Chapter 333: You know, I have always been

"No way, for real! It's actually floating in the sky!"

Ren Yidao tilted his head back, sighing in secret amazement at the island drifting slowly through the sky:

"These days, truly anything can fly in the sky."

It wasn't a Kun that couldn't fit in a pot, nor a giant fish flowing backward into the sea of the sky, and certainly not flying spaghetti.

It was a massive island emerging from a rift in the sky.

Or rather, a city.

Wait... a city in the sky?

"Barus!"

Unfortunately, after he shouted the destruction spell of the city in the sky without hesitation, nothing happened.

How regrettable.

However, a city flying in the sky—should one call it a floating city?

As soon as this thought appeared, Ren Yidao denied it on the spot.

"Floating city? No, no, no, that's not right."

Ren Yidao's shock was not because Demon Emperor City was floating in the air; that alone would not have made him lose his composure so thoroughly.

The true reason Ren Yidao lost control of his facial expressions was that the moment he looked directly at the city, he sensed a very strong sense of dissonance.

"This is definitely not some magical construct that requires precise calculations by a Grand Arcanist to create."

"Nor is it a natural creation of some Secret Realm blessed land."

"This is a more primitive, more mysterious man-made creation."

As the current base of the Demon Race, having remained unfound by the Human Race to this day, this Demon Emperor City naturally had its own unique aspects.

Thus, he subconsciously opened his Heavenly Eye to see through to its essence.

But what Ren Yidao did not expect was that the principle behind Demon Emperor City was even simpler, and even wilder, than he had anticipated...

"This city is a flesh-and-blood construct."

In plain terms, this island flying in the sky is a corpse.

Although it was covered in soil and vegetation, from its overall shape, one could still barely make out that this giant corpse was a bird-type Demon Beast.

This city was built right on top of this Demon Beast's body!

Although it was already dead, the corpse remaining in the world still radiated invisible laws, allowing it to float in the sky and withstand the impact of the currents high above.

Ren Yidao was stunned.

"What is flying in the sky? A bird or a cloud?"

"It's a corpse!"

"..."

He truly had not expected such a development.

The first impression the Demon Race gave him was indeed not much different from his stereotypes.

Ancient, conservative, barbaric...

However, Ren Yidao never imagined that the Demon Race was actually following the path of flesh-and-blood ascension!

Whether they actually ascended or not, I don't know, but you have to admit they managed to fly!

"... Heh."

And while Ren Yidao was lost in thought, Cang Lan took in his reaction, humming triumphantly.

Shocked, aren't you?

Hmph!

Let you be smug the whole way, but you're still shocked by the greatness of Demon Emperor City!

Cang Lan puffed out her chest, feeling that all the frustration from the journey had dissipated at this moment.

She felt great.

And while Cang Lan was singing songs of triumph in her heart, Yao Yue beside her was in a state of confusion.

She tilted her head, blankly watching the Demon Emperor City soaring in the sky, a strange feeling rising in her heart.

Yao Yue had seen this scene in her dreams before.

Only, in the dream, the city was not as it appeared now; one could still see that brilliant red.

The demons knelt upon it, chanting His honorable name.

Yao Yue unconsciously recited the call that echoed in her mind.

"... Lord Demon God?"

!!!

Although Ren Yidao was shocked, he had been keeping an eye on Yao Yue's movements, and noticing her whisper, his pupils suddenly dilated.

He is the Demon God?

A Great Demon of the Ascension Realm?

Ren Yidao felt that this world might be even crazier than he had imagined.

He understood why the Human Race could not find this Demon Emperor City.

If nothing else, the protection of the Demon God's corpse alone was enough to make all those without form shrink back in fear; likely only a few who were Asking Dao would be qualified to explore it.

Not to mention, who knew how many Heaven Realm Great Demons were hidden on this Demon Emperor City.

The Demon Race is weak?

This is considered weak? Forced to hide outside the Four Great Divine Continents?

Has the Demon Race recovered by now?

Or is the hidden strength of the Human Race... actually far greater than what I have seen?

Ren Yidao was secretly shocked by the strength of the Demon Race and the Human Race, while Cang Lan looked at Yaoyue in admiration and sighed:

"You truly are able to know; you are worthy of being the Demon God's Child."

"Yes, your intuition is correct; this is indeed the Phoenix Demon God!"

Cang Lan knelt toward Demon Emperor City and bowed respectfully.

"After being severely wounded, He voluntarily entered a dormant state, transforming Himself into an island so that we of the Demon Race could survive under His protection and escape the clutches of the Human Race."

Dormant?

Not a corpse?

Upon hearing this, Ren Yidao continued to observe for a while, then secretly shook his head.

