Chapter 804: Giving the Madam Some Warmth

Wang Youhong's already grim expression worsened. Yet, self-preservation was paramount; he was certain that every truly capable member of the Revelation Alliance had their own agenda. For the sake of his own life, he naturally couldn't refuse Ji Yuan's request.

"Yes, since it is Mr. Ji's intention," he replied, "I will lead you there now..."

Wang Youhong was almost certain that the demon king was doomed. As he rose with Ji Yuan, he assumed the brute ox and the zombie would accompany them, but to his surprise, Ji Yuan casually addressed the two who had also stood up.

"You two don't need to come."

After saying this, Ji Yuan seemed to remember something. He looked at the old ox, extended his left hand, and lightly touched its forehead with his index finger. The ox's entire body tensed, not daring to evade the touch.

After the touch, Ji Yuan gave Shi Jiu a knowing glance and then drained the wine cup on the table. The sense of isolation around them immediately vanished, and the tavern's din once again became dominant.

Soon after, Wang Youhong and Ji Yuan walked out of the tavern door almost side-by-side. The waiter, glancing at the old ox and Shi Jiu still at the table, politely called out to Ji Yuan and Wang Youhong, "Thank you, sirs, please come again!"

After Ji Yuan and Wang Youhong had been gone for a while, and the old ox and Shi Jiu could no longer sense Wang Youhong's presence, both of them finally let out a sigh of relief. The old ox slumped directly into his seat.

"Brother Shi," the old ox said, "old ox here owes you my life. From now on, whenever you need assistance, I will do my utmost to help."

Shi Jiu calmed himself, and thinking of Ji Yuan's touch, he quickly asked the old ox.

"Brother Ox, what did you feel when Mr. Ji touched you just now?"

Hearing this, the old ox was truly a little shaken. Ji Yuan's touch had not been entirely an act, but the old ox exaggerated his reaction, his face showing fear as he spoke.

"Old ox here thought that Immortal Master was going back on his word," the ox recounted. "When that finger touched me, I felt my whole body unable to move, as if I had entered a realm of death. I didn't expect that after the touch, I only felt a slight numbness in my forehead and didn't die. That's good, that's good... I just don't know what method that Immortal Master used. Although I, old ox, am reckless, I know that it was not merely to scare me."

Shi Jiu nodded in deep agreement.

"It's good that you know, Brother Ox," Shi Jiu said. "That touch was a contingency left by Mr. Ji. Though you can't sense it, a calamity is already embedded. If you truly go back on your word, you will surely face certain death, beyond salvation!"

"Of course, Mr. Ji isn't inflexible either," Shi Jiu continued. "We are members of the Revelation Alliance, and some matters are beyond our control; it's impossible to be too rigid... Brother Ox, now that things have come to this, you and I must work together!"

"Naturally, naturally!"

The old ox nodded repeatedly, his usual arrogance gone. But inwardly, he felt a certain disdain for Shi Jiu. While it was true that some things were beyond their control, he still looked down on this fellow. He also figured Mr. Ji wouldn't be too fond of this stinking zombie either.

'Hmm, I should let Old Lu know about this guy, just in case Old Lu accidentally kills him one day...'

The old ox and Lu Shan-jun had both made names for themselves in the Revelation Alliance. Both were demon prodigies. The Revelation Alliance's greatest expectation for them was cultivation, and naturally, it didn't forget to cultivate their "great aspiration" of integrating into the alliance.

The old ox was known in the Revelation Alliance for being arrogant and easily angered, though he rarely did anything truly outrageous. Lu Shan-jun, on the other hand, had a cold and sinister nature, appearing like a refined scholar. But if he made a move, unless restrained by a higher authority, he wouldn't hesitate to kill or devour, regardless of whether the target was an ally.

For this reason, the partnerships involving the old ox and Lu Shan-jun were anything but simple.

Now with Shi Jiu as another person he could use, the old ox was already pondering how to make a grand display, thinking that next time, he'd have to consult with Old Lu.

Wang Youhong was currently walking with Ji Yuan through a relatively stable large city. Because the weather showed signs of warming, many more people were out. Combined with the influx of refugees, the city appeared bustling.

Ji Yuan, currently appearing as a very young scholar, and Wang Youhong, a well-dressed youth, looked almost like brothers.

"Are there Revelation Alliance members in this city?"

Ji Yuan asked casually as he walked. His voice didn't seem to be a direct telepathic message, but outsiders certainly couldn't hear it clearly; it felt as though it was lost in the noisy environment.

Wang Youhong, of course, held nothing back at this point, at most leaving himself a little leeway in his words.

"To answer, sir," he replied, "I'm not entirely sure of the exact number, but I'd estimate over a hundred."

"Over a hundred is quite a lot," Ji Yuan mused. "After all, the demons of the Revelation Alliance are not common. Even those with lesser cultivation must have extraordinary abilities."

Wang Youhong added, a hint of apprehension in his voice. "Actually, some are newly arrived demons from the Two Barrens."

Ji Yuan nodded. The demonic and fiendish aura in many parts of the city was quite subtle. Although the divine light and incense aura from the City God Temple and Earth God Shrine were not weak, and divine light still circulated, Ji Yuan hadn't seen the Day Patrol God patrolling the streets, indicating something was definitely wrong.

