……

The outer region demons specifically imprisoned him together with Senior Sister Mingyan, clearly not out of any affection for Zhang Huaibing, nor to offer him any benefits.

There must be some special arrangement or hidden trick involved.

Ah, they must be using Senior Sister Mingyan to test the reliability of the information he provided.

Perhaps, in this seemingly empty solitary cell, there are eavesdropping formations or tools set up.

If he, out of fear of angering his senior sister, hastily revealed the real plan, the outer region demons eavesdropping would immediately know he had been lying, making all his previous suffering in vain.

One must always be cautious of others~ The outer region demons are indeed cunning.

With this thought, Zhang Huaibing immediately put on an act, his face full of misery, as if he had suffered a great grievance: "Senior Sister Mingyan, how can you say that about me? Do you want me to just watch as you are tortured to death by the outer region demons?"

He then launched into a series of complaints, mixed with words of admiration for Senior Sister Mingyan. His words were so earnest and sincere that even he almost believed them.

Wu Mingyan was taken aback by his performance, initially believing him seven or eight parts, but now almost entirely convinced.

"Sigh~ Junior Brother Huaibing, you're really muddle-headed~" Wu Mingyan feigned being moved, then pretended to blame him, "For you to betray the human race for my sake, how am I supposed to live with that?"

"I take responsibility for my own actions; this is my choice and has nothing to do with Senior Sister. Please don't blame yourself." Zhang Huaibing pounded his chest, speaking with great righteousness.

Meanwhile, as Zhang Huaibing and Wu Mingyan were engaged in their acting duel, the projection of the Yincha Demon God had already contacted its true form, which then descended upon the Redstone Demon King Fortress via projection and immediately began investigating the military deployment of the human eastern defense line.

Sure enough, during this period, the commander of the eastern defense line, Zhao Tingjian, had secretly gathered a large force under the guise of training, targeting the sparsely defended Redstone Demon King Fortress and several other demon king fortresses.

If she hadn't received the information in time, Zhao Tingjian's actions might have gone unnoticed until he officially launched his attack, given the sparse forces and severely lacking reconnaissance capabilities of the three demon king fortresses.

At this point.

The Yincha Demon God finally fully believed Zhang Huaibing's confession.

While cursing Princess Suiyun as a schemer in its heart, it hurriedly redeployed its demon army, originally intended to ambush Princess Suiyun, back to the Redstone and other three demon king fortresses for reinforcement.

Soon, only the full forces of the Gluttonous, Blackwing, and Giant Strength Demon King Fortresses remained near the Gluttonous Demon King Fortress.

With these forces, they weren't afraid of Princess Suiyun turning her attention back for a strong attack.

These three demon king fortresses were strategically positioned, forming a triangular defense. If they focused solely on defense, they could hold out indefinitely.

However, the surrounding lords and their demon generals might suffer significant losses. But what of it? As long as the demon king fortresses weren't lost, losing some lords and demon generals was inconsequential.

While the outer region demons were in turmoil, Wang Lici had already quietly reached the core of the Gluttonous Demon King Fortress.

Gluttonous Demon King Fortress.

Deep underground.

Here lay a heavily guarded treasury, with two imposing obsidian demon puppets standing at the entrance, exuding a chilling aura.

These obsidian demon puppets were somewhat similar to human-crafted puppets but utilized the demon race's unique demon rune technology, requiring only demon crystals to unleash formidable combat power.

The aura of these two obsidian demon puppets was formidable, their strength nearly equivalent to demon race lords, comparable to human Divine Realm cultivators.

Of course, such obsidian demon puppets were extremely expensive, even difficult for demon kings to acquire.

Yet the Gluttonous Demon King had two obsidian demon puppets guarding the treasury, showing how much it valued this treasury.

Beneath the treasury.

A large, plump rat was arduously gnawing at the extremely hard demon granite, bite by bite.

This demon granite was a cornerstone used for constructing fortress cores, with terrifying hardness, requiring great effort even for Divine Realm cultivators to break through. Due to its difficulty in mining, demon granite was also extremely expensive.

Yet beneath this treasury lay a layer of demon granite over ten feet thick.

