Li Meng turned his head, his gaze settling on the woman beside him.

“Junior Sister, the Joyous Union Sect delegation is over there. Let us join them.”

“Very well.”

They channeled their spiritual power, rising on the wind. Together, they glided across the sky, heading toward the gathering of yellow and purple robes.

“What a beauty…”

As they flew over the crowded plaza, Lu Zimo’s ethereal, immortal grace acted like a magnet, drawing the heated gazes of countless male cultivators.

“Fragrant… so fragrant. Even from here, she looks delicious enough to taste.”

A frivolous, mocking voice drifted up from a nearby ruin.

A young man dressed in pristine white robes stood among a group of lackeys, staring up at Lu Zimo with undisguised lust. He waved a folding fan with an exaggerated elegance, posing as a dashing young noble, though his eyes were filled with filth.

Lu Zimo’s expression went sub-zero.

Clang!

Her sword left its sheath in a blur.

She didn’t speak; she simply slashed.

Sword energy surged out like a shimmering rainbow, cold and biting, sweeping straight toward the white-robed youth.

The young man’s face twisted in shock. He hadn’t expected the beauty to bite so quickly.

He hurriedly infused spiritual power into his fan. It erupted with yellow light, spinning rapidly as it flew out to intercept the strike.

BOOM!

The rainbow sword energy slammed into the spinning fan. Two colors of spiritual light detonated, sending a shockwave rippling through the air.

CRACK.

The fan groaned under the pressure and shattered into splinters. The sword energy dissipated, its momentum spent.

“Die!”

Lu Zimo’s killing intent skyrocketed. She adjusted her flight path, diving toward the man like a hawk striking a hare.

“Stop!”

“How dare you!”

The man’s companions finally reacted, swarming around him. Hands flashed in complex seals as they summoned their own Magical Artifacts to defend him.

“Junior Sister!”

Li Meng surged forward, catching Lu Zimo’s wrist in a grip of iron.

He pulled her back, forcibly halting her charge.

Li Meng looked at her cold, murderous profile with a mixture of exasperation and amusement.

This girl has quite the temper.

A single lewd comment and she was ready to take heads. She was far more vicious than her ‘Ice Fairy’ persona suggested.

Lu Zimo’s expression shifted as she felt his grip. The red haze of anger cleared slightly. She sheathed her sword with a sharp click.

“Apologies,” she murmured. “I was… rash.”

In a place swarming with cultivators from every major sect, starting a bloodbath over an insult was indeed unwise.

Li Meng chuckled, releasing her wrist. “Let us go.”

They turned to leave, dismissing the ants below.

But the ants had other ideas.

“Fellow Daoist destroys my Magical Artifact and thinks she can just leave?”

The white-robed man stepped out from behind his wall of guards. He produced a spare folding fan, snapping it open with a snap of his wrist. His eyes roamed greedily over Lu Zimo’s curvaceous figure, lingering on her waist and hips.

“Fellow Daoist must be a disciple of the Joyous Union Sect,” he sneered, his voice dripping with entitlement. “How about this? If you stay and assist me with my ‘cultivation’ for a few nights, I will overlook this offense. It’s a fair trade, don’t you think?”

The implication of ‘dual cultivation’ was crude and unmistakable.

Li Meng stopped.

His expression didn’t change, but the temperature around him plummeted. He turned his head slowly, glancing at the white-robed man.

It was an indifferent look. The kind a human gives to a cockroach before stepping on it.

Li Meng didn’t speak. He simply flicked his sleeve.

Whoosh.

A single golden Talisman shot out.

It streaked toward the group like a golden meteor. Mid-flight, the paper burned away, erupting with a blinding radiance.

The spiritual pressure in the plaza spiked wildly.

In the blink of an eye, the talisman transformed into a massive, ten-zhang-long Golden Geng Spirit Sword.

The sword hung in the air for a fraction of a second, radiating a terrifying, metallic killing intent. Ripples of golden light distorted the air around it, heavy enough to crush bone.

“Fellow Daoist, wait—!”

The color drained from the faces of the man’s companions.

“Defend!” one of them screamed, his voice cracking with terror.

Six cultivators desperately activated their Magical Artifacts, sending shields and weapons flying up to intercept the golden giant.

A trace of disdain flickered in Li Meng’s eyes.

Ants trying to stop a mountain.

This was a Third-Grade Top-Quality Spirit Sword Talisman. While it looked similar to the Second-Grade version, the difference in power was the gap between heaven and earth.

Crack. Snap. Shatter.

The moment their artifacts touched the golden energy, they were ground into dust.

