With the word "Collect," the figure of the Ape King, trapped and burning in the sea of fire, dissipated, vanishing without a trace.

[Ding... Congratulations to the Host for subjugating the Level 34 Super Demon Spirit: the Ape King, a monarch of his lineage.]

An ordinary system notification sounded. Tu Xiao’an froze for a moment, then sighed. The system hadn’t given him any reward.

He remembered receiving a sizable reward for subjugating the Bull Demon King. Yet this time, for capturing a Super Demon Spirit like the Ape King—whose combat power had reached the Pseudo Demon King Level—there was nothing.

’What does this mean? It means the system judged that subjugating the Ape King was a natural outcome for me, something that posed no real difficulty.’

If Tu Xiao’an had subjugated the Ape King before attaining the Dao, the reward would have surely been substantial.

But now that he had attained the Dao, everything was being calculated from a new starting point.

Upon attaining the Dao, Tu Xiao’an’s power had skyrocketed. He was in a completely different league now. His Level had leaped to 33, and his combat strength was comparable to the Demon King Level.

’Following this trend, does that mean I’ll have to subjugate a full-fledged Demon King just to get a reward from the system?’

After a moment’s thought, Tu Xiao’an’s Snake Gaze narrowed. The space before him rippled, and a monkey appeared. It was lean but radiated a powerful aura.

Although the system hadn’t given him a reward, Tu Xiao’an was still thrilled to have subdued the Ape King. The monkey was incredibly powerful and, more importantly, the monarch of his people. Making him a Battle Companion was as good as subjugating the entire Monkey Race.

"Greetings, Master!"

Now that he was subjugated, the Ape King’s mindset had undergone a fundamental shift. He wasn’t coy about it, immediately kneeling on one knee before the hovering snake.

Might made right. Strength was the only true standard. The monkey wholeheartedly accepted the snake’s power, for despite his own formidable combat strength at the Pseudo Demon King Level, he had been completely unable to fight back.

’Even if I faced the White Demon King,’ he mused, ’it would likely end the same way.’

"Good." Tu Xiao’an smiled at the sight of the kneeling Ape King. "Ape King, in the future, you will realize just how fortunate you are to have been subdued by me today."

The Ape King lowered his head, his submission now heartfelt.

"Now, go out and guard the cave. I am about to undergo Demon Transformation. Allow no one to enter."

"Yes!" The Ape King turned to leave, but stopped by a large ice sculpture. He pointed to it and asked, "Master, could you please release my younger brother?"

With a thought from Tu Xiao’an, the large ice sculpture instantly melted, and the Crimson Sun Giant Ape was freed.

The moment he was free, the Crimson Sun Giant Ape was overjoyed to see his older brother standing beside him. But then his eyes fell on the still-hovering snake, and he roared, "Brother, let’s join forces and kill that damned snake!"

Tu Xiao’an watched the tall and mighty Crimson Sun Giant Ape coolly, completely unmoved.

"Show some respect! Get out."

The Crimson Sun Giant Ape thought he had misheard. He looked at the Ape King in disbelief and said, "Brother, what did you just say?"

The Ape King was decisive, simply grabbing the towering Crimson Sun Giant Ape and dragging him out of the cave. The giant ape’s utterly baffled howls could be heard fading into the distance: "Brother, what are you doing? Are you possessed? We have to kill the snake! Why are you dragging me away!?"

.....

At this moment, Tu Xiao’an was the only snake in the entire Monkey Mountain Cave.

Tu Xiao’an found a suitably open space and coiled on the ground like an ordinary snake. His entire body began to glow, and his Snake Gaze shone brightly.

’Demon Transformation. I, Tu Xiao’an, have finally reached this moment. To change from a snake into a flesh-and-blood human form, no longer a mere illusion.’

’Even if I’m not becoming a true human, this is more than enough. Everything has a price. The original, human Tu Xiao’an is long dead. What’s dead is dead.’

’The Tu Xiao’an of today is a snake, one who is undergoing Demon Transformation after attaining the Dao through Cultivation.’

He closed his Snake Gaze, and his meter-long body began to shift unpredictably. A massive, shadowy silhouette of a snake flickered on the ground as his small form began to expand at a terrifying rate.

In the blink of an eye, the air within the open expanse of the cave turned savage and violent.

Moments later, wind kicked up sand and stones, filling the air with dust. A colossal snake now lay at the center of a raging sandstorm that spun furiously, sucking in all the surrounding dust and rubble.

An overwhelming aura—that of a Snake King, proud and capable of Ruling the World—surged outward, causing the very heavens and earth to pale.

The peace that had just settled over Monkey Mountain was shattered once more as the Snake King’s aura spread. Dark clouds gathered, shrouding the entire mountain and blocking out the sun and moon, making it feel like the end of the world.

Thunder and lightning erupted in the sky. Thunder Shocks boomed without end as lightning flashed again and again. It was as if an enraged Celestial God in the heavens was driving out a host of fiends, his furious roars shaking the earth to its core.

The thunder was like an enraged beast, threatening to rip the clouds apart and escape their dark confines. The tremendous roar thundered through the sky and seemed to bellow up from the very depths of the earth.

SQUEAK SQUEAK SQUEAK...!

Terrified, countless monkeys scattered across the mountain in a panic. The Snake King who had attained the Dao was undergoing Demon Transformation, causing a great Mutation in heaven and earth.

This great Mutation stirred the demons throughout the Yaoling Mountain Range, especially since the Snake King’s aura was growing stronger and was now impossible to miss.

"What? That Snake Demon wanted by the Demon Kings has reappeared on Monkey Mountain? What’s going on?"

