Chapter 575: Spy

Lu Li asked, "Fubiluo, wise one of the demon race, how will you lure out the youth named Qin?"

Fubiluo smiled faintly and leisurely replied, "Lu Li, one of the four marshals of Youdu, how will you help me annex Great Emperor Heaven?"

Lu Li looked at the massive altars of the demon race. A Youdu Demon God descended from one of them, and without a word, grabbed over a hundred demon cultivators, stuffing them into its mouth. The other demons scattered in terror. At the edge of the altar, demon gods immediately stepped forward to stop it. That Youdu Demon God was an ancestor of the demon race, knowing only slaughter with little intelligence. Many demon gods activated a gigantic cover, finally trapping this Ancestor Demon within it.

The Ancestor Demon roared incessantly inside the cover, causing wanton destruction but unable to break it. Those demon gods summoned many demon cultivators. Over a hundred demon warriors pulled a giant cart, placing the cover on it. They strained to pull it from the front, while thousands of demon cultivators pushed the cart with difficulty from behind, transporting the cover along with the Ancestor Demon inside to the front lines.

"Your demon army is too weak," Lu Li said calmly. "And the Ancestor Demon you summoned is uncontrollable, knowing only how to devour. If you intend to rely on them to destroy Great Emperor Heaven's army, it will likely be a Pyrrhic victory, costing you more than you gain. By the time you conquer Great Emperor Heaven, it will probably be in ruins, no better than your Luofu Heaven."

Fubiluo's eyes flickered. "You should know, my goal is not Great Emperor Heaven."

"Your goal is the world where the Founding Emperor Celestial Court is located," Lu Li said with a half-smile. "Fubiluo, you intend to use Great Emperor Heaven as a springboard, sacrificing it with blood to connect Luofu Heaven, Great Emperor Heaven, and the Founding Emperor Celestial Court, allowing your demon race to descend into that world."

Fubiluo smiled but said nothing, then added, "Brother Dao is also a demon; do you not wish for our demon race to grow stronger?"

Lu Li was silent for a moment, then shook her head. "Your ambition is too great, but your ability is insufficient. You will only bring disaster upon yourself. However, I am also a demon, and I will still help you. You cannot control the Ancestor Demons, but I can."

With a flick of her sleeve, the cover on the distant giant cart suddenly split open. The Ancestor Demon inside roared, leaped out of the cover, bellowed at the sky, pounded its chest in fury, and its demonic energy surged skyward. Fubiluo's expression subtly changed, and the surrounding demon gods were also alarmed, rushing towards the Ancestor Demon. However, that Ancestor Demon suddenly soared into the air, flew towards Fubiluo, landed heavily, and then stood motionless beside Lu Li.

When the demon gods arrived, Fubiluo raised a hand. "Stand down." He looked at the Ancestor Demon, seeing the ancient demon god with a green face and tusks, its body covered in extremely ancient patterns, as if carved into its skin. Fubiluo exhaled slowly and asked, "Brother Dao, how many Ancestor Demons can you control?"

A smile appeared on Lu Li's beautiful face. "As many as you can summon, I can control."

Fubiluo's three faces couldn't help but change color. Lu Li could control these Ancestor Demons, use them to attack the demon race, or even overthrow Fubiluo's rule! He had wanted no involvement with the Celestial Court, his goal being to maintain his own rule and prevent the demon race from falling under Celestial Court control. That was why he chose to summon Youdu's Ancestor Demons instead of asking the Celestial Court for help. But now, it seemed he had been too naive. The Celestial Court had already controlled Youdu's Ancestor Demons and intended to use them as a means to control all demons! The moment he summoned Lu Li, the demon race was no longer under his command!

"Now, can you tell me how you plan to capture that youth named Qin?" Lu Li asked.

Fubiluo composed himself and said, "Capturing him won't be difficult. In siege warfare, striking at the heart is paramount. Every person has weaknesses, and there are many cultivators in Great Emperor Heaven who fear death. A considerable number have defected to my demon race, and there's even a god among them. As soon as I give the order, someone will capture him and bring him to me."

Lu Li's eyes lit up. "You have a spy in Great Emperor Heaven, and a god at that? Who is it?"

In Lizhen City, Qin Mu stood before the city tower. He saw Black Tiger God leaping like a bird, returning from the distant demon territory with Dragon Qilin and Fox Spirit. Hundreds of cultivators from Great Emperor Heaven and Yankang also returned with them.

