Chapter 686: Seizure of Elixir Book and Silver Scrolls

At this moment, Ling Shu, standing beside him, said softly and timidly, "Your Majesty. It was, it was Ling Shu who asked Young Master Jiang to accompany me. If Your Majesty wishes to punish someone, please punish me."

The Demon Emperor's gaze shifted to Ling Shu. Looking at the delicate and charming young woman, his cold, severe eyes softened somewhat. When he noticed that her cultivation had subtly broken through to the eighth stage of Core Formation, his face lit up with even greater joy. Her aptitude was no worse than that of Concubine Yunxia in her younger days.

"So you asked him to come?" he said. "Very well, then it's fine. Don't be afraid." The Demon Emperor smiled gently.

Ling Shu thanked him gratefully, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your mercy." The Demon Emperor patted her shoulder, a hint of affection visible in his eyes. Then, he looked towards the Sea Demon King. His expression turned stern again. "I sent you a message to go south; why did you not obey?"

The Sea Demon King replied, "My duty was to keep an eye on Jiang Fan. If he insisted on coming to the Tiger Demon Emperor's cave, I could only follow." The Demon Emperor was left speechless.

He held out his hand and said, "Then return the scales."

The Sea Demon King looked troubled and said, "Reporting to Your Majesty, we were attacked by a Nascent Soul expert earlier. The scales... they were used up."

The Demon Emperor frowned. But he wasn't overly suspicious. When he had passed through the Nascent Soul battleground, he had seen the shocking devastation everywhere. And the secret realm was right around the battleground. It was within his expectation that the Sea Demon King would use the scales to defend against danger. Furthermore, he had sensed it himself; there was no trace of the scales' aura on the Sea Demon King. Therefore, the Sea Demon King was not deceiving him.

The only slight imperfection was that Jiang Fan was still alive and well, completely unharmed. He had specifically instructed the Sea Demon King to teach Jiang Fan a lesson on the way. This was a clear disobedience of his orders.

"I'll settle accounts with you when we get back!" the Demon Emperor snorted softly. He then turned his gaze towards Concubine Yunxia and Ling Shu. A smile returned to his face: "If you two wish to go in and look around, then go ahead."

The two women hesitated for a moment. Finally, Ling Shu spoke up, saying, "Your Majesty. Could Young Master Jiang accompany me once more? His thunder-path divine ability can save a life at critical moments."

Hearing the first part of her request, the Demon Emperor was displeased. Only with the latter part did he feel slightly relieved. However, he did not agree.

"Saving a life is simple; why must you rely on Jiang Fan's divine ability?" he said. "I'll bestow this upon you." He took out a bottle of blue spiritual liquid.

Concubine Yunxia looked astonished. This was the Demon Emperor's essence! She had never received it before. Only Liuli had received a bottle. Yet now he was giving a bottle to Ling Shu. Could it be that the Demon Emperor felt something for Ling Shu...?

Ling Shu was intelligent and instantly understood the Demon Emperor's intentions. Her face immediately turned pale. She stammered, "Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty. I, I cannot accept this. It would be better to have Young Master Jiang protect me instead."

Had anyone else refused, the Demon Emperor would have long since grown angry. But for Ling Shu, he was exceptionally lenient. He withdrew the essence, saying resignedly, "Very well. Since you insist on having Jiang Fan with you, then Jiang Fan will be counted in."

He shot a cold gaze at Jiang Fan and said sternly, "Protect Ling Shu well. If anything happens to her, you won't want to know the consequences!"

Jiang Fan secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He had thought there was no way he could get in. This time, he owed it to Ling Shu again. He immediately cupped his hands and said, "Yes, Your Majesty."

Following that, the Demon Emperor finally looked at the others. When his gaze swept over Yuan Chen, he said, "You must be a disciple of the Myriad Tribulation Holy Temple, correct? Your sect also contributed to slaying the ancient giants this time. I'll grant you a spot."

