Chapter 49: The Ninety-Six Caves of Demons and Fiends

After a while, Cao Kong and Hu Yan appeared again at the foot of the mountain. Hu Yan led Cao Kong to a tree beneath which there was a hollow, covered with dead branches.

Hu Yan leaped into the tree, rummaged through the branches, and produced a wooden box. Holding the box, he came before Cao Kong and said, "I wish to offer this treasure to the immortal in gratitude for your kindness."

Cao Kong replied, "No need to call me immortal; I am but a cultivator." He then curiously opened the wooden box. This fox was indeed clever—escaping to safety, yet not forgetting to hide his valuables. Now, he presented them, likely because he had seen the rules Cao Kong had just set and knew him not to be a villain.

Inside the box were two opened letters and a gourd. The gourd was sealed with magical power, impenetrable to lesser demons unless its enchantment was broken. For Cao Kong, it was an effortless task; he summoned his internal energy to clash with the magic surrounding the gourd, forcing its mouth open with a thunderous crack.

At once, Cao Kong sensed something amiss. His spiritual awareness was keen; he immediately detected a wave of intangible bloodlust. He tossed the gourd away, drew a strand of golden energy from his lungs, and cleaved it. The gourd split in two, its contents spilling out.

It was all blood, wrapped in beeswax. Each drop equaled the entirety of an ordinary person's blood.

"This is the method of refining human blood, only with an added sealing art," Cao Kong said, his expression darkening. He recognized the technique—it was nearly identical to the one he had destroyed three years ago, when he slew the tiger demon who preyed on humans.

Cao Kong summoned the flames of the tail fire in his palm and, amidst blazing heat, burned the blood to nothingness.

Hu Yan watched anxiously and pleaded, "Immortal, I know nothing of this. When we killed the little demon that day, we felt indignant, so we snuck into the cave of the Yellow Wind King and stole the box from his bed. We simply believed it was the Yellow Wind King's treasure, but couldn't open it ourselves. Seeing you rescue my companions and take us in, we wished to offer it to you, not realizing we had erred."

Cao Kong's expression eased somewhat, and he replied, "I do not blame you, but this object harms the harmony of heaven and earth. I do not wish it to remain in the world."

He then looked at the letters in the box; they showed signs of having been opened. Hu Yan quickly explained, "We read them, but could not understand; we don't know what they mean."

Cao Kong took up the letters. Perhaps they would reveal why the monsters of Red Cloud Mountain knew the method of refining human blood.

He read through them, and the deeper he went, the heavier his brow became. Yet suddenly, his expression cleared with realization, then twisted again in contemplation, and finally he laughed coldly: "Ridiculous—disaster looms overhead, and they remain oblivious, still dreaming of becoming immortals and kings."

---

Hu Yan did not understand, but being clever by nature, he did not ask when Cao Kong remained silent.

There were two letters, explaining the origin of the Red Cloud Mountain monsters' blood-refining technique. It came from a demon king who had long practiced alchemy.

That demon king was adept at alchemy and claimed that human beings were the most precious and spiritual; their blood could be used to forge immortal pills, granting longevity. Thus, the monsters of Red Cloud Mountain wrote to the demon king, stating that they had gathered the blood of hundreds and would soon offer it up to him in exchange for blood pills.

The other letter was from the demon king’s faction, instructing the Yellow Wind King to attend the "Immortal Pill Gathering" three months hence. It spoke of ninety-six monster caves coming together, collecting the blood of ten thousand living beings to forge immortal pills for all to ascend together, intending to establish a monster court on earth and live freely.

To this, Cao Kong could only say that doom was imminent. Though the world is vast and monsters causing harm cannot be entirely eradicated, such large-scale slaughter and talk of founding a monster court—was this not akin to rebellion against the celestial court?

Since ancient times, nothing was more punishable than rebellion.

Still, even knowing the monsters’ fate, Cao Kong was uneasy. He did not know if the celestial court was aware of this plot. In heaven, one day equals a year on earth; if word was not passed quickly, the monsters might wreak even greater havoc.

Now that he knew, he could not stand idle.

Cao Kong pondered and finally stomped the ground, calling, "Earth God?"

Hu Yan watched Cao Kong’s strange actions in silence.

After a while, Cao Kong called a few more times, but nothing happened.

Cao Kong was left helpless—whether the Earth God did not wish to see him or if there was simply no Earth God in Hidden Mist Mountain, he could not tell.

He carefully placed the letters back in the wooden box for safekeeping and, riding the wind, brought Hu Yan back up the mountain. After arranging accommodations for the foxes, he hurried to his cave, devising ways to inform the celestial immortals as soon as possible.

---

Meanwhile, a hundred miles away atop Red Cloud Cave, the Yellow Wind King raged for days. The blood he had collected for so long was gone—how could he face the demon king in three months?

A little demon scurried in, kneeling and trembling, "M-m-mighty King, we can't find those foxes in the mountain. They may no longer be here."

The Yellow Wind King grew even angrier, kicking the kneeling demon against the wall, causing him to spit blood.

He roared, "What use are you? You let a few worthless foxes escape! Find them! If you don’t, I’ll take your heads myself!"

The other demons looked even more miserable. At this moment, a wolf demon arrived, panting and kneeling, unable to speak for some time.

The Yellow Wind King growled, "If you don't bring me good news, you can die right now."

The wolf demon shuddered, "I do, I do! I have good news. King, to the north, a hundred miles away, there is a mountain. Twenty or thirty miles to its side stands a village with about a hundred people."

The Yellow Wind King was instantly delighted, but his face soon darkened. "Why haven’t you slaughtered them and brought back their blood?"

The wolf demon stammered, "M-m-mighty King, it seems a cultivator is there. I saw two swords flying in the sky, swift and fierce, so I dared not act recklessly. I thought to report to you first, and then act."

The Yellow Wind King’s face eased, "Good, you passed. When you kill the villagers and bring their blood to the demon king, after you get the immortal pill, I’ll let you have a taste of its aura. But what about the cultivator?"

He sneered, "With me here, what is there to fear? Our urgent task is to go to the village, kill and collect blood. If we delay the demon king’s plan, we’ll all be punished."

---

Back in the Linked Peaks Cave, Cao Kong was still trying to call for the Earth God, even explaining the matter in the letters, but there was no response.

Cao Kong felt helpless; he was, after all, a disciple of the Divine Lord of Salvation, and yet he could not summon even an Earth God.

Suddenly, Cao Kong paused. Of course—his master was the Divine Lord of Salvation. Why not call upon his master?

The Divine Lord was famed for responding to cries of suffering, rescuing those in need.

As a registered disciple, if he called with sincerity, perhaps something miraculous would happen.

Thinking thus, Cao Kong immediately went before the statue of the Divine Lord, lit incense, knelt, and bowed deeply.

"Disciple Cao Kong has a matter concerning the welfare of all people and wishes to report to Master."