At this moment, Zhou Tiance appeared hunched behind him, looking at him with stern eyes:
"You risked coming here today, do you have some conspiracy?"
The young Daoist turned around to look at him, a strange and dark smile on his face, as if wearing a human skin mask.
"Old Marquis, you are too suspicious of me, that's not right."
"Clearly, when we met a few days ago, you valued me highly. Why are you now keeping your distance?"
Zhou Tiance's expression remained unchanged; he noticed the change in the power of heaven and earth beside him, his eyes vaguely complex, and continued to ask:
"Is your coming here related to Chen Yuan's succession to the title of Duke Jingye?"
The young Daoist's smile grew wider, he flipped his hand and said: "Since the Old Marquis has guessed my intention, you should be delighted."
Saying this, a porcelain bottle appeared in his hand, he shook it in front of him and said:
"This item, the Old Marquis is not unfamiliar with, right?"
Zhou Tiance's face darkened: "What exactly do you want to do?!"
"I don't want to do anything, I just want to continue completing the tasks given by Lord 'Black Impermanence'."
The young Daoist said with a half-smile:
"Old Marquis, the elixir that Lord 'Black Impermanence' handed to you last night was discarded by you. I found it back for you; you should thank me."
Anger stirred in Zhou Tiance's heart; he coughed and said: "You also don't trust Yuan Er?"
"Trust?" The young Daoist's smile diminished, his expression turned cold as he said:
"Old Marquis, the hearts of men are hidden; how can you ascertain that Chen Yuan shares your intentions?"
"He wouldn't even change his surname to 'Zhou'; isn't that enough to prove he is untrustworthy?"
Zhou Tiance paused, his eyes shifting uncertainly, clearly the words struck a chord.
"Yet using such means against Yuan Er, is not my original intent, and also..."
"And furthermore you do not wish him to be entangled with the Demon Court?" The young Daoist interrupted, sneering:
"Old Marquis, ah, you've truly grown muddled with age!"
Zhou Tiance looked at him wordlessly and, after a moment's silence, suddenly asked with a touch of despair in his tone:
"What can I do to make you abandon such thoughts?"
Seeing his expression, a trace of reluctance flashed in the young Daoist's eyes, but he said:
"I must see his attitude!"
"Otherwise even if he succeeds to the position of Duke Jingye, I have ways to ensure he dies without a burial place!"
Gritting his teeth, Zhou Tiance said: "If he changes his surname 'Chen' to 'Zhou', will you be satisfied?!"
The young Daoist nodded noncommittally: "If so, I can give him a few days grace to see how things develop!"
"However, let me say this first: You once pledged loyalty to Fengyue Demon Emperor; withdrawing now won't be so easy!"
Zhou Tiance opened his mouth, wanting to speak, but was interrupted by a fit of coughing.
He hunched over, coughing incessantly as if tearing from the lungs.
After a moment of hesitation, the young Daoist reached out, patting his back and said: "Old Marquis, I've said all there is to say, consider your options early."
"Moreover, my current identity is that of Lu Fang from Yuhua Immortal Sect—keep this in mind."
"If you have any ideas in the near future, you can find me at Xianglan Inn."
Saying this, the young Daoist opened the porcelain bottle in his hand, took out the elixir inside, and directly forced it into Zhou Tiance's mouth:
"This is Spiritual Medicine retrieved from the Demon Court, though it cannot completely heal your injuries, it can alleviate some pain."
"I've said all there is, take care!"
The young Daoist turned to leave without hesitation, just as he reached the rear garden corridor, he heard the voice of the house servant from the front courtyard:
"Marquis Chen Yi has come to offer congratulations..."