Let me help you go down and explain it to them in person

The Desolate Ridge.

A gust of wind stirred the dust, carrying with it a faint scent of blood.

Cui Hao sat casually on a bare rock, munching on dry rations with his head lowered.

"Pah! Pah! Pah!" He spat out the sand that had blown into his mouth the moment he opened it.

Lifting his gaze, he glanced at his senior sister, Li Yingling, who sat serenely beside him, effortlessly shielding herself from the wind and dust with a barrier of spiritual energy.

With a pitiful tone, Cui Hao complained, "Senior Sister, I’ve been following you all this time—if not for merit, at least for hardship’s sake. You’ve already conjured a spiritual barrier—couldn’t you extend it to cover me too? Look at all this sand I’ve eaten!"

As if snapping out of her thoughts, Li Yingling glanced at Cui Hao and manipulated her spiritual energy to expand the barrier, shielding him from the wind and dust.

She explained earnestly, "After reaching the Golden Core stage, spiritual energy automatically protects the body. It’s a passive ability. I didn’t actively create this barrier just now."

Cui Hao eyed her skeptically. "Senior Sister, I’ll reach the Golden Core stage too someday. Don’t try to fool me—I have a feeling you just wanted to see me make a fool of myself."

"You’re not as dumb as you look, kid. You’re right—your senior sister was indeed messing with you."

The voice that answered wasn’t Li Yingling’s, but one that was faintly familiar.

Yet the sudden, soundless interruption startled both Cui Hao and Li Yingling.

Their gazes snapped toward the source of the voice.

Not far away stood Bai Xuanling, a faint smirk on her lips as she looked at Li Yingling with amusement—as if to say, Caught you bullying your junior brother, didn’t I?

Ignoring Cui Hao’s resentful stare, Li Yingling quickly brightened, her voice turning sweet.

"Sister Bai? What brings you here?"

Bai Xuanling strode forward, her tone playful.

"Your master is occupied with other matters. He was worried you might get into trouble, so he asked me to keep an eye on you."

She stopped before Li Yingling, unable to suppress her grin as she teased,

"You’ve certainly mastered your master’s key skills—not even blushing now."

Such lighthearted jabs couldn’t pierce Li Yingling’s defenses. Only her master’s teasing ever struck true.

She naturally looped her arm around Bai Xuanling’s.

"Sister Bai~ What are you talking about? I don’t understand."

Bai Xuanling couldn’t help but smile, pleased by Li Yingling’s attitude. She let the matter drop and asked,

"Are you handling everything here?"

"It’s time for some real experience. Can’t just bury myself in cultivation forever."

"That’s reasonable. Even in my sect, Golden Core disciples are expected to venture out."

Bai Xuanling agreed wholeheartedly. Though cultivation seemed like a solitary pursuit, it was in truth a path paved with countless causes and effects.

The road of immortality was long—so long that most cultivators measured it in centuries, even millennia.

Yet even a mere hundred years could bring earth-shattering changes, events that would sweep countless lives into their wake.

The affairs of the world intertwined like a vast net. The more events accumulated, the tighter the weave.

And when the net grew dense enough, even the smallest fish trying to escape would be caught.

Talent determined much, but never everything. The fall of prodigies was a tale as old as time.

Bai Xuanling herself had once witnessed the demise of a peerless genius—one she had once looked up to in awe. Yet here she stood, alive to this day.

Personal experience was the most reliable talisman for survival.

Her gaze drifted toward a distant foothill to the east.

"Were you planning to lead your junior brother in a surprise attack on those minor demons over there?"

Li Yingling pondered for a moment. The one they were supposed to meet today was the Great Wu Demon King—that cowardly Golden Core ox demon.

Would a Golden Core cultivator really be called a "minor demon" in Bai Xuanling’s eyes?

"That’s our informant from the demon ranks. We’re here to exchange intelligence," Li Yingling explained.

Bai Xuanling gave her a surprised look. She hadn’t expected this youngster to be so capable in strategy.

Still, she couldn’t help but ask, "You’ve already turned three Golden Core demons to your side, yet this war is dragging on? A pincer move should’ve ended it by now."

Li Yingling blinked. When had she recruited three Golden Core demons? At most, she had two Golden Core turncoats and a wily old fox at the Foundation Establishment stage…

Exchanging a glance with Cui Hao, realization dawned.

At least one of their demon informants must have been caught. And given their spineless nature, whichever one was captured would’ve undoubtedly betrayed the other without hesitation…

Following that logic, their entire network of demon spies was likely already wiped out.

Reading their expressions, Bai Xuanling nodded in understanding.

"Ah. So you’re the ones walking into an ambush?"

Li Yingling showed no particular distress, nor did she mourn the loss of her demon informants. If anything, she regretted not having the chance to personally execute those three shameless traitors who’d sell out their own kind without a second thought.

She quickly turned to Cui Hao. "We retreat now. We need to warn the alliance leader immediately—the main assault route is probably heavily ambushed."

Without hesitation, Cui Hao tossed aside his rations and moved to follow his senior sister, ready to ride her spiritual treasure back to safety.

Bai Xuanling raised a hand to stop the two, interrupting their practiced fleeing motions, and said,

"If I hadn’t come, you could’ve run all you wanted. But now that I’m here, why bother running?"

If he let these two junior cultivators keep messing around, who knew how much longer Chu Xingchen would be stuck here.

Li Yingling paused mid-movement and turned her gaze toward Bai Xuanling.

At the foot of the mountain, where Bai Xuanling had mentioned,

A scorpion demon—King Youkui—swung his venomous tail in agitation, cursing furiously:

"Damn it all! I knew that cowardly ox was spineless, but I never thought he’d be so terrified he’d actually betray us!"

"And what’s even worse is that idiot Hu Qi—did the ox kick his brains out? Instead of tearing the traitor apart on the spot to replenish the troops, he actually said we should ‘investigate further’ to avoid wronging a brother!"

"Just wait. I’ll drag that human back and toss him into the ox stew for flavor."

The Spider Demon King leaned against a boulder, his tone calm but edged:

"I think Hu Qi’s got problems too. Ever since we gained power, he’s lost his old ferocity. Lately, he’s starting to resemble that spineless ox."

King Rongke, an elderly stag-antlered demon, looked weary, his expression worn.

He watched silently as the spider and scorpion vented their frustrations.

Once they finished, King Rongke sighed regretfully:

"It’s just a shame… so many brothers died for nothing."

At those words, the other two demons fell silent.

King Rongke had brought his entire lineage into this fight. He was ancient, with little time left.

Among all the demon kings, the others harbored selfish motives—even the spider and scorpion.

Only he had remained pure from beginning to end.

By now, every demon knew their so-called "Demon Kingdom" was a farce.

Their underlings didn’t need to be defeated—they’d already fled in droves.

This last stand wasn’t about resistance but about the lingering fury in the demon kings’ hearts:

Who was the bastard who sold them out?

Until they dragged that traitor out and boiled him alive, none of them could rest.

King Youkui tried to reassure him: "Old Stag, don’t worry. Today, we’ll give our fallen brothers the justice they deserve."

"Oh? What a coincidence. Let me do you three little demons a favor then."

The three demon kings suddenly felt their fur stand on end. Together, they looked up at the sky.

Three human cultivators hovered in the air.

The one who had spoken was a woman, her face twisted with mocking amusement.

Her lips curled into a deranged grin as she sneered:

"Let me help you go down there and explain it to them yourselves!"