Immortal Travel of Longevity

Listening to Yu Hongjin rattle off such a long list of connections, Shangguan stood stunned for a moment.

He had originally only intended to invoke the name of Hongyuan Tianxia to recruit this demon.

Now, however, it seemed he had drastically overestimated his own importance.

He looked toward Sha Tang beside him, his gaze asking if all of this could possibly be true.

Sha Tang gave a helpless sigh. "I am afraid it is all true," he said.

He had heard some of those rumors himself.

Shangguan frowned. This made things difficult.

Hongyuan Tianxia could not afford to offend any of the names Yu Hongjin had just dropped. Their forces were currently marching north—a campaign that tolerated no mishaps. Furthermore, they were on the verge of reaching the Tongtian River. If they made enemies now, negotiations would be a nightmare later.

Sha Tang chimed in with another reminder. "Word is that the Dragon Monarch of Tongtian River went missing two years ago. The Dragon Palace Crown Prince asked the Beicang Dragon Lord to temporarily oversee the Dragon Palace. And that Ink Dragon Lord isn't in the Desolate Sea right now—he is right here before us."

Sha Tang spread his hands helplessly.

Though he was well-informed, he couldn't recall every detail on command.

Shangguan felt a sudden wave of relief. It was a good thing he hadn't immediately thrown his weight around. Otherwise, the consequences would have been more than he could bear. If the Demon Lord handed down punishment for such a blunder, he wouldn't live to see another day.

Seeing them stand in silence for so long, Yu Hongjin simply raised her hand.

In an instant, the surface of the lake rippled.

The lake water rushed upward into beads, looking as though rain were falling backward. A moment later, the drops hung suspended in the air. Then they froze into jagged spikes of ice, pivoted, and leveled straight at the two demons.

"Have you thought it through?" Yu Hongjin asked.

Shangguan snapped back to his senses and stepped forward. "We have no intention of offending you. As a token of our apology, Hongyuan Tianxia is willing to offer humans bursting with vitality—"

Before Shangguan could finish, Sha Tang cut him off.

Sweating profusely, Sha Tang stepped in front of Shangguan to block him. "I have heard of your fondness for the world's finest wines," he said. "As an apology, Hongyuan Tianxia is willing to offer a hundred jars of spirit wine from across the lands, with no two alike."

Irritated by the interruption, Shangguan felt a surge of displeasure. But upon noticing a sudden shift in Yu Hongjin's gaze, he suppressed his anger for the time being.

A glimmer lit up Yu Hongjin's eyes. "A hundred jars? Meaning a hundred different kinds?"

"At the very least!" Sha Tang said.

Yu Hongjin found that to be an excellent proposition. But then her gaze shifted to the snake demon in her palm.

"This is my territory, so don't come stirring up trouble here. And see that the promised wine is delivered to me later."

Shangguan breathed a sigh of relief, but then asked, "Then what about Snake Seven..."

Yu Hongjin frowned. She looked down at it and said, "You're asking about this snake demon?"

Shangguan's heart skipped a beat, a sudden sense of foreboding washing over him.

"He deserves to die."

Yu Hongjin stated it plainly.

Shangguan opened his mouth but decided against saying more. Cupping his hands slightly, he said, "The fine wine will be delivered shortly. Apologies for the intrusion; I hope you will not hold it against us."

"Get as far away from here as you can. Don't be an eyesore."

Yu Hongjin said, and with a flick of her hand, the surrounding illusions vanished.

"Shangguan!" Snake Seven shrieked. "Shangguan, save me! Shangguan!"

Shangguan and Sha Tang walked away without a backward glance.

Snake Seven was thoroughly distressed, unable to comprehend how things had reached such a state.

Listening to his wails, Yu Hongjin said, "Stop your howling. Keep it up, and your Grand Aunt will use you to brew wine!"

Snake Seven glared at her with resentment, but he dared not speak out.

With a cold snort, Yu Hongjin stowed him away.

Thus, the crisis subsided.

...

On the journey back, both Shangguan and Sha Tang wore unpleasant expressions.

For his part, Shangguan felt rather miserable after being forced to grovel like a coward.

As for Sha Tang, he was pondering how to kill Shangguan. There was simply no future in following such an idiot.

Thinking back to what had just happened, Sha Tang still felt a lingering fear.

This lotus pond spirit was deeply fond of wine and practiced the Divine Abilities of the Mysterious Gate. Perhaps having interacted with humans for a long time, she even carried a trace of mortal aura. A moment's thought would have made it obvious that she favored the Human Race. Yet this Shangguan of his had actually wanted to offer "humans" as a gift.

It was fortunate the fool hadn't finished his sentence, or a brutal battle would have been unavoidable.

He certainly didn't have the capability for that. Back in the day, Daoist Wuwei of Qingxian Temple had traveled the realm subduing demons, beating so many of them into hiding that they dared not show their faces. Sha Tang himself had been one of them. Yet a Daoist of that caliber had been frightened off by just a few words from Yu Hongjin. Given his own meager strength, how could he dare make an enemy of her?

Shangguan was likewise displeased, likely feeling he had lost the dignity befitting his position. As a superior, why should he need a subordinate to tell him what to do?

Being clever was a good thing, but he didn't need a subordinate who was entirely too smart.

Both of them harbored sinister designs, lost in their own plotting.

Their gazes met.

Both caught a glimpse of dissatisfaction in the other's eyes.

"Hmm?"

Sha Tang slightly raised an eyebrow. Before Shangguan could speak, he muttered, "Fine."

As the words left his lips, Shangguan had no time to realize what was happening.

His vision abruptly went black, and his mind clouded over in a daze.

Right before he lost consciousness, he felt a faint stinging pain in his shoulder.

‘When did he...’

Shangguan couldn't figure it out. Then, he completely lost consciousness.

Sha Tang slightly raised his brow at this. Raising a hand, he delivered a palm strike directly to Shangguan's crown.

Just like that, his superior died in utter ignorance.

After his last breath, Shangguan reverted to his true form: a toad sprawled out on the ground.

"So he was a toad."

Sha Tang muttered, thinking to himself, ‘No wonder he was so stupid.’

After confirming he was thoroughly dead, Sha Tang dug a hole and buried him.

Raising his hands, he then struck his own arms and legs several times to disguise his condition.

Having done all this, he limped his way back.

The other demons were shocked to see Sha Tang return in such a miserable state.

"What happened?"

Putting on a show of total exhaustion, Sha Tang collapsed to the ground upon arrival. With trembling hands, he gasped, "Shangguan... suffered at the vicious hands of the fish demon... killed on the spot. Go report this immediately... hurry..."

Before he could finish, he feigned passing out.

The others were horrified. After a hasty discussion, they carried the unconscious Sha Tang and rushed back to Hongyuan Tianxia.

When Sha Tang awoke, he went to request an audience with the Demon Lord.

He recounted the events of that time, layering on plenty of embellishments.

His story was woven clearly, leaving little room to spot any flaws. In just a few sentences, he explained Shangguan's death with absolute clarity.

But the sentence that followed made the hairs on Sha Tang's body stand on end.

The Demon Lord, idly writing and drawing with a brush, didn't even look at him, merely stating calmly:

"You are quite clever."

"But I happen to favor clever demons like you."

"You will temporarily assume the position of Shangguan for the northern expedition. However, let there be no next time."

Cold sweat poured down Sha Tang's back. Trembling, he answered,

"Yes... Yes..."

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