“What?”
Yan Huaichen’s voice was too soft, almost like he was talking to himself, and Luo Qi didn’t catch what he said.
But Yan Huaichen suddenly snapped back to his senses.
Only then did he realize that he had actually voiced that absurd and unfamiliar thought that had flashed through his mind.
He raised his hand to take the Spirit Replenishing Pill that Luo Qi handed over, then walked a few steps to the left and forward, his movements carrying a hint of concealment.
“Since the Spirit Demon has been captured, the young lady may do as she pleases.”
…
Watching Luo Qi disappear into the sky with Xiao Bai in her arms, Ting Bai stepped forward and scratched his head, asking:
“Brother Chen, you’re just letting her go like that?”
“What else?” Yan Huaichen shot him a glance.
Ting Bai felt a bit embarrassed, but he still voiced what was on his mind.
“This Miss Luo Qi seems to have a natural perception for Spirit Demons. With her by our side, capturing Spirit Demons would be twice as effective with half the effort.”
Just then, Yi Ze walked over and poured cold water on Ting Bai’s idea.
“You’re thinking too optimistically. This Luo Qi is no ordinary person. She clearly has no cultivation level or spiritual power, yet she can unleash techniques that surpass the Seven Great Immortal Sects.”
Yi Ze looked in the direction Luo Qi had left, his gaze deep and unreadable, and said to Ting Bai:
“A person like this — we can’t yet tell if she’s friend or foe. One day, this ‘help’ might just turn into a deadly blade.”
Ting Bai still wasn’t convinced.
Of course, what bothered him more was the regret of Luo Qi’s departure.
These past few days, they had been following Luo Qi’s guidance to capture Spirit Demons without taking any detours, and Ting Bai had grown somewhat accustomed to her presence.
He muttered under his breath:
“What kind of deadly blade could she become? What ulterior motives could Miss Luo possibly have toward us?”
This time, Yi Ze didn’t immediately respond.
After a few seconds, he turned to look at Ting Bai, his dark, sharp eyes narrowing slightly:
“She may have no designs on you or me, but what about our Young Lord?”
That casually spoken sentence instantly silenced Ting Bai.
Over the years, there had been no shortage of those who wanted the Young Lord dead.
Assassinations, spies, those disguised as demons, coupled with the endless schemes of the restless ones within the Demon Race.
There was no guarantee this time wasn’t another honey trap.
But if that were truly the case, then who could have sent this Miss Luo Qi?
The more Yi Ze thought about it, the more he felt this couldn’t be taken lightly. “Brother Chen, she…”
Yan Huaichen looked down at the Spirit Replenishing Pill in his hand, lost in thought.
After a moment, he put away the pill and commanded Ting Bai:
“Spread the word — in ten days, the Demon Race Young Lord’s succession ceremony will take place. Additionally, reinforce the two outer barriers of the Demon Race territory.”
Ting Bai: “Yes!”
Yan Huaichen opened his left palm, and a golden mask appeared in the center.
He mounted the Nether Tiger and put on the mask.
Under the light, the mask gleamed with a cold luster.
The man riding the Nether Tiger emanated an aura of slaughter and conquest.
If Luo Qi were here at this moment, she would recognize him at a single glance —
Yan Huaichen — was the Demon Race Young Lord she had been searching for with all her might!
Yan Huaichen looked toward the Demon Realm Territory in the north. “Set out! Return to the Demon Palace, capturing Spirit Demons along the way!”
Ting Bai, Yi Ze, and the others all took out masks and put them on, mounted their Nether Tigers, and responded in unison: “Yes!”
One day later.
Luo Qi and Xiao Bai rode the “Leaf Bed” flying toward the Demon Race in the north.
Looking at the “Leaf Bed” that consumed so much Divine Power, Xiao Bai’s heart ached terribly.
It endured for a whole day, but finally couldn’t hold back anymore, and said to Luo Qi:
“Master, we’re already far away from them now. We don’t need to keep using Divine Power to fly on this thing, right?”
Luo Qi glanced at it and smiled:
“If we don’t use it, how are we supposed to get to the Demon Race? On our own two legs?”