The large rat was gnawing so hard its teeth were nearly breaking, barely managing to chew through the demon granite. But to its despair, there was another layer of demon steel over a foot thick outside the treasury!

This was demon steel, specifically used for crafting demon race weapons and armor, over a foot thick!

"Squeak squeak~"

The large rat collapsed in despair, like a soulless puppet mouse.

It couldn't dig through~ It really couldn't dig through~

"As the saying goes, 'A journey of a hundred miles begins with a single step.'" Wang Lici massaged its cheeks, encouraging it, "The closer we get to the end, the more we can't give up."

In such a short time, Wang Lici's demon language had improved rapidly, allowing her to communicate normally with the Demonic Realm Burrowing Rat, demonstrating how environment and desire can stimulate human potential.

The high-sounding words were lost on the large rat, which only knew it was exhausted.

It rolled its eyes at Wang Lici weakly, squeaked twice, indicating if she could do it, she should, as it really couldn't dig anymore.

Did she know how terrifying this layer of demon steel was?

Such a thick layer of demon steel couldn't be broken even by a demon king in a short time.

"Alright." Wang Lici nodded understandingly, "So, you're useless now. Rest assured, I'll cherish you well."

"Squeak squeak?" The large rat immediately sensed something amiss.

As she spoke, Wang Lici began eyeing its body up and down, muttering to herself, "This belly can be stewed, with a mix of fat and lean for texture. The spine can be stir-fried, tender and flavorful. The hind leg meat can be minced for wontons, the foreleg can be cut into pieces for skewers, and the brain, well, best for a spicy hot pot."

As she spoke, Wang Lici almost drooled.

Her gaze swept over the large rat's body, each glance making the rat's flesh tremble.

It immediately scrambled up, thumping its chest and cheeks, indicating it could still work.

"Crunch crunch!"

Without Wang Lici's urging, the large rat resumed its work with vigor, tearing and devouring the demon steel layer, occasionally letting out a howl to show its enthusiasm.

"Life, indeed, needs pressure to blossom." Wang Lici nodded in satisfaction, then took out a demonic beast leg to munch on, supervising the large rat's labor.

Time passed bit by bit.

With the relentless efforts of one person and one rat, the over-foot-thick demon steel layer was finally chewed through by the large rat, creating a small passage just big enough for a person to pass through in the thick demon steel layer.

It then led Wang Lici, sneaking into the Gluttonous Demon King's treasury.

As soon as they entered.

Both were stunned.

The treasury was filled with countless rare treasures, ordinary demon crystals piled up like mountains, and besides that, there were many large cold crystal boxes storing high-end rare ingredients.

Staring at the boxes of demon crystals, the large rat's eyes sparkled, and it couldn't help but drool.

Just these alone made all the previous hardships worthwhile.

"Have some dignity. Since I promised you a tenth, you won't be shortchanged." Wang Lici patted the large rat's head, secretly wiping her own drool, and righteously declared, "These treasures are all locked with formation restrictions. Triggering them will surely set off alarms. We can't touch them yet."

As she spoke, she took out a small notebook and began recording, preparing to categorize and clear out all the good stuff here later.

Then, Wang Lici, relying on her keen intuition, discovered another demon crystal vault beside the treasury.

However, the demon crystals stored there were specially refined [Unstable Demon Crystals]. These crystals were usually processed into spheres for use in demon crystal cannons for warfare.

Wang Lici had witnessed the explosive power of these unstable demon crystals firsthand, which was quite impressive.

Upon entering the demon crystal vault, she found it contained a large quantity of [Unstable Demon Crystals].

The sight made her scalp tingle.

Was the Gluttonous Demon King insane?

With so many unstable demon crystals, was it planning a direct assault on the human base?

The number of unstable demon crystals was simply too much. If they exploded, the treasury would likely be obliterated, along with all of Wang Lici's treasures.

She carefully inspected the demon crystal vault but found no anti-theft restrictions.

But that wasn't surprising. [Unstable Demon Crystals] were named so because of their extreme instability, easily triggered by even slight energy fluctuations.

