Uncle Qian, the old servant, calmly leaned against a large stone.


    "Perhaps all these years of what I''ve done have only harmed Huairen."


    "I hope that after I die, Huairen can wake up."


    "Well, in a place like Yougao County, it’s hard for any cultivator to not survive."


    "I''m almost dead now, there''s no need to think more. From now on, it will depend on Huairen."


    Scenes of his past life appeared in Uncle Qian’s mind.


    They were the most precious and unforgettable memories of his life, the reasons he had faithfully served the Jia family all these years.


    It was late autumn, and it was raining heavily.


    A small dog, not long born, was trembling outside a courtyard wall. The rain was cold, and a scholar, holding an oilcloth umbrella, passed by and found the dog. He immediately picked it up and cradled it in his arms, warming the little dog. "No one wants you, little fellow? I’ve been kicked out too and am almost starving. But you’re clever, aren’t you? You know to snuggle into my arms."


    The scholar was destitute, having studied his whole life and never even earned the title of a xiucai (a low-level scholar). The yellow dog he kept was very thin. Yet, the man and the dog relied on each other for survival.


    That night, the imperial river liquid flowed, turning into thousands of golden threads, showering over the world.


    An old, weak dog received a strand of imperial river liquid. The moonlight refined its body, awakening its spiritual wisdom, and it transformed into a demon. From then on, the fate of the scholar and the dog changed.


    Thus, the Jia family came into being.


    Thus, Uncle Qian, the old servant, and Jia Huairen were born.


    "Master, I am coming to join you," Uncle Qian murmured. "I can no longer take care of Huairen. Finally, I can come to join you."


    In his hazy consciousness, Uncle Qian sensed two figures appearing beside him.


    Qin Yun and Yi Xiao stood by, both sighing.


    "He''s beyond saving." Qin Yun immediately saw that Uncle Qian’s injuries were extremely severe. If he were a human, he would have died long ago. Even as a demon, Uncle Qian had persisted this long only because of some lingering attachment.


    Uncle Qian slowly opened his eyes and, looking at the two, spoke in a labored voice, "Qin... Qin Gongzi, Yi... Yi Gu... Miss, this small demon has a request. I hope you can help me."


    "Please, Uncle Qian, tell us," Qin Yun said.


    "After I die, I hope you can bury me next to my master’s tomb. The tomb of the Jia family in Yougao County, you can find it easily. Please, it''s too much to ask," Uncle Qian’s voice was faint, but fortunately, Qin Yun and Yi Xiao had extraordinary senses and could hear him clearly.


    Yi Xiao said softly, "Don''t worry."


    A faint smile appeared on Uncle Qian''s dog-demon face, and a burden in his heart was finally lifted.


    Once his attachment was gone, his spirit relaxed, and he felt as if his body was floating. The world before him seemed to turn white.


    Faintly, an old scholar’s figure appeared, smiling at him.


    Uncle Qian transformed into a large yellow dog and dashed towards him.


    Qin Yun watched as Uncle Qian’s breath quickly faded, and his body quickly reverted to its original form—a large yellow dog, heavily injured, with part of its body missing.Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.


    "Today, I have seen that even demons can have such loyalty," Yi Xiao said.


    "Demons can have goodness too," Qin Yun nodded. He had traveled far and wide, meeting many kinds of demons, including good ones. Just as humans have loyal people, demons can have them too. Qin Yun deeply respected such loyal beings.


    "I had suspected before that he might be colluding with the Cangya Mountain demons," Yi Xiao admitted with a bit of shame.


    "One can''t say for certain without seeing it for themselves. I had only heard of his legend, and this is the first time I’ve interacted with him." Qin Yun stood at the edge of the cliff, looking around. "Don’t think about these things now. We need to deal with the demons around us first."


    "Mm." Yi Xiao felt a tightness in her chest and looked around solemnly.


    At a distance, a large group of demons had already gathered. Even in the sky, there were many demons, and the White Tiger Demon was watching from above, ready to strike. Qin Yun and Yi Xiao quickly assessed the situation—counting the nearly 100 demons that were originally in the Fog Lake Canyon, the number of demons had now swelled to nearly 500!


    By the Lan Yang River, there was a sprawling, garden-like mansion. Within it, there were pavilions, bridges, flowing water, trees, and artificial mountains, along with many beauties. It seemed like a paradise.


