The name "Yunqing Pavilion" suddenly emerged within the upper reaches of the Upper Realm.
Most cultivators from various families and sects spent their days in secluded cultivation. However, their subordinates more or less maintained businesses within the various towns. News of a group calling themselves "Yunqing Pavilion" doing business in pills and magical treasures everywhere reached their ears one after another, causing many sects to take notice. Upon discovering that this rising sect had neither a deep foundation nor a True Immortal cultivator presiding over it, they simply laughed it off, treating them as "newborn calves who do not fear tigers," merely playing around.
After indirectly sending people to contact the members of "Yunqing Pavilion" and learning that the cultivators refining the pills and treasures had no intention of seeking other paths, the other sects lost interest. Although the quality of the items presented to them was quite good, it had not reached the level where they felt the need to lower themselves to invite these people to join them.
Nie Shiyun was mindful that Zhai Bairong’s appearance was too striking and easily drew attention. He also had to be careful not to let the Dragon Clan catch wind of their presence prematurely, lest a commotion break out before the banquet and ruin the "good show" the Phoenix Emperor wanted to see. Thus, he pushed these matters onto Xuan Yang. However, as a member of the Phoenix Clan, Xuan Yang’s movements were even more conspicuous than the previous two. Consequently, most of the work ended up falling on Shen Yan.
Shen Yan had lived for many years in seclusion, his movements unpredictable, avoiding crowds whenever possible. He never expected that, at this stage of his life, he would end up handling public relations. Facing Xuan Yang’s guilt-ridden, teary face and remembering how Nie Shiyun and Zhai Bairong had helped him many times in the past, Shen Yan could only bite the bullet and take on the task.
If he could just find one reliable person to join Yunqing Pavilion, he could drop the burden. However, while many came to probe and test them, not a single cultivator truly wanted to join. Shen Yan, who was not even technically a member of Yunqing Pavilion but was now laboring for it, grumbled silently in his heart.
"Still, the Upper Realm doesn't care much about the distinction between the so-called 'Orthodox Path' and demonic cultivators. It’s quite nice," Xuan Yang remarked, leaning toward Shen Yan with a smile. "I’ve felt this way for a long time—why is manipulating souls and corpses considered an evil path? Some of those 'righteous' types also kill people to steal their treasures. You clearly don't kill innocents unless someone comes looking for trouble..."
"Stay back. Your Yang energy is too heavy," Shen Yan said expressionlessly. He was currently performing the routine feeding of his Soul-Summoning Banner with spirit stones. When Xuan Yang was young, it wasn't much of an issue, but now that he was an adult, if he didn't deliberately suppress his aura, the souls would all "whoosh" back into the banner the moment he approached, not daring to appear.
Xuan Yang retreated sheepishly and sat back down in his chair.
Two years was but a blink of an eye for a cultivator.
Only a few days remained until the date agreed upon with the Phoenix Emperor to attend the Demon Banquet. Xuan Yang was also required to attend as the Phoenix Emperor's son.
Ever since the previous incident, Xuan Yang had developed a fear of Shen Yan disappearing from his sight for any length of time, dreading that some accident might cause him to vanish. Thus, after discussing it with Nie Shiyun, they decided to bring Shen Yan along inside the jade space. Shen Yan himself had no interest in the banquet, but since it would put Xuan Yang’s mind at ease and provide backup in case of an emergency, he agreed.
"Sigh. A Demon Banquet sounds so boring. They talk about 'harmonious coexistence,' but isn't the internal politics of the Demon Race full of schemes and intrigue? And yet they still put on this hypocritical banquet..."
"The Human Race is the same," Shen Yan said coolly.
"You're right," Xuan Yang agreed.
Most importantly, he had to dress up in grand attire. Normally, he might have been a bit vain about it, but the thought of becoming a prop for that cheap father of his to show off made Xuan Yang particularly disgruntled.
In the blink of an eye, the appointed day arrived.
"..."
Nie Shiyun and Zhai Bairong were bathed in the gazes of a crowd of Phoenixes, yet they remained indifferent to them.
