Yuan Shu’s eyes suddenly widened, and the abrupt sensation of weightlessness made her suck in a sharp breath.
Her vision blurred.
When her senses returned, the inexplicable darkness left Yuan Shu momentarily stunned. She blinked several times.
She seemed to be in a rather cramped space!
She reached out and felt around her. Suddenly, her hand closed around something with quite a bit of elasticity.
This texture felt strangely like…
Yuan Shu’s brows drew together. Before she could figure it out, the thing covering her head was suddenly lifted by someone.
Yuan Shu looked up and came face-to-face with an exceptionally handsome man.
And that was a face she knew very well!
After all, before the demons infiltrated the Falling Immortal Sect, this man had come looking for her and pestered her for an entire day.
Yuan Shu blinked, her expression one of astonishment.
Yet Li Xie was even more shocked than she was.
He had been traveling with the demon army. Because the demons had allied with the Earth Demon Sha Clan, they had entered the Heavenly Gate Realm right after them.
By all rights, they should have been in the second wave!
Moreover, they had been traveling quickly. The people from the Falling Immortal Sect and the other sects certainly should not have been able to catch up with them.
So why had Yuan Shu appeared here?
The two stared at each other for a while before a stern, powerful voice suddenly came from behind them.
“Li Xie, I told you to have your people scout the fork on the left. Why is it taking so long? How exactly are you leading this group?”
The voice sounded somewhat familiar to Yuan Shu.
The furious shout was accompanied by approaching footsteps. Before Yuan Shu had time to speak, the cloak Li Xie had just lifted was pulled shut again.
Li Xie reached one hand beneath the cloak and pulled Yuan Shu close against his back, covering her figure completely beneath the broad garment.
Then Li Xie knelt before the newcomer.
“It was my negligence, Father. I’ll have everyone pick up the pace immediately.”
Yuan Shu’s heart tightened.
The speaker was the Demon King—the same one who had fought Qu Qing earlier?
What in the world had happened? Where had she ended up?
Yuan Shu suddenly felt a headache coming on.
It must have been the power released when she entered the formation. It had disturbed the underground palace’s Eight Trigrams Formation, altered the original spatial layout, and triggered another round of teleportation.
And, unfortunately, she had been teleported directly into the demon army.
The only thing worth celebrating was that she had landed on Li Xie.
He was one of her own!
What she had touched just now was that man’s tall, sturdy chest.
Li Yan’s cold gaze settled on the son before him.
He disliked Li Xie for more than just the fact that his mother had been born of lowly status—a succubus who had relied on her beauty to curry favor.
It was also because this son resembled him the most out of all his sons.
Those still crimson eyes concealed a trace of ambition, as well as an unruly defiance that could not be controlled.
Furthermore, Li Xie was highly skilled at disguising himself. His face was always calm and unruffled, his manner composed.
Every time Li Yan saw him, he felt vaguely uneasy.
Unfortunately, Li Xie was dependable in everything he did, and Li Yan had yet to find a suitable reason to depose him.
Fury churned in Li Yan’s heart, but his expression remained cold as he cursed without mercy.
“Useless! The Earth Demon Sha Clan is already two li ahead of us. If we fall behind, how do you expect us to get our hands on the true treasures of the underground palace?”
“If you’re capable, then do your job. If you’re not, get back to the demon clan!”
Li Xie lowered his head and cupped his hands, listening with a solemn expression. He did not dare to argue.
Only after Li Yan had finished berating him, turned around, and walked away did the underground palace fall silent again.
Li Xie finally relaxed slightly and carefully lifted the cloak covering Yuan Shu.
“Shu Shu, what are you doing here?”
“I don’t know either. The underground palace suddenly teleported me just now, and I ended up here.” Yuan Shu spread her hands, looking completely innocent as she told him the truth.
Li Xie frowned.
What had just happened had been incredibly dangerous. Yuan Shu had suddenly appeared in his arms. If the Demon King had noticed her, she would certainly have died.
