Within the palace hall, brilliant light and color adorned every corner. Demon maidens danced in white garments, graceful as inhabitants of the Lunar Palace. All those gathered raised cups and shared in the joyful occasion.
Behind each white jade table sat a young powerhouse of the demon race, cups flowing freely. Ye Fan and Tu Fei clinked cups often, very much enjoying the atmosphere.
“The Jasper Pool Grand Gathering is soon to begin — who here among us intends to attend?” someone asked.
“Her Highness the Princess and the one in cyan will both be going — perhaps six or seven of us in total, I’d say.”
“The demon race’s powerhouses in the Northern Region are not limited to just this small world of ours. There will certainly be many when the time comes.”
“Even the Golden-Winged Little Peng King from the central territories of the Eastern Desolation has arrived — that alone shows how grand and lively this Jasper Pool Grand Gathering will be.”
“Speaking of which, the Golden-Winged Little Peng King is clearly going for those two divine physique holders and for Holy Son Yao Guang — it’s impossible to know what kind of earth-shaking battle that will be.”
After the topic turned this way, those present inevitably looked toward Ye Fan. To have defeated the naturally gifted Little Peng King in the same cultivation tier — the Desolate Holy Body had truly astonished people.
“The Golden-Winged Little Peng King can most likely dominate the divine physiques. Not to say he matches the great emperors in their youth, but it comes close. Can the holy physique really be that terrifying?” Not a few wore expressions of puzzlement.
“According to the records of ancient texts, only a rare talent with the potential to become a great emperor can suppress the Desolate Holy Body among peers of the same cultivation tier.”
Jin Yan, the young female demon, sneered: “What a pity — the Desolate Holy Body will be forever halted at the Dao Palace Secret Realm.”
On this topic, most present did not press further. The majority understood — no matter how formidable one’s constitution might be, if it was blocked within a certain secret realm and could never advance, it could only be considered a disabled vessel.
Jin Yan continued: “In truth, the Golden-Winged Little Peng King’s most formidable innate divine technique can only be unleashed after the Four Extremes Secret Realm. The last defeat was an injustice.”
“That’s true as well — the Celestial Peng race grows ever more terrifying the later the stage. Isn’t there a saying from the past: ‘Once the Dragon-Seizing Art is unleashed, no other art under heaven holds any value’?”
“Indeed there is such a saying. The supreme Celestial Peng Dragon-Seizing Art is said to be capable of seizing and slaying a true dragon. Once this art is brought forth, all other techniques pale in comparison. If it had been a contest at the Four Extremes Secret Realm, the Golden-Winged Little Peng King should be able to contend with the Desolate Holy Body.”
Ye Fan and Tu Fei clinked their cups beside them. He had no particular reaction to such talk — one day without entering the Four Extremes Secret Realm was one more day of wearing the disabled vessel’s label.
“Damn these clowns!” Tu Fei cursed under his breath. “I really want to see what kind of combat power you’d have once you enter the Four Extremes Secret Realm.”
“Can you provide me ten million catties of origin stone?” Ye Fan picked at his food, unbothered, savoring the fine dishes.
“That much origin stone — you’d have to go rob a Holy Land or venture into one of the primordial forbidden zones,” Tu Fei shook his head. “I truly hope you can enter the Four Extremes Secret Realm and push all those holy sons and holy daughters down.”
“Leave the holy daughters — build a grand inner palace with them,” Ye Fan said with a laugh.
“I honestly marvel that you can still laugh,” Tu Fei said, tilting his wine vessel back. “Though to put it another way — being unable to cultivate further is actually something of a blessing. Otherwise, you’d probably be hunted down and killed by certain Holy Lands.”
“Is there any difference now? The Ji Family is hunting me across all of heaven and earth.”
“What are your plans going forward?”
Ye Fan smiled. “I still have some confidence in my origin art skills. In a while, I’m thinking of going to the Holy City to gamble on stones — visiting the origin stone gambling houses of all the great Holy Lands one by one.”
The Great Black Dog was already bleary-eyed with drink, squinting at him with unfocused eyes, his tongue thick in his mouth. “One look at you and I can tell you’re going to cause trouble — win this Emperor a holy daughter as a companion…”
“Go sit somewhere else!”
Woof!
A bark startled those around them, and then the Great Black Dog gave a heavy thud and collapsed drunk on the ground.
The gathering of young demon race powerhouses within the small world covered every topic imaginable. At this point, White Phoenix rose and said: “On our last outing, Golden Feather, Bitter Bamboo, and I discovered a relic site and unearthed some pre-ancient artifacts. We can’t determine their origin and would like to invite everyone’s opinions.”
