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The grand yao-demon army retreated, leaving fox territory.

The Upheaval Alliance didn’t have much of a reaction to their departure. After all, this was their alliance head’s decision, and they had to obey his commands absolutely.

Quite a few Upheaval Alliance members celebrated that it hadn’t come to blows.

If it had, they would, of course, have fought tooth and nail against the demons, but who could say for sure they’d survive such a clash?

That was an army of a hundred million warriors!

Even with diviner-level eyesight, the army stretched as far as the eye could see.

Xuan Ji and her Divine Generals rushed to the cave at the base of the mountain. After making some quick arrangements, the leaders of the vermillion birds and dragons followed them.

However…

“You’ve sure got gall.” The head of the Xuanwu Tortoise Clan had facial hair typical of an ancient general, and he wasn’t as tall and stalwart as was typical of his race. It would be no exaggeration to call him ‘gaunt.’ His narrow, dusty-grey eyes made him seem unapproachable. He seemed nothing like Tu Biyu, the head of the xuanwu tortoises Ye Zichen had known down in the Lower Three Realms.

The man glared at Ye Zichen, his eyes brimming over and blazing with fury, his divine yao energy circulating like crazy.

The clansmen he’d led here were also glaring viciously. As such, the members of the Upheaval Alliance had no choice but to keep a far closer eye on them than they did the other races present.

A few other clan heads were similarly overcome with resentment due to Ye Zichen’s decision to let Gu Li go.

Of course, Ye Zichen was fully aware that it would have been good to take Gu Li prisoner. He might never get such a perfect opportunity to end his lifelong foe ever again.

But in the face of An Lu’s pleas, his heart had softened.

He couldn’t bring himself to refuse her, nor did he want to see those young, pure eyes fill up with helplessness and disappointment. Also, in addition to her pleas, Gu Li’s tenderness toward her had played a large part in his decision too.

For him to display such love and tenderness, he couldn’t be all bad. In his heart of hearts, he couldn’t really be a villain.

You could call him a soft-hearted wimp or a sissy if you wanted; he wouldn’t argue with you. But he still wanted to give Gu Li a chance. He didn’t want to kill Gu Li and taint An Lu’s pristine eyes.

Ye Zichen would understand if the Sacred Beast Clans hated him for this.

So many of their clansmen had fallen at the demons’ hands, yet he’d let Gu Li go, just like that. It was only natural they’d be displeased. That was true even though they knew that, even if they fought, their odds of victory were miniscule. For the sake of their fallen clansmen, they longed to soak their hands in the piping-hot blood of their enemies.

Well, at least some of the clans felt that way. As for the others…

It was hard to say.

Take, for instance, the Xuanwu Clan.

On the winding route from the main gate to the back mountain, they saw countless bodies, but the Xuanwu Clan had the fewest casualties. There were practically none of them among the dead.

And yet, based on their behavior just now, they were angrier than anyone else.

Could it be because of their low population? But no, in comparison with the dragons, their race was flourishing. Could it be that their concern for their clansmen exceeded the other races?

Ye Zichen didn’t understand, nor was he willing to dwell on it.

It didn’t matter how angry they were. Gu Li, An Lu, and their entire army had already left fox territory.

In this situation, the one most troubled of all was actually the King of the East.

Of the Yao Realm’s four kingdoms, the Eastern Kingdom was the strongest; top-rated clans were scattered throughout its territory. There was no need to even mention the Four Sacred Beast Clans. Other peak-level clans like the foxes and heavenly gods were concentrated here too.

Just hearing about a kingdom like this was enough to intimidate any outside enemy, except…

It was precisely because these clans were so powerful and flourishing that the King of the East possessed the least authority of any of the four kings. He was much less of a king than his three contemporaries.

The Xuanwu Clan Head wasn’t the friendly sort, but looking over at Ye Zichen’s group….

Yang Jian didn’t look particularly friendly either.

It was to the point that the King of the East didn’t dare speak up and try and persuade either side.

“You’d best behave yourself, dammit. Or else, believe me when I say I’ll take your head clean off.” Yang Jian raised the Erlang Lance and glared. Surprisingly, the head of the Xuanwu Clan didn’t seem the least bit intimidated. On the contrary, he even pushed Yang Jian’s lance even further into his own throat, albeit just a little.

“Brother Ye, please don’t make trouble for Tu Kuan, if only for my sake.” The leader of the White Tiger Clan’s forces, Wei Chen, stepped forward.

His clansmen were stunned. Wei Chen had ascended less than a hundred years ago, only to break through and become a ruler with unstoppable momentum. He refused to take on the White Tigers’ usual surname, yet he’d nevertheless become the acting clan head. Now, it turned out he knew this human?

It had been a hundred years since Ye Zichen last saw Wei Chen, but he hadn’t changed!

The hideous, scarred-up knife wound over his eyes, and he wore his usual wicked grin, as if he were up to no good. But at the same time, his aura seemed far steader than before.

“It’s not that I want to make trouble for him, but that he wants to make trouble for me.” Ye Zichen shrugged.

“Tu Kuan, Brother Ye’s choice isn’t as bad as you think. Given the situation, what else could we have done? What, do you think we could fight them off? With just the forces we have here, do you really think we could fend off the entire Western and Southern Kingdoms, never mind all those demons?” asked Wei Chen.

“Don’t waste my time talking nonsense hypotheticals. My clan’s business is none of your concern.” Tu Kuan immediately glared at him.

“Just look at you, you childless old fogey.” Wei Chen clucked his tongue. “No wonder you’ve lived more than half your life, but you’ve yet to find a wife and sire an heir. Who would want to be with someone like you? Learn to control your temper, or I’m afraid your bloodline will die with you.”

As the two clan heads hurled insults, their clansmen dared not intervene. They could only watch as they readied their next verbal assault, when all of a sudden...

The skies…. Went dark!

After Gu Li revealed the captives’ location, Xuan Ji led them into the mountains in search of them. But the back mountain was simply too enormous, and although Su Qingyan had once led Xuan Ji there, too much time had passed since then, and Xuan Ji’s memories had faded.

She could only rely on her memories to bring them to the rough general location. She then sent her subordinates out to search the area.

“Lady Providence, we found them!” With a high shout, the others rushed over. It was then that they saw, not just the cave itself, but a veritable pile of their clansmen, their divine power sealed.

Gu Li really hadn’t lied to them; members of all the clans involved really were here.

Although their divine power had been sealed, they were still conscious, and when they saw Xuan Ji’s group, they were visibly moved and delighted.

“A restriction?” Xuan Ju furrowed her bow. There was something blocking their path. If she weren’t mistaken, this restriction was in place to keep the captives inside. But there were so many of them that they were pressed right up against the seal’s edges.

The would-be rescuers weren’t in a position to just break through; if they did, the resulting shockwaves might very well damage those trapped inside.

The demons hadn’t killed them, but rather, bound them here. If Xuan Ji and her group slipped up and injured or killed them, it would be ridiculous, and not in a good way.

Xuan Ji and the two Sacred Beast clan heads gathered together to discuss countermeasures when the sky suddenly went dark.

Then, a voice, like an incantation, brushed past their ears.

“It’s gotten dark, so close your eyes!”