On the way back to the cave mansion, aside from Deer Greedy and Crane Flying following Mo Fan, the other lesser demons returned to their own caves, but the ox demon Mighty was called back by Mo Fan.
Upon returning to the cave mansion, Deer Greedy and Crane Flying first toured Mo Fan’s residence, praising its layout endlessly.
“Not bad, Brother Laibao! I never expected your cave mansion to be so well thought out. The sleeping area, kitchen, and even the latrine are all in separate rooms, tsk tsk, quite fancy. Tomorrow, I’ll fix up my own cave mansion too!” Deer Greedy exclaimed with admiration.
Crane Flying, standing nearby, couldn’t help but look around with sparkling eyes, finding everything novel and intriguing.
Mo Fan just smiled. He understood that most demons in Black Wind Mountain were crude and lazy, their cave mansions monotonous, merely a hollowed-out cave they called home, with no architectural flair whatsoever.
In such a context, his three-bedroom, one-living-room, one-bathroom, one-kitchen setup naturally stood out as unique.
Leading the three demons to the back door, Mo Fan gazed at the fish swimming in the spring pool before asking, “You two Dingmu, what exactly is this contest that Grandpa King mentioned earlier?”
He then turned to Mighty, who still seemed a bit dazed, and asked thoughtfully, “Mighty, have you experienced that contest too?”
Mighty snapped out of it and gave a wry smile, “Yes, Master!”
Deer Greedy and Crane Flying exchanged a glance, chuckling, “Since your underling ox demon has been through it, let him tell you. Saves us some spit.”
Mo Fan didn’t object and looked at Mighty, who pondered for a moment before nodding, “I do know a bit, so I’ll tell Master about it.”
“From what I know, every ten years, Black Wind Mountain holds a trial.
Oh, this trial is the contest Grandpa King mentioned. All Dingmu masters and lesser demons like me must participate.
The sole purpose of the trial is to survive within a set time, or rather, to fight each other to the death.
Because it’s not just us Black Wind Mountain demons taking part; the Dingmu and lesser demons from the other two nearby mountains join in too.”
“Fight to the death?”
Mo Fan frowned slightly, asking, “What’s the trial for? Since it’s a trial, there must be a purpose, right?”
“I don’t know the details, but those who survive the trial and earn battle merit points will receive rewards from Grandpa King,” Mighty said.
“Battle merit points?” Mo Fan thought for a moment before asking, “I assume these points are tied to the number of demons killed. If so, there must be demons who don’t seek to kill but just aim to survive. What happens to those who don’t earn any points?”
“Master is wise. Every trial, many demons indeed fail to earn points. Last time, I didn’t get any either. For us lesser demons who barely survive, there’s no reward, but no punishment either. After all, so few demons survive each trial that Grandpa King sees no need to add more killing,” Mighty said with a wry smile.
“So the trial’s purpose is just pure slaughter?”
Mo Fan frowned, feeling the reason wasn’t quite convincing.
“Of course not. The trial, or rather, the deadly contest, is actually all about competing for the Six-Colour Vermilion Fruit,” Crane Flying suddenly interjected.
Mo Fan immediately looked at her.
As the personal attendant of the Third General, the crane demon surely knew more than Mighty.
Sure enough, Crane Flying continued.
“The Demon Spirit Mountain Range is vast, not just limited to our Black Wind Mountain. Nearby, there are two other demon mountains: Black Cloud Mountain and Black Nether Mountain, both comparable in strength to ours.
To resist invasions from human cultivators, the three mountains maintain a mutual alliance, but privately, there’s a certain level of rivalry.
Long ago, human cultivators banded together to invade our Demon Spirit Mountain Range. Even with the three mountains united, we were no match, so three Dingmu were sent deep into the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains to seek aid from the demon ancestors.
On their way, the three Dingmu discovered a valley where a Mysterious Grade Treasure Tree grew. When this news reached the three mountains, the three demon kings gathered to discuss how to divide the tree’s spiritual fruits. They couldn’t agree and ended up fighting each other.
Later, this matter caught the attention of a demon ancestor deep in the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains, who provided a solution.
The Mysterious Grade fruits from the treasure tree would be divided equally, while the Yellow Grade fruits would be contested by the demons of the three mountains through a day-long slaughter, with the mountain having the most surviving demons claiming ownership of the Yellow Grade fruits.”
“I see!”
Mo Fan nodded, finally understanding the reason. His mind stirred as he recalled the beast-skin map he’d gotten from the scorpion demon, which marked some unfamiliar areas that now seemed to be the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains.
He wasn’t surprised that there were more powerful demons deep in the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains.
Instead, he was now deeply intrigued by the treasure tree and asked immediately, “The Mysterious Grade Treasure Tree you mentioned is the Six-Colour Vermilion Fruit, right?”
“Exactly. The Six-Colour Vermilion Fruit is a Mysterious Grade Treasure Tree that blooms every five years and bears fruit every ten.
It produces one top-grade Mysterious fruit, three mid-grade Mysterious fruits, six low-grade Mysterious fruits, and over a hundred Yellow Grade spiritual fruits, each with different colours.
That’s why the three mountains send demon generals to guard it, ensuring the fruits aren’t destroyed prematurely,” Crane Flying explained.
“So, that valley must be the so-called Demon Spirit Valley?”
Mo Fan mused. He’d heard the demons mention Demon Spirit Valley before. His direct superior, Third General Mountain Phoenix, was said to be there.
He hadn’t known why Third General was absent from Black Wind Mountain, but now it seemed clear that the Black Wind Demon King had sent him to guard the Six-Colour Vermilion Fruit.
It was highly likely the other two demon mountains had also sent generals to Demon Spirit Valley to prevent any theft.
“Thinking about this now is pointless unless you can break through to the demon general level within six months. Otherwise, you’ll have to participate in this trial.
Of course, you could try to escape, but do you think you can slip away from a demon king?” Deer Greedy grinned, his expression slightly manic.
Mo Fan smiled, “Brother Deer, you jest. Though the trial is dangerous, the rewards are substantial, aren’t they?”
He wasn’t too concerned about the trial and even had some ambitions regarding the Six-Colour Vermilion Fruit. Whether he could achieve them depended on his cultivation progress in the next six months.
“Brother Laibao, you’ve got some guts, but you don’t know how brutal this trial is, or you wouldn’t speak so lightly.
Let me tell you, even among Dingmu, the casualty rate is over half!” Deer Greedy said with a cold laugh.
“Over half for Dingmu?!”
Mo Fan’s pupils contracted. This time, he was genuinely shocked. He glanced at Mighty, who nodded, confirming Deer Greedy’s words.
Afterwards, Mo Fan talked at length with the three demons. Finally, he took some fresh meat from his internal space and personally caught some fish from the spring pool to host a feast.
At the banquet, Mo Fan even brought out a dozen dragon loaches and two jugs of monkey wine to entertain his guests.
Both the dragon loaches and monkey wine left the two demons in awe. Even the ox demon Mighty was fortunate enough to taste some, gaining significant benefits. In front of Mo Fan and the other two Dingmu, Mighty underwent his fourth demon transformation, just one step away from becoming a Dingmu himself.
The banquet was a joyful affair for both host and guests.
