Chapter 516 517: Inviting Yun Mengshang

Chen Dong was taken aback. Mu Xue City was Immortal Fox City; it was simply the name humans used for the city. For Zisang Jin to guess Chen Dong's location from a single sentence showed that the Human Race wasn't completely ignorant about the Demon Race.

Seeing that there was no point in hiding it anymore, Chen Dong admitted frankly, "Mu Xue City!"

"So you *do* want the Xuan Yuan Purple Qi for the Frost Fox Race's Second Elder. You brat, are you being controlled by the Demon Race?"

Hearing this, Chen Dong glanced at Liu Ling. 'He was being controlled, that much is true. If it weren't for this damned Beast Taming Contract, would I be here getting tormented by the Fox Demon King?'

But things had already reached this point. He couldn't possibly admit he was being controlled; a single thought from Liu Ling was all it would take to ensure he died without even a burial ground.

"No, not at all! We can't afford to lose the Fox Demon Race. I do want the Xuan Yuan Purple Qi for the Frost Fox Race's Second Elder, it's true. The Guardian Array isn't safe anymore. If the Fox Demon Race can tie down the other Demon Race, it will take a lot of pressure off the Human Race."

Zisang Jin shouted coldly, "Does my Human Race need their Fox Demon Race to tie anyone down for us? You want the Xuan Yuan Purple Qi? In your dreams!"

Chen Dong immediately threatened, "If you don't give it to me, I'll go join the Demon Race!"

Zisang Jin grew even angrier. "It looks to me like you've already joined the Demon Race! And you have the nerve to say that to me? If it weren't for Junior Sister Tian, I'd fly to Mu Xue City and cut you down myself right now!"

Of course, Zisang Jin was only saying this in a fit of anger. She knew that if Chen Dong had truly defected to the Demon Race, he wouldn't still be alive. They would have killed him long ago.

Then, changing her tune, Zisang Jin said, "I don't know how you got in contact with the Fox Demon Race, but if you want the Xuan Yuan Purple Qi, tell them to hand over the Cyan Emperor's relic!"

Chen Dong asked in surprise, "Didn't the Cyan Emperor fall at Cyan Sword Peak? How could his relic be with the Fox Demon Race?"

There was a hint of resentment in Zisang Jin's voice. "When the Cyan Emperor passed away, his Lifebound Spirit Sword flew across thousands of miles to the Fox Demon Race. To this day, it rests beside Yun Mixue's grave. Have them turn over the Spirit Sword, and I'll give you the Xuan Yuan Purple Qi."

At that moment, however, Tian Sisi's voice unexpectedly came from the Walking Token. It was just a single, short sentence.

"Senior Sister, don't!"

Chen Dong felt an urge to say a few more words to Tian Sisi, but then he remembered she was cultivating her Path by channeling her emotions. 'Silence is probably for the best right now.'

Zisang Jin said in frustration, "Ugh, you people who cultivate the Path of Extreme Emotion are such a pain. Fine, have it your way. So how do I get the Xuan Yuan Purple Qi to you? Am I supposed to just hand it over to one of those humans who've defected to the Demon Race down there?"

Chen Dong and Liu Ling exchanged a glance, then he said, "That won't be necessary. Bring the Xuan Yuan Purple Qi outside the Guardian Array. Liu Ling will come get it."

'Liu Ling?' A half-forgotten memory surfaced in Zisang Jin's mind—the High Priest of the Demon Race, the one Chen Dong had controlled at the very beginning... all those events in the Land of Extinct Demons... 'Wait, I'm a Late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator, how could I forget something like that? Have I been drinking too much on the sly?'

Zisang Jin didn't dwell on it. If she'd forgotten, she'd forgotten. She agreed to the arrangement. She knew full well that the other Demon Race was growing stronger by the day and posed a much greater threat than the Fox Demon Race. That was the real reason she'd agreed. The matter of the Cyan Emperor's relic was just a sore spot for her.

A night passed. Just as dawn was breaking, Chen Dong finished his meditation, and Yun Mengshang walked into the small courtyard.

Though his Divine Sense was sealed, Chen Dong's spiritual perception had already registered her presence.

The Washing Technique was a simple enough spell that Chen Dong could cast it even with his Spiritual Power sealed inside him. He also changed into a snow-white robe; one couldn't neglect one's appearance when one had a date with a beautiful woman.

Chen Dong had chosen the robe specifically to be similar to Yun Mengshang's flowing dress, almost like a matching couple's outfit.

His preparations complete, Chen Dong stepped out of his room.

He flashed a bright smile. "Demon King Mengshang, are you ready?"

Chen Dong was cringing inside, looking down on himself. 'I feel like a kept man trying to woo a wealthy patroness,' he thought. But he knew that, no matter what, he had to find a way to break through Yun Mengshang's emotional defenses today.

Yun Mengshang's azure eyes swept over Chen Dong, and she gave a slight nod. 'I'm not repulsed by this Li Xu calling me Mengshang,' she thought. 'Even with the "Demon King" title attached, if any other member of the Demon Race called me that, they'd be eating an Eternal Frost Seal.'

"Then shall we go? May I ask our destination?"

Chen Dong stepped forward to walk shoulder-to-shoulder with Yun Mengshang.

Yun Mengshang said coolly, "You'll know when we get there. I assure you, it is a place of exquisite scenery, just as you described."

She didn't bring any attendants. Perhaps Yun Mengshang was still feeling self-conscious, as she simply took Chen Dong and flew off on a current of air.

They were unaware, however, that their unconcealed departure was spotted by the Demon Child, Chi Yuan, who was also in the City Lord's Mansion.

Or perhaps Yun Mengshang had never intended to hide her movements to begin with.

They flew north for roughly a thousand li, a distance Yun Mengshang covered in the time it takes to drink a cup of tea. Her speed far surpassed Chen Dong's own Escape Speed.

Even though Chen Dong was at the Mid-stage of the Super-grade Golden Core realm, he wouldn't have been able to keep pace. It was a good thing Yun Mengshang was carrying him, or he would have made a fool of himself.

Upon arrival, they were greeted by a world of white. Yet amid the snowy expanse grew jade trees with pearly branches, a breathtaking sight. One Jade Tree after another stood in dazzling splendor, and between their boughs, pairs of Spirit Fish swam, free and romantic. The Spirit Fish were crystal-clear and translucent, chasing and weaving around each other playfully, like sprites of the natural world.

Chen Dong recognized it. This was a Spirit Fish Tea Garden. These Spirit Fish Trees had to be at least a thousand years old; they were undoubtedly priceless treasures. A landscape of ice and snow, dotted with an entire grove of such treasures—how could it be anything but beautiful?