Therefore, unstable demon crystals generally needed to be stored separately, not mixed with other energy weapons.

Anti-theft restrictions themselves had significant energy fluctuations, and the Gluttonous Demon King likely feared these fluctuations might trigger the unstable demon crystals, so it dared not set them up.

Based on this, Wang Lici decided to tidy up the unstable demon crystal vault to prevent accidental damage to her treasures.

Then, she filled her storage ring to the brim.

Not only that, she ordered the large rat to fill its cheek pouches with unstable demon crystals.

This scared the large rat greatly, but under Wang Lici's intimidating presence, it had no choice but to obey.

Soon, its cheeks were bulging, filled with unstable demon crystals. It followed Wang Lici nervously, hiding these unstable demon crystals in a "safe place."

For example, beneath the Gluttonous Demon King Fortress's barracks.

Safe enough, right?

One person and one rat made several trips back and forth, finally clearing out most of the alarming number of unstable demon crystals. Only a thin layer of demon crystals remained in the vault, enough to cover up for a short time.

After clearing the "hazardous materials," Wang Lici took another stroll around the treasury and soon found a well-hidden secret chamber.

Compared to the previous demon crystal vault, this chamber was tightly sealed and surrounded by restrictions, making it difficult to access.

Fortunately, the large rat sensed the chamber walls weren't thick, so it used its innate ability to warp space, taking Wang Lici through a spatial passage into the chamber.

This was its signature skill. Without relying on its bloodline's spatial talent, it couldn't have become one of the "four major pests" with just its digging skills.

"Big rat, your skills are getting more impressive." Wang Lici couldn't help but praise, "It seems you're indeed a useful mouse."

"Squeak squeak~"

The large rat's beady eyes gleamed with pride, its whiskers almost curling up.

In appreciation of Wang Lici's praise, it reciprocated with a compliment.

Having such a peculiar partner was a first for it. Despite being an outer region human, her treasure-hunting skills far surpassed its own, and no treasure could escape her keen senses.

With such a strong partnership, what treasure in the world couldn't be claimed?

One person and one rat shamelessly exchanged compliments for a while before inspecting the secret chamber.

The chamber was pitch black, without a hint of light. But for Wang Lici and the Demonic Realm Burrowing Rat, one at the mid-stage Purple Mansion Realm, the other an eighth-tier demonic beast, the lack of light hardly affected them. A sweep of their divine senses revealed the chamber's contents.

In the center of the chamber was a depression filled with foul-smelling humus, and in the middle of that humus grew a black fleshy fungus surrounded by demonic energy.

The surface of the fungus had fine wrinkles, wriggling slightly like a living thing, with a faint multicolored glow flowing over it, extremely eerie.

"Squeak squeak!"

Seeing the multicolored black fungus, the large rat was instantly excited, lunging forward to swallow it whole.

Unexpectedly, it was only halfway through its leap when Wang Lici grabbed its tail, dragging it back.

"I've told you countless times, all treasures we find together are nine parts mine, one part yours!" Wang Lici sternly reprimanded, "What, you want to hog it all?"

"Squeak~~ squeak squeak!"

The large rat quickly came to its senses, pitifully explaining.

Through its gestures and squeaks, Wang Lici understood.

This thing was one of the extremely rare treasures of the outer region demonic realm, beneficial to both demonic beasts and demons even if swallowed whole.

This fleshy fungus, carefully hidden by the Gluttonous Demon King, was clearly no ordinary item.

"We can't touch this yet!" Wang Lici licked her lips, restraining her urge to devour it immediately, "There's likely an alarm restriction set by the Gluttonous Demon King nearby. Moving it now might alert the guards. Let's wait for the right moment."

The large rat, having survived in the demonic realm for so long, was quite clever and quickly calmed down, returning with Wang Lici to the tunnel, covering their tracks meticulously.

It wasn't much for fighting, but when it came to thievery, it was a pro.

……

Around the same time.

Just a few hundred miles from the Gluttonous Demon King Fortress.

In a black rocky, long-abandoned mining area, a large group of people had quietly infiltrated and hidden within the mines.

