This guy is testing me… Zhang Yuanqing has long since outgrown being a rookie; the characteristics of a Demon King descendant are hard for outsiders to recognize. The only point that raises suspicion is his frequent visits to high-difficulty Spirit Realms—yet that's only speculative, since She Ling Tunnel isn't entirely unfamiliar to new Night Wandering Deity entrants either, and trial tasks are already at S-level, which cannot serve as definitive proof of a Demon King descendant. As for Golden Water Amusement Park, there is indeed a matching mechanism in place: stronger individuals are paired with more demanding instances—this makes perfect sense. Therefore, Ling Jun is entirely testing him. Taiyi Gate won't easily give up its search for Demon King descendants; such tests will likely continue—Zhang Yuanqing sneered, expressing pride to reinforce his status as a prodigy, and said: "Who do you think you're looking down upon, some Demon King descendant?" Ling Jun smiled warmly: "Then perhaps I was mistaken. If you are indeed a Demon King descendant, Sun Elder must be even more bewildered." That guy has quite a thick skin… Zhang Yuanqing didn’t press the matter further and instead asked curiously: "Is there really any issue with Taiyi Gate assigning such a task to an Elder?" "Of course there is," said Ling Jun, "but since everyone says so, it's as if nothing were wrong. Whenever Sun Elder gets angry, she can only direct her complaints toward the originator—the U.Ting U Captain responsible for Kangyang District." "Though Sun Elder has already descended into an instance and hasn’t returned yet." How pitiful that U Captain—Zhang Yuanqing silently offered a prayer to U Ting. At this moment, Fu Qingyang returned with a cold demeanor, followed by Guan Ya who looked visibly displeased. After leaving several elite personnel behind to clean up the scene, the group departed—the members of Li Dongze returned for recovery while the arriving reinforcements proceeded to search for the true sanctuary of the Unimpeded one. The apartment location was familiar to Zhang Yuanqing from his memory footage. On the way back, Guan Ya lounged comfortably on the leather seat in the business vehicle, frowning: "Fu Qingyang must have eaten something strange today—she gave me a scolding." Zhang Yuanqing chuckled: "Perhaps because he’s both kind-hearted and financially generous?" Guan Ya paused, looking at him with suspicion: "Did you tell her anything?" Zhang Yuanqing smiled: "Maybe I simply have feelings but lack the courage to act." "Ah, young man! You dare betray me—be prepared for a chaos of chicken flying and eggs scattered!" "The proud Lao Si Ji—the very one who might now be at my mercy!" "Come on!" "Come on!" Li Dongze silently observed his two subordinates, both displaying strong resolve yet remaining motionless. True talents—The Dragon and The Fowl. ... Fu Qingyang returned to her luxurious villa and ascended to the second floor without a word, entering her study. After closing the doors and windows, she dialed the mobile phone of Tai Di Elder—the one in charge of the Black Unchanging Incident. Tai Di Elder isn’t actually named Tai Di; his Spirit Realm ID is "The Old Man and the Dog," an esteemed elder who lost both parents early in life and grew up with a dog as a companion. Thus, he frequently manifests through various canine forms and rarely appears in person—this serves as a strategic means of concealment. The phone connected quickly: Fu Qingyang heard a bark from the speaker, followed by a clear cough, then Tai Di Elder’s voice: "What is it?" His tone was gentle yet authoritative. "Tonight, my Spirit Realm team encountered an ambush while capturing the Unimpeded one," Fu Qingyang calmly described the incident. "Some information must have been leaked," said Tai Di Elder slowly: "How severe were the losses?" His voice carried a sense of gravity. "Three severely injured; others sustained only minor injuries," said Fu Qingyang, deliberately emphasizing: "Originally, they were expected to be wiped out entirely." "Hmm?" "The newly recruited Night Wandering Deity defeated the Unimpeded one and saved the entire team's lives," Fu Qingyang highlighted this point—aiming to gain credit with Yuan Shi Tian Zun, thereby enhancing his standing among the Elders. With this, many of Taiyi Gate’s challenges will now fall upon the shoulders of the Elders. Tai Di Elder paused for a few seconds, then smiled: "Good work—rarely have I encountered such an energetic newcomer. Indeed, he cannot be handed over to Taiyi Gate." He expressed admiration and seemed more optimistic, asking: "Is there anything else?" Fu Qingyang then recounted the intelligence gathered through inquiry. Tai Di Elder remained silent; on the other end of the line, silence settled in—almost even the faint sounds of barking faded away. "Elder," Fu Qingyang's gaze flickered, "do you know anything about 'Dark Night Rose'?" A sigh came through: "I last heard of this organization around twenty years ago, during a disturbance involving a Spirit Realm family." "Disturbance involving a Spirit Realm family?" Fu Qingyang paused, as if recalling something—“Among the three families of Musician Skills, one was extinguished exactly twenty-one years ago.” "That is information not meant for your knowledge—at least here it remains confidential. If you wish to learn more, you will have to ask within your own family," said Tai Di Elder calmly: "The Commander has approved my application—the Tiger Symbol will be sent to Songhai soon, and the annual 'Large Health Checkup' is approaching. I plan to combine these two matters—ah, see how many rogue members there are among the Five Elements Alliance." ... At 2 a.m., Zhang Yuanqing returned home by elevator, taking a detour to reach the blind spot of the corridor surveillance. He practiced Night Wanderer techniques, opened the window, and gracefully leaped out using the air conditioner unit as a stepping platform, grasping the window ledge of his bedroom to climb inside. He had deliberately left the windows open prior to departure. Next, Zhang Yuanqing changed into clean clothes, turned the door handle, pretended to go to the bathroom for an evening walk, and took a shower in the restroom. After