He clapped his hands. Several small demons carried in a large iron chest — extremely heavy, cracking the jade floor tiles beneath it.
When the great iron chest was opened, a musty, decaying odor wafted out. Within lay dozens of bronze artifacts, all in a state of ruin. There were shattered fragments of a bronze bell, a tattered gourd, a rusted bronze cauldron… a great heap of objects, every one damaged and broken, not a single one intact or functional.
Everyone crowded around, taking the items in hand for examination, discussing them animatedly.
“Could it be the treasury of some ancient small sect? What a pity — all of them are damaged.”
“Something seems off. These artifacts are extremely heavy, and the residual Dao pattern inscriptions are complex and difficult to decipher. I’m afraid they have quite a background.”
“Could these be artifacts left behind by some great ancient sect of the distant past?”
Yan Ruyu and the one dressed in cyan also stepped forward, examining the artifacts together — but neither could reach any definitive conclusion.
Ye Fan roused the Black Emperor and squeezed forward with him to examine the pieces.
The Great Black Dog was immediately agitated — and at that same moment, Ye Fan also noticed that two or three of the artifacts bore the same ghostly face inscription as the bronze pot he had seen earlier that day.
Though those present had also noticed the ghostly face inscriptions, none had ever seen or heard of such a thing before, and could not deduce anything from it.
“Where exactly were these things unearthed?” the one in cyan asked.
“They were found in Qu Province,” White Phoenix answered.
“As expected…” The Great Black Dog drew in a deep breath, its nose faintly glowing — then it silently retreated.
Ye Fan was somewhat lost for words. A dog’s nose was the sharpest of all — and this particular dog had attained spiritual enlightenment long ago. With a destination as precise as Qu Province, the old dog would certainly be able to sniff its way straight to the exact spot.
White Phoenix asked Ye Fan for his opinion, but there was nothing he could plausibly reveal. In the end, no one was able to determine the origin of these artifacts, and no information of value was obtained. The great iron chest was carried back out.
Within the palace hall, carved beams and painted rafters gleamed in gold and jade splendor. Many young demon race cultivators had gathered in one place, cups flowing freely, the atmosphere tremendously lively.
A group of beautiful young girls danced at the center of the hall — true demon maidens, each one alluring and enchanting in every glance and smile, capable of ensnaring the soul.
Every one of the young female demons had a figure like a devil’s — their slender jade bodies glimpsed through gauze skirts, necks like white swans, black silken hair, the stark contrast of black against white striking and vivid. Faces smooth as blown jade, captivating in every expression, exuding boundless charm.
Tu Fei tipped his head back and drained his cup. “What use is cultivation in the end? It all becomes a heap of loam eventually. No one has ever been seen ascending to immortality — one might as well sink into the beautiful mortal world and be lost in it.”
“If you didn’t cultivate, would you have the right to sit here?” Ye Fan poured himself another cup and drank alone.
His reason for cultivating was to survive — and then to cross the void and return to the other end of the starry sky. As it stood now, the path ahead was very long.
The Great Black Dog was sprawled nearby, squinting with an air of transcendence. “Neither of you understands the true essence of cultivation.”
“We don’t understand — do you?” Tu Fei shot it a sidelong glance. Ever since being bitten by the Black Emperor, he had never harbored any goodwill toward the Great Black Dog.
“Throughout history, countless tens of thousands have cultivated — but only three or five have ever attained the Dao. For this Emperor, however, this is a path filled with hope, and I stand among those few.”
Tu Fei sneered: “And what good is attaining the Dao? You become an ancient sage, live a few thousand years longer than everyone else, and in the end become nothing more than dust in the pages of history — the masters of this small world are the perfect illustration.”
“What have they to do with attaining the Dao?” the Great Black Dog said, swallowing a roasted lamb’s leg whole, its words muffled.
“Your vision is rather lofty then — are you speaking of the great emperors of antiquity?” Ye Fan asked.
“Naturally them,” the Great Black Dog said with supreme pride.
“From ancient times to the present, how many such people have there ever been?” Tu Fei poured another cup and drank it down in one go. “The Void Emperor, the Constant Cosmos Emperor, the Western Queen Mother — even those who attained the Dao and lived far beyond the lifespan of ordinary people all returned to dust in the end, earth back to earth!”
The Great Black Dog seemed to want to say something, but in the end held back any rebuttal and fell into silence.
At a nearby white jade table sat a young man with a fair complexion, dressed in golden Daoist robes that shone and gleamed brilliantly. He too sighed: “The great emperors of antiquity — truly beyond all reckoning. Even the great Holy Lords can only bow their heads in helplessness, feeling themselves as insignificant as ants.”
