Xu Yi spent a long time coaxing the five crying old men into laughter.
She quietly wiped a bead of sweat and glared at Ji Buwang again.
He had promised to help her deal with the five elders, but instead, he had just watched the show from the sidelines.
Ji Buwang pretended not to see Xu Yi's gaze and invited the five elders to talk inside.
The five elders immediately crowded around Xu Yi as they walked in, each speaking their own words. Regardless, their general meaning was to blame Xu Yi for her sudden disappearance last time.
Xu Yi dared not retort and could only repeatedly admit her fault.
When Xu Yi saw the smiling Elder Qingfeng, tears almost streamed down her face.
"Elder Qingfeng!"
"Greetings, Old Ancestor."
After Elder Qingfeng responded, he unceremoniously ushered the other elders away from Xu Yi.
"Old Ancestor, you must be tired from your journey. Hurry and let Old Ancestor sit down and rest. You old stubborn ones, don't keep pestering her."
Xu Yi gave Elder Qingfeng a look of immense gratitude and, under his guidance, took her seat in the main position.
The other elders grumbled resentfully before taking their seats.
Xu Yi looked around and said with a smile, "This is the first time everyone is gathered."
In the past, Ji Buwang had concealed his identity and never dared to appear before Xu Yi.
Therefore, this could be considered the first formal high-level meeting of the Xuanji Sect.
Ji Buwang's eyes flickered slightly, showing a rare hint of guilt.
At this crucial moment, Elder Qingfeng once again stepped forward to smooth things over for Ji Buwang, saying, "What Old Ancestor said is right. After many years apart, Old Ancestor's strength has advanced further, making us sigh in admiration."
In less than two hundred years, Xu Yi had advanced from the early Nascent Soul stage to the middle Integration stage, her cultivation speed was astonishing.
Even Elder Qingfeng, who had seen much, could not help but be amazed.
This was followed by genuine pride from the bottom of his heart.
Xu Yi was indeed the chief disciple of Old Ancestor Yuan Ming.
Her talent was fully worthy of her ancestor title, and no one dared to question it anymore.
"It is a cause for great celebration that Old Ancestor's cultivation has greatly increased this time!"
"Old Ancestor's talent is truly rare in my life! The Xuanji Sect is truly blessed by heaven!"
"Old Ancestor..."
Elder Qingfeng's words were echoed by the other elders.
"Elders, you flatter me. Xu Yi is truly undeserving, truly undeserving."
Xu Yi had heard praise from many people, both openly and implicitly. However, facing such sincere and eloquent praise from the five elders, she was still a little overwhelmed.
"Old Ancestor, what are you saying? If you are not worthy, then no one in the Jiuzhou Continent is worthy of the praise 'exceptionally talented'!"
"Exactly! Old Ancestor, please do not be so modest. You are the Old Ancestor of the Xuanji Sect!"
"If you ask me, Old Ancestor is still too humble! You should learn from Elder Qingfeng's thick skin."
Xu Yi: ...
Seeing that the elders' conversation was becoming increasingly off-topic, Ji Buwang had to step in and steer the conversation back on track.
"Now that Old Ancestor has returned to the sect, Elder Qingfeng will first elaborate on the sect's situation, so that Old Ancestor is informed."
Xu Yi nodded abruptly, "Sect Leader is absolutely right. Then I will trouble Elder Qingfeng."
When it came to business, the five elders could only reluctantly fall silent.
Elder Qingfeng cleared his throat, his expression solemn, and slowly said, "Recently, everything in the Xuanji Sect has been as usual, with a flourishing sect atmosphere, but the Jiuzhou Continent has not been very peaceful."
Under Elder Qingfeng's narration, Xu Yi learned a great deal of information she had not known before.
The emergence of the Saintess Cult and the deaths of several elders and sect leaders in Ang Province were just the tip of the iceberg.
It could be said that except for Zhuzhou, where the demon race resided, and Shenzhou, where the demon beasts resided, anomalies had occurred in the other seven major prefectures.
Under the joint investigation of the five great sects, it was discovered that all these incidents were ultimately related to the demon race.
In other words, the demon race was gradually infiltrating every corner of the Jiuzhou Continent.
Moreover, those demon scouts were well-trained, rarely revealing themselves in the early stages. Even if they were discovered by sect disciples later, they had various strange methods to escape pursuit.
Up to now, they had only captured thirteen demons, and all of them were corpses, as the opponents chose to commit suicide upon capture, leaving no room for negotiation.
"Old Ancestor, I remember when you left Zhuzhou, you reinforced the demon seal. Could it be that the seal has loosened again?" Elder Zhao asked with a frown.
They had originally thought that after reinforcing the seal, the demon race would lie dormant for a long time.
Unexpectedly, the demon race had become increasingly active in recent years, as if the seal in Zhuzhou was merely a formality.
Xu Yi pondered for a moment, "Under normal circumstances, the seal should not have loosened so quickly. Unless the demon race has found a new way to break it. However, there is another possibility."
"Please, Old Ancestor, tell us."
Xu Yi looked at everyone, "These demons did not escape from Zhuzhou recently, but had already infiltrated the major prefectures before the seal was reinforced. They have only appeared one after another recently."
Xu Yi also remembered encountering a mysterious person impersonating the city lord in Xiling City.
She had exposed the mysterious person's true face, and the other party had used a miraculous secret technique to escape.
At that time, she had not discovered the mysterious person's identity until she went to Zhuzhou, when she suddenly realized that the other party's methods were very similar to those of the demon race.
She was now almost certain that the mysterious person was the Demon Lord.
At that time, she had just escaped from a secret realm, and the demon race had already infiltrated the Jiuzhou Continent and even impersonated a city lord.
This fully indicated that the demon race had already begun their actions stealthily without their knowledge.
"What! It's like this?"
All the elders were shocked.
Then, as they thought about it, they found this deduction to be very reasonable.
"The demon race has long wanted to break the treaty, so they made arrangements in advance. It's hateful that we were kept in the dark and only discovered their sinister intentions today!"
Elder Qingfeng slammed the table beside him fiercely, filled with indignation.
"The demon race is detestable and ruthless, we must be on guard," Elder Fang said solemnly.
"That's right. The demon race has been lurking for nearly a few hundred years, but they have been frequently appearing recently. It seems they are brewing a shocking conspiracy again!"
Elder Xu's words hit the mark, which was precisely Xu Yi's biggest concern.
Why did these demons, who had already infiltrated various places, not wait for the demon race to completely break the seal and launch a full-scale attack before responding, but instead exposed their existence in advance?
What reason made them willing to risk danger to complete it?
Xu Yi, Ji Buwang, and the elders fell silent for a moment. A heavy atmosphere flowed between them, and the hall was so quiet that one could hear a pin drop.
Finally, Xu Yi broke the silence.
"Elders, the matter of the demon race can probably no longer be kept secret. It is better to make plans early."
The frequent activities of the demon race had exceeded Xu Yi's expectations and given her an unprecedented sense of crisis.
She had not wanted to spread the news of the demon race, fearing it would cause unnecessary panic.
However, the demon race's tentacles had already penetrated the Jiuzhou Continent, and it would be difficult to eradicate them all with the strength of the five great sects alone.
Xu Yi believed that it was necessary to gather the strength of the entire Jiuzhou Continent and formally declare war on the demon race.
She did not believe that under such circumstances, the demon race could still silently complete their scheme.