Facing the Demon Lord

Only seventh rank?

No way, are you suggesting that Jin Chi was defeated by a mere seventh-rank official?

What level is the seventh rank?

Among the Demon Soldiers under his command, there are over a hundred seventh-rank soldiers, not counting his other subordinates in the demon realm of the world.

For a fifth-rank official, the same applies to a seventh-rank official. While they are not exactly considered human, they are like the Elder Si and the cleaning lady below him.

It's impossible for them to have equal dialogue; you could even say they treat their subordinates as expendable resources, replaceable parts.

It shouldn't be that bad, right? This is probably just a Daoist acolyte?

But it doesn't seem like it. His aura of Shaman doesn't look like that of a Daoist disciple at all.

However, while the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord was still wondering, he saw that the seventh-rank youth take the initiative to come forward and greet him.

"This junior greets the Demon Lord. You have come from afar, it must be tiring. Come, please have some tea." Li Qi greeted him familiarly, sat down at a table and chair, and poured a cup of tea for the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord.

Yang Ning glanced around, seemingly bored, and said, "I'll leave this to you. We'll discuss the details after it's done."

"Mm." Li Qi nodded.

Shen Shuibi walked to Li Qi's side and said in a low voice, "Li Qi, I'm going to rest now. I'll be right here."

Li Qi patted the rabbit's head and said, "Okay, get some rest. Leave the rest to me."

This scene left the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord standing nearby speechless with astonishment.

What the heck?

A seventh-rank imp patted the head of a fifth-rank person, and the person didn't seem offended at all; in fact, he seemed rather pleased.

What could be the reason for this? To be able to make such intimate gestures, they must either be extremely close blood relatives or dao companion.

Is it possible? A fifth-rank and a seventh-rank cultivator becoming dao companion? This is simply inconceivable.

So they're blood relatives?

Regardless, this person's background is definitely not simple!

Is he the reincarnation of a powerful being? Or is he a direct descendant of a Dao Lineage?

No, the direct descendants of the Dao Lineage are very discreet and do not easily make enemies. They are subject to extremely strict control. It is said that each of them has a protector, who, in addition to protecting their lives and preventing those who perish on their Dao Path, also has the function of monitoring them.

Although somewhat surprised and uncertain, the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord immediately replied, "So it was you who stopped Jin Chi outside? And orchestrated all this? Truly, a hero emerges from among the young."

The Sky Swallowing Demon Lord didn't believe it was really the young man in front of him who did it. He simply didn't believe that a seventh-rank cultivator could interfere in a fifth-rank battle and even fight against a sixth-rank cultivator.

But that didn't stop him from offering a few words of flattery.

"You flatter me, Demon Lord. These are merely theoretical exercises, hardly worthy of serious consideration. Please take a seat, and we can discuss this further." Li Qi smiled, offering no further comment, but simply inviting the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord to sit down.

He wasn't worried about the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord suddenly launching an attack, because Yang Ning and Shen Shuibi were currently in another room a few feet away.

A few dozen feet is practically nothing to a fifth-rank cultivator. Even if the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord were to make a move, Li Qi would be perfectly fine. This was his trust in Yang Ning and Shen Shuibi, and also a small test of the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord's power.

But the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord chuckled, looking like a kind old man, and nodded in reply, "Indeed, after all this commotion, I'm a little thirsty. Let's sit down first."

After saying that, he sat down, picked up his teacup, and took a small sip.

Then, the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord's eyes flickered.

After all, he was a descendant of the Dao Lineage and had seen it all. He immediately said, "Penglai Immortal Tea, you are truly generous. This is a priceless treasure for a seventh-rank cultivator, isn't it?"

Li Qi smiled and said, "It is indeed quite precious, but it is used to entertain distinguished guests, so how can we be negligent? No matter how precious it is, it is worth it."

That's what he said, but in reality, Li Qi didn't take it seriously at all.

There are also three tea trees in Zhu Fengdan's yard, which are full of garbage. Li Qi can pluck them however he wants. As long as he doesn't kill them, Zhu Fengdan probably won't even bother to look at them.

Even with Li Qi's skill level, it would be difficult for him to kill them, as those three tea trees were of a higher grade than Li Qi himself.

Having a teacher who is easygoing has its advantages and disadvantages. The disadvantage is that the teacher may easily forget about you, while the advantage is that he may also easily forget about other things. The teacher who forgets about you is naturally the one who forgets about you. Anyway, Teacher Zhu won't hold it against me.

