My ancestors were spiritual plant growers, so it's not surprising that I hunt demons every day,

About three hours later, Cui Ying's divine sense stirred slightly, and soon a unique aura belonging to the little golden scorpion appeared next to her pillow.

After listening to the little golden scorpion's weary account of the night's events, she slowly opened her eyes, got out of bed, and went out.

At this moment, the morning sun shines outside, and the still hazy world is slowly filled with a refreshing and righteous energy.

After Cui Ying sat under the jacaranda tree and practiced breathing exercises for a few moments, her mother, Wang Rong, came out of the kitchen carrying a pot of sweet potato porridge. Seeing that Cui Ying was already seated at the table in the courtyard, she brought the food over and said softly:

"The patrol team disperses at dawn. When your father came back, I asked him a couple of questions. He said that the night was calm and peaceful, and he didn't see a single ghost."

Cui Ying took a bite of the scallion and minced meat steamed bun, drank a mouthful of sweet potato porridge, and nodded with her cheeks puffed out to indicate that she understood.

Seeing her daughter eating so heartily, Wang Rong's face lit up with a smile. But she still felt a little uneasy and wanted to say something. Just then, Zhu Chaoyun walked in through the magic circle, looking slightly tired.

"What's wrong? Did your heartless old man make you go on patrol in your family's place last night, or did you dream of fighting a female ghost for three hundred rounds? Why are you so tired?"

Zhu Chaoyang yawned, his face flushed red, and he waved his hands repeatedly as he explained to Wang Rong:

“Aunt, please don’t misunderstand. It’s my younger sister, Wanqiu. She heard about ghosts in the village last night and was so scared that she couldn’t sleep. To comfort her, I simply slept on the floor in her room, which is why I didn’t sleep all night.”

Cui Ying, holding her bowl, chuckled as she listened. Upon hearing this, she chimed in, "Oh, I see. We thought you were too scared to sleep."

"What's there to be afraid of? With so many high-level cultivators in the village, a simple shout from us is enough to disperse that vengeful ghost with our yang energy."

Zhu Chaoyun looked disdainful, picked up a scallion and minced meat steamed bun that was larger than his fist, took a bite, and continued:

"I thought that after what happened last night, your uncle and aunt wouldn't let you go into Phoenix Mountain again."

Cui Ying smiled faintly, too lazy to expose him: "Eat quickly, we'll leave after we finish eating."

After the two finished breakfast, they took the food that Wang Rong had prepared in advance, as usual, and flew on a cloud towards Songcui Cliff.

"Fortunately, when the ghosts came and went on a killing spree last night, Senior Cheng was out visiting friends with his wife and children. If they had returned just a quarter of an hour earlier, they probably wouldn't have escaped the calamity either."

Cui Ying glanced at Zhu Chaoyun, who was sighing deeply, and shook her head, saying:

"Have you ever thought that it was precisely because of Cheng Zhiheng's good fortune that Zhao Dongming and his wife, as well as those cultivators after them, suffered misfortune?"

Upon hearing this statement, Zhu Chaoyun immediately stared wide-eyed in disbelief and said:

"Master, what do you mean by that? You've got it backwards! It was clearly a good thing that the Cheng family escaped death, so how did saving them become the fuse that killed Zhao Dongming and his wife, as well as several other rogue cultivators?"

Zhu Chaoyun had no experience with his past life, nor did he know that ghosts had harmed people there, but Cui Ying had encountered them in her previous life, and she patiently explained to him:

“Ghosts and spirits are different from us cultivators. They are formed from the strong resentment, hatred, and obsession that humans or demons generate before their death, or from curses that turn them into resentful and aggressive spirits.”

"Different types of ghosts and spirits have different characteristics and abilities, and they usually bring fear and unease to people."

"But the difference is that ordinary ghosts and spirits are usually trapped in the area where they died or around the murderer and cannot be reincarnated. Moreover, these kinds of spirits are mentally deficient, and they are always cruel and bloodthirsty when they kill. They would never think of tricks like possessing people."

"The ghost that appeared last night was at the late stage of Qi Refining, and its intelligence should be no less than that of an ordinary person. But you say that it ignored us, the blood-eating souls living on the edge of the village, and instead risked being besieged by Xie Qing and Master Xue to hurt people in the Cheng and Zhao families in the village. Isn't that a bit suspicious?"

Cui Ying recounted her questions from both lifetimes, causing Zhu Chaoyun's expression to change several times. Finally, she asked thoughtfully:

"You mean, that ghost was raised by Cheng Zhiheng? Or did that ghost come specifically for the Cheng family?"

"I just thought that since our village is next to the Phoenix Mountain Range, I wouldn't be shocked if a few powerful demons came out in the middle of the night and slaughtered the village. But the actions of that ghost last night did make people feel a little suspicious, which is why I made this guess. But there are always exceptions, so don't take it too seriously. Just listen to it."

"Bah, bah, bah"

Hearing Cui Ying's reasonable and well-founded words, Zhu Chaoyun turned pale and quickly stopped her, saying:

"The bad doesn't work, the good does. The bad doesn't work, the good does. Sister Cui Ying, my dear aunt, don't you even look where we are now? You can't just say things like that."

As they spoke, the two arrived at the entrance of Chiyang Valley.

This time, without Cui Ying's reminder, Zhu Chaoyun was already prepared and took out two still-warm scallion and minced meat steamed buns, along with a pot of sweet and tempting wildflower honey water.

“By Phoenix God, this is a gift from your humble servant Zhu Chaoyun. My sister, who is also my master, just spoke without thinking. Please pretend you didn’t hear it.”

Seeing Zhu Chaoyun kneeling there muttering and bowing, Cui Ying silently followed suit and knelt down as well.

After entering Chiyang Valley, the two did not linger on the surrounding hills, but instead stepped onto a pure white cloud and slowly flew towards Yuzhu Peak.

Looking at the receding grass and ancient trees beneath his feet, Zhu Chaoyun scratched his head and asked in surprise:

"Master, why are we flying so slowly today? We've been circling around the foot of the mountain the whole time. It's already broad daylight. Shouldn't we hurry up?"

"Don't worry, we should be there soon."

Seeing Cui Ying standing atop the clouds in her green robe and white skirt, constantly searching her surroundings, Zhu Chaoyun couldn't help but ask again, "Sister Cui Ying, what kind of spiritual herb are you looking for? Why don't you tell me, and I'll help you find it too?"

"right here."

As soon as Zhu Chaoyun finished speaking, Cui Ying in front of him activated a spell, stepped on the accelerating cloud, flew around a low basin twice, and with a flick of her sleeve, the Yao Guang Sword transformed into a streak of light and shot out, flying towards an inconspicuous green plant on the ground.

Watching as Cui Ying dug a bunch of yellowish-brown spiritual fruits from deep in the soil and then used her spiritual energy to pull them back to the cloud they were in, Zhu Chaoyun asked curiously:

"This is?"

"Golden Frost Fruit - a low-level spiritual fruit that grows deep in the soil."

Cui Ying recalled the Yao Guang Sword, signaled Zhu Chaoyun to put the items away, and continued with a slight smile:

"Golden frost fruit has a sweet and crisp taste. Whether it is fresh or roasted, it is very popular among cultivators. Although this kind of spiritual fruit is not very valuable, it usually appears in large patches. You can look around here and you should be able to find some more. I'm going to take a look in the mountains over there."

Zhu Chaoyun first carefully examined the golden frost fruit in her hand, memorizing its characteristics, before placing it in the bamboo basket on her back:

"Okay, then I'll wait for you to come back here."