Hearing Qian Feng mention the Second Generation Nether King, the Ghost King genuinely sighed, "It seems that nothing can be hidden from you!"

"From the moment I guessed it was you who came looking for me, I had thought of your purpose for seeking me out."

"Since Clan Leader Qian already knows my intention, then there's no need for me to beat around the bush. You may propose any condition, and I will try my utmost to satisfy you!"

Qian Feng suddenly smiled from the depths of his heart, his gaze still hazy.

"I only have one condition, and that is for you to disappear forever—otherwise, there's nothing to talk about!"

"You!" The Ghost King became instantly furious, his eyes emitting a fierce light. Immediately, a potent aura of Yin Qi burst forth from his body, spreading outward like a swift wind. Even after a considerable time, the echoes of branches and leaves, shaken by the aura, could still be heard.

Qian Feng's heart skipped a beat, fearing the Ghost King might suddenly turn into an assassin. However, his eternally misty eyes, enigmatic as a riddle, never revealed his true feelings to anyone.

In contrast, to the Ghost King, Qian Feng appeared calm and fearless.

"Why do you hate me so much?"

"If it wasn't for you back then, I..." Qian Feng's words were cut off mid-sentence.

"And then?" asked the Ghost King.

Qian Feng issued a cold snort, saying, "There is no 'and then.' You better go back now; we will meet again on the battlefield!"

The Ghost King looked disappointed, then spoke with his hands behind his back, "Since I cannot persuade you to surrender to me, I have no choice but to make you my assassin."

"You won't do that!" Qian Feng chuckled lightly, "Otherwise, you will never get what you want."

As he spoke, Qian Feng had already slid the jade ring from his middle finger to the tip, ready to throw it at any moment.

"You know what I want?"

"Nothing more than the Demon-Sealing Scroll, within which lies a fragment of the map to the ancient city." Qian Feng replied.

The Ghost King's expression showed a hint of surprise as he remarked, "It seems you really know a great deal."

"You know a lot too!" Qian Feng immediately responded, quietly pushing the jade ring back to the base of his finger. From the Ghost King's reaction, he was now certain the Ghost King wouldn't kill him.

The Ghost King, frowning as he scrutinized Qian Feng, thought that Qian Feng definitely didn't know about the oath he had made in the Demon-Sealing Scroll two days ago, and he would assume he wanted to find the ancient city.

In fact, his desire to find the Demon-Sealing Scroll was only to locate the whereabouts of the Dog Tribe. The map leading to the ancient city was drawn by hand by his father, who was the leader of the Dog Tribe, Lie, and it depicted the specific route from their Dog Tribe to the ancient city.

After the Ancestor of the Nether King had killed his father in the ancient city years ago, he had seized that map from his father, which is how he found his way back.

"Then let us meet again next time!" said the Ghost King to Qian Feng, having yet to come up with a good method to make Qian Feng submit to him.

Qian Feng snorted coldly.

In the blink of an eye, the Ghost King had vanished from sight, leaving behind only a gust of wind.

Qian Feng turned around and looked down at the mountain base where the barren trees and forests were being tossed about by the gust of wind. He reminisced about an incident from the past: The Second Generation Nether King had, early on, ordered Qian Feng to destroy the Demon-Sealing Scroll handed over by the Ancestor of the Nether King to the Qian Family to prevent descendants from finding the ancient city.

..

..

Half an hour later.

The Ghost King returned to Netherworld City.

Inside the eastern courtyard, the Dark Law King and King Qingyu had been anxiously waiting. Upon seeing the Ghost King's return, both hurriedly approached him.

"Ghost King, how did the talks with Qian Feng go?" inquired the Dark Law King.

The Ghost King shook his head expressionlessly, sat down in a chair, and took a sip of the now cold tea before speaking, "He didn't agree!"

"It seems that fighting on two fronts is inevitable," said the Dark Law King.

The Ghost King did not respond but immersed himself in serious contemplation.

After a long while, with the Dark Law King and King Qingyu on the verge of going mad with impatience, the Ghost King finally lifted his gaze towards them and said, "Dark Law King, King Qingyu, the two of you must immediately head to the Hundred Mile Slope and the northern camp, respectively, lead the armies to march south, and make sure to reach the southern valleys by sunrise."

The southern valleys were situated between Netherworld City and the Twisted Forest. The Ghost King's decision to abandon Netherworld City came as a shocking surprise to both the Dark Law King and King Qingyu.

"Ghost King, are you planning to abandon Netherworld City?" asked the Dark Law King.

The Ghost King shook his head and replied with a smile, "It's not abandoning Netherworld City, it's letting the dogs out. To avoid getting bitten by dogs, the best course of action is to be outside the door!"

"I understand!" exclaimed the Dark Law King, as it dawned on him, "What you mean is to vacate Netherworld City and let the five great families and Qian Feng vie for it. When both sides have fought each other to exhaustion, we will come back and reap the benefits of their struggle. Even if they don't end up fighting, distrust will arise between them, which might result in neither side daring to enter the city; or if one side enters and the other retreats, we will then reclaim the city! Brilliant, this move is truly brilliant!"

King Qingyu chuckled, his face full of approval. However, his expression quickly turned to one of concern, and he cautiously asked, "But what if they end up forming an alliance?"

The Dark Law King's face immediately turned bitter.

"If they do form an alliance, then we'll just have to fight our way back. It is easier to attack a city than to defend it!" said the Ghost King as he rose to his feet, "In my opinion, it's unlikely that they will ally with each other."

..

..

Dawn.

As the first light of the morning touched Sunset Pass, a Wujibird flew from the south, bringing news that no one could have anticipated.

After learning the news, Zhao Chong immediately ran to Ye Yuqiao's tent.

In the midst of sleep, Ye Yuqiao's Nether Soul Body instantly opened her eyes upon hearing a series of rapid and strange footsteps outside the tent, and she immediately got out of bed.

"Your Majesty!" At that moment, Zhao Chong just reached the tent entrance.

"What's happened?" asked Ye Yuqiao while hurriedly putting on her outerwear, "Come in and speak."

Zhao Chong lifted the curtain and entered, saying, "News has just come in, saying that the Ghost King Battalion has completely withdrawn from Netherworld City and is heading south."

"What!" Ye Yuqiao exclaimed, then fell silent, thoroughly surprised. After a moment, she regained her composure, muttering, "The Ghost King certainly wouldn't surrender without a fight; there must be some kind of plot! Yes, him choosing to withdraw is surely to make us and Qian Feng engage in battle, or perhaps he wants one of us to retreat!"

"Yes!" agreed Zhao Chong, "His move is very clever, advancing by retreating!"

Ye Yuqiao blinked and asked, "So what should we do next?"

"Perhaps we should approach Qian Feng to discuss an alliance," Zhao Chong suggested, squinting his eyes.

Ye Yuqiao shook her head. Just last night, Zhao Chong had told her that the time to compromise with Qian Feng would come when he proposed an alliance for negotiations.

She did not expect that day to come so soon.

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