Huan Yushan did not wish to meet the Demon King empty-handed either, and had also wanted to capture Yu Qing at that moment to complete his task. However, there was no way. An entire night had passed without any trace of Yu Qing. Who knew where he was hiding? The exit still showed no signs of opening, so he could only come empty-handed.
Of course, he could have chosen not to come. He could have gambled on luck, betting that after they hid, this Demon King would not be able to find them. But could he really gamble on someone else’s territory?
So he came. He came to face this, hoping to communicate properly and fight for a path to survival for the Kunling Mountain disciples who had entered.
If there truly was no other way, if they truly had to fight, then he could only be the first to step forward. The cultivation levels of the junior disciples could not withstand this.
Standing on a branch, he had already seen the Demon King in the clearing beneath the large tree.
Seeing the swarms of bees dancing before his eyes, he had roughly guessed what the Demon King’s true form was.
The flower-robed man also saw him. They exchanged a brief gaze across the distance. Although he knew his current condition had developed a serious problem, he still waved his large hand, and the swarming bees immediately separated to form a spatial passage.
He, Xiang Zhen, and two bare-chested men all did their best to maintain their outward composure.
After taking a deep breath, Huan Yushan flashed through and flew into the arena, landing before the flower-robed man. He also glanced at Xiang Zhen with some surprise, not knowing what this person was doing standing here. #15019 not
A thought passed through his mind, and then he cupped his hands and said, “Huan Yushan pays his respects to Your Majesty.”
The flower-robed man was somewhat surprised by this person’s attitude, so he revealed his usual smile and followed along, saying, “You came alone? You did not bring the person?”
Huan Yushan sighed and said, “Your Majesty, we truly did our best. It is not that I did not want to bring the person, but we truly could not find him in such a short time.”
The flower-robed man stared at him for a while, then smiled again and said, “So it seems, I have made things difficult for you?”
Facing this question, Huan Yushan pondered and said, “The place is too large, and we do not have enough manpower.”
The flower-robed man suddenly asked Xiang Zhen, “Brother Xiang, do you think I am someone who makes things difficult for others?”
Xiang Zhen, who was forcibly suppressing his restless desires, did not know what he meant by this question, and calmly said, “No.”
The flower-robed man immediately said cheerfully, “Brother Xiang and I hit it off at first sight. Since Brother Xiang says I am not someone who makes things difficult for others, then I will give you another chance for Brother Xiang’s sake. I will give you three more days. If you still cannot bring the person after three days, then do not blame me!”
After speaking, a mountain-toppling, sea-overturning, vast aura suddenly erupted from his body. The swarms of bees around the large tree were immediately scared into disarray, so frightened that they did not know how to fly, and fell like rain.
Yu Qing and the others hiding in the dark naturally also witnessed this spectacular scene. The swarms of bees enveloping the outside of the divine tree fell like a draped veil of gauze.
Xiang Lanzhi’s tightly focused pupils suddenly contracted, her eyes full of horror, as if she had perceived something.
“Hey, there’s movement. The bee swarms are moving. Old Fifteen, can we make our move now?”
Nan Zhu could not help but shout out excitedly in a small voice.
That was exactly what the Vine Demon said. To know whether the pollen had taken effect, one only needed to see if the bee swarms showed any unusual movement. Did not this current movement confirm the Vine Demon’s words?
What did the bee swarms’ unusual movement have to do with making a move? Xiang Lanzhi turned her head to look at the group’s reactions, and had already realised it was related to the pollen they had collected.
Yu Qing cast a disgusted glance at Nan Zhu. “Make what move? Huan Yushan has been hiding his true abilities. Even the great Xiang Zhen is no match for him. Now that he has barged in, how are we supposed to make a move? Are you charging over, or am I?”
Hearing this, Nan Zhu could only give a dry laugh. The logic was simple. If Huan Yushan saw them, he absolutely would not let them go. He would definitely capture them.