The Sky Swallowing Demon Lord could naturally see Li Qi's casualness.

The young man in front of me seems to really not take Penglai Immortal Tea seriously.

In order not to be outdone in terms of momentum and appear like a country bumpkin, the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord immediately said, "It's just a bit of a pity. Although it is genuine Penglai Immortal Tea, it seems to have not been processed, and its quality has deteriorated. The difference between it and the immortal tea processed by the master craftsmen of Penglai is still very obvious. I once drank genuine immortal tea under my master's tutelage, and its flavor was even better. Although your tea is good, it is still slightly inferior."

This is a show of background, an appetizer in the negotiations, where both sides are demonstrating their confidence and the backing they have.

After listening, Li Qi frankly said, "It is indeed inferior. There is no other way. I cannot afford to hire the tea-frying masters of Penglai, so I can only roll up my sleeves and pick the tea from the tea tree myself. I also have no good way to process it, so this is the only way. I hope the Demon Lord will forgive me for the poor hospitality."

These words left the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord speechless.

Tea tree?

Does he live in Penglai?

No, that shouldn't be the case. Although Penglai Immortal Tea is only produced in Penglai, a few plants are occasionally sent out.

But... what kind of place is Penglai?

A sacred Daoist site, an overseas immortal island—how could Penglai personally deliver tea trees to him, and even place them at his home? Would he be allowed to pick them?

What kind of identity does this person have? Could he be the legitimate son of a third-rank official?

Meanwhile, Li Qi was also secretly speculating.

He would occasionally bring out the Penglai Immortal Tea to elevate his status, and everyone was always astonished.

However, although the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord showed some shock, he was still able to explain the intricacies of the matter, which shows that he was not a country bumpkin and did indeed have a background.

Both sides became secretly wary, but their smiles on the surface grew even more enthusiastic.

"Ahem, fine tea. However, after welcoming you, Jue Chiling has some questions for you, and I dare to ask them. I wonder if you mind?" asked the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord.

Li Qi immediately replied, "Of course, the Demon Lord is an honored guest. What is there that cannot be asked? Please—"

"May I ask, Your Excellency, why did you say earlier that I was merely injured by accident and accidentally involved?" the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord asked kindly.

Upon hearing this, Li Qi revealed a look of sudden realization and immediately replied, "Oh, so that's what the Demon Lord is wondering about. It's like this: this time, I only took action to settle a Green Mountain God Jin Chi. The Demon Lord may not know that I had a grudge against his son, Jin Buhuan, in the past, and I almost died at his hands."

"Later, I defeated Jin Buhuan, but then Green Mountain God Jin Chi made a move to kill me. If it weren't for the backup plan my teacher had prepared, I probably would have been buried there."

"Therefore, with the help of friends and elders, I decided to teach him a lesson. That's why I took action, hoping to take over this world and make him work for nothing. I just didn't expect him to find the Demon Lord, which caused a lot of trouble. I apologize to the Demon Lord here."

Li Qi replied with a smile.

Upon hearing this, the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord sized up Li Qi.

To be honest, he only believed half of Li Qi's nonsense.

But this half alone can already explain a lot. At the very least, the grudge is probably real, but the motive is likely questionable. If it were simply to vent his anger, he would never have been able to persuade two fifth-rank officials to help him.

A fifth-rank official is not a fool, much less a servant to be driven around. He naturally has his pride, so how could he be summoned and dismissed at will for such a reason?

Even for the Dao Lineage, the fifth rank is higher than that of young geniuses. Many so-called geniuses may not be able to grow to the fifth rank.

Even if what he said is true, the fact that someone could command more than two fifth-rank officials just to vent their anger suggests that such a background would make it impossible for them to have a conflict with Jin Chi.

Therefore, the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord then said after careful consideration, "So that's how it is. However... Jin Chi, after all, a fellow disciple of mine, from the same lineage as the Mountain Moving Great Sage. I hope that after you punish him, you will show mercy and give Jin Chi a chance to make amends and personally apologize to you. If we can turn hostility into friendship, we can meet again in the future and perhaps even become each other's allies. Wouldn't that be wonderful?"

This is trying to give Jin Chi a chance to survive.

This reaction surprised Li Qi.

He witnessed firsthand how the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord turned and left after the situation turned bad. He had initially thought the Demon Lord was a cold-blooded and ruthless person, but unexpectedly, he now had his eye on the life of the Green Mountain God.

