"Bai Shan, did you leak information to the demon race behind our backs!"
Upon the vast plain.
Three beams of radiant light streaked across the sky, and behind them was a surging horde of demonic beasts.
Bai Shan’s face was filled with anxiety as he hurriedly explained, "Xu Yi, it really wasn't me. I don't know how he found us."
Xu Yi and the other two had only recently entered the Divine Continent when they were discovered by the demon race.
Bai Shan revealing his true form did not scare away the demons; instead, it ignited their ferocity, causing them to attack madly.
Although Xu Yi and the other two were strong enough not to be as cautious as their previous visit to the Divine Continent, after repelling several waves of demons, the pursuing demons grew more and more numerous.
Xu Yi and Ji Bu Wang were here to mediate, not to fight, so they could only evade battle and flee.
But the demons were like persistent parasites, impossible to shake off.
Even if they managed to escape, they would be caught up by them again soon.
This was why Xu Yi suspected Bai Shan of secretly reporting their whereabouts.
Seeing Bai Shan's panic-stricken facade, which didn't seem fake, Xu Yi grew suspicious.
In a flash, she suddenly thought of a possibility.
"Bull Horn, your Bull Horn was tampered with!"
Apart from this, Xu Yi could not think of any other possibility.
Hearing this, Bai Shan did not hesitate. He took out his Bull Horn, wrapped it in spiritual energy, and flung it outwards.
Half an hour later, the pursuing demons indeed disappeared.
"It really was that Bull Horn."
Bai Shan slammed his fist hard into a tree.
The tree toppled with a roar, symbolizing Bai Shan's final trust in those great demons.
"Do you have a way to contact the Demon King directly?"
Bai Shan's expression stiffened, and he then awkwardly shook his head.
His claim of having a past connection with the Demon King referred to his ancestors. He, a mere young demon not even at the integration stage, how could he contact the Demon King.
Xu Yi was not surprised by this answer.
If Bai Shan had a good relationship with the Demon King, they wouldn't be hunted by the demon race.
Although the Demon King had not ordered this, it at least showed that the Demon King did not value Bai Shan's stance, which was why the demons were so fearless.
"Don't worry, since I promised to help you see the Demon King back then, I will definitely fulfill my promise."
Bai Shan noticed the fleeting disappointment in Xu Yi's eyes and said through gritted teeth.
In response, Xu Yi and Ji Bu Wang remained silent. Their journey to the Divine Continent was proving to be more arduous than they had imagined.
Bai Shan's promise also seemed light and weightless.
"Although I cannot contact the Demon King, I have a way to see several of the Demon King's confidantes. Let's go find them."
Bai Shan was very familiar with the distribution of power within the demon race.
Currently, the demon race was simply divided into two factions.
One faction was led by the influential great demons who had deceived him, the war faction. The other faction was mainly composed of the Demon King's confidantes, the peace faction.
As for the Demon King, he had never appeared, so Bai Shan was unsure of his stance.
However, he guessed that the Demon King would likely favor peace, otherwise, he wouldn't have remained silent in support of the war faction.
Since that was the case, it would be better to first contact the Demon King's confidantes and then see the Demon King through them.
"Alright, let's set off now." Xu Yi's eyes lit up.
Bai Shan pondered for a moment and said, "The Demon King's foremost general is Monkey King Jiang Ming. Let's go find him."
Monkey King resided on Monkey King Mountain, south of the Divine Continent.
Bai Shan used to live near Monkey King Mountain, so he was more familiar with the terrain there and more confident in meeting the Monkey King.
Having made their decision, the three immediately set off in the direction of Monkey King Mountain.
...
In a deep pool somewhere in the Divine Continent.
Three monstrous beasts of varying forms and immense size cohabited there.
The most robust among them, the Barbarian Ox, forcefully exhaled two streams of air from its nostrils.
"That Bai Shan fellow actually returned alive, which is quite unexpected."
The Sky Swallowing Python, its lower half of a snake tail hidden in the deep pool, had a glint of disdain in its sinister pupils. "He's just an arrogant fool who doesn't know the immensity of heaven and earth. Perhaps he got lucky."
The Sky Swallowing Python was violent and capricious, looking down on all demons weaker than itself.
"No, this time is different. He had two human-shaped fellows with him. I suspect they are not demons, but humans."
The Eight-tailed White Fox gently swayed its tail, its tone solemn.
"Humans?"
The Sky Swallowing Python flicked its tongue outwards, its snake tail churning the cold pool violently.
The cold pool immediately churned with waves.
"That's right." The Eight-tailed White Fox's eyes flashed with wisdom. "I told you before that the messages Bai Shan sent us have become fewer and farther between since a hundred years ago, but you all didn't pay attention at the time."
"You mean Bai Shan has defected?"
The Barbarian Ox's hooves became restless, quickly plowing several deep furrows into the ground.
"Not only that, he might have been persuaded by the humans, and this return is likely to oppose us." The Eight-tailed White Fox said softly.
"See, I told you he was useless and could have been eaten by me to replenish my vitality."
If it weren't for the Eight-tailed White Fox insisting on using Bai Shan as a scout back then, the Sky Swallowing Python would have swallowed Bai Shan whole.
"It was my miscalculation."
The Eight-tailed White Fox hadn't expected things to escalate to this point.
In its view, Bai Shan was riddled with flaws and would surely not be able to hide from the cunning humans. He would be caught as a scout and might even endure painful torment soon.
It had already prepared for Bai Shan's line to be cut short.
This was, after all, a method it used to deceive the humans.
Moreover, they had tampered with Bai Shan's token, leaving him no chance to return to the Divine Continent.
But it never expected that several of its hidden lines would be eradicated by the humans, yet this overt line, Bai Shan's, not only persisted but also continued to transmit information to the Divine Continent.
Now, thinking back, the Eight-tailed White Fox felt this must be a premeditated scheme.
The humans had discovered Bai Shan's true identity long ago but had remained silent, instead using him to confuse them. They had also spared no effort in trying to win over Bai Shan, and eventually succeeded.
"Then what should we do? The Bull Horn I left behind has already been discovered by them. It's like searching for a needle in a haystack to find them now."
The Barbarian Ox was once again enraged by the Bull Horn being discovered by its subordinates.
Bai Shan had truly become smarter after this trip to the Divine Continent, even discovering this hidden hand.
"Bai Shan bringing those two humans here is simply to persuade the Demon King to seek peace." The Eight-tailed White Fox's eyes flickered. "As long as we find a way to stop them from meeting the Demon King, that will suffice."
They couldn't locate Bai Shan, but they knew the Demon King's whereabouts.
As long as they guarded the Demon King's sleeping quarters and prevented Bai Shan and his companions from approaching, they would naturally be forced to reveal themselves.
"Eight-tailed, you truly are the demon race's foremost strategist. I am impressed!"
The Barbarian Ox's praise made the Eight-tailed White Fox's eyes gleam with even greater pride.
It was precisely because of its intelligence that it was even more unwilling to be confined to this small Divine Continent.
It was determined to break the existing situation and allow the demon race to regain its former glory!