Chapter 3369: Catch to Release

The Leader of the Demon Race army was at this moment reporting to Clan Chief Ao Feng.

The failed ambush and the annihilation of a hundred thousand troops were not a big deal originally. But tens of thousands of soldiers were wiped out in an instant; such capability alone is enough to show that the opponent still has hidden strength. Whether treasure or technique, both are part of the opponent's power.

They have been pursuing for almost a month; continuing this way would only hand the opponent more heads. So they requested a temporary retreat to observe Ye Liuyun's movements.

If Ye Liuyun and his group simply withdrew, that would of course be better. If they fought back, then we'll devise another plan.

Clan Chief Ao Feng thought it over and decided they could pull back. They couldn't catch up to them, nor could they win in battle; further attrition would be useless, so it was better to retreat first.

Thus the Demon Race army suddenly halted the pursuit and began an orderly, gradual withdrawal. Even in retreat, the army did not disperse but withdrew together as a whole.

Ye Liuyun and Yu Xiaofeng, seeing them withdraw, began discussing what to do next.

"This Holy Demon Xing Xi really is a chicken rib. Even if we capture it now and take all its Xingqiu, it may still not offset the massive consumption of firepower war chariots."

Moreover, the Demon Race legion has obtained sufficient cultivation resources, and other legions have also trained troops, so they can withdraw. There's no valuable resource here either.

Yu Xiaofeng suggested to Ye Liuyun:

Ye Liuyun laughed, "I do intend to leave. We have also wiped out many Demon Race armies; in theory, they should lie low for a while and not attack other Xing Xi."

"But I seized their Soul Refining Cauldron; do you think they'll just give up? Their topmost strong ones haven't even acted yet, how could they spare us."

"So you mean the Demon Race army's withdrawal is a 'catch them to release them' tactic?" Yu Xiaofeng also found his words reasonable, yet couldn't understand why the Demon Race army would retreat.

Ye Liuyun analyzed: "If their army continues to stalemate with us, they have no chance of victory. They think we're training troops, but we don't clash with them, so they simply withdrew."

"I guess their next move will be to seal off the Xing Xi, stationing the army around its perimeter, forcing me to enter with only a few people, after which their elites will strike at me!"

"How do they know you'll definitely return?" Yu Xiaofeng still didn't get it.

"I wonder too—could it be they possess some treasure?"

Ye Liuyun immediately summoned the two Demon Race members with stronger Heavenly Earth Power that he had captured, and conducted another thorough Soul Search to understand the Demon Race's situation here.

Previously he had only monitored some information about the two sides' battles, without such detailed searching. This time, the search revealed that both Demons consider the Holy Demon Xing Xi to be littered with treasure.

The Xingqiu in this Xing Xi possess Primordial Power saturated with dense Demon Qi; the resulting Magic Crystal Mineral Vein and other resources are of very high quality, making it a treasure trove for the Demon Race and Demon Cultivators.

However, to Ye Liuyun these resources are merely ordinary and hold no particular allure.

The only thing that caught Ye Liuyun's attention was that in the Demon Race's holy land there is a Demon God Grand Hall containing a stone statue of the Demon God. If the Demon God within the statue can be awakened, its guidance can be obtained.

Although many Demons have entered to try, most failed, some have succeeded in awakening the Demon God and received its guidance.

For example, the current Clan Chief Ao Feng of the Demon Race is one such case. Several of the Demon Race's topmost strong ones also obtained the Demon God's inheritance there, which led to their present achievements.

"The Demon Race's inheritance?"

Ye Liuyun thought that if entry were easy, he could let Thunderclap and Nine-Head Demon Dragon and other Demon Beasts give it a try. However, with the Demon Race fielding tens of millions of troops and many strong ones awaiting him, it's not worth the risk.

So after the Soul Search, he and Yu Xiaofeng decided to change course and explore other Xing Xi, to see whether these Demons would chase them again.

If the Demon Race doesn't pursue, they have no need to clash with them. As for the Demon Race's inheritance, a few Demon Beasts aren't absolutely necessary.

They immediately reversed direction, speeding away from the Holy Demon Xing Xi.

Their departure mattered little; Clan Chief Ao Feng of the Demon Race could not sit still. He had thought Ye Liuyun attacked their Xing Xi for resources and training, but now it seemed Ye Liuyun was frightened by their tens of millions of troops.

However, the Soul Refining Cauldron remained in Ye Liuyun's hands; he must seize that treasure back, otherwise the Red Demon Race's cultivation efficiency would drop significantly, which could undermine their leadership among the Demon Race.

So he immediately dispatched two of the topmost strong ones to hunt Ye Liuyun, while also sending a five hundred thousand troop army to pursue him.

This five hundred thousand army is meant to be given to Ye Liuyun to kill. If Ye Liuyun halts to slay this army, they will send strong ones to kill him, buying time.

After this group departed, Ao Feng gathered from the Red Demon Race a batch of experts with strong Divine Soul Power, and also dispatched the Demon Race's internal strong ones, accompanying another five hundred thousand troops to chase Ye Liuyun as a second delay force.

Later, he personally sought several reclusive top Demon Race strong ones, brought a million elite soldiers, and together with the remaining Red Demon Race strong ones, pursued Ye Liuyun.

He had already made a death‑defying resolve; if they still couldn't retrieve the Soul Refining Cauldron, even if the Red Demon Race were all wiped out, he would accept his fate.

The first, second, and third batches of Demon Race armies and strong ones all piloted the fastest Flying Boats to chase Ye Liuyun.

After Ye Liuyun flew his Flying Boat far away, he immediately recalled the army and Flying Boat, switching to an ordinary Demon Race Flying Boat, carrying a few Demon Race captives, and headed back slowly.

He did this to see whether the Demon Race would chase them, lest they leave a lingering threat. If they later fought others and were ambushed by the Demon Race at that time, the price would be huge.

As expected, he soon saw the Demon Race's five hundred thousand army pursuing.

"Only five hundred thousand? This must be a bait to stall you," Yu Xiaofeng reacted immediately upon receiving the news.

"Very possible. At least it shows they won't abandon the Soul Refining Cauldron; further moves will follow!" Ye Liuyun also thought Yu Xiaofeng's words were spot‑on.

"There may also be strong ones or Soul Cultivators!" Yu Xiaofeng added.

Ye Liuyun laughed, "That's perfect; I'll go out and practice, let the soldiers fight. These five hundred thousand Demon Race troops make excellent sparring partners!"

"Are you sure it's safe!" Yu Xiaofeng also knew the Demon Race's strong ones this time would certainly not be weak.

"Don't worry! We came here precisely for adventurous honing!"

Ye Liuyun reassured Yu Xiaofeng, then immediately used Spatial Power to rush ahead of that Demon Race army, released the troops, and set a Xingqiu as their garrison base, waiting for them to catch up.