But what he didn't know was that the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord was not an ungrateful person who could get along so well. In fact, he had a good reputation and was known as 'public-spirited and righteous'. He just knew how to distinguish whether something was right or wrong.

Given the circumstances, there was no way to save Jin Chi. It would be better to simply flee and return to report to the sect, which might still be able to save the true spirit of the Green Mountain God.

However, since Li Qi had no intention of killing Jin Chi himself, he simply said, "Of course. Since the Demon Lord has spoken to me on his behalf, then there is no problem with it. It's just that the Green Mountain God has fallen under my Secret Method, which I haven't fully understood yet and have no solution for the time being. He can only struggle out on his own, but it's not too difficult. It should take a few hundred years for him to wake up."

"A mere few hundred years is nothing. Consider it a punishment, letting him know your power and so he can be more discerning in the future," the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord immediately said, his impression of Li Qi improving.

This person still gave him face; perhaps it really wasn't a life-threatening grudge, just the young master venting his anger.

The two drank tea again, exchanged pleasantries, and discussed some practical benefits.

The Devouring Sky Swallowing Demon Lord decided to give the Sacred Flame Realm to Li Qi as an apology from Jin Chi, which Li Qi naturally accepted with a smile.

The two sides temporarily 'put aside their differences' and each offered their own praise, so at least on the surface, both host and guest were happy.

After adding water to the tea three times, the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord stood up and said, "I had a very pleasant conversation with you today, but I have important matters to attend to. I need to take the Jin Chi back and save a nephew, so I will not stay any longer."

"Demon Lord, please wait and listen to what I have to say before you leave, okay?" Li Qi immediately said, stopping him.

"Hmm? Please speak, Your Excellency." The Sky Swallowing Demon Lord stopped, knowing that the main event was about to begin.

"Demon Lord, may I ask if the formation you used to dismantle this world group was based primarily on gravity?" Li Qi asked.

"Oh? You can see that? Indeed, I am the Demon Star myself, so this formation is centered on me, with the devouring power of all things interconnected and mutually inclusive. This is the essence of things and cannot be defied. Therefore, by using this, the entire world can be dragged along," said the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord.

"The idea is indeed very impressive. I wonder if the Demon Lord could lend me the array diagram? I happen to enjoy reading about various different methods, just to take a look," Li Qi said immediately.

To be honest, this request is somewhat impolite, but it doesn't involve anything that could affect one's life or fortune.

After all, a formation diagram is essentially a Law Treasure. It is made by combining many materials, with precious treasures as the array eyes, treasures with compatible properties as the array hub, and various other materials as the array base. Then, an array master sets up the array to create the formation diagram, which can then be used directly.

The Sky Swallowing Demon Lord pondered for a moment.

The fact that the other party let me take the Green Mountain God away without any hindrance suggests they were planning to do me a favor first.

From this perspective, his bargaining chip for winning over and commanding the remnants of Mount Luofu has also surfaced.

This kind of formation is probably no longer found in Mount Luofu, but Mount Luofu urgently needs to generate more revenue to stabilize the situation, so it needs a formation diagram.

Therefore, this young man of the seventh rank used this as a bargaining chip to attract the help of the remnants of Mount Luofu.

However, there is a question here: was this young man playing tricks?

The array diagram is, after all, a real thing. While a glance at it may reveal some details, replicating it is not something that can be done with just a glance.

If someone could truly copy something with just a glance, then that person's skill and array formation level wouldn't even need to look at it; they could create an array diagram on their own based on their own foundation.

Not to mention that the core of this array is actually the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord himself, his Demon Star form serving as the core.

After much deliberation, the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord smiled and said, "If it's just for a look, what's wrong with that? Please, sir. However, I'm busy with other matters and can only lend you half Chen. Please forgive me."

"That's enough, that's enough. I just want to see it for myself, why would I need half Chen? Just give me a quarter of an hour." Li Qi immediately waved his hand and said.

This attitude left the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord somewhat confused.

A fifth-grade array capable of tearing apart a world cluster must be extremely complex; after a quarter of an hour, it's really just something to look at.

Could it be that he really didn't have so many strange motives, and simply wanted to take a look?

Sky Swallowing Demon Lord thought this, his hands continued to work. He took off his upper body clothes, revealing his fur-covered back.

Li Qi was taken aback.

This array diagram was actually engraved directly on the body of the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord!

No wonder he wasn't afraid to take it himself!