Most of it was fear and despair, with a small part deeply rooted in hatred.

Song Yan lowered his head to glance at the man in the red robe who was the first to kneel.

He remembered, back when he was still a servant, he went to the foot of South Bamboo Peak to purchase some Martial Arts Techniques. The red-robed man, then a teenager, was called the young master by those in the pavilion. After Song Yan left, he might have been mocked a few times, but he didn't hear it clearly and didn't take it seriously.

Song Yan surveyed the surroundings, sighing inwardly.

'Indeed, I still don't like this feeling.'

Suddenly, a sense arose in his heart: "Quickly find a way to break through to the Purple Mansion, infiltrate the Sword Sect at the Ancient Teleportation Array before the Great Demon from the Mountain and Sea Demon Country arrives, then go with Junior Sister Xiao Li to the other side of the Teleportation Array to lead a life free of scheming and plotting."

'I hope I can find the method for breaking through to the Purple Mansion, that Yu Xuanwei can repair the Ancient Teleportation Array in time, that it isn't too dangerous on the other side...'

He hadn't thought of resisting the Mountain and Sea Demon Country.

Through the Grandmother Fox, Red Granny, and the Ancient General, he roughly understood the awkward geographical situation of the Three Kingdoms.

If the "Mountain and Sea Demon Country" were a mountain, then the "Three Kingdoms" would be one of the numerous little pitfalls pressed beneath it.

If the "Mountain and Sea Demon Country" were a normal country, the "Three Kingdoms" would be a small out-of-the-way village on a wasteland, and such villages were not uncommon.

Numerous, so…before the King Wei begged for help, before Changwang Hu lost something here, no demon cared to notice such a place.

Even if noticed, they wouldn't come over.

And that's determined by the national structure of the "Mountain and Sea Demon Country."

The "Mountain and Sea Demon Country" isn't fully composed of demons, but is a "collective term for numerous human nations captive by demons."

In other words, the "Mountain and Sea Demon Country" truly lacks nothing to eat.

Vast lands, agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, and fishery, all are abundant.

Yet, outside the Mountain and Sea Demon Country, there are formidable human forces.

Ordinary people and cultivators among those forces are not to be feared, but...there is a type of people who call themselves the "Ancient Race."

The "Ancient Race" is a huge race, with camps divided internally, much like the "Mountain and Sea Demon Country."

The two sides are like fire and water.

But the "Multi-tailed Fox Race" and the "Corpse-Eating Wolf Race" being in the heartland of the Mountain and Sea Demon Race means they hardly encounter the Ancient Race.

As for the "Three Kingdoms" geopolitical situation, there is simply no hope.

Even if Song Yan withstood one wave of demons, he surely couldn't withstand the next, and if he wanted to go north to connect with the "Ancient Race," he would have to carve a path through the great mountain of the "Mountain and Sea Demon Country."

If he could truly achieve that, would he still need the "Ancient Race?"

Besides, would the "Ancient Race" necessarily be any better?

Humans, after all, might not be much more merciful than demons.

Song Yan had thought a lot along the way.

He wanted to flee.

He still cherished the days with Junior Sister Xiao Li.

His ideal dao companion was someone like Tian Xiaojiu, An Li, or a silly girl with Su Yao's temperament from early on.

Various thoughts flashed by, and he couldn't help but sigh internally, "Before, as a servant, I thought about running, and now even as Sect Leader, I still think about escaping?"

Then he glanced again at the second prince of Jin Kingdom kneeling before him and the surrounding evil cultivators, bandits, and Jianghu villains, raising his hand to casually lift the hood, revealing his face in the bleak autumn sunshine.

In the distance, many shadow puppets, paper figures, and blood corpses appeared in the sky, clearly signifying that the Puppet Sect had heard of the Sect Leader's return, coming to greet him.

However, the numbers were not many.

Not surprising.

Although Red Granny and the Ancient General were dead, there were still many little fox cubs scattered outside.

The "great battle is over" was only true for Song Yan; for ordinary cultivators, their war was just beginning.

The second prince of Jin Kingdom, Ma Zhao, was kneeling and suddenly saw some mud on Song Yan's boots. He hurriedly crawled forward a few steps, then turned his cheek slightly, and began to rub it back and forth like a rag with his clean face.

Song Yan looked at this second prince, unable to help but sigh, "He should indeed join my Puppet Sect."

Ma Zhao was overjoyed, lifting his head to say, "Whatever the Sect Leader wants me to do, I'll do it."

As a crafty villain and expert in underhanded ways, he deeply understood one truth: sometimes, kneeling before someone grants you power. And power would cause many to kneel before you.

Song Yan took out a Puppet Sect token from his bosom and tossed it out.

The token was inscribed with the character "Song."

This was the 'Sect Leader's Proof' hastily made by the Mechanical Peak. Naturally, there were different grades, and what Song Yan threw out was certainly the lowest grade.

But even the lowest grade could still label Ma Zhao as marked by the "Song Demon."

Ma Zhao took it and held it tightly in his arms, bowing deeply in gratitude.

Song Yan smiled, "Do well."

Ma Zhao shouted loudly, "Thank you, Master, thank you, Master!!"

Song Yan no longer paid attention to him.

Sometimes, bestowing grace is not a good thing. For instance, with the Jin Kingdom's second prince holding Song Yan's Sect Leader token, he would surely become a target for the little fox cubs seeking revenge; even if he didn't die here, he would certainly be captured and tortured after the Mountain and Sea Demon Country arrived, then undergo a soul search.

Seeking benevolence gets benevolence, seeking death gets death.

He gave Qiu Lianyue an anonymous Puppet Sect token to avoid involving the girl; he gave Ma Zhao the "Song" character token to embroil him, letting him play both the role of a dog and die dreadfully.

He liked kind-hearted people, but his methods were increasingly dark.

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