One of the guards lowered his head and said, "Senior, the General is studying."
George Twenty-One already knew that.
The Rat Demon General spent this period every day studying under a human scholar.
The arrangement had begun two years earlier.
That was when the General had started dressing like a human.
It was also when he had ordered all intelligent rats to walk upright like humans.
George Twenty-One still remembered the confusion that order had caused throughout the tunnels.
"I know," George Twenty-One said impatiently. "Open the door."
The two guards hesitated.
Their expressions immediately darkened.
Interrupting the General during his studies was no small matter.
Seeing their hesitation, George Twenty-One continued.
"I will take responsibility."
He pointed at himself.
"If the General becomes angry, I will tell him I forced both of you to open the door."
The guards exchanged glances.
After several moments, one of them finally nodded.
He stepped forward and pushed the stone door open.
Rumble.
The heavy stone door slowly swung inward.
George Twenty-One immediately entered.
The moment he stepped into the room, a cold voice echoed through the chamber.
"Did I not say not to disturb me at this time?"
George Twenty-One felt a powerful aura lock onto him.
His entire body stiffened.
Inside the room, Finley sat behind a large wooden desk.
He wore elegant human clothing tailored specifically for his transformed form.
An open book rested before him.
Standing beside the desk was an elderly human scholar.
The old man held another book in trembling hands.
George Twenty-One immediately dropped to one knee in imitation of human etiquette.
"General, I have important news."
Finley looked down at the kneeling rat.
All Earth-Moving Rats below the Demon General Realm looked nearly identical.
They recognised one another through scent rather than appearance.
Finley immediately recognised George Twenty-One.
He had personally assigned him to spy on Samuel, the Fire Owl General.
His eyes narrowed.
A disturbing thought surfaced in his mind.
Had George Twenty-One lost track of Samuel?
Finley distinctly remembered giving him a tracking treasure capable of locking onto Samuel's scent.
The possibility immediately filled him with anger.
A faint killing intent leaked from his body.
The temperature inside the room seemed to plummet.
The elderly scholar shivered.
Cold sweat appeared across George Twenty-One's back.
Realising the danger, he immediately blurted out the news.
"Fire Owl General Samuel is dead!"
Finley froze.
For a brief moment, complete silence filled the chamber.
Then he abruptly stood.
Crack!
The desk overturned as his strength exploded outward.
Books scattered across the floor.
The human scholar cried out in alarm and stumbled backwards.
Finley's breathing grew heavier.
Was Samuel dead?
His first reaction was not grief.
It was disbelief.
Although they had been rivals for decades, Finley knew exactly how powerful Samuel was.
A Demon General was not an existence that died casually.
Finley glanced toward the terrified scholar.
"Teacher, I apologise."
His voice had already calmed.
"But please return to your room."
The old scholar nodded frantically.
"Yes. Yes, General."
Without wasting a second, he hurried toward a small door at the back of the chamber.
The moment he entered, the door closed behind him.
Most of the time, he remained confined within those quarters, emerging only to teach Finley.
After the scholar left, Finley's gaze returned to George Twenty-One.
His eyes were sharp enough to cut flesh.
"Tell me exactly what happened."
Fear lingered in George Twenty-One's voice.
"This morning, I lost track of Fire Owl General Samuel."
"Using the tracking treasure you gave me, I followed his scent."
"When I reached the destination, I found Samuel dead."
He paused briefly.
"A Crow Demon was standing beside the corpse."
Finley's eyes narrowed.
"A Crow Demon?"
Something about that sounded familiar.
Recently, Samuel had been searching for independent Demon Generals.
Could he have encountered one?
Finley immediately asked,
"Do you remember the location where Samuel was killed?"
George Twenty-One nodded repeatedly.
"Yes, General."
"Good."
Finley's expression turned serious.
"Take me there immediately."
George Twenty-One hurriedly lowered his head.
"Yes, General."
Before he could react further, dense Demon Energy erupted from Finley's body.
The energy enveloped both of them.
The surrounding earth softened instantly.
Like water swallowing two stones, the ground opened beneath their feet.
The next moment, both demons sank into the earth and vanished from the chamber.
Only the overturned desk and scattered books remained behind.
---
Far away, Denver led a small group through the Dark Forest.
Following behind him were the leaders of three demon clans.
The Silver Fox Clan Chief, Fae.
The Blue Feather Sparrow Clan Chief, Brendon.
And the River Hound Clan Chief, Gidon.
Denver and Fae could easily have been mistaken for humans.
Their bloodlines were pure enough to allow them to assume nearly human appearances.
The same could not be said for Brendon and Gidon.
Although both walked upright and imitated human movements, their bodies remained largely beast-like.
Their bloodlines were too weak.
Even after reaching the peak of the Demon General Realm, they could not fully transform.
The group moved quietly through the forest.
Eventually, they emerged from the trees and arrived at the cliff where Denver had first encountered the mysterious Crow Demon.