"Fat Dragon seems to have lost some weight!" Qin Mu's eyes brightened. While he had been away, Dragon Qilin had actually thinned down, and though still pot-bellied, at least his stomach wasn't dragging on the ground anymore.

Qin Mu was greatly relieved. A moment later, Black Tiger God arrived below the city. Spotting Qin Mu on the tower, he immediately soared up with Dragon Qilin and Fox Spirit, landing before Qin Mu. He transformed into a young boy and laughed, "Junior Brother, you're finally back! Fat Dragon, spit out your Dragon Pearl for my Junior Brother to see!"

Dragon Qilin, seeing Qin Mu like a long-lost relative, was about to pounce and demand elixirs. Hearing the command, he obediently sat down and opened his mouth, spitting out a pearl. Clearly, he had been beaten often during this time, becoming quite obedient. The pearl floated into the air, immediately emitting brilliant light and colorful radiance, illuminating an area of several dozen *li*. Inside the pearl was a dragon-shaped pattern, constantly swimming within the Dragon Pearl, emitting unusually powerful water vapor fluctuations.

Qin Mu applauded, but a doubt arose in his mind: this Dragon Pearl of Dragon Qilin's was smaller than any other Dragon Pearl he had seen before, only about the size of a finger, whereas the smallest Dragon Pearls he had encountered were fist-sized. "Isn't Fat Dragon fire-attributed? Why is his Dragon Pearl water-attributed? And so small? Did he eat the wrong elixirs all this time?"

Just as he thought this, Dragon Qilin opened his mouth again and spat out another pearl, like a scorching sun in the sky, radiating intense heat. Qin Mu even felt a stinging sensation when illuminated by its light. "Two Dragon Pearls! No, the other one is a Qilin Pearl!" Qin Mu was surprised and immediately saw the truth. The second pearl was not a Dragon Pearl; inside it was a Qilin-shaped beast pattern, standing on fire clouds, mouth open in a roaring posture. This Qilin Pearl was astonishingly large, the size of a winnowing basket, two feet square, containing incredibly terrifying Qilin fire! The Qilin fire was immensely powerful and exceptional. Seeing this Qilin Pearl, Qin Mu even wondered if Dragon Qilin had cultivated to the Life and Death realm.

"The Dragon Pearl is water-attributed, the Qilin Pearl is fire-attributed... Could Fat Dragon be both water and fire attributed?" Qin Mu looked stunned. He had only known that Dragon Qilin liked to eat fire-attributed elixirs, such as Crimson Fire Elixir and Fire Element God Core Elixir, but he never expected Dragon Qilin to be both water and fire attributed! Moreover, one of the pearls was too large, and the other too small, clearly due to his picky eating habits!

Black Tiger God looked triumphant and laughed, "Junior Brother, Fat Dragon ate too many elixirs, which accumulated in his body, making him obese. This fellow is also incredibly lazy and has no cultivation method, only relying on instinct to eat and cultivate, so he just got fatter and fatter. This time, I took him to the demon race to fight with those demon brats, pushing his potential. That's how he managed to refine elixirs into pearls, producing two pearls, and he also lost some weight. I'm returning Fat Dragon to you now; carrying them around, I haven't even had the chance to go kill some demon gods to my heart's content!"

Qin Mu was very grateful and smiled, "Thank you for your trouble, Senior Brother."

Black Tiger God chuckled, "I'm off! Don't cause any trouble these days, just honestly wait here for me to return! Oh, and don't give Fat Dragon any more Crimson Fire Elixirs or Fire Element God Core Elixirs. He still has elixir energy accumulated in his body. Once he refines that energy, his Qilin Pearl will probably grow three to five times bigger!" With that, he leaped and vanished.

Seeing him leave, Dragon Qilin choked up, tears welling in his eyes, unable to speak.

Qin Mu felt greatly comforted. "Fat Dragon missed me and is crying out of excitement."

Fox Spirit hesitated, then whispered, "Young Master, Fat Dragon is hungry, and he's also been disciplined by Black Tiger God. The elixirs you left behind were eaten long ago, and he doesn't like other things. Black Tiger God kept him fighting with demon powerhouses without giving him rest. Now that Black Tiger God is gone, he's crying out of grievance."

Dragon Qilin nodded repeatedly.

Qin Mu took out medicinal ingredients to refine elixirs and chuckled, "I knew you must be hungry, so I bought many spirit herbs on my way back. My greatest gain this time was finding a cultivation method for Fat Dragon! However, Fat Dragon also has Qilin bloodline, so the Grand Dragon Great Profound Art might not fully unleash his potential." He quickly refined a batch of elixirs and gave them to Dragon Qilin. They were Water Element God Core Elixirs, the same kind he gave to Jiang Miao.

