uphold it. From this day forward, all grudges between the Demon Realm and you are severed!"
"..."
Lin Zhujie spat out blood, slowly retreated several steps, knelt before the Demon Ancestor, kowtowed three times, then turned and left.
...
"Great Demon Ancestor..."
Watching Lin Zhujie's retreating figure, Feng Quan stood up, his brow furrowed. "Lin Zhujie, he actually..."
"That's enough."
The Demon Ancestor glanced at Feng Quan and said, "Feng Quan, you need not say more. In truth, I know that Lin Zhujie has always been the kindest demon in the Ancestral Mountain. I know you have a good relationship with Lin Zhujie, but there's no need to speak for him. If it weren't for Lin Zhujie's delay at the Eighteen-Mile Sword Shop, he would have gone to cover Qingqiu much earlier, and perhaps Qingqiu wouldn't have been injured, nor would she have died in the end. This matter ends here. Leaving him alive is the greatest mercy I could show him. Lin Zhujie now has no connection whatsoever with the Ancestral Mountain."
"Yes."
Feng Quan nodded.
On the mountainside.
The cave dwellings of the Upper Five Realms Great Demons on the Ancestral Mountain were connected, with abundant spiritual energy.
Lin Zhujie, clad in a cyan vine-colored long robe, a sword on his back and blood still at the corner of his mouth, looked troubled. He didn't want to leave the Ancestral Mountain; after all, it was his home, the place where he grew up. If someone had interceded for him, perhaps the Demon Ancestor's anger would have subsided, and the matter could have been resolved peacefully.
"Knock, knock!"
He knocked on the door of a cave dwelling. "Brother Huanzi, are you home? It's your sworn brother Lin Zhujie. Want to have a drink together? I have some exquisite Purple Bamboo Wine I stole from the human world's Dongting Lake."
Inside the cave dwelling, there was silence.
Lin Zhujie shook his head. They say a person leaves and the tea grows cold, but this person hadn't even left yet, and the tea had already gone cold? He walked to another cave dwelling and knocked. "Younger brother Li Huamao, I am your brother Lin Zhujie, born from the same parents yet not! Want to go fishing together? I heard the fish in the Willow River are big and fat, mostly silver carp, truly giants!"
There was no answer from inside the cave dwelling, but Lin Zhujie pricked up his ears and faintly heard the younger brother Li Huamao speaking in a hushed voice, instructing his disciples not to make a sound.
Alas, the fickleness of human relationships, the coldness of the world.
Lin Zhujie sighed and went to knock again. "Younger brother Jinxiian, it's your elder brother Lin Zhujie. Want to go fishing together?"
The cave dwelling was silent.
"Alas, I almost forgot, you little brat are bait yourself, easily suppressed by the might of giants. Never mind, we'll talk next time."
He staggered, knocking on one cave dwelling after another. Soon, he had knocked on all the cave dwellings of the Upper Five Realms Great Demons on the Ancestral Mountain's mountainside, but none opened. Lin Zhujie was dejected and disappointed.
...
"..."
In the Ancestral Mountain Council Pavilion, a group of Great Demons were observing Lin Zhujie's movements. Yu Zhi frowned and said, "Does this scoundrel Lin Zhujie still have any shame? Who did he learn this familiarity from?"
Nan Qingfeng sighed helplessly, "Isn't he always like this? The most kind-hearted in the Ancestral Mountain, the most familiar with everyone, the most shameless, the most popular – it has always been Lin Zhujie."
The corners of the Demon Ancestor's mouth twitched. He couldn't bear to watch any longer and transformed into a silhouette, returning to his cave dwelling to go into seclusion.
"Hmph!"
Lu Hai frowned and said, "This guy has already been excommunicated by the Demon Ancestor. He's no longer one of us from the Ancestral Mountain. How dare he be so presumptuous and reckless? Is he looking for death? Do we truly have no one in the demon race? If I'm truly angered, I'll take his life, Lu Hai."
"???"
Yu Zhi's beautiful eyes looked at Lu Hai, and she scoffed, "Lord Lu Hai has quite the temper! You dare to kill someone whose life the Demon Ancestor has ordered spared? When will you kill me, Yu Zhi, if we disagree?"
Lu Hai's expression turned ugly. "I... I didn't mean it that way."
"Forget it."
Nan Qingfeng said, "Lin Zhujie was raised by the Demon Ancestor. Although he delayed the battle, he has never done anything detrimental to the Demon Realm. The Demon Ancestor doesn't wish to kill him, so we shouldn't overstep our bounds."
"Disperse."
Yu Zhi stood up. "Everyone, go cultivate and await the next plan."
