"Tian Xuan, then choose for yourself, do you want to go to the Demon Realm with me." Zhou Hong smiled slightly, no longer forcing, and immediately flew forward. Whether Tian Xuan was willing to follow was up to her to choose.
After hesitating for a few seconds, Fairy Tian Xuan still followed.
"Zhou Hong, you must promise me, without my permission, you can't touch me even a finger," Fairy Tian Xuan said as she caught up.
"That is absolutely, positively certain."
"Good."
"Actually, you don't need to worry at all. Your current strength is stronger than mine. Without me using a puppet, it's impossible for me to force you."
"Hmph, even so, your grandfather is the Immortal Emperor. If you really do something to me, I wouldn't dare to resist," Fairy Tian Xuan gave Zhou Hong a sideways glance.
"Hahaha!" Zhou Hong couldn't help but burst into laughter, not knowing if she truly wouldn't dare to resist.
Afterward, they returned to the Demon Realm, and the narrative will not continue on this path.
About three to four months later, Zhou Hong and Fairy Tian Xuan, stopping and starting, finally returned to the Demon Realm, or more precisely, to Wumeng City.
Zhou Hong and Fairy Tian Xuan stood at the city gate. Fairy Tian Xuan looked at the four characters on the city gate and asked, "Is this where you are the City Lord?"
"Yes, I am the City Lord of this Wumeng City now."
"I'm really quite curious about you. Logically, how could a mere City Lord have such great energy?"
"Heh, let's go, don't be curious. We'll go in, rest for a few days, and then I'll have to go to the Demon Realm Heavenly Court. The Demon Immortal Kingdom I'm in now is called the Li Qiang Demon Immortal Kingdom, and the Demon Emperor's name is Li Qiang. If I want to cultivate to become a Demon Emperor, I must get his permission."
Fairy Tian Xuan nodded. In this Immortal Realm, whoever achieved immortality from a certain place, that person would belong to the immortals or demons of that place for life and would require permission from the Immortal Emperor or Demon Emperor of that place. Even if they went elsewhere, it would be useless.
Otherwise, Zhou Hong could have simply gotten his grandfather's permission and wouldn't have had to run back.
Zhou Hong and Fairy Tian Xuan rested in Wumeng City for three days.
Three days later, Zhou Hong no longer delayed and immediately leaped up, flying wildly towards the sky above.
Half a day later, Zhou Hong arrived outside the Heavenly Gate of the Li Qiang Demon Immortal Kingdom.
It was still the same two guarding generals as last time.
"Stop." Seeing Zhou Hong trying to enter, the two guarding generals at the Heavenly Gate immediately stopped him.
Zhou Hong glanced at the two guarding generals. He had a decent impression of them, so he didn't want to resort to force directly.
"Sirs, could you please report for me? I wish to see Demon Emperor Li Qiang," Zhou Hong said straightforwardly.
One of the guarding generals snorted, "I remember you. You're Zhou Hong, the City Lord from Wumeng City. Are you out of your mind? You want to see Demon Emperor Li Qiang?"
"Yes, I want to see Li Qiang," Zhou Hong said, neither servile nor overbearing.
The two guards suspected Zhou Hong of being crazy. A humble City Lord, even if he came to report, could not ascend the steps because he was not worthy. Yet, at this moment, Zhou Hong said he wanted to see Li Qiang.
"Zhou Hong, out of consideration for the fact that you impressed us before, I won't hold you accountable. Now scram," one of the guarding generals shouted.
"Alas!" Zhou Hong sighed and instantly released the giant puppet.
The two guarding generals immediately felt immense pressure, and large beads of sweat dripped from their foreheads.
"Now, can you go and report?" Zhou Hong asked calmly.
"Yes, I'll go report now." Although the two guarding generals didn't know why the giant puppet Zhou Hong released exerted such pressure on them, they were not fools and immediately agreed to report.
"Forget it, no need to report. Just take me up to see Li Qiang," Zhou Hong suddenly called out to them.
"Yes, this way, please."
Led by the two guarding generals, Zhou Hong passed through the Heavenly Gate and slowly ascended the stairs. There were 99,999 steps. If he were a mortal, these ten thousand steps would have killed him.
However, for a demon cultivator like Zhou Hong, it was only a matter of a few minutes. Of course, as Zhou Hong ascended higher, the pressure from the air grew stronger. If Zhou Hong didn't have the giant puppet to resist, with his own strength, he might not have been able to climb up at all, being crushed to death by the oppressive force in the air before even reaching halfway up the stairs.
Soon, Zhou Hong successfully reached the summit and stood at the highest point of the stairs. Before him lay a vast expanse of palaces, the largest among them named the Li Qiang Demon Palace.
At this moment, within the Li Qiang Demon Palace, there seemed to be many powerful Demon Emperor auras. Upon closer inspection, there were at least several thousand Demon Emperors seated on both sides of the grand hall, with many beautiful demonesses dancing in the center. It seemed a celebration was in progress.
"What are they doing?" Zhou Hong asked the guarding general who was leading the way.
"Reporting to... senior, today is the birthday of the Demon Mother. The invited demon officials of the Li Qiang Demon Immortal Kingdom are currently in the Demon Hall celebrating the Demon Mother's birthday."
"Oh, oh." Zhou Hong let out a casual "oh" and then walked directly towards the hall.
Inside the hall at this moment, everyone seemed to not have noticed Zhou Hong's arrival. After all, Zhou Hong's aura was very weak, and even if they noticed him, they would have assumed he was a servant or the like.
Zhou Hong stood at the entrance of the hall. Indeed, there was music and dancing. An old man with a full beard sat at the front, his gaze occasionally leering at the alluring dancers.
Just as everyone was intently watching the dance, Zhou Hong shouted from the doorway, "Everyone, excuse me, could you pause for a moment?"
Everyone was interrupted by this sudden voice. The civil and military officials on both sides of the hall were startled. Who dared to say "pause for a moment" during the Demon Mother's birthday celebration? Was he tired of living?
When everyone looked at Zhou Hong, they were all bewildered because they saw that Zhou Hong was only at the Demon King level.
Demon Emperor Li Qiang, who was sitting at the front, frowned and his gaze shot towards Zhou Hong. Seeing how weak Zhou Hong was, he was also stunned.
Of course, the angriest at this moment was a woman sitting next to the Demon Emperor. This woman was dignified and noble, and it was obvious she was Demon Emperor Li Qiang's wife, known as the Demon Mother in the Demon Immortal Kingdom, with a status similar to the Queen Mother in the Immortal Realm.
"Who are you? How dare you be so bold!" the Demon Mother roared, her face turning ashen. Her birthday celebration, which was going so well, had been interrupted by such a weak person, and he had the audacity to say "pause for a moment." Who did he think he was?
The civil and military officials on both sides of the hall remained silent, watching quietly.
Although Demon Emperor Li Qiang was also angry, it was his wife's birthday today, so he did not speak, letting the Demon Mother handle it herself. However, he was also puzzled about how a Demon King had suddenly appeared in this Demon Hall and dared to speak of pausing.