Fortunately, the Demon King’s attention had been focused entirely on the underground palace’s treasures and their speed of advance. He had not noticed Yuan Shu hidden beneath Li Xie’s cloak.
Li Xie let out a quiet breath of relief, then pulled Yuan Shu into his arms. He inhaled deeply, breathing in the familiar fragrance of pear blossoms that clung to her.
Only now did his heart, chilled and numb after being cursed at by the Demon King, seem to regain a little warmth.
“This is the demon army, and the Demon King is leading it personally. It’s extremely dangerous. I’ll arrange an identity for you and have you travel with the group. Just… don’t run off.”
Li Xie lowered his eyes in thought. A moment later, he had already made his arrangements.
The underground palace was filled with danger. Along the way, they had encountered more than thirty mechanisms and formations, and had already suffered considerable losses.
Li Xie was not at ease leaving Yuan Shu to depart on her own.
Of course, she could not remain by his side, either.
The Demon King was keeping a close eye on him. If anything went wrong, Yuan Shu would be discovered immediately.
She was a disciple of the Falling Immortal Sect, which was utterly opposed to the demons. If her identity were exposed, she would have no chance of surviving.
Yuan Shu frowned. She did not particularly want to travel with the demons, but the demon army and the Earth Demon Sha Clan should have been among the first groups to enter the underground palace.
Following them might allow her to reach the center of the underground palace more quickly.
“All right.” After a moment’s thought, Yuan Shu agreed.
Although she had a map of the underground palace’s layout given to her by the formation spirit, the formation spirit had been injured after the intense surge of spiritual energy just now, and the map no longer seemed entirely accurate.
Yuan Shu had carefully observed her surroundings, but she could not identify their current location.
She had no idea which unlucky idiot had forcibly invaded the underground palace’s formation after she obtained the map, causing all her previous efforts to go to waste!
At the thought of this, Yuan Shu’s brows knitted tightly. In her heart, she silently cursed that person eighteen times over.
Li Xie lowered his eyes to look at Yuan Shu and could not resist kissing her lips.
But he merely pressed his lips against hers, indulging only briefly before stopping.
The Demon King was still waiting for him to scout the path. He could not stay for long.
He summoned a trusted subordinate and gave him a set of demon clothing. Only after ordering the subordinate to take Yuan Shu away did he reluctantly withdraw his gaze and lead his people off to scout ahead.
“Miss, just stay with me later. You don’t need to pay attention to anyone else.”
Li Xie’s confidant was named Black One. He was a young man of considerable strength.
Since Li Xie had ordered him to look after Yuan Shu, Black One stayed by her side without taking a single step away.
There were female soldiers in the demon army as well. In this race, where strength was revered above all else, anyone with sufficient power could enlist.
Yuan Shu changed into a set of black female armor. She did not look out of place at all.
An hour later, Li Xie finally returned with his people. He was injured, and his handsome face looked somewhat pale.
The Demon King merely cast him a cold glance before snorting.
“You can even get injured scouting a path. Useless!”
Li Xie did not dare to argue. He lowered his head and replied, “Yes.”
Nearby, the Demon King’s third son, Liye, laughed schadenfreude.
“Big Brother, you’re that badly injured?”
“Could it be that you fell for some little beauty in a phantom formation, only to have a red-powder skeleton stab you straight through the heart?”
Instantly, mocking expressions appeared on the faces of the demons around them. One after another, they looked at Li Xie with disdain.
“What’s the matter? Why aren’t you saying anything? Was Third Brother wrong? Hmm? Hahahaha!”
“Everyone says that with strength like yours, you’re only fit to direct ceremonies within the clan and engage in armchair strategizing. This dangerous expedition to open the Heavenly Gate isn’t something you’re capable of handling!”
“Hehehe… Hahahaha…”
Laughter and jeers rose one after another.
Aside from the soldiers personally led by Li Xie, every other group was mocking him.
Standing among Li Xie’s people, Yuan Shu’s brows drew together slightly.
So this was how Li Xie lived within the demon clan?