"What a reckless Snake Demon! Wanted by two Demon Kings, and it still dares to release its aura on such a massive scale."

"Quickly, charge into Monkey Mountain! Take that Snake Demon’s head and present it to the Demon Kings for a reward!"

In an instant, the Yaoling Mountain Range was in turmoil. Countless Demon Fiends began to surge toward Monkey Mountain in a vast, chaotic wave.

Many of the Demon Fiends who had answered the Demon King Slaying Order had been worrying about how to find the snake. They never imagined it would be so thoughtful as to reveal its own location.

The disturbance was so immense, it was as if the snake was afraid people *wouldn’t* know it was hiding on Monkey Mountain.

Some three hundred li from Monkey Mountain was a vast range known as Wolf Mountain, the territory of the Wolf Race. They had pledged their allegiance to the White Demon King long ago, and the notorious Bloodthirsty Wolf King was one of his chief enforcers—infamous far and wide for his evil deeds.

On Wolf Mountain, a colossal, blood-red wolf lay, surveying its descendants scattered throughout the surrounding peaks.

The blood-red wolf was dozens of yards long. It was so enormous that if it were to stand, it would be as tall as a small mountain.

This was the Bloodthirsty Wolf King, a terrifying and famous Great Demon of the Yaoling Mountain Range.

What qualified as a Great Demon? Any demon below Rank 3 was merely a Little Demon. Only those who had surpassed Rank 3 and reached around Level 33 or 34 earned the title of Great Demon. The stage beyond that was the Pseudo Demon King Level.

The Bloodthirsty Wolf King had previously gone to Monkey Mountain with the Wild Boar King to kill the snake. But the Wild Boar King had unexpectedly met a miserable end at the hands of three Little Demons, and the Wolf King himself was nearly killed by the Bull Demon King. The incident had dragged his reputation through the mud.

Fortunately, the White Demon King had appeared just in time to save his life. After returning to Wolf Mountain, the Bloodthirsty Wolf King learned from his painful defeat. He broke through from his original Level 33 to become a Level 34 Deep Mountain Great Demon. His power had surged, bringing his combat strength close to the Pseudo Demon King Level.

The Bloodthirsty Wolf King viewed his past failure to kill the snake as the humiliation of a lifetime. Thus, when the Demon King Slaying Order was issued, he became its most ardent supporter, enthusiastically sending out hundreds of thousands of wolves to track down the Snake Demon.

As soon as he learned of the Snake Demon’s location, he would personally act to avenge his shame.

"Hm?" Suddenly, a flash of surprise crossed the Bloodthirsty Wolf King’s eyes as he gazed toward Monkey Mountain. ’That Snake Demon who just attained the Dao... it’s appeared on Monkey Mountain again?’

The aura of the Snake Race was so intense that he could clearly feel it even from three hundred li away.

’Excellent,’ the Bloodthirsty Wolf King thought, his eyes turning blood-red. ’Snake Demon, you may have attained the Dao, but your life is still mine for the taking. I have to move quickly. With the Slaying Orders from two Demon Kings, countless Great Demons will be heading out to kill that snake. I can’t let anyone else claim the glory.’

’I failed once and lost all face before the White Demon King. This time, I absolutely must slay that Snake Demon.’

"AWOOO..."

The bloodthirsty giant wolf, dozens of yards long, rose to its feet. It was a terrifying sight, like a small mountain suddenly stirring to life. The true form of a Great Demon was nothing to be trifled with.

The fierce, domineering howl echoed across all of Wolf Mountain. Instantly, innumerable cultivating wolves appeared, so many that they formed a dense, swarming mass that numbered in the hundreds of thousands.

"My pups, follow your ancestor to kill the snake! And while we’re at it, we’ll wipe out those damn monkeys on Monkey Mountain!"

In the White Demon King’s territory, two races were the most powerful: the Wolf Race and the Monkey Race.

The Wolf Race was completely subordinate to the White Demon King, whereas the Monkey Race’s obedience was merely for show; they weren’t truly his subjects.

And yet, the Monkey Race stood on almost equal footing with the Wolf Race. Across a thousand-li expanse of the Yaoling Mountain Range, no other race dared to offend them. For this reason, the Bloodthirsty Wolf King had always wanted to devour the Monkey Race and reign supreme.

He had never been confident in his ability to defeat the Ape King before. But now, with his cultivation breakthrough elevating him to near Pseudo Demon King Level, his confidence was through the roof.

’Ape King, you’ve got some nerve, daring to help that Snake Demon.’

The Bloodthirsty Wolf King grinned maliciously. Killing the snake and exterminating the Monkey Race—killing two birds with one stone.

’The Monkey Race has to be helping that snake,’ he reasoned. ’Otherwise, why would it have gone through its Tribulation Crossing on Monkey Mountain? No fool would attempt to cross their tribulation in enemy territory.’

’Now the Slaying Order is out, and countless races are hunting for that snake. Its reappearance on Monkey Mountain is clear proof that the monkeys are sheltering it.’

’That pathetic Monkey Race dares to oppose Lord White Demon King? It looks like after today, my Wolf Race will become the number one power under his command.’

Following his howl, innumerable wolves gathered around the enormous Bloodthirsty Wolf King. These were no ordinary beasts; all of them were at the Awakening or Spirit Monster Level, with several even having reached the Demon Spirit Level.

"The Wolf Race will go on a killing spree today!"

With a final roar, the Bloodthirsty Wolf King’s massive body transformed. He became a powerfully built man, his eyes gleaming with savage light.

The Bloodthirsty Wolf King then mounted a giant wolf that stood over ten meters tall. Leading an army of countless Wolf Demons, he marched on Monkey Mountain, a vast and murderous horde.