Chapter 1141: Traveling Together |
Earlier, Qin Sang had glimpsed part of the birthday banquet from afar.
He had discovered not only human figures, but even female cultivators among them. He did not know whether they had come from Wanyao City or had been abducted by Demon King Qianji from elsewhere.
These people seemed to have lived in Myriad Serpent Abyss for a long time and had grown accustomed to the ferocious demonic beasts. Though the lesser demons craved human flesh and blood, under the restraint of the awakened demonic beasts, they could only suppress their instincts.
It was unclear whether they would always remain so safe within Myriad Serpent Abyss.
Qin Sang had infiltrated alone. Bai had already set up the array elsewhere and was waiting for his return.
Qin Sang quietly surveyed the layout of the demon king’s cave dwelling. The terrain here was rather peculiar.
At this point, Myriad Serpent Abyss widened into an enormous pocket. The center was exceptionally open, dotted with peaks of varying heights. At the foot of the mountains lay a marshland that seemed to connect to underground rivers.
Though Myriad Serpent Abyss never saw the light of day, exotic flowers and rare grasses flourished everywhere, lush and brimming with vitality. The mountains were no exception.
The three treasure vaults were distributed among the smaller peaks.
He had already learned the pattern. With the demon king’s permission, the guards could take turns going to the banquet during the celebration to enjoy fine wine and delicacies.
That would be the best moment to slip in. He did not rush and remained motionless where he was.
Time passed slowly. The atmosphere at the banquet grew increasingly lively.
The guards inside the cave dwelling seemed to have caught the enticing scent of wine and food. One by one, their minds wandered. They repeatedly glanced toward the banquet and swallowed hard.
On the summit of the outermost low mountain, two demon pythons as thick as water buckets, one black and one white, spoke in human language outside a stone pavilion. "Damn it! Did that white-feathered eagle drink himself senseless and forget to relieve us?"
They were responsible for guarding the demon king’s cave dwelling.
They stared longingly in the direction of the dark lake, eyes burning with envy. Yet without the demon king’s command, they did not dare abandon their posts. They could only huddle together and sigh.
After waiting in vain, they were on the verge of losing patience. The black python began cursing loudly.
"The white-feathered eagle may be arrogant, but he would not dare cheat us openly. Why don’t you complain to the consort? She has a soft heart. Maybe she will let us go drink directly. It would only be for a short while. Could anyone really have the audacity to sneak into the king’s cave dwelling?" the white python said, not caring about anything.
"Why don’t you go?" The black python glared. "If the king finds out we neglected our duty just to drink, he might skin you alive!"
As they spoke, a rush of wind sounded from ahead. A white-feathered eagle swaggered over from afar with a group of lesser demons. The demons’ faces were flushed red, clearly drunk.
The two pythons were overjoyed and whistled sharply. Other patrolling lesser demons immediately charged toward the entrance of the spiritual array like wolves.
"Damn it, you finally remember us!" The black python lashed his tail at the white-feathered eagle, stirring up a gust of wind.
The eagle flapped a wing to block it and belched. "The celestial wine the king prepared today was incredible. I don't even want to sober up! Hurry up and go. If you are late, there will be nothing left!"
Upon hearing this, the two pythons cursed again and prepared to ride the demonic wind to seize their share.
The white-feathered eagle suddenly grabbed the black python and pointed toward the depths of the cave dwelling, transmitting his voice. "How is the young consort’s mood?"
"Hehe. Brother Qing was ordered to guard outside her room under the pretense of protection. She scolded him mercilessly. We did not dare go near. We kept the little ones far away to avoid provoking her." The black python chuckled maliciously.
The white-feathered eagle smacked his beak. "When consorts quarrel, it is the lesser demons who suffer."
"Stand your watch properly! Wait for me!" The black python tossed a command token to the eagle. Seeing that the white python had already gone far ahead, he hurried after the white python.
The white-feathered eagle led his subordinates into the array, activated the command token to reseal it, made the necessary arrangements, then circled the area once to confirm there were no abnormalities before returning to the stone pavilion to rest.
By then, Qin Sang had already infiltrated successfully.
The demonic beasts were still immersed in the revelry and noticed nothing. None realized someone had followed them in. The white-feathered eagle was only at the middle stage of the Demonic Core Realm and could not possibly detect Qin Sang.
Having slipped inside, Qin Sang finally exhaled in relief. But this was only the beginning.
The banquet will last for some time. There is plenty of time to search carefully. However, the dark lake is close. Demon King Qianji could arrive in an instant. I must be cautious and first examine the barriers on the three vaults to see if there is any opportunity… With these thoughts turning in his mind, Qin Sang quietly approached one of the mountains.
A stone wall stood within the mountain. There was something hidden inside it.
During the shift change earlier, the white-feathered eagle had immediately dispatched a team of lesser demons to guard the stone wall without moving. The eagle himself had circled it before feeling at ease.
Qin Sang concealed himself beneath a tree and commanded the Sky-Eyed Butterfly to use its supernatural ability to observe the barrier on the stone wall.
It was obvious that Demon King Qianji had personally laid this barrier.
The Sky-Eyed Butterfly could even discern flaws in ancient barriers. Now it detected two weak points in the barrier. There was a chance to break through. But doing so would inevitably cause a significant disturbance and immediately alert Demon King Qianji.
After watching for a while, Qin Sang quietly withdrew and moved to another vault. It was equally troublesome.
This showed that even if there were no treasures inside, these places were extremely important to Demon King Qianji.
He refrained from acting rashly and instead approached the demon king’s cave dwelling. He had investigated all three potential vault locations.
Qin Sang calculated that even if he carefully dismantled the barriers without alerting the demon king, at most he could open one of them.
Once the banquet ended, Demon King Qianji would return. He had to leave before that.
"The protective spiritual array has only partially activated. If the Feathered Demon King lures Demon King Qianji away, the array will surely operate at full power. It will not be so easy to infiltrate then. And Thousand-Mountain Bamboo Sea will no longer remain concealed…" Qin Sang hesitated for a moment and recalled hearing that Demon King Qianji still had a favored concubine here.
She was certainly not a Transformation Realm great demon. Capturing her should not be difficult. She was close to Demon King Qianji and might know something.
With this thought, Qin Sang looked deeper into the area at a somewhat secluded peak, where the buildings appeared elegant and refined.
He avoided the guards and was about to head there. Unexpectedly, at that very moment, the Sky-Eyed Butterfly suddenly issued a warning.
Qin Sang’s figure froze. To his astonishment, on the mountain ahead, a shadow slipped silently out from the forest. Its target was also the favored concubine’s room!
"When did that person get in?" Qin Sang was shocked.