Chapter 2307: Audience

Although they had never met the Demon Lord, the women had heard too many terrifying legends about him. To become a king in such a brutal and violent demonic world, one's power, intellect, and methods had to be absolutely top-tier in this era.

Moreover, this was the Demon Lord's own world, where no world laws suppressed his cultivation. Even though Brother Zu was formidable, his strength would likely still be inferior to the Demon Lord's.

Now, if he were to suddenly confront the Demon Lord and something unexpected happened, Brother Zu would probably find it very difficult to return alive.

What worried them even more was why the Demon Lord would suddenly seek him out. Could it be that his true identity had been discovered?

Sensing the women's panic and their subtle signals for him not to go, Zu An smiled slightly and said, "It's an honor for the envoy to come in person to invite me. I'll get ready and depart immediately."

Seeing him agree, the Demon Envoy's expression softened slightly. "Hurry up. Don't keep the Master waiting."

"Of course!" Zu An returned to his cave dwelling and set up a barrier to isolate the inside from the outside.

The women finally couldn't hold back. "Ah Zu, please don't go."

"It's too dangerous."

"How about we team up and kill this demon envoy?"

Everyone spoke at once, expressing their opinions.

Even Jiang Luofu couldn't help but say, "That's right. At worst, we can seek refuge with Miss Salome afterward. I believe she has the ability to temporarily protect us. Once she finds the materials for the formations, we'll take her back to the cultivation world. When we're on our home turf, we won't be afraid of them."

Compared to the younger girls' panicked concern, her thinking was much calmer, and she instantly came up with a highly feasible plan.

Zu An shook his head slightly. "That would be too passive. Being completely controlled by Salome in this world means an unpredictable future. Don't worry, the Demon Lord probably hasn't seen through my identity yet. Meeting him might not be dangerous."

He had considerable confidence in his Art of Myriad Forms. No matter how powerful the Demon Lord was, he couldn't possibly know what was happening in the cultivation world.

"But it's better to be safe than sorry," Pei Mianman said. Although she had great confidence in Zu An, she was also very uneasy now.

"If things look bad, I'll run," Zu An said with a smile. "On the other hand, you all must protect yourselves well while I'm gone."

Xie Daoyun spoke up, "I've set up quite a few defensive formations during this time. There shouldn't be any problem with defense for a short period."

Zu An nodded, gave a few instructions, and then went out to find the Demon Envoy, not wanting to keep him waiting.

Seeing him leave, the women all felt a sense of loss.

Pei Mianman was the first to speak. "It's no use being anxious now. We should learn the demonic language as quickly as possible so we can help him in this demon world in the future."

The women nodded in agreement, taking turns to watch the outside movements from the cave entrance, ready to support Zu An at any moment. The others focused on learning the demonic language.

Xie Daoyun couldn't help but glance at Pei Mianman, secretly admiring her. Back in Brightmoon City, they were classmates, both known for their beauty and talent. Xie Daoyun had felt a bit unconvinced back then, thinking Pei Mianman was a little too enchanting.

Now, however, she had to admire her. To be so calm at such a critical moment, that composed demeanor truly gave off the impression of a powerful matriarch...

Oh, what jumbled thoughts are these?

Meanwhile, Zu An emerged from the cave. "Apologies for the wait, Your Excellency."

The Demon Envoy grunted and turned to lead the way.

After a while, he stopped and glared at the Grand Elder. "The Master only summoned Donal."

A hint of embarrassment flashed across the Grand Elder's face. "My Lord, then I won't accompany you."

At the same time, he secretly transmitted a message to Zu An, "My Lord, whatever you do, don't offend the Demon Lord."

"Don't worry," Zu An replied. He understood that Donal was currently a prized asset to the True Demon clan, and they relied on him to bring resources from the cultivation world, so naturally, they wouldn't want anything to happen to him.

Following the Demon Envoy towards the tallest castle in the underground city, Zu An tried to inquire along the way, "Your Excellency, do you know why the Demon Lord has summoned me?"

He had initially thought of slipping some high-grade essence stones to the envoy, but then remembered that resources in this world were controlled. Without knowing the envoy's temperament, it was better not to offer them rashly, lest he be caught off guard.

"You'll know when you get there," the Demon Envoy said with a stern face, seemingly uninterested in saying another word to him.

Zu An gave up on trying to converse with him and instead focused his mind, contemplating the situations that might arise.

As they went deeper, the number of demons along the way decreased, clearly indicating that ordinary demons were not allowed near the Demon Lord's residence.

Zu An observed as they proceeded. Along the way, there were various defensive and warning formations, emanating an inexplicable aura of power.

Many of these formations were so intricate that even he couldn't fully comprehend them, making him marvel even more at the profound mastery of formations in this world.

However, as they continued, he silently committed those formations to memory, yet he gradually developed a strange feeling.

Something was wrong with these formations!

Many of them possessed only an imposing aura but seemed unable to function.

Connecting this to the current state of the world, he immediately realized that they didn't have enough essence stones to power these formations.

In other words, these formations here were merely for show.

Of course, if he hadn't learned the "True Scripture of Embracing Simplicity" and become particularly proficient in formations, he probably wouldn't have noticed the flaws.

The demon world had indeed reached its breaking point; even outside the Demon Lord's sleeping quarters, normal operation of formations couldn't be guaranteed.

Along the way, there were some demon guards, all strangely shaped, whose strength made Zu An a little wary.

Fortunately, with the Demon Envoy leading the way, their journey was unimpeded.

Soon they arrived at a castle. As they entered, Zu An took an extra look at the gate, which was unusually tall, comparable only to the tomb gate he had seen in the True Scripture of Embracing Simplicity secret realm years ago.

However, he generally guessed the reason: many demons were exceptionally large, and ordinary doors simply wouldn't accommodate them.

Along the way, he saw various reliefs on the walls, but the demons' taste was truly hard to compliment.

They were all ferocious and sinister statues, as if ready to leap from the walls and devour people at any moment.

In the distance, he saw a seemingly endless flight of stairs. Torches burned on either side, and under their dim flames, the wall reliefs looked even more like a chaotic dance of demons.

Zu An suddenly noticed someone already standing at the bottom of the stairs.

He was covered in black scales, looking somewhat like a mutated lizardman, with a pair of exceptionally deep vertical pupils.

Around his neck was a wide, brightly colored scarf that seemed like a crown, making him exude a faint aura of royalty.

A closer look revealed that it was a natural membrane, with extremely sharp thorns at its top. Seeing its dark and menacing appearance, being pricked by it clearly wouldn't end well.

He initially thought this was the Demon Lord but quickly dismissed the idea.

Although this demon's strength was considerable, his aura was only slightly stronger than Zu An's, not reaching the terrifying level he had imagined.

More importantly, he stood there with a slight bow, his body trembling almost imperceptibly, as if he were afraid of something.

The Demon Envoy then said to Zu An, "Wait in line here. After the Master has met with the Green Crown Lizard King, it will be your turn."

Zu An thought to himself that the individual must be the Green Crown Lizard King, though he found it odd given the bright color around his neck was not green.

At that moment, another Demon Envoy suddenly appeared on the high steps and announced loudly, "The Master summons the Lizard King for an audience."

The Green Crown Lizard King couldn't help but ask, "Has the Berserk King finished his meeting? Why haven't I seen him come out?"

The Demon Envoy on the steps said coldly, "He no longer needs to come out."

The Green Crown Lizard King paused, then immediately understood what that meant.

Not needing to come out clearly meant he had died inside.

At that instant, Zu An finally understood why this creature was called the Green Crown Lizard King, because the brightly colored collar around his neck instantly turned a ghastly green.