The next morning.

After a night of… exertion, Mu Zhian woke up refreshed and stretched languidly.

The bed had creaked until late into the night, but fortunately, the soundproofing was good, and Bai Ruoxi had also deliberately suppressed her moans. Otherwise, it might have caused trouble.

“Even though we’re practically an old married couple, Ruoxi is still so easily embarrassed.”

Mu Zhian sighed inwardly, picked up the map Bai Ruoxi had drawn last night, and left the room.

Wei Mengrou was already waiting outside the pocket dimension, along with the alluring Demon Empress in her plain clothes.

Bai Ruoxi had also left the pocket dimension earlier and was waiting outside.

A healthy blush colored the usually pale face of the beauty in the palace dress, and her black and white dress accentuated her delicate figure.

Wei Mengrou looked at Bai Ruoxi with suspicion, her gaze lingering on her neck.

“What’s wrong, Mengrou?” Bai Ruoxi asked, feeling uncomfortable under her gaze, and glanced at Wei Mengrou.

Although everyone knew about her relationship with Mu Zhian, being intimate with him during a trip to her “maternal home”… If Wei Mengrou found out, she might think Bai Ruoxi was… insatiable.

But she hadn’t been thinking about those things last night. It was all Mu Lang’s fault…

“There’s a strange red mark on the right side of your neck…” Wei Mengrou stared at Bai Ruoxi’s swan-like neck, noticing a red mark near her collarbone.

The Demon Empress narrowed her eyes and gently touched the mark with her slender finger. “Indeed. I don’t remember seeing this mark before. Did it appear yesterday?”

Bai Ruoxi’s eyes flickered with panic, and she covered the mark, saying softly, “Perhaps I was bitten by some insect in the forest yesterday. There were so many mosquitoes.”

Seeing their suspicion, Bai Ruoxi quickly said, “Mu Lang is coming.”

“He’s a Core Formation cultivator. He shouldn’t have slept for so long…” Wei Mengrou suddenly murmured.

The Demon Empress nodded silently, a suspicious glint in her alluring eyes as she looked at Mu Zhian, who was riding towards them on a Dragon Sparrow. She glanced at Bai Ruoxi, a playful smile appearing on her face.

Mu Zhian arrived before them on the Dragon Sparrow and chuckled. “Sorry, I had some insights during my cultivation last night, so I woke up late.”

He discreetly glanced at Bai Ruoxi.

Mmm, Ruoxi looks good, and the spiritual energy in her cauldron is more stable… My hard work last night wasn’t in vain.

He sensed a strange gaze and turned to see the Demon Empress smiling at him. “You seem to have recovered well.”

“Thanks to a good night’s rest, I’ve completely recovered,” Mu Zhian chuckled.

“That’s good.”

The Demon Empress nodded slightly, then continued, “But why does your spiritual energy seem weaker than yesterday?”

This woman is too sharp… Mu Zhian’s heart skipped a beat.

The Demon Empress looked at him with interest, her lips parting slightly as she transmitted her voice, “Your heart just told me: This woman is too sharp.”

“Did I discover one of your secrets?”

Damn it, I almost forgot she can read minds…

Form is emptiness, emptiness is form… Mu Zhian chanted silently, suppressing his thoughts, then took out a map.

“We should reach the Fox Clan’s territory today. We’ll use this map to find the Soul Locking Bell.”

Their attention was successfully diverted. Wei Mengrou looked at Mu Zhian. “What’s that?”

“A map of the Fox Clan’s territory. Ruoxi drew it last night,” Mu Zhian explained.

The Demon Empress glanced at Bai Ruoxi, her voice soft and seductive, carrying a hint of amusement. “You’ve never been to the Demon Realm. How do you know the location of the Fox Clan’s territory?”

Bai Ruoxi said calmly, “My mother went to Tianxuan City under the orders of the Seventh Seat, so I naturally know the location of the Fox Clan’s territory.”

“The Seventh Seat’s subordinate… If I remember correctly, they caused you quite a bit of trouble,” the Demon Empress said with a seductive smile.

She looked at the map in Mu Zhian’s hand. “It seems the Palace Master isn’t very good at drawing.”

Although the map was detailed, the drawing itself was worse than that of a seven or eight-year-old child, especially the lines, which were weak and messy.

Bai Ruoxi didn’t argue, but glanced at Mu Zhian, her face flushed, and remained silent.

Wei Mengrou looked at the blushing Bai Ruoxi with suspicion.

