Martial Ascent to Divinity-Chapter 562 - 545: Delivering the Message

These past few days, every time Zhou Leng investigated, he would first observe the main tent in the center of the Demon Camp.

In front of the tent, there would always be at least six Great Innate Demons guarding it, with several other demons standing around, forbidding others from approaching.

The figure, suspected to be the Celestial Calamity Envoy, would often stand at the entrance, giving orders or conversing with the demons.

Now, the main tent was still there, but the Great Innate guards around it had disappeared.

Zhou Leng looked around; there were fewer demons and more humans from the Demon Worship Sect.

"Hmm?"

Out of the corner of his eye, he glimpsed a faint red, turned his head, and looked closely.

Where White Lake was, it became a light red expanse.

Zhou Leng’s heart skipped a beat, his breath caught.

Looking more carefully, the originally dense white dots had all turned red.

The water of the lake, once interwoven with blue and white, now displayed a light red hue.

Millions of red dots replaced the white dots.

Zhou Leng gritted his teeth, the killing intent in his eyes igniting like a fire.

After a long silence, he left his original position, approached the Demon Camp, and began his investigation.

Either on high ground or in the trees, he circled the camp from afar, observing from all sides.

Up close, the view of White Lake was even clearer.

Clusters of bellies were sliced open, the red transitioning to a withered yellow.

Before long, he spotted a familiar face.

Rao Mingxian was unexpectedly inside.

He did not see Zhao He.

Zhou Leng carefully pondered and found a noticeable Blue Vein Big Leaf Forest nearby, then started searching for the resplendent Flower Demon.

After calling for quite a while, the golden sunflower slowly rose.

"This time, help me with a small task. Help me contact a human named Rao Mingxian. I have his photo here. Tell him I’m here, waiting to meet him."

The brilliant Flower Demon, seeing that it involved others and not itself, promptly complied.

Zhou Leng waited quietly, and after a long time, a familiar figure approached, accompanied by the rustling of leaves in the forest ahead.

Rao Mingxian smiled slightly upon seeing Zhou Leng, but halfway through, his smile abruptly faded.

His expression turned to surprise.

Previously, Zhou Leng’s body was overly strong, with bulging blood vessels all over.

Now, as his body strengthened, the blood vessels were not as prominent.

However, his eyes were a deep red, and subtle changes had occurred around his eye sockets.

His demeanor was far colder than usual, giving off a vibe of keeping people at a distance.

Zhou Leng said, "In these past two years, many women have disappeared. Do you know anyone?"

Rao Mingxian nodded, "Yes. An aunt of mine disappeared, she was very good to me when I was little. Also, some female classmates from my junior and senior high school disappeared, as well as some classmates’ parents."

"Then, you now know where they are."

Rao Mingxian paused, nodded lightly, his eyes dimmed, shoulders sagging, visibly dejected.

"When I checked before, White Lake showed no change. When did they pick the Lotus Fruits?"

Rao Mingxian replied, "I came yesterday. They ripened just today. The Demon Warlocks used spells for harvesting. After harvesting, they conducted secondary cultivation. Of the millions of Lotus Fruits, only 108 final products were achieved, plus one White Lake Mother Fruit."

"The young-faced person called the Pinnacle of Aurora is the Celestial Calamity Envoy, right? Did he change bodies?"

Rao Mingxian said, "That giant is His Majesty the Celestial Calamity Envoy, he indeed changed bodies, but whether he is called the Pinnacle of Aurora, I’m not sure."

"Zhao He is not here?"

"The Celestial Calamity Envoy took the White Lake Mother Fruit, Zhao He wanted it very much, so he followed him. Oh, right... I have one, no, two important things to tell you."

"Hmm."

Rao Mingxian said, "Previously, a squad of demons was ambushed midway, led by the Song of Insects, power almost comparable to Deep Dark Fury, stronger than the Undying Knight. Then, the Celestial Calamity Envoy decided to see for himself. The squad leaders were Zhang Xinglie and Mountain and River Origin."

