Demon Commander Returns to His Post

Chapter 45: The Demon Commander Returns

The gale winds cut like blades, tearing through the drifting clouds.

The moment Ji Meng (Little Black) stepped beyond the Safe Zone barrier, the lingering gentle spiritual energy on his body was swallowed by the violent, turbid Qi of the primordial wilderness.

He stood atop the mountain peak, looking back at the small courtyard enclosed by an invisible barrier. In the morning mist, the stone house's outline blurred like a mirage, and the tender green of the vegetable patch cast a faint glimmer against the gray-brown backdrop of the ancient land—small, yet stubborn.

"A Sage's Dojo..." Ji Meng murmured, the rolling syllables in his throat carrying the lingering echo of a Dragon's Roar.

He closed his eyes and looked inward. The wisp of Chaos Qi deep within his Primordial Spirit swirled like a nebula. The new silver scales on his back gleamed with a cold, hard luster under the sunlight, and the wound on his neck where it had been pierced was now only a faint, silvery crescent scar embedded in his bronze skin.

Seven days of healing, Break and then Establish. Now, his demonic power surged like rivers and seas, his pressure restrained like an abyss, and his cultivation had vaguely touched the threshold of the Quasi-Saint realm!

Ji Meng lightly tapped his foot, and his form transformed into a streak of dark gold light, tearing through the sky.

Wherever he passed, clouds churned like boiling water, and the gale winds automatically parted to create a path. In the forests below, several wolf demons tearing at a beast carcass suddenly raised their heads, their scarlet pupils contracting sharply. Before they could even whimper, they prostrated themselves on the ground, their joints creaking with fear. A Red-eyed Eagle King perched on a cliff let out half a sharp cry before it was cut short, its wings stiffening like iron as it plummeted into the abyss!

"Roar—!"

A sky-shaking bellow came from a distant valley. A mountain-sized Zhu Yan beat its chest and leaped up, its bloodshot eyes locking onto the streak of light in the sky, a violent, murderous Sha aura surging skyward! Ji Meng's gaze turned cold. Without even stopping his movement, he simply flicked a finger.

"Chi!"

A wisp of pale golden energy shot through the air, piercing through the Zhu Yan's brain like a needle! Its roar was cut off abruptly, and its massive body crashed to the ground with a thunderous impact. A single red dot on its brow oozed black blood—its soul utterly destroyed!

"Annoying." Ji Meng's sleeves billowed as the streak of light shot a thousand miles in an instant. Every demonic beast along the way, strong or weak, lay prostrate and trembling. The cruel law of the primordial wilderness was laid bare in this moment—power was the only pass.

At the South Heaven Gate of the Nine Heavens.

The demon soldiers on duty leaned on their bronze halberds, their faces beneath their helmets numb and weary. The shadow of the War of Witches and Demons had not yet lifted, and the Heavenly Gate was as desolate as a graveyard. Suddenly, one demon soldier looked up, his pupils contracting. "Th-that... what is that?!"

At the edge of the sky, a faint dark gold light fell like a meteor! At first, it was tiny, but in an instant, it had blotted out the sky! A terrifying pressure, like a solid tidal wave, slammed into the Heavenly Gate. The Cloud Steps trembled, and the golden bricks hummed! The demon soldiers staggered and fell to their knees as if struck by a heavy hammer, their bronze halberds clattering to the ground.

"Enemy attack—!" The scream caught in their throats, turning into terrified whimpers.

The streak of light faded, and Ji Meng stood upon a cloud. His dark gold battle robe fluttered, and the phantom of a dragon's head flashed behind him before vanishing. His gaze swept across them like a falling cold star.

"Commander... Commander Ji Meng?!" A demon general recognized the newcomer, his voice twisted with disbelief. According to the reports from the Witch-Demon battlefield, this Demon Commander had been gravely wounded by the ancestral witch Gong Gong, his soul destroyed! But the man before him radiated an aura as vast as a sea of stars, his pressure even greater than before!

Ji Meng said nothing. He took a single step, and his figure had already passed through the open South Heaven Gate. He left behind a crowd of demon soldiers, staring at each other in shock. In the dead silence, suppressed exclamations exploded:

"It really is Commander Ji! He's alive!"

"That pressure... Could he have already reached the Quasi-Saint realm?!"

"Hurry! Report to the Demon Emperor!"

Lingxiao Palace: The Demon Emperor's Shock

Within the Lingxiao Treasure Hall, Di Jun sat high upon the Nine Dragon Golden Throne, his fingertips unconsciously tracing the cold patterns of the River Diagram and Luo Book. Below the throne, Eastern Emperor Tai Yi stood with his hands behind his back, the phantom of the Chaos Bell rising and falling beside him, its surface reflecting the shattered reflections of the primordial mountains and rivers.

"Report—!" A demon messenger stumbled in, his voice hoarse with excitement. "Commander Ji Meng... has returned!"

Di Jun's fingertips paused. The light of the River Diagram and Luo Book faltered for a moment. Tai Yi spun around abruptly, the Chaos Bell phantom humming: "Ji Meng? He... didn't die?"

Before his voice faded, the light at the palace entrance twisted. Ji Meng's figure appeared silently, his dark gold battle robe spotless, his back straight as Buzhou Mountain. He knelt on one knee, his voice deep and solid like the clash of gold and jade: "Your subject, Ji Meng, pays respects to Your Majesty and the Eastern Emperor!"

The hall fell into dead silence.

Di Jun's gaze swept over Ji Meng's body like a tangible force. The faint silver crescent scar on his neck, the dark golden scale light flowing on his back, and especially the faint wisp of Chaos Qi deep within his demon core that made even Di Jun's heart tremble... All of it proclaimed: this was no illusion, nor a lingering soul!

"Rise." Di Jun spoke, his voice betraying no emotion. "On the Witch-Demon battlefield, Gong Gong shattered your Primordial Spirit with a single blow. How did you..."

"Your subject encountered a Sage's guidance and was granted a new life." Ji Meng lowered his head, his words striking like thunder!

"A... Sage?" Tai Yi's pupils contracted sharply. The Chaos Bell phantom trembled violently! All the Sages of the primordial wilderness were registered in the Purple Cloud Palace. When had another one appeared?