Chapter 46 Entering the Demon Realm: The group once again embarked on their journey to the Demon Realm...

The group embarked on their journey to the Demon Realm once again, and this time, Zhu Songyun was joined by another member.

But to be fair, the spirit boat has become much more lively since Zhu Songyun joined the team.

Zhu Songyun is a very outgoing and restless person. When he's bored, he'll always find someone to chat with or get everyone to play chess together. Sometimes, when he's in the mood, he'll even do something silly, but the target is usually Teng Shao.

Gu Xiaozhu had also wondered why she always targeted Teng Shao, and Zhu Songyun's answer was:

It's quite interesting to watch a reserved guy break down.

This remark provoked Teng Shao to draw his sword and step forward.

Fortunately, the spirit boat was sturdy enough; otherwise, with the way the two fought, the spirit boat would have fallen apart long ago.

Despite their fighting and joking around, the three of them didn't neglect their cultivation at all. By the time they arrived at the outer edge of the Demon Realm, Zhu Songyun and Teng Shao had already reached the early Nascent Soul stage, while Jiang Zhihe had reached the mid-Nascent Soul stage.

Gu Xiaozhu remained the same as before, since she genuinely couldn't cultivate. However, she had more defensive measures on her body, which provided her with an extra layer of protection.

Unlike other places, the Demon Realm was geographically remote, with endless yellow sand everywhere, a truly wild and untamed land. In order to avoid attracting attention, the group disembarked from the spirit boat some distance from the Demon Realm's main city and then began to walk.

"Hey, you've been gone for so long, are you sure the Fallen Demon Sect hasn't completely taken control of the Demon Realm?" Zhu Songyun still couldn't stop talking and asked curiously.

Teng Shao: "Definitely not. The only Demon Lord recognized by the Demon Race is the Demon Race that has received the inheritance of the Holy Land." He chuckled, but at this moment it sounded more like self-mockery: "As long as my bloodline as the only Demon Lord lives, they cannot enter the Holy Land, and naturally they cannot become Demon Lords."

Zhu Songyun nodded, then asked, "Hey—so aren't you practically all alone now? As soon as you die, other demons can compete for the Demon Lord position. So..."

"So now you're the target of everyone's criticism?"

Teng Shao frowned slightly: "It's hard to say."

Jiang Zhihe then chimed in, "Why is it hard to say?"

Teng Shao: "Because the demon race, who are born to cultivate demonic powers, hate those who have fallen into demonic ways. Most of those people are madmen who want to drag everyone down with them."

"Therefore, some demons would rather give up their chance to become the Demon Lord than let those fallen demons succeed."

Zhu Songyun exclaimed, "What unexpected unity..."

Teng Shao rolled his eyes: "Who would do this unless it was a matter of life and death?"

The only thing that can unite those unruly and unrestrained demons is their precious lives.

To survive, they would do anything.

They chatted as they walked, and the four of them were about to arrive at the city gate.

"Hey! Since you're the Holy Son of the Demon Realm, aren't you very famous? Don't you bother with any disguise?" Zhu Songyun suddenly spoke up.

Teng Shao smiled, and this time, his smile carried a rare hint of arrogance: "No need."

He strode quickly to the front of the crowd: "They can't kill me outside the Demon Palace."

Gu Xiaozhu asked in confusion, "Why?"

Teng Shao turned his head slightly and glanced at her: "Because the other demons will not allow me to die outside, at least not until the Fallen Demons lose control of the Holy Land."

Gu Xiaozhu understood.

At this moment, most of the fallen demons are gathered inside the Demon Palace, guarding the outer perimeter of the sacred ground. Other ordinary demons are therefore unable to enter the Demon Palace, or even touch the edge of the sacred ground. If Teng Shao dies now, only the fallen demons will be able to enter the sacred ground; the demons outside the Demon Palace won't even get a sip of meat soup.

Since that's the case, if they can't get it, then the fallen demons shouldn't expect to get it either!

Therefore, outside the Demon Palace, once Teng Shao appears, there will be many more demons who care about his life even more than he does.

Teng Shao: "If they want to kill me, they must put me in their territory, which is the Demon Palace."

"Entering the Demon Palace, entering the Holy Land, isn't that precisely the purpose of my journey?"

Gu Xiaozhu frowned: "But... entering the Demon Palace means being surrounded by fallen demons, which is too dangerous."

The group had already arrived at the city gate. Upon seeing Teng Shao, the guards on duty couldn't help but show surprise. They quickly turned to their companions and whispered, "Quickly tell the other demons in the city that the Holy Son has returned! Keep an eye on him and don't let those damned fallen demons succeed!"

He then nodded to Teng Shao, indicating that he could go in. But when it was Jiang Zhihe and the others' turn, he directly held his weapon in front of the three of them, his expression strange: "Stop! You two cultivators and one mortal, do you want to enter the Demon Realm to die? Get back to where you belong!"

Teng Shao crossed his arms and looked at the guard: "They are all my men."

The guard glanced at him in surprise, but still showed no intention of letting him pass.

Teng Shao narrowed his eyes: "If you don't let me through, I'll go to the Demon Palace right now. Believe me, with the 'assistance' of the scattered fallen demons in the city, you can't stop me."

The guard roared in fury: "You're courting death!"

Teng Shao laughed: "Yes, I'm courting death. But unfortunately for you, you're all afraid of me dying now."

The guard glared at him for a while, then finally lowered his weapon and let the remaining three into the city.

