Watching that little demon girl named Huā Yíngyíng being bullied by Du Niangzi, Lin Xue endured again and again.
She really wanted to step in and help.
This Du Niangzi was a mid-stage Condensation Core great demon.
Although Lin Xue was only at the early stage, just a minor realm lower, with her upgraded Swiftwind Sword Manual, the Paper Substitute Technique, and those Blood Fiend Spells above Blood Fiend, she might not be without the power to fight.
Back at Xixia Mountain, that Zong Biao Yao Jiang was also mid-stage Condensation Core, but under her sudden attack, he had almost no chance to fight back before being subdued.
If she were to act, defeating Du Niangzi shouldn’t be too difficult.
But after thinking it over and over, Lin Xue still forcibly held herself back.
After all, this was the enemy’s territory.
On the way to Qian Si Yuan led by Zong Biao Yao Jiang, Lin Xue had already noticed that the Demon Palace was swarming with Demon Troops.
If she acted rashly and failed to subdue Du Niangzi instantly, letting this Poison Spider cause a commotion, it would draw a large number of Demon Troops and Demon Generals, maybe even alert Zong Lie Leader and Hei Pi Yao Wang. That would be the end.
Moreover, Lin Xue didn’t want to create any unnecessary karma with others.
In this Demon Palace, there were many heads and Demon Generals at or above mid-stage Condensation Core, and even two leaders at peak stage.
With just her early stage Condensation Core cultivation, she could barely protect herself here, let alone save others.
She had only one goal right now: keep a low profile, survive quietly for the next eight days, and once the teleportation spell on her ring cooled down, immediately try to escape with Hong Yanzhi.
So, she had deliberately kept her distance from the other six demon girls along the way.
If she grew close with them, would she have to take them along when escaping in the future?
Rather than suffer that guilt, it was better to stay distant from the start.
But she didn’t expect Hong Yanzhi to step forward for Huā Yíngyíng, begging for mercy on her behalf. Instead, Hong Yanzhi was hung up by Du Niangzi to make an example.
Lin Xue could no longer sit still and had to reveal her strength to help.
Hong Yanzhi was her person; she couldn’t stand by and watch her suffer.
She seized the moment when Du Niangzi’s attention was on Hong Yanzhi, swiftly drew Blood Fiend, released a cloud of blood mist, silently flashed to Du Niangzi’s side, grabbed her hand to stop the poison from being flung at Hong Yanzhi, and pressed Blood Fiend to her neck.
“Let them both go!”
She ordered Du Niangzi.
Du Niangzi stared at Lin Xue, her ugly, plump face full of shock.
Shrouded in blood mist, she couldn’t see Lin Xue’s cultivation.
But from Lin Xue’s skills, she could tell this breathtakingly beautiful demon girl was far stronger than she had pretended to be—certainly not just late-stage Body Refining.
She had to be a Condensation Core great demon.
Only a great demon could silently place a blade at Du Niangzi’s throat.
This demon girl was hiding her cultivation with a concealing spell.
A trace of panic appeared on Du Niangzi’s face.
But she quickly regained her composure, looked at Lin Xue, and sneered, “Are you one of the Big Chief’s people?”
In Erlong Mountain, all the demons knew that the Big Chief, Hei-Feng, and the Second Chief, Zong-Lie, were both eyeing the Demon King’s position.
Hei-Feng was a bit stronger and would ascend as soon as Hei Pi Yao Wang passed on.
Zong-Lie was desperately trying to prolong Hei Pi Yao Wang’s life, trying to catch up.
So, seeing Zong Biao Yao Jiang bring back a consort for Hei Pi Yao Wang, and one of them deliberately concealing her strength, Du Niangzi’s first thought was that Lin Xue had been planted here by Hei-Feng, plotting something.
Lin Xue did not answer, but simply tapped Du Niangzi’s neck with the blade and repeated, “Let them go first.”
Du Niangzi looked at her, sneering, “Little demon girl, I advise you to put the knife away.”