    But this mansion was the lair of the great demon "Water God," who had terrorized the entire Guangling County for over 200 years, leaving the imperial court powerless to stop him.


    The Water God was quite thin, dressed in a silver-white robe, standing by a pond with his hands behind his back.


    His long eyebrows framed his cold eyes, and his cheeks were sunken. He stared coldly into the distance, his eyes narrowing, "There’s still no news from Cangya Mountain. I suppose the thousand-year Ice Jade Fruit will ripen this month. I don’t need it, but I could sell it for a high price! The current governor of Guangling County is old and will definitely want to get his hands on the Ice Jade Fruit. He might try to seize it. But with White Tiger as my junior, nothing should go wrong."


    Although he suspected the governor of Guangling County might try to seize it, the Water God still didn''t want to go himself.


    "If I go to Cangya Mountain, it might be a trap set by the Taoists, Buddhists, or the imperial court, with an advanced cultivator at the Golden Elixir stage lying in wait to kill me." The Water God sneered, "Hmph, no matter how tempting the bait is, they can’t lure me out."


    Over these 200 years, the Water God had been an unstoppable force.


    He had caused immense suffering throughout Guangling County, and Qin Yun’s family had also been deeply affected by his tyranny.


    Many cultivators couldn’t tolerate it anymore, and even the imperial court couldn’t stand by idly. They set traps to lure the Water God inland, away from the rivers, to destroy him in one strike. But the Water God had always avoided falling into these traps. No matter how great the temptation, it couldn’t move him. Whenever things looked bad, he would retreat into the river. It was no wonder he called himself the "Water God."


    "The humans must have given up on trying to lure me," he muttered.


    "With White Tiger as my junior, the Ice Jade Fruit should be within my grasp. I’ll give him a share. The rest will be mine. Then I’ll trade it for more treasures." The Water God had already decided who he would sell the spiritual fruit to.


    At the top of the cliff near the Fog Lake Canyon, Qin Yun and Yi Xiao stood together. As they got closer to the canyon, more and more demons gathered. In just a short while, more than 300 demons had arrived, and with the nearly 100 already present in the canyon, there were now nearly 500 demons in total.


    "Qin brother, what should we do now? Where should we break through?" Yi Xiao asked.


    "Right now, nearly 500 demons have gathered around, and more are still coming from every direction. The White Tiger Demon is watching from the air," Qin Yun replied. "With so many demons, forcing our way through isn’t of much use."


    "We can combine our strength. We both have some protective treasures, and I believe we can break through together." Yi Xiao''s eyes gleamed sharply. Given the situation, they had no choice but to fight!


    "Let me try first. If it doesn’t work, then we can break through together." Qin Yun communicated through voice transmission.


    Yi Xiao was surprised, "Qin brother, you want to try?"


    "Miss Yi, just focus on protecting yourself and guarding this big axe. Don’t let that Tiger Demon take it." Qin Yun placed the large axe and the tiger claw down.


    "Rest assured, I have a magic treasure that can protect the surroundings." Yi Xiao said, stepping on the axe. "The Tiger Demon can’t get close to me. But Qin brother, what’s your plan? With so many demons attacking, can you block them with just your sword?"


    The White Tiger Demon, flying high above, looked down, seeing demons gathering from all over Cangya Mountain. He felt confident.


    He wasn''t in a hurry to strike. With nearly 500 demons surrounding them, the longer they delayed, the more demons would gather, and their advantage would grow.


    "Whoosh."


    Suddenly, Qin Yun moved.


    His figure shot down, landing in an open area more than ten feet away, with no obstructions in sight.


    "What is this swordsman doing?" The White Tiger Demon was stunned. "He was at the edge of the cliff, where demons could have surrounded him from all sides. Now he''s standing in an open space—he’s practically seeking death!"


    "Qin brother, what are you planning to do?" Yi Xiao was startled and immediately communicated with concern, "If you''re unsure, we should break through together."


    "Just watch," Qin Yun replied via voice transmission.


    He then surveyed the countless demons surrounding him. Immediately, his voice rang out, clear and loud, "You want to kill me, don’t you? Here I am! Standing here, come and kill me! If any of you can hurt me even a single hair, I will acknowledge your abilities."