I saved the entire sect by playing idly by letting things fall apart.

With all beasts now subdued, the Cloud and Mist Secret Realm has fallen into a state of utter stillness. One second it's a life-or-death struggle, the next the beasts are recognizing their master—how ridiculous!

Song Hansheng and the others exchanged a glance, almost laughing, overwhelmed by feelings of relief and joy at surviving such a disaster.

They were initially filled with anxiety, but now they were quite certain.

As long as she's there, everything is fine.

This isn't Ye Qiao, this is her living father!

"Isn't she... a monk?" Someone even pointed at her and asked, trembling.

Seeing this, Mingxuan covered his mouth tightly, making him swallow his words.

Ye Qiao leaned back, now it was time to convince the still skeptical demon beasts. She breathed a sigh of relief, quickly preparing her explanation to fool the dim-witted fools. She tilted her head and smiled, casually meeting the gaze of a cultivator, and asked, "Was the game fun?"

What game?

They were utterly bewildered, unable to comprehend how a cultivator could transform into a demon emperor.

They'd run through the dungeon hundreds of times. No one had ever witnessed such an incredible turn of events, so no one responded.

I'm ignoring your performance, which is supposed to be part of your act.

Just as Ye Qiao was about to give up, Ming Xuan interjected, "What game?"

Ye Qiao thought her second senior brother was the most sensible. She lowered her head, rested her chin on her hand, and smiled in a way that looked both innocent and mischievous: "Role-playing game."

"What do you mean?" The boy's expression changed drastically. "Are you lying to us?"

No one realized that he was playing along with Ye Qiao. After all, the cultivators were also quite curious about what role-playing was and what nonsense she was spouting.

Seeing the demonic beasts' gazes shifting between her and the cultivators, Ye Qiao pressed her advantage, letting out a sneer that held a hint of mockery. "You don't actually consider me one of your own, do you?"

Mingxuan, channeling his inner drama queen, pinched his throat, his eyes gradually reddening and widening slightly as if in disbelief. His face was pale, as if he were about to be betrayed and turn to the dark side. He murmured, "Aren't we comrades?"

I rely on.

Ye Qiao had no idea when he went to study acting.

Ye Qiao wanted Song Hansheng to also act out a heartbroken expression of disbelief at being betrayed, but after receiving her signal, Song Hansheng cleverly took a step back and refused to participate in their melodramatic script.

Ye Qiao was very disappointed.

"..." The two had been acting for so long that finally one of the demon kings realized what was going on. He revealed a look of pity and mockery, "Do you really think that we, the Demon Emperor, are on your side? That we want to help you escape? Ha."

The Demon King couldn't help but reveal a haughty smile. "Foolish, utterly foolish."

The monks were dumbfounded; they genuinely believed that person was their companion.

After all, the other party also knows alchemy.

Who would have thought that my former teammates, who fought side by side, would transform into a demon emperor?

The demon beasts gradually understood her meaning, and one by one, the demon kings mocked with great interest, "As expected of the human race's fools, so stupid it's laughable."

"Now that you have nowhere to retreat, do you think our Demon Emperor will help you? Hahaha, I can't help but pity you."

Therefore, the reason why their new demon emperor infiltrated the cultivators was to let them experience the taste of despair.

They loved it so much.

When monsters hunt, they have the cruel nature of beasts and like to play with their prey. Ye Qiao perfectly fits their concept. For a moment, the monsters who were originally somewhat dissatisfied were speechless. Some even narrowed their beastly eyes with pleasure, enjoying the trembling and desperate expressions of the cultivators.

This is the monks' natural portrayal of despair; the oppressive atmosphere is extremely realistic.

They genuinely felt that Ye Qiao had tricked them.

Damn it, the decorator actually deceived their feelings.

"That...that person really isn't your junior sister?" Someone else, still clinging to a sliver of hope, tremblingly grabbed Mingxuan's sleeve, their eyes still shining.

If that demon emperor were a cultivator, they would still have a slim chance of survival.

if not……

He was chilled to the bone by fear, staring intently at Mingxuan, unable to imagine how tragically they would die.

Mingxuan stroked his chin, looked into the other person's eyes, and smiled as he watched the light in those eyes gradually fade away. "The possibility of being possessed cannot be ruled out."

"..."

"Are you kidding me?" He grabbed Mingxuan's shoulder, his grip so tight it felt like he wanted to crush his bones. "Isn't your junior sister a pill cultivator?"

How could a demon beast possibly refine pills?!

