Chapter 480 385: Design

Li Yuanjiao hurried to the outskirts of Da Li Mountain and detailed the information about the Pig Demon. Yuan Chengdun spoke to him with a frown,

"Taoist Fellow, do you have a way to trap this Pig Demon? Although my Immortal Foundation is adept at exorcising demons, it is not good at pursuit. I'm afraid that just the two of us will not be able to succeed."

Li Yuanjiao took out Kong Tingyun's turquoise Array Plate from his Storage Bag and replied,

"I have a Foundation Establishment Array Plate, trapping this demon will not be a problem, but how to lure it out from the mountain is the issue."

Yuan Chengdun's eyes lit up, and he chuckled,

"Leave it to me, Taoist Fellow."

He then led Li Yuanjiao around the vicinity until they found a small valley to descend upon and asked,

"Does this demon consume humans?"

"It consumes humans."

Li Yuanjiao replied, and Yuan Chengdun laughed,

"Easy! Very easy."

He took out a Jade Bottle from his Storage Bag and whispered quietly,

"The taste of humans is sweet and once it is sampled, it is unforgettable."

Yuan Chengdun turned the Jade Bottle upside down, releasing a cloud of dust and showering the ground with red soil, then he took out a Jade Box and opened it gently.

Inside lay a small white flower, with its upper part white and the lower part green, no larger than a palm, with a bud ready to bloom, seemingly unremarkable.

Yuan Chengdun stuck the flower into the red soil, then started to cast a spell. The flower bloomed in an instant, dripping blood from the center of the bud, topped with a skull the size of a fist.

Li Yuanjiao looked at his actions with a frown,

"Taoist Fellow, is this method reliable? If the fragrance is too strong and it attracts all the Fetal Breathing Qi Cultivation demons in the mountain, causing turmoil, that would not be good."

Yuan Chengdun confidently said,

"The [Ancient First Flower] doesn't have such ability; it can only lure a few demons. Just wait and see, Taoist Fellow."

As Li Yuanjiao watched him cast the spell, Yuan Chengdun said with a grin,

"The demons of Da Li Mountain are not as cunning as those at the Southern Border, most of them are quite foolish. After all, they have been too comfortable for too long and have forgotten to be cautious."

Li Yuanjiao asked,

"Does the Demon Cave not care?"

Yuan Chengdun shook his head and responded,

"Despite the ostentatious appearance of the Demon Generals guarding the entrance of the Demon Cave, everything in the outer perimeter is priced and marked. Whichever Peak Master from the Three Sects and Seven Doors wants to train, or whoever wishes to hunt demons, can freely take them to kill and capture."

Li Yuanjiao nodded, with many of his doubts now clarified, and Yuan Chengdun continued,

"To those Zifu Foxes, these pigs, dogs, snakes, and wolves could hardly be considered as their kin. They are essentially meant to be raised for food, just like how mortals raise cattle and sheep."

As the two talked, two Fetal Breathing demons approached, but Yuan Chengdun killed them with a palm strike and went on,

"The Demon Cave kills no fewer demons than those outside. Apart from several clans, things within the Demon Cave are even more brutal; with no restrictions on the demons, the wolf eating the deer and the fox preying on the rabbit are all matters of course."

"It is precisely because of this that it is widely believed throughout the land that the immortals and demons of South River live harmoniously together."

Yuan Chengdun scoffed,

"Only the immortals of Zifu are true immortals, and only the demons of Zifu are true demons. Who cares how those beneath Zifu devour each other?"

As the sound of his voice faded, a rush of demonic fog swept in from afar, borne on the wind. Within the black mist, a hoof could be seen, and a loud laugh echoed,

"Haha... Today, this demon has indeed found a treasure!"

Then it revealed its true form—it was a black-haired deer demon with sharp teeth and claws, which swallowed the ancient flower in one gulp and began to cultivate its power.

Yuan Chengdun and Li Yuanjiao were hiding nearby, silently waiting for a moment to make sure the demon had completely digested the ancient flower before they took action.

"Bang."

Yuan Chengdun used just a palm strike, and the demon, foolishly suspended in mid-air cultivating, was killed in an instant. A black deer fell from the sky with a whoosh, collapsing softly onto the ground. Yuan Chengdun pointed at the creature and said,

"This deer demon ate the ancient flower. Its flesh and blood are exceedingly delicious. As long as it's dragged back, the Pig Demon will be the next to come."

Li Yuanjiao realized what was going on. Yuan Chengdun's trap was straightforward but effective against ordinary demons. However, he knew something about the timid Pig Demon that had been hiding in the mountains, and he understood that things wouldn't be so simple.

Even though their opponent was just a stupid pig, it was still a creature that feared Li Tongya and had been lurking in the mountains for years. Therefore, it might be difficult to fool the demon so easily.

So he bowed slightly and said in a low voice,

"This Pig Demon has a bit of cunning. Relying solely on this might not be enough to make it take the risk."

Although Yuan Chengdun thought Li Yuanjiao was being overly cautious, he still asked,

"Taoist Fellow, what do you intend to do?"

Li Yuanjiao replied,

"I will leave for a short while and quickly return."

Then he rode the wind, searching for the White Banyan Fox in the mountains.

...

Da Zhu Cave.

This demon cave was pitch black and sinister. Several blood pools had been dug into the ground, where a burly man was sitting silently cultivating.

Such a blood pool required the blood of a thousand people to fill it once, which was no easy feat. Even though he was a Foundation Establishment Demon General, it might have been a long time since he had enjoyed such luxury.

The Li Family historically had kept a check on him at the base of the mountains, so he had to fly to the nearby counties to capture humans for his cultivation, which was incredibly risky. Fortunately, in recent years, the demon catastrophe had raged causing the price of blood energy to drop significantly, making his life much more comfortable.

"Which creature died?"

He furrowed his brow in the blood pool and the Pig Demon down below said,

"Great King! This little demon went to investigate and found that the black deer at the foot of the mountain all died down there. No one dared to approach, so I came up to report immediately!"

The burly man stood up straight from the blood pool and shouted,

"What about the corpses? Don't tell me someone dared to steal a meal!"

The Pig Demon hastily dragged up the body, its mouth watering, and said,

"Great King! Perhaps the black deer ate some treasure; the corpse smells very fragrant!"

The subordinates dragged up the black deer's corpse, which already had two hooves bitten off. The Foundation Establishment Pig Demon didn't bother to make a fuss and grabbed it to throw into his mouth, gnawing until blood splattered everywhere.

"It is delicious indeed, I wonder what it ate. We can send someone to check it out,"

remarked the muscular man with a sigh of appreciation. Then another demon reported,

"Great King! The White Banyan Fox Lord from the south has sent word, saying they've heard that a cultivator has died a seated death in the mountains and seeks the King's help in the search!"

Upon receiving the news, the Demon General was momentarily stunned. Ever since the fox had entered his territory, it had kept its distance. Uncertain of whether it had any backing in the cave, he gingerly accepted tributes and avoided contact.

Now that the fox was finally coming to him for a favor—and implying an association with the direct lineage of the cave's great demons—how could he not be thrilled? If he could establish this connection, he wouldn't have to worry about being invaded and killed one day.

His excitement stirred the demonic power within him; he struggled to maintain his human form and his face reverted back to that of a pig, with a trace of a smile emerging as he declared,

"Now I understand why it's so delicious! It must have eaten something from a Foundation Establishment cultivator! Take the General immediately to inspect where the black deer was found!"

Overjoyed, he rode the wind and conjured up a mist of demonic power, sweeping up his followers, and flew swiftly toward the outskirts of Da Li Mountain.