My disciples are all villains.

"I'll contact Jiang Aijian immediately," Little Yuan'er said.

Lu Zhou walked with his hands on his back as he returned to the Evil Sky Pavilion.

...

Shortly after being brought to the south pavilion, Zhao Yue regained consciousness. The familiar environment and memories returned to her immediately.

"Miss Fifth, y-you're awake!" A female cultivator exclaimed in shock.

"I… What happened? Shouldn't I be in the Cave of Reflection?" Zhao Yue asked in confusion as she struggled to sit up.

The Derived Moon Palace's female cultivator next to Zhao Yue recounted what had happened earlier.

Upon hearing this, she asked incredulously, "You're telling me that master broke the witchcraft Restriction for me?"

"Yes, Pavilion Master came and broke the witchcraft spell with just a strike of his palm," the Derived Moon Palace's female cultivator prepared some hot water as she said, "The witchcraft spell was terrifying. Fortunately, Mister Third and Mister Fourth arrived just in time."

Zhao Yue sighed softly. She tried to circulate the Primal Qi from her dantian's sea of Qi. The moment she attempted it, she felt sore all over.

"Miss Fifth, the witchcraft Restriction has just been lifted. It's best for you to rest for now. There's no need to rush your cultivation and circulate your Primal Qi. They'll recover in due time."

Zhao Yue nodded and lay down.

…

Half a day later.

In the Evil Sky Pavilion.

Lu Zhou heard two notifications.

"Ding! Breaking Zhao Yue's witchcraft Restriction. Reward: 1,000 merit points."

"Ding! Completed the investigation of the Fish Dragon Village incident and discovered the truth. Reward: 3,000 merit points."

Lu Zhou nodded with satisfaction. Now, he would have to find another way to earn merit points.

While Lu Zhou was contemplating this matter, a Derived Moon Palace's female cultivator walked slowly into the great hall. "Pavilion Master, Jiang Aijian requests an audience. He's at the foot of the mountain."

"Let him up."

"Understood."

Little Yuan'er, Mingshi Yin, and Duanmu Sheng rushed into the hall when they heard the news.

A moment later, escorted by the Derived Moon Palace's female cultivator, Jiang Aijian appeared outside the Evil Sky Pavilion's great hall. During his journey here, he had been looking around curiously, swiveling his head left and right. A blade of grass could be seen between his lips. He asked, "Hey, hey, hey, when did you join the Evil Sky Pavilion? Is it scary here? This is the base of the villains, right? Aren't you afraid at all?"

Jiang Aijian continued to ask a barrage of questions as he made his way to the great hall. "I didn't expect to see so many women in the Evil Sky Pavilion…" He clicked his tongue. "This tree looks nice. The greenstone floor looks nice as well."

"…"

Jiang Aijian's curious expression was still evident on his face as he slowly walked into the great hall.

Mingshi Yin asked, "Is this Jiang Aijian?"

Little Yuan'er replied, "That's him. You can tell by his thick skin."

"Since master regards him highly, he must have some outstanding qualities."

Jiang Aijian walked up to the people inside the hall and waved his hand in a sheepish manner as he said, "Old senior, I'm not used to such a grand welcome. Quick! Give me the nice sword, and I'll be on my way."

Lu Zhou stroked his beard calmly and said, "Jiang Aijian."

"Is there anything, old senior?"

"Sit down and talk."

"There's no need for that. We're old acquaintances now. Just give me the nice sword, and I'll be on my way immediately." Jiang Aijian was feeling less and less confident by the minute.

Lu Zhou waved his hand.

The Derived Moon Palace's female cultivator at the side presented Jiang Aijian with a sword.

Jiang Aijian took the sword with his right hand. In just a blink of an eye…

Crack!

The sword broke.

"No way! Old Senior! Is this what you mean by a nice sword? Is this the sword you meant when you said it's worth the trouble for me to come and personally collect it?" Jiang Aijian looked at the broken sword in shock.

