Starting as a stray dog, I embarked on a journey of cultivation.

As soon as the words were spoken, the demons did not delay any longer and immediately set off, flying low towards Ghost Gate Hill.

The team maintained the perfect battle formation they had during their rest, with clear division of labor and orderly offense and defense.

At the forefront, Huangmao Niu held a heavy black iron shield, its body surrounded by spiritual light, firmly protecting the path ahead.

If someone suddenly attacks from the front, he can block the attack immediately.

Pig Steel Teeth, wielding a steel gun, followed closely behind, ready to retaliate should an enemy attack occur.

Further behind, the two powerful demon gods, Black Tiger and Black Monkey, guarded the left and right flanks, guarding against possible attacks from the sides.

At the very center of the group were Gou An and several other demon generals.

Meanwhile, the Qiankun Chicken, holding the array plate, was carefully protected in the most central position to ensure that he was not disturbed by the outside world and could concentrate on deducing the array and checking for possible traps and arrays ahead.

As for the Evil Bone Taoist, he deliberately slowed down and leisurely landed at the back of the group to hold the line.

Gou An took in this scene and became secretly on guard.

He didn't intend for Xie Gu to be at the very back, since the rear was an open area with no one to restrain him, making it the easiest place to make secret moves.

However, the Evil Bone Taoist deliberately slowed down and stayed at the back of the line, using the excuse that he was bringing up the rear.

This left Gou An with no suitable reason to refuse, so he could only acquiesce for the time being, but he kept a closer eye on Gou An and secretly became more wary of him.

The entire team sped at low altitude, maintaining a steady and rapid pace.

With the Qiankun Chicken Formation Plate, the detective team advanced without any obstacles.

The array plate in his hand shimmered with spiritual light, clearly displaying the details of the terrain within a radius of several miles, leaving no hidden array or trap undetected.

A moment later, the group flew low between two solitary peaks, passed through the pass that resembled a giant stone gate, and officially entered the heart of Ghost Gate Hill.

Upon entering the valley, the surrounding environment changed drastically in an instant.

The already dim sky darkened even further, as if it were the dead of night, with thick black fog surging and flowing, obscuring the sun.

A biting, eerie wind howled through the black stone ravines, carrying a thick aura of decay, death, and malevolent energy that swept over us.

Even though everyone was a powerful demon, they couldn't help but feel a sense of heaviness in their souls and a feeling of oppression.

Just as everyone was preparing to go deeper, the Qiankun Chicken in the center suddenly frowned and reminded them, "Guardian, wait!"

Everyone froze in mid-air, on high alert.

Qiankun Chicken's gaze was fixed on the array plate in its hand, and it said in a solemn tone, "Reporting to the Protector of the Kingdom, the black mist that covers the sky and the earth in the valley is not naturally formed, but is formed by the convergence of a giant illusion array."

Gou An's eyes narrowed, and he asked, "Can this formation be broken?"

Upon hearing this, Qiankun Chicken first nodded, but then immediately shook its head.

Upon seeing this, Gou An asked in confusion, "What does this mean?"

The Qiankun Chicken then spoke, saying, "It can be broken, but the cost is enormous and the risk is extremely high."

Pointing to the layers of light and shadow patterns on the array plate, he continued to explain: "This black mist maze covers an extremely wide area, spanning dozens of miles around Ghost Gate Hill. Moreover, the location of the array's core is extremely well hidden, definitely concealed deep within the array, making it extremely difficult to find."

"The most troublesome thing is that the array plate shows that there are many interlocking arrays in the black mist of the valley, which are linked together and restrain each other."

"If we rashly force our way through the formation, we will inevitably trigger the other trap formations surrounding it before we even find the main formation's core. At that point, all the formations will be activated simultaneously, and the entire team will be trapped in a deadly situation, which will be extremely dangerous."

At this point, Qiankun sighed and said, "The person who can set up such a complex array must have extraordinary skills. It could even be said that it is more sophisticated than the protective array that Canghai Jiaojun set up for Wanyao City."

Upon hearing this, Gou An's heart sank.

No wonder the Golden-haired Rat was so skilled at hiding; he was still discovered and even captured alive after entering the valley.

The formation layout of Ghost Gate Hill was indeed layered with deadly traps, its danger far exceeding expectations.

After a brief moment of thought, Gou An asked again, "Since we can't force our way through, is it possible to avoid these traps and venture deeper into the heart of the territory?"

Upon hearing this, the Qiankun Chicken's expression softened slightly, and it nodded: "Yes, and it's extremely simple."

"Oh?" Gou An asked, somewhat puzzled.

Qiankun Chicken immediately raised its hand to activate the array plate, and a clear light golden path slowly emerged on the three-dimensional terrain map, running straight through the heart of the black mist, just avoiding all array traps and Yin Sha forbidden zones.

"My subordinates have just deduced and investigated and discovered that this seemingly intricate and flawless array actually has a straight path deliberately left out, avoiding all the deadly traps and leading directly to the center."

These words sent a chill down the spines of everyone present.

Was a path deliberately left open?

This means that from the moment they stepped into Ghost Gate Hill, the Overlord of the Valley already knew of their arrival.

Instead of concealing their formations or blocking the passage, the enemy deliberately left a way out, clearly waiting for someone to come looking for them.

Gou An's gaze suddenly turned cold, and his vigilance and apprehension instantly surged.

Looking at the deliberately revealed golden path on the array plate, Gou An hovered in mid-air, his brows furrowed, pondering a countermeasure.

