Cheng Qian jumped down from the bear's corpse. Holding the giant sharp tooth with both hands, he tried swinging it.
It was long and heavy, not easy to control. But when he tested it, the tip pierced straight into the thick bear's chest as easily as cutting vegetables.
Cheng Qian was satisfied. It was bulky, but at least it was sharp.
Li Yun muttered, "What kind of creature is our Third Junior Brother?"
Yan Zhengming laughed awkwardly, not knowing how to answer.
Even though the giant snake had ignored them—proving the wooden token really worked—Cheng Qian still didn't want to rely on it for their safety.
Only when he held the heavy sharp tooth in his hands did he feel truly secure.
After the two great demons left, the area became quiet.
Li Yun dripped more Divine Water onto the useless stone. The toad "woke up" cheerfully and continued hopping forward as if nothing had happened.
Along the way, Yan Zhengming tried several times to talk to the wooden token. But it had suddenly gone silent and refused to respond.
The toad eventually led them to a hillside.
When they looked down from the top—
The toad froze.
Then it immediately dropped to the ground and pretended to be dead.
Li Yun didn't understand and hurried forward to look.
The moment he saw what was below, he instinctively turned and ran back—crashing into Cheng Qian and nearly knocking him down the hill.
Cheng Qian's back hit a rock painfully. He almost dropped the giant tooth weapon. Dazed, he snapped, "Second Senior Brother! If you want to die with your precious toad, don't drag me with you!"
Li Yun grabbed Cheng Qian's collar with shaking hands, too terrified to speak.
Cheng Qian sensed something was wrong. He looked up at Yan Zhengming's stiff back.
"What is it?"
Yan Zhengming stood frozen at the place where the toad had "died."
In the valley below, thousands of demons were fighting.
Blood covered the ground so thickly that its original color couldn't be seen. Flesh flew through the air like in a slaughterhouse.
Compared to this, the bear and the snake from earlier truly were just "two or three small demons."
Finally, the wooden token spoke:
"Don't look. If this were happening here, the noise and smell of blood would have spread long ago. You wouldn't need to climb so high to notice."
The voice shocked the three boys back to their senses.
When they looked again, the valley scene now seemed slightly unreal—like a reflection.
Li Yun let out a breath. "Senior… is this fake?"
The voice replied calmly, "This is Jingzhao Valley. It reflects scenes from other places. What you see is real—but not happening here."
There was a cold indifference in the voice, as if it was used to bloodshed.
The boys exchanged glances but said nothing.
The wooden token continued:
"Cross this valley and the mountain ahead, and you'll reach Linxiantai. The scene you see is near there. Take me there, and then you can find your little junior brother yourselves."
Yan Zhengming said stubbornly, "We came to save him, not to die together. Who exactly are you?"
White smoke rose from the wooden token.
When it cleared, the image of their master, Mu Chun, appeared in front of them.
But instead of feeling relieved, Yan Zhengming threw the token to the ground and pointed his sword at it.
"You dare pretend to be my master!"
The figure didn't get angry. It laughed and transformed into a blurry black shadow shaped like a mushroom.
"Fine," it said kindly. "I won't look like your master. But I was carved by him. Xiao Zhengming, don't you trust your own master?"
Yan Zhengming hesitated.
The "mushroom" continued, "Besides, Xiaoyun's guiding toad led you here. That means Xiaoyuan is ahead too. You're going the same way anyway."
Yan Zhengming looked at where the toad had been pointing before it "died."
After a moment, he muttered, "We've already come this far. It would be ridiculous to turn back now."
Because of his absolute trust in Master Mu Chun, Yan Zhengming slowly lowered his sword and picked up the wooden token.
"Then lead the way."
They descended into Jingzhao Valley.
Even though they knew the battle was only a reflection, walking through it felt like torture. The screams, the blood, the endless fighting—it seemed to last forever.
After this, Cheng Qian felt that ghost stories would never scare him again.
He finally asked, "What's happening there?"
The wooden token replied calmly, "The Heavenly Demon is about to be born and inherit the Demon King's power. Demon cultivators respect no law or authority. If the Demon King is weak, the others will rebel and fight for the throne."
Cheng Qian thought, That makes no sense.
But then he remembered Zipeng and the snake demon killing without hesitation. Perhaps demons really were just beasts.
Yan Zhengming asked, "If this is normal among demons, why are you going to Linxiantai? To watch?"
The wooden token became serious.
"When a demon is born under heavy bloodshed, it will be violent and cruel. If allowed to grow, it could become a disaster for Fuyao Mountain. I must stop this before it begins."
Yan Zhengming frowned. "What do you mean?"
The token ignored the question and said, "There is movement under the bridge ahead. The one you're looking for should be there."
Deep in the valley was a muddy depression—once a river. An old stone bridge with beast-head carvings still stood there.
Under the bridge were several thin, rat-like demons with pointed mouths, whiskers, and long tails.
And in the middle—
Han Yuan.
He was covered in mud, struggling desperately. Two large rats held him down. Another was smearing more mud onto him. A fire had already been prepared nearby.
They were clearly planning to roast him.
Han Yuan saw them and nearly cried with joy.
"Senior Brother! Save me! Let me go, you big rats! My senior brother can call thunder from the sky! He'll chop you into roasted mice!"
The three "thunder-calling" senior brothers were speechless.
Yan Zhengming looked at Han Yuan, covered in thick mud, and said dryly, "Maybe they should roast him."
Before he finished speaking, one rat charged forward.
After everything they had seen, this rat—only the height of a person—no longer seemed so terrifying.
Yan Zhengming shoved the wooden token into Li Yun's arms and stepped forward with his sword.
The rat slashed with its claws. Yan Zhengming blocked. The claws struck the gem on his sword and cracked.
The rat screamed and tried to bite his blade. Yan Zhengming elbowed its nose, knocking it backward—
Right to Cheng Qian's feet.
Cheng Qian had already prepared his only familiar move—the starting stance.
The rat practically threw itself onto his blade.
Cheng Qian gripped the sharp tooth with both hands and struck.
One blow.
The rat hero was sent to the western heavens.
Cheng Qian himself froze in surprise.
The other three rats saw their companion fall and immediately rushed forward from three directions.
Two charged at Yan Zhengming.
One rushed at Li Yun.
Li Yun searched himself frantically and realized he had brought no weapon at all.
And even if he had—
It probably wouldn't help.