The Bai family of Tianxuan City was also a powerful force, although not large, but still much wealthier than most cultivators. And Bai Ruoxi was skilled in all arts, including painting. She shouldn’t have drawn such a poor map…

Sensing Ruoxi’s resentful gaze, Mu Zhian coughed. “Cough… As long as the map is usable, it’s fine. Let’s follow the markings and set off.”

Although his relationship with Bai Ruoxi was practically public knowledge, he had still been intimate with her while she was drawing the map last night. If Mengrou found out, she might feel jealous.

But as he spoke, he noticed the Demon Empress looking at him with a playful smile.

Mind-reading is truly the most troublesome technique in the world… Mu Zhian pretended not to notice and patted the Dragon Sparrow’s head. “Let’s go.”

The Demon Empress was similar to the Jade Empress, her thoughts hidden beneath a calm facade. Mu Zhian didn’t know what she was thinking, but with Mengrou present, he couldn’t ask.

He would just pretend he didn’t notice.

…

That afternoon, as they flew through the air, they saw a barren plain in the distance.

Mu Zhian checked the map and confirmed that this was the former territory of the Fox Clan. He landed the Dragon Sparrow on the plain.

A seemingly endless staircase appeared before them.

Moss covered the steps, bushes grew on both sides, and tall, slender trees surrounded them.

“The Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox set up formations here. Without someone from the Fox Clan leading the way, you can’t enter,” the Demon Empress said.

Whoosh!

A sword qi suddenly shot out from the top of the stairs, aimed at Mu Zhian.

The Demon Empress raised her alluring eyes. “Insolent.”

The sword qi was split in two before reaching Mu Zhian, crashing into the ground on either side, causing a tremor.

Several women with fox ears stood at the top of the stairs, each a beauty.

Two elders stood beside them, their cloudy eyes filled with vigilance. “Who are you, and why have you trespassed on the Fox Clan’s territory?”

“They are fox demons who chose to stay here after the Fox Clan’s decline. Don’t worry. I’ll explain,” the Demon Empress said softly to Mu Zhian, then looked at the wary young demon cultivators and Fox Clan elders.

The Grand Elder of the Fox Clan, dressed in simple robes, looked at them vigilantly. “Who are you? My Fox Clan has lived in peace for centuries. If you don’t explain yourselves, I’ll have to force you to leave.”

The Demon Empress was stunned.

Mu Zhian was also stunned, glancing at the Demon Empress in her plain yet alluring attire.

Huh?

This isn’t what we agreed on. They don’t seem to recognize you…

They should have recognized the Demon Empress immediately.

But clearly, these fox demons didn’t know her.

“You don’t even recognize me?” the Demon Empress asked calmly, looking at them.

“Who are you?” a fox demon asked warily.

More fox demons gathered, less than a hundred in total.

It seems these people haven’t been online. They’re not very well-informed… Mu Zhian suppressed a laugh, afraid of incurring the Demon Empress’s wrath.

The Fox Clan elders frowned at the uninvited guests.

The younger fox demons also looked at the four of them, their expressions ranging from curiosity and friendliness to hostility.

The Grand Elder frowned, looking at the Demon Empress. “You have the aura of a demon cultivator, but that girl in the yellow dress and the young man beside her are human cultivators from the Eastern Continent, right? Why have you disturbed our cultivation?”

It seems they really haven’t left the Fox Clan’s territory for a long time. They don’t even recognize the Demon Empress… Mu Zhian bowed. “I am Mu Zhian, a disciple of the Two Polarities Sect. Greetings, Elders.”

Mu Zhian’s name was now well-known throughout the Nine Provinces. After all, he was acknowledged by the Jade Empress, and she had even held a grand wedding for him in the Holy King City, inviting guests from all over.

However, the Grand Elder of the Fox Clan shook his head. “I don’t know you.”

The other elders also showed no interest in Mu Zhian, only watching them warily.

But the female fox cultivators’ eyes lit up when they saw Mu Zhian.

He exuded a captivating aura, an irresistible temptation to them.

The Grand Elder looked at the Demon Empress. “May I ask which clan you belong to?”

“She’s the current ruler of the Demon Realm,” Mu Zhian explained.

A fox demon scoffed. “Impossible! The Demon Emperor’s Heavenly Phoenix Cultivation Technique is renowned throughout the Nine Provinces. Are you saying someone has replaced him and become the new ruler of the Demon Realm?”

