Chapter 317 - 274-275: Netherworld Mountain Range, Tier Six Demon Dragon

Chapter 317: Chapter 274-275: Netherworld Mountain Range, Tier Six Demon Dragon

"You find this amusing, Demon Emperor?"

Chu Xianyi was as cold as ice, her beautiful eyes fixed on Xu Chang’an, utterly devoid of emotion.

Any other demon, faced with Chu Xianyi in this state, would have felt her immense pressure, as if being crushed under a thousand mountains.

But to Xu Chang’an, it was nothing. He simply stood there, smiling silently.

A moment ago, to show the sincerity of his desire to cooperate, he had revealed his form as a grey rat, signifying that he was the very same Gray Rat Alchemist from before.

He no longer had much use for that identity, so revealing it to Chu Xianyi was no great matter.

Then, when the Colorful Cloud Demon King entered, he had remained standing right beside Chu Xianyi.

Just as the Colorful Cloud Demon King was about to leave, he had reverted to his appearance as a young child.

And with that, one karmic thread was tied up.

Then, he had leaned close to Chu Xianyi’s ear and whispered.

"You little junior... you saved this emperor’s life once! Now that we meet again, shouldn’t you call this emperor ’Old Ancestor’?"

The words themselves weren’t the point. As he spoke, he had deliberately exhaled, sending a warm stream of air into Chu Xianyi’s ear.

With Chu Xianyi’s Cultivation, she normally wouldn’t have been bothered by it.

Her Demon Power would have circulated and dissipated the heat on its own.

However, Xu Chang’an had used his own Cultivation to suppress her Demon Power.

And thus, he had succeeded in provoking Chu Xianyi.

That was what had led to the current standoff.

Xu Chang’an had his own reasons for repeatedly provoking Chu Xianyi.

For this expedition to the Secret Realm, Chu Xianyi held the initiative when it came to information. If he couldn’t suppress her in terms of combat power...

...their cooperation would likely put him at a disadvantage.

Therefore, it was essential to probe Chu Xianyi’s true strength beforehand.

Logically, Chu Xianyi shouldn’t be his match.

After all, he was a Great Cultivator of the Divinity Transformation Realm!

But...

...a moment ago, Chu Xianyi’s casual strike had possessed power comparable to the peak of a Late-stage Nascent Soul Great Cultivator.

And then there was that Five-Colored Divine Light!

All of this made Xu Chang’an wary.

Chu Xianyi held the advantage with her knowledge of the Secret Realm. She didn’t need to defeat Xu Chang’an, just fight him to a stalemate. Barring any surprises, she would be the one to claim the greatest rewards from the Secret Realm.

That was an outcome Xu Chang’an was unwilling to accept.

But though Xu Chang’an tried to provoke her several more times, he ultimately failed to bait Chu Xianyi into action.

...

The Netherworld Mountain Range was a colossal mountain range that spanned numerous Cultivation Realms.

Even within the Cangyu World, it was a true behemoth, home to countless factions of the Demon Race.

Two streaks of Escape Light flashed across the vast, endless mountain range.

It was Xu Chang’an and Chu Xianyi.

The true Secret Realm Chu Xianyi had spoken of was located in the main range of the Netherworld Mountain Range.

In the main range of the Netherworld Mountains, demons gathered in hordes and Demon Kings were everywhere. Even Unparalleled Demon Kings of the Nascent Soul Realm were not an uncommon sight.

Therefore, Xu Chang’an and Chu Xianyi traveled with extreme caution, concealing their auras to avoid being targeted by any opportunistic demons.

Along the way, Chu Xianyi shared some information about the true Secret Realm with Xu Chang’an.

However, it was mostly common knowledge concerning things like Tier Four Arrays. For Xu Chang’an, there was nothing of real importance.

He had a faint feeling that Chu Xianyi was holding back the most critical information.

Although they were partners in exploring the Secret Realm, they couldn’t truly trust one another. They might have a verbal agreement to be Dao Companions, but it was ultimately a partnership of convenience, driven by mutual interest rather than any real affection.

With their interests on the line in this Secret Realm, a clash between them was inevitable if no other threats emerged.

In fact, if Xu Chang’an’s actual Cultivation hadn’t already reached the Divinity Transformation Realm, he never would have waded into these muddy waters.

He had long since finished refining and Nurturing the Canglan Mountains and Rivers Map and the Void Shifting Disc, which could now be counted among his combat assets and Guarding Methods.

Furthermore, he had his Blood Burning Secret Technique and three Talent Divine Techniques—one for Attack and two for Support.

These too were part of his arsenal.

Logically speaking, Xu Chang’an had enough power to handle several Divinity Transformation experts.

However, he had not forgotten the lessons of his past life.

For this reason, Xu Chang’an remained exceptionally vigilant.

As they drew closer to their destination, they descended to the ground, concealed their auras, and proceeded in silence.

They were now in the core of the Netherworld Mountain Range’s main range.

Little Demons at the Qi Refining stage were now a rare sight; most were Foundation Establishment Great Demons. Top-tier Great Demons appeared endlessly, and even Demon Kings were encountered from time to time.

Xu Chang’an and Chu Xianyi grew even more cautious.

After several more days, they arrived in a valley.

The valley was quite large, flanked on both sides by tall, wide cliffs.

A valley of this size might have been conspicuous elsewhere, but in the main range of the Netherworld Mountains, it was utterly unremarkable.

"There’s a territory belonging to an Unparalleled Demon King nearby, with three Unparalleled Demon Kings presiding over it," Chu Xianyi said to Xu Chang’an.

Xu Chang’an nodded.

He no longer paid any mind to ordinary Unparalleled Demon Kings.

But this was the Netherworld Mountain Range, after all. If they were careless and their presence was discovered, it would be extremely troublesome.

Chu Xianyi led Xu Chang’an into the valley, stopping before a tree.

The tree was only about as thick as two people could encircle with their arms.

A tree of this size, let alone in the Netherworld Mountain Range, wouldn’t even have been considered large back on Cyan Mountain.

"This is the place."

Hearing this, Xu Chang’an extended his Demon Sense toward the tree, but he detected nothing out of the ordinary.

Chu Xianyi took out a palm-sized Token, which began to flash with light.

A faint orb of light appeared on the tree.

’What powerful Stealth Ability!’