After Mo Fan and his group of demons moved away from the Black Water River, they encountered no further reckless demon attacks. However, they did spot some human cultivators from a distance. Both sides remained wary, but no conflict erupted.
For the human cultivators, after that earth-shattering battle, they knew the tide had turned against them in the Hundred Thousand Mountains. They were too busy fleeing for their lives to stir up trouble.
Moreover, Mo Fan’s group had two Demon Generals and the rest were Demon Soldiers. Flying through the clouds, they looked like a large, formidable group of demons, not to be trifled with from afar.
Mo Fan felt similarly.
He had no desire to create unnecessary trouble or let the Demon Soldiers he had painstakingly gathered die. Thus, he adhered to the principle of not attacking unless provoked.
As a result, the two camps, originally mortal enemies, passed each other without striking first.
Before long, Mo Fan’s group reached the foot of Black Wind Mountain. There, they saw several elderly demons hobbling down the mountain, some carrying large bundles on their backs, looking from a distance like a group of fleeing refugees.
Seeing this, Mo Fan frowned slightly. He lowered the demon mist, allowing the group to land, and then looked at the startled demons ahead.
“Which general do you serve under?”
“Where are you heading?”
Mo Fan’s voice was deep as his gaze swept over the demons, noting they were mostly ordinary ones like cows, sheep, and deer, with only one or two transformations, their spiritual forms not even fully developed with legs.
Mo Fan’s words made the demons glance at each other. Being of low status, they had never seen Mo Fan and did not know if these seemingly powerful demons were friends or foes. They were too timid to respond, appearing very shy.
“Is that Lord Laibao?”
Suddenly, a delighted voice came from behind the group.
Mo Fan looked over, and the demons instinctively parted to make way.
“Lord Laibao, it really is you!!”
An old deer demon with large antlers, beastly legs, and white hair stepped forward from the group.
This deer demon was truly aged, far thinner than the others, almost a skeleton wrapped in skin, with thick lips barely covering his yellowed teeth.
Looking at this deer demon, a flicker of surprise crossed Mo Fan’s eyes. He immediately called out, “Old Chai!”
Old Chai was one of Mo Fan’s few acquaintances on Black Wind Mountain.
Calling him a friend was not quite accurate; they had only met a few times.
When Mo Fan first arrived at Black Wind Mountain, to curry favour with Dali and other demons, he visited the kitchen to ask for seasonings.
Old Chai, this deer demon, was the head cook, responsible for preparing meals for Black Wind Mountain’s great demons.
Over time, the two became acquainted.
“Lord Laibao, you’re finally back. Our Black Wind Mountain is in such a miserable state!!”
Seeing it was indeed Laibao, Old Chai’s eyes reddened, his grievances finding an outlet as he began recounting the horrific attack Black Wind Mountain had suffered.
“So that’s why you’re packing up and fleeing?”
Mo Fan rolled his eyes, looking at the bundle on Old Chai’s shoulder, larger than his entire body, and felt somewhat speechless.
What the hell were they carrying?
He glanced at the other demons’ bundles, all bulging heavily.
“You didn’t empty out Black Wind Mountain, did you?”
Mo Fan frowned, his smile fading.
“Ahem… Lord Laibao, we had no choice. The Demon King is dead, all the generals are dead, and the powerful demons left on the mountain were either captured by those human cultivators or brutally killed.
Now the whole Black Wind Mountain reeks of blood.
Though those human cultivators suddenly died off, without great demons to hold the fort, who dares stay on the mountain?
If powerful demons or human cultivators come, we’d all end up as their feast!”
Old Chai gave a bitter smile. Seeing Mo Fan’s gaze linger on the demons’ bundles, he quickly added, “We did take some things from the mountain, but why shouldn’t we?
Though we’re just small demons, we’ve worked diligently on Black Wind Mountain for decades. Even without great merit, we’ve earned some credit.
So what’s wrong with taking a few things?!”
Mo Fan nodded, finding Old Chai’s rough words reasonable.
But thinking that Black Wind Mountain was about to become his, didn’t that mean these resources were his?
In that case, weren’t these demons stealing his property?
Utterly outrageous!
With this thought, Mo Fan felt a bit displeased and questioned Old Chai, “So what treasures did you all take?”
“I’ve finally made it big; I can’t just inherit an empty shell, can I?”
Mo Fan’s words made the demons’ hearts race. Seeing no way out, Old Chai threw his bundle to the ground and opened it, revealing its contents to Mo Fan.
Mo Fan glanced over and his face twitched.
Who would’ve thought this old guy’s so-called treasures were a big black pot and some earthen bowls—kitchen tools?
Seeing Old Chai yield, the other demons, caught in a bind, reluctantly revealed their own treasures.
Mo Fan scanned the “treasures” of these demons and saw they were mostly worthless. One pig demon even had a bundle of women’s undergarments, painfully eye-searing, collected for who-knows-what fetish.
Of course, there were some better items—low-grade demon weapons and inferior magical tools.
Clearly, these demons not only scavenged Black Wind Mountain’s original assets but also looted external resources from the corpses.
After Mo Fan’s commotion, more demons gathered, soon numbering over thirty, many of whom were crippled, missing arms or legs, to Mo Fan’s exasperation.
“Laibao, these demons are truly pitiful. Why not let them go?”
He Feifei couldn’t bear it and stepped forward to plead.
To her, these old, weak, sick, and disabled demons were useless and better off leaving.
Mo Fan was about to nod but suddenly thought of something and said, “Black Wind Mountain is in ruins and needs rebuilding. It’s exactly the time we need demons. If we can keep these demons, it’d be a good deed.”
“What? You want to keep these demons?”
He Feifei was stunned, unable to fathom Mo Fan’s idea.
The demon race was one of survival of the fittest. Even the old Black Wind Mountain had a rule: once a demon was no longer useful, they’d be served up as a feast.
The old, weak, sick, and disabled were frequent dishes.
Yet now, Laibao wanted to take in this batch of feast-menu demons. It was too absurd.
Mo Fan smiled and nodded, offering no explanation. He had his own reasons for keeping these old, weak, sick, and disabled demons.
So he addressed the demons directly, “Listen up, you small demons!”
“The Great King is dead, but before he passed, he appointed me as the new Lord of Black Wind Mountain!”
“From this moment, I, Laibao, am the master of Black Wind Mountain!”
“If you want to leave, this Great King won’t pursue it, but you can’t take what belongs to me. Otherwise, I won’t mind turning you into a feast!”
“But if you’re willing to stay and serve this Great King, not only will I overlook your actions, but what you currently hold will fully belong to you!”
