Lang Buping had not slept for one night.
Since Zhang Zongnian left, there had been no news at all, and he did not know if the mission had been successful.
He had sent a bird Demon from the mountain to Erlong Mountain to investigate, but it had yet to return.
Lang Buping was restless, his heart burning with anxiety.
His eyes were bloodshot as he paced back and forth, sighing and groaning.
He wondered if Zhang Zongnian’s trip was going smoothly and if he could bring back his beloved Miss Yan Zhi.
In the midst of his frustration, he heard several Lesser Beasts running around outside, shouting something in excitement.
Lang Buping felt irritable and walked out of his room, intending to scold them.
However, he saw an attendant run over, saying joyfully, “Reporting to the Young Master, they’re back! They’re all back!”
Lang Buping froze for a moment and asked, “What do you mean ‘all back’?”
The attendant replied, “Miss Hong Yanzhi is back! And the other female Yaojing who were taken from our mountain have all returned! They are at the entrance of the cave right now…”
Before he could finish his sentence, a gust of yellow wind “whooshed” past him, sending him spinning in place.
Filled with excitement, Lang Buping dashed toward the cave entrance.
Lin Xue, Hong Yanzhi, Huā Yíngyíng, Xiao Mili, Du Juan’er, Jin Doudou, Li Tiantian, and Miao Xiaolan stood on the platform in front of Luoyun Cave, taking in the familiar scenery.
Although they had only been gone for a few short days, it felt as though an eternity had passed.
Huā Yíngyíng and the other five girls were particularly emotional. When they were first taken away by the Demon General He Biao, they were only Lesser Beasts. They thought they would be separated from their families for a long time, and some even feared they would never return.
They never expected not only to return safely to the mountain so quickly but also to have advanced to the rank of Grand Demon with Lin Xue’s help.
As Grand Demons, they were now fully qualified to go out and establish their own territories as leaders.
However, after facing life and death together over the past few days, a deep sisterly bond had formed between them and Hong Yanzhi. Furthermore, they were not ambitious like Shu Da; they all wanted to stay in the mountain just as before.
They bid farewell to Lin Xue and Hong Yanzhi, then headed to their respective homes to reunite with their families.
Hong Yanzhi was also very moved.
She had thought it would be difficult to return to the rank of Grand Demon in this lifetime and feared she would never return to this mountain where she had lived for nearly 100 years.
She never imagined she would stand on this land again as a Grand Demon.
While she was lost in thought, a gust of yellow wind suddenly blew out of the cave and headed straight for her.
The wind stopped in front of her, revealing Lang Buping, whose eyes were red with emotion.
Lang Buping’s eyes welled with tears as he looked Hong Yanzhi up and down. “Wife, you’ve really come back. This is wonderful! This is wonderful! This is wonderful!”
He looked like he wanted to step forward and hug her, but he seemed a bit hesitant and timid.
Hong Yanzhi knew that she hadn’t given him much of a warm welcome in the past, which made him a little afraid of her.
After experiencing those dark days at Erlong Mountain, her mood was excellent now that she was finally free.
Seeing Lang Buping actually made her feel a special sense of warmth.
She walked straight up to him, took his hands, and wrapped them around her waist.
Then, she took the initiative to hug him and said, “Husband, you’ve grown thin.”
Lang Buping almost thought he had misheard her.
He hugged Hong Yanzhi tightly, his entire body trembling with excitement.
His face was filled with happiness, and he wept tears of joy.
Lin Xue wanted to ask Lang Buping if the Mouse had returned to the cave, but seeing him and Hong Yanzhi locked in an embrace, she didn’t want to disturb them.
She prepared to go back to her room and check for herself.
Lang Buping was lost in his happiness while holding Hong Yanzhi. It took him a while to notice Lin Xue.
He looked around and asked, “Miss Lin, didn’t Brother Zhang return with you?”
Lin Xue was about to walk into the cave, but when she heard this, she froze. “What? What Brother Zhang?”
Lang Buping looked confused. “Your brother, Zhang Zongnian. Didn’t he go to save you? Weren’t you rescued by him?”
When Lin Xue heard him say that Zhang Zongnian had gone to save them, she was shocked. She hurried to ask Lang Buping what exactly had happened.
Lang Buping then recounted the details of how Zhang Zongnian had returned to the mountain a few days ago, found a way to contact him, and used the Demon Power of all the Rat Demons on the mountain to temporarily ascend to the Demon King Realm to save them at Erlong Mountain.
Lin Xue was stunned.
The young Demon King who had killed Hei Pi was actually Zhang Zongnian. No wonder she kept feeling like that Demon King knew her.
He had actually come to the mountain to find her. Moreover, he had become a Rat Demon, taken on a human form, and even found a way to temporarily become a Demon King to save her.
If he hadn’t arrived in time, they wouldn’t have been able to resist the attacks of the Hei Pi Yao Wang and would have become “cauldrons” used for Yin-Yang Harvesting.
But where was he?
When the Demon-Slaying Bureau arrived, Lin Xue had immediately used a Chuanyin Fashu to take the female demons away. She hadn’t seen where Zhang Zongnian went. Was Zhang Zongnian captured by the Demon-Slaying Bureau?
