I accept

The cold current gradually dissipated. At the center of the strike, the earth lay utterly devastated, a complete mess without a single intact patch of ground.

Shards of ice glittered beneath the blazing sun. The ground beneath the black-clad figure had sunk several inches.

In the direction that sword had pointed, the Leopard King's body had become an enormous block of ice, his terrified expression still frozen vividly on his face.

But this time, every trace of life in the Leopard King had vanished.

The Leopard King had fallen in battle!

The icy light unleashed by Mingye's final strike carried almost the strongest chill he could muster. It had pierced straight through the Leopard King's skin and seeped into his flesh, even into his bone marrow.

But the Leopard King's final attack had been powerful indeed. Traces of blood marked the hand gripping the Evil Sword, covered by demon power.

His sleeve had also been blasted apart.

The leader of the Leopard Tribe was undeniably strong. Ordinary yokai were truly no match for him.

Mingye had been disadvantaged by his youth. He had yet to fully mature, and his physique and demon power were still somewhat lacking. Only with the Evil Sword's power bolstering him had he managed to slay his opponent.

Without the Evil Sword, this battle would have been extraordinarily dangerous. After all, Mingye was only in his fifties and had been at a disadvantage from the outset.

Mingye frowned slightly, seemingly still dissatisfied with his progress.

But Red Evil Ogre knew the Leopard King's strength all too well. He had been the leader of a powerful yokai tribe subordinate to the Leopard Cat Tribe!

And now he had fallen to a young man's sword.

It was simply unbelievable.

"His strength may truly have surpassed Lord Sesshomaru's!"

Red Evil Ogre muttered to himself, his gaze vacant. He had witnessed Sesshomaru's strength.

Although he did not know how strong Sesshomaru would be when fighting all out, who could say that Mingye had shown his full strength either?

It was impossible to gauge!

At least, Red Evil Ogre could not see through Mingye's strength.

"Our leader... is dead!"

"Ah! He actually killed our leader!"

"Damn him! Brothers, kill him! He's exhausted! Avenge our leader!"

Beyond their shock, the remaining Leopard People felt their rage and killing intent reach a boiling point!

At a captain's rallying cry, all the Leopard People charged at Mingye with bloodshot eyes, as though they had gone mad!

"Exhausted? Laughable!"

Mingye sneered disdainfully. His demon power might be running low, but his physical strength remained!

The Qi and Blood Circulation Method strengthened his physical power and endurance!

Even relying on his body alone, Mingye was more than capable of slaughtering these Leopard yokai who had lost all reason!

At that moment, Mingye moved as swiftly as thunder, the long sword in his hand flashing like streaks of shadowy light across the Leopards' throats!

His swordsmanship was displayed to perfection. Every ounce of strength was used to its fullest, and a Leopard fell each time his sword struck!

Every strike claimed a Leopard's life!

Chongli also charged into the Leopard People once more, and the slaughter resumed!

The Evil Sword's inherent sharpness alone was more than these Leopards could withstand.

Without a truly powerful fighter left, the Leopard Tribe was utterly unable to stop Mingye and Chongli.

Piercing screams rang out. Blood filled the shattered ground, and yokai corpses piled atop one another.

The outcome of this battle had been decided the moment the Leopard King fell.

The eight-thousand-strong Leopard Army and its leader, the Leopard King, had fallen to the sword of the demon wolf Mingye.

This news would undoubtedly raise Mingye's fearsome reputation even higher and make the yokai of the Demon World understand that the Demon Wolf Tribe was no longer a weak tribe.

An hour later, not a single yokai remained standing before Mingye. The entire Leopard Army was dead.

The thick stench of blood fouled the very air. Mingye signaled for Chongli to bring the Demon Wolf Tribe members over to clean up the battlefield.

These would become food to fuel the Demon Wolf Tribe members' cultivation. Leopard meat seemed to taste quite good, too.

Mingye sheathed his sword. Much of his demon power had recovered, and he used it to wash away the blood on his body.