Yes, but there are many things they don't understand about the cultivation world. What if the Demon Emperor is omnipotent?

They were almost in despair, but Mingxuan still answered calmly, half-jokingly, "Yeah, she doesn't have the talent for swordsmanship. Maybe she's figured it out and changed careers to become a demon emperor."

"..."

Mingxuan was too good at joking around; they tried to get anything useful out of him no matter how much they tried to subtly inquire.

If it really was the Demon Emperor playing a role, then they were doomed from the start.

From beginning to end, once you step into the Cloud and Mist Secret Realm, it's a dead end.

The feeling was too desperate. No one wanted to die. Some people broke down and cried, but fearing Song Hansheng's curses, they could only cry quietly. Now, only the sword cultivators were most likely to lead them out of the encirclement. They hurriedly changed their target and looked at Qin Huai, trying to get some sense of security from him.

"and you……?"

Qin Huai: "Don't ask me. I can't get you out of here either."

At first, he had a chance to let some of his junior brothers go out. He used the Qingfeng Sword to forcefully cut a path through, but when he turned around, he was blocked by these cultivators. Qin Huai's face was extremely cold.

Moreover, if we want to break through the encirclement, we need to control all the monsters as soon as possible.

Even if he used all his sword techniques, he wouldn't have the ability to withstand countless demonic beasts in an instant.

Everyone was trapped in the secret realm, like fish on a chopping board, at the mercy of others. At this time, the only people who could be relied upon and trusted the most were the sword cultivators.

They were led by Qin Huai, who had said there was nothing he could do. They were in a state of panic and, in a moment of collapse, began to go crazy, shouting and yelling.

The whole scene was extremely chaotic.

Two groups of people remained calm.

The Mu family members gathered together, and compared to the madmen, they were as quiet as a group of cold corpses.

They were genuinely unfazed. Although the Cloud and Mist Secret Realm was terrifying, the head of the Mu family was quite old and wanted to experience the joy of being carried by a powerful figure.

He knew before he came that the Cloud and Mist Secret Realm was dangerous.

But there are people in the secret realm who can carry you there.

Another group that remained exceptionally calm were the close associates.

Ming Xuan was completely absorbed in his madness, playing the role of a betrayed person, rubbing his face up and down with his hands, occasionally letting out a cold laugh, "Heh."

He's like he's gone mad.

Si Miaoyan observed him for a few seconds. Seeing his frenzied state, she gave up on the idea of ​​pulling him into the discussion. Now that the demon beasts were mocking their naivety and stupidity, they no longer seemed intent on killing them. She breathed a sigh of relief and quickly asked in a low voice, "Did Ye Qiao tell you any plans next?"

"No, didn't she say before that we'd see how she performs next?"

Nobody believed her then; they just thought she was joking or bragging.

This kind of affected talk was harmless, so no one really paid attention to what else she said.

Qin Huai said in a low voice, "Ye Qiao said she has a way."

"What can she do? My junior sister is just an innocent and kind little girl." Mingxuan, who had been immersed in his performance just now, suddenly dropped his pained and frantic expression, his voice calm and his smile gone. "You think you can just leave and leave my junior sister inside? Impossible. She has to come out with us today."

"Nobody's stopping her from leaving." Qin Huai's brows furrowed deeply. "But if she wants to stay, can you forcibly drag her away?"

Mingxuan thought about it and realized that given Ye Qiao's style, she might actually stay in the secret realm and cause trouble. The young man conceded, "Then after you open the secret realm, leave the key to me. I'll stay with her."

"So you're leaving the two of you to die together?"

Mingxuan gave a half-smile, "You keep talking about death, but who's dead now, you or me?"

That was a sharp question. For the first time ever, Qin Huai was at a loss for words. He pursed his lips and quickly said, "Whatever."

Ye Qiao now uses some unknown method to intimidate a group of demonic beasts into worshipping her as their queen, and she can manipulate them with just a few words.

However, it's not impossible that she could let them all go with just a word.

Unless all the monsters are brought under control in a short time, they will be able to escape.

Qin Huai guessed that she probably couldn't control herself and only verbally made the monsters obey.

Otherwise, they wouldn't have gone to such lengths to dispel the doubts of the other demon beasts by echoing Mingxuan's words.

"Your Majesty, the key is still with them." A Nascent Soul stage demon beast wagged its tail, gave Ye Qiao a fawning pat on the leg, and then coldly glanced at Ming Xuan.

