Shen Qiang made his way back to the building closest to the hill without a hitch. He climbed up to the roof after taking a look around and then heaved a sigh of relief. Now, he only needed to get to the other side and then, he could already leave the demon realm and return. Save for the one wound on his shoulder, he hadn't even been hurt. It seemed that this was really going well. Still, he couldn't become negligent because of that. In fact, now, he needed to be more cautious than ever.
He once again took a moment to look around when he crouched on top of the building to make sure that there were no beasts around that would surprise him suddenly. He couldn't see anything as if the few fights he had had before had been warning enough to those beasts. He nodded to himself and then rushed over to the other side of the old palace, checking the ground below before he reached out to the rope. Just when he wanted to climb over, he heard voices drifting over from not too far away.
Shen Qiang froze. Human voices in this place meant that these were either demonic beasts that had attained a high enough level to change into a humanoid form or that they were high-leveled demons in the first place who were born with them. Whatever it was, it wasn't good news to him.
If he got into conflict with them, it would be difficult to keep his life. Especially since this wasn't just one. With only one of them attacking, he might still have a chance to at least leave with his life intact even if he would be gravely injured doing so but with two of them, the matter was a different thing altogether.
In the human world, the people of the demon-hunting sects would never engage this kind of foe on their own. They would always make sure that there were more of them so they would be able to deal with them. After all, demons were tricky to deal with.
He refrained from climbing over and exposing himself in a vulnerable position. Instead, he lay down flat on the roof, hoping that they wouldn't take note of him.
Soon enough, the demons were close enough for him to hear what they were talking about and even make out their forms behind one of the buildings.
"I can't believe Yong Hai really thought he can just send us here." The demon that spoke seemed everything but happy about whatever it was that was going on. Apparently, they weren't here of their own free will.
Shen Qiang wasn't too happy discovering that either. A demon in a bad mood would be even more likely to attack him. Well, there was nothing he could do other than hope for the best.
The other demon gave a grunt. "Well, we're here, so obviously he can. Anyway, if it helps to get rid of that Jin Ling, then I'll be happy we could be part of it. I'm just afraid we won't really get a thank you for this."
The first demon laughed. "Jin Ling is a coward who relies on his good looks and Yong Hai is an asshole who relies on our wish to fight. Don't know who of them is actually better. Ah, I wish somebody like Ye Yang would be vying for the throne. He is definitely strong enough to lead us. And I don't think he would shy away from fighting the dragons either."
The other one nodded at that. "True. If it was him, I'd follow him willingly. But I doubt it's going to happen. Last I heard, he fucking that Jin Ling. Well, can't blame him. He does have a pretty face."
The two of them sighed and finally walked up the steps to one of the palaces.
"This should be it, right?"
"Damned if I know. These palaces all look the same to me. Honestly, it's creepy."
Shen Qiang raised his brows. Who would've thought that even the demons found one of their own cemeteries to be an uncomfortable place? Well, he shouldn't judge them for that.
"Never mind. Creepy is alright as long as it isn't dangerous. I wonder if those ancient royals bothered to put some guards here or something like that. Maybe there are traps inside?"
The other demon gave him a look. "What? You think Yong Hai would send us here if it was that easy? He is just us as bait. If we don't make it back, he'll send somebody else tomorrow. But what can we do? If we don't accept this task, then we'll just be suffering when Yong Hai ascends the throne. He might not be the grateful kind but he certainly is the spiteful kind."
The other demon grunted and they finally opened the door and stepped inside.
Shen Qiang sighed in relief. He would wait for a moment longer and then leave. It was best if he was out of here before those two could get back.
Lying atop the roof, his thoughts couldn't help but wander though. While they hadn't said much, it had been enough to understand that there seemed to be some unrest among the high-ranking demons. Maybe there would be a change of who was ruling them.
While he didn't understand much about the things happening in the actual demon realm, he doubted that this was good. Especially considering how these two demons had just characterized the two people involved.
He didn't know how true this was but a coward was still better for them than somebody who was willing to fight. After all, while it had sounded like they were out to fight with one of the other immortal races, who knew if the humans wouldn't be the next target if they managed to win? It would be best for them if that didn't happen. So maybe it would also be for the best if these two didn't make it out of this place.
Shen Qiang finally got up again and crawled over to the other roof before continuing forward. Whatever it was, he didn't have time to deal with it now. He first needed to bring back the herbs. After that, he could think about everything else.