The soul is not even within it; how could this be any sort of dormancy?

He is simply dead.

Stone cold!

"This is likely just a narrative used by the upper echelons of the Demon Race to comfort those below."

It is probably just a means to deceive their own people and provide the masses with a spiritual anchor.

However, although Ren Yidao denied Cang Lan's words in his heart, he did not voice his rebuttal.

Instead, he nodded in agreement and sighed:

"Such an astonishing feat, it truly fills one with awe..."

He could be contrary with Cang Lan, but really, there was no need for that.

She can say what she wants; I just need to understand the reality of the situation myself.

Besides, they were about to reach the other party's base, so it was best not to provoke her.

This involved faith.

In the eyes of the Demon Race, the Demon God is a deity, a god respected and worshipped by countless members of the Demon Race.

A provoked Fanatic is terrifying; there is no telling what they might do.

Furthermore, he dared not make rash assertions about whether there were unknown secrets to the Ascension Realm or if it were possible to bring the dead back to life.

However, in Ren Yidao's view, if the Demon Race truly had a Demon God who could revive at any moment as a trump card... they would absolutely not be as low-key as they are now.

"Hmph, it is good that you know."

Seeing Ren Yidao being so sensible, although Cang Lan felt a bit strange inside, her attitude softened somewhat, and she said indifferently:

"You may go."

Ren Yidao: Oh?

"You are letting me go?"

Things had reached this point, and with Demon Emperor City close at hand, she finally did not need to continue enduring.

It was time to turn the tables and take charge!

Cang Lan nodded; it was not a threat, but rather she looked at Ren Yidao earnestly:

"Although you hunted us down and caused me to be severely wounded, I will definitely repay this grudge."

"But you also brought the two of us safely back to Demon Emperor City, and this is... a favor."

Moreover, bringing the Demon God's Child back safely was a great favor to the Demon Race.

"Today I let you go; from now on, the favor and the grudge are balanced, and we owe each other nothing."

"When we meet again in the future, we shall be nothing but enemies, and I will certainly repay the grudge of that initial pursuit!"

Ren Yidao tilted his head and thought for a moment, understanding Cang Lan's train of thought.

Cang Lan could be considered to have a clear sense of love and hate in a certain sense.

A favor is a favor, and a grudge is a grudge.

The grudge must be repaid, and the favor must also be repaid.

If she were to take revenge today, she would surely die, and she would be unable to repay the favor in the future.

Therefore, by repaying the favor today and letting him leave, she would be able to take revenge in the future.

"... Pfft."

When he figured out the logic behind this, Ren Yidao could not help but laugh.

"Hahaha!"

Oh no.

She is kind of cute!

This logic is simply perfect.

Hahahahaha!

It has been a long time since I have seen such a pure train of thought.

While he was speaking seriously, Ren Yidao inexplicably burst into laughter, which made Cang Lan somewhat displeased; she snorted angrily and threatened:

"While I have not yet changed my mind, hurry up and undo the restraints on us."

"What are you still waiting for?"

Cang Lan frowned at Ren Yidao, puzzled:

"If you release us now, we can still let bygones be bygones and let you leave safely."

"But if you wait for others to come and pick us up, you really will not be able to leave even if you want to."

Ren Yidao stopped his laughter, but the smile on his face did not completely fade, and he asked back with a grin:

"You said it yourself, I have the merit of escorting you back; could they really take action against a contributor like me?"

Nonsense!

Otherwise, wouldn't I have been wasting my breath for this long?

Cang Lan said angrily:

"Why do you still not understand?"

"You are of the Human Race; even if you have merit for the escort, the others will not let you off."

"Don't think about using us as hostages to threaten them; they won't care."

The Demon Race is not of one mind; let alone that Yao Yue's identity has not been verified yet, even if Yao Yue's identity were proven true, there would still be those unwilling to see the return of the Demon God's Child.

And while Cang Lan was angry, Ren Yidao, who had been looking at her with a half-smile for a long time, suddenly said:

"Miss Cang Lan, have you misunderstood something?"

Ren Yidao straightened his expression and said seriously:

"Aren't we close friends? When did I become a member of the Human Race? What do you mean by that?"

Cang Lan:?

"What nonsense are you talking about?"

"Nonsense?"

"No, no, no, what are you talking about instead?"

Ren Yidao put away his smile, and he said with a straight face:

"You know, I have always been of the Demon Race; we have spent many wonderful times together."

Cang Lan:?

What kind of nonsense are you talking about!!?

And just when Cang Lan could finally no longer endure it and was about to open her mouth to scold him, her eyes suddenly widened.

The man before her eyes suddenly changed into an outer garment, and then, in an instant, it was as if he had become a different person.