This mining area had been abandoned for a long time, with no more demon crystal production, not even the lowest-ranking demons bothered to come here.

Due to years of mining, the area was riddled with pits, creating a complex environment. Coupled with the energy-interfering properties of the energy-producing rock layers, it was difficult to detect humans hiding within, even with divine sense.

This place was discovered by Wang Dingfeng, who had a secret base in this mining area. This time, it was activated to coordinate with Wang Lici and the others' rescue plan.

After this rescue, Wang Dingfeng's secret base would naturally be abandoned.

Leading this group was a young human.

He wore a black, stylish battle armor, standing tall and dignified, exuding a commanding presence. He was none other than Wu Yinghao, a trusted lieutenant under Princess Suiyun and a strong contender for the position of Mansion Master.

This rescue and support team was organized and led by Wu Yinghao.

In a short time, he gathered all the elite forces available from Immortal No. 3 Base, even managing to bring over a significant portion of the Grand Marshal's personal guard through persistent persuasion.

Thus, although this rescue team consisted of fewer than four hundred people, the weakest among them were Purple Mansion Realm cultivators, with thirty-seven Divine Realm cultivators among them, along with three heavyweight Lingxu Realm elders.

Only such a group could silently penetrate deep into enemy territory in a short time, crossing the demon lines unnoticed.

"Ancestor Weilong, Your Highness Prince Yongning, True Lord Yunhe." Wu Yinghao respectfully saluted the three Lingxu elders, "This time, I apologize for the inconvenience."

"What inconvenience?" Ancestor Weilong, an elder, replied calmly, "Since we're on duty at the outer region battlefield, we naturally follow orders. Young Yinghao, do well this time and bring honor to our Han Yue Wu Clan."

This Ancestor Weilong was none other than the second ancestor of the Han Yue Wu Clan.

As a senior of the same clan, he naturally supported his outstanding junior.

Prince Yongning was a dignified middle-aged man, a foreign prince of the Han Yue Immortal Dynasty.

True Lord Yunhe, from the Immortal Palace, appeared somewhat aged but was elegant and graceful, exuding a charm that easily won favor at first sight.

They both expressed that since it was the order of Princess Suiyun, they had no objections.

In the outer region battlefield, every Lingxu Realm expert was crucial, and they wouldn't be deployed unless absolutely necessary or in large-scale battles.

Cultivating a Lingxu Realm expert was extremely difficult for the human race, so caution was paramount. Any loss due to poor decision-making would be a significant blow to the Immortal Dynasty, and even Princess Suiyun would face severe consequences.

This showed how daring Princess Suiyun was this time.

However, this was also her strength; once she made up her mind, she would go all in.

The elegant True Lord Yunhe asked, "Young Yinghao, we've penetrated deep into the demon territory. The longer we stay, the greater the risk. When do you plan to act?"

"Waiting for news," Wu Yinghao replied.

"What news?"

"I don't know yet. But when the news comes, we'll know. This is Princess Suiyun's instruction, so please don't ask further." Wu Yinghao remained calm, though a hint of helplessness showed in his eyes.

In truth, he didn't support this plan, but since Princess Suiyun had decided, he could only fully cooperate.

Hopefully, everything would go smoothly.

……

Time flew by.

Unknowingly, five or six days had passed.

Without the harsh interrogations, and with his acting skills improving, Zhang Huaibing gradually adapted to "prison" life, living happily in the small cell with Senior Sister Mingyan, almost reluctant to leave.

To avoid being discovered by hidden observers that he wasn't actually infatuated with his senior sister, he had become accustomed to maintaining his act, frequently showing care and affection, and making heartfelt declarations.

In the first two days, Wu Mingyan could still pretend to play along, but after a few days, she grew tired of his fawning. After five or six days, she found it utterly disgusting and secretly instructed the demon general to throw them back into the communal cell, finally bringing some peace.

Back in the communal cell, "Wu Mingyan" was no longer nauseated, but still quite troubled.

If Princess Suiyun didn't come to rescue them, how could she smoothly infiltrate the human territory and bring back the Great Demon Lord?