Denver stopped and pointed toward the edge.
"The last time I saw Senior Crow Demon Lord was here."
Fae nodded before turning toward Brendon.
"Brendon, can you find his traces?"
Brendon spread his wings and leapt onto a nearby branch.
Closing his eyes, he began chirping.
The sound travelled through the forest.
Moments later, responses arrived.
Chirping.
Cawing.
Singing.
For a brief period, countless bird calls echoed throughout the woods.
Gradually, the sounds faded.
Brendon opened his eyes.
A frown appeared on his face.
"The Crow Demon fought somebody."
The atmosphere immediately became tense.
The first thought that entered everyone's mind was the Blue Flame Demon Lord.
Fae's expression grew serious.
"Do you know who he fought?"
Brendon shook his head.
"The birds don't know."
"They fled when the battle started."
"What they do know is that after the fight ended, nobody remained."
Silence descended upon the group.
Each considered the implications.
The River Hound Clan Chief, Gidon, finally spoke.
"Should we return?"
Brendon, Denver, and Gidon all turned toward Fae.
Among them, she possessed the highest status and strongest cultivation.
The final decision belonged to her.
Fae thought for a moment before speaking.
"No."
"We will go to the battlefield."
"If we examine the traces left behind, we may discover who fought there and what the outcome was."
Brendon nodded.
"Follow me."
With a powerful flap of his wings, he rose into the air.
The others quickly followed.
Guided by the information gathered from the birds, they headed toward the broken hill.
Some time later, they arrived.
The sight before them caused everyone to pause.
Half of the hill was gone.
The landscape looked as though a giant had taken a bite out of it.
Trees had been uprooted.
The earth had been blasted apart.
A massive crater dominated the centre of the battlefield.
The destruction clearly indicated a fierce battle.
As they climbed onto the remains of the hill and examined their surroundings, Fae suddenly frowned.
She sensed movement underground.
"Be careful."
The warning had barely left her mouth when the earth exploded.
Boom!
Two figures burst from the ground.
Finley.
And George Twenty-One.
The sudden appearance shocked everyone.
Even Fae failed to react immediately.
The moment he emerged, Finley's gaze locked onto George Twenty-One.
His eyes blazed with fury.
"George!"
"You betrayed me!"
Before anyone could understand what was happening, Finley's claw flashed.
Slash!
George Twenty-One screamed.
His body flew forward.
A bloody hole appeared in his back.
The attack had nearly pierced through his chest.
Then, just as suddenly as he had appeared, Finley sank back into the earth.
The ground swallowed him whole.
By the time the others reacted, he was already gone.
Silence filled the battlefield.
Everyone stared at the severely wounded rat in shock.
Fae immediately moved.
Silver energy flowed from her hands and entered George Twenty-One's body.
The rat's injuries gradually stabilised.
Only after ensuring he would not die did she question him.
"What happened?"
George Twenty-One's face remained pale.
Fear still lingered in his eyes.
After calming down, he explained everything.
The death of Fire Owl General Samuel.
The mysterious Crow Demon.
His report to Finley.
And Finley's investigation.
The four listeners exchanged shocked glances.
The Fire Owl General was dead.
That revelation alone was enough to shake the entire region.
---
Meanwhile, Finley travelled directly to the territory of the Blue Flame Demon Lord.
When he finally arrived, he reported the incident.
However, his version of events differed greatly from reality.
According to Finley, Fire Owl General Samuel had died after encountering the leaders of the Silver Fox Clan, Blue Feather Sparrow Clan, and River Hound Clan.
The evidence appeared obvious.
All three clan leaders had been present at the battlefield.
George Twenty-One had survived under their protection.
To an outsider, the conclusion seemed reasonable.
As a result, suspicion immediately shifted toward the three clans.
---
Completely unaware of the events unfolding behind him, Kaelan continued flying toward the demon city beneath the crescent moon.
Cold night winds swept across his feathers.
Far below, forests and mountains passed beneath him like dark waves.
As he flew, he refined his plans for acquiring wealth.
The Flesh and Blood Pill would provide his initial capital, but it would not be enough to sustain his future cultivation.
Sooner or later, he would require a stable source of income.
After careful consideration, he settled upon a solution.
Spells.
More specifically, the spell he had personally created.
The Energy Bullet.
And any future spells he developed.
Unlike cultivation resources, creating spells cost him nothing except time and understanding.
As an immortal Void Monster, time was the one thing he possessed in abundance.
He could sell his spells directly.
Alternatively, he could exchange them for other spells of equal value.
Either option would allow him to expand his collection of techniques while steadily accumulating wealth.
The more Kaelan thought about it, the more reasonable the plan appeared.
A faint smile appeared in his eyes.
Perhaps becoming a spell merchant would not be a bad beginning.
Under the silver light of the crescent moon, the distant outline of a city gradually appeared on the horizon.
Kaelan increased his speed and flew toward it.