I have seen dragons

Chapter 53 Demon Clan
"The Snake Mountain Bronze Cauldron?"

Yue Wen wouldn't have been so surprised if it were any other kind of treasure.

The information I saw on the Demon Emperor's Skin previously indicated that this skin and the Snake Mountain Bronze Cauldron were sent out together. The Demon Emperor's Skin can communicate with the other side, while the Snake Mountain Bronze Cauldron contains the key to entering the Snake Mountain Tiger Tomb.

Yue Wen was also planning that if he had the chance in the future, he would try to get his hands on this bronze cauldron. He would definitely need it to explore the secrets of Snake Mountain and Tiger Tomb.

Unexpectedly, it was put up for auction again.

It's rather puzzling. If the Serpent King wanted to use these two items to establish a connection with the "Purple Throne," he would have been extremely cautious. What went wrong that allowed these two items to end up on the market?

The Demon Emperor's skin was stolen from the antique shop, and the bronze cauldron was put up for auction.

Seeing his slight surprise, Qi Dian asked, "Have you heard of this?"

"No, that's not true," Yue Wen denied. "I've only heard the legends of Snake Mountain and know that it's a rather ancient and mysterious mountain in the Hundred Thousand Mountains."

“That’s right,” Qi Dian said. “The Snake Mountain Bronze Cauldron is indeed related to this mountain. Over the years, there have been rumors that the Nine-Leaving Emperor, a powerful figure from the previous spiritual era, left his legacy in the Tiger Tomb. Only by entering Snake Mountain can one obtain this ancient divine relic. Some powerful figures have explored Snake Mountain, but none of them could find the entrance. This Snake Mountain Bronze Cauldron is something that someone brought out of that mountain, and it is said to contain secrets related to the ancient divine legacy.”

"Therefore, this bronze cauldron has attracted a lot of attention this time, and many immortal sects and aristocratic families from other continents have sent people to bid for it."

“My sect is well-informed in Jiangcheng City and has also heard some rumors that some forces related to the Demon Clan are inquiring about this cauldron. Given their style of doing things, if the auction fails, they may resort to looting.”

"The legacy of Emperor Jiuli?" Yue Wen frowned.

He didn't get any relevant information from the Demon Emperor's skin. He only knew that it was a gift from the "Demon Emperor" to the Purple Throne. How did it become an inheritance?

Emperor Jiuli is the same Tiger Heaven Emperor who suppressed the Demon Serpent King.

After all, it's the ninth realm from ancient times, so it's normal for his legacy to be so appealing. Because the human realm has only recently begun to recover after three thousand years of the extinction of supernatural powers, many powerful supernatural abilities and techniques are remnants of the previous spiritual energy era.

Regardless of whether the news is true or false, Yue Wen's hopes of obtaining the Snake Mountain Bronze Cauldron are likely dashed. The final item at the Baozhilin Auction was never something he dared to dream of, and now that the cauldron is being targeted by various parties, it's even less likely that he'll be able to snatch it with the little money he's painstakingly saved.

With his limited resources, he couldn't even secure that one purple jade branch.

"I don't know much about the Snake Mountain and Tiger Tomb incident either, and the source of the information is long gone," Qi Dian said. "However, many people believe this claim, so it should be quite reliable."

"Then why has this thing caught the attention of the demons again?" Zhao Xing'er asked. "This inheritance probably won't be of much use to them."

No matter how much the Nine-Leaving Emperor is half-human and half-tiger, he can only be associated with the demon race at most. The demon race would indeed have no use for his inheritance.

Yue Wen had a vague suspicion that there might be some kind of secret deal involved, but he certainly wouldn't dare to reveal anything about the Demon Emperor's Skin.

Qi Dian replied, "Legend has it that the Snake Mountain and Tiger Tomb suppressed the Demon Serpent King who descended to the human world thousands of years ago. He was the reigning Demon King of the Peak Sect at the time. After he was suppressed, the Peak Sect declined for many years before recovering. Now, the demons are eyeing this cauldron, perhaps not for the inheritance of the ancient gods, but to obtain something related to the Demon Serpent King."

"Peak Sect?" Yue Wen caught a glimpse of the word, realizing that Qi Dian seemed to know something he didn't, so he asked, "What is that?"

Qi Dian said, "It's the difference between the Rainbow Sect and the Peak Sect of the Demon Clan, don't you know?"

Zhao Xing'er looked at Yue Wen with some surprise, "You don't even know this?"

Yue Wen said blankly, "I can't find this on the forum, and nobody has told me about it."

……

“These things are indeed quite sensitive,” Qi Dian said. “It’s probably to prevent the news about people with demonic blood from spreading and causing widespread suspicion and panic, so a lot of information about the demon race is blocked on public forums. But people in the cultivation world generally know what kind of power the demon race has.”

Yue Wen felt rather helpless; this was the downside of being a rogue cultivator.

Information is primarily sourced online.

