Fang Yun bought all the detailed information about the Mist Butterfly from the Dragon's Head Spiritual Bone, an act nearly impossible for the human race to accomplish.
The Mist Butterfly, still cowering on the ground, flew towards the Holy Fruit upon seeing it, dancing gracefully in front of Fang Yun and emitting a soft, melancholic sound, as if pleading for something.
Fang Yun asked in the demon tongue, "Would you like to follow me?"
The Mist Butterfly let out a soft chirp and then fluttered its wings vigorously. Fang Yun suddenly felt a cool sensation on his forehead, and upon entering the Hall of Literary Mind, he discovered a Mist Butterfly formed from his spiritual consciousness resting on his statue's shoulder, sleeping peacefully.
Leaving the Hall, Fang Yun saw the Mist Butterfly nibbling on the Holy Fruit.
"What is this?" Yan Yukong inquired.
Li Fanming interjected, "It's the Holy Fruit! I never imagined it could attract the Mist Butterfly."
"So, it seems," Fang Yun slowly said. "I could have spared Liu Zizhi, but sometimes, it's better to seek justice directly than take a crooked path! The scholars of Qing Nation have gone too far against Jing Kingdom. I swear to engage in a literary battle with a whole state! Liu Zizhi colluded with The Tyrant to harm me, so I had to kill him!"
Zong Wude commented, "Your decision to seek justice directly rather than take a crooked path sounds resolute and powerful."
Fang Yun continued, "Knowing Liu Zizhi conspired with The Tyrant against me, I had to kill him with thunderous methods, then win over the Mist Butterfly to show my capabilities. If I used the Holy Fruit to lure the Mist Butterfly, that would have been taking a crooked path, a lower strategy! My paths as a Child Scholar and Accomplished Scholar were such, but as a Presented Scholar and beyond, if necessary, I will seek justice directly!"
Zong Wude, with a troubled face, said, "Indeed, Fang Yun is a role model for scholars like us… but I’d better say no more."
The others, curious, didn't understand his words, but Fang Yun, Yan Yukong, and a few others did.
Zong Wude praised Fang Yun's approach, but too much praise could be seen as a slight against their own Path of the Saints, given that his family was trying to ally with the Demon Barbarian against the Demon Clan, a typical example of seeking success through crooked means.
Moreover, Fang Yun expressed his fear of The Tyrant's desperate actions, revealing his primary reason for not using the Holy Fruit to attract the Mist Butterfly.
"Do you also have a Holy Fruit?" Li Fanming asked, puzzled.
Fang Yun produced the Holy Fruit secretly given to him by his elder.
The Mist Butterfly, previously nibbling on another Holy Fruit, suddenly looked up, grabbed the first fruit, placed it atop the second, and began to eat both, clearly intending to consume them entirely.
Everyone chuckled.
Sun Naiyong nodded, "From a military strategist's perspective, your move was unexpected and the best strategy. If The Tyrant noticed any flaws in your plan, or if you attracted the Mist Butterfly with the Holy Fruit, given his nature, he might either steal the butterfly and flee or ambush and kill you. It would have been a loss. You saw through this so clearly, your achievements will surely surpass mine."
Realizing Fang Yun's strategy to eliminate all potential threats by first killing Liu Zizhi and then driving away The Tyrant, the crowd had an epiphany.
"I would probably have used the Holy Fruit to lure the Mist Butterfly, relying on more Moonlight to defeat Liu Zizhi. But I would have forgotten about The Tyrant nearby, and ultimately lost the Mist Butterfly. If The Tyrant got it, it would be like adding wings to a tiger. We wouldn't be able to control him," Mo Shan suddenly said, "Wait, 'adding wings to a tiger'? Do you think The Tyrant wanted to use the Mist Butterfly to split his spirit? If he got it, it wouldn't just be adding wings to a tiger, but rather turning a fish into a dragon!"
Fang Yun was stunned, not having considered this possibility, but Mo Shan, a direct descendant of the Mo family, must have guessed this based on some secret knowledge.
Sun Naiyong wiped his forehead, relieved, "Thank goodness for Fang Yun. If he had been too conservative and spared Liu Zizhi, allowing The Tyrant to take over the Mist Butterfly, the consequences would have been unimaginable. Once the Mist Butterfly's split spirit matured, who among the literati could rival The Tyrant? With the Mist Butterfly, he might have been more restrained and chosen a different Path of the Saints. If he truly became a Semi-Saint, those families he harmed would have no choice but to swallow their grievances."
Zong Wude added, "Even if The Tyrant restrained himself, his ferocious nature remains. Don't forget, the Meng family has many enemies. If he became a saint, it would be both a blessing and a huge disaster."
"If The Tyrant merely bullied and robbed, I wouldn’t worry about him committing massacres after becoming a saint. But he poisoned Fang Yun. If we obstructed him in any way, we would likely be killed too," another said.
"It's true! With Fang Yun, even if we clash in ideals, as long as we don't harm him, he would tolerate us. The feud between Wude and Fang Yun is greater than that with the Liu family, yet they still treat each other with respect," another person commented.
Zong Wude shot the speaker a look, "I'm no match for Fang Yun in poetry, and I doubt I’d fare much better in a fight. I'd be foolish to become his enemy! I prefer to watch from the sidelines rather than get involved in the feud between him and our ancestor."
The group laughed, wishing everyone could be as reasonable as Zong Wude. However, human hearts and temperaments are complex.
"The Giant Gate is about to close; let's enter together."