Mingxuan glanced back coldly: "..." That slut, seducing his junior sister!

Ye Qiao's lips twitched. Just because he took a magical artifact, he almost got targeted. Poor second senior brother. "Whose is it?"

"That woman in red," he angrily pointed at Mingxuan.

Mingxuan almost choked on his own saliva.

Ye Qiao felt that if she didn't stop them at this moment, the demon beasts would probably tear Ming Xuan to pieces immediately. She took a deep breath and released the aura of the Demon Emperor's inner core into her hand, suppressing the demon beasts' restless actions of rushing forward.

She went to great lengths to get a group of people out of the secret realm.

Ye Qiao smiled again and greeted the demon kings, "Hi everyone, would you like to play a game first?"

"What game?"

They raised an eyebrow and looked at Ye Qiao, seemingly quite interested in hearing what she had to say.

If you put yourself in their shoes, the daily lives of great demons are quite boring. Their cultivation levels are high enough that they can command the wind and rain in the great secret realms. Therefore, ordinary cultivators have no interest in capturing them. But things are different now.

Among this group of cultivators were many personal disciples.

They were already itching to tear these people to pieces.

"A game of cat and mouse," Ye Qiao said calmly.

Hunting is in the nature of monsters.

Their interest was piqued. Ye Qiao glanced at the group of cultivators who were looking at her with fear, ignored their pleading gazes, and continued with a smile, "They can't escape now anyway. Want to play a cat-and-mouse game? After they've been running for a while, we'll see who's faster."

"Whoever catches their prey will have their head cut off. Whoever has the most heads at the end wins, how about it?"

This competition rule, which only existed among cultivators, was applied to the demon beasts who had never played games before. Naturally, they were extremely excited and eager to try, with some already baring their teeth and showing bloody smiles.

What a vicious rule.

Ye Qiao's eyebrows and eyes appeared somewhat innocent and aloof, but in the eyes of the cultivators, everyone shivered involuntarily.

The feeling of being cut by a soft knife is terrifying.

It would be better to kill them.

Countless people turned pale and trembled as they tried to beg for mercy.

This humble attitude pleased the demon beasts, and the demon kings, in high spirits with excited smiles on their lips, readily agreed: "Yes."

"Now, let them come out."

With a casual flick of her finger, Ye Qiao shattered the defensive formation upon which all cultivators depended for survival—a formation that had remained sturdy despite being attacked countless times by the demon kings—the moment she waved her hand.

Very competitive.

This is a thought in the hearts of countless people.

Even the demon kings, who had previously looked down on her, were slightly taken aback at this moment.

The cultivators were all terrified. They huddled together for warmth, looking at Ye Qiao as if she were some terrifying monster.

With a flick of their fingers, they shattered a formation; what could they possibly use to resist?

In the secret realm, a playground for the great demon beasts, this was the first time they had directly experienced the meaning of those words.

It's so powerful it's almost despair-inducing.

Song Hansheng: "..."

She's strong my ass.

He was the one who dispelled the formation the instant Ye Qiao waved her hand.

The two had a tacit understanding on this point. Back when she was in the Demon Realm, she had used her power to break through the realm with a few casual gestures and array talismans, making others mistakenly believe that she was very strong.

As cultivators were forced to flee one by one, becoming the amusement of the demon kings, countless cultivators collapsed to the ground in fear, their faces streaked with tears, their legs trembling uncontrollably, some even wetting themselves in terror.

The monsters were visibly excited.

As expected, their Demon Emperor really knows how to play the game.

Inflicting the deepest despair on the prey is far more interesting than simply killing it.

As Mingxuan and the others were leaving, Ye Qiao pretended to tease them and secretly slipped them three Bodhi fruits, saying, "Take these three to find Junior Uncle and the others."

Knowing that countless demonic beasts were watching him, Mingxuan quickly asked, "What will you do if we leave?"

Ye Qiao replied telepathically, "See you later. I have something to do and need to stay in the secret realm for a while. I'll continue playing with them for now."

As long as she secures her position as the Demon Emperor, this great secret realm will be her territory.

Mingxuan gave an OK sign, took the three Bodhi fruits, and said that if Ye Qiao intended to shoulder everything by herself, he would stay and follow her no matter what, after all, he was a responsible and good senior brother.

However, if he had other plans, Mingxuan knew that forcibly staying would only slow down the other party's speed of drawing his sword.

See you later.

He gave Ye Qiao a deep look, then quickly stuffed the three Bodhi fruits into his pocket and darted away.