Turns Out I'm the Real Monster?!

It looked Ji Hongyuan up and down and snorted coldly.

"Where did this little zombie wench come from? Sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong? With skin that fine and flesh that tender, you’d be better off coming back with this Great King to be my consort. I guarantee you’ll live a life of luxury..."

Though its words were dismissive, the Pig Demon Leader couldn’t help but tighten its grip on its blade, its expression growing graver than ever before.

It could clearly sense that the pressure emanating from the woman before it was in no way inferior to its own.

Ji Hongyuan’s beautiful eyes shifted. She glanced at the mountain of flesh before her, raised a slender finger to cover her nose and mouth, her elegant brows furrowing in disgust:

"A mere wild beast, reeking of filth and rot, dares to bark so brazenly before me?"

Her figure blurred, transforming into a red shadow as she lunged forward.

...

「Meanwhile.」

Jiang Mu charged into the horde of demons besieging the courtyard like a crimson whirlwind.

His Blood River True Qi erupted with full force. Wherever his blade flashed, Demons fell like stalks of wheat. He tore an opening straight through the dense demonic horde and rushed to Xu Fu’s side.

Xu Fu was locked in battle with a Scorpion-tailed Demon Wolf, and his body was already covered in wounds.

Jiang Mu arrived via Instant Teleportation and, with a single slash from the side, cleaved the Scorpion-tailed Demon Wolf in two at the waist!

"Old Jiang, you son of a bitch, you’re finally back!"

Seeing Jiang Mu, Xu Fu’s spirits lifted, and he roared while panting heavily.

He wiped the blood from his eyes, gasping for breath as he pointed at the brutal carnage unfolding around them:

"Damn it, I don’t know what happened! All these Demons just appeared out of nowhere! If you’d been a moment later, we’d all have been goners!"

Jiang Mu forced back the surrounding lesser demons with a swing of his blade and asked in a low voice, "Where’s Du Yuanfei?"

Xu Fu said:

"Not long after you left, that kid suddenly received a message via flying letter from a colleague. It said one of his sworn brothers was trapped at Fire Dragon Cliff up ahead by a group of Tier Two and Tier Three Demons, and the situation was critical.

Du Yuanfei got anxious right away and insisted on going to the rescue. He even pleaded with Master Tang to take the brothers from Yunzhou City along as reinforcements.

The moment they left, these bastards swarmed us!"

Hearing this, Jiang Mu’s heart sank completely, and the last shred of hope he’d been clinging to vanished.

’The fact that Du Yuanfei is a traitor is now undeniable!’

’They’re using a "lure the tiger from the mountain" and "divide and conquer" strategy.’

’They used a fake report about a trapped colleague to lure away the strongest group—Tang Guixin’s party—so they could be picked off.’

’That so-called Fire Dragon Cliff must be an inescapable trap by now.’

"Looks like that person was right," Jiang Mu muttered. "Du Yuanfei has been acting this whole time. As for that Horse Demon..."

"That Horse Demon must have been some kind of scout for these Demons, acting as bait to help Du Yuanfei lure everyone else into this trap."

’Thinking of this, it all became clear.’

’The Horse Demon chose to make its move right when Du Yuanfei woke up; they were obviously in cahoots.’

’Du Yuanfei deliberately revealed information about the Horse Demon to gain everyone’s trust.’

’Meanwhile, the Horse Demon deliberately destroyed all their mounts and caused injuries to slow down these Demon Slayer Envoys.’

’If it weren’t for me, the unexpected variable, forcefully killing the Horse Demon and rushing back in time, Xu Fu’s squad would have been devoured by now.’

’Aunt Tang and the others are with Du Yuanfei right now. They must be in terrible danger.’

"BOOM—!!"

Just as Jiang Mu was lost in thought, a tremendous crash erupted behind him.

Jiang Mu turned to look.

He saw the mountainous, peak Tier Five Pig Demon get launched into the air. It traced a parabola through the sky before slamming heavily onto the ground, crushing seven or eight lesser demons that failed to scramble out of its way.

A graceful, golden-red figure descended from the sky through the swirling dust.

Ji Hongyuan tapped her delicate foot, stomping down through the air.

"SPLAT!"

The Pig Demon’s head instantly exploded like a smashed watermelon, splattering red and white matter everywhere.

With their leader gruesomely killed, the surrounding Demons, once ferocious, immediately panicked. Their formation broke as they began to scatter and flee.

Xu Fu stared, his eyes nearly popping out of his head and his mouth agape:

"Holy mother... What kind of creature is that? So powerful?! It looks like a zombie... Why are they fighting each other?"

’That broad is seriously strong!’

Jiang Mu, too, was secretly shocked.

Seeing the Demons scatter, Jiang Mu didn’t hesitate for a moment and immediately said to Xu Fu,

"Lao Xu, I’m leaving this to you. Clean up the mess. I’m going to find Aunt Tang and the others."

With that, Jiang Mu’s figure flickered and he sped off in the direction of Fire Dragon Cliff.

And Ji Hongyuan, clad in her golden-red dress, also flickered and vanished into the night.

...

Jiang Mu used his Demon Shadow for Instant Teleportation, his figure flickering continuously through the mountain forest. With each disappearance and reappearance, he covered dozens of yards.

The wind howled in his ears as the trees on either side blurred into retreating phantoms.

There was only one thought in his mind:

’I hope I’m not too late.’

’I hope Du Yuanfei’s side hasn’t made their move yet!’

Like a weightless, golden-red phantom, Ji Hongyuan effortlessly kept pace beside him. She studied his seemingly inexhaustible method of travel with great interest, clicking her tongue in amazement.

"Little one, this Instant Teleportation technique of yours is quite interesting.

If any other Fourth Realm Cultivator tried to use it so recklessly and continuously, their Star Power would have long been depleted, leaving them paralyzed with exhaustion.

But you... your breathing is rapid, yet it remains steady and deep, as if this is nothing to you... Are you just naturally gifted, or do you have some sort of special constitution?

Or do you possess some Magical Treasure or Divine Abilities that rapidly restore your Star Power?"

Jiang Mu was in no mood to pay her any mind. He just kept his head down and ran frantically, wishing he could sprout wings.

Ji Hongyuan wasn’t annoyed. She covered her mouth with her hand and chuckled, her voice as soft and alluring as silk:

"Fine, fine. Everyone has their little secrets. Since we’re partners now, let’s establish a rule."