Duanmu Sheng said, "This is the best sword in the Evil Sky Pavilion. It's made from a thousand-year tree, and a master craftsman carved the patterns on it."

"…"

Duanmu Sheng continued to say, "The Evil Sky Pavilion's disciples learned and trained with this sword. Sword Devil Yu Shangrong had once used this sword to kill 1,000 of his enemies." Duanmu Sheng's words were powerful and resonated in the great hall.

"…" Jiang Aijian was speechless. 'These f*cking trolls! This is just a wooden sword, but they're making it sound so amazing! Is there even anyone who would be on my side here?'

Jiang Aijian looked at Lu Zhou and said, "Old senior, my heart's feeling slightly cold right now…"

Lu Zhou stroked his beard and said, "This is indeed a nice sword. You don't want it?"

"Old senior, you said you hate petty men who don't keep their words. No matter how much you hype this wooden sword, it still won't turn into a treasure! Although I'm a sword maniac, my mind is still sound. I don't want this sword," Jiang Aijian said, feeling aggrieved.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"You'll have to pay for it then…"

"…"

Lu Zhou said indifferently, "This sword is extremely precious to the Evil Sky Pavilion, and yet, you just broke it. If you don't pay for the damage, I'm afraid…" He left his sentence unfinished.

Mingshi Yin's Separation Hook and Scabbard and Duanmu Sheng's Overlord Spear flickered brightly at this moment.

Jiang Aijian gulped. He took a step back and waved his hand. "No, no, no. I'll pay for the sword. I will. How much is it?"

Mingshi Yin smirked. "Do you think that it can be valued with money?"

"What would you have me do, then? Should I contact a craftsman to duplicate this sword?"

"That won't do. We want this original wooden sword," Mingshi Yin said.

Jiang Aijian tossed the remaining half of the wooden sword away. He dusted his hands and said, "I get it now. You tricked me, old senior. Let's cut to the chase, shall we?"

Lu Zhou stood up and descended the stairs with his hands on his back. He walked up to Jiang Aijian and said, "This is what I like about dealing with intelligent people."

"If I were intelligent, I wouldn't have been tricked by you," Jiang Aijian muttered to himself.

"Jiang Aijian, you used me numerous times to help you remove obstacles from the palace. You're the first person who's daring enough to behave in such an atrocious manner toward me."

"…" Jiang Aijian's expression changed. He took several steps backward.

At this moment, the Derived Moon Palace's female cultivators stood in a row, blocking the entrance of the Evil Sky Pavilion.

At the same time, an old man whose hair and beard were white slowly walked into view from outside the great hall. As he moved, eight trigrams moved with him under his feet. The six huge scripts radiated with golden light as they circled him.

"Yun Sect's Hua Wudao?" Jiang Aijian was on the verge of tears. He hastily waved his hand. "Old senior, t-this is all a misunderstanding!"

When Little Yuan'er saw this, she clapped her hands happily and said, "Quick, lock the doors! I'd like to see where he's going to run to… Senior Brother, catch him and beat him to a pulp!"

"Oh, my dear aunt, I have no quarrels with you! Why do you have to do this? Why is there a need to use blades and swords?" Jiang Aijian said.

Lu Zhou said calmly, "Stand back, everyone."

"Understood!" The Derived Moon Palace's female cultivators returned to their original positions.

Mingshi Yin and Duanmu Sheng stowed their heaven-grade weapons away as well.

The ring of light on Hua Wudao's body vanished instantly. He cupped his fists slightly at Lu Zhou and said, "Is this the cultivator who's said to love swords to the bones and values a sword as much as his life, one of the three great Sword Freaks, Jiang Aijian?"

Jiang Aijian scratched his head sheepishly and said, "Those are all exaggerations… Merely exaggerations."

Lu Zhou shook his head and said, "The name, Jiang Aijian, is only meant to conceal his own identity… Who would've thought that such an unbridled and uninhibited person is the Third Prince of the majestic Great Yan?"