Chapter 18: The Two Armies Face Off!

"You two..." Lu Fei glanced at his two companions and asked, "Aside from us, does anyone else know about our innate talent?" The little red-skinned pig demon shook his head at once. "No one." The crow monster hesitated, "I did tell that Grayhide guy..." Lu Fei was skeptical. "Just one?" "Just him," the crow insisted. "Good. In a few days, we'll take care of him. But from now on, you'd better learn to keep your mouth shut—your life depends on it," Lu Fei said, his tone serious.

Seeing Lu Fei’s stern expression, the crow monster nodded rapidly. "I won't do it again..."

Lu Fei nodded and said no more, turning toward the stone cave.

After the feast last night, he wouldn’t be hungry for most of the day.

"Whitefur, where are you going?" the crow monster called after him. "Aren’t we supposed to patrol the mountain?"

"Patrol? What patrol?" Lu Fei stopped, amused. "Didn’t you hear Chief Bear say it? Patrols and guard duties are no longer my concern..."

The crow’s beak fell open in surprise. "Really?"

He looked to Redhide, who nodded. "It's true, you just didn't hear it."

"Happy patrolling," Lu Fei waved and strode away toward the cave.

Watching Lu Fei's retreating figure, the crow monster sighed enviously, "Whitefur’s got it easy from now on."

Redhide grunted in agreement.

The crow went on, "He’s really changed these days. I never even knew he could count..."

Redhide: "Mhm..."

"Say," the crow whispered conspiratorially, "should we swear allegiance to Whitefur, like the chiefs do with Bear, Tiger, and Ox? What do you think?"

Redhide turned, looking at him in surprise. "Haven’t we always?"

"Always?" The crow paused, then hopped in indignation. "When did I ever swear loyalty to Whitefur? I only did because he ranks higher with Chief Bear. That’s it!"

As Redhide walked off, the crow suddenly remembered something and hurried after him. "Wait, when did you swear loyalty to Whitefur? Why don’t I know? Wait for me..."

Two days later.

Dawn.

The sky was just beginning to lighten outside the stone cave.

Lu Fei woke on the cold stone bed, turned to glance at the pale sky, and focused his thoughts.

Lines of faint white virtual data began to shimmer before his eyes.

[Host: Lu Fei]
[Realm: First Rank Demon Soldier (76/100)]
[Experience: 72/200]
[Soul Power: None]
[Technique: Demon Clan Breathing Technique (Proficient) (32/500)]
[Skills: Spear Technique (Beginner) (26/100); Archery (Beginner) (13/100); Harpoon Technique (Beginner) (15/100)]
[Divine Powers: None]
[Talent: Celestial Wolf Devours the Moon (Beginner) (7/100)]
[...]

“So close, yet still a ways to go...” Lu Fei sighed inwardly as he looked at the stats. For the past two days, freed from patrols and menial chores, he had focused solely on meditation and breathing, aided by the lingering effects of the fish demon’s flesh he’d eaten, but he’d only managed to reach seventy-six experience points.

If only he had ten more days—no, just seven or eight—he could max out his experience and break through the First Rank Demon Soldier stage.

But, alas, he wouldn’t achieve it before the battle with Shepanshan.

He glanced at the other stats. The Demon Clan Breathing Technique had improved slightly. His spear and archery skills had increased too, thanks to yesterday’s last-minute drills ordered by the chiefs before the coming fight.

Looking further down, Lu Fei grew silent at his innate talent: “Celestial Wolf Devours the Moon.” Since arriving in this world, he had never once used it; the current talent points must have been accumulated by the original host.

He didn’t use it, having realized its rarity and value, out of fear of exposure. He wanted to wait until his strength grew or he had better living arrangements—at least a place of his own, not sharing with two snoring louts whose snores could kill mosquitoes.

Only then could he cultivate with peace of mind.

Otherwise, every night he’d have to sneak out under the moonlight to train, then slip back in when the moon set—dodging other demons all the while, just for a slight boost to his breathing practice.

It was simply too troublesome.

So, Lu Fei simply left it unused, waiting for better conditions.

Clang—

Just then, a familiar, piercing, soul-shaking gong sounded outside the cave. This time it was earlier and more urgent than ever before.

Clang, clang, clang, clang, clang, clang, clang...

The sudden, frantic ringing startled Redhide and the crow monster awake, cutting off their snores.

The crow blinked blearily toward the cave entrance. "Why so early today..."

No one answered. Lu Fei and Redhide had already leapt from their beds, grabbed their newly issued shortbows and spears, and raced out.

Watching his companions disappear, the crow finally came to his senses and shrieked, "Wait for me..."

When the three arrived at the usual gathering hilltop, they saw the eight other minor chiefs—all on par with Chief Bear—two great commanders, and, standing at the summit, the Lord of Langlang Mountain himself, all donned in armor.

For the first time, Lu Fei also noticed a banner flying on the hill: black background, with three crooked red characters stitched upon it—"Langlang Mountain."

The lesser demons assembled with haste. Soon, all had gathered at the base of the hill under their respective chiefs.

Lu Fei observed carefully; besides the king, the great commanders, and the minor chiefs in armor, several ordinary demons below also wore armor—some with only a chest plate or a piece for the lower body, all rusted and decrepit. Some had strapped on makeshift leather jerkins or, like Lu Fei, tied random objects over their vital spots for protection.

The rest of the little demons were mostly bare-chested, with only branches or leaves wrapped around their lower halves—some wore nothing at all, relying solely on their fur for modesty.

"Move out..."

Once everyone was assembled, the Wild Ox Demon King wasted no words, simply waving his hand and tossing out a handkerchief.

The handkerchief caught the wind and instantly expanded, growing large enough to cover the entire hilltop.

Then it descended.

Lu Fei’s eyes widened—then everything went black and he lost consciousness.

When he finally came to and opened his eyes, he found himself at the foot of a mountain, facing a mass of snake-bodied, human-headed demons, all armed and gathered for battle.