The next moment, he vanished from where he stood, darting through the mountain forest like a phantom too swift for anyone to make out.

Red Evil Ogre's expression changed drastically. He sensed the threat of death-the black-clad figure had already appeared behind him.

Bang!

Red Evil Ogre was sent flying backward. The Red Evil Ogre Fan was knocked away in an instant and landed embedded in the ground.

"Please wait! I mean no harm!"

He hurriedly shouted, trembling all over, his back already soaked with sweat.

Mingye did not attack again. He looked coldly at Red Evil Ogre, who had been hiding in the shadows ever since the Leopard Army arrived.

He had initially thought this fellow was a hidden agent of the Leopard Cat Tribe, but apparently not.

"You've watched for long enough. Unless you give me a convincing reason, you'll die!"

Mingye's voice and gaze were icy. Even the faint killing intent he released made Red Evil Ogre's heart tremble!

He meant it!

Red Evil Ogre understood that this was absolutely no joke!

"My name is Red Evil Ogre. I'm a commander serving under the Dog General, leader of the Dog Tribe. I've come to discuss an important matter with you, Lord Mingye."

Red Evil Ogre immediately revealed his identity. Being mistaken for a yokai of the Leopard Cat Tribe and killed by the man before him would be far too tragic!

"Red Evil Ogre?"

Only then did Mingye carefully examine the man before him. He had delicate features and wore red robes. A crimson iron fan stood embedded in the ground, seemingly his weapon, the Red Evil Ogre Fan.

It was a fan imbued with flame power, a fairly good weapon.

All these outward details indeed matched Red Evil Ogre's characteristics in the original story.

"What does the Dog General want with me?"

Now convinced of Red Evil Ogre's identity, Mingye withdrew his killing intent and asked.

"Lord Mingye, your reputation has spread far and wide lately. You've slain many yokai serving the Leopard Cat Tribe, and your strength is formidable. The general admires you greatly and wishes to invite you to visit the Dog Tribe!"

Red Evil Ogre explained everything. After witnessing Mingye's strength, he held him in the utmost respect.

In the world of yokai, the strong commanded respect!

"Invite me to the Dog Tribe?"

Mingye considered this briefly. Combining it with the recent reports he had received about the war between the Dog Tribe and the Leopard Cat Tribe, he understood Tōga's intentions.

He wanted Mingye to join the Cat-Slaying Alliance!

After all, in the current war, Tōga held the advantage only on the Greater Yokai battlefield. In every other respect, his side was at a disadvantage.

It could be said that Tōga currently lacked powerful fighters below the Greater Yokai level who could hold off the yokai armies serving the Leopard Cat Tribe!

Although Sesshomaru had already earned a name for himself in battle and gained the title of Trembling Noble, he was still only one fighter.

Sesshomaru alone was not enough.

Red Evil Ogre and Qitian were reasonably strong, but that was all.

They would fall short against the leaders of other tribes.

And since Mingye had recently made an enemy of the Leopard Cat Tribe, Tōga had decided to try to win him over.

That was easy enough to deduce.

"I accept."

Seeing Mingye lost in thought, Red Evil Ogre had not dared make a sound. When he heard Mingye agree, he could finally relax.

This made Mingye's stance clear. They were not enemies and might very well become comrades in arms.

"Then may I ask when you intend to visit, my lord? That way, I can report back."

Red Evil Ogre asked cautiously.

"In three days."

"Then I shall await your arrival at the Dog Tribe Base, my lord. Here is a map to the base."

Red Evil Ogre took out a map and handed it over, then retrieved the Red Evil Ogre Fan embedded in the ground and took his leave.

After all, the battlefield still needed cleaning up, and it would be inconvenient for him to linger.

Besides, he needed to return to the base as soon as possible to inform Tōga of Mingye's strength and response.

"Tōga... the overlord of the Western Country... a top-tier Greater Yokai..."

Watching Red Evil Ogre depart, Mingye sighed softly. Tōga was a Greater Yokai of tremendous renown, and naturally, he was curious about such a figure.

Still, he would meet him soon enough...