Silence.
A long silence.
Bai Shan, from initially holding his head high in defiance, to now quietly turning his almost stiff neck, the Monkey King had not spoken throughout, as if he had fallen asleep.
Bai Shan's previous repeated questioning stemmed from anger. Now that he had calmed down, he did not dare to remind the Monkey King again, and could only try to maintain his posture.
"Sigh!"
A long sigh caused the hearts of Xu Yi and the other two to sink heavily.
This sigh was filled with helplessness and indignation.
"Monkey King..."
Bai Shan, for some reason, felt an indescribable sense of guilt in his heart at this moment.
Although he didn't know where this guilt came from, his feeling of guilt was so strong.
"It's not that I am unwilling to act, but that both the Demon King and I are powerless."
The Monkey King's next words made Xu Yi and the other two completely lose their composure.
"Monkey King, what do you mean by that?"
Bai Shan could not believe it.
This reason was even harder for him to accept than the Monkey King's unwillingness to appear.
The Monkey King was the God of War representing the strongest combat power of the demon race.
Bai Shan had even grown up listening to stories about the Monkey King.
Now that he learned that the Monkey King was also powerless in this situation, he naturally refused to believe it.
"Bai Shan, let me ask you, do you remember how many years it has been since the Demon King last appeared?"
The Monkey King's words made Bai Shan jolt, and then a chilling sensation erupted from his body, making him tremble.
"The Demon King, the Demon King has not appeared for nearly six hundred years."
After the previous Demon King ascended with Fairy Jinghong, the new Demon King successfully succeeded to the throne after a battle.
However, after a period of time, the new Demon King began to reduce his appearances, and the intervals grew longer and longer, until now, he had not appeared for six hundred years.
"The Demon King is currently unable to attend to himself and cannot appear. Furthermore, I was unexpectedly injured, and my combat power has drastically decreased. The Eight-tailed White Fox and a few other demons working together are enough to defeat me, so I also cannot appear."
The Monkey King was equivalent to the backbone of the demon race. If the Monkey King was weakened by his injuries and defeated by the Eight-tailed White Fox and other great demons, then the demon race would ultimately lean towards the Eight-tailed White Fox.
Therefore, the Monkey King must not appear at this time, lest the Eight-tailed White Fox and other demons find an opportunity.
Moreover, its existence could deter them and prevent them from going too far.
"How could this be?"
Bai Shan was in a daze, muttering to himself.
He thought that if he could find the Monkey King and the Demon King and persuade them, he could make the Eight-tailed White Fox and the other great demons pay a price, but he never expected that the situation of the Demon King and the Monkey King would be even more difficult.
Xu Yi and Ji Buwang, hearing this secret of the demon race for the first time, also found it incredible, but then followed by deep worry.
If, as the Monkey King said, both he and the Demon King could not appear, then the Eight-tailed White Fox and the others could act with impunity, stir up trouble, and win over half of the demon race through various means. They might even eventually join forces with the demon race to deal with the human race together.
If the situation developed in this way, it would be greatly disadvantageous to the human race.
"Monkey King, is there anything we can do to help? For example, help you heal, or act on behalf of the Demon King and solve his problems?"
Xu Yi could not stand by and watch the situation worsen, so she stepped forward proactively to ask.
"That's right, Monkey King, we can all help." Bai Shan pointed at Xu Yi, "Don't let her honest appearance fool you, she's actually quite cunning and might be able to think of a way."
Xu Yi: ...
Never mind, she would just take it as a compliment.
Xu Yi could feel the Monkey King's gaze sweep over her, as if considering the truth of Bai Shan's words.
At this moment, Ji Buwang suddenly spoke, "Monkey King, everything you've said so far proves that you have the same idea as us. So there's no need to hide anything; we will do our utmost to assist you."
Ji Buwang saw most clearly. Half of the Monkey King's previous words were genuine refusals, and the other half were deliberate attempts to lure them in.
Ji Buwang even suspected that all of this was arranged in advance by the Monkey King, or rather, by the Demon King, waiting for them to fall into the trap.
As Ji Buwang finished speaking, a thunderous laugh echoed from above their heads.
"Now I believe what the Ice Mountain Double-Faced Butterfly said; humans are indeed quite cunning."
Xu Yi's eyes lit up. The Monkey King's words clearly proved that Ji Buwang had not spoken incorrectly.
Indeed, the Monkey King then said, "If you truly wish to prevent the demon race from joining the war between you and the demon race, then there are two things you need to do now."
"Monkey King, please tell us."
Xu Yi and Ji Buwang said in unison.
"First, my injury has affected my internal organs, so I need you to help me find a legendary Fire Sap Fruit, which is said to grow only in lava, to help me recover."
As the Monkey King stated his first request, the expressions of Ji Buwang and Xu Yi changed simultaneously.
Fire Sap Fruit, one of the ten most precious spiritual fruits in the Kyushu Continent, grew within hot lava.
Both the method of picking it and the method of preserving it were extremely special, and the Fire Sap Fruit could be easily damaged if not handled carefully.
Due to the unique geographical environment and strict picking requirements, the Fire Sap Fruit had gradually become a legend.
Before Xu Yi and Ji Buwang could recover from the first request, the Monkey King immediately stated the second request.
"Second, you must find a magic treasure called the Soul Dissolving Bell. Only by finding it can the Demon King be freed."
"Soul Dissolving Bell?" Ji Buwang's eyebrows moved. "Is it the Soul Dissolving Bell that briefly appeared in the Western Water Region's secret realm five hundred years ago?"
"That's right, it's that one."
The Monkey King's tone carried undisguised admiration.
Xu Yi turned to look at Ji Buwang, "Is the Soul Dissolving Bell very famous?"
"More than just famous, perhaps half of the cultivators in the Kyushu Continent have heard of its notorious reputation."
Bai Shan's brows furrowed tightly as he thought of something.
Seeing that both of them had heard of the Soul Dissolving Bell and seemed quite wary of it, Xu Yi closed her eyes and began to recall the ancient texts she had seen in her sect.
Five hundred years ago, the Soul Dissolving Bell, Western Water Region...
Xu Yi was startled.
She remembered.
Five hundred years ago, a previously undiscovered secret realm suddenly appeared in the Western Water Region, north of Xuanzhou.
It was known that secret realms that no cultivator had ever entered must contain many rare magic treasures and spiritual medicines. Therefore, when the secret realm opened, countless cultivators flocked to it.
As many cultivators had expected, the Western Water Region secret realm not only contained countless magic treasures but also spiritual plants and flowers that had become extinct in the Kyushu Continent. All cultivators were caught in a frenzy of competition.
It was at this time that the Soul Dissolving Bell emerged from the secret realm. It was said that when it appeared, the entire secret realm was covered in divine radiance.
Therefore, everyone regarded the Soul Dissolving Bell as a supreme treasure and fought fiercely for it.
However, as more and more cultivators died, an inauspicious aura began to emanate from the Soul Dissolving Bell.
At that time, several cultivators felt that something was wrong and called for everyone to evacuate.
However, many people had already gone mad with killing and refused to listen to advice.
Therefore, those who were sober could only give up and leave on their own.
Not long after they left, the Western Water Region secret realm silently closed, and the cultivators who had stayed there appeared on the surface of the Western Water Region the next day, leaving behind only empty shells.
The Soul Dissolving Bell thus became widely known.