Logically, that shouldn’t have happened. Zhang Zongnian possessed the Cultivation of a Demon King at the time. Even if he couldn’t defeat Li Tianzheng, escaping shouldn’t have been an issue.
Then why hadn’t he returned to Xixia Mountain?
Lin Xue’s mind was suddenly in a mess. She remembered the look Zhang Zongnian had given her during his fight with Hei Pi. That single glance was filled with deep affection and a profound sense of reluctance to part. Then, he had suddenly exploded with power, his aura surging instantly.
‘That must have been a secret technique where he sacrificed his own life force in exchange for power.’
Furthermore, forcibly ascending to the rank of Demon King by borrowing the power of the Rat Demons would surely carry a heavy price afterward. Perhaps it was because of these reasons that his strength had severely declined, making him unable to resist Li Tianzheng and resulting in him falling into their hands?
She immediately decided to go to the Demon-Slaying Bureau in Yecheng Prefecture to ask Li Tianzheng for clarification and see if they had taken Zhang Zongnian.
Although she hadn’t slept all night and was exhausted after rushing back to Xixia Mountain, she couldn’t rest as long as Zhang Zongnian’s whereabouts were unknown. She had to find him.
Lin Xue immediately transformed into a streak of Dun Guang. Without even having time to say goodbye, she soared into the sky and flew back in the direction she had come from.
It was only then that Lang Buping noticed that Lin Xue had already become a Demon King. His eyes nearly popped out of his head.
Just a few days ago, on the day Lin Xue was taken away by the Demon General Zong Biao, he had seen with his own eyes that she had just survived her Thunder Tribulation to become a Grand Demon. How could she have suddenly become a Demon King in such a short time?
Lang Buping felt as if his entire understanding of the world had cracked.
—
Lin Xue flew at full speed. 4 hours later, she arrived at the location she had agreed upon with Li Tianzheng—the Portal to that mysterious Secret Realm.
Dozens of Foundation Establishment Cultivators from the Demon-Slaying Bureau were standing by, taking turns to guard the Portal from a distance. On the outer perimeter, many Heiyi Wei at the Refining Qi stage were guarding the surroundings, strictly forbidding unauthorized personnel from approaching.
From time to time, one or two Living Corpses would run out of the Portal. As soon as they showed their heads, over a dozen lightning Spells would strike them, killing them instantly. Following that, several large fireballs would fly over to incinerate them into ash.
The smell of burnt meat permeated the air.
Lin Xue landed directly on the ground. A Cultivator immediately came forward to meet her.
“I want to see Li Tianzheng,” Lin Xue said.
That Cultivator was one of those who had followed Li Tianzheng to search for Lin Xue earlier. He recognized her and immediately led her to see Li Tianzheng.
Li Tianzheng was resting in a tent nearby. After hearing the news, he came out to meet her. Seeing Lin Xue arrive alone so suddenly, he was very confused. He asked, “Miss Lin, why have you come here?”
Lin Xue asked, “The Demon King who killed Hei Pi yesterday is my friend. If he was captured by the Demon-Slaying Bureau, I ask that Supervisor Li shows mercy and releases him. As long as you are willing to let him go, I won’t ask for Spirit Stones, Spirit Medicine, or any Spell Techniques. I will help you close that Portal for free.”
Li Tianzheng was stunned for a long time, looking completely bewildered. “A Demon King? Are you talking about that man from yesterday?”
He shook his head and said, “Miss Lin, you’ve misunderstood. We didn’t capture him. Our higher-ups reached a peace agreement with the seniors of your Demon race long ago. We in the Demon-Slaying Bureau have no intention of interfering in the territorial disputes of your race. We only went there yesterday to rescue my younger cousin. As for things like Demon Kings fighting for supremacy, we are neither interested nor will we interfere recklessly.”
Now it was Lin Xue’s turn to be stunned. She felt that Li Tianzheng was not lying to her. Zhang Zongnian was not in the hands of the Demon-Slaying Bureau.
‘Then where could he have gone?’
Worried, Lin Xue bid farewell to Li Tianzheng and flew aimlessly through the sky. The image of the look Zhang Zongnian gave her kept replaying in her mind.
‘Could it be that he felt he was beyond saving, so he found a quiet place to wait for death alone?’
Lin Xue felt her heart burning with anxiety. She forced herself to calm down and think carefully about where Zhang Zongnian would most likely go and what unfinished business he might have.
A thought suddenly flashed through her mind—
‘The Xichuan Yang Clan!’
This thought was like a bolt of lightning that instantly cleared the fog in front of Lin Xue’s eyes. Zhang Zongnian’s mother had died at the hands of the Yang Family’s Ancestor in Foundation Establishment. The one thing he had never forgotten was his desire to personally avenge his mother.
Back when he had first possessed the Mouse, he was afraid he wouldn’t be able to seek revenge, so he had even used a blood-letter to entrust Lin Xue to take revenge on the Yang Family for him.
Now that he temporarily possessed the power of a Demon King, he would surely go to cause trouble for the Yang Family!
‘He must be at the Xichuan Yang Clan right now!’
Lin Xue immediately changed direction and flew at high speed toward the location of Xichuan County.