The hall fell silent instantly.
Several trusted great demons looked at each other, all thinking they had misheard.
"Say that again?"
The Rat Demon trembled under the pressure of that cold aura, but he steeled himself and repeated.
"The Young Lord is indeed driving a carriage for someone... and there are three Demon Emperors following alongside as guards."
"This subordinate does not know who is sitting inside the carriage."
"But the Young Lord is injured... one of his antlers is broken, and half of his face has collapsed..."
Silence fell over the hall once more.
Several great demons instinctively began to circulate their Demonic Qi.
It wasn't that they felt sorry for Jade Dust... that Deer Demon's talent was considered outstanding among the Yao Race; otherwise, Elder Tian Zhu wouldn't have taken him in as an adoptive son and cultivated him so carefully.
In terms of strength.
He was at the Perfection of Ascending the Tower.
In terms of foundation.
He possessed the orthodox Legacy of the Xi Rang technique.
In terms of status.
He was also Elder Tian Zhu's adoptive son.
Throughout the entire Yu Mountain Great Range, aside from the Elders of the other branches, in all the surrounding territories, which demon wouldn't show the utmost respect upon hearing Demon Emperor Jade Dust's name?
Now.
Such a figure.
Had actually had his horn broken, half his face crushed, and was obediently riding on the back of a strange beast to pull a carriage for someone.
What was going on?
Could he have fucking defected?
Had he joined some other Elder?
Otherwise.
Within this Yu Mountain Great Range, what kind of person could make Demon Emperor Jade Dust act with such servility?
"Just what kind of thing is sitting in that carriage?"
The Python Demon spoke in a low voice, killing intent flashing in his vertical pupils.
The Rat Demon shook his head and said with a bitter face, "This subordinate didn't dare to get close... even from far away, I could feel the aura emanating from the carriage."
"That aura..."
The Rat Demon shuddered.
"I can't describe it. I just felt all my fur stand on end, and my legs went weak..."
Hearing this, the trusted great demons had various expressions.
To cause such instinctive fear in a Rat Demon of the Mountain Gazing Realm.
The newcomer was definitely no ordinary person.
Just as the demons were discussing fervently.
Upon the stone platform.
Elder Tian Zhu, who had never once opened his eyes, finally spoke.
His voice was hoarse and low, like the rubbing of dry wood: "Have him bring them here."
Just those six simple words.
All the discussion in the hall came to an abrupt halt.
The Python Demon tilted his snake head and looked at the old man on the stone platform.
"Elder, should this matter..."
"Let him come."
Elder Tian Zhu's tone remained unchanged, his eyes still closed.
But that unquestionable pressure made the Python Demon swallow the rest of his words.
The Rat Demon, as if granted a great pardon, scrambled out of the hall and sprinted toward the valley entrance.
...
At the entrance of Wangchuan Valley.
The bone carriage came to a steady halt between two giant beast-bone pillars.
The eight strange beasts ceased their roaring and lay prone on the ground.
Demon Emperor Jade Dust flipped down from the beast's back.
A respectful expression was forced onto his half-collapsed deer face.
He quickly rounded the side of the carriage and personally lifted the curtain.
"Senior, we have arrived at Wangchuan."
Jiang Yuechu glanced sideways at the scene outside the curtain.
Then she rose and stepped out of the carriage.
Her feet stepped onto the coarse rocky ground.
Her black robes fluttered slightly in the draft blowing through the valley entrance.
She slowly looked around.
As far as the eye could see, she was surrounded by sheer cliffs.
Inside the valley, Immortal Caves and halls were layered upon one another.
Buildings constructed from giant beast skeletons were crude and overbearing, with Demonic Qi faintly leaking from everywhere.
From time to time, figures of demons large and small moved between the Immortal Caves; seeing the bone carriage and the Demon Emperors at the valley entrance from afar, they stopped to watch.
It was about as she had imagined.
Jiang Yuechu withdrew her gaze, her expression unchanging.
Demon Emperor Jade Dust waited nearby with a bow; seeing that the girl had finished her observation, he took the initiative to introduce the place.
"Senior, this is Wangchuan."
He gestured toward the largest black rock hall deep within the valley.
"My adoptive father usually cultivates in that main hall."
He then pointed to the large clusters of Immortal Caves built into the mountain on either side of the hall.
"That is the residence of Wangchuan's core demons."
"Further out are the camps of the Yao Race elites who are loyal to my adoptive father."
"Throughout Wangchuan, all the demons together number no less than several thousand."
At this point, Demon Emperor Jade Dust stole a glance at Jiang Yuechu's reaction.
Seeing the girl's face remained calm without the slightest ripple.
He secretly sighed in relief.
"Senior, please wait here for a moment while this Junior goes to the main hall to inform my adoptive father."
Having said that.
Demon Emperor Jade Dust was about to turn around.
A sudden rustling sound came from the direction of the valley.
A small Rat Demon sprinted toward the valley entrance on its four short legs.
Reaching them.
The Rat Demon performed a sliding kneel, nearly colliding with Demon Emperor Jade Dust's legs.
"Young... Young Lord!"
The Rat Demon panted heavily, its pointed face looking up, out of breath.
"The Elder said... for you to bring them over directly!"
Demon Emperor Jade Dust was slightly stunned.
The respect on his face was instantly replaced by astonishment.
His brow furrowed as he pressed, "Adoptive father didn't ask who the visitor was?"
The Rat Demon shook its head.
"He didn't!"
"After I reported the matter of the Young Lord driving the carriage, the Elder immediately told you to bring them over. Even when Lord Azure Abyss wanted to ask more, the Elder shut him down..."
Demon Emperor Jade Dust fell silent.
He hadn't expected his adoptive father to want to see the visitor directly without asking a single question.
Based on his understanding of his adoptive father.
That old man had always acted cautiously.
Whenever an outsider of unknown origin entered this place, Elder Tian Zhu would first have his confidants thoroughly investigate their background before deciding whether to see them.
Yet now he had this attitude.
Could it be...
Had his adoptive father already sensed something?
Or perhaps.
His adoptive father had already judged the importance of the visitor from the mere fact that he was driving the carriage.
Demon Emperor Jade Dust's thoughts raced.
But he didn't dwell on it further.
He turned around, regained his submissive expression, and bowed to Jiang Yuechu, saying, "In that case... then please, Senior, come this way for a talk."
Jiang Yuechu nodded slightly and stepped toward the valley.
Demon Emperor Jade Dust, half-bowed, followed closely half a step behind.
The group passed through the valley entrance.
Along the way, the demons made way for them.
Countless eyes stared at the Girl in Black Robes walking at the very front.
Whispers rose and fell.
"Who is that?"
"Why is the Young Lord pulling a carriage for someone else..."
"Are you blind? Look at the Young Lord's face, his horn is broken... he was probably beaten up..."
The discussions weren't loud, but they were enough for those nearby to hear clearly.
Jiang Yuechu remained oblivious.
Wang Ziyu followed behind, expressionless.
But his mind was secretly tense.
Striding so boldly into the heart of demon territory... for any human, it was no different from dancing on the edge of a blade.
One could only hope that Jiang Yuechu could truly play the role of a Demon Emperor well... otherwise, if any clues were spotted...
But how could a mere human girl know the way demons conduct themselves?
He really didn't know what this girl was thinking...
They went deeper along the wide stone steps carved into the cliff face.
The silhouette of that black rock hall drew closer and closer.
The hall doors were wide open.
Dim light filtered out from the doorway.
Demon Emperor Jade Dust stopped before the hall doors and stepped aside.
"Senior, please."