Two demon kings, one fox.
A few exchanged words instantly aligned their intentions.
But as demon kings, their discussion naturally disregarded the lesser demons around them.
After all, when it came to matters of the demon kingdom, these low-ranking demons only needed to follow orders.
Hu Qi held immense prestige among the lesser demons, even though many had never seen him or heard him speak directly.
Even the speeches attributed to him had been altered so many times that the versions circulating among the demons had more variations than the Water Heart Scripture—so much so that even Hu Qi himself would pause in disbelief upon hearing them.
The words sounded vaguely familiar, but had he really said them?
Regardless, in their hearts, Hu Qi now represented the dignity and future of the demon race.
No matter how distorted the speeches became—even if only two original words remained, buried under layers of crude emotional outbursts like "fucking"—the core message never changed:
The demon race could no longer allow itself to be slaughtered at will.
The owl demon was one such believer. It had never met Hu Qi, and the speeches it heard were a chaotic mess, half of which consisted of rants against its own squad leader—a detestable water buffalo demon no better than a human.
Yet, even this garbled version of Hu Qi's speech was something the owl begged others to repeat over and over.
Though each retelling featured different insults for the water buffalo demon.
At first, the owl found it strange, but after enduring its squad leader long enough, it became the one retelling Hu Qi's "speech" to new recruits.
And its version contained even more personal grievances—two lines cursing the water buffalo for every one line of the original message.
Yet, in the quiet of night, as the owl kept watch under the stars, it sometimes wondered: What had the unaltered version actually said?
It also pondered: What did the legendary Kunshan Demon King look like? What kind of demon was he?
But it never imagined that the chance to meet Kunshan would come through humans.
Life as a demon was truly surreal.
This was the owl's first time seeing Hu Qi in person.
The real Hu Qi was nothing like the rumors—no fangs stretching past his head, no towering frame half the size of a mountain.
He was simply a tiger demon, more robust, burly, and striking than most.
Yet this unembellished Hu Qi felt more real and fitting to the owl.
The feathers on the owl's neck bristled slightly as its gaze shifted to Cui Hao standing before it.
If only the Great Wu Demon King were present, it might have played dumb like the water buffalo and let things slide.
After all, aside from his cultivation level, Great Wu hardly qualified as a true demon king.
But now, Kunshan himself was here.
These humans wouldn’t have ventured so deep without confidence—likely, the golden-core cultivator capable of splitting mountains with a single strike was among these three.
Truthfully, the owl's animal instincts screamed at it to flee.
It wanted to warn Kunshan, but before a single word could escape, its heart pounded violently, feathers standing on end.
Its beak felt weighted down, as if crushed beneath a mountain.
It was terrified of death—just like Great Wu.
"My King! These three humans are here to kill us!"
The owl didn’t know how the words tore free—only that its head burned, and suddenly its own voice rang in its ears.
Yet the moment the words left its beak, the fear vanished, replaced by an overwhelming sense of liberation.
Perhaps this was the meaning of its existence.
Cui Hao and Lin Luoyu immediately snapped their attention to the owl, Lin Luoyu even reaching for her sword to cut it down first.
Li Yingling remained calm. She hadn’t expected the owl to stay silent.
This was just one play among many, a contingency she’d prepared for.
But she hadn’t anticipated that merely seeing Kunshan would be enough to embolden the owl.
Without hesitation, Li Yingling summoned her spiritual treasure.
Great Wu and Hu Qi turned toward her, their eyes widening as they took in the serpent demon gripping the glowing artifact, her aura now fully unleashed—golden-core cultivation, unmistakably human.
Li Yingling narrowed her eyes. The spiritual treasure pulsed with light, its sword intent radiating outward, spiritual energy coiling around her like flowing water.
She’d never fought a true battle, only bullied weaker foes like mindless corpses and beasts.
With no real benchmark for her own strength, facing two golden-core demons put her at a disadvantage in her mind.
Her debut would be a brutal trial—one where she’d need to gauge how many techniques it took to cripple one of them.
She decided to counterattack first, testing just how formidable other golden-core cultivators were.
Was her master’s boast—that his disciples were invincible among their peers—truly so exaggerated?
Hu Qi and Great Wu surged with demonic energy, their expressions darkening as they assessed Li Yingling.
This human’s aura was terrifying.
In the next breath, Li Yingling’s spiritual treasure seemed ready to fly from her grasp.
The old fox, quickest to react, barked out:
"You foolish little demon, spouting nonsense to deceive us! I see no humans here!"
His words drew the tense gazes of both humans and demons.
Then, under their watchful eyes, the fox drew a dagger from his robes and strode forward—defying Li Yingling’s golden-core pressure and his own fear.
He dragged the owl into the open and plunged the blade into its belly, again and again.
The owl didn’t resist. Perhaps the fox’s foundation-establishment cultivation overpowered it. Or perhaps it was simply stunned.
With a dull thud, its body collapsed to the ground.
Blood soaked its once-pristine feathers.
It didn’t look at the fox.
Its round, unblinking eyes remained fixed on its hope—Kunshan.
But the Kunshan it saw wore no expression at all, his face as indifferent as Great Wu’s beside him.
A weak sound escaped its beak:
"Hoo... hoo..."
The fox straightened, turning to Li Yingling with a hasty bow.
"Had we known the Little Dragon Demon King was visiting, we would have prepared a proper welcome!"
"Since you’re here, why not join us inside? I’m certain we can reach an arrangement to your satisfaction."
The owl’s vision blurred.
Voices buzzed around it, but the words no longer reached its ears.
Through fading awareness, it saw Great Wu and Kunshan step over its body without a glance, heading toward the camp.
Hoo...
It could no longer cry out to warn Kunshan.
Footsteps approached. With the last of its strength, it forced its eyes open—but instead of Kunshan, it saw the serpent’s cold, scaled face.
Li Yingling stood over it, a pill pinched between her fingers, her gaze unreadable.
Two breaths passed.
Li Yingling did not discard the elixir but instead tucked it back into her storage ring. Without hesitation, she turned and strode back toward the camp.
Gulp...