---
The next morning, Azure Sky Sect held its annual "Harmony Through Chanting" event—essentially a giant group hum-fest meant to align spiritual energies and keep the elders from yelling about "the decay of discipline."
Lin Feng, still traumatized by accidentally becoming a shadow guild leader yesterday, had been forcibly volunteered by Bai Xue.
"You'll be fine," she said, pushing him into the temple hall. "Just don't sneeze or die. Preferably neither."
Inside the temple, a hundred disciples sat cross-legged in concentric circles, all wearing identical sky-blue robes and humming like mystical beehives.
Lin Feng squatted next to a solemn-looking disciple named Wu Ping.
"Hey," Lin Feng whispered. "What are we chanting for?"
Wu Ping didn't open his eyes. "To purify our inner spirits and prevent demonic interference."
"Cool, cool…" Lin Feng looked around. "So no snacks?"
"Silence," intoned the Head Elder, floating ten feet in the air. "Begin the Mantra of Unyielding Purity."
A low hum filled the hall.
Lin Feng tried to join in. "Mmmmmmmm…"
He could feel spiritual energy gathering like static in the air. The walls glowed faintly. A formation circle lit up beneath them.
Unfortunately, this was when Lin Feng felt the tickle.
"…ah… AH…"
He tried to hold it in.
His eyes watered.
"…AH-CHOO!"
The sneeze echoed like thunder. His accidental forward flop pressed his hand directly onto a sacred glyph.
The room exploded in black lightning.
The chanting stopped.
Everyone stared at Lin Feng, now glowing with a faint red aura and floating slightly above the floor.
"…Did I ascend?" Lin Feng asked.
"No," Bai Xue said flatly. "You desecrated the Celestial Harmony Array."
A sudden crack split the sky above the temple.
A blood-red rift opened in the air, swirling with chaos. Out of it came a booming voice:
"AFTER A THOUSAND YEARS, WHO DARES SUMMON ME?!"
Flame Duck fainted.
An enormous shadowy figure stepped out of the rift. He had horns, red eyes, and the aura of someone who hadn't brushed his teeth in centuries.
The disciples panicked.
"The Demon King! Run!"
"He's going to devour our souls!"
"Hide the snacks!"
Only Lin Feng remained standing—mostly because he was stuck mid-air and his shoelaces were tied together.
The Demon King looked around, eyes glowing. "Which ancient sorcerer has summoned me?!"
Everyone pointed at Lin Feng.
The Demon King turned. "…You?"
Lin Feng gave a weak wave. "Sorry, I sneezed?"
The Demon King narrowed his eyes. "You bear the Mark of Accidental Summoning. Rare… powerful… extremely inconvenient."
He raised a clawed hand. The ground shook.
"Prepare for annihilation!"
Lin Feng panicked. "Wait! I command you to stop! By the sacred right of summoners!"
The Demon King froze mid-incantation.
"…What."
Lin Feng scrambled. "Yes! It's in the rulebook, section… twelve. If a summoner is wearing blue robes, and summons a demon during a group chant, the demon has to obey for a probationary period of seven days."
The Demon King blinked. "…Is that true?"
Bai Xue pulled out a scroll and checked. "…He's not wrong."
The Demon King groaned. "Fine. What are your orders, Great and Wise Accidental One?"
Lin Feng gulped. "First order: No annihilating! Second: You will now be my bodyguard!"
The Demon King sighed. "Ugh. Fiiiiiine."
---
Later that Day…
Lin Feng strolled through the Azure Sky Sect gardens with a ten-foot-tall Demon King walking behind him, arms crossed, looking like a disappointed volcano.
Disciples scattered as he passed.
Flame Duck had regained consciousness and now rode on the Demon King's horn like a warlord.
"I think I'm finally blending in," Lin Feng said cheerfully.
Bai Xue facepalmed. "You've made an ancient demon your pet."
"He's not a pet! He's a friend with horns! Like a goat. A very angry goat."
The Demon King growled. "I will destroy everything you love in seven days."
"Yeah, yeah," Lin Feng said, tossing him a lingshi snack. "Just don't touch my soup."