Yang Kai had been in the Demon Realm for quite some time now, passing through countless realm gates. Never had any of them been guarded — unless an entire continent was being sealed off. But the realm gate leading to the Hundred Spirit Continent had a Half-Saint standing watch. The implication was obvious.
The moment they came face to face, the gatekeeping Half-Saint merely gave a slight nod, swept his eyes over Yang Kai once, and let them pass without hesitation.
Passing through the realm gate, the four of them arrived safely on the Hundred Spirit Continent.
Yang Kai was unfamiliar with this continent. Before this, he hadn't even known about its special status within the Demon Realm. But he had seen it marked on a map and knew its territory was vast.
The Cloud Shadow Continent was already considered sizable — in the upper tier of all Demon Realm continents — but the Hundred Spirit Continent was at least five times its size, making it one of the largest continents in the entire Demon Realm.
It wasn't hard to understand why. This was, after all, the territory claimed by the Sacred Spirits of the Demon Realm. If it were too small, that wouldn't be befitting.
The group didn't stop. They continued flying forward.
Yang Kai idly surveyed his surroundings, and before long, his gaze turned curious.
He noticed that among the spiritual rivers and towering mountains below, countless demon beasts roamed and roared. Even in the sky, all manner of strangely shaped flying beasts — ones whose names he couldn't begin to guess — weaved back and forth.
Their numbers were beyond counting.
It wasn't that he had never seen demon beasts elsewhere in the Demon Realm. Many Demon Kings liked to keep a powerful and imposing demon beast as a mount. But he had never seen such a dense concentration of them on any single continent.
As they continued flying forward, Yang Kai could find traces of demon beast habitation in virtually every region they passed.
This Hundred Spirit Continent would be more aptly named the Continent of Ten Thousand Beasts. What was even more remarkable was that among these demon beasts, many radiated an aura of tremendous power — no less formidable than those Demon Kings Yang Kai had encountered.
"A lot of them, aren't there?" The elder sister on his right suddenly spoke.
Yang Kai hadn't immediately grasped what she meant, but he quickly caught on and nodded. "Indeed, quite a few."
The younger sister on his left let out a cold laugh. "There used to be even more."
Yang Kai frowned, unsure what she meant by that. Just as he was puzzling over it, the elder sister explained: "Our Hundred Spirit Continent isn't subject to any Demon Saint's control. It may seem free and unrestrained, but in truth, we're merely surviving in the cracks. This continent is perfectly suited for demon beasts to thrive, and many of the beasts here carry Sacred Spirit bloodlines. That makes them highly coveted by those outsiders. Acquiring one and taming it as a personal mount boosts one's strength, and in battle, it's like adding wings to a tiger. So every hundred years, our Hundred Spirit Continent is forced to send out a large shipment of demon beasts."
Yang Kai listened quietly, beginning to understand why the Hundred Spirit Continent survived as it did. He didn't deny that its masters were powerful enough to make the Demon Saints wary — too cautious to act rashly. But treating this place as a breeding ground for demon beasts was the true reason the Demon Saints tolerated the continent's existence.
Countless years of oppression and exploitation had bred deep resentment toward the outside world among the Hundred Spirit Continent's inhabitants. This was why the one-horned Sacred Spirit had shown not the slightest deference to Yu Rumeng, and had even dared to defy her directly.
The elder sister spoke through gritted teeth: "And some shameless ones sneak into our Hundred Spirit Continent and freely slaughter and trap our demon beasts!" Of course, once discovered, those intruders never met a good end.
Before the realm gates had been guarded, such incidents had occurred frequently. Demon Kings would slip into the continent in groups of three to five, strike, and retreat immediately.
It was precisely because of this that every realm gate leading into the Hundred Spirit Continent now had a Half-Saint standing watch, not permitting a single outsider to enter.
Yang Kai frowned. "Why are you telling me all this?" Strictly speaking, he was nothing more than a prisoner. There was no reason for them to explain the continent's situation to him.
The elder sister offered a faint smile. "I simply felt you should know how pitiful the beings of our Hundred Spirit Continent are. And you... you have the power to change all of this."
"What power do I have?" Yang Kai said with a bewildered expression. In the Demon Race's eyes, his greatest use was repairing and maintaining realm gates — that was the foundation on which so many Demon Saints had favored him. "Besides, didn't you capture me precisely to fix a realm gate?"
The elder sister smiled enigmatically. "You'll find out soon enough."
Yang Kai suddenly felt a premonition of trouble. This trip was definitely not going to be as simple as he had imagined!
The rest of the journey passed in silence. They crossed spiritual mountains and great rivers until an enormous castle appeared ahead. Only then did the twin sisters and the one-horned Sacred Spirit show a trace of excitement.
The castle was vast, nestled within a mountain range. Between the towering peaks and craggy ridges, exotic beasts roamed. Outside the castle walls, all manner of strangely shaped demon beasts crawled along the ramparts, each radiating an aura of tremendous power.
The castle itself was built with a crude grandeur, as if a primordial giant beast lay prostrate upon the earth. An aura of ancient antiquity washed over them.
Even though this was Yang Kai's first visit, he could guess that this was where the master of the Hundred Spirit Continent resided. His mood grew somewhat apprehensive. If he were meeting any other Demon Saint, he wouldn't have been nervous — he knew he was useful to them and wouldn't be harmed. But this master of the Hundred Spirit Continent was a different matter entirely.
Who knew what he was scheming? If the man took a dislike to him and simply killed him, where would he go to plead his case?
They landed before the castle. Before they even entered, a wave of fierce, malevolent energy crashed over them. In the dark shadows, a massive figure gradually emerged, each footfall making the ground tremble.
A moment later, Yang Kai could finally make out what was approaching.
It was a colossal demon beast resembling a lion, standing roughly fifteen meters tall. A ring of golden mane adorned its chest, shimmering like silk. Enormous nostrils flared with scorching breath. It was, by every measure, an awe-inspiring sight.