Chapter 816: Three Great Territories

　　The Rat King slumped his head in despair the moment he left the tunnels.

　　The scarlet-haired Essence Spirit before him flickered faintly but did not go too far. The Rat King did not dare to escape either and could merely follow along, sighing constantly in misery.

　　Sigh, to think that I would meet with something like this the moment I cultivate to become a fiend demon. The heavens sure are jealous of the talented!

　　Is this mid-level fiend demon from Cyclone Cave or Black Sand Ridge?

　　‘What a bummer. I’m not even a protector of Howling Moon Mountain, why did it come to look for me?’

　　The Rat King was uneasy and fearful the entire journey.

　　After an hour, the scarlet-haired Essence Spirit at the front stopped.

　　“Go on inside,”

　　The scarlet-haired Essence Spirit pointed to a cave not far away and said indifferently.

　　The Rat King felt that the voice sounded familiar.

　　However, he was completely overwhelmed by fear at that moment and could not think properly.

　　The cave before him seemed like the gigantic mouth of a desolate, gargantuan beast and he was sending himself into death’s gates.

　　“Hais.”

　　The Rat King sighed again and grit his teeth, entering the cave reluctantly.

　　The cave was not big and could be seen in its entirety with a mere glance.

　　Although the light within was dim, the Rat King that was now a fiend demon was almost unaffected.

　　There were five people in the cave.

　　They dressed like human cultivators. However, with his sharp senses, the Rat King could vaguely guess that the five of them were fiend demons in human forms!

　　Among the five of them, some laid down on the ground with one leg crossed against the other lazily, some sat properly while some stood in silence.

　　For some unknown reason, all of them looked at him with odd gazes.

　　The Rat King felt his scalp prickle from their gazes and did not know what to do.

　　Right at the front, a scarlet-haired cultivator sat in a lotus position with his eyes closed. Suddenly, the muscles on the face of the cultivator twitched and his appearance changed significantly.

　　“Y-Y-You…”

　　The Rat King’s eyes widened as he looked at everything in disbelief.

　　The face of the scarlet-haired man was exactly the same as the green-robed man who created a ruckus in Howling Moon Mountain more than a month ago!

　　The five of them were naturally Su Zimo’s group.

　　“Y-You guys?”

　　The Rat King recognized Su Zimo’s group and instantly hopped as he exclaimed, “Are you guys insane? To think you would dare to return!”

　　“Why wouldn’t we?”

　　Monkey sneered, “If the five of us are together, we have no fear even if we are barging into a dragon’s pool or tiger’s lair. Howling Moon Mountain is nothing!”

　　“T-That’s not the case!”

　　The Rat King waved it off and explained, sweating profusely, “Don’t assume that you can come back and seek revenge now that you’ve broken through and become fiend demons! You have to understand that even among fiend demons, there are different levels!”

　　“Only mid-level fiend demons can become Territorial Lords! Their Essence Spirits can roam into the world and travel a thousand kilometers in an inst…”

　　Suddenly, the Rat King’s voice froze.

　　He witnessed something.

　　The scarlet-haired Essence Spirit that entered with him transformed into a scarlet streak of light in a flash and flew into Su Zimo’s glabella!

　　Su Zimo stood up with a humoring smile.

　　The Rat King’s mouth was agape and his eyeballs popped out!

　　“H-How is this p-possible! A-Aren’t you…!”

　　The Rat King wanted to ask how Su Zimo’s Essence Spirit could roam when he was a low-level fiend demon.

　　However, his mind was in a mess at the moment and he could not speak coherently.

　　“Don’t be nervous,”

　　Su Zimo walked over and patted the Rat King on the shoulder with a gentle smile. “I don’t have any ill intentions inviting you here. The conflict that happened in Howling Moon Mountain earlier on was not your fault either,”

　　“Furthermore, it was all thanks to your map that we were able to leave Howling Moon Mountain later on.”

　　The Rat King heaved a long sigh of relief upon hearing that and plopped down onto the ground; unknowingly, he was already drenched in sweat.

　　There were many things he did not know about this person before him.

　　However, he knew that this was somebody who placed a clear distinction between gratitude and hatred – that statement already guaranteed that the Rat King’s life would not be harmed!

　　“Brothers, why have you looked for me?”

　　When the Rat King composed himself a while later, he took the initiative to ask.

　　Su Zimo said, “I want to find out about some things from you.”

　　Suddenly, the Rat King revealed a cautious expression as his eyes roved around Su Zimo’s group. After a lengthy consideration, he said, “Pardon me for being straightforward, brothers, but the reason why I saved you guys earlier on was out of guilt.”

　　“However, if you wish to make use of me to harm Howling Moon Mountain, I cannot agree to it!”

　　Su Zimo replied indifferently, “Howling Moon Mountain is facing threats from everywhere and is about to fall. There’s no need for us to make a move.”

　　“What do you mean by that?”

　　The Rat King blinked.

　　“Black Sand Ridge, Cyclone Cave, Ghastly River!”

　　Slowly, Su Zimo gave the three names.

　　The three names belonged to the three territories around Howling Moon Mountain!

　　The Rat King remained silent but his expression shifted slightly.

　　Su Zimo said, “You are updated with the news and I’m sure you must already know of the motives those three territories have towards Howling Moon Mountain. If they form an alliance, Howling Moon Mountain will cease to exist!”

　　Su Zimo obtained most of the information eavesdropping earlier on and was able to come to this conclusion with some slight deduction.

　　The Rat King sighed gently and gave a bitter smile. “Even without an alliance, if one of those territories attacked, Howling Moon Mountain won’t be able to withstand it.”

　　“Tell me, what do you know about the three territories?” Su Zimo asked.

　　The Rat King replied, “Actually, just by looking at the map, you can tell that the three territories are stronger than Howling Moon Mountain.”

　　He was not wrong. On the map, the area occupied by Howling Moon Mountain was the smallest and was in between the three territories.

　　The Rat King continued, “There are only two mid-level fiend demons in Howling Moon Mountain, the two Territorial Lords. However, from what I know, there are at least five mid-level fiend demons in Cyclone Cave and Black Sand Ridge!”

　　“Ghastly River is the most mysterious and nobody knows how many mid-level fiend demons there are. However, it is widely acknowledged that they are the strongest!”

　　“That’s because the Territorial Lord of Ghastly River is a wyrm!”

　　At that point, the Rat King turned towards Su Zimo’s group instinctively.

　　Unlike what he expected, none of them seemed shocked or taken aback.

　　Su Zimo and the other four were way too calm, as though they had just heard something extremely ordinary.

　　“Are the five of them having a delayed reaction?”

　　The Rat King thought to himself and cleared his throat before elaborating with emphasis, “The wyrm is a pure-blooded ferocious beast that carries a remnant bloodline from the Dragon race within its body. Although slim, it has a chance of cultivating into a True Dragon!”

　　“Oh,”

　　The group of five replied expressionlessly.

　　To begin with, Su Zimo was now half a dragon and would naturally not bother about an existence like the wyrm.

　　Monkey and the others had fought against the Rakshasa race of the Primordial Nine Races. As such, their perspective on things was not something ordinary demon beasts could compare to.

　　The Rat King widened his eyes and puffed his cheeks, feeling an inexplicable sense of frustration.

　　Little Fox was the first to react as she clapped her hands and exclaimed, “Wow! A pure-blooded ferocious beast! Amazing!”

　　“That’s way too fake!”

　　The Rat King’s mouth cramped up and he could not help but roll his eyes.