Yuan Chen was overjoyed and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty. Can I... can I bring a friend along?" Without waiting for the Demon Emperor to refuse, she took out a Thunder Evolution Token and said, "This junior offers this as a gift. Engraved on it is the complete 'Six Chapters of Heavenly Thunder: Cloud's Shadow'."

The Demon Emperor's expression changed. He grabbed it through the air, and a look of delight appeared on his face. This was something even the Master of the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion yearned for! He immediately said, "Excellent! Your friend can also enter!"

Venerable Xuanyang became anxious. Out of ten spots, eight had already been allocated. "Demon Emperor Cangqiong," he said, "do we, with so many people, only get two spots?"

The Demon Emperor said indifferently, "You only have one. The other spot has already been reserved."

No sooner had he spoken, a fierce tiger, its entire body ablaze with black flames, galloped across the ground. Perched on its back was a pregnant young woman. It was none other than Liuli!

Once the Heaven-Devouring Tiger stopped, she carefully dismounted, fearful of disturbing the fetus she carried. "Jiang Fan!"

"Liuli, you are to look after her well too!" the Demon Emperor commanded. "If any harm comes to her, I will also make you pay!"

Jiang Fan's lips twitched. Liuli had even arrived! He said helplessly, "Very well, Your Majesty."

Liuli was furious. Her gaze darted between Jiang Fan and Ling Shu, who were standing side-by-side, and she said angrily, "You're disappointed I came, aren't you?" Cupping her belly, she stepped forward and nudged Ling Shu aside, asserting her claim.

Ling Shu stomped her foot, but with the Demon Emperor present, she didn't dare act coyly towards Jiang Fan. She could only endure in silence.

Only then did the Demon Emperor look at Venerable Xuanyang. "Who will you send?"

Venerable Xuanyang said discontentedly, "With so many of us, you're only granting one spot?"

The Demon Emperor replied indifferently, "If you're so displeased, then don't enter at all."

Venerable Xuanyang was helpless. He could only say grudgingly, "Qingde! You go!"

A young man in a Daoist robe calmly stepped forward. "Yes, Venerable."

The Demon Emperor glanced at the man, a hint of surprise appearing on his face: "So young, yet he has already cultivated to the ninth stage of Core Formation perfection. He is only one step away from the Primordial Spirit stage."

The Primordial Spirit is a Daoist cultivation realm, equivalent to the Nascent Soul realm for cultivators of magic. To reach the ninth stage of Core Formation perfection at such a young age... In the entire Demon Race, only Concubine Yunxia had achieved this. Among humans, only two or three individuals from the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion had reached this level.

Venerable Xuanyang showed a trace of pride. "You flatter him. He still needs time to consolidate his foundation."

He looked at the Five-Finger Mountain Peak; a faint trace of telluric energy was subtly leaking out. A look of anticipation appeared on his face: "Once the telluric energy fully erupts from the cave, everyone may enter."

However, the Demon Emperor said calmly, "Before entering the cave, there is something I must apologize for in advance to you all." Everyone paused slightly.

They saw the Demon Emperor take out a piece of silver metal scrap. The moment this item appeared, the expressions of several people present changed. Even Jiang Fan couldn't help but blanch, because the silver cultivation scroll hidden within his Heavenly Thunder Stone... had moved!

Concubine Yunxia, Venerable Xuanyang, and the cloaked figure all simultaneously showed expressions of surprise. The Demon Emperor revealed a profound smile: "It seems this trip was not in vain. To think there are so many silver cultivation scrolls!"

This, in fact, was the Demon Emperor's feint. His true purpose in coming to the Tiger Demon Emperor's cave was this: to retrieve the silver cultivation scrolls scattered across various locations! As long as the silver cultivation scrolls remained outside, it meant that one day, someone would open the Tiger Demon Emperor's inner sanctum. There would be demons who would emulate him and achieve the position of Demon Emperor, thereby threatening his rule! Today, he launched a surprise attack, catching everyone off guard. The discovery was also quite astonishing!