Chapter 120 Your demon race's high priest is a nine-tailed fox? ...

Even without his reminder, the distant light had already entered Lu Yuanyuan's field of vision. She stood up, facing the wind, gazing at the unfamiliar scenery, and secretly clenched her fists.

Seven years later, she finally returned to the place where she ascended to heaven.

Compared to her memories, the place had undergone a complete transformation. In the once dark and desolate wilderness, a vast expanse of dazzling light had appeared, like molten starlight flowing across the earth. It was the gathering place of the demon civilization. A bustling city stretched out before her, its towering walls built of dark blue bricks, like a fortress against the heavens, impregnable. Within the city, paths crisscrossed, towering pagodas stood, and eaves soared, making the people who moved about appear as small as ants.

Back then, the perilous fog, the withered forest haunted by demons, and the Lihe Mountain collapsing step by step in the thunder... were all replaced by this young nation.

Yue Hong came to her side and raised an eyebrow: "So this is the legendary Xuanzhao."

The monster carrying the cart began to descend from the sky, its trajectory almost at a 45-degree angle to the ground. It was very fast, but the people on the cart didn't feel much of a bump.

Looking up from above, the buildings in the city seemed as small as matchboxes. But once you're actually on the ground, you truly feel your own insignificance—the two heavy city gates are wide open, sixty meters high, like the gaping maw of an abyss. The stone drawbridge has been lowered, and below it flows the raging moat, the water deafening, as if a thousand ghosts are wailing in unison.

At this moment, at the city gate opposite the drawbridge, the demon race was already standing there to greet them. Behind them, a dark, imposing square formation appeared to be soldiers, while in front of them stood a colossal figure.

Yes, it was truly a colossal creature. When he stood up, he was about a third the height of the city gate, his body bulging with muscles, his arms thick and strong, as if they could burst through his armor. Thick mane extended from his head all the way down his back, and although he had a human face, his skin was dark blue, and he was barefoot, with large, powerful feet that were as rough as tree bark, as if he could crush the city bridge and turn the surrounding soldiers into mincemeat with a single step.

Just standing there at the front of the battle formation exudes a strong sense of oppression, a palpable aura of power. One can only imagine the destructive force such a fierce general would bring to the battlefield.

Not only that, he was also holding two enormous hammers, each weighing over a thousand pounds, made of some unknown material, that gleamed with a chilling light.

The two sides faced each other across the moat. Suddenly, the demon general raised his great hammer high and slammed it into the ground three times. Three deafening crashes resounded, sending shards of stone flying and sparks flying. The force was terrifying and violent, shaking even the opposite bank, and causing pebbles to bounce and crackle. Simultaneously, a deep crack suddenly shot out from the point of impact, like a dragon or snake writhing, carrying a powerful gust of wind, and swiftly cleaved towards the celestial envoys!

Yue Hong's pupils constricted.

The crack shot out faster and faster, almost splitting the city bridge in two. The crack widened and widened, closing in on them in an instant. The celestial envoys behind Lu Yuanyuan all changed their expressions, gritting their teeth and gripping their sword hilts.

Lu Yuanyuan remained motionless, a dark glint flashing in her eyes. In an instant, her robes billowed without wind, and a pale green spiritual energy emanated from beneath her feet, like plants awakening and sprouting branches, using softness to overcome hardness. The raging, cracked chasm ahead collided head-on with the spiritual energy she unleashed, like a raging fire plunged into a cold spring; the ferocity was disintegrated, the agitation extinguished, and it abruptly stopped.

Although the main attack was halted, the bricks continued to crack forward due to inertia, eventually subsiding completely about a meter away from Lu Yuanyuan. By then, the cracks were thinner than a hair.

Seeing that the demon race's show of force had been neutralized, the cultivators reacted and all revealed excited expressions, as if they wanted to throw Lu Yuanyuan high in the air.

Yue Hong's heart was pounding. He turned his head and glanced at the person next to him, his gaze burning.

Sensing the tense atmosphere, the envoy leading the way quickly stepped forward to smooth things over: "This is our king's Left General, who has specially welcomed you celestial envoys with the honors due to a warrior!"

On the opposite bank of the river, General Zuo snorted coldly, clearly annoyed.

He was sent by the king to welcome these celestial envoys. However, he was not optimistic about this cooperation from the very beginning.

