"You're not afraid of the Samadhi True Fire, so you've already stepped into the Void Transformation realm..."
Granny Jinhua's face, once proud, now held a trace of despair as she shook her head. "Man's plans are no match for heaven's. I nurtured the Divine Gu Eater Array, thinking I could finally kill you this time, but I never expected you to have reached the Void Transformation realm."
"A Void Transformer is half a step to divinity. I concede!"
Granny Jinhua sighed deeply, accepting her fate.
"Since you've accepted your fate, I shall send you to meet the First Generation Gu God. Rest assured, the other disciples of the Witch God Cult will follow soon. You won't be alone on the road to the underworld."
The Demon Venerable said indifferently, a faint smile playing on his lips.
Though he spoke of annihilation, his words were as gentle as a spring breeze.
"Old Fox of Tushan, won't you be lonely after destroying our sworn enemy, the Witch God Cult?"
Granny Jinhua was no ordinary person. Though she was pleading for her life, her words sounded as if she were concerned for the Demon Venerable.
"Sworn enemy?"
The Demon Venerable chuckled, "The Witch God Cult has only been established for a few hundred years. They can hardly be considered rivals, let alone sworn enemies..."
As he spoke, he waved his hand, and a streak of green light sliced through Granny Jinhua. Thus, a generation of Gu masters perished.
In the blink of an eye, Sun Tongtian and Granny Jinhua were both dead. When Black Widow realized what had happened, she immediately knelt and begged for mercy.
"Lord Demon Venerable, this humble woman knows she was wrong, but it was Sun Tongtian who forced me. It was not my own will!"
"Please spare my life. I will do whatever you ask of me..."
The Demon Venerable waved his hand, interrupting her plea. "You don't need to beg me. Bai Guangda, I bestow Black Widow upon you. Whether you kill her or spare her is your choice."
"Thank you, Lord Demon Venerable!"
Bai Guangda cupped his hands in thanks.
Then, he turned his head and looked at Black Widow with a lecherous grin.
"Master Bai, this humble woman will serve you like an ox or a horse from now on, always at your beck and call, ready to be commanded. All positions are yours to choose..."
*Slap—*
While Black Widow was still fawning over him, Bai Guangda had already smashed her head with a single blow.
"Idiot, I've lost all interest in you. Why are you still babbling nonsense!"
The lust Gu that had been in Bai Guangda's body was no longer effective, meaning he had completely lost all desire and interest in the woman.
Since that was the case, there was no reason to keep her alive.
The Demon Venerable nodded slightly at this, acknowledging that Bai Guangda had made the correct choice.
Had he chosen to spare Black Widow just now, more than just her would have perished.
"Thank you for saving me, Lord Demon Venerable. I have brought you the little demon king you wanted!"
After a long detour, Bai Guangda had finally completed his mission.
He presented Little Hongchan to the Demon Venerable, though not within the Qingqiu Secret Realm.
The Demon Venerable nodded, "You have done reasonably well."
Upon hearing this, Bai Guangda's heart was put at ease. To have made no mistakes was a merit in itself!
He cupped his hands and said, "Lord Demon Venerable, your subordinate has one more request!"
"You want to plead for him, don't you?"
Before Bai Guangda could finish speaking, the Demon Venerable pointed at the unconscious Xiao Hei, having already guessed what Bai Guangda was about to say.
Bai Guangda's eyes widened in surprise.
"Lord Demon Venerable, actually he is..."
"I know. He is Hei Pi."
"Lord Demon Venerable, how did you know..."
The Demon Venerable offered no explanation, simply waved his hand, and said softly, "You may go."
"Uh, Lord Demon Venerable, Hei Pi he..."
Bai Guangda still wanted to plead for Xiao Hei, but then he heard the Demon Venerable say in a deep voice, "I said, you may go!"
"Yes, Lord Demon Venerable."
Although Bai Guangda desperately wanted to plead for Xiao Hei, he dared not anger the Demon Venerable.
He glanced at the unconscious Xiao Hei again, shook his head helplessly, and left the villa.
"Little brother, I've done all I can. As for whether the Demon Venerable will spare you, that's no longer something I can control!"
After Bai Guangda left, the Demon Venerable neither attended to Little Hongchan nor paid any mind to Hei Pi. Instead, he spoke to the empty space before him, "You've been watching the excitement for long enough. It's time to show yourself."
"You actually found me?"
Chen Xiao was slightly taken aback and slowly revealed himself.
He had thought the Thunderclap Divine Crown could conceal all his aura, but he hadn't expected to be discovered.
"Heh heh, so it's the Thunderclap Divine Crown. No wonder I didn't sense any aura."
"..."
The Demon Venerable's first words upon seeing Chen Xiao almost made Chen Xiao spit blood.
"You didn't sense any aura? Then how did you find me?"
"I didn't find you. I merely guessed you would be here."
The Demon Venerable's tone remained as calm as still water. "With Hei Pi's intelligence, escaping Bai Guangda would be child's play. The fact that he didn't do so means he wasn't afraid to return to see me."
"He betrayed me, yet he dared to come see me. Based on my understanding of him, there's only one explanation: a master is protecting him from the shadows."
Hearing this explanation, Chen Xiao gave the Demon Venerable a thumbs-up in his heart.
This old demon was not only powerful but also possessed a first-class intellect!
He just didn't know where Bai Guangda got the courage to compare himself to this being...
"That's right. I am that master."
Chen Xiao readily admitted, "I've been tracking you all the way. Finally, I've found you. When you're ready, let's get started. I want to see just how powerful a demon cultivator in the Void Transformation realm truly is."
Chen Xiao rubbed his fists and rolled up his sleeves, looking as if he was ready for a big fight.
"Heh heh, you are no match for me."
"How do you know if we haven't fought?"
"But I don't want to fight you, Mr. Chen."
Hearing this, Chen Xiao was slightly stunned. "How do you know my surname is Chen?"
"That doesn't seem difficult, Mr. Chen Xiao."
The Demon Venerable smiled. "To show my respect, my surname is Tushan, and my given name is Che."
Tushan... Che?
What kind of name was that? It didn't sound like the name of a powerful figure at all.
"It's quite a coincidence, actually. I also don't really want to fight you."
Chen Xiao scratched his head. "This feeling is strange, I can't quite explain it, but I feel an inexplicable sense of closeness to you..."
Chen Xiao felt ashamed even as he said these words.
However, Tushan Che did not feel the same. He smiled and explained, "This is not strange. It's because we appreciate each other."
"Appreciate each other?"
Chen Xiao pondered the word. It did seem to capture the feeling. "But we're not close. To say we appreciate each other seems a bit much, doesn't it?"
"Not being close doesn't mean anything, because in the grand scheme of things, everything has already been destined."
Tushan Che said calmly, "You are a peerless genius among humans, and I am a peerless genius among demons. Our mutual appreciation was already fated."