"Why are you just standing there and looking around? There's nothing to see here. How dare you make the Lord wait for you…" The Manager said to him with a frown on her face.
"Coming…" Yuan stopped looking around and picked up his pace.
After walking on this cloudy path for about ten more minutes, they arrived at the peak of the mountain.
The peak of the mountain was surprisingly flat, almost as though someone had cut it with a sword.
However, there was a small hill with a cave located in the middle of the mountain, which looked very awkward and out of place, almost like it didn't originally belong there and that someone had moved it there.
"Where's the Lord? I don't see him here." Yuan said after realizing that the peak of the mountain was empty.
"He's resting inside the cave over there. Stand in front of it, but do not go inside, unless you don't care about your insignificant life," she said.
Yuan swallowed nervously before approaching the mountain and standing right before it.
However, he was unable to see anything, almost as though there was something interfering with his divine sense.
"Save your energy. You won't be able to penetrate this cave with your divine sense." A deep voice suddenly resounded from within the cave.
Yuan's body shook when he heard this voice that was filled with spiritual energy.
'This Lord is definitely an expert! His voice alone carries an abundant amount of spiritual energy! Even Xiao Hua does not have such powerful spiritual energy! But how is that possible? Spirit Master is already considered the peak for this world, but there could be a couple of hidden Spirit Grandmasters in this world such as Lulu's master. However, Xiao Hua is a Spirit King! There's no way someone in our world could surpass that realm!' Yuan was greatly shocked and interested at the same time, and his curiosity for this Lord has reached its peak.
"Anyways… I heard you attacked the Chu Family. You're very daring for a mere Spirit Master." The Lord's voice continued.
"I had good reasons," said Yuan.
"I don't care about your reasons, nor do I care that you'd attacked the Chu Family. I only care about one thing— obeying the rules of the mountain. However, you have ignored my rules and acted on your own accord. What do you have to say for yourself?"
"I have no excuses." Yuan said with a straight face.
"Hmph. Not even going to put up a fight? How boring."
"I know what I did was wrong, but I have no regrets. If I had to do it all over again to help my friend, I would not hesitate, even if it means getting evicted from the mountain. There are plenty of other places we can live in this world, after all."
"…"
The Lord remained silent for a good minute before speaking again, "Do you know why I called you here today?"
"You have a request for us, right? If we do it, you'll forgive me for invading the Chu Family." Yuan said.
"Yes, that's right. However, that's an easy question. Let's make the next one a little harder. Now try answering this. Do you know why I allowed you to live on my mountain in the first place?"
"Huh?" Yuan raised his eyebrows at such a question.
"You're aware that only those that have received my approval can enter this mountain, right? In other words, I picked you. Do you know why I picked you?"
After pondering for a moment, Yuan responded, "Because… I am Player Yuan?"
He could only think of his identity as Player Yuan, which has the most influence and significance.
"Hahaha!"
"Player Yuan? I don't give a fuċk about such a pointless alias! There's only one reason why I allowed you on my mountain! You, who has seemingly zero connections to the Demon Sealing Clan, have managed to kill a demon! Do you understand the significance behind that achievement?"
"This is about the demon?" Yuan was dumbfounded by the situation. He truly didn't expect the demon that he'd killed would be involved in this conversation.
"The Qi Family is one of three ancient families that have served the Demon Sealing Clan since ancient times with both experience and profound knowledge about demons, yet the best they can do is seal demons. You, on the other hand, can kill them! You, alone, are worth more than the entire Qi Family!"
"…"
Yuan was left speechless by the Lord's words, and he wasn't sure where to begin with so much information.
"Manager! Get us the crystal!" The Lord suddenly shouted, causing the air to tremble.
"Yes!"
The Manager left the place for a few minutes before returning while carrying something in her grasp.
"T-That thing is?!"
Yuan's jaw dropped from shock when he saw what the Manager was carrying.
It was a chunk of crystal that was yellow in color, and there was a hint of red in the center of the crystal.
"Is that what I think it is…?" Yuan asked the Lord while silently praying that he would be wrong.
"Yes, this is a Red Calamity Crystal. It can predict calamities— but it only works when the calamity is influenced by demons. As you can see, this crystal is already yellow with a hint of red. There's going to be another calamity soon, meaning that another demon will be unleashed into this world."
"There are demons sealed within the Dragon Spiral Mountain, and I want you— and your Demon Sealing Faction to deal with the demons. You can either seal them or dispose of them. I personally prefer extermination."
"…"
Yuan was speechless once again. Who could've expected that the Lord's request for him would be to kill demons?
"If you accept my request and take care of the demons, I will not only forgive you for breaking the rules, but I will even tell you a little secret regarding this world and my identity. If that's not enough, I can tell you the true purpose of Cultivation Online and why it was created."
"Cultivation Online's true purpose…?" Yuan mumbled in a dazed voice.