"Yes, Lady Yu Zhi!"
...
"Brother Nian Kui!"
Lin Zhujie knocked on another cave dwelling door. "It's your elder brother Lin Zhujie! I'm about to leave the Ancestral Mountain for a long journey. Come out for a farewell drink?"
Inside the cave dwelling, there was silence.
Lin Zhujie suddenly slapped his forehead. "Damn it, I almost forgot, that brute was chopped up and made into soup by Lin Zhao at the Snow Domain Celestial Lake long ago..."
He continued to wander aimlessly until sunset, knocking on every major cave dwelling on and around the Ancestral Mountain. However, no one was willing to acknowledge Lin Zhujie, and those people dared not acknowledge him.
"When one is poor, one's ambitions shrink; when a horse is thin, its hair grows long!"
Lin Zhujie sighed. His path in the demon race's Ancestral Mountain had truly come to an end. He had no lingering attachments here anymore. He staggered down the mountain alone, without even packing his belongings, and set off on his own journey with just a sword on his back. Where was he going? He didn't know; he would take it one step at a time.
...
Snow Domain Celestial Lake, Summit Villa.
Wu Zhi, Huang Tingyu, Chu Yu, Mu Duo, Chen Ben, Yu Wan Ning, and others gathered in Tian Ran Ju. The lights in Tian Ran Ju were bright. Lin Zhao spread out a blueprint on the large table in the center. The blueprint was densely marked with symbols; it was a city-building plan drawn by Lin Zhao using CAD. The city would be built on the Snow Domain Celestial Lake, encompassing the entire area.
"Ah?"
Chu Yu frowned and said, "My lord, this is?"
"City building."
Lin Zhao said, "Although the terrain of the Snow Domain Celestial Lake is high, it is ultimately too flat. Do you remember the great battle a hundred years ago? When the demon race attacked the mountain, they encountered flat terrain once they ascended. There was not much resistance on the Snow Domain Celestial Lake, nor any geographical advantage. I've always felt this was not ideal. Relying solely on the Ju Que Umbrella's mountain protection formation is not enough. We still need a strong city, a city capable of withstanding Upper Five Realm Great Demons. Therefore, this is a plan I drew up overnight."
Wu Zhi pursed her red lips, carefully studying the details on the city-building plan.
Liu Liying's beautiful eyes fell on the blueprint, and she felt that her lord was truly amazing. Although she couldn't articulate why, she knew he was amazing.
Huang Tingyu frowned and said, "To build a city capable of withstanding Upper Five Realm Great Demons, ordinary artisans in the human world probably can't handle this task. We must involve the Mo Family Ancestral Hall."
"Yes, we will invite the Mo Family Ancestral Hall to build it for us."
Lin Zhao said, "I have provided a general outline of the blueprint. The specific internal design will depend on what the Mo Family Ancestral Hall proposes. I am merely proposing an idea now; the specific facilities will be determined step by step as progress is made."
He gently stroked the map and said, "My idea is to build the city's defense areas in a grid-like manner. If one grid is breached, it will not affect the defense of adjacent areas, maintaining this layered defense system. This will greatly enhance the defensive capabilities of the entire city, similar to a ship's watertight compartment system, ensuring the city's maximum survivability."
"Mm."
Yu Wan Ning, being a strategist, smiled and nodded. "I think it's feasible!"
Mu Duo, half understanding, said, "Amazing..."
...
"My lord."
Wu Zhi said softly, "What do you plan to name this city?"
"Bai Cheng."
Lin Zhao took a deep breath.
Everyone was taken aback. Although they didn't know why, they felt the name was quite fitting.
As for Lin Zhao, he naturally had his reasons for naming the city Bai Cheng. Firstly, it was to commemorate Sister Bai. Secondly, it was to commemorate the white tree in Mr. Qin's courtyard. This city, which once had Sister Bai and the white tree, was best named Bai Cheng.
After nightfall.
Wu Zhi, riding a streak of sword light, took Lin Zhao's city-building plan to the Mo Family Ancestral Hall. This matter had to be approved by the Mo Family Ancestral Hall before discussing prices and so on. In short, this was undoubtedly a massive undertaking; it couldn't be rushed and could only be done slowly.
...
"Whoosh!"
As Wu Zhi gracefully landed before the gate of the Mo Family Ancestral Hall, a figure rose from a distant giant rock. It was Xu Shuo, who had fallen to the Star River Realm. Looking at Wu Zhi, Xu Shuo's eyes lit up.
Wu Zhi frowned, regretting it slightly. She should have asked Huang Tingyu to come.