Chapter 11

After making up his mind, Jin Qianbao no longer hesitated.

He pulled Old Hou to his feet and spoke loudly to the demons: "Brothers and sisters, Little Leopard is talentless and virtue-poor, unworthy of being your leader—but Jiao and Tu, Great Kings, remembering their brotherhood with Pig Great King, have ordered me to temporarily assume the post. I beg you all to lend me your support in the days ahead."

Seeing Jin Qianbao's humble demeanor, the demons chorused their agreement; some little demons, newly transformed and unable to read the situation, truly regarded this new Jin Leader as their leader.

When the demons' voices had slightly subsided, Jin Qianbao sat back on his throne, assuming a look of great distress, and frowned:

"As I just said, I am talentless and virtue-poor—that's why the kitchen was robbed. Now the mountain cave has not a single grain left, and feeding all of you, brothers and sisters, is a serious problem."

Old Hou bowed his fists and said: "If all else fails, I'll take some little demons out. If we meet a few passing merchants, we might get some blood food to eat."

The demons fell silent. Everyone knew their Jing Xiang Shan was remote and rarely visited—even in normal times, encountering a merchant once a year was considered a blessing from heaven, let alone now that the cave had nothing left to eat.

Seeing the demons' awkward silence, Old Hou mumbled a few sounds, his expression darkening.

Jin Qianbao watched it all, inwardly delighted, and quickly picked up the latest issue of Demon Realm Express News, pointing to an advertisement: "I have an idea for food—but I don't know if you're willing to do it."

Hearing the Jin Leader had an idea, several little demons who knew him well perked up and gathered around.

Jin Qianbao continued pointing at the ad: "Waiting by a stump for rabbits isn't impossible—but we have no stored food and can't afford to wait. I propose we head to the Daughter Kingdom. If we can secure the job of delivering goods for Immortal Ru Yi, we can then proceed to Jisai Kingdom. Not only are Nanyue Tuo Kingdom and Xiben Bo Kingdom along the way prosperous, but even just going and returning, we'll bring back plenty of food. With full bellies, we can then go down to Jing Xiang Shan and trouble those merchants—wouldn't that be better?"

At these words, every demon's heart swelled with surprise and joy. Most of them had wandered the Chenshi before and knew its splendor; the little demons who had never left the cave before joining the mountain cave now felt boundless longing for the outside world.

Seeing the crowd's enthusiasm rise, the First Generation demons grew cautious. Old Hou asked: "Jin Leader, if you thought of seeking food in the Chenshi, why not send little demons with Spirit Sand to buy some back? Why must we all go ourselves? More demons mean drawing the attention of Earth Immortals—if we slip up even slightly, disaster may follow!"

The demons had already been eager to leave, but after Old Hou's words, they grew fearful again. Some unstable little demons changed their minds and began flattering Old Hou.

Jin Qianbao knew Old Hou's words were reasonable—but he was determined to leave and avoid trouble, so he cursed the old monkey demon inwardly, while smiling warmly and saying: "Big Brother Hou, your words are indeed wise—you truly are a model for us Second Generation demons. But… there may be something you don't yet know…"

"Oh? What is it, Jin Leader, that I, Old Hou, don't know?" Old Hou, flattered by Jin Qianbao's praise, spoke with growing arrogance.

Jin Qianbao sighed deeply.

He said solemnly: "To be frank, there isn't a single Ling Stone left in this mountain cave. Even if I wanted to send little demons out to buy food, I have no means to do so."

"What?" Old Hou froze, his entire body stunned—he never imagined this powerful Long Qi Dong was such a hollow shell.

"Alas… when Jiao Great King left, he took many Ling Stones from the cave. Then came the rat spirit's theft. Now we truly have nothing left."

"This… this…" Old Hou felt a sharp pain in his chest. After a long silence, he said: "Then let's all pool what we have—no matter how little, let's buy some food first."

Jin Qianbao shook his head: "Big Brother Hou, your public spirit is admirable—but to reach the nearest Chenshi, the Daughter Kingdom, it takes two or three days one way. Round trip? Five or six days. Though demons can survive ten or twenty days without food, all our brothers are used to two meals a day. To starve them so long… I can't bear it."

A look of disdain flickered across Old Hou's face. Jin Qianbao feared he'd say more and quickly added: "Besides, most of those left in the cave are Second Generation little demons—they have no income. Where would they get Ling Stones to contribute?"

As he spoke, Jin Qianbao's eyes swept over the fewer than ten elder demons, then continued: "And you elders—even if you have some savings, they must be minimal. Surely not enough to feed the cave for half a year or a year?"

Seeing Jin Leader staring at them, the elder demons instinctively clutched their pockets, fearing he'd demand money. Hearing his concern over insufficient funds, they hurriedly agreed: "Jin Leader is right—we may be old, but we've long stayed in the mountains and have no spare money."

"Exactly! I, Old Ma, haven't left the mountain in over a hundred years—what Ling Stones do I have? Even what I saved in my youth was all used for cultivation."

"Brother Ma speaks true. I once worked in the Chenshi and saved two Ling Stones. Last year, I used them all to prolong my life after a serious illness."

In an instant, except for Old Hou, the other seven elder demons all cried poverty—not one offered to contribute.

Seeing none of the brothers would contribute, Old Hou sighed deeply, glancing reproachfully at the elders, then pulled out over a hundred Ling Stones from his robe and slammed them on the table: "Stop pretending poverty! I, Old Monkey, will lead by example—here are one hundred and twenty-nine Ling Stones. All of it goes to the cave."