The other fox demons stared at Mu Zhian with increased vigilance.

The Demon Empress replaced the First Demon Emperor thousands of years ago. Don’t you have any news…? There were too many things wrong with this. Mu Zhian didn’t know where to begin.

The Grand Elder looked at the four of them. “The Fox Clan’s territory has declined. There are no treasures here. Please leave. I’m in a good mood today and don’t want to kill.”

The Demon Empress raised an eyebrow, a playful glint in her eyes.

No one in the Northern Continent hadn’t heard of her name, yet these descendants of the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox didn’t recognize her?

“Why waste your breath on them, Elder? Since they refuse to leave, let’s just force them out,” Bai Zhan, a young fox demon, said impatiently, clearly disliking the human cultivators from the Eastern Continent.

In the past, only one or two cultivators would occasionally pass through the Fox Clan’s plains every few years, and some were curious about this place, but they were all driven away by the elders.

They should do the same to these people.

However, just as he spoke, Bai Zhan noticed that the elders hadn’t moved, staring at the young cultivator from the Eastern Continent with serious expressions, as if facing a powerful enemy of the same realm.

This shouldn’t be happening. The young man’s aura was at most at the Core Formation realm. The three female cultivators beside him were harder to discern, probably because they were using treasures to conceal their realms.

But why weren’t the elders attacking?

Just as Bai Zhan was about to speak, a vast demonic qi, terrifying and oppressive, enveloped the entire Fox Clan’s territory, weighing down on the hearts of every fox demon.

This demonic qi was emanating from a human cultivator from the Eastern Continent!

Nine fox tails unfurled silently behind Mu Zhian, and a pink demonic mist enveloped him, exuding an irresistible charm that captivated the female fox cultivators.

Mu Zhian suppressed the pink light flickering on his fingertip and looked up, smiling. “You don’t recognize the Demon Empress…”

“But you should recognize the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox, right?”

…

A Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox… a human cultivator from the Eastern Continent, was a Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox?!

Seeing the nine fox tails behind Mu Zhian, the Fox Clan members fell silent. Then, the elders on the platform gasped, almost losing their minds as they rushed down the stairs.

“You’re a human cultivator from the Eastern Continent. Why do you have our clan’s most powerful constitution?”

“Where did you find the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox body?”

The excited elders surrounded Mu Zhian, their eyes filled with shock.

“I made a pact with the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox to resurrect her. I came here for this reason,” Mu Zhian explained.

If he had said this initially, no one would have believed him. He would have been treated as an enemy.

But now, with the nine fox tails behind him, they couldn’t deny the truth.

Seeing the doubt in the elders’ eyes, Mu Zhian explained what had happened.

After a stick of incense’s time, the initially wary fox demons became incredibly enthusiastic, inviting them to their village.

“I’ll go to the ancestral grounds where the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox is enshrined. You can wait for me,” Mu Zhian said to the three women behind him.

“I’ll go with you,” the Demon Empress said indifferently.

She wasn’t comfortable with Mu Zhian going alone.

Mu Zhian glanced at the Grand Elder, and seeing that he didn’t object, he nodded.

Bai Ruoxi glanced at the alluring Demon Empress, frowning slightly.

The Demon Empress had been staring at Mu Lang along the way, her gaze like a predator eyeing its prey…

Letting the Demon Empress protect Mu Zhian made her feel uneasy.

…

Mu Zhian had expected this trip to the Fox Clan’s territory to be smooth.

His only surprise was that these people didn’t even know that the Demon Realm had a new ruler and didn’t recognize the Demon Empress.

It’s a good thing Her Majesty isn’t holding it against them… Mu Zhian thought to himself as he followed the Grand Elder to an ancient shrine.

“Young Master Mu, if you can truly resurrect our ancestor, you’ll be our greatest benefactor. In the future, if you need anything, just say the word, and we’ll do everything in our power to repay your kindness,” the Grand Elder said sincerely.

Mu Zhian shook his head. “I’m just fulfilling my promise. I’m not your benefactor.”

“A promise is one thing, but to us, as long as our ancestor can be reborn, our Fox Clan can regain its former glory. That is the greatest kindness,” the Grand Elder said, his face flushed with excitement.

The Fox Clan had declined to the point where even the younger generation lacked resources. In the past thousand years, the Fox Clan had split into several branches, each seeking refuge with other demon clans.

Only the most pure-blooded branch had remained here.

If Mu Zhian hadn’t come today, they might have continued living their mundane lives.