Zhou Leng’s pupils slightly expanded, then slightly narrowed his eyes, asking, "Are you sure?"

"Very sure. There are very few people who can make the Celestial Calamity Envoy resolve personally. According to the demons who escaped, they have been inquiring about you; they entered the Perfect Garden looking for you." Rao Mingxian said.

"Which direction?"

Rao Mingxian pointed, just as Zhou Leng was about to leave, he tossed him a Magic Spirit Bag from afar.

"Inside is that Headless God, the arm of a Beastman Demigod, the one Zhao Tong wanted at People’s Square. Zhang Xiaoxiao entrusted me with this for you before she died."

Zhou Leng accepted it, looking at Rao Mingxian, with a hint of doubt in his eyes.

Rao Mingxian said, "I don’t know what else to say. Zhang Xiaoxiao was being pursued, was barely alive, saw me, and asked me to give this to you. I had her cremated."

Zhou Leng wanted to say something but didn’t.

Rao Mingxian said, "Before she died, she wanted me to give you and Zhang Xinglie a message."

"She said, some winds, no matter where they begin or when they end, will surely blow upon you."

Perhaps before entering the Perfect Garden, Zhou Leng would not have understood what Zhang Xiaoxiao meant.

But now, reflecting on what happened to Zhang Xiaoxiao, first her classmates were used by the Rao Family in a Magic Array to extract power, then her classmates died, and soon after, her grandmother was killed.

That wind, step by step, closed in on her.

Zhang Xiaoxiao, Hu Yi’s mother, Zhang Xinglie’s aunt, were also in the wind.

This wind, it had been blowing for a long, long time.

"Is there anything else?" Zhou Leng asked.

"No more." Rao Mingxian said.

"What will you do in the future?"

Rao Mingxian shook his head, without a word.

Zhou Leng took out a confiscated Magic Spirit Bag filled with various demon medicines, including some extremely precious demon-boosting potions.

He tossed the Magic Spirit Bag to Rao Mingxian.

"I’m leaving." With that, he turned and quickly departed.

Rao Mingxian opened the Magic Spirit Bag and was shocked.

No wonder the remaining demons in the camp turned pale and looked around in terror at the mere mention of Zhou Leng’s name.

They were scared of being killed.

The abundance of magic potions in the Magic Spirit Bag far exceeded Rao Mingxian’s imagination.

Not only were there Great Innate Ascension Potions, but also two whole bottles of "Noble Ascension Potions."

They had the potential to forcibly elevate a Great Innate to a Demon aristocracy, i.e., a Grandmaster.

Each bottle was worth a fortune.

In the distance.

The Demon troop advanced swiftly.

Everyone ran on the ground, while only the Celestial Calamity Envoy rode on a Hell Warhorse.

Zhao He ran for a long time before finally being unable to resist approaching the Celestial Calamity Envoy.

The surrounding Demon Guards looked over warily.

Zhao He chuckled and said, "Honorable Majesty the Celestial Calamity God, I have an agreement with the Demon Purgatory. We are responsible for cooperating in collecting the valuable resources needed by White Lake, but the White Lake Mother Fruit is mine."

"And then?" The Celestial Calamity Envoy looked into the distance without even glancing at Zhao He.

"My talent and foundation are plain. Only the White Lake Mother Fruit can help me make up for the deficiencies in my talent and foundation after advancing to Grandmaster. Therefore, I very much need the White Lake Mother Fruit. Please, Honorable Majesty the Celestial Calamity God, grant me the White Lake Mother Fruit. I am willing to exchange anything for it."

"Oh." The Celestial Calamity Envoy continued to look forward, not looking at Zhao He.

Zhao He slightly lowered his head, sweeping his gaze with peripheral vision at the Celestial Calamity Envoy, not daring to look directly.

The Celestial Calamity Envoy’s demeanor made him not angry but rather nervous.

After a long time, the Celestial Calamity Envoy still did not speak.