He had always despised the hypocritical charlatans of the cultivation world and disapproved of the demon race engaging in deep exchanges with them. His original plan was to catch them off guard on their first meeting, intimidate these so-called immortal envoys, and make them flee in disarray, to see if they could still maintain their haughty airs. But he failed.

If it fails once and then causes trouble again, things will get messy. General Zuo straightened his face, hoisted the huge hammer onto his shoulder, and said in a deep, booming voice, "Please!"

Lu Yuanyuan nodded and said, "Thank you, please."

As she answered, she silently withdrew the spiritual power that had been gathered in her other palm.

The demon race is known for its ferocity and ruthlessness. Although they have proactively offered cooperation this time, it's rumored that there are many differing opinions within their ranks, and they are not truly united. Under these circumstances, the possibility that the other party might try to trip them up or intimidate them from their very first meeting cannot be ruled out.

Therefore, from the moment she set foot in the Southern Territory, she was secretly on guard. Fortunately, she was cautious and had a backup plan.

The demon king arranged for a carriage to take them to the palace where they would rest. Along the way, they could see that the city was bustling with activity, with markets, restaurants, and rice and meat shops all readily available. Apart from the fact that the people walking on the streets were not human, it looked much like a human city.

The monks peered through the cracks in the window at the bustling street, feeling both wary and incredibly curious.

After an unknown amount of time, a magnificent palace covering a vast area came into view. Lu Yuanyuan immediately noticed that on either side of the palace gate stood two different statues, each over twenty meters tall and lifelike.

The statue on the left looks familiar, with eyes like copper bells, covered in armor, and wielding a giant hammer—it is General Zuo. The one on the right is an unfamiliar man, holding a large sword, with large, bat-like wings on his back, and two pairs of them in total.

Yue Hong clicked his tongue, staring at the approaching statue, and muttered to himself, "That person's original form is a bat demon? It actually has four wings, that's too strange."

Lu Yuanyuan turned her head and looked at the demon envoy who was leading the way: "That's General Zuo's statue, right? Where's the other one?"

The demon envoy had already discerned that among the visiting immortals, Lu Yuanyuan was the most approachable. Hearing her question, he immediately smiled and answered warmly and in detail: "Those are our Left General and Right General. Both of you were capable generals recruited by the King when he was expanding the territory. In the past few years, you have achieved numerous military exploits, like guardian deities protecting our borders. To commemorate your achievements, the King ordered the creation of stone statues of you."

Lu Yuanyuan said thoughtfully, "So that's how it is."

As arranged, they would not hold any meetings on their first day in the demon realm.

Tonight, to welcome everyone, the demon princess Shuo will host a grand welcome banquet in this palace.

As the head of the delegation, Lu Yuanyuan was given the best room here, and the demon race even arranged two maids for her to serve her. Of course, whether they were serving her or monitoring her is unknown.

Both maids were delicate and charming young girls. But their vertical diamond-shaped pupils and the pink noses that hummed when they breathed revealed the true nature beneath their beautiful exteriors: they were monsters.

The room had a spacious terrace. Lu Yuanyuan pushed open the door and stepped onto the terrace, a spot that faced the garden.

Perhaps due to the dense demonic aura, the sky over the Southern Territory was always gloomy even on days without rain. Even with all the lights around, the area bathed in sunlight seemed to be filtered through a hazy, bluish-gray lens, swallowing up all the warm golden light.

Lu Yuanyuan's gaze passed over the layers of palace walls and saw a sculpture under construction in the thin mist.

It was a seated sculpture. Its size was three times that of the two sculptures outside the palace gates, obscuring the sky. Because it was still unfinished, the area above its neck was very rough, the features indistinct, only the blurry outline of the lower half of its face and a thin lip visible. But the body below the shoulders had been sculpted with a relatively clear posture. Compared to the two muscular, clearly military-looking monsters outside the palace gates, this statue was slender and graceful, unarmored and unarmed. Its hair was tied back with a long hairpin, and it wore a magnificent robe, sitting leisurely on a thick, luxurious quilt, as if admiring flowers or brewing tea.

Although it was carved from cold, hard stone, the exquisite craftsmanship made Lu Yuanyuan feel as if she could see the robes flowing like light water ripples in the wind.

