Fresh martial artists, good eating

After Lin Yu revealed his strength and background, his subsequent display of goodwill and the preciousness of his gifts completely dispelled Heavenhowl and Daybreak's wariness.

After all, they now fully realize... that even if they are wary now, it's useless.

So they enthusiastically became Lin Yu's guides.

"Brother, the entrance to Meng Qingjun's Cave Dwelling is over here—it's Cave Dwelling that he converted from an ancient mountain cave, possibly carved out by a Human Race cultivator. It's one of the best Cave Dwelling we've ever seen," Daybreak pointed to a Coniferous Forest for Lin Yu. "This forest was also left behind by that Human Race cultivator; it even seems to have Formation still functioning!"

Daybreak spoke, Heavenhowl added.

"That's right, Meng Qingjun has always been very lucky among us—of course, it's also because Meng Qing, like you, brother, has the Demon Lord as a blood relative, so his own abilities are also quite remarkable."

"You might not believe it, but Meng Qingjun's mother was an extremely powerful Demon Lord!"

Heavenhowl spoke, Lin Yu raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, so Meng Qingjun also has a blood relative of the Demon Lord, or is she his mother?"

"May I ask which Demon Lord is his mother?"

As Lin Yu spoke, Daybreak scratched his face. "Well... brother, we don't know about that."

"I also don't recommend you mention this in front of Meng Qingjun, because based on what we know... Meng Qingjun's mother is very likely 'stillborn'."

"Fool, only cubs die young, what you're talking about is called sudden death," Heavenhowl scolded, then looked at Lin Yu, "But that's indeed the situation... Meng Qingjun has never told us anything in detail about his mother, even though she's been gone for a long time... but he probably hasn't gotten over it yet."

Listening to the two demons' conversation, Lin Yu nodded and said, "I see... So today is his birthday, he'll probably miss his mother even more."

Lin Yu spoke with a touch of emotion.

During the conversation...

The group passed through the pine forest and arrived at a cave.

The entrance to the cave clearly shows signs of human carving. It is a neat, rounded semicircle with two huge rocks polished into two doors, with copper ring handles and some exquisite but somewhat rustic Hundred Flowers Painting painted in colored paint.

Lin Yu also learned what those Yaomo who had gathered together and remained stationary were all about.

Before the entrance to the Cave Dwelling, there were two rows of four small demons in each row, all wearing armor and holding long weapons. They were small animals such as Magpie, mountain rabbits, and mice that had become demons, and their cultivation Xingyi did not seem very deep.

Rather than acting as guards and sentries, these eight little demons were more like a ceremonial guard.

Upon seeing Daybreak, Heavenhowl, and Lin Yu, the eight little demons stood ramrod straight and spoke in unison.

"Welcome, Your Majesties, to the Ten Thousand Flowers Cave Dwelling!"

Although these eight little demons weren't very powerful, they had plenty of inner strength.

It was clear that this wasn't the first time Daybreak and Heavenhowl had visited this Cave Dwelling. They seemed used to welcoming the little Cave Dwelling, indicating that this position and setup were usually in place here, rather than being a new addition for the birthday banquet.

Lin Yu was somewhat surprised.

"This Meng Qingjun... she certainly has quite the grand entrance."

Heavenhowl curiously, "Only eight lesser demons... Brother, aren't you also a descendant of the Demon Lord? Don't you have at least eight lesser demons guarding your Cave Dwelling entrance?"

Daybreak nodded. "Both Xiao Tian and I have two in our Heavenhowl Twin Kings Stronghold —and if Meng Qingjun hadn't said we wouldn't make a big fuss and told us not to bring any attendants, we would definitely have brought four or five little demons with us."

Lin Yu smiled and said, "I'm the type to work alone... Even when the Thousand-Eyed Thousand-Silk Demon Lord was around, she never kept too many lesser demons as subordinates in her Cave Dwelling."

Hearing Lin Yu's explanation, Daybreak and Heavenhowl exchanged bewildered glances.

"Wouldn't that be incredibly undignified!"

Daybreak spoke frankly.

Heavenhowl nudged Daybreak, winking at him to shut up, then turned to Lin Yu and said, "Brother, the way of life of your lineage... is indeed quite unique and distinctive."

Lin Yu did not delve into this topic, but simply smiled and nodded. He then walked with the two demons through the stone gate opened by the two little demons spinning the wheel, and entered the "Ten Thousand Flowers Cave" where Meng Qingjun lived.

There were eight little demons guarding the entrance alone, so you can imagine that the "Ten Thousand Flowers Cave" was definitely not small. After Lin Yu entered the Cave Dwelling, he instantly felt as if he had entered the interior of a huge natural cave.

The entire Cave Dwelling is structured in three layers, with many small demons active on each layer. There are also many "cave passages" leading to the depths, making it impossible to see how big or deep the Cave Dwelling is at a glance.

