Above Black Wind Mountain, demonic clouds blanketed the sky, shrouding almost half the mountain in shadow.
Atop the clouds, six demon kings gazed down expressionlessly at the scene below.
“Brother Black, was everything you said earlier true?”
“This fellow really holds no regard for our Black Water River?”
The leader among the six, an elder in blood-coloured robes, spoke with a frosty expression.
“Brother Blood, when have I, Old Black, ever lied to you all?”
A burly man in black robes replied in a deep voice, sneering coldly. “Do you still remember the last time the humans attacked? Several human sword cultivators came to Black Water River to cause trouble. That was also because of this wretched toad!”
“Oh, and I just recalled something amusing!”
The black-robed man turned to another black-robed figure beside him and grinned. “Brother Python, do you still remember being tricked into a marriage last time?”
“Black Fish King, are you deliberately reopening old wounds?”
“Because of that incident, I was mocked by every demon in Black Water River for ages. If you want a fight, just say so!”
The other man instantly snorted, his face darkening.
“Don’t take offence, Brother Python. I have no interest in bringing up that sorry affair to provoke you. Only a few days ago, I accidentally discovered that the very snake spirit who deceived you into marriage is now by this toad’s side!”
“Is that so?”
The man’s face immediately turned grim. He released a vast wave of divine sense, sweeping downwards towards Black Wind Mountain.
“How bold!”
The very next moment, a low shout rang out above Black Wind Mountain. An equally powerful surge of divine sense shot forth, directly repelling the man’s probe beyond the mountain’s borders!
“Hm?”
“Demon king divine sense?”
The six demons atop the clouds changed countenance slightly.
“No wonder that little mangy toad dares to disregard the demons of Black Water River. So another demon king has emerged on Black Wind Mountain!”
A bald, muscular demon sneered repeatedly.
“No, there is more than one demon king down there!”
The blood-robed elder spoke again, his expression rather grave. His words instantly drew the attention of the other demons.
“I sense at least four demon king auras below!”
“What?”
“This insignificant Black Wind Mountain actually has four demon kings?”
The blood-robed elder’s words startled the remaining five demon kings.
“No need to panic!”
“They are merely four demon kings. Even if two more appeared, we would still outnumber them!”
The blood-robed elder gave a cold hum, then called downwards. “Is the Demon King Laibao of Black Wind Mountain present?”
Mo Fan was already looking up at the mass of demonic clouds. Golden light flickered in his eyes as he pierced straight through the clouds and saw the six demon kings behind them.
“This king is indeed present!”
“Today is this king’s Demon King Grand Ceremony. If the honoured friends from Black Water River have come to offer congratulations, this king naturally welcomes you!
But if you have come to make trouble, this king advises you to leave at once. Do not bring ruin upon yourselves!”
Mo Fan’s face chilled slightly as he began pondering. Was this the scene Yu Er’s divination had pointed to?
If it was only this much, he would be rather disappointed.
The six demon kings of Black Water River were indeed powerful, yet he did not take them seriously.
Through his divine ability, he had already discerned their true forms and cultivation levels.
The six were:
Early-stage demon king Black Fish Demon!
Early-stage demon king Blue Crab Demon!
Mid-stage demon king Giant-Tongued Bonefish Demon!
Mid-stage demon king Water Python Demon!
Mid-stage demon king Alligator Gar Demon!
And late-stage demon king Blood Eel Demon!
Such a force could sweep through any ordinary, unknown demon mountain. Yet the current Black Wind Mountain was no longer what it once was. These six might be strong, but they could not crush Black Wind Mountain!
“Great King, these fellows clearly bear ill will. Allow me to test them!” Fire Spirit flew over and requested to fight.
“No need. This king once met an ancestor of Black Water River, and we are neighbours after all. We will see each other often. Unless absolutely necessary, it is best not to come to blows!” Mo Fan smiled and waved his hand.
“But these fellows obviously come with hostile intent. I fear reconciliation will not be easy,” Fire Spirit frowned.
“Relax. Very soon, they will find a way to back down of their own accord.”
Mo Fan, however, was utterly confident. He murmured under his breath, “By my calculations, the time is almost here.”
