Wandering Swordsman |

The following morning, sunlight filtered through the dense foliage, casting dappled patterns on the ground. Guided by the person who had reported the previous day, Lü Yan and Tu Yuliang led a small team of elite personnel towards the valley. Along the way, Lü Yan frequently reminded everyone to remain vigilant, as without the protection of the totem, no one could predict what might happen.

As they reached the valley, they saw the totem pole emitting a faint glow in the distance, and noticed the more than sixty people already gathered beneath it. They also spotted Lü Yan and his group and immediately went on alert. Everyone gripped their weapons tightly, their eyes filled with tension and vigilance.

Lu Yan gestured for the group to slow down, while he and Tu Yuliang strode forward, loudly proclaiming, "Friends of the Moon Demon Pavilion, I am Lu Yan. We are not here to fight you. Let your leader come out and we'll talk."

A moment later, Shen Mo stepped out from the crowd, followed closely by Yue Linglong and Xie Xin, their eyes fixed intently on Lü Yan and his group.

Lu Yan and Tu Yuliang were both surprised to see Yue Linglong obediently following behind Shen Mo. Why was Yue Linglong at Refining Demon Mountain? They hadn't seen her when they entered! Even stranger, why was Yue Linglong willing to follow Shen Mo? Just who was this Shen Mo?

This series of questions made Lü Yan and Tu Yuliang hesitant to act rashly.

After carefully observing the people behind Lü Yan and Tu Yuliang, Shen Mo slowly spoke, "I wonder what you two wish to discuss?"

Lu Yan stepped forward, revealing a friendly smile. "Yesterday you had my men deliver a message to me, so I've come today specifically to discuss cooperation."

Shen Mo nodded, a hint of satisfaction flashing in his eyes. It seemed that what he had said yesterday had indeed been conveyed. "Please come into the protection area of ​​the totem to talk." With that, he turned and walked towards the totem pole, gesturing for Lü Yan, Tu Yuliang, and the others to enter the totem's protective area.

Although the Moon Demon Pavilion disciples around remained vigilant, they followed Shen Mo's instructions and made way for him, relaxing their defensive stance somewhat.

Stepping inside the totem pole's enclosure, Lü Yan and Tu Yuliang felt a faint warmth, as if an invisible force was truly protecting them. Shen Mo pointed to a relatively flat area of ​​ground, gesturing for everyone to sit down. "Please sit."

After everyone was seated, Shen Mo first briefly introduced himself, and then began to recount the dried corpse he encountered in the Demon Refining Mountain and the powerful Demon Refining Beast, his tone heavy and serious. "There are too many variables in the Demon Refining Mountain. Before finding the Heavenly Demon Qi, we must temporarily put aside our prejudices and unite as one in this Demon Refining Mountain to increase our chances of survival."

After listening, Lü Yan remained silent for a while, then slowly nodded. "I've heard my grandfather mention that the dried corpse existed to prevent outsiders from entering the Demon Refining Mountain, but I'm not entirely clear on its exact origin. Now, according to what Brother Shen has said, the purpose of the dried corpse is most likely to prevent the Demon Refining Beasts from leaving the Demon Refining Mountain."

Shen Mo continued, "I suggest we explore Demon Refining Mountain together first, finding more totem poles. Mark the location of each totem pole and share it. Then, form an exploration team to explore the terrain of Demon Refining Mountain and draw a map of it. This will increase our chances of survival when facing Demon Refining Beasts."

Yue Linglong added from the side, "Shen Mo is right. We can share resources and intelligence so that we can better deal with various emergencies."

Lu Yan and Tu Yuliang exchanged a glance. Just as Lu Yan was about to express his agreement, Tu Yuliang suddenly said, "Cooperation is possible, but we have one condition."

Lu Yan, who was standing to the side, frowned slightly after hearing this. He obviously didn't know what Tu Yuliang was planning to do, but since Tu Yuliang was his ally at the moment, he couldn't interrupt him.

"What are the conditions?" Shen Mo asked curiously, his brows furrowing slightly.

Tu Yuliang glanced at Su Ming in the crowd of Moon Demon Pavilion, then stared intently at Shen Mo and slowly said, "Hand over Su Ming."

The air seemed to freeze instantly, and all eyes were focused on Shen Mo.

Shen Mo did not respond immediately, but pondered for a moment before saying, "Su Ming is now a brother of the Moon Demon Pavilion, and I cannot make this decision on my own. I need to ask Su Ming's opinion. If Su Ming agrees, then I have no objection, but if Su Ming is unwilling to return to the Blood Demon Pavilion, then Su Ming's attitude is my attitude."

Everyone understood that this was actually giving Su Ming a choice. If Su Ming disagreed, Shen Mo would definitely protect him, since in this environment, any betrayal would have serious consequences.

Su Ming stood to the side, his heart churning upon hearing these words. He knew all too well what kind of person Tu Yuliang was; betraying him would surely lead to no good, and he knew he couldn't back down now. So he firmly said, "I am now a member of the Moon Demon Pavilion, and from now on, I have nothing to do with the Blood Demon Pavilion."

Tu Yuliang's face darkened, a hint of displeasure flashing in his eyes. Just as he was about to make his move, the sky suddenly turned gloomy, the wind picked up, and the surrounding trees began to sway. An uneasy atmosphere permeated the air, as if some great danger was approaching.

Everyone immediately became alert, gripping their weapons tightly and watching their surroundings warily. Soon after, a series of roars echoed from afar, accompanied by a slight tremor in the ground, and a demon-refining beast came into view. Its eyes flashed with a bloodthirsty red light, and each breath was accompanied by a deafening roar, as if it were about to launch a fatal attack at any moment.

"The Demon-Refining Beast!" Lu Yan exclaimed in shock, a hint of fear in his voice, which reminded him of his first encounter with the Demon-Refining Beast. Its enormous form, deafening roar, and merciless slaughter made his heart race, as if he were once again on the verge of life and death.

Shen Mo quickly commanded, "Everyone retreat to the area beneath the totem and prepare for battle!" His words were concise and powerful, each word filled with unquestionable authority.

The members of the Moon Demon Pavilion sprang into action, each finding a suitable defensive position, weapons in hand, ready for battle. Everyone understood that at this critical moment, the slightest negligence could lead to annihilation.

At this moment, Lü Yan and Tu Yuliang immediately led the elite members of the Blood Demon Pavilion and the Flame Demon Pavilion closer to the base of the totem, crowding together with the Moon Demon Pavilion members. Although they had had many conflicts with each other in the past, when facing a common enemy, everyone temporarily put aside their prejudices.

Once everyone had approached the totem pole, the Demon-Refining Beast stopped a hundred meters away from the totem and stared intently at the group.

Its eyes gleamed with a bloodthirsty red light, as if it were about to launch an attack at any moment.

However, to everyone's surprise, the demon beast did not immediately pounce on them, but instead lay down to rest, as if it wanted to trap the people inside the totem to death.