A breakthrough in strength

At the cliff's edge.

Chongli was still waiting where he had been, but the distant upheaval and terrifying surges of energy had left him trembling with fear.

The next instant, Mingye appeared on the horizon, walking through the air as though the void were solid ground beneath his feet.

"Lord Mingye!"

Chongli's eyes lit up. In almost the blink of an eye, Mingye reached the cliff and landed before him.

"Are you all right?"

Chongli asked cautiously. Not even Lord Mingye's sleeves showed any damage, but he still worried about him.

After all, Tōga was the overlord of the Western Country, one of its mightiest Great Yokai. No matter how extraordinary Lord Mingye was, he could not possibly match such a being.

"I'm fine."

Mingye shook his head calmly. Great Yokai were indeed powerful. His strength had grown rapidly, but he still could not rival them.

That only made it all the more absurd that Inuyasha would later kill Ryūkotsusei with nothing but Tessaiga.

Mingye could only chalk that up to plot armor.

How could a true Great Yokai be so weak, even if Ryūkotsusei had been sealed for a hundred years and his strength had dwindled to its lowest ebb?

Such a being would still possess an overwhelming presence. Inuyasha's victory really did seem like a death dictated by the plot.

Tap, tap, tap.

As Mingye pondered, footsteps drew his attention.

"Lord Mingye, please allow this humble yokai to attend to you while you rest."

A beautiful woman in a sheer gown approached. Her skin was as white as the snow blanketing the mountains, her eyes alluring, and the delicate fragrance wafting from her body stirred the senses.

Mingye paused slightly. The woman before him was remarkably beautiful, easily rivaling the celebrities from his previous life, if not surpassing them.

His expression turned a little odd. What was this? Were they testing him with a beautiful woman?

"The general has ordered that I take full responsibility for attending to Lord Mingye from now on and obey all your commands!"

The beautiful woman bowed slightly. Her ample breasts looked ready to spill out, their pale skin tinged with pink. The sight would have instantly captivated an ordinary man and robbed him of his senses.

But Mingye merely glanced at her before looking away, his expression calm as he said:

"Lead the way."

In his previous life, he had seen his fill of seductive temptations. Devoted solely to martial pursuits, he had long since ceased to be swayed by beauty.

As for Chongli, he was still at the age of a mischievous child and had even less interest in such things.

The beautiful woman was secretly astonished. As expected of Demon Wolf Mingye. His self-control truly was formidable!

She was extremely confident in her own charms. Many yokai throughout the Dog Tribe had been utterly besotted with her.

Yet Mingye had only given her a passing glance, without the slightest flicker in his eyes. His self-control far surpassed theirs.

So this was Lord Mingye, the man even the general held in high regard?

He truly was a powerful man with an unwavering heart.

"Yes. Please follow me, my lord."

The beautiful woman dared not try anything else. Her eyes filled with reverence as she led Mingye and Chongli to a tent.

"If you need anything, my lord, please do not hesitate to ask."

She fluttered her eyes alluringly and stopped outside the tent without entering.

"You may leave."

Mingye waved a hand lightly, having no interest in conversing with the female yokai.

A trace of disappointment flashed in her eyes. Without another word, she obediently withdrew.

Mingye and Chongli entered the brightly lit tent, where food, fruit, and desserts had already been prepared. Mingye stood on no ceremony and began eating.

After all, his battle with Tōga had drained a considerable amount of his strength.

Even now, his demon power had recovered to only half its capacity, and that was with the Blood Energy Method and Breathing Method working together to restore it so quickly.

An ordinary yokai would have needed at least a full day and night to recover completely.

"Judging by their auras, the yokai serving under the Dog Tribe really do all belong to weaker tribes. Still, the Dog Tribe has considerable reserves of strength to have withstood the Leopard Cat Tribe's attacks for so long."

On the way here, Mingye had gained some understanding of the forces in the Dog Tribe's camp.

Besides Sesshomaru, the Dog Tribe had quite a few commander-level yokai. Their auras were far from weak, roughly on par with the leader of the Hundred Demon Bats.

The strongest among them was about equal to the Leopard King he had killed some time ago.

That showed just how substantial the Dog Tribe's strength was. Even some of its commanders could rival the leaders of other yokai tribes.

Not to mention that its leader was a Great Yokai as powerful as Tōga, and his principal wife, Princess Tsukuyomi, was also a Great Yokai.

But there was no trace of another Greater Yokai's aura anywhere in the camp, so Mingye knew Princess Tsukuyomi had not come to this battlefield.

"But if Princess Tsukuyomi was guarding Dog Castle, how could Setsuna no Takemaru have broken through its defenses and stormed Izayoi's separate residence?"

This puzzled Mingye. No matter how strong Setsuna no Takemaru's army was, it could not contend with a Great Yokai.

Even if Princess Tsukuyomi was not as formidable in battle as Tōga, she was still a Great Yokai.

Mingye searched the depths of his memory. It seemed that Princess Tsukuyomi had never appeared throughout the entire war, and Setsuna no Takemaru had suffered hardly any losses when he breached Dog Castle.

He seemed to have achieved his goal with remarkable ease.

From that, Mingye could infer that Princess Tsukuyomi probably had not been in Dog Castle, though he did not know why she had not stayed to guard it.

What Mingye had not considered was that Princess Tsukuyomi had left Dog Castle after Tōga brought Izayoi back there.

As a noblewoman of the Dog Tribe, how could Princess Tsukuyomi willingly share a husband with a human woman? She had simply moved out of Dog Castle and returned to her own domain, Cloudtop City.

That was also why she had never appeared in the original course of events.

"I'd better focus on getting stronger..."

Mingye stopped pondering, sat cross-legged, and began cultivating.

He had already given the warning he needed to give. That was as much help as he could offer.

Immersed in cultivation, Mingye made another breakthrough in strength after his battle with a Great Yokai.

A true powerhouse dared to draw his sword against those stronger than himself, making greater strides through battle.

Though that fight had been brief, he had gained more from it than from several months of cultivation.

The Demon Blood in his body coursed through him, while his blood energy greedily absorbed the vital essence of the food he had eaten. Spiritual energy from heaven and earth also poured madly into his body.

Waves of heat seeped from Mingye's pores, and the temperature throughout the tent began to rise.

Chongli was startled by the sight. He had been cultivating too, but the mounting heat made it difficult for him to breathe.

He had no choice but to leave the tent. Heavy snow swirled outside, yet the heat spilling from within kept him from feeling the slightest chill.

But the next moment, terrifying, frigid demon power radiated from Mingye, instantly turning the heat into bitter cold.

The cold swept outward in waves, and ice crystals began forming on the ground. Even Chongli had to use his demon power to resist it.

"Lord Mingye seems to have grown stronger again!"

Chongli shivered, his eyes filled with admiration. That rate of progress was so fast that he could not help envying it.

His blood energy burned hot, while the demon power within him was icy cold. As Mingye felt these opposing forces, he seemed to gain a little insight into some of the scriptures from his previous life.

His aura continued to rise, and even the strength of his soul slowly increased.

The breakthrough in his essence and energy had brought an improvement in his spirit as well. His mind was clear as he immersed himself in cultivation.