Those disciples of immortal sects and scions of aristocratic families have their own circles, which they cannot integrate into due to a significant information gap.

Fortunately, Qi Dian was quite patient and continued to explain to him: "For ten thousand years, the Tower Kingdom has been the only dominant force in the Demon Realm. The state religion of the Tower Kingdom is called the White Demon Sect. There are two factions within the sect: the Rainbow Sect and the Peak Sect. The Rainbow Sect cultivates the Marrow Cleansing and Demon Transformation Technique, and its members are androgynous, treacherous, and cunning. The Peak Sect cultivates the Dao Heart Demon Seed Technique, and its members are bloodthirsty, manic, warlike, and easily angered."

"These two forces have been vying for power within the sect for years, and their methods of external expansion are quite different. The Rainbow Faction operates in the shadows, preferring to spread rumors and instigate internal strife. They use lifespan and power as bait to induce human spies to undergo marrow cleansing and demonic cultivation, becoming demon-blooded beings, and then supporting these demon-blooded beings to rise to high positions among humans. It is said that four of the Rainbow Faction's seven-colored thrones are currently disguised in the human realm. The Peak Faction operates in the open, fabricating charges to provoke war and forcibly conquering various realms. Hundreds of years ago, when the demon race launched a major attack on the human realm, it was the Peak Faction that was in charge. However, after being severely damaged and forced to retreat, they remained silent for a long time, only showing some activity in recent years."

The Seven-Colored Throne?
Upon hearing this, Yue immediately understood what the "Purple Throne" referred to.

But just now it was said that the Demon Serpent King was the Demon King of the "Peak Sect" thousands of years ago. If it really wanted to break free, why did it contact the Purple Throne of the Rainbow Sect? What's the story behind this?
This was beyond the explanation that Qi Dian and Zhao Xing'er could provide; they only knew some basic information.

After finishing their meal, Yue Wen and Zhao Xing'er got up to say goodbye.

"We won't disturb your work for now. We'll come to see you again on the day of the auction," Yue Wen said with a smile.

“Well, by the way, Brother Yue…” Qi Dian paused for a moment, seemingly a little hesitant, before saying, “I haven’t neglected my cultivation these past few days, and I feel like I’m about to break through. It probably won’t be long before I catch up with your level.”

"Are you about to break through to the late stage of the Harmony Realm?" Yue Wen asked. "Congratulations!"

Qi Dian has indeed become more courageous after being spurred on by Yue Wen. Since being provoked by Yue Wen, he has worked hard day and night, which has enabled him to make faster progress than before.

This greatly encouraged him.

Hard work pays off, and this positive feedback had never been so strong before. So much so that he couldn't help but say it when facing Yue Wen.

Zhao Xing'er said from the side, "Then you'd better hurry up. My boss just reached the Great Perfection of the Harmony Realm. If you don't get to the later stage soon, he'll have already reached the Divine Realm."

"Hey—" Yue Wen glanced at her, "Why are you saying this?"

"Haha..." Qi Dian's eyes glazed over, his face flushed instantly, and he laughed: "So you've already reached the Perfection Realm."

"I've managed to get a slight improvement, by sheer luck," Yue Wen said casually, waving his hand dismissively.

"That's wonderful." Qi Dian murmured as he watched their figures disappear into the distance. "So Yue Wendu has reached the Perfection Realm."

Then he thought about how he had just boasted to him that he was "about to" break through to the late stage of the third realm.

It turns out that the gap between the two people has not narrowed at all, but has actually widened.

Ha ha.

Qi Dian glanced at the river in the distance.

If it weren't for all the things that's been going on lately, I think it would be nice to just die here.

……

Whether Qi Dian was dead or alive was another matter. After returning to the firm, Yue Wen asked Zhao Xing'er to watch the shop while he went upstairs.

For him, Snake Mountain and Tiger Tomb is an inescapable knot.

He had the Demon Emperor's skin in his hands, and it was impossible for him to leave it unused. He had simply known too little before, so he hadn't acted rashly, fearing he might provoke some formidable being.

But having just gathered some information and gained a better understanding of the demon race, and recalling the text I had seen before...

He now had another question.

If, as I suspect, this Demon Emperor's skin truly belongs to the Demon Serpent King suppressed beneath Tiger Tomb, then why did it previously say, "This represents our utmost sincerity," and "You can contact us"...?

This doesn't sound like a person's tone; it sounds more like a force.

He didn't want to wait any longer and took out the Demon Emperor's skin.

The purplish-gold leather was completely blank when opened. After a moment's hesitation, Yue Wen resolutely activated the spell.

call--

The leather surface glowed with a purple light. He lowered two fingers, each touch drawing a golden flame, slowly writing four characters. With a flick of his hand, the four characters vanished with the flames, leaving only faint black marks that would disappear soon after.

This was the first time he had sent a message to the other end of the Demon Emperor's skin; those four words were...

Who are you?

(End of this chapter)