Chapter 289: Tip of the Iceberg

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

The little fox’s jewel eyes instantly lit up when she heard her mother. She sent a message to Jiang Yi before she quickly went out of the palace. Jiang Yi quickly bowed and greeted, “Jiang Yi pays his respects to the Demon Empress.”

The Demon Empress regained her composure and stood up before walking into an alley by the side. She walked in before she turned slightly and said indifferently, “Come with me.”

Jiang Yi followed quickly while having some suspicion in his mind. He didn’t know where the Demon Empress was bringing him.

After walking through a very long alleyway, they detoured two side chambers; and the Demon Empress finally climbed up a flight of stairs. Following behind the Demon Empress, Jiang Yi tried to concentrate with his eyes; but after seeing the Demon Empress’ enchanting rear view and sniffing the subtle fox fragrance from her body, he instinctively felt hyperactive. He was apprehensive in his heart after seeing the extreme charm of this Demon Empress. There was probably no man in the world that could resist her charm, right?

Fox Spirit 1 !

When recalling about the ancient books regarding the stories of Fox Spirits, Jiang Yi began to suspect the existence of spirit foxes that attained Heaven Monarch Realm and turned into humans. No human man could resist their charm, and with their charming demonic arts, it gave rise to the name ‘Fox Spirit’.

The Demon Empress walked up to the stairs to the top of the palace, which was actually a sky platform; and there was a pavilion in it. The Demon Empress walked into the pavilion and stood there leisurely while gazing into the distance.

The scenery on this sky platform was even more beautiful as the entire platform was twined around by vines, which had countless pink flowers. It was complemented by the faint mist and clear breeze, which gave Jiang Yi a feeling like he was an immortal.

This isn’t right…

Jiang Yi’s eyes suddenly flashed with light as he looked around while his nose twitched and felt something was wrong. There was something strange about the sky platform. The heaven and earth energy was too dense—terrifyingly dense, at least several dozen folds denser than the outside world.

The Demon Empress turned around and looked at Jiang Yi with an apathetic look as she spoke indifferently, “Jiang Yi, you will seclude yourself here from now on. If you cannot break into the Vajra Realm in three years, then don’t ever come here anymore.”

“What?”

Jiang Yi’s body shivered as he spoke out involuntarily. Did the Demon Empress ask him to cultivate here? And even wanted him to break through to the Vajra Realm in three years?

“Why? Not confident?”

The Demon Empress spoke indifferently, “With such a dense heaven and earth energy here—if you cannot break through within three years, then you are not qualified to be friends with Xiao Fei. Neither may you enter my Fairy Peak.”

“Oh.”

Jiang Yi responded vaguely as he was indeed not confident because of his transformed dantian and didn’t even know what it would become if he carried on cultivating. What’s more, the continent had innumerable Soul Travel Realm experts, but there were only slightly more than a dozen of Vajra Realm martial experts. It was clear that breaking through to the Vajra Realm would be a difficult task.

He mumbled to himself for a moment and put all those considerations aside. He bowed with cupped fists and asked with some doubt, “Demon Empress, why are you treating me so favorably?”

For a demon race’s emperor to provide such treatment to a human was something that obviously transcended conventional reasoning. If Jiang Yi didn’t clear out this question, he wouldn’t have a peace of mind. The world would never believe it if someone told them a human could stay and cultivate in a Demon Emperor’s palace, right?

“Because of Xiao Fei.”

The Demon Empress remained silent for a moment before she gazed into the distance, revealing a trace of sorrow in her beautiful eyes. She faintly opened her mouth and actually spoke without any hint of reservation, “In the upcoming period of time, I might need to venture out. If it is a short trip, it might take a few years; if it is a long trip, then it will take several dozens of years. I might not even return in this lifetime. Xiao Fei has been living with me since she was young, and I had always been in human form, teaching her using the human’s way of thoughts.

“She didn’t treat herself as a demonic beast since she was young and didn’t like to play with demonic beasts. She would always find ways to go out and search for a human as her friend. Everything is fine if I am in Stellarsky Continent, but what if I am not around? If she is to venture out carelessly, she will surely be killed by humans. Thus, I want you to become stronger and help me take care of Xiao Fei.”

“Now I see!”

