Over the years of their mutual stand-off, the two arch-enemies had come to understand each other more than well.
"Reporting to Dragon Lord, the message was delivered..."
An urgent voice of a demon soldier came from the conch, but before it could finish, there was a sour crunching sound.
"You beast! I am a lieutenant of the Western Dragon Palace! Release me at once! Aah—"
"Let go, I beg you... Let go! Dragon Lord!!"
By the time the demon soldier’s cries of terror and desperation had slowly quieted down, nothing was left on the other end of the conch but rampant laughter.
Qi Zhaoyi remained calm, with only a slight heave in his chest. He put down the conch, cutting off the piercing laughter.
These demons were the ones that his father had driven out of Western Hong; it was natural for them to bear grudges against the Dragon Palace Demon Soldiers of Western Hong. Although it was somewhat embarrassing, now was not the time for settling accounts.
As long as the "menu" was delivered into the hands of these Great Demons, letting them know where to feed was all that mattered.
Once he had completely removed the eyes and ears of the South Hong Seven Sons, he would have control of all information on land and water in Southern Hong. Being Heaven Realm Great Demons themselves, they would no longer need to be constantly on guard here.
There would be time later on to consider how to subjugate these Great Demons.
Of course, there were exceptions.
Qi Zhaoyi waved his hand lightly, and two demon soldiers lifted the thick curtains of the dragon carriage, revealing a gaunt figure outside.
The newcomer’s skin was pale, his body covered in frost. Though his face looked youthful, his beard dragged down to his knees. His clothes were tattered and nearly rotting, as if he had just been dragged out of a cold, deep cave.
"Cold Mountain Ancestor, Zhaoyi pays his respects."
Qi Zhaoyi stood up and took the initiative to salute the man with a clasped hand gesture.
"Your father leads your brothers, interrupting my quiet cultivation, destroying my Mount Han, forcing me to flee all the way here, yet you show up to play the good cop. How laughable," said the Cold Mountain Ancestor as he stepped into the dragon carriage.
His gaze swept over the imposing figure in the deepest part of the carriage. With the South Dragon King present, he did not act too presumptuously.
Qi Zhaoyi hesitated for a moment, then smiled and said, "The Ancestor misunderstands. The incident happened suddenly. In fact, it was for your own good. You have been in seclusion ever since you had your fill during the slaughter, unaware that Western Hong now has a Ten Thousand Demon Hall that enslaves all the major Demon Races, especially those with high cultivation."
"Of course, the Western Dragon Palace also has its own interests in mind. If such a powerful being as Cold Mountain Ancestor were to be ambushed and taken by surprise by the Ten Thousand Demon Hall, falling under their control, it would be a great disadvantage to the Western Dragon Palace. After all, we too fear the Ancestor’s strength."
"With time so short, there was no chance to explain, hence this ruse. My father asked me to meet you here in Southern Hong so that we could have each other’s backs."
After a few words of explanation from the eldest son of the Western Dragon Palace, the face of the Cold Mountain Ancestor finally eased a bit. Despite being somewhat out of touch, he still had a few followers who ran errands for him.
The Ten Thousand Demon Hall had already stirred the demon forces in Western Hong, which he had also heard about.
"Enough with your smooth talk; I have heard plenty." The Cold Mountain Ancestor shook his head and said indifferently, "Thinking that you can get me, the old ancestor, to act as a vanguard for the Dragon Palace against those three Cultivators next door, you must think very lowly of me."
Years ago, regardless of external factors, those three could stand on equal footing with many powers in Northern Hong.
Particularly Ye Jiu, even to this day, the Cold Mountain Ancestor still greatly feared his edge.
Even if the South Dragon King personally intervened, and with him included, to face those four against three in a battle where the others had a stronghold as support, the odds of victory were still not high.
Even if they won by the skin of their teeth after paying a heavy price, as an outsider Demon Cultivator, how could he secure any advantage under the Dragon Palace?
If he entered into such a deal, he wouldn’t have survived until today.
"Tsk! You worry too much, Ancestor!" Qi Zhaoyi waved his hand and earnestly said, "I invited you here today not only to advise you to stay away from Western Hong for now and to keep the Seven Sons from discovering your presence to avoid any danger but also to offer an apology."
With that, he took out a map, much smaller than those given to the other demons, which only marked the locations of the Nanyang Sect’s vassals.
"This is a grand feast specially prepared for you by Southern Hong."
"With us guarding those three Heaven Realm Cultivators, Cold Mountain Ancestor can enjoy at will, taking whatever you need."
Upon hearing this, the Cold Mountain Ancestor hesitated for a moment.
The opportunity to eat and drink without restraint was something he had only experienced during the last slaughter, which had also built his current strength.
During the last slaughter, which was caused by the East Dragon Palace and the South Hong Seven Sons offending an Immortal, leading to a temporary period of weakness, other forces began to massacre those vassals who had once sought protection under these two strong patrons as a way to curry favor with the Immortal or simply out of greed.
The massacre picked up momentum, ending up in an uncontrollable large-scale war affecting all four Hongs.
He still needed to be cautious and fight for survival against other Cultivators or demons.
Nowadays, however, it was the South Dragon Palace and this eldest son of the Qi Family setting the stage, allowing him free rein, and if there were no trap here, he would not believe it.
But since he was already here, and having suffered injuries at the hands of the Western Dragon King, he indeed needed to recuperate.
After all, no matter how much he consumed, he would not fight alongside these Dragon Race members; if push came to shove, he would just renege and head directly to Northern Hong to assimilate his gains.
"Then it would be discourteous for me to refuse," said the Cold Mountain Ancestor as he took the map, nodding slightly, and then turned to leave the dragon carriage.