Qin Yao, seated not far away, heard this and laughed softly. “Golden Feather, have you forgotten? Our princess is a descendant of the Demon Emperor — she must know something of the great emperors.”
Golden Feather, in his golden Daoist robes, gave Qin Yao a smile and raised his cup.
At this point, others nearby were also drawn in by the topic, and discussions broke out all around.
Bitter Bamboo continued his questioning: “Numerous ancient texts have mentioned that ten thousand years ago the great emperor sought to establish a demon race ancient Heavenly Court — is that true or false?”
Golden Feather also nodded. “Quite a few such accounts exist — both the historical records of the human race and our demon race’s own writings touch upon this matter.”
“Unfortunately, it never came to pass,” Yan Ruyu said, shaking her head.
The Black Emperor muttered quietly: “Damn it — that Demon Emperor really was terrifying!”
“A demon race ancient Heavenly Court…” Ye Fan had heard faint mention of it before, but hearing people speak of it now still filled him with profound shock.
The gathering went on deep into the night before it finally dispersed. Many people were thoroughly drunk — even Jin Yan, the young female demon, was completely inebriated and dancing unsteadily in her drunken state.
Several drunken demons swayed about, discussing eating black dog meat. The Great Black Dog, bleary with drink, cursed at them roundly — and then in an instant vanished without a trace.
White Phoenix, Golden Feather, and Bitter Bamboo staggered over to help steady Qin Yao, but she giggled and brushed them all away.
Tu Fei, leaning on the female demon he had grown close to, came before Yan Ruyu and the one in cyan. “The two of you… we bid you farewell — we leave tomorrow.”
In truth, the original plan had been to leave the day after. But Tu Fei too had felt that it would be increasingly dangerous for Ye Fan to remain here, and so had moved up the farewell.
Ye Fan also cupped his hands in salute. “We’ve caused trouble for everyone this time…”
In the end, the whole gathering dispersed only very late into the night.
In the darkness of night, a clear spring trickled through the pine forest, adding a touch of gentle vitality to the quiet mountain peak.
Tu Fei had not returned, having gone with the female demon. The Great Black Dog was nowhere to be found either. The palace halls atop the mountain peak were utterly still.
“You arrived suddenly and you’re leaving just as suddenly — you must have done something wicked, mustn’t you?” Just then, Qin Yao swayed into the palace hall, her graceful figure moving with a hint of drunkenness.
Her figure was alluring — like a beautiful serpent of a woman — her form willowy and long, her hips full and rounded, her waist slender, her jade arms half-bare, her hair loose and disheveled, her gaze like flowing water.
“How could you think such a thing? There’s nothing of the sort. The reason I’m leaving is that some among your demon race have been scheming after my primordial aura root,” Ye Fan replied. Like her, he too was somewhat tipsy.
“Don’t try to cover things up — there must be something to it,” Qin Yao said, as soft and swaying as a willow in the breeze, her figure undulating with a captivating charm. Slightly flushed with drink, she laughed softly: “The princess suspects you came here for Pang Bo. Now that you’re leaving, you’ve surely been up to something untoward. She’s already on her way to the Ageless Hall — she sent me to keep watch over you. Little brat, you’re not going anywhere!”
Ye Fan was immediately startled, the haze of drink lifting by half in an instant. Yan Ruyu was indeed perceptive — if Pang Bo had not remained in the Ageless Hall, this time would have been truly dangerous.
Very quickly, he relaxed again. He trusted that Pang Bo would not betray himself. No matter how sharp Yan Ruyu might be, she would discover nothing.
“So you’ve come to be my warden, have you, beautiful woman? A lone man and woman, alone together, deep in the night — this is rather dangerous,” Ye Fan said with tipsy playfulness.
Qin Yao laughed enchantingly. “You’re a prisoner right now — don’t think about playing tricks to escape. If you really did go to the Ageless Hall, your life may well be forfeit.”
A chill flickered through Ye Fan’s heart. It was fortunate he had left no trace — otherwise, this would have been very difficult to resolve.
“Beautiful lady Qin, have you ever heard of a warden quite like this? You’re the one doing the tempting — luring me into wrongdoing…” Ye Fan, now at ease, spoke without a care in the world.
“What does a little brat understand? Even if you’re a Desolate Holy Body at the Dao Palace Second Level, you won’t escape from the palm of my hand — you’re not going anywhere,” Qin Yao said, giving him a sideward glance.
“If I were to make a run for it — you wouldn’t really kill me, would you?”
“Of course I would.”
“We’re old companions, you and I — how can you be so heartless?” Ye Fan laughed and shook his head. “I don’t believe it.”
