Chapter 287: Someone is Playing the Pig to Eat the Tiger!

"Seriously, what a genius at naming things..."

After grumbling in his heart for a good while, Ren Yidao curled his lip and comforted himself:

"However, it's actually not that bad; the less it looks like me, the safer it is."

"When the time comes, I'll just say, what does catching a Five-Tail Earth Fox have to do with me, Ren Yidao? Yeah, that's it."

Having finally managed to convince himself, Ren Yidao looked again at his ranking on the Great Demon Ranking.

Four hundred and fourth place—Five-Tail Earth Fox.

"404? That's not a very auspicious number!"

To be honest, this number surprised Ren Yidao somewhat, but it wasn't because he felt his ranking was too low.

On the contrary, Ren Yidao felt it was too high.

"When I suppressed that little kitty, I clearly only used my physical strength, and this is just a step away from entering the top four hundred? Is the overall level of the Eastern Wasteland's Great Demons really that poor?"

"Do you believe it? I don't."

Ren Yidao might be proud, but he wouldn't be blindly arrogant; he had a relatively clear understanding of himself.

One must know that the overall strength of the Eastern Wasteland is stronger than that of Beigan.

And Ren Yidao didn't even dare to be too reckless in Beigan, so how could he start acting wild upon arriving in the Eastern Wasteland?

That would be a joke.

Based on Ren Yidao's true strength right now, he is definitely not weak, but he certainly wouldn't be able to reach his current ranking, let alone relying solely on physical strength.

Is this normal?

This is clearly abnormal.

Where there is an anomaly, there must be a demon!

Someone is hiding their true strength, but that person is not Ren Yidao; it is the three thousand Great Demons of the Eastern Wasteland!

"Looking at it this way, those Great Demons at the top of the rankings aren't without brains after all."

I woke up too fast!

This group of Demon Race, who have always been perceived by the Human Race as having low intelligence and being reckless, have actually learned to play the pig to eat the tiger!

"Sure enough, by the time one cultivates to this level, there are almost no idiots left."

Whether human or demon, the biological instinct to seek advantages and avoid harm will make them constantly change in this endless war between the two races.

Both sides are doing their utmost to kill the other, using any means necessary.

And thinking about it from the other side, the Demon Race's act of feigning weakness has actually been done quite well.

To notice the trickery on the Great Demon Ranking, one needs to meet several hard conditions:

One, be a member of the Demon Race.

Two, have enough strength to make it onto the Great Demon Ranking.

Three, have fought others and won.

For the Human Race, gathering these conditions is harder than ascending to Heaven; it is almost impossible.

But as luck would have it, Ren Yidao, this double agent of the Demon Race, just happened to meet these conditions.

If Ren Yidao hadn't suppressed the Ink-Earth Yellow Sand Tiger that wanted to swallow him outside Jiang City, even he wouldn't have been able to notice this so quickly.

"I really have to thank you, thank you, little kitty~" A delighted Ren Yidao pinched the fur-covered Bell in the arms of the yellow cat.

Pinching yours.

The texture is nice, constant temperature, and it even automatically retracts and bounces back.

"Meow!!?"

Yellow cat:???

The yellow cat also shuddered, and after that, it flew into a rage and started cursing loudly.

"Meow meow meow! Meow meow meow! Meow meow—"

That was the longest and filthiest string of cat calls Ren Yidao had heard since meeting the yellow cat.

Then, the yellow hole-puncher turned its head and began biting his finger frantically.

Ding ding ding!!!

It was just a pity that its hate-filled attack had no effect.

No Broken Defense, it just feels itchy.

Then, Ren Yidao, whose hand was itching from the biting, pinched it again...

"Meow—"

While enjoying the other party's mental breakdown and wailing, Ren Yidao turned his head and asked the Prince who was half a step behind him.

"Mingzhi, roughly what rank would the Yellow Sand Tiger be on the Demon Extermination Ranking?"

After honestly tossing a gold coin to the restaurant manager as compensation, Jiang Mingzhi quickly caught up to Ren Yidao.

After observing for a while and discovering that Ren Yidao's nameless fire had vanished, he breathed a sigh of relief and replied:

"The Yellow Sand Tiger is a Spirit Transformation Chuji Great Demon; it should be around the ninetieth place on the Earth Ranking, right?"

"Those with a Dharma Aspect aren't qualified for the Earth Ranking; the top thirty of the Earth Ranking are all Void Refinement experts, and most of the remaining Spirit Transformation experts are at least at the middle stage of Spirit Transformation. Only the last ten could possibly be at the early stage of Spirit Transformation."

Ninetieth on the Earth Ranking? Spirit Transformation Chuji?

Ren Yidao recalled the scene of him suppressing the Yellow Sand Tiger and smiled with deep meaning.

"Very cautious indeed."

The Yellow Sand Tiger is a middle-stage Spirit Transformation Great Demon, one step away from entering the late stage, yet in Jiang Mingzhi's eyes, it is only a Spirit Transformation Chuji.