Xiang Lanzhi timely reminded them, “I do not know what you mean by the bee swarms’ unusual movement, but I can be certain that the movement just now was not the kind of movement you are talking about. It should be the result of being intimidated by the aura released by that Demon King. Judging from the aura, that Demon King’s strength is extremely powerful, even more powerful than an Earth Master!”
Once these words came out, the group looked at each other in dismay. They all knew that since she spoke this way, it should not be nonsense.
It was like before one’s cultivation broke through the Xuan realm, one needed the “Blue Enchantress” to aid one’s vision. After breaking through the Xuan realm to a certain level, one could open one’s Dharma Eye at any time, and the reliance on the “Blue Enchantress” decreased.
They knew that someone at Xiang Lanzhi’s cultivation level could see things that they could not see.
Thus they dared not act rashly even more, and could only continue to wait…
Amidst the vast aura, Xiang Zhen sensed a suffocating pressure from the unseen, his heart trembling with shock.
Huan Yushan was even more filled with horror. He was at the High Xuan realm cultivation level, so he naturally understood what the powerful aura released by the other party meant. It had definitely surpassed the High Xuan realm. Only now did he realise that the thoughts he had harboured earlier were simply a joke. The other party could crush him at any moment.
Fortunately, the flower-robed man did not press on relentlessly, and the powerful aura was quickly withdrawn.
Once that suffocating pressure disappeared, both Huan Yushan and Xiang Zhen breathed a sigh of relief.
Especially Huan Yushan. Although he had been intimidated, he had after all gained three days of leniency. At least the probability of finding that Third-Rank Graduate had increased greatly. He immediately cupped his hands and said, “Thank you, Demon King, for your leniency!”
The flower-robed man smiled faintly. “I will not see you out.”
Huan Yushan immediately bowed slightly to take his leave, not forgetting to cup his hands toward Xiang Zhen as a gesture of thanks.
He had come prepared to face death generously, and had not expected to receive such leniency. At this moment, he truly believed it was due to Xiang Zhen’s face, so he naturally had to make a somewhat forced gesture of gratitude.
Of course, before turning around, he still took an extra look at the few people present, feeling that there was an abnormal flush on their cheeks, including Xiang Zhen’s.
He did not think much of it, and quickly flashed away.
After watching the figure disappear into the distance, A Chi spoke up and asked, “Your Majesty, was he sent by an old acquaintance from your former immortal mansion to scout?”
The flower-robed man, who had been keeping his eyes closed, suppressed his surging desires, then opened his eyes and shook his head. “Regardless of whether he was or not, delay as long as we can. Try to hold out until A Qing and A Lan return to normal.”
Xiang Zhen detected something abnormal and asked in confusion, “Is there something wrong with this aphrodisiac?”
The aphrodisiac only stirred his desires and made him uncomfortable, easily causing him to lose his mind and act irrationally, so to him it was not very serious. But he did not know that the consequences of these three bee demons entering heat were very serious. They were already in a half-crippled state.
It even concerned life and death, because they could no longer fight. Forcibly mobilising their cultivation would be no different from self-detonation.
Although the flower-robed man rather trusted him, he did not dare tell him the truth at this moment. He only shook his head with a bitter smile.
Xiang Zhen sensed something was wrong and tentatively asked, “Should we find a hidden place to hide first?”
The flower-robed man shook his head again. “An old acquaintance has come. They are very familiar with the immortal mansion. We cannot hide. The other party does not dare show their face now, and might still be observing. They still do not dare to act rashly. If I run, it will likely become even more troublesome.”
Xiang Zhen was silent for a moment, then said, “Your old acquaintance should have the strength to dominate in the outside world. Why would the process of entering the immortal mansion be so complicated? Since they know the way to enter, why did they still need to use Zhang Zhichen and the others to open the cave mansion?”
The flower-robed man pondered briefly, then nodded slightly, as if understanding something. He immediately turned back to A Chi and A Cheng and said, “Order the swarm to disperse and search. Find that little moustache.”
A Cheng reminded him, “Your Majesty, in our current condition, even if we find him, we cannot bring him back.”