“You’d better think it over. This is Lord Zong-Lie’s domain, and there are so many guards outside. If you kill me, you won’t escape either.”
“If you put down the knife, I can pretend nothing happened and won’t punish your two sisters. How about it?”
Lin Xue remained unmoved.
The instant she acted, she had already set her plan in mind.
She knew very well that as soon as she made a move, it would be impossible to coexist peacefully with Du Niangzi.
Either she killed Du Niangzi, or she would have to keep her under control.
But killing Du Niangzi outright was not an option.
There were Demon Troops outside. If she killed Du Niangzi and tried to leave, she’d be captured in no time.
And if she stayed in Qian Si Yuan, Du Niangzi, under orders from Zong Lie Leader, was here to train the new demon girls.
Zong Biao Yao Jiang would definitely come to check, then take them to present to Hei Pi Yao Wang.
By then, if Zong Biao Yao Jiang saw Du Niangzi dead, he’d know immediately who did it, and the consequences would be dire.
So Lin Xue had only one choice: keep Du Niangzi under control at all times.
She planned to make Du Niangzi her Yao Nu, just like Hong Yanzhi, controlling her life and death.
Hong Yanzhi had sought out Lin Xue herself, using the Subjugation Method from the Beast Mastery Heart Sutra (Recognition Chapter), and willingly acknowledged Lin Xue as her Master.
Now, after spending 1000 Experience to upgrade the Beast Mastery Heart Sutra with a Crystal Stone, Lin Xue had already mastered the method of subjugating beast-type demons as a Master, making them her Yao Nu.
She intended to use this method on Du Niangzi.
But first, she needed to have Du Niangzi free Hong Yanzhi and Huā Yíngyíng from the spider silk.
After all, she didn’t know much about Du Niangzi and couldn’t guess what tricks this Poison Spider demon had up her sleeve.
If, in a fit of rage, Du Niangzi tightened the silk and strangled Hong Yanzhi and Huā Yíngyíng, that would be a disaster.
Lin Xue tightened her grip on the blade, gave Du Niangzi’s neck a small cut, and coldly commanded, “Release them first.”
Du Niangzi felt the pain at her neck.
Her eyes rolled, and she immediately pleaded, “Okay, okay! Don’t hurt me, I’ll let them go right now!”
She reached out and withdrew the spider silk from Hong Yanzhi and Huā Yíngyíng.
Hong Yanzhi and Huā Yíngyíng tumbled down from midair.
Lin Xue couldn’t help but glance over at them.
It was only a brief moment, but a sudden change occurred.
Du Niangzi’s form suddenly shrank a size, slipping from beneath Lin Xue’s blade.
Lin Xue’s pupils shrank. She dodged to the side at lightning speed.
A spider leg, bristling with sharp barbs, stabbed viciously at where she had just been standing.
The floor tiles shattered, fragments scattering everywhere.
Seeing her attack miss, Du Niangzi instantly unfurled six long legs from her back and launched a frenzied, storm-like assault on Lin Xue.
Relying on the speed boost from the blood mist and the footwork from the Swiftwind Sword Manual, Lin Xue dodged Du Niangzi’s attacks with graceful agility.
Seeing she couldn’t subdue Lin Xue for the moment, Du Niangzi feinted and turned to flee toward the courtyard gate.
She was going to call reinforcements, summoning guards and Demon Generals to help capture Lin Xue.
Lin Xue’s heart filled with anxiety.
She absolutely could not let Du Niangzi alert the others, or everything would be over.
She charged at Du Niangzi as fast as she could.
But Du Niangzi was, after all, a mid-stage Condensation Core great demon; even slowed by the blood mist, her speed was still incredible.
In the blink of an eye, she reached the gate, her powerful hind legs flailing to fend off Lin Xue’s attacks.
She reached out her forelegs to pull open the gate, opened her mouth wide, and was about to call for help.
Lin Xue’s heart sank heavily.