The golden-red Feather Garment shone, as if he had draped the lingering glow of the setting sun over his body, causing his temperament to change abruptly.

Transforming from the gentle softness of the moon to the rigidity of the sun.

And this was not the most important thing.

What truly made Cang Lan gasp in shock was the aura radiating from Ren Yidao's body...

"Demon Qi!!?"

Not just Demon Qi, but the aura of a Great Demon even purer than her own!

The suddenly erupting Demon Qi crisscrossed the surface of the sea, stirring up layers of giant waves all around.

Ren Yidao was draped in the Feather Garment, red fox ears extended, and a fox tail poked out from beneath the garment.

"Ren Yidao of the Beiming Divine Continent Demon Race, greets the two misses."

You say I am of the Human Race?

No, no, no, I am a Fox Demon!

Ren Yidao revealed part of his trump cards, but not all of them, and he also made some disguises.

He is just a Red Fox with only one tail, you see.

Not some five-tailed Earth Fox!

Even if someone wanted to investigate, they would only be able to see that he had disguised his race; they could not conclude that he was of the Human Race.

Because he truly is not.

And coupled with Ren Yidao's deliberate action of putting on the Nishang Feather Garment, this appearance of his, falling into Cang Lan's eyes, had only one explanation.

That golden-red Feather Garment could conceal the aura of the Human Race, allowing him to disguise himself as the Demon Race.

The Human Race has always had magical treasures similar to this.

But, how could it be possible to not see even a single flaw!

Real, real, real!

Whether it was the Demon Qi on his body or his scent, she had no way to view Ren Yidao as a member of the Human Race.

Pure Demon Race, without a single component of the Human Race mixed in.

This is impossible!

How could it be like this!?

Cang Lan watched for a moment, gritted her teeth and said:

"You... don't think that just because you have such a magical treasure, you can deceive everyone!"

I can't, but that doesn't mean others can't.

"Mm, that is natural; I don't think this disguise can fool everyone, isn't that why you are here?"

Hm?

Cang Lan was alert.

"What do you mean?"

Ren Yidao spread his hands and smiled:

"Naturally, the literal meaning; I ask for your help to keep this secret together."

"Otherwise... what will happen? I cannot guarantee it, oh."

As he spoke, Ren Yidao's gaze fell upon Yao Yue, who had been silent for a long time, signaling to Cang Lan.

Protect me?

No.

You are protecting her, and you are also protecting yourself.

"You will help me."

Cang Lan realized the pros and cons, gritted her teeth, and said:

"You are despicable!!!"

Despicable?

Ren Yidao shook his head with a playful smile:

"Nonsense, we are beloved friends and brothers, isn't it only natural to help each other?"

Besides, all is fair in war.

While Cang Lan was still struggling with how to proceed, Ren Yidao had already turned his head with a beaming smile to look at several figures flying down from Demon Emperor City.

"Oh, are those the people coming to pick us up?"

"Smile a little, you wouldn't want them to notice anything, would you?"

After speaking, Ren Yidao ignored Cang Lan's reaction and waved at them.

"Over here! Over here—"

At the same time, the moment Ren Yidao's Demon Qi erupted and deliberately triggered a reaction from Demon Emperor City, several people in the city reacted one after another.

Yinyue Wolf Mansion.

A giant wolf twitched its nose and slowly opened its eyes.

"This scent..."

"Has Lan'er returned?"

Moon Sacrifice Mansion.

Mingyue Daren in the secret chamber opened her eyes.

She looked in one direction, her gaze seemingly piercing through layers of obstacles, landing on the Demon Moon.

She watched carefully, as if observing a piece of uncut jade.

After a long while, Mingyue Priestess sighed softly and whispered:

"Finally... have you come?"

Demon Emperor Palace.

"Hm?"

A beautiful, voluptuous woman lying lazily on the bed suddenly sat up, blinking her eyes rapidly.

"Hm!!?"

"What did I just sense?"

"My feather... ah?"

She sensed that familiar aura and, puzzled, felt up and down her own voluptuous body.

"If that is my feather, then what is this on my body!?"

???

She transformed in a flash into a golden-red bird as tall as a person, with a slender and beautiful physique.

She hopped back and forth in front of the Mirror, spreading her wings to inspect herself.

"None are missing!"

Not a single feather is missing!

Then what was that feather I just sensed?

"How do I have an extra feather? And it was made into a Feather Garment by someone?"

What is going on!!!

Someone tell me!

What happened!!?

I caught up on some sleep yesterday, and my body has improved a bit.

Insomnia isn't the big problem; not recovering from being sick is...

Coughing, coughing, coughing, sweating, and feeling cold—that is the big problem.