News that the first demon gathering area had been destroyed spread quickly.
The ten great Demon Generals all stayed calm.
"It doesn't matter. They've been inside the Demon Realm for three days already. In three days, their spiritual power must've been heavily drained. Give it another ten, and if they still don't want to die, they'll have to retreat from the Demon Realm."
"When their strength's nearly spent, that's when we strike! We'll make sure none of those humans leave this place alive!"
The gathered demons all agreed enthusiastically.
Weren't those humans always saying demons had no brains? Then what would they call this move of theirs, waiting in the dark while the humans exhaust themselves?
Once those human cultivators are drained dry and die on their own, we'll see who's really brainless!
"These humans have gotten far too arrogant lately. It wasn't enough to drive our kind from the Human Domain, now they dare to attack our territory! It's about time they learned the price of greed!"
"Exactly. This time, we'll make sure all those human elites stay here forever!"
"If we wipe them out, humanity's strength will fall back by at least a hundred years!"
"And when that happens, we'll storm into the Human Domain ourselves. I haven't tasted human flesh in a long time."
"Hahaha, you'll get your fill soon enough."
The group of demons laughed, their voices thick with excitement, as if they could already see the day humanity fell.
"All right, that's enough." The Demon General of the Touch-sense Clan grinned. "I've already planted sensory tentacles throughout the Demon Realm. Everything the humans do is under our control. From now on, just keep watching them."
The Touch-sense Clan weren't known for their combat power, but for their ability to scout. Their bodies were covered with thousands of tentacles that could detach, vanish from sight, and merge with the void.
Even if the main body was thousands of miles away, it could see through the senses of each detached tentacle.
The stronger a Touch-sense demon's cultivation, the longer their detached tentacles could survive.
This time, the Demon General himself had personally placed some that would last for months. The humans' every move was right within his grasp. He waved his hand, and in the great hall, an image appeared—showing the human army in motion.
In the vision, Yun Jin was releasing blazing flames, burning down the first gathering point.
Instead of anger, the demons' faces lit up with glee.
"They took the bait, just like we planned. Wasting all that spiritual power on those lowly lesser demons—soon they'll be drained completely! When the time comes, we'll trap them here forever."
"Hahaha, humans really are stupid."
The demons watched the projection and chatted cheerfully, laughter echoing through the grand hall.
Two days later.
The human army destroyed another base.
Inside the hall, the demons had already taken out their wine and were drinking merrily.
"They've gone even deeper. When they finally realize they've been corrupted, it'll be far too late to escape."
"Who would've thought these humans would walk right into our trap?"
"Their spiritual power's clearly fading fast. Let's just keep waiting."
As for the lesser demons, they'd already been abandoned. In the eyes of the higher demons, mid-tier demons were barely servants, only a handful of powerful ones worthy of a bit of respect.
The low-tier demons, though?
Even among their own kind, they weren't seen as equals, but as mindless beasts. Sacrificing a few beasts to wear down the humans' power, only to swoop in for the final harvest—what a profitable trade that was.
As they watched the image of the lesser demons being slaughtered one after another, the demons' smiles only grew brighter. Each dead low-tier demon meant the humans' power was being drained further. Good, very good indeed.
"I can see it. Most of the human cultivators have already lost more than half their spiritual power," said the Touch-sense Demon General with a confident smile.
Since he was the master of detection, the others trusted his judgment completely. They all perked up at his words.
"Still, the humans' top experts haven't made a move."
"That just shows how foolish they are! So what if they're conserving strength? Their spiritual power might hold out, but the Blood Moon's corruption works every moment. In less than a month, they'll all be eroded to death! We'll be there to finish them off."
"Exactly."
Laughter broke out once again across the demon hall.
They waited a few more days.
The humans had cleared out several more lesser demon strongholds. By all logic, their spiritual power should've been nearly spent, their pills mostly consumed.
And yet—
They suddenly noticed something odd. Among the human cultivators, a few people were radiating a strange spiritual aura. Whoever was touched by that aura began to recover their power little by little.
The demons stared.
"What... what the hell is that?"
"What's going on? Are those humans... walking pills?!"
Especially the ones from Xuandan Gate—each of them could restore the strength of several others! The human army was recovering to full force before their eyes.
For a moment, the demons hesitated.
It seemed these humans hadn't come unprepared after all.
"Don't panic! Listen to me, don't panic!" said the Touch-sense Demon General, forcing a smile. "The humans might have some secret method, but everything's still under our control. Even if they can last a little longer, so what? We'll just wait a few more days!"
"That's right. We can afford to wait. They can't."
Once again, laughter filled the hall.
So they waited.
Half a month passed.
The demons stared at the projection with anticipation.
Sure enough—
Some of the human cultivators couldn't hold on anymore.
The Blood Moon's corruption had gone too deep. Even if a few still had energy left, they couldn't control it properly under its influence.
The demons grew ecstatic.
Finally, it was time for their counterattack!
Over the past half month, the human army had advanced nonstop, nearly wiping out every lesser demon on the outskirts.
The demons didn't care much about those deaths, but being trampled like this was humiliating.
The Touch-sense Demon General stood up with a wide smile. "Everyone, you can see it yourselves. It's been half a month. The humans are exhausted. I say it's time we fight back! We'll lead our forces, intercept them head-on, and—"
He was speaking passionately when a hesitant voice cut in.
"Um... something feels... off."
The Touch-sense Demon General frowned.
Off?
What could possibly be off?
Who dared question his decision?
Then he turned to look at the projection again.