401: Chapter 41 Red Fairy Pavilion

Evidently, this place was actually a village of Sand-Devouring Rats.

Within the village, Sand-Devouring Rats were either curled up at the entrances of their houses or walking slowly through the low, narrow alleys. One look was enough to tell that they were completely different from those encountered before; they clearly possessed intelligence, rather than being mere beasts that attacked based on instinct.

"This..."

Dongfang Li's eyes shimmered with thought as she said, "It seems the Sand-Devouring Rat race is far more complex than we imagined."

"In that case, we can try to gather some clues here."

Gu Yunshen turned to look at everyone. "Since these Sand-Devouring Rats have intelligence, they might know about the history of the Withered Soul Desert and the information we need."

Just as the group was discussing!

While the few were discussing in low voices, the Sand-Devouring Rat trapped in the light barrier by Gu Yunshen suddenly began to twitch violently, followed by a piercing, shrill scream!

This scream instantly drew the attention of all the Sand-Devouring Rats in the village.

The originally calm yellow sand ground suddenly surged, emitting a dense rustling sound.

The next moment!

Over two hundred Sand-Devouring Rats scurried into the soft sand layer like startled birds or beasts. In the blink of an eye, the entire village became empty, leaving only those houses standing silently in the wind.

As Chen Xuan and the others were considering their next move, a slightly aged voice suddenly came from behind a sand dune ahead:

"A-Qi? Isn't this A-Qi?"

Everyone looked toward the source of the sound and saw a slightly robust Sand-Devouring Rat burst through the sand, landing steadily about ten yards away. Its gaze first fell on A-Qi inside the light barrier, then turned toward Chen Xuan and the others. A flash of disbelief crossed its cloudy eyes:

"You... are of the Human Race?"

"How many years has it been... I never thought I'd see the Human Race again. I had almost forgotten what humans looked like."

Chen Xuan and the others looked at each other, but before they could respond, the Sand-Devouring Rat's expression tightened. It urgently lowered its voice to warn them: "Quick! Find a place to hide first! King Golden Tongue will be here soon. Whatever it is, we'll talk in detail after we avoid him!"

King Golden Tongue?

Chen Xuan and the others were somewhat confused about the situation.

But before they could think further, an even denser rustling sound rang out again. The two hundred-plus Sand-Devouring Rats that had previously vanished into the sand all burst out at once, quickly forming two straight lines on the yellow sand road in the center of the village. They then knelt on their forelimbs, heads lowered in an extremely respectful posture.

Clearly, they were welcoming the arrival of some important figure.

"He's here."

Gu Yunshen's eyes narrowed as he warned the group. With a wave of his hand, an invisible barrier of Spiritual Qi instantly enveloped them, completely masking their presence.

Everyone cast their gaze toward the end of the yellow sand road.

From beneath the distant sand dunes, a team of peculiar figures slowly approached—twenty exceptionally sturdy Sand-Devouring Rats, in pairs, were carrying a simple sedan chair made of withered wood and unknown beast hides. They marched with steady, synchronized steps.

Ornaments made of fine sand grains hung around the sedan, emitting a soft rustling sound as it swayed.

And within that sedan chair sat a golden toad! It was about half the height of a person, its skin as smooth as glazed glass. Its bulging eyes shifted with a hint of sinister malice.

The Sand-Devouring Rat beside them murmured in a trembling voice: "King Golden Tongue..."

Chen Xuan took a glance!

It was a toad in the Deity Transformation Realm, a true member of the Yao Race.

"Greetings, King Golden Tongue."

The two rows of Sand-Devouring Rats kowtowed in unison.

Just as the sedan was being lowered, it seemed that the pole on one Sand-Devouring Rat's shoulder momentarily lost balance. The sedan tilted half an inch to the left, and the hanging sand ornaments clattered, breaking the rhythm.

The next moment!

King Golden Tongue, who had been resting with his eyes closed, slightly raised his right front limb. A thread of refined golden spiritual energy shot out through the air.

"Puchi—"

The golden Demonic Power instantly pierced the head of that Sand-Devouring Rat. Blood and brains sprayed out, mixing with the yellow sand and staining the ground below.

"Useless trash. An eyesore."

The remaining nineteen Sand-Devouring Rats carrying the sedan didn't dare to breathe. They kept their heads down, staring fixedly at the yellow sand beneath their feet.

Gu Yunshen's expression darkened as he said in a low voice, "This beast is quite ruthless. Should we just capture him and ask for information about this place?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the Sand-Devouring Rat inside the light barrier urgently stopped him: "Sirs, you must not! In this Withered Soul Desert, you must never make an enemy of the Yao Race, otherwise the consequences will be unimaginably miserable!"

Before the words even faded, a sharp sword light suddenly soared into the sky. As the cold gleam flashed, the previously majestic King Golden Tongue was decapitated by a single sword strike, without even making a sound. A figure swept out, steadily grabbing the demon core from its belly.

Chen Xuan and the others looked toward the source and saw several women dressed in various colored dresses slowly flying over, their figures graceful.

One woman in a blue dress raised her hand with a look of disgust, and the remains of King Golden Tongue ignited into a blazing fire. She frowned and spat, "Ugly toads are so disgusting. Encountering it is truly bad luck."

"Senior Sister, you even want this toad's demon core? It doesn't look like much," a woman in a pink dress beside her asked curiously.

"Sigh, we've been in this Secret Realm for almost two days and haven't encountered even a decent Opportunity. I wonder how the other forces are progressing."

The blue-dressed woman sighed softly. "Especially those people from the Wansheng Dao Court. They don't deserve to be called men; they don't understand how to yield to us weak women at all."

"In my opinion, for a Secret Realm Opportunity like this, women should be allowed to explore for half a month first before men are permitted to enter."

Dongfang Li watched the group and softly explained to everyone: "They are from the Red Immortal Pavilion."

Chen Xuan nodded slightly, his expression calm. "I guessed as much."

The Sand-Devouring Rat beside them stared blankly at the scene. "It's over, it's all over."

"To dare to attack King Golden Tongue... none of us will escape death now!"

The other Sand-Devouring Rats prostrate in the village also stared blankly at the slowly burning fire, their eyes filled with disbelief. No one expected that the majestic King Golden Tongue would meet such an end in an instant; the change had come far too suddenly.

The blue-dressed woman retracted her gaze and looked around at the Sand-Devouring Rats below, saying coldly, "You lot, tell me, what is the name of this place? Is there any strange location or Opportunity nearby?"

"If you dare to hide even a single word..."

Clearly, this group from the Red Immortal Pavilion was also anxious to find clues, wanting to be the first to gain something in this Secret Realm.

As she spoke, a faint ripple of Spiritual Qi appeared in her palm. She clearly intended to kill one to warn the others and intimidate these Sand-Devouring Rats.

At that moment, a soft voice slowly rang out: "What a coincidence. I didn't expect to meet you Fellow Daoists here."

Dongfang Li stepped forward with a gentle smile on her face.

The two groups' gazes met. After the blue-dressed woman and the others clearly saw who it was, their expressions tightened, and they immediately bowed. "Greetings, Fairy Dongfang. Greetings, Pavilion Master Gu, Pavilion Master Shen."

After the greetings, their gazes simultaneously landed on Chen Xuan. A flash of surprise crossed the blue-dressed woman's eyes, followed by an imperceptible spark of interest. Her voice softened unconsciously as she asked tentatively:

"May I ask who this Young Master is?"