The flower-robed man said, “If you find him, attack. Once poisoned, he will naturally come to us.”
He now actually did not want Huan Yushan’s side to find Yu Qing and the others first. He was afraid Yu Qing and the others would say things they should not. Once Huan Yushan knew that they had been tricked, this side would be in danger.
A Chi immediately said to Xiang Zhen, “I ask that Mr. Xiang inform us of their specific appearances, so that I can relay them to the swarm to facilitate the search and confirmation.”
Xiang Zhen was somewhat hesitant, not knowing whether it was good to betray them in this way.
The flower-robed man placed a hand on Xiang Zhen’s shoulder. “Brother Xiang, rest assured. What I promised you, I will definitely fulfil.”
Xiang Zhen thought for a moment, then nodded, and began to describe Yu Qing and the others’ appearances in detail to A Chi and the others.
By now, the fallen bees had already flown up again. They had only been frightened earlier, and were not injured.
Yu Qing and the others, hiding beneath the Corpse Hair Grass and observing, all hesitated after witnessing Huan Yushan’s departure.
Nan Zhu muttered, “What is going on? That old fellow just left like that. How come there was not the slightest sound of fighting? With such a high-level expert, we could not possibly fail to sense any movement if he attacked. Old Fifteen, are we still going in or not?”
According to the original plan, as soon as the bee swarms showed abnormalities, they were to rush into the immortal palace to deal with the Bee King and search for the Heaven Spring or Human Spring.
Now Huan Yushan’s calm coming and going had made them somewhat wary of acting rashly.
Yu Qing also muttered, “Could it be that Elder Huan did not discover that the Bee King had been tricked?”
Xiang Lanzhi finally could not help but ask, “Can you tell me what is going on? Perhaps I can help you think it through.”
Yu Qing thought about it. In any case, what should not have been seen by this woman had already been seen by her. He immediately explained, “The Bee King has a habit of consuming honey nectar, and that pollen can restrain the Bee King. When the swarms of bees that come to gather honey return to the hive, their bodies will be contaminated with pollen.”
He had said enough. He believed that if she was not stupid, she should be able to understand what was going on.
Xiang Lanzhi’s eyebrows immediately shot up, her heart filled with shock and suspicion. This group had actually even grasped the Demon King’s living habits. They had indeed come prepared.
Temporarily setting aside her distracting thoughts, she thought for a moment and asked, “I saw that the Bee King also has two male and two female subordinates. Do they also consume honey nectar?”
Yu Qing hesitated and said, “I do not know.”
Xiang Lanzhi had no choice but to remind him, “The strength of those four subordinates of his is very high. At the very least, they are all at the High Xuan realm. As long as even one of them has not been affected, they can finish off all of us. Are you certain you want to barge in?”
Yu Qing immediately fell into a dilemma.
“Damn it.” Nan Zhu could not help but scratch his face and mutter.
The Vine Demon had never mentioned that the Bee King still had subordinates of such high strength, and several of them at that.
Suddenly, the group’s gazes turned one by one toward the divine tree. They saw countless multicoloured bees beginning to fly in all directions. Most of them lowered their flight altitude one after another, searching while hugging the ground.
The group’s hearts tightened. They quickly ducked their heads, pulled the Corpse Hair Grass tightly over themselves, and peeped through the gaps.
A short half-day quickly passed. After communicating with the bee swarm, A Chi came up first to report. “Your Majesty, the target has not been found so far.”
The flower-robed man, sitting cross-legged in meditation, pointed at Xiang Zhen. “Not a single one of the people he described has been found?”
A Chi said, “No.”
The flower-robed man fell into silence, then suddenly raised his hand and tapped his forehead. “I was careless. Since the other party knows our weakness, they should also know how to avoid our search. Immediately notify the swarm. Do not avoid places with Corpse Hair Grass. Search them carefully. Also, that place where the Soul-Bewitching Pollen can be collected, go in and search them thoroughly.”