Was she supposed to personally organize a prison break? That would be too conspicuous. Drawing too much attention in such matters would surely make her a focus of human scrutiny, possibly leading to suspicion and surveillance.

Unless absolutely necessary, she was unwilling to take such a risk.

While Wu Mingyan was troubled.

Wang Lici, Wang Yingxuan, and Lan Wan'er had already used these few days to secretly make a series of arrangements, with Wang Yingxuan repeatedly refining the plan.

Once everything was ready, Wang Lici and the big rat returned to the Gluttonous Demon King's treasury.

Having explored the place before, she was now quite familiar with it. Emerging from underground, she swiftly headed for the treasury door, sabotaging its structure from the inside.

This way, it wouldn't be easy for anyone outside to break in.

Naturally, such actions triggered the alert restrictions, and sharp alarms instantly echoed throughout the Gluttonous Demon King Fortress.

"Who dares?!" Almost instantly, the furious roar of the Gluttonous Demon King resounded throughout the fortress, "Daring to trespass in my treasury, courting death!!"

As the roar sounded, a spatial ripple appeared outside the treasury, and the portly, big-bellied Gluttonous Demon King rushed out.

Clearly, the Gluttonous Demon King had directly torn through space to arrive outside the treasury.

It attempted to open the treasury from outside, only to find the door sabotaged and blocked from within. Ironically, to prevent any accidents, it had set up special spatial restriction demon rune formations on the treasury door, making it impossible to tear through space to enter now.

The Gluttonous Demon King, enraged, slammed its massive paw on the treasury door. With a thunderous crash, the sturdy door was dented.

Such a treasury was designed to prevent external forceful entry, and even a powerful Gluttonous Demon King would need some effort to break through.

Meanwhile, the Gluttonous Demon King's personal guard hurriedly arrived.

Led by several lord-level demons, the guard consisted mostly of elite demon generals. Though only a hundred strong, the guard was exceptionally powerful.

"Blast it! All of you, blast it together."

The Gluttonous Demon King, eyes bloodshot with rage, roared incessantly, its massive paw relentlessly pounding the treasury door.

The personal guard, seeing this, dared not slack off, joining in the relentless bombardment.

The thunderous energy blasts echoed continuously. Meanwhile, the sharp alarms kept sounding. Clearly, the "thief" inside the treasury was still stealing, repeatedly triggering the alarms.

The entire fortress was in an uproar, even the demon king army camps were alerted, with commanders sending people to investigate.

"Hahaha~" At this moment, a brazen female voice suddenly came from the treasury, "Mine! This treasury is all mine! This fleshy fungus is mine too! Delicious, this fleshy fungus is truly fragrant."

The voice's owner was, of course, Wang Lici.

Her demon language was still a bit clumsy, but her meaning was clear.

"That's my Netherworld Demon Fungus! If you dare touch it, and I catch you, I'll skin you alive, pull out your tendons, and crush your bones, ensuring you die a miserable death!" The Gluttonous Demon King was nearly driven mad with rage.

This was a top-tier treasure it had carefully stored, capable of helping it break through from the initial stage to the middle stage at the right time, even slightly enhancing its bloodline.

Its future advancement under the Yincha Demon God depended entirely on it.

Driven by rage, the Gluttonous Demon King fell into a frenzy.

The intense bombardment lasted a quarter of an hour, and the treasury's main door finally collapsed with a crash.

The furious Gluttonous Demon King immediately led its guards into the treasury, only to be met with a devastating sight.

The Gluttonous Demon King's meticulously collected treasury had been licked clean, not even a scrap of value left, and the thief had vanished without a trace.

"My Netherworld Demon Fungus!"

The Gluttonous Demon King, heart pounding, rushed into the secret chamber, only to be met with another blow.

The Netherworld Demon Fungus in the secret chamber was also gone, replaced by a heap of unstable demon crystals.

"Your Highness, this, this…" The guard commander pointed at the demon crystals, his face turning black with fear, "Unstable demon crystals, how did they end up here?"

"Not good, retreat quickly!"

The Gluttonous Demon King's expression changed, hurriedly trying to leave. To avoid triggering the unstable demon crystals, it didn't dare tear through space.

