My words have become law; I truly have no desire to display my divine power before others.

Deep inside the cave, the firelight flickered dimly.

What was called firelight was actually just a few pieces of phosphorus embedded in the stone wall emitting a ghostly green light, making the entire cave appear to be in an unpredictable state of light and shadow.

The cave is very deep, and it gets wider and wider as you go in. At the deepest part, there is a naturally formed stone platform covered with thick hay and animal hides.

On the stone platform, a tiger demon lay.

It was more than twice the size of an ordinary tiger demon, and its fur was dark brown, gleaming with an oily sheen in the dim light.

Its eyes were closed, and its breathing was slow and long. With each breath, a faint light rose in its chest and abdomen—that was the inner elixir circulating.

Several ghostly figures, both male and female, were crouching nearby, all with their heads down, not daring to make a sound.

An old fox was grooming the tiger demon's fur.

The fox was very old; its fur, which should have been fiery red, had faded to a dark brown. Only its eyes still held a hint of cunning.

It crouched behind the tiger demon, carefully stroking the tiger's fur with its two front paws, occasionally dipping some oil from the stone bowl beside it and smearing it on the tiger's skin.

The movements were gentle and practiced, clearly indicating that this was not the first time he had done this.

"Your Majesty, is it comfortable here?" the old fox asked in a shrill voice.

The tiger demon didn't open its eyes, only letting out a low "hmm" from its throat.

The old fox then worked even harder, grumbling as he combed his fur: "Your Majesty's fur is becoming more and more glossy and smooth."

"I've lived for over a hundred years, and I've seen at least eight or ten tiger demons, but none of them have the majesty of Your Majesty."

The tiger demon still didn't open its eyes, but its tail swayed slightly, clearly enjoying the sensation.

The other ghosts nearby exchanged glances, then lowered their heads, not daring to utter a sound.

This old fox is quite skilled, but he's too good at flattery. These accomplices can't afford to offend him, so it's best to stay away.

Suddenly, the tiger demon froze.

His closed eyes snapped open, his vertical pupils gleaming with a chilling light in the dim glow.

The old fox was startled, its paws freezing in mid-air.

"Your Majesty?"

The tiger demon remained silent.

It just stared in the direction of the hole, its pupils slowly contracting and then slowly dilating.

"Ah Si is dead."

His voice was deep, as if it were squeezed out from his chest.

The ghosts trembled and lowered their heads in unison.

The old fox asked cautiously, "Your Majesty, are you referring to... that ghost we just acquired a few days ago?"

The tiger demon did not answer, but just stared at the cave entrance.

It sensed it.

That location, that direction.

It's in a ravine not far down the mountain.

Ah Si's aura vanished completely, leaving not even a trace of his soul behind.

"Someone killed my henchman."

The tiger demon stood up, shook its fur, and its huge body cast a heavy shadow in the dim light.

It looked at the few vengeful spirits:

"You guys, go over there and check. Whoever it is, kill them."

The ghostly servants nodded repeatedly and got up to leave.

"And you too." The tiger demon looked at the old fox. "Go with them. If anything goes wrong, come back and report."

The old fox paused, then cried out in a shrill voice, "Your Majesty, my health is failing..."

The tiger demon glanced at it.

At that one glance, the old fox's fur stood on end, and he quickly changed his tune:

"I'll go right away, I'll go right away."

It jumped off the stone platform, shook its fur, and followed the few demons towards the cave entrance.

After taking a few steps, he turned back, smiling ingratiatingly, and asked:

"Your Majesty, if those few ignorant mortals are involved, should I simply eat them, or...?"

The tiger demon ignored it.

The old fox chuckled awkwardly, then turned and disappeared into the cave.

The cave fell silent.

The tiger demon lay down again, but its eyes remained open.

It stared at the eerie green light, lost in thought.

After a long while, it suddenly spoke:

"Mandrill"

Something moved in the shadows at the corner of the cave.

A blurry figure emerged from the darkness. Its face was indistinct, but it could be vaguely discerned as human, though much taller than a human, with slender, withered limbs.

"Your Majesty."

The tiger demon asked, "How long has my husband been gone?"

The mandrill paused for a moment, seemingly calculating the time:

"Your Majesty, it has been two hours since they left."

The tiger demon didn't ask any more questions.

Two hours have passed; by now, they should have been back long ago.

It lay there, its tail gently patting the stone platform, once, once, and once more.

The rhythm of the patting conveyed an indescribable sense of irritation.

Outside the cave, the night wind howled through the forest.

As the tiger demon listened to the sound of the wind, he suddenly felt uneasy.

The unease was faint, so faint as to be almost imperceptible, yet it was like a fine thorn stuck there, impossible to pull out.

It shook its head.

impossible.

Within a radius of a hundred miles, nothing could harm the couple.

They are the kings of this mountain, the mountain lords in the hunters' mouths, beings that mortals would kneel down and beg for mercy upon seeing them.

Who would be so foolish as to provoke them?

The tiger demon closed its eyes again.

But the thorn is still there.

......

The night wind rustled through the forest.

After walking for half an hour, Ye Qingfeng and his two companions finally stopped in front of a mountain hollow.

Ahead was a steep mountain wall, and at the bottom of the wall, a cave entrance could be vaguely seen. The entrance was small and mostly covered by vines, revealing only a deep crevice.

"Is this the place?" Lu Yang asked in a low voice.

Ye Qingfeng nodded.

Lu Yang peeked out, but the hole was pitch black and he couldn't see anything.

He pulled his neck back, swallowed, and subconsciously touched the leather pouch containing the wine sac at his waist.

He took a deep breath and took a step forward.

After all, he came from an official family, and the pedantic air of a scholar hadn't completely faded from his bones.

Standing at the cave entrance, he cleared his throat, adopted a scholarly posture, and bowed respectfully to the deep darkness.

"Listen up, you beast in the cave!"

The sound drifted in the night wind.

"We came here tonight not intending to cause you any trouble. But since you've seized this mountain and acted as your own king, inciting your accomplices to harm people, then don't blame us for coming here!"

He paused, then added:

"Those who know what's good for them will come out of the cave immediately and surrender. If they remain obstinate and resist stubbornly, don't blame us for showing no mercy when the fighting starts!"

However, despite the gentle breeze, there was no reaction at the cave entrance.

But now that Lu Yang has a celestial master backing him up, he's quite bold, and he continued speaking with his hands on his hips.

"If I were you, I would obediently come out now, kowtow and confess my sins, and beg the immortal master for a quick death. Perhaps the immortal master will be merciful and leave you with a whole corpse."

If you keep cowering, we'll definitely strip you of your tiger skin and use it as bedding! We'll make soup from the bones, soak the tiger penis in wine, and use the tiger bones in medicine—not a single bit will be wasted!

After saying that, he turned around and glanced at Ye Qingfeng, his face full of smugness.

Ye Qingfeng remained silent.

Shen Zhaoyue rubbed her forehead and asked from behind.

"How do you know that tiger demon isn't female?"

Lu Yang puffed out his chest, looking confident:

"Of course! Male tigers are definitely fiercer and are meant to guard their dens. Female tigers are weaker, so it's normal for them to go out and bully the weaker ones."

Upon hearing this, Ye Qingfeng suddenly smiled for some reason.

The smile was faint, yet it carried a hint of something indescribable.

"That's not necessarily true."

Lü Yang was taken aback:

"Master, what do you mean by that?"