"Let's go!"
Fang Yun thanked the demon kings, "Thank you all."
The Tiger Demon King snorted, "If we face troubles in the future, just lend a hand."
Fang Yun, puzzled as he was unlikely to return to The Holy Land, didn't understand the Tiger Demon King's intentions.
"If we meet, I'll surely help," Fang Yun promised.
The Tiger Demon King nodded and said no more.
The group gradually entered the bronze gate.
"Not good! Be careful! It's…"
Just as Fang Yun entered the bronze gate, he heard Li Fanming's voice, soon drowned out by the roaring wind. Fang Yun and his wheelchair plummeted downwards, hanging mid-air.
In the dim yellow world of flying sand and stones, Fang Yun squinted, feeling the gravel hitting him.
Niu Shan roared from behind, "Your Majesty, I've got the wheelchair, don't be afraid!"
"Good!" Fang Yun yelled, releasing the power of 'The Ode to Mountains', forming a semi-transparent protective barrier around himself and Niu Shan.
Thin strands of strange wind penetrated the barrier into the Hall of Literary Mind. Although weak, they could kill an ordinary Accomplished Scholar. Only the power of The Courage to Write could resist them. If this continued, they would eventually be drained of their strength.
"We're about to land!" Niu Shan shouted, his vitality surging as he steadied Fang Yun's wheelchair onto the ground. Fang Yun leaped out in advance, landing on the sand, then retracted the protective barrier.
With the strong wind and sand hitting him, Fang Yun had to shield his face with his arms, bending low to avoid being blown away. An ordinary person would have been killed by the relentless sand and stones, even without the strange wind.
Fang Yun's literary energy was limited. Since the wind couldn't harm him, he didn't use The War Poetry to deal with it. Besides, the place was filled with bizarre winds, and the poems of a Presented Scholar could only avoid them temporarily.
Observing carefully, Fang Yun realized he was in a desert.
Niu Shan roared, "Your Majesty, do you need me to carry you?"
"No need. Remember this place and search slowly around it. If they are wise, they'll wait for us," Fang Yun shouted, glancing at the Mist Butterfly, which was unaffected by the wind and continued eating the Holy Fruit, already half gone.
"Alright! I'll lead, you follow. Let's search together," Niu Shan said, conserving his vitality as the level of sand and stones hitting him was negligible. He only retained the bare minimum of vitality to block the fine strange winds.
After a while, two other Savage Cows and a Dog Demon General hurried over. The three barbarians and one demon formed a wall in front, significantly reducing the pressure on Fang Yun, who followed behind. The pace quickened, and they soon encountered Li Fanming and several others, with Li Fanming struggling to carry a rabbit.
"Fanming!" Fang Yun called out.
Li Fanming turned and ran towards Fang Yun, relieved as if seeing a family member. He moved past the demon barbarians to stand beside Fang Yun.
"Having more Moonlight and demon barbarians to block the sand is great. It's frustrating how some people have it all!" Li Fanming said, the big rabbit nodding vigorously behind him.
Fang Yun and the others searched for others, using their landing point as the center. Soon, they found everyone. As Presented Scholars, they weren't easily hindered by the sandstorm, even though it was dozens of times more violent than in the Holy Origin Mainland.
Unable to discern their direction, those proficient in the Book of Changes took turns divining, but the results were chaotic. Eventually, they decided to move perpendicular to the wind direction.
With the Demon Barbarians blocking the wind, the group proceeded with confidence, but the peculiar winds persisted. The mood grew increasingly pessimistic amidst their occasional conversations.
“My Courage to Write will be exhausted in two hours at most!”
“I might run out even sooner.”
“We don’t even know where we are.”
“Can’t the Mist Butterfly control the peculiar winds and The Weak Water?”
Everyone looked to Fang Yun, who helplessly replied, “The Mist Butterfly is consuming the Holy Fruit. Let’s wait a bit longer.”
Fifteen minutes later, having finished the Holy Fruit, the Mist Butterfly chirped softly and burrowed into Fang Yun’s chest, not to emerge again.
Fang Yun, startled, then noticed the absence of the peculiar winds. It seemed the Mist Butterfly was absorbing them.
“Hey, where’s the Mist Butterfly?” someone yelled.
“Asleep, apparently digesting the power of the Holy Fruit,” Fang Yun said with resignation.
Knowing the peculiar nature of such creatures, the group sighed and continued on their way.
After more than an hour, the sandstorm raged on, the sky darkening, and the group fell into deeper silence.
“Sigh, who would have thought we could survive in The Holy Land, only to be blown to death by the wind at the Demon Barbarian’s threshold,” Li Fanming complained. Suddenly, a snoring sound came from behind him. Fang Yun turned to see the rabbit fast asleep.
“Useless creature, I’m protecting you with The Courage to Write, and you just sleep!” Li Fanming grumbled.
The rabbit, oblivious, continued to sleep.
Suddenly, the Demon Barbarian turned, growling, “Trouble, something’s coming from the side!”
“Prepare for battle!”
Everyone quickly turned in the direction the Demon Barbarian faced, shedding their cloaks and readying for combat. Even Fang Yun felt a tinge of anxiety. This was the Demon Ancestor's Gate, and no one could predict the strength of what might come.
A shadow appeared, followed by a gigantic centipede emerging from the sandstorm. Numerous Demon Clan members rode atop the beast, led by a Demon Marquis, ranking even above a Demon Marshal. The Savage Cow, akin to a Presented Scholar, paled in comparison.