Half a year passed in the blink of an eye.
On this day, Er Ha stumbled back to the entrance of Mo Fan’s secluded cave.
“Commander Er Ha, what happened to you?”
Bai Xue, who was simmering a pot of beast meat, hurried over to support the bloodied Er Ha.
“I’m fine, just injured by a Demon Soldier.”
Er Ha waved his hand, then glanced toward the cave, frowning, “Has the Great King not come out of seclusion yet?”
“Yes, since six months ago, the cave suddenly went quiet. I don’t know what’s happening inside, and it’s driving me crazy!”
Bai Xue nodded, relieved to see Er Ha didn’t seem too badly hurt.
“You came back just in time. I’ve just cooked a pot of mountain deer meat. Come eat with me!”
Bai Xue extended an invitation.
Having been at Red Fire Peak for a year and a half, she hadn’t learned much else, but her cooking skills had improved significantly.
“This is no time for eating!”
Er Ha rolled his eyes, shook off Bai Xue, and strode to the cave entrance, bowing as he called out, “Great King, there’s news about the thing you asked me to watch!”
A loud boom echoed from within the cave, and the large stone sealing it shattered. A young man in a black robe, with long black hair loose, slowly emerged.
“Greetings, Great King!”
Er Ha and Bai Xue bowed in unison.
“No need for formalities!”
Mo Fan laughed heartily, waving his hand to lift the two demons. His nose twitched, and his gaze landed on the large iron pot nearby.
The meat broth was simmering, its rich aroma wafting out.
“What fragrant meat broth!”
Mo Fan couldn’t help but praise, walking straight toward it.
The two demons quickly followed, with Bai Xue secretly delighted.
“Great King, this is from a mountain deer I hunted in the valley behind. Its meat is incredibly tender. Let me serve you a bowl to try!”
Bai Xue smiled, conjuring a clay bowl and ladling a generous portion of broth for Mo Fan.
Mo Fan didn’t hesitate, accepting the broth with a smile. Ignoring its scalding heat, he drank it down in one gulp.
“Refreshing!”
“It’s been so long since I’ve tasted such delicious broth during my seclusion!”
Mo Fan smacked his lips, thoroughly satisfied, and didn’t forget to praise, “Bai Xue, you’ve outdone yourself. In just over a year, your cooking has improved tremendously!”
“Thank you, Great King!”
Blushing with joy, Bai Xue beamed at Mo Fan’s praise.
Seeing Mo Fan still ladling more broth, Er Ha grew anxious and blurted out, “Great King, the Earth Vein Fire Lotus is about to mature!”
“Oh, it’s almost mature?”
Mo Fan nodded, continuing to sip his broth.
“Yes, Great King, why aren’t you worried? The heart of Red Fire Peak is swarming with demons now. If we don’t act soon, we won’t even get a sip of hot broth!” Er Ha urged.
“Nonsense, am I not drinking broth right now?”
“Great King, I didn’t mean this broth…”
Er Ha was speechless.
“Relax, why the panic? Didn’t you say it’s almost mature, meaning it hasn’t matured yet?”
Mo Fan rolled his eyes. He had sensed everything when Er Ha returned and was aware of what was happening outside.
After over a year of refining pills and talismans, Mo Fan’s temperament had grown much steadier.
“This…”
Er Ha didn’t know how to respond.
“Come, dig in. Let’s eat well with your Great King. Once we’re full, I’ll take care of things for you!”
Mo Fan grinned, finishing his broth and swallowing the clay bowl whole. He then tore off a tender mountain deer leg from the pot and began devouring it.
“Anyone who dares bully my demons will face my reckoning.”
“But before that, let’s fill our bellies. Even when the Earth Vein Fire Lotus appears, it won’t be easy to seize. Let those overconfident fools fight and bleed first.
As the humans say: when the snipe and clam fight, the fisherman profits.
We’ll be the fisherman in the end!”
Mo Fan’s calm words gradually soothed Er Ha’s anxious heart. Thinking it over, Er Ha realised Mo Fan was right and said no more, grabbing another deer leg to eat heartily.
“Great King, are we really going to compete for the Earth Vein Fire Lotus?”
“Commander Er Ha said there are only twelve seeds, with eight going to Phoenix Cry Mountain. The remaining four won’t be easy to grab.”
Bai Xue frowned, a trace of worry in her eyes.
“Whether we can grab them is one thing, whether we try is another.”
“Let’s go take a look. Who knows, maybe the Earth Vein Fire Lotus will fall into your Great King’s hands!”
Mo Fan winked at Bai Xue.
“Exactly!”
“Haven’t the humans said it? What heaven offers, you take, or you’ll face divine punishment!”
Er Ha, mouth full of meat, mumbled in agreement.
Mo Fan’s face twitched as he corrected, “The saying is, ‘What heaven offers, if not taken, brings misfortune!’”
“The Great King is so learned!”
Bai Xue looked at Mo Fan with admiration, though she didn’t quite understand the phrase.
“Same thing, same thing…”
Er Ha scratched his head awkwardly.
After the three demons ate their fill, Er Ha led the way to the heart of Red Fire Peak.
Along the way, Er Ha explained that Red Fire Peak was actually a dormant volcano.
It hadn’t erupted in ages, and its crater was sealed, making it hard to discern its unique volcanic structure from afar.
Under Er Ha’s guidance, the three demons arrived at a massive cave mansion.
Mo Fan looked up and saw a plaque above the entrance, crookedly inscribed with three large characters: Mountain God Cave!
Scattered around the entrance were several corpses and broken demon weapons.
“This is the residence of a Demon King, called something like Immortal Cave, which held considerable influence on Red Fire Peak.
But ever since the Earth Vein Fire Lotus appeared, that Demon King went straight to the heart of Red Fire Peak, guarding the lotus to prevent others from getting it first.
Recently, more demons have been arriving, haven’t they?
So, they clashed with the small demons of this Immortal Cave, leading to a series of bloody incidents.”
Er Ha explained, sneering, “If you ask me, these small demons deserved it. They used the Mountain God King’s name to bully and extort outsiders like us.
Now that the Mountain God King is too busy to protect them, where’s their backup?
If it were me, I’d have run off long ago!”
“Hm?”
Mo Fan and Bai Xue both turned to look at Er Ha.
“Ahem… I mean, just hypothetically. I’m not from here. If anyone attacked Black Wind Mountain, I’d stand firm and fight to the death for it!”
Mo Fan rolled his eyes, ignoring Er Ha, and looked into the Mountain God Cave, asking, “This cave is the passage to the heart of the peak?”
“The Great King is wise!”
“Alright, I understand. Both of you, leave now. Flee from Red Fire Peak toward Black Wind Mountain, as far as you can!”
Mo Fan spoke calmly, deciding not to bring the two demons along this time.
Meanwhile, five figures appeared in the sky above Black Wind Mountain.
Riding clouds and mist, they looked down indifferently at Black Wind Mountain, coldly observing a group of small demons training with their weapons on the plaza below.
“Young Master Chuan, this is Black Wind Mountain!”