Xiao Bai: “…”
“But our cultivation is sealed. If Master’s Divine Power inside you runs out again, then…”
“Xiao Bai.” Luo Qi suddenly interrupted it, her expression turning serious. “After waking up this time, I’ve discovered that some of my power has returned.”
“Huh?!” The little one’s eyes instantly lit up.
It bounced three feet into the air and jumped straight into Luo Qi’s arms.
Its two little paws grabbed Luo Qi’s arm as it asked excitedly:
“Really? Really, Master? Does that mean this Minor World’s restriction on our cultivation is gradually being lifted?”
Luo Qi rubbed the little ball of fluff that was about to bounce out of excitement, and said with a light laugh:
“Whether the cultivation restriction is being lifted is still hard to say for now, but I can now freely use the Spiritual Qi in this Minor World.”
Xiao Bai finally felt relieved.
No more having to worry every moment about being in mortal danger.
The little one rolled around in Luo Qi’s arms, took a few bites of flower petals, and finally remembered the important matter.
“Master, so that means — as long as we find that Demon Race Young Lord fiend, we can take him out, and then pat our butts and head back to the Divine Realm?”
Luo Qi swept a glance at it and let out a melancholy sigh.
“Dream on, little ball. My cultivation has only recovered a tiny bit — not even one twentieth of it. With your master’s current meager skills, handling an ordinary Demon Race cultivator is no problem, but if we want to kill that fiend —”
“Tsk,” Luo Qi shook her head and sighed: “Let’s not daydream about that.”
Upon hearing this, Xiao Bai let out an “ah” and instantly wilted halfway.
Drooping its eyelids to glance at the swiftly advancing “Leaf Bed,” the little one issued a soul-searching question.
“In that case, Master, why are we rushing headlong to the Demon Race? To court death?”
Hearing the tone that was on the verge of tears, Luo Qi couldn’t help but laugh.
She smoothed the little one’s soft fur.
When she lifted her gaze once more toward the northern Realm, the woman’s clear, cold eyes turned resolute and decisive.
“To kill that Demon Race young master, besides absolute suppression in cultivation level, we can also outwit him.”
At the same time.
Hundreds of miles away.
On a hill, several black-robed youths stood side by side atop Nether Tigers.
The intermittent roars and growls of the tigers startled the forest birds from the treetops around them.
Ting Bai reported the latest movements of the Demon Palace to Yan Huaichen, who stood at the forefront:
“Chen-ge, as you predicted, the Great Prince is about to lose his composure. He’s bound to reveal his hand at the succession ceremony.”
Yi Ze let out a sneer, his expression wild and mocking:
“With that one’s temperament, having been obsessed with the Demon Lord’s seat for decades, he naturally won’t let things go quietly.”
Yi Ze twirled the blade in his hand and asked, “Chen-ge, should we just take him out this time?”
The others chimed in as well: “That bastard Di Dian, relying on the old Demon King’s favoritism, has been bullying us for all these years. If we don’t kill him, we’ll never get this anger off our chests!”
Yan Huaichen listened to them speaking one after another, remaining silent the whole time.
It wasn’t until the group gradually quieted down that he asked, “Have the two Barriers outside the Demon Race been reinforced?”
Ting Bai immediately replied, “Reinforced. Aside from those of the Demon Race, I guarantee not even a blade of grass can drift in!”
A demonic cultivator at the far left then asked:
“Chen-ge, is reinforcing the Barrier to guard against those hypocrites of the Seven Great Immortal Sects trying to sneak in during the succession ceremony?”
Ting Bai cut in first: “Do you even need to ask? Those few days of the succession ceremony are already chaotic enough for us, and those restless pests within the Demon Race will keep us busy for a while. If the Seven Great Sects’ people come sticking their noses in on top of that, our Demon Palace is probably going to blow up.”
Listening to Ting Bai’s words, Yi Ze looked toward their ever-silent young master.
He couldn’t shake the feeling that the young master having Ting Bai reinforce the Barrier at this time wasn’t solely to guard against the Immortal Sects’ people.