"Heaven-towering demonic creature? What kind of heaven-towering demonic creature are we talking about?" Chu Feng asked.
"That, no one knows. After all, no one has ever seen it — it's all speculation. Some say it's a Demon King, others say it's a Fierce Beast."
"But there's one thing everyone agrees on: regardless of what it is, it's something that has existed since the ancient era. After all, this Demon Coffin Mortal Realm has been around since ancient times."
Old Cat said.
"Why would the Demon Spirit King stay in this Demon Coffin Mortal Realm? Could it be that he knows something?"
Chu Feng felt that with the Demon Spirit King's formidable strength, there was no need for him to remain in a mortal realm — unless there were resources here, or something he was after.
"That I don't know, but I'd wager the Demon Spirit King definitely has his reasons."
Old Cat said with a grin.
Since he was no longer in disguise and had revealed his true form, Chu Feng could see his expression with perfect clarity. But the sight of that grin made Chu Feng want to punch him, because whenever Old Cat smiled like that, Chu Feng could practically hear the scheming gears turning in his head.
"Oh, Old Cat — did you really sell those Divine Sealing Bamboo Slips?" Chu Feng asked again.
Ever since Old Cat had snatched the Divine Sealing Bamboo Slips from him years ago, Chu Feng had never gotten over it. When he later ran into Old Cat again, the old cat had claimed he'd sold them off — which Chu Feng naturally didn't believe.
"Brother Chu Feng, I really did sell them. Why would I lie to you about that?"
At the mention of the Divine Sealing Bamboo Slips, Old Cat immediately grew somewhat nervous. He knew perfectly well that what he owed Chu Feng wasn't just Snow Maiden — it was also the bamboo slips.
"Then shouldn't you compensate me?" Chu Feng asked.
"Er... I should, but I'm a bit strapped for cash right now."
"Here — take a look. How about these as compensation?"
As he spoke, Old Cat handed a Universe Bag to Chu Feng.
Chu Feng took it and opened it. Inside were some treasures — Sovereign Armaments, along with many exotic flowers, herbs, and materials that even Chu Feng had never seen before. He could sense they held some value, at least.
Clearly, Old Cat had prepared this ahead of time — presumably for rescuing his disciple. However, while each item did have some worth, their actual value depended on who was assessing them. For the Chu Feng of today, these items were worth very little — at least, none of them were of any use to him currently. And the Divine Sealing Bamboo Slips were obviously not something that could be compared to this pile.
"You're treating me like a fool. You think these things can compare to the Divine Sealing Bamboo Slips?"
Chu Feng's brows furrowed slightly as displeasure crossed his face.
"Brother Chu Feng, these really can't compare to the Divine Sealing Bamboo Slips, but I honestly don't have anything valuable left."
"Oh, right, right — you care about Snow Maiden, don't you? I've treated her well. In fact, I've even found her a good match. Consider that my compensation for the bamboo slips," Old Cat said, his voice tinged with guilt.
"Old Cat, you sure have it all figured out."
"Let me make this clear — for the Divine Sealing Bamboo Slips, you must compensate me with treasures of equivalent value, and what counts as equivalent is for me to decide."
"As for Snow Maiden, I'll ask her how she's really doing. If she hasn't been treated well, I won't let you off the hook."
At this point, Chu Feng weighed the Universe Bag that Old Cat had just handed him.
"These — consider them interest on the bamboo slips."
With that, Chu Feng stored the Universe Bag away.
"You... sigh."
Old Cat was exasperated, but he didn't dare say anything more. And it was precisely this reaction that made Chu Feng realize — Old Cat truly cared about Young Master Wolf, otherwise he wouldn't have swallowed his pride like that.
After traveling for some time, Chu Feng and Old Cat finally emerged from the teleportation array and set foot on the land of the Demon Coffin Mortal Realm.
Rumble rumble rumble—
But the moment Chu Feng set foot on this land, he felt the ground trembling violently. An increasingly piercing rumble echoed from deep beneath the earth, and the trembling grew stronger still. Then countless cracks appeared across the surface of the land. Dust and debris shot skyward, and the disturbance seemed to encompass the entire world.
Chu Feng sensed something was wrong and immediately opened his Heavenly Eyes to scan the surroundings. But after a thorough search, he found nothing — as if this were nothing more than an ordinary earthquake. Yet what kind of earthquake could cover an entire world?
Fortunately, the trembling didn't last long before subsiding.
"Hell, what was that about?"
"I thought something good was about to show up! Why'd it just stop?" Old Cat muttered. Clearly, he had been observing as well, but he hadn't discovered the cause either.
"Forget about it. Keep leading the way," Chu Feng urged Old Cat.
The two of them set off once more. But after traveling for some time, a blue-purple aura erupted in the distance, shooting straight up to the sky.
"Holy crap — Brother Chu Feng, look at that!" Old Cat's eyes lit up with excitement at the sight of the aura.
"Keep your voice down. I see it."
Chu Feng stopped to observe as well.
The blue-purple aura was continuously expanding. Though they were far away, an unmistakable sense of foreboding radiated from it.
"That aura — why does it look so similar to the one emanating from the Demon Coffin World? Don't tell me the coffin has been unsealed!" Old Cat's voice grew increasingly excited.
"What, are you scared?" Chu Feng asked.