A maid noticed her gaze, stepped forward gracefully, covered her mouth and smiled: "My Lord, that is a sculpture of our demon race's High Priest."

Lu Yuanyuan asked curiously, "I already saw the statues of the Left General and the Right General outside the palace gate. Why is this person's statue so much bigger?"

Compared to the human realm, where rules are strictly enforced, the demon maids were clearly less reserved in their speech, saying frankly, "That's because the High Priest has made unparalleled contributions to our demon race. Of the seven cities, the most important one was conquered by him. Although the Left General and the Right General also have many military achievements, they still cannot be compared with the High Priest."

The maids spoke with a tone of adoration. Lu Yuanyuan accepted a cup of warm tea with honey from them, took a sip, and her gaze returned to the distant statue. Suddenly, she paused, realizing she had been looking at the wrong place.

Beneath the statue, that soft, lively, fluffy thing is not a cushion, but a tail.

One, two, three, four...

The count ends when you reach nine.

Nine tails.

Lu Yuanyuan's heart tightened slightly, and she blurted out, "Your demon race's high priest is a nine-tailed fox?"

"Indeed, our High Priest is from the most noble and powerful Nine-Tailed Fox lineage of the Fox Clan... Oh! Immortal Lord, your tea has spilled. Did you get burned?"

Lu Yuanyuan suddenly snapped out of her daze and realized that she had been holding the cup crookedly, and the tea had spilled out. She gestured that it was alright, put down the cup, took a cloth, and wiped the tea off the back of her hand several times.

She couldn't explain why she felt a sudden pang of heartache, but a person's image inexplicably surfaced in her mind.

But that doesn't make sense.

Firstly, although nine-tailed foxes are rare, there is more than one lineage in the world.

Moreover, Duan Lansheng's mother was a nine-tailed fox, but he was not. He only had one fox tail.

Perhaps it's related to the fact that Duan Lansheng is a half-demon; even the male protagonist cannot completely inherit his mother's genes.

Secondly, Duan Lansheng was already dead.

Seven years after his death, his spirit never appeared in her dreams, as if it had vanished completely.

Lu Yuanyuan cut off her thoughts. Using the excuse of needing rest, she dismissed the two maids, intending to spend some time alone before the banquet began. While wandering around the room, she unexpectedly found the history books of the demon race.

This thing isn't really a secret; every country writes its own history. But outside, Lu Yuanyuan would never have the chance to read it. After all, many in the cultivation world consider the change of power in the Southern Territory and its control by the demon race a disgrace. They wouldn't even acknowledge the existence of the demon realm, so how could they possibly collect and circulate a history compiled by the demons themselves?

The person who decorated the room deliberately placed these books here, probably with the intention of providing tourists with travel brochures and promoting their hometown.

The history of the demon race is very short, and the books are not thick. Lu Yuanyuan leaned against the wall and flipped through the book. Sure enough, she found the history of the rise of the demon king, Ji Shuo.

Seven years ago, Ji Shuo started his career in the Southern Territory. At that time, his power was still weak, and he didn't have many capable subordinates. But what he was going to face were the fierce and powerful local tyrants who had been entrenched in the Southern Territory for many years.

The seven cities now are the former territories of seven different powerful enemies.

Lu Yuanyuan slowly turned the pages, her brows furrowing slightly as she looked at the written records and noticed something odd.

In the first battle, Ji Shuo fought relatively smoothly, capturing the first territory and building the first city. According to normal thinking, he should have challenged the weaker opponents one by one, annexing the weaker ones first, steadily strengthening himself, and then going head-to-head with the powerful enemies.

But Ji Shuo did not do that back then. In only the second battle, for some reason, he chose an opponent who was much stronger than himself at the time.

As expected, the battle stalled as soon as it began.

Ji Shuo's attack was unsuccessful. The two sides were locked in a stalemate for almost three months without a clear victor.

At that time, due to the intense battle, morale in the city was wavering, and some people were already considering defecting to Ji Shuo. If they could just delay for a while longer, there was a good chance that internal strife would break out in the city, thus weakening the enemy's power from within. But Ji Shuo did not wait.

The high priest beside him intervened, and using some unknown method, leveled the entire city to the ground.

Whether they advocated war or peace, whether they were soldiers or civilians, they all vanished into thin air.