"So, how many of the demons in this city do you think I should eliminate?"

Wang Youhong's heart tightened. His steps faltered slightly before immediately resuming a normal pace. He understood Ji Yuan's meaning: Shi Jiu and the old ox would be spared, and perhaps he might be too.

But if almost all of the Revelation Alliance members here, including the Black Barren Demon King, were to die, with only Wang Youhong, the old ox, and their third companion escaping, it would be quite conspicuous. That was why Ji Yuan was asking how many should be eliminated, implying that the remaining few could be said to have narrowly escaped with the old ox and the others, and a reason could be fabricated later.

Despite his inner apprehension, Wang Youhong had to grit his teeth and answer Ji Yuan's question, even factoring in how to handle the aftermath and explain himself convincingly.

"In my opinion, keeping one or two tenths should suffice..."

Ji Yuan nodded.

"We'll do as you say, leaving one or two tenths," Ji Yuan stated. "This, of course, includes you, Wang Youhong. All other demons, including the demon king, will perish today, body and soul utterly destroyed. How does that sound?"

"Master is wise!"

Ji Yuan casually decided the fates of these terrifying demons, whom ordinary people and even some gods and ghosts feared, as if he were scripting a play.

"Oh, and for the remaining ones, you can call the shots, right?"

This sudden question reminded Wang Youhong, whose mindset had already shifted to the latter half of this 'script', that in this city, besides the demon king, he wasn't the only one with authority.

Although Shi Jiu was annoying, he actually carried some weight. And when the old ox went crazy, others would give him some leeway. But these two could be disregarded; it was the others he needed to think about.

Wang Youhong gritted his teeth. In for a penny, in for a pound, a hint of cunning appeared on his face.

"To answer Mr. Ji," he replied, "as long as a few of the more troublesome demons don't escape, then Wang Youhong can still call the shots."

"Very well, then."

With Ji Yuan's current cultivation, only the Black Barren Demon King could cause a bit of trouble, and that trouble wouldn't be so much about the fight itself, but more about the city's inhabitants. As for the rest, even if they didn't scatter like frightened birds and beasts, they wouldn't have much impact.

Before they walked even a block, in just a few words, Wang Youhong understood that the fates of the Revelation Alliance members in the city had been sealed.

On a wide but secluded street in the west of the city stood a luxurious mansion. The two house guards at the gate had wide, unblinking eyes and somewhat vacant expressions.

As Ji Yuan arrived at the mansion with Wang Youhong, his Dharma Eye clearly showed fine, delicate spider silk at certain joint areas on the two guards. These silks had already pierced into their bodies. Although they appeared alive, their souls had long dispersed, and they had no vital energy; only their flesh remained animated.

Noticing Wang Youhong and Ji Yuan pausing at the entrance, the two guards stiffly turned their heads to look at them.

"Who goes there?"

"It's me," Wang Youhong replied. "I've found a clear-spirited scholar and brought him for Madame Spider to see."

After saying this, Wang Youhong paid no further heed and led Ji Yuan into the mansion. Ji Yuan's steps also became cautious and hesitant, perfectly mimicking a nervous, naive scholar.

Inside the vast mansion, servants swept floors and maids walked about, but without exception, they were all like walking corpses, physically active but devoid of vitality.

The two eventually arrived at a pond in the back garden. A graceful beauty, clad in thin gauze despite the cold, lay on a wooden couch in a pavilion by the pond. Seeing Wang Youhong and Ji Yuan approach, she glanced at the former, then stared at Ji Yuan with keen interest.

"Oh, you look truly delectable," she purred. "You've been thoughtful, hehehe. Scholar, come sit here!"

The beautiful woman delicately curved her little finger, covering her mouth with the back of her hand as she chuckled. She patted the soft couch and swayed her legs alluringly.

Wang Youhong looked at the scholar beside him and nodded indifferently.

"Go on."

The scholar, somewhat flustered and nervous, slowly walked to the pavilion's edge. He did not sit on the wooden couch, but merely stood beside the beautiful woman.

"Scholar, it's your good fortune to be here today," the woman said. "By the way, do you have any amusing tricks? Reciting poetry or composing prose would also do."

"I see Madame is dressed lightly. I have a small skill that can warm Madame's body."

The beautiful woman covered her mouth and chuckled incessantly, thinking she had heard something suggestive.

"Hehehehe, you naughty scholar," she chuckled. "I don't believe you. I do believe your blood will surely warm my body and stomach."

"Seeing is believing, Madame, please watch."

Ji Yuan, smiling, took a step closer. He slightly parted his lips and exhaled a puff of white mist into the cold air. The beautiful woman watched, smiling, but Wang Youhong had already unconsciously taken several steps back.

Whoosh—

What was initially thought to be normal breath vapor instantly transformed into a reddish-gray blaze. At the moment the beautiful woman's pupils contracted, a terrifying heat warped everything.

"Urgh... Ah..."

A "fire person" tumbled off the wooden couch and struggled frantically in the pavilion. But the Samadhi True Fire from Ji Yuan's mouth did not cease; he blew directly at the "fire person" for several breaths, until not even ash remained. At that moment, all the walking corpses throughout the mansion collapsed.