So even though the news was spreading wildly, Luming still considered it to be a baseless rumor in his heart.

The old man quietly puffed on his pipe, the swirling smoke shrouding his slightly aged face, making it difficult to see clearly.

It took a while before he slowly put down the pipe and said softly, "There’s no smoke without fire. Since there’s such a rumor, it must have its source, Luming, you have been negligent."

His words carried a sharpness that contrasted starkly with his previously benevolent and kind appearance.

Luming, however, was used to this; he had long known the man’s true nature. The kindly facade was merely a disguise; this was who he really was.

A cold and ruthless intelligence officer, a person who lived solely for his missions.

Towards such a person, Luming felt not the slightest fondness, but he had no way to resist the other’s will as everything he had was brought to him by this man.

"How could a race that has been in decline for so many years possibly develop a new world?" Luming still refused to believe. "That’s something that even the ancient Dragon Clan and the current Buddhist Sect have not managed to accomplish."

The old man also sighed, well aware of how absurd this claim was, but sometimes the most unbelievable answer is the correct one.

He had already learned the truth of this news from his superiors. The Demon Clan had indeed established the Demon Realm, and it had even grown to a significant scale.

"Before you have concrete information, don’t rush to conclusions. What I am telling you is that this news is true, the Demon Clan does have its own Demon Realm. The reason we failed this time is precisely because they have a newly born world as their foundation. Otherwise, how could they have constructed so many Treasure Ships in such a short period?"

The old man’s calm words made Luming swallow the rest of his objections. His eyes widened in disbelief as he looked at the old man.

Yes, he knew how difficult the process was; the Demon Masters and the Demon Emperor had been wandering in destitution, unable to even ensure their own survival, let alone establish the Demon Realm.

If it truly was possible to establish it, how could the ancient war have been lost?

Luming couldn’t figure it out; the limited information didn’t allow him to deduce the truth.

But the old man never fibbed. Since he spoke those words, there must be solid intelligence to back them up.

"This...," Luming was too shocked to speak.

After a long while, he swallowed hard and asked, "What exactly do you want to know?"

The old man’s eyes became piercing in an instant, and he said sternly, "Find the Master of the Demon Realm. I don’t care what means you use, find him."

"Are you kidding me? I’m just a minor monster, a trivial official in the Demon Court. What’s that, the Master of the World, the future hope of the Demon Clan? Do you think I can get any information?"

"Besides, whoever can open up a Demon Realm must be an important figure of the Demon Clan. If not the Demon Emperor, then the Demon Master. I probably don’t even have the ability to speak in front of them, let alone investigate."

The old man gave him a glance and said evenly, "It can’t be the Demon Master or the Demon Emperor. If they could have succeeded in establishing it, why would they hide till today? There must be someone who has never appeared before, someone who has brought new changes to the Demon Clan, and it’s very likely that it is the monster called Lin Fang. What you need to do is to confirm this, and then find his whereabouts."

He added immediately, "Lin Fang hasn’t been renowned for long and his practice of cultivation has been brief; he certainly isn’t very powerful. Such a person must have opened the Demon Realm by a fluke, and that gives us an opportunity."

The old man’s gaze was intense as he stared at Luming, his eyes burning with flames.

"If we could find him, or even control him, I’m afraid our names would become legendary throughout the Three Realms. Even just getting intelligence from him would be worth it," the old man said.

Luming looked at the old man in shock. He had always thought of the other as a cold, emotionless machine, diligently carrying out tasks assigned by superiors.

But today he realized that beneath the aged exterior, there burned a fierce ambition, perhaps the very drive that had sustained him in such an environment for so long.

For the first time, Luming discovered that he had never truly understood what kind of person stood before him.

"This won’t be easy," Luming sighed.

"I know it’s not easy," the old man replied, "but if it were, it wouldn’t be left to people like us to accomplish."

"I will do my best," Luming nodded.

He had to admit that he was swayed. Even if he was a shameful traitor, a spy, in his heart he still possessed a pursuit that was uniquely his own.

He didn’t want to live a life of obscurity, only to be erased by the vast river of time.

Gently closing the door behind him, Luming was lost in thought, considering where to start.

Because from any angle, this was almost an impossible mission, as the upper echelons of the Demon Clan would surely do everything in their power to protect Lin Fang, the Master of the Demon Realm.

Even if the old man believed that someone of humble origins like Lin Fang could not stay content within the Demon Court, even if he wanted to leave, it was likely he would be surrounded by protectors.

And during his time in the Demon Court, he had been constantly inquiring about Lin Fang; the more he knew, the more alarmed he became. He always felt that this upcoming star named Lin Fang was like a bottomless abyss, unfathomable no matter how he probed.

Could such a character really be just a lucky individual with average strength, as the old man had suggested?

With these doubts, Luming began his investigation.

The first person he thought of was a friend from the Yamen, a monster named Baishan.

He was a fellow graduate from Bailu Academy, but his family was no simple matter. His father was one of the most formidable Demon Kings under the Great Saint who moves mountains, and thus often came into possession of rare intelligence.

Today, as usual, Luming entered his workplace with a warm smile on his face and instantly spotted Baishan idling on his desk.

He walked over with a smile and said, "It seems our young master Baishan is quite bored!"

Baishan looked up, and upon seeing Luming, he said somewhat speechlessly, "It’s you. This Yamen is really dull. People like us should be at the frontier, fighting honorably against the rascals from the Heavenly Court, not wasting our days here."

"You want to serve at the frontier? Would your old man agree to that?" Luming asked with a smile.