And this is even after the Jiang King wanted to subdue it and conducted a detailed investigation, yet it was still able to deceive everyone and obtain such intelligence.

Calculating it this way, there is no need to even guess how much "water" there is in the true strength of the other Demon Race members.

Under such incorrect intelligence, if a Spirit Transformation Chuji cultivator were to challenge a Yellow Sand Tiger, it would likely eat as many as came its way.

Yellow Sand Tiger: I'm just gonna eat, eat, eat, and get stuffed full.

Slide tackle! Crack!

*Hiccup! *

Next!

What Ren Yidao said was that the Demon Race was very cautious in feigning weakness, but it took on a different meaning in Jiang Mingzhi's ears.

He assumed that the caution Ren Yidao spoke of referred to experts on the Earth Ranking, so he said solemnly:

"Daoist, I know your strength is formidable, but please do not be careless."

"When it comes to eliminating demons, one can never be too cautious!"

Ren Yidao: Meh?

Seeing the strange look on Ren Yidao's face, Jiang Mingzhi actually advised him with all seriousness:

"The situation in the Eastern Wasteland is different from Beigan; Great Demons are everywhere. Once you are deep in a demon den, it is very easy to lose contact with others, so you must never be careless."

"Oh, oh, okay, okay, I understand." Ren Yidao covered his cat mouth and smiled, nodding at Jiang Mingzhi.

After this conversation, the relationship between the two seemed to have taken a step forward; they seemed to have completely forgotten the previous conflict and began to stroll and chat on the street as if they were familiar with each other.

At the beginning, it was Ren Yidao leading the way, but after a while, it unknowingly became Jiang Mingzhi leading the way in front.

Ren Yidao noticed this detail, but he did not expose it.

He was also very curious about what this "wise" eldest Prince wanted to do after realizing the gap in their strength.

Does he want to take me to the palace and count on more guards to suppress me?

No, Jiang Mingzhi shouldn't be the kind of idiot who repeatedly dances in a minefield.

Then where is he trying to take me?

Fortunately, before Ren Yidao could figure it out, an uninvited guest pushed the answer right in front of his eyes.

"Yo, isn't this my dear royal brother? It's been half a month, you finally decided to come out?"

After passing a turn, a group of people quickly surrounded them, blocking their path forward.

"Oh?" Seeing this formation, Ren Yidao's eyes lit up.

Could it be... could it be!?

Is that coming now!?

A playboy!

Then, a tall young man with disheveled hair walked out from behind the crowd and strode up to the two of them.

"Tsk tsk tsk."

The young man's appearance was not ugly; on the contrary, it was quite good, with sword-like eyebrows and starry eyes, and coupled with his wild, dissolute attire, he looked quite imposing.

Jiang Mingzhi first glanced at Ren Yidao, and seeing that he had no reaction, his heart sank. He turned his head and frowned at the young man:

"Jiang Mingde, do not be presumptuous here."

"Me, presumptuous?"

Jiang Mingde acted as if he had heard the funniest thing; he first smacked his lips, then shook his hair in a devil-may-care manner, looking at the two in front of him with a mocking face.

"I heard that my royal brother was scared out of his wits by someone in the Eastern Wasteland and hasn't dared to step out the door for half a month? I was wondering why you finally decided to come out now?"

"I knew it! So you found yourself a lover, hahaha..."

Jiang Mingde's voice was loud, as if he wanted everyone to hear his words.

But he laughed for a long time without hearing the counterattack he wanted...

"Hahahaha! Haha! Ha... ha?"

After laughing awkwardly by himself for a long time with no one picking up the thread, Jiang Mingde's expression couldn't hold up, and he covered his mouth and coughed.

What is going on?

Why isn't this guy replying!

Give me a reaction!

Jiang Mingde wanted to continue speaking to provoke Ren Yidao, but he saw his eyes.

A pair of pitch-black eyes flickering with excitement.

Hmm?

Excitement?

Jiang Mingde:???

He had not seen wrong; Ren Yidao was truly very excited.

Just as Jiang Mingde was performing, Ren Yidao was already laughing in his heart:

"It's a playboy, right? This is a playboy, right? He's going to cause trouble for me, isn't he?"

"Finally! After waiting for so long, I've finally encountered one!"

I was too high-profile in Beigan before, which made those playboys who should have existed retreat in the face of difficulties; not a single one had any guts.

This is not good, it's very boring!

The Eastern Wasteland is better after all!

Come, come, come, it's you, hurry up and fill in the experience I've been missing!

"I'm ready, I'm going to humiliate him fiercely after he provokes me! I'm going to slap his face until it rings..."

Slap!!!

But just before Ren Yidao could make a move, Jiang Mingzhi acted first, slamming a palm heavily onto Jiang Mingde's face.

To Ren Yidao's surprise, he watched as the tall and mighty Jiang Mingde was sent tumbling by that single palm.