washing away dirt and bloodstains, he felt refreshed—his Night Wandering Deity vitality ensured that unless there were life-threatening injuries or limb amputations, no treatment was required. Back in his room, sitting at the desk, Zhang Yuanqing closed his eyes and reviewed today’s battle. "With my current capabilities, single-handedly facing three Level-3 Realm Walkers should be manageable—yes, the Red Dance Shoes faced off against one, the Ghost Bride handled three, Cat King Speaker controlled the battlefield, and Xiao Doubi provided support." "But regretfully, the Blood-Thirsty Blade and Artifact lack self-awareness—they cannot act independently to confront enemies on their own." He opened his eyes, turned on the notebook, logged into the official Archive. Zhang Yuanqing entered: "Origin of Spirit Realms" in the search bar. Numerous results appeared—yet most were speculative hypotheses by official Realm Walkers, with a few suggesting that the Spirit Realms originated from extraterrestrial civilizations or prehistoric technologies. Others believed the Spirit Realms to be genuine parallel worlds, elaborating on personal experiences: During one of their instance visits, they had developed a romantic connection with an enthusiastic and warm woman—so passionate that they shared all their knowledge; the woman warmly welcomed them, creating a sense of experience indistinguishable from reality. Therefore, the Spirit Realms are real parallel worlds. "Goodness, watching it unfold—it's gradually deteriorating—no, even turning yellow! Why haven’t these posts been edited?" Zhang Yuanqing sighed and logged out of the Archive. All retrieved entries were imaginative speculations by official Realm Walkers—the organization had not yet officially endorsed any of them or clarified its own stance on this matter. This situation implies either a lack of formal research, or insufficient authority—Zhang Yuanqing would need to wait until he was promoted before pursuing deeper understanding. For now, his immediate concerns are Taiyi Gate’s inquiries, tracking down the Black Unchanging One, and retaliating against Xiaohou Tianyuan—the stubborn old man. As Zhang Yuanqing stood up from the desk, preparing to go to sleep, the Cat King Speaker in the drawer emitted a soft buzzing sound—was it about to sing or play an audio clip? Startled, Zhang Yuanqing paused and opened the drawer—almost simultaneously, the speaker emitted a hoarse, low voice: "Today I just completed a solo instance with a Ming Dynasty background—I learned an intriguing phenomenon: they gain extraordinary abilities through cultivation. Is this merely background design—or is there another reason?" "Ah well, I’ll settle for that—I'm now at Level-3. Once I complete my first combat trial, I'll advance to the Sage Stage. For now, I haven’t found a way to break through these limitations—yet I hope to gain some insights in the Sage Realm." This… Zhang Yuanqing’s eyes narrowed—the voice was unmistakably that of the Demon King. He held his breath and listened intently. "Joining the official corps has been my greatest mistake—solo instances for Night Wandering Deities are notoriously difficult, lacking dedicated guides; even Level-A instances cause serious stress, with S-level mortality rates reaching 90%. I wonder if there’s any more challenging instance grade—I’ll have to settle for not joining the official corps since I'm unable to pass the Large Health Checkup." "I heard that the female Commander of White Tiger Army achieved repeated successes at S-level instances during both her Elevated Stage and Sage Stage—what a remarkable woman! I’d like to sleep with her." "Ah, no—you can’t yet—after all, you’ve been thoroughly outperformed!" Zhang Yuanqing couldn't help but comment. Then, how old is she—the female Commander of White Tiger Army during the Demon King’s Elevated Stage? "The top-tier Realm Walker—the most distant and aspirational goal, perhaps—but right now, what matters is being grounded. I must go hunting down those Evil Organizations—without sufficient reputation points, I cannot initiate combat against Orderly Professions. Each month, I need to defeat ten such members—it's my assigned duty." "I’m short by one this month—I’ve captured a Wood Demon from the Bǎi Huā Association today. Ah, how delicate! She offered her body in exchange for her life—asking for survival. I think performance metrics matter more than that." "The Wood Demon of the Bǎi Huā Association is truly graceful—an asset indeed. I didn’t kill her after all—well, that’s integrity!" "Integrity? Forget it—I’m quite fed up now!" Zhang Yuanqing’s brows furrowed as he heard this. Now he fully understood why U Ting from Taiyi Gate described the Demon King as a declining Night Wandering Deity with unprincipled intentions—a truly non-orthodox person. How could Bing Brother be associated with such an individual? The Cat King Speaker emitted another series of buzzing sounds—the Demon King’s voice gradually faded out, and after a brief pause, a second audio segment emerged—this time not a monologue but a conversation: Demon King: "Today I killed one of the Five Elements Alliance Officers. From within his spirit body, I observed some fascinating details." Then, a sharper voice interjected: "Let’s just get it out!" "That person appears to be an official of the Five Elements Alliance—yet secretly loyal to Dark Night Rose." "Dark Night Rose?" "Oh, you haven’t even heard of this organization! Clearly, they are well-hidden. Based on current intelligence, their leader is a Night Wandering Deity—the level of Spirit Realm Walker would no longer be called 'Night Wandering Deity.' I can provide you with their contact information—haven't you always wanted to overthrow the Five Elements Alliance?" smiled the Demon King. "Sure! Just don’t deceive me—or I’ll make sure you suffer consequences!" said the sharper voice. "So now, please send over the guide for Instance 0029." After a brief silence, the Demon King responded with satisfaction: "The deal is sealed—Black Unchanging One, are you preparing to enter a solo instance soon?" "Does it matter to you?" "Stay alive—I'm very interested in your head. One day, I’ll personally remove it—and of course, your superior as well." ...