The road ahead may seem clear and unobstructed, but it could very well be another trap.

However, if we don't go this way, there are also formations and traps blocking our path in other places.

If we retreat now, we'll inevitably be mocked by the evil bone again, and since the golden rat has been captured, we can't explain ourselves if we don't rescue him and go back.

Just as Gou An was deep in thought, the Evil Bone Taoist at the back of the group gently shook his folding fan and slowly spoke: "Gou Protector, why have you suddenly stopped?"

Now that the path has been explored, do you intend to continue forward, or retreat immediately?

His words, though seemingly a question, were in fact full of sarcasm, clearly showing that he wanted to see Gou An make a fool of himself.

Upon hearing this, Gou An turned around, concealing the seriousness in his eyes, and put on a smile again, saying to the Evil Bone Daoist, "Naturally, we shall continue forward."

At this point, he changed the subject and raised his voice, saying, "However, Fellow Daoist Evil Bone's cultivation is profound. Why don't you come to the front of the group and clear the way for us? I and the other demon generals will protect you from behind."

Gou An originally intended to deliberately provoke him and shut him up.

Unexpectedly, upon hearing this, the Evil Bone Taoist did not refuse. Instead, he chuckled, closed his folding fan, and readily agreed: "Alright! Then I'll lead the way."

Before he finished speaking, his figure swayed in mid-air, his clothes fluttering, and he leaped out, instantly landing at the very front of the group.

Gou An was startled and somewhat bewildered upon seeing this.

What on earth is this evil bone up to?

Before Gou An could ponder this further, the evil Taoist priest ahead had already given the order: "Let's go, let's set off, I'll lead the way!"

After saying that, he stretched out his body and flew out first towards the safe passage that the Qiankun Chicken had just explored.

With things having come to this point, Gou An had no way out. He could only suppress his doubts and solemnly signal the demons to follow.

The nine demon generals maintained their previous formation and followed closely behind, proceeding cautiously.

Just as Qiankun Chicken had said, the path was spotless and completely unobstructed.

The group traveled swiftly along the passage, and soon they completely broke through the thick, dense layer of black fog.

The next instant, the view suddenly opened up, and everything became clear.

The black mist that originally covered the sky and shrouded the entire valley seemed to be completely isolated by an invisible sphere of light, making the inside and outside like two different worlds.

Outside, a cold wind howled, the air was deathly still, and it was as dark as night, but in this heartland, there was no wind or evil spirit.

Looking up, everyone saw that the entire hinterland was a well-organized valley basin.

In the very center of the basin stands a solitary peak, and atop the mountain wall of this peak is a magnificent cave entrance, with even neatly arranged steps leading down to the entrance.

At the entrance of the cave, there is a stone tablet with several powerful characters engraved on it.

Overlord's Holy Palace!

Gou An frowned slightly; this guy was getting arrogant too.

It's one thing that the Taoist name is like this, but the cave dwelling is also like this.

The Evil Bone Daoist stopped mid-air first, slowly turned around, looked at Gou An, and asked with a half-smile, "Fellow Daoist Gou, it seems we've arrived. What do you plan to do next?"

Suppressing his doubts, Gou An turned to the Qiankun Chicken beside him and asked, "Take a look at the Qiankun Array Plate and see if you can figure out the layout and situation inside the cave?"

"Yes." Qiankun Chicken immediately nodded, quickly forming hand seals and fully activating the Qiankun Array Plate in its hands.

The array plate shone brightly, and the intricate runes flowed rapidly, with layers of spiritual energy probing towards the cave ahead.

But a moment later, the spiritual light on the array plate began to tremble and then completely dissipated.

Seeing this, Qiankun Chicken could only put away the array plate and shook its head helplessly at Gou An, saying, "Guardian of the Nation, we cannot investigate."

"The cave was shrouded in an extremely strong isolation barrier that could block all divine senses and magical artifacts from probing."

These words sank Gou An's heart even further.

"Where's the golden-haired rat?" Gou An asked curiously.

Qin Kunji restored the array plate and then said, "The array plate shows that it is in that cave, but that's all; we can't see any more information."

"Alright!" Gou An nodded, then asked the other demon generals, "Who has the loudest voice? Whoever can call out that Overlord Saint Lord will be richly rewarded."

"Me!" Pig Steel Teeth immediately raised his hand, then carried the Xuan Tie Spear and flew to the front of the group. After taking a deep breath, he roared loudly at the cave gate.

"You old thief, come out and face your death!"

"Don't hide and keep quiet, I know you're huddled up inside."

"Still calling yourself the Overlord Saint? Bah, shameless!"

"Grandpa, we came all the way from the City of Ten Thousand Demons. Didn't you extort one million spirit stones from our king?"

"We've already brought it, but we're afraid you might have the guts to ask for it, but not the guts to take it!"

Despite Pig Steel Teeth's barrage of taunts and insults, there was still no response from the direction of the cave entrance.

This left the demons looking at each other in bewilderment.

Pig Steel Teeth turned and glanced at Gou An, as if asking what to do?

Gou An then said, "Keep cursing, the more offensive the better, until he comes out."

"Alright!" Pig Steel Teeth turned around and continued to spew profanities at the cave entrance.

And after getting Gou An's permission, this time Zhu Gangya seemed to have his Ren and Du meridians opened, and the words he uttered were extremely nasty.

They either insult the other person's ancestors or their reproductive organs.

Gou An couldn't help but frown upon hearing this.