As soon as they entered the city, Gu Xiaozhu could feel the gazes of all the demons around them focused on them. Among those gazes were curiosity, mockery, malice, and disgust, which made her shrank her shoulders uncomfortably.

Jiang Zhihe clearly noticed this, so he took Gu Xiaozhu's hand and moved very close to her, blocking part of her view. Zhu Songyun also moved to her other side, blocking the other part of her view.

Teng Shao was walking at the front when he suddenly stopped and turned to look at the three people behind him, or more precisely, Gu Xiaozhu.

"Right, where were we?"

"Uh... Entering the Demon Palace, surrounded by fallen demons, is too dangerous..."

“Yes.” Teng Shao interrupted Gu Xiaozhu, his tone gradually taking on a dangerous undertone.

"So you need to help me."

Zhu Songyun raised an eyebrow: "In this almost certain death situation, why do you think we would help you?"

Teng Shao faced them, his hands behind his back: "Because you promised to help me."

"And..." A slight smile played on his lips, and a long-lost joy shone in his eyes as he looked at the three of them—a composure born of having everything under control.

"You saw what happened just now. The demons do not welcome you; in fact, they despise you."

“If I abandon you, the surrounding demons will surely attack you en masse, and you will not leave this city alive.”

He slowly spread his hands as if helpless, but his tone carried a chilling malice: "The moment you entered the city, you had no choice."

The air fell silent for a moment, as if time itself had stopped around the four of them. The gazes of the demons around them spoke volumes about the truth of those words.

"Whoa! You're so cunning!" Zhu Songyun exclaimed first, his face exaggerated in a dramatic way.

Jiang Zhihe shrugged: "Your suspicious nature hasn't changed at all."

Gu Xiaozhu didn't say anything, but judging from her expression, she wasn't frightened.

Seeing their nonchalant attitude, Teng Shao felt a little embarrassed and clicked his tongue: "Can you guys be serious? I'm telling the truth."

Gu Xiaozhu nodded: "Of course we know what you said is true, but don't worry, we won't let that happen."

She smiled and said, "We promised to help you from the beginning, so you don't need to keep questioning it."

Jiang Zhihe nodded in agreement: "That's right. Besides, we need you to go to the Holy Land to retrieve something for Xiaozhu, which is also part of the deal."

Zhu Songyun chuckled and said, "I'm a divination practitioner, so I act according to the divination. And the divination shows that I need to follow you and help you achieve your goal."

Teng Shao looked at them for a moment, his expression suddenly softened, and finally he shook his head: "What a bunch of weirdos."

But perhaps he didn't realize that his words carried an emotion he had never felt before—trust.

"Let's go, let's find an inn first." He waved his hand and walked ahead by himself.

The remaining three exchanged glances and then laughed in unison.

Jiang Zhihe: "I bet he softened!"

Zhu Songyun: "I knew it! He's a seemingly cold but actually warm-hearted and secretly passionate guy!"

"Zhu Songyun, if you don't shut up, I'll kick you out of the team right now!!!"

Teng Shao's voice came from afar, and Zhu Songyun immediately shut his mouth and followed, but soon began to mutter again, "They can hear it from this far away..."

… …

"Oh my, what wind blew our Holy Son here?" A graceful woman smiled as she looked at the four people approaching the inn.

Teng Shao turned to look behind him: "The Demon Realm is much more dangerous than yours. I suggest you don't let her stay in a room alone." As he spoke, he pointed at Gu Xiaozhu.

Zhu Songyun was the first to raise her hand: "Me! Me! Me! Let me live with Xiaozhu!" Although her eyes were dull, her face was filled with undisguised excitement.

"What?! On what grounds?" Jiang Zhihe was the first to object.

It's one thing if he and Xiaozhu weren't together, but now that they are, doesn't he deserve the right to share a room with Xiaozhu?!

Teng Shao glanced at him, then quickly turned to the owner and said, "Two single rooms and one double room." He pointed to Zhu Songyun, who had already grabbed Gu Xiaozhu, "Those two will stay in the double room."

Without paying any attention to Jiang Zhihe's accusing gaze, he tossed a few high-grade spirit stones to the shopkeeper.

Anyway, he's happy if Jiang Zhihe is unhappy.

The boss immediately beamed, tossing her hair: "Okay, okay~ I guarantee you'll be satisfied!"

In the Demon Realm, spirit stones are also a form of hard currency.

As she spoke, she extended her hand, guiding Teng Shao and the others to sit down at a table on the first floor: "Today, Your Majesty has graced us with your presence. I will gladly offer you and your friends a complimentary meal!"

After saying that, he didn't give Teng Shao a chance to refute him and turned around and left.

After the boss left, Teng Shao looked at the group and said, "Don't eat any of the dishes or drinks that will be served later. Don't drink anything either, whether it's water, tea, or wine."

Zhu Songyun: "Are you afraid she'll poison you? But didn't you say they wouldn't dare kill you?"

Teng Shao snorted coldly: "That's right, they really don't dare. They're also afraid I'll rebel, so they don't dare to openly restrict my movements."

He tapped the table with his hand and looked at the three of them: "So, what do you think is the best way to 'protect' a person from harm?"

Zhu Songyun: "Um... eliminate all threats?"

Teng Shao: "What if the threat is too strong, and we can't defeat it?"

Zhu Songyun: "Then let that person stay away from the threat!"

Gu Xiaozhu suddenly spoke at this moment:

"Locking that person up will both prevent him from committing suicide and keep him away from threats."