He was about to speak again when the Great Innate Demon beside him raised a hand and pushed him away.

He was running at high speed, stumbled a few steps, and almost crashed into a tree.

"Second Young Master..."

Several members of the Demon Worship Sect hurriedly approached.

Zhao He shook his head without saying anything, silently following the team.

At the Demon Camp, he had approached the Celestial Calamity Envoy once more, even taking out the previous contract.

The Celestial Calamity Envoy gave a look, and a Demon Guard snatched the contract and burned it with demon fire.

This time, he had once again submitted meekly and once again to no avail.

After consecutive setbacks, he felt wronged but didn’t dare to show it.

He knew very well that the Celestial Calamity Envoy was but a thread of divine spirit from the gods.

Even the lords in the Demon Purgatory, who were far above the Great Demons, revered him like a god.

Zhao He ran while furrowing his brow in contemplation on how to obtain the White Lake Mother Fruit.

He had already consumed the Dragon Scale Vermilion Fruit, only lacking the White Lake Mother Fruit.

Once he consumed the White Lake Mother Fruit, with the Zhao Family’s resources, he would inevitably advance to a Grandmaster like his elder brother Zhao Cong.

When the Demon Purgatory defeated Blue Star, joining the purgatory, the Zhao Family only needed to find a way to ambush and capture a Martial Saint to refine them into a demigod ascension potion, helping him advance to demigod.

The White Lake Mother Fruit can only be consumed below Grandmaster.

Now is his only opportunity.

Whether he could become a Grandmaster, whether he could advance to Martial Saint, it all hung in the balance. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

After leaving Rao Mingxian, Zhou Leng continued to run.

After discovering the traces left by the Demon troop, he followed along.

The Great Battlefield was vast, just as the Perfect Garden was, spanning tens of thousands of kilometers.

Zhou Leng had to ensure a fast enough speed while maintaining his True Qi and body in optimal condition, always ready for battle.

He ran while mentally simulating various possibilities.

But as soon as he thought about the Celestial Calamity Envoy having strength near that of a Martial Saint, all possibilities were ruthlessly crushed.

In the end, there was only one possibility.

To find Zhang Xinglie and Mountain and River Origin and escape.

But the opponent was the Celestial Calamity Envoy.

Could they escape?

Zhou Leng simulated continuously, over and over again.

Thousands of times, still the same result.

After a long time, Zhou Leng gave up simulating.

Scenes from the past emerged in his mind.

A snot-nosed dirty little boy stood by the pavilion, quietly watching a group of children playing.

A young Zhou Leng, feeling sorry for his loneliness, approached and asked, "Are you Zhang Xinglie?"

The dirty little boy nodded.

"What are you doing here?"

"I’m mentally calculating the last math problem for this year’s high school entrance exam. I got it wrong the first time."

Zhou Leng, still in kindergarten, looked at Zhang Xinglie, who was also in kindergarten, not fully understanding the words. However, he too had made mistakes, not much different.

In kindergarten.

Zhang Xinglie sat silently, watching Zhou Leng and Xu Qingjin play with various plastic toys, playing house.

Zhou Leng and Zhang Xinglie were having a great time, pretending to cook, plating, and eating, busily at work.

Zhang Xinglie’s gaze was filled with confusion.

A little boy ran over, saying, "Xu Qingjin, I also want to play house."

"Sure."

"I’ll be the dad, and you be the mom." the little boy said.

"No, I’m the mom, Zhou Leng is the dad, you can only be the child."

"No, I want to be the dad, and you be the mom."

"No." Xu Qingjin ignored him.

Seeing the little boy’s tears welling up, about to erupt into a wail, Zhang Xinglie sighed and said, "How about I be the grandpa, and you be the grandson then."

"Waa..." The little boy cried and ran away.

Zhou Leng and Xu Qingjin didn’t care about others, tidied up, and forced Zhang Xinglie to sit before the toys.

Zhang Xinglie sighed and obediently played the child.