Jiang Yi finally understood what it meant—what the Demon Empress said back at Stellarsky City: if she wasn’t going to be around, the little fox would die in the hands of humans. Jiang Yi was confused back then, but he clearly understood now.

However, he paused for a moment and asked with even more doubt, “Venture out? Where is the Demon Empress going? Stellarsky Continent… could there be other continents outside? Furthermore… with the Demon Empress’ formidable strength, couldn’t you just bring Xiao Fei along? En… Demon Empress, please don’t misunderstand me. I am surely willing to take care of Xiao Fei as I already treat Xiao Fei as a little sister. I am just afraid I might not be competent…”

“There is no need for you to know about such things.”

The Demon Empress took a glance at Jiang Yi and said indistinctly, “You better don’t ask so much with your measly strength. Knowing it wouldn’t do you any good. I naturally have my own reasons for not bringing Xiao Fei along. Your body constitution is very… special, and as long as you cultivate diligently, your future is limitless. You will be sufficiently competent to take care of Xiao Fei.”

“Very special?”

Jiang Yi’s heart shook a little when the Demon Empress said this and glanced at his dantian. He felt as though all his secrets were being exposed to that pair of beautiful eyes. His heart felt abnormally uncomfortable like he was standing bare naked in front of the Demon Empress.

Fortunately—after the Demon Empress took a glance, she cast her sights into the far distance again and didn’t say anything else. Jiang Yi naturally wouldn’t take the initiative and tell her about his transformed dantian. Demonic beasts and humans cultivate in entirely different methods, and even if he told her, she wouldn’t understand, right?

“Alright then!”

He gave it some consideration and thought there was no reason for him to return anyway since Xiaonu and Jiang Yunhai were very safe in Mt. Spirit Beast College. With such an exceptional place offered for cultivation, why would Jiang Yi refuse if he wasn’t an idiot?

“That’s right…”

Jiang Yi recalled the first time he met with the Demon Empress as she asked about the Fire Spirit Rock. Back then, he stubbornly refused to say anything; but he was feeling rather embarrassed right now. He took out the Fire Spirit Pearl and said, “Demon Empress, I didn’t tell you about how I obtained the Fire Spirit Rock previously when you asked me. Actually… this Fire Spirit Pearl and Fire Spirit Rock were obtained in the Tomb of the Heaven Monarch. They are the artifacts that belonged to the Heaven Monarch of Ten-Thousand Dragons.”

“Heaven Monarch of Ten-Thousand Dragons? Impossible!”

The Demon Empress took a glance and spoke firmly, “The flames of your small rock are very dreadful, and not even regular Vajra Realm martial experts can resist against it. This thing is definitely something that doesn’t belong to the continent. I reckon that the Heaven Monarch of Ten-Thousand Dragons obtained it by fate. This item shouldn’t be an item of the continent.”

“Not even regular Vajra Realm martial experts can resist against it?”

Jiang Yi was silently feeling regretful as he had used the Fire Spirit Rocks extravagantly. There were only over a dozen of them left, and he reckoned that it would be depleted after a few more uses.

“Go cultivate then. Try not to venture out if there isn’t anything urgent. And do not bring Xiao Fei out recklessly either. If anything happens to Xiao Fei, you shall take responsibility for it!”

The Demon Empress spoke coldly and walked down the sky platform. She suddenly recalled something at the entrance and spoke while looking sideways, “Xiao Fei will bring you some spirit fruit later on. A single spirit fruit will be enough for you to fast without food for half a year. If you have anything urgent to attend to, ask Xiao Hong to bring you out. I will be in seclusion.”

The Demon Empress vanished from the sky platform while her rear view remained enchanting. However, Jiang Yi could feel a trace of seriousness from her body.

His expression turned grave as he silently tried to make assumptions. What kind of gargantuan matter did the Demon Empress encounter? With her invincible combat strength, who could actually force her to leave the continent? She didn’t even dare to bring along the little fox? She might even be gone forever? For her to even nurture a human to help take care of her daughter on her behalf?

Furthermore… what was there outside of the continent?

He stood in the pavilion and looked through the thick mist at the distance blue skies. He could somehow sense that this world was even more complicated than he imagined. Perhaps the world that he was seeing was only the tip of the iceberg.