What he needed was the foundation for establishing a sect.
“This is your territory.”
Jiu Baiyun’s clear voice cut off Qing Ling and Bai Ya’s competing recommendations.
“What I need is a piece of empty land.”
“Empty land?”
At this, not only Qing Ling, Bai Ya, and Ku Mu were stunned, but even Zhu Le and Zhu Shi, who had been rubbing their noses nearby, stopped moving.
Several pairs of eyes focused on Jiu Baiyun, filled with shock and confusion.
In their view, the Young Lord’s arrival should mean choosing the best blessed land, receiving the highest level of treatment.
A piece of “empty land”?
Did the Young Lord intend to carve out his own cave dwelling?
But the spiritually rich areas of the Luoyan Mountains were already claimed.
What value could an unowned wasteland hold?
Qing Ling reacted the fastest.
A flicker of confusion crossed her beautiful face, quickly replaced by deeper reverence.
She leaned forward slightly, her voice still clear and pleasant, but laced with careful inquiry.
“May I ask the Young Lord… what is your purpose?”
Her eyes, marked with green feathers, stared intently at Jiu Baiyun, trying to find a clue on his face.
Was he going to set up some powerful formation?
Or conduct a special kind of cultivation?
What exactly did the Young Lord plan to do on this empty land?
This request was too strange.
Bai Ya’s small eyes spun even faster, trying to extract more clues from Jiu Baiyun’s expression.
Could this Young Lord be aloof by nature, disliking ready-made dwellings?
Or… did he have other motives?
Bai Ya’s rodent instincts made him smell something unusual.
But since he had already identified the other as the “offspring” of the “Fox Demon Lord,” he dared not show any disrespect when facing the Fox Demon Lord’s offspring.
He simply buried his doubts deep in his heart, piling on an even more fawning smile.
“The Young Lord is brilliant! Which area has caught your eye? No matter the size, our Mystic Mouse Clan will clear it immediately. I guarantee not a single weed will remain!”
Ku Mu’s face, like old tree bark, remained expressionless, but his eyes, deep within the wrinkles, seemed to flicker almost imperceptibly, as if calculating something.
His hoarse voice slowly rang out.
“There is empty land. In the mountains, where spiritual energy is thin, there are large stretches of wilderness. But… I fear it may not be what the Young Lord needs.”
Upon hearing this, Su Zhiyun immediately tugged at Jiu Baiyun’s sleeve again.
Her other hand, holding A Ran, tightened slightly, causing A Ran to look confused.
Jiu Baiyun naturally felt Su Zhiyun’s movement behind him.
He nodded slightly without turning his head, to prevent the three in front from noticing anything.
“Whether the spiritual energy is thin or abundant will be determined in due time.”
Jiu Baiyun’s gaze passed over Qing Ling and the others, fixing on the distant, rolling mountain peaks, as if surveying his own territory.
“What I need is a place large enough, flat enough, and quiet enough.”
“After all… I intend to establish a sect here.”
“A… a sect?!”
The moment Jiu Baiyun’s words fell, it was like throwing a boulder into a calm lake, instantly stirring up a thousand waves.
Qing Ling, Bai Ya, Ku Mu, and even Zhu Le and Zhu Shi, who had just gotten up from the ground, all froze on the spot.
Several pairs of eyes widened, staring at Jiu Baiyun in disbelief, as if hearing some fantastic tale.
Qing Ling’s beautiful face completely froze, her elegant smile gone.
Her small lips parted slightly, as if to confirm whether she had heard correctly.
“Young Lord… you want to establish a… human sect in the Luoyan Mountains, where our Demon Race dominates?!”
Bai Ya’s shrewd little green bean eyes stopped spinning instantly, staring straight at Jiu Baiyun.
The fawning smile on his face also stiffened, the corners of his mouth twitching involuntarily.
Establish a sect?
What did that mean?
Did the Young Lord intend to bring in the Human Race?
Or… was he deeply connected with humans?
Countless thoughts exploded in Bai Ya’s mind, leaving him speechless.
Even Ku Mu, who was always as calm as an ancient well, showed an extremely intense flicker in his deep-set eyes on his old tree-bark-like face.
His murky pupils seemed to light up slightly as he cast a questioning look at Jiu Baiyun again.
Establishing a sect…
This was no child’s play.
What did the Young Lord intend to achieve by this?
Zhu Le directly scratched his furry bear head and muttered in a rough voice:
“A… sect? Is the Young Lord playing house?”
Beside him, Zhu Shi quickly smacked the back of his head with a thick bear paw, signaling him to shut up.
But even Zhu Shi’s eyes were filled with enormous confusion.
Empty land was understandable—the Young Lord might have a special purpose.
But the words “establish a sect” carried an entirely different meaning!
Was the Young Lord not afraid of attracting resentment and hostility from the entire Luoyan Mountains, or even the wider Demon Race?
Even if he was the offspring of “that one,” he might not be able to easily suppress all opposition.
The air seemed to freeze, leaving only the rustling of wind through the treetops.
At this moment, Su Zhiyun, who had been hiding behind Jiu Baiyun, felt the almost suffocating silence and the suspicious gazes.
Her heart pounded with nervousness.
She took a deep breath, as if summoning up all her courage, and stuck half her body out from behind Jiu Baiyun.
“He… he’s telling the truth! We really are going to establish a sect here!”
Several gazes instantly shifted from Jiu Baiyun to focus on Su Zhiyun.
Startled by the sudden attention, Su Zhiyun shrank her neck and instinctively hid further behind Jiu Baiyun, but her grip on his sleeve tightened.
A Ran and Xiao Mu also pressed themselves nervously against Su Zhiyun.
Qing Ling’s eyes turned sharply piercing, tinged with wariness.
This ordinary human woman with a faint aura—why was she so confidently speaking on behalf of the Young Lord?
What was her relationship with the Young Lord?
Bai Ya’s small eyes narrowed, glinting with cunning.
This human woman…
Was she a key figure?
Could establishing the sect be her idea?
Was the Young Lord… influenced by her?
This thought made his heart skip a beat.
Ku Mu’s gaze lingered on Su Zhiyun for a moment.
Those eyes seemed to catch an aura fluctuation that didn’t belong to the mortal realm.
His wrinkled brow creased almost imperceptibly, but he said nothing.
Feeling Su Zhiyun’s tension behind him, and also the pressure from the gazes ahead, Jiu Baiyun sighed inwardly.
“Correct.”
“I need a piece of empty land that is large enough, flat enough, and quiet enough, for establishing a sect.”
“As for spiritual energy…”
He paused, his gaze brushing Ku Mu as if unintentionally.
“It is not the primary consideration.”
The few of them fell silent, no one speaking.
Seeing the silent group, Jiu Baiyun also grew nervous inside.
‘Will Ai Hu… cause trouble?’
He was worried that, because of this matter, these three would directly turn against him.
“Don’t worry. They wouldn’t dare.”
“At worst, they won’t guide you, and they’ll restrict you.”
After a pause, the Fox Demon Lord seemed even a bit proud.
“I’d give them ten guts and they still wouldn’t dare lay a hand on you.”
The Fox Demon Lord’s words gave Jiu Baiyun some peace of mind, but he still had concerns.
In the silence, Ku Mu’s murky eyes shifted slightly, as if weighing something.
Finally, that hoarse, low voice slowly rose again, breaking the silence.
“There is indeed… one place that matches the Young Lord’s request.”