“STOP!”

A thunderous roar echoed from the sky—a Golden Core aura pressing down in a desperate attempt to intervene.

It was too late.

Li Meng’s finger twitched downward.

BOOM!

The Golden Geng Spirit Sword slammed into the ruins.

There were no screams. The eight cultivators—the young master and his seven guards—were instantly vaporized.

They were reduced to ash, their bodies destroyed, their Dao obliterated.

The ground shook violently. Dust and debris blasted outward in a expanding ring, knocking over nearby onlookers. A massive crater replaced the building ruins, and standing proudly in the center was the shimmering golden sword, half-buried in the earth.

The surrounding cultivators gasped, scrambling back on their swords to avoid the shockwave.

Silence descended on the plaza.

Li Meng, hovering calmly above the destruction, reached out and pulled Lu Zimo against him. His arm wrapped possessively around her waist.

“Is Junior Sister satisfied now?” he asked, his voice calm.

Lu Zimo’s body went rigid. She looked up at him, confusion warring with shock.

Why is he touching me?

Li Meng leaned down, his lips brushing the shell of her ear. His voice dropped to a whisper only she could hear.

“This display was for the benefit of the Joyous Union Sect’s Golden Core elder. From this moment on, you are my Dao Companion. This identity grants you the Sect’s protection. We can ‘break up’ after the mission concludes.”

Realization dawned in Lu Zimo’s eyes.

A play.

The angry voice from the sky earlier clearly belonged to the white-robed man’s guardian—a Golden Core expert. That expert hadn’t descended yet, which meant the Joyous Union Sect’s elder had likely intercepted him. By claiming her as his Dao Companion, Li Meng was giving the Sect a reason to defend her.

“I understand,” she whispered back.

Her stiff body softened, melting into his embrace. She played her part.

“He deserved to die,” she said, her voice carrying a trace of lingering anger.

“Hmph,” Li Meng scoffed loudly, tightening his grip on her waist. “Daring to solicit my woman right in front of me? His death is not enough to atone for his crime.”

Lu Zimo’s cheeks flushed a genuine shade of red at his words.

“Eh? Isn’t that Junior Brother Li?”

“It is! Why is Junior Brother Li here?”

“And who is that Senior Sister beside him? She’s stunning… I’ve never seen her in the Sect before.”

The commotion had finally drawn the full attention of the Joyous Union Sect delegation. They had stood up to watch the excitement, only to realize the protagonist of the drama was one of their own.

Li Meng formed a single-handed seal.

In the crater below, the massive Golden Geng Spirit Sword dissolved into motes of light, reforming into the golden talisman. It flew back into his hand with a soft rustle.

He flicked his sleeve, tucking it away. A Third-Grade Top-Quality talisman was durable; it still had two uses left.

The onlookers stared at him with newfound fear and respect.

He was clearly only at the early Foundation Establishment stage, yet he had obliterated eight peers instantly. Normally, such a powerful talisman would drain a cultivator dry or take time to activate.

Unless he is a Talisman Master.

Only a master using their own creations could wield such power with such casual ease.

Lu Zimo glanced at the man holding her.

She had expected him to de-escalate the situation. Instead, his temper proved even more explosive than hers. He hadn’t just slapped their faces; he had erased their existence.

A faint, amused smile touched her lips.

Fellow Daoist Li is truly… an interesting man.

They descended from the sky, landing gracefully in front of the yellow-robed group.

“Junior Brother Li!”

The Joyous Union Sect disciples stepped forward in unison, bowing respectfully.

Li Meng chuckled, his demeanor shifting back to the amiable, wealthy merchant. He returned the bow.

“I did not expect to run into so many Senior Brothers and Sisters here. This Junior Brother is delighted.”

“Senior Brother Li,” a voice spoke up.

Ning Changyuan stepped forward, his gaze drifting to the woman at Li Meng’s side.

She wore the Sect’s purple robes, marking her as an inner disciple. Her features were cold and exquisitely beautiful, her figure ripe and alluring. Yet, he had no memory of her.

“This is…”

“This is Senior Sister Lu Zimo,” Li Meng introduced smoothly, pulling her slightly closer. “She is my companion for this journey.”

The implication of their body language was clear to everyone present.

Ah, a Dao Companion.

The disciples exchanged knowing looks and bowed to her.

“Greetings, Senior Sister Lu!”

Lu Zimo returned the courtesy with a graceful bow.

After a round of polite greetings, the group settled back down onto their meditation cushions, though many cast curious glances at the formidable couple in their midst.