"Li Niang! That girl who already married outside the clan? When did she arrive here? Never mind — you can give me the details later." A flicker of sharp light passed through the gold-masked middle-aged man's eyes as he gave his orders in a tone that brooked no argument.
The Long Family Patriarch felt a jolt of apprehension and hastily answered with deep respect.
Though he was the master of the Long Family and the biological son of this ancestor, ever since the old patriarch had cultivated that supremely powerful divine ability on the Path of Heartlessness, the bonds of blood meant virtually nothing.
Even as the head of the Long Family, his dealings with the old ancestor left him perpetually on edge, not daring to slack off for even a moment.
"So this is the half-dragon transformation of the True Dragon Blood! To be able to fight a demon cultivator head-on with nothing but a physical body and not fall behind at all — this is truly an eye-opening experience for me." The Qianqiu Saintess of the Spirit Artifact Clan drifted slowly over, her voice carrying a smile long before she reached them.
"I am merely a cultivator at the late Integration stage. I failed to even subdue an early-stage demon cultivator — what is there to celebrate about? Is the Saintess perhaps mocking me?" The Long Family Ancestor heard this, and rather than showing any pleasure, his expression remained flat and emotionless as he spoke.
"Ha ha, why must Daoist Long feign ignorance? Demon cultivators have always been renowned for their powerful physical bodies, and ape-types are among the very best of them. You used no treasures whatsoever and matched an Integration-stage ape demon with your physical body alone — I imagine I don't need to spell out what that implies. If you had employed your other abilities, that demon ape would never have lasted as long as it did." The Qianqiu Saintess paid no heed to the old ancestor's expression, replying instead with a cheerful smile.
"Heh heh, 'would never have lasted as long.' If that is what the Saintess believes, you are sorely mistaken." The old ancestor's face took on a strange look, and he let out a cold laugh upon hearing this.
"Oh? Has Daoist discovered something?" The yellow-robed girl blinked, her expression shifting to mild surprise.
"All of you, withdraw. I wish to speak with Daoist Qianqiu alone for a moment." The Long Family Ancestor did not respond to the girl right away. Instead, with a sweep of his great sleeve, he issued his command to every Long Family cultivator nearby.
At the same time, the dragon horns atop his head and the golden scales on his face receded in an instant, and his golden pupils returned to the ordinary black of a normal person.
The cultivators — the Patriarch included — naturally obeyed with utmost respect, flying back toward the fortress one after another.
In the blink of an eye, only the middle-aged man and the yellow-roamed girl remained in the air.
"Daoist is being so cautious — could it be that this demon ape is someone of great consequence?" The Qianqiu Saintess had not tried to stop the others from leaving, but now she asked in a seemingly casual tone.
"I suspect it is someone from the Sacred Island." The Long Family Ancestor's opening words left the Qianqiu Saintess momentarily stunned, and then a look of shock appeared on her face.
"Sacred Island? The shared holy ground of your human and demon races?" the girl murmured.
"Precisely. If not, it would be exceedingly difficult to explain how the demon race suddenly produced such an Integration-stage ape. Every thousand years, the Sacred Island selects gifted disciples from both our races to fill its ranks. After so many tens of thousands of years, naturally no one knows how many Integration-stage existences reside there. But by my estimate, the Sacred Island must have at least twenty or thirty cultivators of that level. And unless a matter arises that concerns the very survival of both our races, those Integration-stage beings living on the Sacred Island are strictly forbidden from leaving. It is precisely because of this island that the human and demon races can stand together against external enemies when the time comes." Though the Long Family Ancestor's expression remained as wooden as ever, a flicker of solemnity passed through his eyes.
"Heh heh, it sounds as though the Sacred Island of your two races is quite similar to our Spirit Clan's Sacred Temple. I, too, have no idea how many Sacred Spirit-level existences currently reside within it." The yellow-roamed girl listened to the old ancestor's words and let out a sigh of her own.
"There is another reason I believe this demon ape came from the Sacred Island. As I understand it, one of the demon legions that has guarded the Sacred Island for ages is the exceedingly rare Golden Steel Demon Ape clan. The giant ape that came here bears a striking resemblance to that type. Moreover, it was no ordinary early Integration-stage demon. Even though I held back my other abilities, this ape certainly had more tricks than what it showed. Even going all out, I would have little certainty of keeping it here. In that case, I naturally would not do anything to provoke the Sacred Island." The Long Family Ancestor was silent for a moment before finally revealing the true source of his wariness.
"This demon ape is truly that formidable? Without having engaged it personally, I cannot make a precise assessment. However, the silver flame that enveloped its body just before it left — it was able to melt through the void directly. It gave me a considerable sense of threat." The smile on the yellow-roamed girl's face finally faded, and she spoke slowly and seriously.
"As I understand it, one of the innate divine abilities of the Golden Steel Demon Ape clan is the Nine Infant True Fire. Though this innate ability is incomparably powerful, very few among the Golden Steel Demon Apes have ever managed to awaken it, let alone cultivate it to perfection. As for what kind of true fire it actually is, there are precious few who know." The Long Family Ancestor's gaze flickered as he spoke.
"So you are saying you are certain this golden-haired giant ape is a Golden Steel Demon Ape." The Qianqiu Saintess furrowed her brow.
"It is not that I am merely certain — there is a nine-in-ten chance I am not wrong." The Long Family Ancestor was clearly a man of great confidence, and his words carried an air of absolute conviction.