However, just as it moved, a red light appeared among the pile of unstable demon crystals.

The next moment.

"Boom!"

A deafening explosion erupted.

In an instant, it was as if the entire world lost its sound, even time seemed to slow.

The pile of unstable demon crystals triggered a chain reaction, unleashing terrifying energy that erupted from the crystals, transforming into a devastating energy shockwave.

The confined space of the secret chamber amplified the bomb-like power.

The explosive energy engulfed the Gluttonous Demon King, three lord-level, and nearly a hundred demon general-level personal guards.

"Roar!"

The Gluttonous Demon King let out a cry of pain.

Unable to escape in time, it could only frantically channel its source power, its body expanding, enduring the explosive energy in the confined space.

Though the process seemed long, it was merely a matter of breaths.

Soon, the smoke cleared, and the violent energy fluctuations subsided.

By then, the entire secret chamber and treasury had been leveled, the demon steel layer on the ground blasted into a flat depression.

The explosion's power was so immense that even the Gluttonous Demon King was left battered and slightly injured.

If it was in such a state, its personal guards fared even worse.

The nearly hundred demon generals had been reduced to countless dismembered remains, and the three lord-level guard commanders, though lucky to survive, were on the brink of death, barely clinging to life.

The once-renowned Gluttonous Demon King personal guard had been annihilated in the blink of an eye.

Such devastation left the Gluttonous Demon King seething with rage, roaring madly.

But this was far from over.The creature had barely let out two roars when a series of violent explosions erupted in the distance.

"What is that...?" The Gluttonous Demon King's roar abruptly stopped, his eyes filled with terror. "My elite camp! Damn it!"

"Gather up! Everyone still alive, assemble and move out!" the Gluttonous Demon King bellowed. "Seal the entire fortress!"

Such a major upheaval in the Gluttonous Demon King Fortress naturally echoed clearly in the dungeon below.

Because it was built underground, the tremors affected the entire dungeon, causing it to shake slightly.

The demon guards and human captives inside the dungeon exchanged bewildered glances, their expressions filled with uncertainty and doubt.

What on earth was happening outside?

"Everyone, don't panic."

At that moment, a clear female voice rang out in the dungeon.

Following the sound, they saw a hole had appeared in the dungeon floor at some point, and two young girls emerged from it.

One wore a purple outfit, the other blue, both youthful and beautiful with outstanding temperaments. These two were none other than Wang Yingxuan and Lan Wan'er.

Seeing everyone looking over, Wang Yingxuan raised her voice and said loudly, "We are here under the orders of Princess Suiyun to rescue you. No one is to speak or ask questions. Follow our instructions, or face execution on the spot."

Wang Yingxuan, considering herself a goddess of war, knew that in such critical moments, chaos must be avoided.

With hundreds of people trapped here, how could they satisfy everyone's curiosity? Only by maintaining absolute control could they prevent problems.

Moreover, Wang Yingxuan had every reason to suspect that among these hundreds of captives, there might be human traitors. If given a chance to incite others, the situation would become even more chaotic.

The sudden rescue left the scene in complete silence.

The human captives breathed heavily, filled with both joy and disbelief, along with a sense of confusion and helplessness.

Only the demon guards in the dungeon snapped back to reality, immediately howling as they charged at Wang Yingxuan and Lan Wan'er.

Leading them was a lord-level demon.

Its strength was roughly equivalent to a mid-stage human Divine Realm cultivator, making it a formidable opponent. Against Wang Yingxuan and her companions, it was a battle they couldn't win.

However, Wang Yingxuan was clearly prepared.

Calmly, she raised her hand and activated the "Immortal Sovereign Order."

In the next moment.

A vast and majestic wave of immortal spirit energy surged from the heavens and earth, instantly coalescing into a figure before her.

The figure, clad in flowing white robes, exuded an ethereal aura, unmistakably that of an Immortal Sovereign.

As the projection appeared, a domineering and terrifying pressure erupted.

The lord-level demon's eyes bulged, nearly causing its brain to freeze in fear.

An Immortal Sovereign projection?!

