Zhou Yanfei muttered, his face filled with disbelief. "The demon was indistinguishable from the real thing! How did you manage to create such a thing?!"
"Thatâs a family secret," Yuan responded with a mysterious smile on his face.
Then, he turned to look at Yan Hara, who was standing before him with a dazed look on her face.
"Are you okay?" he asked her.
Yan Hara lowered her head to stare at her trembling hands and slowly responded, "Give me a few minutes... I need to organize my mind for a bit..."
Yuan silently nodded and returned to Zhou Yanfei.
"So, anything new during these last few months?" he questioned.
"Your trick worked like a charm. Weâve managed to extract the traitorsâ memories without any issues after you removed their curses, and we learned from them their background and goal on that day, as well as some information on the thief. Unfortunately, there was very little information about the thief."
"I see. What did you learn?"
"These traitors were all orphans trained at a young age to be spies in the Demon Sealing Grotto and Demon Sealing Clan. They hail from a hidden family surnamed Mo somewhere within the Disappearing Mountain Valleys, and thatâs all we know about them. We also know about their methods of training as well as their purpose."
"Once they complete their training, they are sent to the Demon Sealing Clan and the Demon Sealing Grotto, where they establish themselves as Demon Sealers and spy on us. Their goal during the invasion was to distract us so the thief, whom they knew as âMaster Moâ, could break into our vault."
"Master Mo, huh?" Yuan mumbled, pretending to ponder despite already knowing the thiefâs true identity.
"So what is the Demon Sealing Grotto going to do now?" he then asked.
"Naturally, weâre going to retrieve the Divine Paragonâs treasures. Once weâre prepared, weâre going to give this Mo Family a visit."
"I would investigate the Mo Family first before approaching them if I were you," said Yuan.
"Donât worry, we wonât act recklessly, especially knowing that they are working together with demons," Zhou Yanfei reassured.
Zhou Yanfei left Yuan and Yan Hara alone a few moments later.
Nearly half an hour after Zhou Yanfei left, Yan Hara finally opened her eyes and said, "I apologize for the wait."
"That was quick. I wouldnât have blamed you even if it had taken a few months," said Yuan.
Yan Hara sighed and said, "I have lived a total of 176 different lifetimes, with each and every single one of them ending in tragedy. My loved ones and I have died in every possible way to the demons, from being boiled to being eaten alive. These indescribable experiences... if I had known what I was getting myself into, I wouldâve probably refused it, but alas..."
After a brief moment of silence, she continued, "At least my mental strength has drastically improved because of it, and my hatred toward demons feels very natural even though I am aware that it all happened in an illusion."
Yuan nodded with a smile and said, "Not only did your Demon Sealing Aura improve significantly, but even your Soul Strength is nearly incomparable to just three months ago."
"I only spent three months inside the illusion? It felt like ages," Yan Haraâs eyes widened at this news.
"If you want to feel better, I have spent several years training in that manner as the Divine Paragon, experiencing thousands of tragic lifetimes. However, since my hatred toward demons was already quite high, it barely improved my hatred for them."
"If you donât mind me asking, what created the Divine Paragon?" Yan Hara asked, her eyes flickering with curiosity.
Yuan closed his eyes for a moment before responding, "I had a childhood friend. Her name was Ai Rong, and she was eaten by demons right before my eyes. At that time, I was a powerless, spineless bastard who could do nothing but watch his loved one be eaten. After that incident, I began to desperately search for a method to deal with demons."
"Back then, the only way to deal with demons was to completely overwhelm them or destroy their crystal. Their regenerative abilities were one of the main reasons for their dominance, so I began researching in that direction."
Yuan paused for a moment before continuing, "Honestly, I donât remember how I came up with Demon Sealing Aura. It just appeared in my mind during a period of enlightenment."
"Thatâs just how enlightenment works," Yan Hara said. "Itâs how many inventions and cultivation techniques come into existence. Itâs called Godâs knowledge for a reason."
Many cultivators believe that the state of enlightenment is akin to receiving divine insightâknowledge bestowed directly by the God of Knowledge, which explains most of the miracles that come with it.
"Godâs knowledge, huh?" Yuan muttered.
A moment later, he continued, "Anyway, what are you going to do now? I will leave soon."
"Well, now that I am aware of the culprit behind the stolen treasures, and I have declared myself as the Divine Paragonâs successor, I can only return to the Demon Sealing Clan and try to take Qian Chuâs position while heâs gone. It wonât be easy, but with the Demon Sealing Grotto now on my side, itâs definitely doable."
Yuan nodded and said, "If anything happens, you have âthatâ thing."
Yan Hara smiled and said, "Of course. Nobody would dare to defy me if I reveal that thingâperhaps except traitors who arenât true Demon Sealers."
"Then good luck. Iâll come visit you once I am finished with my business. Qian Chu plans on doing something in 20 years, so weâll likely meet before then."
"You stay safe as well."
Shortly later, Yuan left the Demon Sealing Grotto to head to the Rising Phoenix Clan, while Yan Hara remained a little longer to speak with Zhou Yanfei and the rest of the Demon Sealing Grotto to ensure she had their full support in the future.