"There are demons engaged in Magical Combat nearby!"
Xu Chang'an was instantly on alert.
Following the sound, he crept closer.
His Qi Refining Fourth Layer Cultivation, combined with the Concealment Spell, perfectly masked his aura.
Although this area was within Langlang Mountain's sphere of influence, it was still a considerable distance from the main mountain.
'Better to be cautious!'
"This is..."
Ahead, demons were indeed engaged in Magical Combat.
One side consisted of demons from Langlang Mountain, and Xu Chang'an was quite familiar with their leader.
It was Jin Dashan, the very one who had brought him to Langlang Mountain.
The other side was their rival faction, the demons from Black Crow Mountain.
On Jin Dashan's side, besides himself, there were three demons at the Middle Stage of Qi Refining and one at the Qi Refining Third Layer.
The rest were Little Demons at the Qi Refining First Layer, dozens of them by the looks of it.
The forces from Black Crow Mountain, however, were much stronger.
They were clearly overpowering the Langlang Mountain side.
They had over ten demons at the Middle Stage of Qi Refining alone.
Not to mention two demons at the Late-stage Qi Refining.
The Black Crow Mountain side had a very clear objective. The two Late-stage Qi Refining demons were pinning down Jin Dashan, preventing his escape and making it difficult for him to send for help.
Meanwhile, the dozen or so Middle Stage of Qi Refining demons were like wolves among sheep, slaughtering the Qi Refining First Layer Little Demons.
The Little Demons scattered and fled.
But a restriction had been set up around the area, making it hard for them to escape.
"A Trapping Magical Artifact!"
Xu Chang'an thought.
'To cover such a large area, it must be at least a Middle-grade Magical Artifact.'
Black Crow Mountain's goal was clear: to slaughter every last one of these Little Demons.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
A flash of light streaked past.
And a Qi Refining First Layer Little Demon fell dead.
"Black Hair, how dare you launch a sneak attack within Langlang Mountain's territory!"
Jin Dashan roared in anger.
He had been traveling nonstop with his newly recruited Demon Army, wanting to reach Langlang Mountain overnight.
He had breathed a sigh of relief upon reaching Langlang Mountain's territory.
He never thought...
...that Black Crow Mountain would be so audacious as to ambush them here.
'Do they have a death wish?!'
Once his call for help succeeded and Langlang Mountain found out, this whole group of demons from Black Crow Mountain would be dead!
Unfortunately for Jin Dashan, that was just wishful thinking.
Pinned down by two Late-stage Qi Refining demons, he couldn't free up his hands to cast a Help Spell.
'Damn it!'
In just this short time, a Little Flag at the Middle Stage of Qi Refining and over ten newly recruited Little Demons had already died.
Black Crow Mountain had come prepared!
Jin Dashan's eyes burned with rage, but he was helpless.
If this continued, he might be able to hold on, but the rest of the Demon Army would likely be annihilated.
'Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!'
"Hahaha, Jin Dashan, to think you'd see a day like this."
The Late-stage Qi Refining demon known as Black Hair was an enormous Black Crow with a shrill, unpleasant voice.
"Kill them! Make it quick, and leave no one alive."
A grayish-white light flashed, slicing through the air, and a nearby Qi Refining Little Demon dropped dead.
While suppressing Jin Dashan, Black Hair was even killing the Little Demons.
"You dare act so arrogantly here? Then all of you can stay."
Jin Dashan's face was grim. He activated his Demon Power and, seizing a gap in the fighting, shot out a Demon Talisman.
It was about to soar into the sky and erupt into a brilliant signal.
SWISH!
A flash of cyan light shot past, shattering the Demon Talisman.
"Still trying to send a signal? In your dreams!"
The other Late-stage Qi Refining Black Crow Spirit sneered from the side.
Jin Dashan's expression was incredibly grim.
Fighting two against one, he was under immense pressure.
If not for the many tricks up his sleeve, he likely couldn't have withstood such pressure at all.
"Die, die, all of you die."
Black Hair seemed to have gone mad, channeling his Demon Power to cast Magic.
At the same time, he would occasionally engage in close-quarters combat with his Demon Body, putting immense pressure on Jin Dashan.
In the distance, Xu Chang'an hid behind a thicket of trees, observing the scene.
"Within Langlang Mountain's sphere of influence...
...Black Crow Mountain is carrying out an ambush!"
'What a coincidence that I happened to stumble upon this. So...'
Xu Chang'an lowered his head in thought, weighing the pros and cons.
After a moment, he steeled his heart, having made a decision.
'This is an opportunity!'
He pulled out the yellow Command Flag from his back, channeled his Demon Power, and forcefully activated it.
"Go!"
The Command Flag he carried on his back was not merely for decoration; it was a Tier One Introduction Demon Talisman used for warnings and communications.
Every Mountain Patrol Little Demon is equipped with two of them.
This was a rule for patrolling on Langlang Mountain!
The Command Flag shot into the air, exploding in a brilliant burst of light.
In the dark of night, this brilliant light was extremely conspicuous.
It was quickly spotted by the Little Demons guarding the passes on Langlang Mountain.
"There's a situation! Report it, quickly!"
"Yes!"
...
"What's going on?!"
"Where did that signal come from?!"
Black Hair's expression froze.
"Hahaha, the signal has been sent! Langlang Mountain's reinforcements will be here soon. You might as well surrender now!"
The tables had turned. He never expected such a change.
Jin Dashan felt the sudden shift in his circumstances.
His previous despair was instantly replaced by a surge of hope.
He didn't know which Mountain Patrol Little Demon had spotted them, but once this was over, he would have to reward him handsomely.
"We can't stay here long! Retreat!"
Seeing that the situation was hopeless, and though filled with resentment, Black Hair decisively ordered a retreat.
If they delayed any longer and Langlang Mountain's reinforcements arrived, they would truly be finished here.
However, even as he prepared to retreat, he still activated his Demon Power and killed another Qi Refining First Layer Little Demon.
In just a few breaths' time, the Black Crow Mountain demons had all retreated.
The Trapping Magical Artifact used to confine them was also taken away.
Jin Dashan wanted to give chase, but he was afraid something unexpected would happen and he'd reveal a weakness.
For now, he calmed himself and began to gather the remaining Little Demons.
In this battle, twenty-one of Langlang Mountain's Little Demons had been killed.
One core demon at the Middle Stage of Qi Refining!
As for Black Crow Mountain, they only had injuries; not a single demon had died.
It was obvious at a glance who had come out ahead.
However, the matter was not yet over, so it was too early to declare a final outcome.
"You're the one who sent the signal!"
Jin Dashan said to Xu Chang'an, steadying his somewhat chaotic Demon Power.
He remembered this Mouse Demon. He had brought him to Langlang Mountain two or three years ago.
"Good work."
Xu Chang'an lowered his head, feigning a mixture of fright and joy.
WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH!
A series of sounds of something tearing through the air rang out.
Three or four demons from Langlang Mountain arrived, all of them Elder Level demons at the Late-stage Qi Refining.
These demons briefly scanned the area and exchanged a few words with Jin Dashan.
Without lingering, they gave chase in the direction of Black Crow Mountain's retreat.
A short while later, several more Late-stage Qi Refining demons arrived.
After a brief greeting, they too went in pursuit.
This happened several more times, with Late-stage Qi Refining demons arriving in waves.
Even a Sequence Elder arrived.
'Black Crow Mountain really stirred up a hornet's nest this time.'
Xu Chang'an mused to himself as he watched the direction where the Black Crow Mountain demons had retreated.
'I wonder how much longer these peaceful days can last.'
He looked at the Little Demons lying all around, their deaths gruesome.
And at the Little Demons who had been lucky enough to survive, now wailing in agony.
A sense of urgency grew in Xu Chang'an's heart.
'The pace of accumulating Guarding Methods needs to speed up!'
'Even if...'
'It means taking some calculated risks!'