Was this human girl insane, summoning an Immortal Sovereign projection right off the bat?

Before it could recover from the shock, the summoned Immortal Sovereign projection raised a hand, forming a sword gesture at its fingertips.

In an instant.

A pure white sword energy, condensed entirely from sword intent, descended upon them.

The terrifying sharpness tore through space, unleashing a fearsome power that made every demon's scalp tingle.

"Swish!"

As the sword energy swept across, all demons below the lord level were slain on the spot, their bodies collapsing with a thud.

Only the lord-level demon reacted quickly enough, fleeing in terror to avoid the first sword strike. However, how could the Immortal Sovereign's sword be so easily evaded?

Before it could get far, another sword strike pursued and decapitated it.

"Immortal Sovereign's might!"

Wang Yingxuan and Lan Wan'er immediately applauded and cheered, their faces full of admiration.

"Wang Yingxuan!" The suddenly summoned Immortal Sovereign was not fooled by their flattery and glared at them angrily. "How did you get Zhang Huaibing's Immortal Sovereign Order? And who allowed you brats to come to the outer region battlefield?"

"Didn't Princess Suiyun mention it to you?" Wang Yingxuan blinked innocently.

"Mention what?" the Immortal Sovereign retorted angrily. "She only sent a message saying there was a major operation and asked me to keep an eye out... Wait, am I questioning you, or are you questioning me?"

"Immortal Sovereign, time is tight, and we might not have time to explain," Wang Yingxuan hurriedly said. "Since you've been summoned, just follow my lead."

"What?" The Immortal Sovereign nearly lost his composure.

Who's the Immortal Sovereign here, you or me?

He, a dignified Immortal Sovereign, being ordered around by juniors—what a disgrace! Doesn't he have any dignity?

"Zhang Huaibing, why are you still standing there? Hurry up and organize everyone to escape!" Wang Yingxuan shouted at the cell.

"Yingxuan, I'm locked with a Soul Lock, I can't even break out of the cell!" Zhang Huaibing replied, looking aggrieved and innocent.

"Alright, alright, stop whining."

Wang Yingxuan and Lan Wan'er immediately stepped forward, quickly breaking the cell doors one by one.

At this moment, a puppet followed Lan Wan'er, also helping to dismantle the cells. This puppet was of the Divine Realm level, replacing her original Purple Mansion Realm puppet.

It was evident that although the Lan Clan of Suiyun was only a third-grade family, they had considerable resources and regarded Lan Wan'er as the family's top heir and future hope.

"Immortal Sovereign, don't just stand there watching the show," Wang Yingxuan said angrily. "Come and help."

"You brat~"

The Immortal Sovereign glared, his beard bristling.

In all his life, this was the first time he had been summoned only to kill a few small fry and then be asked to help break open cells. He was a dignified Immortal Sovereign, couldn't they give him a more prestigious task?

However, despite his anger, the Immortal Sovereign said nothing.

He knew that now was not the time to argue with Wang Yingxuan. Once they returned, he would settle the score with that brat.

With a flick of his sword gesture, dozens of sword beams shot out, breaking open all the cell doors in just a few breaths.

The rescued human captives were extremely excited, gathering around to pay their respects: "Greetings, Immortal Sovereign, thank you for saving us."

"Enough~ From now on, keep quiet. Anyone who speaks will face military punishment," Wang Yingxuan said angrily. "Immortal Sovereign, help Zhang Huaibing with the Soul Lock, and everyone else follow me into the tunnel to escape the Demon King Fortress immediately."

"Quick, quick, follow me down."

Lan Wan'er immediately began directing the crowd into the underground passage with her puppet.

The Immortal Sovereign rolled his eyes, glared at Wang Yingxuan, and obediently helped Zhang Huaibing with the Soul Lock.

He also understood that in such situations, there could only be one commander, and Wang Yingxuan was doing a good job in that regard.

"Huaibing, didn't you say Princess Suiyun had abandoned us?" Wu Mingyan asked, looking puzzled as she approached Zhang Huaibing.

The series of changes had happened so quickly that she hadn't fully grasped what was going on.