This priest never appeared in the first battle. That was the first time everyone realized that Ji Shuo had such a subordinate.

The high priest never appeared again in the battles that followed. But this act alone was enough to serve as a warning to others.

Having witnessed the disastrous outcome of the second city, the local strongmen who were not powerful enough dared not resist. Afterwards, the Demon King's offensive became increasingly unstoppable, and within a year, he had crushed all forces that defied him, building a new kingdom on the ruins.

The Left General and the Right General were two local strongmen who voluntarily surrendered and became warriors under the Demon King.

Just then, there was a knock on the door: "Immortal Lord, the banquet is ready."

Lu Yuanyuan looked up and realized that the sky had completely darkened without her noticing. She responded with a sound of agreement, closed the book, and put it back on the bookshelf.

The banquet that night was held in the newly built Changsui Pavilion.

The Changsui Pavilion is located on the east side of the palace, flanked by several tall flame trees, their red flowers swaying on the branches, petals fluttering in the wind. Heavy blue curtains, adorned with exquisite embroidery, conceal the view inside. At first glance, they appear to depict auspicious clouds and mythical beasts, but upon closer inspection, one realizes they are actually scenes of beautiful women battling monstrous creatures—both enchanting and eerie.

Upon entering the main hall, Lu Yuanyuan saw that the tables on both sides were already full of people.

No, to be precise, they are all monsters that have taken human form.

Unlike the monks who pursued an elegant and refined style of clothing, the demons liked to wear the most vibrant colors on their bodies. The whole room was filled with red and green, and the bright colors were dazzling to the eye.

When the group appeared, the monsters stopped talking and stared at them, their gazes filled with wariness and hostility.

Lu Yuanyuan looked towards the front and saw a man in purple sitting in the highest seat, who was probably the Demon King.

There are rumors in the cultivation world that the Demon King Ji Shuo is a blue-faced, fanged yaksha. But in reality, his appearance is not only completely unrelated to blue-faced, fanged yakshas, ​​but he is also quite handsome and young. He stood up and said with a smile, "Distinguished guests, you have come from afar. You must be tired."

Lu Yuanyuan withdrew her gaze and responded politely with some pleasantries.

Anyway, tonight's event is just a simple welcome-back banquet, so there's no need to be too tense. After exchanging a few pleasantries, the Demon King invited them to take their seats.

Yue Hong, as her attendant, also sat beside her.

The food preferences of yokai and humans differ greatly. Some yokai even include humans in their diet. However, the dishes at tonight's banquet were clearly carefully selected, suited the cultivators' tastes, and used normal ingredients; there were no unappetizing sights.

The two sides chatted while eating, and although they were not familiar with each other, the atmosphere was reasonably harmonious.

Lu Yuanyuan's gaze swept across the room, landing on the Left General who had appeared that morning. Because of his enormous size, his desk was much taller than others. However, she did not see the Right General or the High Priest.

She took a sip of her wine. Just then, a maid with an unfamiliar face, taking advantage of the opportunity to serve the food, suddenly approached her quietly and slipped a note into her hand. Before she could ask any questions, the maid quickly retreated.

What's going on?

Lu Yuanyuan calmly unfolded the note under the table, and her eyes widened slightly when she saw what was written on it.

...

A moment later, Lu Yuanyuan used the excuse of needing to go out and sober up to leave Changsui Pavilion alone.

Yue Hong seemed to want to go out together, but she stopped him with a look.

As soon as she stepped out of the banquet hall, the surroundings became much quieter. Sure enough, the maid who had delivered the note was standing not far from the garden. Upon seeing her come out, she bowed and said, "Please follow me, Immortal Lord."

Lu Yuanyuan followed her, winding through corridors and gardens, without seeing a single person along the way, until they finally arrived at a palace.

This was clearly a palace, with upturned eaves and lavish decorations. The interior was dimly lit and filled with a faint fragrance. The door was open. As we walked down the steps, the maid stopped and bowed to let us pass: "My lord, my master is inside."

As Lu Yuanyuan stepped through the gate, she immediately saw an antique screen with a small table in front of it. Behind the table sat a familiar person.

It was a fox-eared girl with long, black hair that reached the ground. She was anxiously resting her chin on her hand, constantly looking towards the door, looking both apprehensive and expectant.