He wondered if they would regret staying in this barren land when they looked back on their lives in the future.

“You’re a Nascent Soul expert. If you wish, it shouldn’t be difficult to obtain resources in the Demon Realm. Why do you insist on staying here?” Mu Zhian finally asked.

The Grand Elder sighed. “Young Master, you don’t understand. The Demon Emperor declared war on the Eastern Continent. With the Eastern Continent’s strength, this war might last for a thousand years. If we leave the Fox Clan’s territory, we’ll be forced to fight against the Eastern Continent cultivators on the Abyss battlefield.”

“That war never happened, because the Jade Empress suppressed the First Demon Emperor before that. He’s already dead,” the Demon Empress finally said.

“Who are you?” the Grand Elder asked suspiciously.

“She’s the current ruler of the Demon Realm,” Mu Zhian explained. “I told you earlier.”

The Grand Elder was stunned. He wanted to scan this plainly dressed yet alluring demon cultivator with his consciousness, but the moment he looked at her, his heart tightened, and he quickly bowed respectfully. “I apologize for my disrespect.”

Centuries of cultivation experience told him that this woman’s strength and bloodline far surpassed his own.

It seems Mu Zhian wasn’t lying. The Demon Realm had a new ruler… The Grand Elder, finally connected to the 2G network, sighed inwardly.

The Demon Empress waved her hand dismissively, not bothering with this matter.

She had something more important on her mind…

—What exactly were Mu Zhian and Gong Lianyue doing last night?

As if remembering what she had heard through her mind-reading ability, the Demon Empress looked at the boy, licking her lips slightly.

…He’s quite… playful.

…

After about half an hour, Mu Zhian found a bronze bell in the shrine within the abandoned ancestral grounds.

“Is this the Soul Locking Bell?”

Mu Zhian toyed with the bell, gently shaking it, and a captivating, melodious sound echoed through the air.

With this, he could find the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox’s consciousness hidden in the Eastern Continent.

“This Soul Locking Bell seems to be locked onto something. Try infusing it with your spiritual energy,” the Demon Empress suddenly said.

Mu Zhian infused the bell with his spiritual energy.

A thread of light, seemingly unbreakable and tangled, appeared within the bell.

The thread flickered in mid-air, then pointed towards the Eastern Continent.

“The Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox’s consciousness is indeed in the Eastern Continent…”

“But which ancient clan’s ancestor was a demon cultivator…?”

Mu Zhian’s eyes flickered as he pondered.

“More than one ancient clan in the Eastern Continent has connections to demon cultivators. Similarly, there are also factions from the Eastern Continent infiltrating the Demon Realm. It’s not surprising.”

A soft, seductive voice came from behind him.

At the Demon Empress’s gesture, the Grand Elder quietly left the shrine.

“It seems the Nine Provinces are much more complicated than I imagined…” Mu Zhian murmured, looking at the Soul Locking Bell in his hand.

Over the years, the Demon Realm had infiltrated every corner of the Nine Provinces. The Demon Empress had planted many spies in the Eastern Continent, and even Mu Zhian was one of them.

Although the current Demon Empress seemed to want to… reclaim him for her own use…

Regardless, the goal of this trip had been achieved. Mu Zhian collected his thoughts, put the Soul Locking Bell away, and said sincerely, “Thank you for accompanying me, Your Majesty. If it weren’t for you, it wouldn’t have been so smooth.”

Although there had been a few minor hiccups, they had reached the Fox Clan’s territory so quickly thanks to the Demon Empress.

“It was just a small matter,” the Demon Empress replied casually, playing with a strand of hair.

Her simple, elegant attire couldn’t conceal her alluring figure, her ample bosom straining against the fabric, making her even more seductive.

This woman is a vixen no matter what she wears… Mu Zhian couldn’t help but glance at her a few more times. “Let’s go back. Ruoxi and Mengrou must be waiting for us.”

He turned to leave, but a pair of hands suddenly landed on his shoulders.

The Demon Empress’s hands rested on his shoulders, and her soft body pressed against his back.

Mu Zhian was stunned. He turned around and saw her crimson eyes filled with captivating allure. “If you’re not busy, come back to the Demon Palace with me. I have something to discuss with you.”

She paused, her seductive voice echoing in his ear. “You were intimate with Bai Ruoxi in my pocket dimension last night, even having her draw that map while you were… busy…”

“You wouldn’t want the Jade Empress to find out, would you?”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay