The voice seemed to have anticipated Roguemistâs reaction. He clucked his tongue. âTsk, Iâm not telling you to be a traitor. Iâm just saying we should work together. Forefather Stonefiend doesnât know how difficult the situation in human domain is for us, but mine does.
âThe Great Formation of Heavenly Soul Confinement must never be activated. Otherwise, weâll be trapped as easy prey. The humans may not be able to kill us just yet, but theyâre getting stronger at an impressive speed. As we make our comeback, thereâs no telling if their ancient heritage will reappear as well.â
Roguemist fell silent.
He had to admit the shadow demonâs judgement was more objective than that of Forefather Stonefiendâs. The forefather had been continuously trapped in the seal, preventing him from detecting the changes happening in the human domain.
Moreover, Stonefiend was on the arrogant side. He didnât take the human race seriously.
Deep down, heâd never recognized their defeat as a loss to the human race, but as a loss due to their unfamiliarity with the Divine Abyss Continent, leading them to employ the wrong strategy and falling for human trickery.
Therefore, Stonefiend had always considered the humans with contempt. He believed that demons would be able to sweep through the human domain once they recovered to their peak.
However, since Roguemistâs awakening and breaking free of his seal, heâd witnessed the rise in power of the overall domain.
Humans were progressing at an abnormal speed.
That told him that the heavenly law was still keeping a careful balance between things. Demons werenât the only ones making a comeback. The Divine Abyss Continent was changing as well.
Although the shadow demon was more objective, Roguemist was a member of the yin demon tribe. He couldnât possibly get involved with shadow demons behind Stonefiendâs back.
He didnât dare take liberties without the forefatherâs permission.
He sighed. âIâll pretend I never saw you, Daoist Serratedwind. No matter what you say, I will not do anything behind Master Stonefiendâs back.â
âAre you going to wait for your doom?â the voice asked coolly.
âHmph, Master Stonefiend is going to break free of his seal soon and make his return. With a divine realm forefather leading the yin demon tribe, weâll become stronger in no time. Weâre not waiting for our doom. What foolish things you mouth!â Roguemist scoffed, displeased with Serratedwindâs remark.
Serratedwind cackled. âPerhaps the Great Formation of Heavenly Soul Confinement will have already been reactivated by then.â
âSo what? Yin demons can survive on our own. Donât forget that weâre masters of turning the living into the living dead, and the dead, the living.â
Yin demons were experts in manipulating souls, corpses, and puppets, from which their reputation was established upon. They were the most sinister of the demon tribes.
âHaha, if yin demons are indeed as powerful as you claim, why are you so agitated because of Stonefiendâs rejection? Why would you fail to notice me following you for so long until I made a sound on purpose?â Serratedwindâs casually disproved Roguemistâs claim.
Humiliation at being caught out turned Roguemist irate. âWe walk different paths, Serratedwind. The fact that Iâm being civil with you doesnât mean Iâm afraid of you. You better stay away.â
Serratedwind gave a bark of laughter. âYou may be an elite yin demon, Roguemist, but youâre growing impatient. Isnât it unwise for you to attack the young lord of Veluriyam Capital in this state?â
Roguemistâs eyes turned cold as they settled on Serratedwind. âAnd who told you that?â
âTsk, didnât you attack the old man from the Coiling Dragon Clan?â Serratedwind remained unfazed.
Roguemistâs heart sank. Heâd kept that a secret, yet the shadow demon knew of his deed. Were shadow demons truly impossible to hide from?
âFeeling guilty, arenât you?â Serratedwind snickered. âTruth be told, you may think youâre being discreet, but nothing you did has escaped our notice. Consider my offer, Roguemist. Iâm not asking you to betray Forefather Stonefiend. Our two tribes, though, should work together.ân/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
Roguemist felt as if there was a thorn in his side.
âWhat do you mean exactly?â he croaked. âIf shadow demons are truly so great, why would you come to me?â
âWe want to cooperate because we have a need for you, naturally. Otherwise, why else would I be here? Iâm not that bored.â Serratedwind knew heâd gotten his fellow demon.
âFine, what do you need?â Roguemist spat out. âBut remember, I may be working with you, but Iâll never defect to your tribe. Iâll never betray Forefather Stonefiend.â
âHahaha, donât worry. Weâre all demons here. Weâre on the same side. Thereâs no such thing as betraying anyone. Thatâs such an ugly word. Rest assured, my forefather isnât going to make you a traitor.â
Serratedwind continued in an assured tone, âLike you, we shadow demons believe Veluriyam Capital is a considerable threat. Once the young lord activates the formation, weâll be separated from the main demonic army in the barren land. Weâll be sheep to the slaughter then.â
That hit home with Roguemist. It was what heâd been worried about. Unfortunately, he hadnât been able to convince his forefather.
He remained wary, however. âCut the nonsense,â he responded coldly. âWhat do you need me to do? What do I get in return?â
If there was to be a collaboration, conditions had to be decided upon.
âCome with me to meet my forefather first.â
After some hesitation, Roguemist followed Serratedwind.
......
Coiling Dragon Clan, Veluriyam Capital.
Ji San had gathered all the senior executives within the clan.
The patriarchâs condition hadnât changed. He wasnât dead, but he hadnât come to, either. The elder who had risked his life taking Coiling Dragon back, on the other hand, had fully recovered and emerged from closed door cultivation.
Yuan Li was made a venerated elder within the family due to his contributions, granting him exceedingly high status.
Ji San had summoned everyone to officially announce Yuan Liâs promotion.
Before Ji San appeared, the other senior executives went up to congratulate Elder Yuan Li. The elder, however, downplayed things in a grim tone. âWhat is there to congratulate? I risked my life to bring Emperor Coiling Dragon back, but heâs yet to recover from his injury. Itâs a tragedy for our clan. Thereâs nothing to celebrate. Iâm asking for our new leader to retract his order.â