Soul Emperor Awakening

After leaving the city, the two of them immediately followed the map’s directions toward the Demon Fox Ruins. The ruins were quite a long way off, requiring a lengthy journey, but the path indicated on the map was a relative shortcut.

All in all, they still had a long way to go, and the journey was not only long but also dangerous. That was to be expected. If it weren’t dangerous, could it even be considered difficult?

"According to the map, if we go down this mountain, we’ll find a cave that leads to the Demon Fox Ruins. Taking this route should be much safer," Wei Song said enthusiastically, pointing to the path ahead, convinced it was the safer option.

Lin Xuan agreed with this. According to the Fox King’s memories, this tunnel had originally been an escape route. To put it bluntly, when the Demon Fox Race was overthrown, they had fled through this very passage.

Entering through this passage was relatively safe, at least much safer than traveling out in the open. Of course, it was impossible to say the tunnel was completely secure. The Demon Fox Race hadn’t been defeated by humans, but by another Demon Race.

Therefore, it was possible that members of that other Demon Race were lurking inside the tunnel. This was only a possibility; they might not be in there at all. The only certain threat was the Demon Beasts of low intelligence in the forest outside the tunnel. While their intelligence was low, their Cultivation was not. If they roared and swarmed you, you would be as good as dead.

The danger to them wasn’t a lone Demon Beast, but a massive swarm. This was how most Cultivators met their end.

Thus, this tunnel would allow them to bypass many of the Demon Beasts, since those creatures wouldn’t enter the passage, preferring to stay outside. After all, the tunnel wasn’t their territory.

Powerful members of the Demon Race were unlikely to enter either. With no Demon Foxes left in the Demon Fox Ruins, there was no point in standing guard here. That was why the route was considered relatively safe. Unless one’s luck was absolutely rotten, the tunnel should be fine.

As they entered, they found the tunnel wasn’t particularly spacious, but it was wide enough for an escape route. A larger entrance would have been too conspicuous. The passage was dark and stretched straight ahead without any twists or turns. Moreover, there were no traps inside, as they would have been useless against powerful Demon Beasts. For example, if the Demon Foxes had erected a few Stone Gates during their escape, they would have been smashed to pieces with ease.

Of course, collapsing the tunnel would have been an effective way to stop pursuers. The path was completely unobstructed, which meant they had apparently escaped safely without being hindered. This escape tunnel showed that the Demon Fox Race was one to plan for a rainy day, ensuring an escape route in case a Demon Race ever invaded.

"Wait, there’s something up ahead!" Lin Xuan suddenly reached out an arm to stop Wei Song, his eyes fixed on the tunnel before them.

Wei Song was confused. He hadn’t sensed anything wrong. All he could perceive was darkness ahead. He could see his immediate surroundings clearly enough, but anything further was obscured.

When nothing appeared after a moment, Wei Song asked doubtfully, "Brother Lin, could you have been mistaken? There’s no one there."

Lin Xuan pointed toward the area ahead and said coldly, "If you don’t show yourselves, don’t blame me for what happens next!" He didn’t answer Wei Song, instead choosing to trust his own senses.

A moment later, the area ahead was still completely silent, without the slightest sound.

"Demon Evil Palm!"

A bloody light flashed in Lin Xuan’s eyes as he thrust a palm forward. A red Palm Seal shot out, stirring up waves of blood-colored energy. This was one of the Demon Evil Monarch’s Martial Arts, a technique he had learned after absorbing the Monarch’s soul.

Of course, he knew the Martial Arts of others he had absorbed as well, but they all required specific conditions or items to be used, making them highly restrictive. The Demon Evil Monarch’s techniques, however, did not. They only required a simple expenditure of Elemental Power.

Just as the blood-red Palm Seal was about to land in the shadows, a figure suddenly leaped out. He threw a palm strike of his own, unleashing a similar burst of red Elemental Power. The two attacks collided and neutralized each other, erupting with a shockwave that gusted through the tunnel like a great wind.

"Well, I didn’t expect someone to see through our Stealth Technique. This friend here has some sharp senses!" Two people stepped out of the shadows. They appeared to be identical twins, both young men with soft features and a hint of feminine beauty. The sight of their Adam’s apples, however, confirmed they were male.

Neither of them had low Cultivation; both were identical in this regard as well, at the Seventh Layer of the Essence Pill Stage. Their true combat strength was likely far greater than it appeared on the surface. When it came to coordination, twins could far surpass even comrades who had fought side-by-side for decades.

They seemed friendly enough, but their appearance immediately put Lin Xuan and Wei Song on high alert. Outside the city, one had to be wary of everyone who wasn’t a trusted acquaintance. Robbery and murder were common out here. No matter how warmly someone smiled, they might stab you the moment they got close. Such incidents were all too common.

Besides, they had been deliberately hiding. Who knew what their intentions were? They hadn’t even been willing to show themselves until he attacked.

"Who are you? You’re definitely not from Unity City!" Wei Song said in a low voice.

Unity City had a decent population, but with his level of Cultivation, remembering that many faces wasn’t difficult, especially in a place that small. He was certain he had never seen this pair of twins before. That made him very wary. And if they weren’t from Unity City, he had to be even more cautious.

Rogue cultivators from the outside were often more ruthless when it came to plundering resources. Unwilling to be bound by any rules, they made a living by preying on others.

"Of course we’re not from Unity City. We’re just Loose Cultivators from the outside," one of the young men suggested. "I presume you two are also heading to the Demon Fox Ruins? How about we go together? Four people are better than two, right?"

"No need. We’ll be fine on our own," Wei Song immediately rejected the proposal. It seemed he had plenty of experience with these situations and was absolutely unwilling to team up with strangers, especially ones who were so obviously suspicious.

"Is that so? What a pity. Well, I hope we can meet again once we’re inside the Demon Fox Ruins." The young man’s eyes flickered, but he didn’t press the matter.

"Wait a moment. Did you use a map to get in here?" Lin Xuan asked.

"Yes, we followed a map to get here. Is there a problem?" one of them replied after a moment’s thought.

"Could we take a look at it?" Lin Xuan asked. He wanted to see if the map they held was the other piece, and more importantly, if it also contained a soul.