Chapter 1154: Present a United Front

Ye Liuyun's guess was correct.

When they arrived at the mountain peak, they indeed discovered a Cave opening at the foot of the mountain.

He hurried over, examined it closely, and checked the footprints underground.

"They should have all gone in!"

Ye Liuyun thought to himself, glancing at the Cave.

The entrance was uneven, like a beast baring its fangs, ready to pick a victim to devour.

Faint Demon Qi drifted out of the entrance from time to time. However, the Cave must be deep, so the emanating Demon Qi was already very weak.

Without close observation, it would be hard to notice this Demon Qi.

But this Demon Qi was definitely different from the Demon Qi at the valley entrance.

Here the Demon Qi was not pure enough, faintly mixed with the scent of an Alien Evil Artifact, and it seemed to have the odor of blood.

Ye Liuyun, possessing Buddha Demon Power, could absorb Demon Qi; upon absorbing it, he realized something was off about this Demon Qi.

"How could there be an Alien Evil Artifact here?" Ye Liuyun warned himself, simultaneously alerting the Monster Beast Binglan and others, ready to act at any moment.

Then he activated his Golden Pupil, began to employ the Shadow Concealment Technique, and cautiously proceeded into the Cave.

Inside the Cave, the light was dim, which actually made it more suitable for using the Shadow Concealment Technique.

The passage inside the Cave wound downward.

The deeper they went, the stronger the scent of the Alien Evil Artifact within the Demon Qi became, and the smell of blood grew increasingly intense.

Ye Liuyun estimated that even if the Crown Prince and his party were slow to react, they should now have sensed the presence of the Foreign Tribe.

At that moment, the sound of battle came from ahead, echoing through the passage.

Ye Liuyun immediately quickened his pace.

If there truly were Foreign Tribe members inside the Cave, he wouldn't mind cooperating with the Crown Prince and others once.

Soon after, before Ye Liuyun saw the Crown Prince and his party, he already heard the Corpse Demon's howl.

"I didn't expect this Secret Realm to have such a thing!"

Ye Liuyun instantly drew his Demon Slaying Sword, preparing for battle.

He followed the passage downward for several dozen zhang before finally seeing the Crown Prince and his companions.

Because the passage was narrow, only two or three people could fight side by side, so each side sent one person to the front to slay the Corpse Demon, while the others rested in rotation behind.

What surprised Ye Liuyun was that Xuehai and a subordinate of another Fourth Prince were also in their team.

"It seems the two entered before we arrived!" Ye Liuyun speculated.

It turned out Xuehai had been eyeing Ye Liuyun's Divine Bow; shortly after they split, Xuehai began to pursue the route Ye Liuyun had taken.

However, they took different directions and missed each other.

Xuehai mistakenly thought Ye Liuyun was heading to Stone City, so he hurried along, ending up ahead of Ye Liuyun.

Only when he discovered this Demon Qi‑laden valley did he decide to venture inside for a look.

Before the Crown Prince and his party entered, Xuehai and another Martial Cultivator had already descended into the Cave to explore.

Xuehai was especially sensitive to blood aura, knowing the Cave contained the blood he needed. Unfortunately, the two of them lacked the strength to slay all the Corpse Demons inside.

Thus the two had to retreat and rest.

When the Crown Prince's group entered, they used Divine Sense to locate Xuehai and the others, and rushed straight toward them.

Xuehai, fearing being killed by the Crown Prince's party and having nowhere to hide, could only temporarily ally with the Crown Prince.

Soon after, the Seventh Prince and his group arrived.

After a brief discussion, they decided to first deal with the Foreign Tribe.

Thus unfolded the scene Ye Liuyun witnessed: everyone joined forces, taking turns slaying Corpse Demons and pushing deeper into the Cave.

When Ye Liuyun saw the Crown Prince—who had once been a member of the Shadow—he, being equally familiar with the Shadow Concealment Technique, immediately sensed his presence.

No need to guess; he knew it was Ye Liuyun arriving. He was more familiar with the Fourth Prince's Shadow Concealment Technique, so it couldn't be the Fourth Prince.

Thus among those people, only Ye Liuyun could be the one.

He immediately grew nervous, fearing Ye Liuyun would settle old scores with him.

Emperor Xia had once specifically spoken with him, urging him not to oppose Ye Liuyun, but to befriend and make use of him.

So now he was trying to restore relations with Ye Liuyun, yet he didn't know Ye Liuyun's intentions.

"Are you here to kill me?" the Crown Prince asked Ye Liuyun via Transmission Voice.

If Ye Liuyun were to strike them now, they would truly be beset on all sides.

At this moment, Ye Liuyun only thought of presenting a united front outward. He despised using the Foreign Tribe's power to attack Human Martial Cultivators. He would never bear that insult.

Moreover, he would not kill both princes in such a situation; otherwise Emperor Xia would certainly hold him accountable.

He could let the Fourth Prince act, but he himself would never strike a prince—unless it was for self‑preservation.

"No," Ye Liuyun replied plainly.

"Then you're also here to hunt for treasure? We could cooperate!" the Crown Prince suggested.

"First deal with the Foreign Tribe. If there are treasures, each rely on their own skill!"

Ye Liuyun would neither kill the Crown Prince nor cooperate with him.

"Fine then!" the Crown Prince, seeing Ye Liuyun had no intention to act, felt considerably relieved.

If Ye Liuyun were to unleash an Earth Sovereign‑level beast now, striking them from both sides with the Corpse Demons, it would be the perfect moment to kill them.

Even if he couldn't annihilate them all, few among them could escape.

But Ye Liuyun's inaction alone showed he didn't wish to oppose the Crown Prince, nor would he use the Corpse Demons to eliminate them.

Moreover, regarding previous old scores, Ye Liuyun didn't even ask about them, clearly not caring much.

"Fine. Then stay in the shadows and observe!"

The Crown Prince didn't expect Ye Liuyun to be able to join forces with him right away; he merely used him as a hidden pawn, letting him lie in wait for an opportunity.

He could handle these Corpse Demons before him, but the bottom of this cave obviously might have a stronger opponent.

With Ye Liuyun hiding in the dark, able to launch a sneak attack at a critical moment, he felt more at ease.

Ye Liuyun hadn't originally planned to reveal himself; so he followed behind them, using his Divine Sense to scout the situation ahead.

There were not a few Corpse Demons inside the cave, but their cultivation levels were low, with hardly any reaching the Earth Sovereign level; the Crown Prince and his group would certainly have no trouble dealing with these Corpse Demons.

However, these Corpse Demons were all members of the Demon Race.

Ye Liuyun therefore confirmed that this place had indeed once been a base of the Demon Race.

Moreover, these Demon Race members had surely been mortal enemies of the Foreign Tribe, so the Foreign Tribe had no intention of subjugating them but instead turned them all into Corpse Demons.

But what puzzled Ye Liuyun was why there was no trace of the Foreign Tribe's Evil Artifact outside the cave, while only inside the cave did such an aura exist.

Logically, the Foreign Tribe could completely control these Corpse Demons and turn the entire Secret Realm demonic.