Watching Mo Fan act all mysterious, Fire Spirit could only scratch his head, completely failing to understand what his king was thinking.
Bai Tian Tian, standing nearby, gave a faint smile. She had some idea of Mo Fan’s plan.
“Do not bring ruin upon yourselves?”
“You truly have a high opinion of yourself!”
At that moment, the Blood Eel King above spoke, his tone unfriendly. He snorted coldly. “We are giving you some face because we are neighbours. That is the only reason we acknowledge you as the Demon King of Black Wind Mountain!
If we chose not to give you face, you would be nothing more than a toad demon!
A frog at the bottom of a well can never comprehend the vastness of heaven and earth!
Though you have become a king, in this lord’s eyes you are still not worth looking at!”
Mo Fan frowned slightly, dug in his ear, tilted his neck, and grinned at the speaker. “Finished talking?”
“If today were not this king’s grand ceremony, this king would be too lazy to listen to your nonsense. One slap each and you would all be paste!
This king has devoured countless late-stage demon kings!
So I advise you not to anger me!”
As soon as Mo Fan spoke, the six demon kings atop the clouds were so enraged they laughed.
“This toad demon truly is arrogant beyond belief! He actually thinks he can slap us all to death?”
“Brothers, no more talking with this fellow. Let us strike directly!”
“Out of consideration for neighbourly relations, we need not slaughter all the little demons on the mountain. First let us teach this ignorant toad who doesn’t know the immensity of heaven and earth a harsh lesson!” the Black Fish King snarled.
“Report!”
Just then, another shrill cry rang out from the distance!
The cry flew closer. The reporting bird demon glanced at the six demon kings and found it odd that they had not yet taken their seats.
Were they not here to offer congratulations?
But he had no time to worry about that. He shouted down to Mo Fan, “Reporting to the Great King! The Golden Horn Great King of Fire Cloud Cave has come to offer congratulations!”
“Oh? Quickly invite him in!”
Mo Fan’s brows instantly relaxed. He burst into loud laughter that shook the entire Black Wind Mountain.
The Golden Horn Great King of Fire Cloud Cave?
The six demons atop the clouds who had been about to attack froze. They had heard of the Golden Horn Great King. He was a formidable demon king!
But wasn’t Fire Cloud Cave deep within the Phoenix Cry Mountain demon domain?
That was hundreds of thousands of li away. Why would he travel all this distance to congratulate a mere toad demon?
While the six demons stood stunned, a figure flew in from afar, accompanied by hearty laughter. “Hahaha… Brother Laibao’s Demon King Grand Ceremony. How could I, Golden Horn, miss the chance to offer my felicitations?”
“Laibao thanks Brother Golden Horn for gracing us with your presence. Please, take your seat quickly!”
Mo Fan laughed just as heartily and pointed to a seat below.
“Very well!”
Golden Horn nodded with a smile. Glancing at the six demons on the cloud, assuming they too were here to celebrate, he gave them a polite nod. Then with a casual wave, a jade box flew downwards.
“I came in a hurry and my cave has nothing particularly fine to offer, so I prepared only a modest gift. I hope Brother Laibao will not take offence!”
As Golden Horn’s voice rang out, Fire Spirit shot into the air, caught the jade box with his claw, opened it a crack, and swept it with divine sense.
He immediately announced loudly, “Reporting to the Great King! The Golden Horn Great King of Fire Cloud Cave presents three stalks of low-grade earth-tier spiritual herb, Fire Bodhi!”
Low-grade earth-tier spiritual herb?
At that moment, every demon on the mountain grew excited. Even the six demon kings in the sky were startled.
Low-grade earth-tier spiritual herbs were cultivation resources greatly beneficial even to demon kings!
“This Golden Horn Great King is actually so generous. Could he have some secret connection with that toad demon?”
“If that is the case, things will become troublesome for us!”
The Black Fish King’s brows knitted tightly. He felt the situation growing tricky.
“No matter! Even with this Golden Horn Great King added, they only have five demon kings. We still hold the numerical advantage!”
The Blood Eel King narrowed his eyes, waved a hand, and remained calm and composed.
“Report!”
“Reporting to the Great King! The Alligator Demon King of Great Dream Marsh has come to offer congratulations!”
“…”