Ren Yidao: "Baa?"

Jiang Mingde spun in the air and crashed heavily onto the ground.

Thud!

Only after landing did Jiang Mingde seem to react, letting out a shrill wail.

"Ahhh!!! My face! Jiang Mingzhi! You dare hit my face!"

Ren Yidao: "..."

Are you going to say "Even my father has never hit me!" next?

Seeing Jiang Mingde act like this, Jiang Mingzhi frowned tightly, said nothing, and simply strode right over him.

Seeing Jiang Mingzhi about to leave, several guards looked back and forth until finally, an older one braced himself and walked up, saying:

"Eldest Prince, doing this makes things very difficult for us!"

But Jiang Mingzhi ignored him completely, cast a glance, and said coldly:

"If it's difficult, then don't do it! What? You still want to block me here? Get lost!"

Ren Yidao looked at Jiang Mingde rolling on the ground wailing, then looked at Jiang Mingzhi whom no one dared to stop, and shook his head as he followed.

"Sigh... boring."

I originally thought he was a little toy to pass the time, but it turns out you aren't even qualified to be a toy.

Even the yellow cat held by Ren Yidao gave Jiang Mingde, who looked like a joke, a look of disdain, then closed its eyes in disgust.

Look at you!

Even a cat looks down on you!

How are you going to get by in the future? How will your future... oh, wait, cats generally look down on everyone.

Behind the two, Jiang Mingde, who had finally stood up with the help of the guards, spat out the blood in his mouth.

Watching their departing figures, he clutched his bright red cheek and roared in a disheveled rage:

"Jiang Mingzhi! I! Will definitely not let you off! Today's humiliation! I will definitely pay it back a hundredfold in the future!!!!"

"A hundredfold!!! Pfft—"

He magnificently sprayed a mouthful of blood from his mouth, then fell heavily backward.

"Young Master! Young Master!!! Quickly go call the Imperial Physician!"

"..."

Seeing the guards surround Jiang Mingde, Ren Yidao withdrew his gaze with a constipated expression.

Friend, you're here to be a comedian, right?

You must be, right?

However...

"Why do I feel like something isn't quite right?"

Where could it be?

After walking far away, Jiang Mingzhi sighed deeply, bowed his head and cupped his hands to Ren Yidao: "My foolish younger brother made a fool of himself in front of you, Daoist."

"Uh, he's your biological brother?" Ren Yidao was somewhat surprised.

You two don't look very much alike!

"Yes, we are full brothers, Mingde is three years younger than me." Jiang Mingzhi sighed, rubbing his head in distress, "But he was spoiled by the Empress when he was young, which fostered his arrogant and domineering personality."

"It was fine at first, just some minor mischief, but in recent years he has become increasingly unruly, and has even done some... bad things."

"I originally wanted to bring you to meet him, Daoist, to see if he could be disciplined, but... sigh, he wasn't like this when he was young."

Jiang Mingzhi seemed unwilling to talk about his foolish younger brother anymore and forced a smile:

"Mingde's words just now were quite offensive; I hope you are magnanimous, Daoist, and do not take it to heart."

"Oh, it's fine, small problem, I have always been very kind."

"..."

Jiang Mingzhi looked at Ren Yidao with some resentment, with many complaints stuck in his throat.

Kind? Are you sure?

Why weren't you kind to me before?

Is it because I'm not arrogant enough?

At this moment, Ren Yidao suddenly asked out of the blue: "Mingzhi, did you hold back your strength just now?"

Jiang Mingzhi couldn't keep up with Ren Yidao's unpredictable train of thought and answered subconsciously.

"Hold back? No, what does that mean, Daoist?"

While Jiang Mingzhi was puzzled, he saw Ren Yidao's expression suddenly change, a playful smile on the corner of his mouth, as he waved his hand casually.

"... Hehe, nothing, just pretend I didn't ask."

I need to take back what I said earlier.

Boring?

No, no, no, isn't this very interesting!

This pair of brothers is much more interesting than I first imagined.

The older brother is the Eldest Prince, established as the Crown Prince.

And the younger brother is a playboy on the surface, but in reality, he is someone playing the pig to eat the tiger...

So, little Jiang Mingde, who are you guarding against?

"What will the future of you brothers actually be?"

"I am very much looking forward to it."

The two walked for a while longer, and seeing that Ren Yidao still would not take the initiative to speak, Jiang Mingzhi finally could not help but say:

"Daoist, you came to the Eastern Wasteland all alone this time; surely it wasn't just for sightseeing, right? Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Oh, now that you mention it, I do recall something."

Ren Yidao put away his conjectures about this brother's future, stopped in his tracks, and nodded, saying:

"I do indeed have a matter that requires your help, but before that, I have a question to ask you."

"Hm? Please go ahead, Daoist."

"Do you like to travel?"

"Hm?"

Jiang Mingzhi:???

Wait!

What are you going to do to me!!?