On the other hand, Xuan Yang, standing to the side, felt completely uneasy, pacing back and forth in small, restless steps like he had a bad case of the jitters.
"Xuan Yang. What is this behavior? Heh, I suppose it is your first time attending a banquet as a member of the Phoenix Clan. You must be nervous."
Hearing the voice from behind, the group turned around. At some point, the Phoenix Emperor had appeared in the previously empty space. The numerous Phoenixes behind him were about to bow, but he stopped them with a wave of his hand.
"I'm just impatient... forget it," Xuan Yang grumbled in a low voice. Realizing the Phoenix Emperor was an extremely self-centered fellow, he figured explaining would be useless anyway, so he simply steeled himself and shut his mouth.
The Phoenix Emperor swept a glance over Xuan Yang. Sure enough, after being dressed in grand attire, this son of his was just as exceptionally handsome as himself. The Phoenix Emperor grew more satisfied the more he looked.
The Dragon Emperor of the Dragon Clan, with whom he had maintained a terrible relationship for thousands of years, was even more profligate than him, with more offspring than he could count on both hands. But so what? The Phoenix Emperor thought smugly; he valued quality over quantity.
He caught sight of the strange expression on Xuan Yang’s face as he silently exchanged looks with Nie Shiyun and Zhai Bairong. This caused a flicker of displeasure in his heart. He tilted his head slightly, looking down at the two humans from a height. "The Demon Banquet is naturally only for the Demon Race. Historically, humans are rarely invited. You may feel honored by this."
"Then we juniors are truly graced by your favor," Nie Shiyun immediately turned around, bowing slightly with politeness and a cheerful smile.
The Phoenix Emperor knew Nie Shiyun certainly didn't mean it, but one does not strike a smiling face. On the surface, he couldn't find any fault.
After that, he said a few more words, all of which were deflected by Nie Shiyun as if he were playing Tai Chi. The Phoenix Emperor soon found it dull and gave up on his passive-aggressive remarks.
It was truly a miracle that Xuan Yang had been picked up by such a fellow back then.
Xuan Yang was rather reluctant to be called over by the Phoenix Emperor to stand by his side. He glanced at the row of elder brothers next to him—the ones he had previously beaten black and blue. Seeing their current state of being both furious and terrified, unable to speak out despite their anger, Xuan Yang’s mood improved slightly.
Although he wore clothes and a hair crown of the same specifications, Xuan Yang felt he was much more dashing than the clansmen around him. He couldn't help but glance toward the direction of Nie Shiyun’s jade pendant, imagining how Shen Yan was watching him right now. In an instant, his posture became much more dignified than before.
"Though you two are humans, since you have been invited by the Phoenix Emperor, you are considered guests of the Phoenix Clan. Please follow me."
Hearing the words from beside them, Nie Shiyun and Zhai Bairong turned around. Seeing that the young girl before them looked somewhat familiar, Nie Shiyun recalled for a moment and remembered that she was one of the "ghost-like" maidservants from the Phoenix Emperor’s palace.
Naturally, not all members of the Phoenix Clan could attend the banquet. Aside from the Phoenix Emperor, his offspring, and two accompanying clan elders, the rest were attendants whom the Phoenix Emperor held in high regard.
Leaving Nie Shiyun to his subordinates, the Phoenix Emperor vanished without a trace, taking his children with him. This wasn't teleportation, of course; his cultivation was simply so much higher than others that it was difficult to observe the speed of his movement.
The remaining Phoenix elders followed closely behind. Last was the maidservant responsible for leading Nie Shiyun and Zhai Bairong. The three of them moved a certain distance until they arrived at a teleportation array.
Seeing the teleportation array, Nie Shiyun’s eyes couldn't help but light up. Teleportation arrays were not common sights even in the Upper Realm. As someone currently working on repairing such arrays, he was naturally interested.
"This is...?" Zhai Bairong asked.