Dragon Qilin licked one elixir, found the taste off, ate one with tears in his eyes, and put the rest away. Fox Spirit asked curiously, "Fat Dragon, why aren't you eating them all?"

"I'm scared of being hungry, so I'll save some. And the taste of these elixirs isn't right; they're not Crimson Fire Elixirs." Dragon Qilin cautiously asked, "Cult Master, can you refine a few more Crimson Fire Elixirs?"

Qin Mu ignored him, summoned Jiang Miao, and said, "Junior Brother Jiang Miao, you teach Fat Dragon the Grand Dragon Great Profound Art. I'll refine more Water Element God Core Elixirs and distribute them to you both."

Jiang Miao agreed and taught the Grand Dragon Great Profound Art to Dragon Qilin, explaining the difficult parts. Dragon Qilin's comprehension was not bad, just too lazy. But having been severely disciplined by Black Tiger God this time, he dared not slack off and quickly picked it up. Qin Mu refined a few more batches of Water Element God Core Elixirs and distributed them to Jiang Miao and Dragon Qilin.

"Cult Master Qin, you're back!" Qin Yu's voice carried, as he sprinted up the stairs, walking towards the city tower with a beaming smile. He laughed, "The Cult Master is true to his word, I'm sure he'll return my little dragon..."

Jiang Miao's smile froze, and he looked helplessly at Qin Mu.

Qin Mu stepped forward with a smile. "Junior Brother Qin Yu, let me tell you some great news. Your little dragon has learned a powerful divine art and will certainly become a Dragon King in the future!"

Qin Yu was overjoyed, looking around and laughing, "Thank you, Cult Master! Where is my little darling?"

"Junior Brother Jiang Miao, come, Junior Brother Qin Yu is calling you." Qin Mu gestured, and Jiang Miao walked forward, bracing himself. Fox Spirit's mouth hung open as she stared blankly at the young man approaching Qin Yu. She kicked Dragon Qilin with her short legs and asked, "Fat Dragon, got any melon seeds?" Dragon Qilin shook his head.

Qin Yu looked bewildered, watching the approaching young man. This youth bore some resemblance to himself, seemed even more handsome, and though a bit shy, he carried himself with an imposing air and was quite strong.

"Cult Master Qin..." Qin Yu turned to look at Qin Mu, his eyes revealing shock, fear, helplessness, confusion, and bewilderment.

"Jiang Miao is your little dragon; he has now taken human form. He is the son of Yongjiang Dragon King and has cultivated the Grand Dragon Great Profound Art. Becoming a Dragon God or Dragon King in the future will be no problem for him." Qin Mu took out a few incense sticks, stuck them into the city wall, and said pleasantly, "Now I've returned him to you. You two can chat."

As he was about to leave, Qin Yu grabbed his sleeve, saying blankly and helplessly, "Cult Master Qin, I lent you a dragon, and you return me..."

Jiang Miao also tugged at his sleeve. Qin Mu, helpless, had to say, "I'll make the decision. How about you two become sworn brothers? Junior Brother Qin Yu, how old are you?"

Qin Yu nodded vaguely. "I'm seventeen..."

Qin Mu looked at Jiang Miao. Jiang Miao calculated and said, "I am twenty thousand and eighty-seven years old."

"Perfect age, not much difference!" Qin Mu clapped his hands and laughed, "From now on, Jiang Miao will be your sworn elder brother, and you will be Jiang Miao's sworn younger brother. Sworn elder and younger, that way it won't be too awkward! Come, kowtow and become sworn brothers." With that, he pressed them down onto their knees.

Jiang Miao and Qin Yu looked utterly bewildered, being pressed down by him to kowtow a few times. Qin Mu wiped the cold sweat from his brow and quickly said, "Congratulations to you both! Ling'er, Fat Dragon, I'll take you to meet some senior dragon experts. Let's go!"

Fox Spirit still wanted to watch the show but was picked up by Qin Mu and placed on Dragon Qilin's back, forcibly carried away. Only Qin Yu and Jiang Miao were left in front of the city tower.

"Young Master, I wanted to see how they'd get along!" Fox Spirit said eagerly, looking back. She saw Qin Yu and Jiang Miao in front of the tower, staring at each other in speechless dismay.