Qin Yao’s figure was curvaceous — the gauze of her skirt tracing her devil’s figure in every captivating contour, exquisitely slender and full all at once, profoundly alluring. She laughed in an enticing manner, with the power to overturn all sense, and pinched Ye Fan’s cheek. “If you really dare to run — then I really dare to strike. Don’t believe me? Try it.”
“Beautiful lady Qin, you’re the one teasing me right now. If something comes of it, that’s on you,” Ye Fan said, pushing her hand away and lifting her jade chin in turn.
Qin Yao breathed warmth like orchid, licking her rosy lips, leaning close. “You… won’t do.”
Hot breath brushed against Ye Fan’s ear, making his face flush with sudden heat. He said with a tipsy laugh: “I won’t do… who will?”
Qin Yao laughed playfully, one hand resting on his shoulder, her soft figure nearly pressing against him, and her other hand traced a light stroke across his chest as she teased: “Little brat — you’re too small.”
With that, she pinched Ye Fan’s cheek and laughed softly: “The skin really is smooth and tender — the mark of a child.”
Ye Fan, without ceremony, pinched her soft jade cheek in return. “A woman who plays with fire — I am a perfectly normal man…”
Qin Yao breathed out a fragrant warmth, her drunken eyes half-lidded, smiling sweetly: “I say you’re small, so you’re small — don’t interrupt. And don’t dream of running away.”
“If the Ageless Hall has had something happen to it — would you really kill me?” Ye Fan felt a faint unease.
“It sounds like you really did go to the Ageless Hall!” Qin Yao’s eyes brightened sharply as she fixed him with her gaze. The hand she had placed on his chest stirred with a surge of divine power.
“Please — I’m just a small cultivator at the Dao Palace Secret Realm. Do you really think I could get into a place like that? I’m sure you have formidable restrictive formations laid out,” Ye Fan replied.
“Good — then be well-behaved,” Qin Yao once again gave that bewitching smile, her lashes long, her gaze hazy, her black hair floating, her skin snow-white and delicate, fragrance drifting all around.
“Beautiful lady — could you not lean quite so close? I’m afraid I might accidentally swallow you whole, and then you’d come after me with a vengeance, which would be terribly inconvenient,” Ye Fan said, lifting her chin with a teasing hand.
“As if you could swallow me…” Qin Yao laughed until her body shook, her curvaceous form swaying through her gauze skirts, extraordinarily enticing.
Ye Fan laughed. “Since that’s how it is — I have nothing to hold me back. Might as well go all out.”
“What nerve — a young pup thinking he can tease me…” Qin Yao pulled herself free, then reached out to stroke his cheek. “It’s more like I’m the one teasing you.”
With that, she leaned forward with surprising boldness and pressed her lips to Ye Fan’s cheek — then laughed and stepped back, waving a slender jade finger. “Don’t think about running away. Wait quietly for the princess to return — or I really will kill you.”
“I won’t run.” Ye Fan had come from the other end of the starry void, and his outlook could never be a conservative one. Being toyed with by Qin Yao — naturally he would not simply take it lying down.
He reached out and drew her slender, rounded waist toward him, pulling her close, and pressed his lips to her lovely cheek.
Qin Yao laughed softly, her half-bare jade arms sweeping past his ear, then trailing along his neck, fragrance and warmth drifting all around. “It was I who teased you — not you who teased me.”
Hearing those words, Ye Fan was no longer restrained. He lowered his head and sealed those vivid, rosy lips with his own.
“Mmm…”
Qin Yao’s long, soft jade body struggled and twisted like a water serpent — but Ye Fan’s arm was like iron. The constitution of the Desolate Holy Body — how could it possibly be broken free of? It was simply impossible.
From fierce struggle — to the curvaceous jade body softening — Qin Yao ceased her resistance and responded with passion. Her hair fell loose and disheveled, her form radiant as crystal, suffused with a rosy flush like polished jade.
The two tumbled onto the great purple sandalwood bed, garments flying, breath coming fast.
“Little brat, get up this instant — or don’t blame me for being unkind,” Qin Yao began to struggle again, threatening.
“Please — beautiful lady — if you kick me off the bed right now, isn’t that the same as taking a life? My blood will burn until it runs dry.”
“Get up,” Qin Yao said, her graceful jade body twisting like a serpent, pushing at Ye Fan.
“I won’t.”
“Get up!”
“I won’t.”
“Get up!”
“I won’t.”
Amid the battle of words and the battle of bodies, garments diminished slowly — one piece, then another — each flying away to settle on the floor, and the sound of breathing filled the air.
Ye Fan discovered with some resignation that Qin Yao had ended up on top, pressing him down.
“I say, beautiful lady Qin — it seems we’ve gotten this backwards,” he said lightly, and in one motion turned them over, becoming the one who pressed her beneath him.