The maidservant gave a brief introduction: "The Demon Race's sense of territoriality is much stronger than you humans imagine. After the great war thousands of years ago, the relationship between the four clans once dropped to a freezing point. Even now, though relations have eased slightly, we would never allow the Dragon Clan to step onto our territory."
"The place this teleportation array leads to is naturally not the other party's territory, but a Small World shared by the Demon Race that belongs to no single clan."
Nie Shiyun nodded, repeating thoughtfully, "I see."
This was another thing the Lower Realm lacked. He had learned quite a bit since coming to the upper layers, which prevented him from making a fool of himself here. A "Small World," in the terminology of the cultivation world, was an "accessible secret realm." Although it didn't belong to this land, it had a stable connection to it. He looked down at the patterns of the array again, only to hear the maidservant tell them to place their hands on her arms.
From the looks of it, this Small World could not be entered by humans alone.
Once the two made contact with her, the maidservant quickly activated the array.
It was much the same as entering a secret realm; in an instant, the scene before their eyes spun.
Nie Shiyun looked around. The secret realms he had entered in the past always had some differences from the outside world, but at this moment, he couldn't sense any difference between the ecology here and the surroundings of the Phoenix Clan's territory.
Surrounded by nature, the climate in the Small World was slightly warmer than outside. Dense forests were filled with plants and flowers rich in spiritual energy, a scene of spring in full bloom. Beneath the soft, grass-covered earth, dense spiritual veins extended in all directions.
"This is the Small World shared by the Demon Race of the upper layers."
Nie Shiyun sighed with a mix of sincerity and flattery, "What a fine place. No wonder the Demon Banquet is held here."
"The Demon Clans have made an agreement with each other: within this Small World, no clan may take action against another. This is the primary reason why the banquet was moved here a thousand years ago," the maidservant said, letting out a small sigh.
Nie Shiyun had heard from his inquiries how the four clans had once led their respective subordinate demon beasts into factions and fought bitterly. It was a wonder that after the previous Great War of the Four Clans, these demons still had the heart to gather like this every few hundred years.
The banquet had no real substance; it was just a group of demons eating, drinking, admiring flowers, and chatting together, while perhaps secretly competing with one another. Of course, Nie Shiyun knew that the Phoenix Emperor had brought him along today specifically to provide some "extra entertainment" for the Dragon Clan.
The maidservant had said that "no clan may take action against another" in the Small World, but she hadn't mentioned that the demons couldn't take action against outsiders.
"It's a rare visit; we should 'take a good look' at the environment here," Nie Shiyun said to Zhai Bairong with pointed meaning.
Zhai Bairong nodded, understanding perfectly.
Since they didn't know what would happen later, familiarizing themselves with escape routes was always a good idea.
"You two, keep up. Although we were the last to be teleported, if we are scolded by the Phoenix Emperor for being too slow, I cannot take the blame!" Seeing the two of them lagging behind and looking around, the maidservant couldn't help but call out to remind them.
"We've just entered the Small World for the first time and found it a bit novel. Our apologies," Nie Shiyun said quickly.
"Just look, but don't wander off. The teleportation array for this Small World can only be activated by the Demon Race. If you get lost on your own, you won't be able to leave this place by yourselves," the maidservant cautioned again.
"I see... thank you for the guidance." Nie Shiyun nodded and exchanged a look with Zhai Bairong.
Learning this was not exactly good news, but neither of them was particularly surprised.
"...In any case, be careful," Zhai Bairong leaned close to Nie Shiyun’s ear, whispering in a low, breathy voice.
The warm air from his words made the base of Nie Shiyun’s ear itch.
Seeing Nie Shiyun turn to look at him, Zhai Bairong thought he had something important to say and asked, "What is it?"
Nie Shiyun shook his head inwardly.
To still have the leisure for his mind to wander at a time like this—it seemed his psychological resilience had truly been tempered by more than just a little bit over these past hundred years.
There was no need to tell Zhai Bairong about such a thing.
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Transmigrated into a Total Shou Novel as a Cannon Fodder, but Ended Up 1v1-ing the Male Lead | Chapter 197 | Into the Small World | Novela.app | Novela.app
