Who could that be?
Fang Han halted mid-flight, his body stopping as cleanly as if the sky itself had caught him.
I'm flying at full speed, crossing a thousand miles in a single breath, hidden from every mortal or cultivator's senses—yet someone managed to project a mental cry for help directly into my mind? That's no simple technique. It resembles the divine races' psychic storm. And the one calling out… seems to be a woman.
Curiosity stirred. Fang Han blended into the clouds, his eyes darkening as a ripple of black water-light formed in his pupils.
The world unfolded.
Below, within a thousand-mile radius, every hill, stream, beast, and tree appeared clearly—tigers stalking in the brush, snakes coiling beneath stones, hawks circling the wind. Everything fell neatly into his sight.
This was the Black Emperor's Eye, one of the Five Great Demon Emperor Arts. It allowed vision through the water essence of heaven and earth—seeing a thousand miles by day, eight hundred by night.
Currently, Fang Han could only observe larger creatures or cultivators within that range.
When he reached Golden Core, he knew one glance would cover three thousand miles—every ant visible, every leaf veined.
That would be truly terrifying.
But for now, spotting a handful of cultivators was easy.
In an expanse of barren mountains, he saw several streaks of starlight surrounding a young woman. She was desperately resisting, but the psychic cry he'd heard was leaking from her mind like a fading echo.
A closer look made him arch a brow.
A demon?
Behind the woman flicked several soft, furred tails—clearly a fox demon. Not just any fox, but a pure-blooded one.
The attackers wore ceremonial star-robes and jeweled crowns—disciples of the Starry Sky Sect. Their looks were refined, their bearing clean… but their actions were vicious, mocking, almost playful as they tormented her.
"Little purefox," one of them sneered. "Hand over the treasure you found here in Sealed Demon Ridge. Give it up, and we won't kill you—we'll just take you back for our Seventh Senior Brother's birthday. Be a good little concubine, and your life will be spared. Refuse, and once these star-bindings merge, you'll be reduced to ash."
The wilderness around them was nothing but lonely yellow earth, hill after hill like massive grave mounds. There was nothing special about the terrain—no hidden aura, no traps.
One disciple flicked his finger, sending a ribbon of star-light twisting like a serpent around the trapped fox girl.
"Struggle all you want," another taunted. "No one lives within ten thousand miles. Even if you send out demon-scent messages for help, who could possibly hear you?"
The fox girl snarled. She was young—around the same age as Crane Fairy—but her brows carried a sharp ferocity. Her almond-shaped eyes glinted with cunning and pride.
"I was careless to fall into your ambush," she spat. "You call yourselves righteous cultivators, yet you stalk and attack from the shadows!"
"This is saving you," a third disciple laughed. "You're a demon. There's no future on the demon path. As Seventh Senior Brother's concubine, you'll live better than you ever would among monsters. He's a true Golden Core titan—his hundredth birthday approaches. Being offered to him is a blessing!"
Another waved a hand. "Enough chatter. Break her demon wards and take her. We present this fox girl as a gift—Seventh Senior Brother will reward us heavily."
"Wait—don't injure her. She must be intact."
The disciples spoke as though she were livestock, but their hands never slowed. The starlight thickened, merging until it became a glowing sphere around her.
The star-light was no mere spell—it was a treasure, a special binding rope forged from star-essence, similar to the Heavenly Rooster Sun-Cord Fang Han had once seen. Its suppressive power was immense.
Inside, the fox girl slashed wildly with a short blade, but the sphere held firm.
They didn't intend to kill her—if they had, she would already be dead.
All five were cultivators of the Divine Ability Realm: three at the second stage, two at the first. In the mortal world, each would be an emperor. In Starry Sky Sect, they were true disciples.
The fox girl herself had just entered the Divine Ability Realm. As a demon, she possessed an extra lightning-transformation step and thus slightly stronger essence—but her true power came from her tails. They weren't quite artifacts, nor quite flesh—similar in nature to the mutated magic-hand Fang Han wielded.
Fang Han recognized the bloodline immediately. Ordinary foxes had one tail; multiple tails marked an ancient, powerful lineage. Such tails grew with their owner's strength and might even evolve into Dao artifacts.
He sighed inwardly.
Starry Sky Sect disciples… bold indeed. Snatching a transforming fox girl as a "birthday gift." My Yuhua Sect hasn't sunk to this sort of depravity.
He considered intervening.
Just then—
"Stubborn demon girl! If you refuse to submit, don't blame us for being cruel!"
The starlight flared violently.
"Fine! Then I'll fight to the death!"
The fox girl cried out, her tails opening like a peacock fan. Countless hairs shot out—
"Not good! Thunder Needles!"
"That's a Nine-Tailed Purefox technique! She only has four tails—how does she—?!"
"Retreat!"
"Damn!"
The hairs ignited with lightning mid-flight, striking the star sphere, exploding, and then piercing straight through the disciples' robes into their flesh.
They collapsed instantly, screaming.
The fox girl's voice chilled.
"You sought to capture me. I might have spared you. But now you've seen the secret of this ridge. I can't allow you to live. Reincarnate well."
She darted forward, blade raised, movements swift and lethal—she intended to kill them all without hesitation.
Even Fang Han hadn't expected such a reversal. The fox had hidden her power cleverly—her tails had been refined by an expert and masked from detection.
But as her blade neared the disciples' throats—
An invisible force froze her mid-strike. The dagger flew from her grasp into the sky.
A calm voice echoed at her ear.
"A purefox dares slaughter Starry Sky Sect disciples? Do you wish to ignite a war between immortals and demons?"
"Who?!"
She leapt back like a startled hare, her tails fanned out defensively.
Fang Han descended, flicking his hand. Several beams scooped the fallen disciples off the ground, sealing—or perhaps shielding—them. She couldn't tell.
Her face turned pale green.
A Heaven-Human Realm expert!
"Senior, spare me!" she cried instantly. "I never wanted to kill them. They tried to steal the ancient treasure I found. If Senior desires it, I will offer the treasure to you—and tell you a great secret of Sealed Demon Ridge. Please… spare my life."
She hurriedly pulled out a faded talisman. It pulsed with powerful runes, shimmering with clouds of light—a supreme-grade treasure.
Fang Han blinked.
A supreme treasure… from a fox who'd only just reached Divine Ability?
And unrefined—it was clearly newly acquired.
He reached out—
Then halted.
His expression sharpened.
"Drop the act. I've played with tricks like this countless times. This isn't a supreme treasure—it's a lightning-forged illusion trap. The moment I touch it and channel qi, the formation inside detonates, killing me instantly."
His voice chilled.
"Purefox girl, you don't know me, but I know you. I saw through this the moment I looked at it. This is a demon-sorcery artifact—likely crafted through the Demon God's refining methods. Only the Heaven-Fox Mindbreaking Art can mask its true nature."
The fox girl froze.
Fang Han had seen her before—long ago, in the underground world, when he and Fang Qingxue destroyed the Demon God's altar.
Fang Han folded his arms.
"Speak honestly. What secret does Sealed Demon Ridge hold—one worth killing Starry Sky Sect disciples over? Tell me the truth, and I'll spare you. If not… for trying to deceive me, I'll personally reduce you back to your original form."
Her tails trembled.
She swallowed.
And she prepared to speak.