"That was to deceive the demons," Zhang Huaibing explained proudly. "Mingyan, wasn't my acting good?"

"Deceive..."

Wu Mingyan's expression changed slightly, and just as she was about to ask more, Wang Yingxuan threw a brick at her feet, saying coldly, "There won't be a next time."

"Everyone, be quiet," the Immortal Sovereign also said in a low voice. "Zhang Huaibing, Wu Mingyan, help organize the captives for retreat."

This operation had been meticulously planned by Wang Yingxuan, with every detail carefully considered. The hundreds of captives were all human elites, and with their active cooperation, the group smoothly navigated through the tunnels, reaching a secluded spot outside the Demon King Fortress.

Meanwhile, Wang Lici and the big rat were already waiting there.

However, these hundreds of captives had endured severe torture, and almost all were injured, with many having serious wounds. Even though Wang Yingxuan and Lan Wan'er had distributed healing pills along the way, it was still difficult for them to recover their combat strength in a short time.

Moreover, they were all shackled, limiting their abilities and preventing them from using profound energy, which naturally slowed their movement.

They had just emerged from the underground and barely managed to regroup and count their numbers when the furious Gluttonous Demon King, along with a group of demon remnants, charged out of the Demon King Fortress.

Its angry roar could be heard clearly from a couple of thousand miles away: "Damn rats, return my treasures, return my Netherworld Demon Mushroom!"

"This guy came pretty fast~" Wang Yingxuan saw the crowd starting to stir and immediately said loudly, "Everyone, don't panic. Follow Wang Lici, yes, the girl with the big rat who looks a bit silly, follow her to retreat~~ I have a trump card to deal with the pursuers."

As she spoke, Wang Lici, Lan Wan'er, and Zhang Huaibing began organizing the people to continue retreating. However, since the captives' cultivation was restricted, they could only rely on their physical strength to flee, making their overall speed quite slow.

Meanwhile, the demon pursuers were advancing rapidly, led by the Gluttonous Demon King and accompanied by a thousand or so troops, including lords, demon generals, and other elites.

Their marching speed was incredibly fast, constantly closing in on Wang Yingxuan's group.

"Yingxuan, if you have a trump card, now's the time to use it," the Immortal Sovereign said, feeling a bit overwhelmed.

If his true self were here, dealing with this demon remnant army would be no problem. But as a mere energy projection, he could handle the Gluttonous Demon King alone, but not the Gluttonous Demon King plus a thousand elite demons.

"Immortal Sovereign, you are my trump card," Wang Yingxuan said, looking up at the ethereal Immortal Sovereign projection, her eyes wide and innocent. "You go ahead and cover our retreat."

"..." The Immortal Sovereign's face twitched.

I am the Immortal Sovereign, and you want me to go die?

"Immortal Sovereign, don't make that face," Wang Yingxuan said matter-of-factly. "Since you've been summoned, the energy can't be recovered. Just consider it... cough, cough~ I mean, if you don't cover the retreat, who will? Unless you want to run away, and I'll cover the retreat?"

"Forget it, you're the hope of our human race's future. If you die, I'd be cursed like a dog," the Immortal Sovereign felt a wave of melancholy. "Sigh~ My projection has died in battle before, but today is definitely the most frustrating."

"Immortal Sovereign, be careful, don't show off or lose your temper, drag it out as long as you can. And remember to let a wisp of your soul escape!" Wang Yingxuan advised with concern. "I'm off, see you."

"You brat, you're even more annoying than Jiang Yuling."

The Immortal Sovereign projection muttered, and as he spoke, he transformed into a streak of light, soaring into the sky, turning to charge at the Gluttonous Demon King and his forces.

Even before he reached them, sword beams surrounded him, and the terrifying pressure layered and unfolded, almost filling the entire sky.

"Gluttonous brat, get back here!"

The Immortal Sovereign's majestic voice boomed like thunder, echoing across the sky.

As his words fell, the domineering sword beams descended from the sky, sweeping towards the demon army with overwhelming momentum.

However, his figure, standing in mid-air with flowing white robes, inexplicably exuded a sense of tragic heroism, like "the wind is bleak, and the river is cold."

...