However, Mental Power perception is possible— Lin Yu quickly deduced that the Ten Thousand Flowers Cave contained approximately two hundred large and small monsters, and its area was roughly equivalent to that of a small town, with a very complex and intricate internal passageway.

However, Meng Qingjun was not hiding deep within the Cave Dwelling. She was just inside the entrance to the cave—the largest cavern and the place where the "birthday banquet" was held.

More than ten huge stone tables were laden with fine wine and food, where fifty or sixty powerful Yaomo ate, drank, and made a ruckus.

Clearly... Heavenhowl and Daybreak arrived late; the birthday banquet was already more than halfway through.

Even though he had never met Meng Qingjun beforehand, Lin Yu could immediately guess which one of the people in the Cave Dwelling was Meng Qingjun.

A refined gentleman, dressed in a moon-white brocade robe, with a jade belt and a white jade crown, stood before the table, holding a small cup and conversing with two burly bull-headed Yaomo.

That one... is clearly "Meng Qingjun".

After exchanging a few words with the two bull-headed Yaomo, he downed the wine in his cup in one gulp, then cupped his hands in greeting and looked in the direction of Lin Yu, Heavenhowl, and Daybreak.

He strode forward, his fair face adorned with delicate features, his eyebrows lightly drawn, and his eyes long and slender with upturned corners and downward-curving inner corners, making him look lively and captivating.

He spoke with a faint smile on his face.

"Brother Daybreak, Brother Heavenhowl, you've arrived far too late! I've kept you waiting for so long!"

Daybreak said, "Hey, it's just that the road is long, Meng Qingjun... and we specially prepared a gift for you, which is why we were delayed a bit."

As he spoke, Daybreak reached into the fluffy hair under his armpit and pulled out a fine, golden ginseng root with intertwined roots.

The ginseng has a thick main stem and spreading side branches, almost the size of half a human head, and looks like it is at least several hundred years old.

"Heavenhowl and I carefully dug for a long time before we managed to dig out every single one of these roots intact—whether you use it to make medicine, stew soup, or even eat it raw, it's extremely nutritious."

As Daybreak spoke solemnly, Heavenhowl added, "That's right, we discovered this wild ginseng five years ago, but it wasn't of such good quality back then... So I was thinking that if it could fully mature in the next two years, it could be a gift for your 500th birthday."

Meng Qingjun's face lit up with delight, and she quickly said, "You two are so thoughtful! I've been suffering from a deficiency of qi and blood lately, and I only need such a treasure to nourish myself!"

As he spoke, he beckoned, and a little demon quickly ran over.

"Wrap this up carefully, put it in a sandalwood box, and lock it in the cabinet of the pharmacy."

Meng Qingjun carefully handed the wild ginseng to the little demon, giving him instructions.

Seeing that even their Family Head was being so careful, the little demon naturally held the ginseng even more carefully, raising it above its head, and quickly agreed.

"Understood, Your Lord!"

Then, the little demon walked quickly towards the depths of the Cave Dwelling.

After arranging all of this, Meng Qingjun looked at Lin Yu with some surprise, as if she had just noticed him.

"Heavenhowl, Daybreak... May I ask who this person is?"

It has to be said that Meng Qingjun's performance was so contrived that Lin Yu didn't even bother to comment on whether her acting was bad or not... because her performance was just too deliberate.

But in a sense, this is also a tacit "etiquette"—even if you know it, there's no need to expose it.

It's like a generous classmate buying a big bag of snacks and distributing them to everyone. Even though the snacks have already been given to the person in front of you, you have to pretend you didn't see them. Only when they are actually given to you do you show a "surprised" expression, accompanied by some polite thanks as if you just realized the other person was there, and complete the polite handover of the snacks.

Meng Qingjun was in a similar situation.

Daybreak and Heavenhowl had just realized that Meng Qingjun must have discovered Lin Yu, but because she didn't mention it immediately, it was at this moment that the two of them began to introduce Lin Yu.

There's not much to introduce.

"This is a brother we met on the road... He was passing by your Cave Dwelling, Meng Qingjun. At first, we mistook him for someone looking to cause you trouble, but after talking to him, we realized he was just passing through."

Heavenhowl said.

Daybreak nodded and added, "That's right, I almost got into a fight with him at first... but thankfully the misunderstanding was cleared up!"

"This brother is also a very powerful Yaomo with a strong background—he heard that we came to wish you a happy birthday and felt it was a great coincidence, so he wanted to come along to wish you a happy birthday as well."

After the two demons finished speaking, Lin Yu smiled and greeted Meng Qingjun.

"I hope my uninvited visit has not been too much of a bother or spoiled your enjoyment."

"In any case, since it's your birthday, Meng Qingjun, I wish you a long and healthy life."

"I came on a whim and didn't prepare any special gifts... but luckily I caught a human Martial Artists on the way here. He's of a decent rank and has plenty of life force—you can keep him as a pet or eat him now, it's all fine."

As he spoke, Lin Yu handed Qin Siyu towards Meng Qingjun.