Upon seeing her, the other person froze for a moment, then instantly revealed an expression of "I knew it." It was Xiao Ruo, whom they hadn't seen for seven years.

Xiao Ru stood up, seemingly wanting to say something, but seeing the maid by the door, she held back, coughed, and said, "You go out first and close the door behind you."

The maid acknowledged and left. Once everyone was alone, Xiao Ru slammed her hand on the table and exclaimed, "I knew it! You really could read the note!"

Lu Yuanyuan clenched the note in her hand.

The note conveyed only a very simple meaning—the writer asked her to follow the maid outside the door to a place, saying that there was something important to discuss.

The problem is, it's written in very broken English!

The writer communicated with her using a language that did not exist in this world, which was tantamount to revealing his identity and conveying his hidden sincerity.

Xiao Ru stared at her nervously: "So, I wasn't wrong, you really are a time traveler too, otherwise how could you understand English?"

Lu Yuanyuan took a deep breath and said, "If I'm not mistaken, you've bound yourself to the system. Then it should have told you everything about me a long time ago. Do you still need to guess?"

“My system and the Book Spirit of this world are not the same; it’s just a subordinate system of the Book Spirit.” Xiao Ru scratched her ear and sighed, “Never mind, that’s not the point right now.” Lu Yuanyuan looked her up and down. Xiao Ru’s appearance was very different from the maids outside. Her complexion was rosy, her face was as beautiful as a flower, and her elegant silk robe was covered with a butterfly-patterned gauze dress. A pearl sash was tied around her wrist. Lu Yuanyuan already had a guess in her mind: “How did you get here?”

“…According to the rules, I can’t say. But since you’re not a native of this world, it won’t hurt to tell you. I’m currently pursuing the Demon King Ji Shuo and am his concubine.” Xiao Ru wrinkled her nose and said reluctantly, “I know we have some grudges from the past. Yes, I ruined your plans, but because of you, I’ve already died once. For our common good, let’s let it go for now.”

"You died once because of me? What does that mean?"

"Don't you know? Back in that mortal realm instance, I almost killed you because I stopped that NPC named San Niang from delivering a message. Afterwards, Duan Lansheng felt sorry for you and strangled me to death next to the Luo River to avenge you. If it weren't for my system, I wouldn't be alive now."

Lu Yuanyuan was stunned, her fingertips trembling slightly.

This was the first time she had heard of something that had been buried for so long. Duan Lansheng... had actually done something like this?

He didn't say a word. She had no idea either.

This is... completely unlike something Duan Lansheng would do.

Xiao Ru crossed her arms and, without giving her time to process what was going on, went straight to the point: "I'm here to discuss cooperation with you. We must ensure that this cooperation between our two worlds can be finalized."

Lu Yuanyuan came to her senses and said, "That's exactly why I went to the demon realm."

"No, I don't want ordinary effort; I want absolute certainty! The 'Death of the Ghost Emperor' is one of the most important plot points in the original novel 'The Enchanting Fairy's Fate. Originally, I could go home once I had enough favor with the male lead, but now, because the original plot has been distorted, whether I can go home is uncertain. As long as this plot can be completed, I can be sure I can go home. You... no matter what, the current situation is more or less related to you, isn't it? If you hadn't changed the plot without authorization, things wouldn't have escalated to this point. Shouldn't you take responsibility?"

Xiao Ru spoke until her throat was dry, staring intently at the person in front of her. But to her surprise, Lu Yuanyuan did not show the regret she expected, but instead looked at her calmly: "You're right, this situation is related to me to some extent."

"and you……"

Lu Yuanyuan raised her long eyelashes, her eyes dark and deep: "But I don't regret it. Even if I could do it a thousand times, ten thousand times, I would still make the same choice to save myself."

Xiao Ru stared at her blankly.

"As for what you just mentioned, I will do my best to achieve it without you having to remind me. It is my responsibility as an envoy."

People with different values ​​cannot work together. Lu Yuanyuan nodded to her and turned to leave.

"No... this alliance absolutely has to be finalized." Xiao Ru murmured, then suddenly chased after him down the steps, gritting her teeth, "Lu Yuanyuan! Don't you want to go home?"

Lu Yuanyuan's steps suddenly stopped.

"Do you want to go home? Back to the modern world, your real home!"