Jiang Che stepped to the edge of the altar, preparing to ascend the jade steps.

After some thought, Jiang Che withdrew his leg, deciding to walk around the altar first and assess the situation.

Immediately, Jiang Che began to walk slowly around the edge of the altar, continuously observing its condition.

Suddenly, Jiang Che stopped in his tracks, his gaze narrowing as he stared directly at the southeast corner of the white jade altar.

"What is that…"

There, on the Flawless Jade Disc in the southeastern direction of the altar, was an ugly crack.

This was a massive crack over a zhang long and a person's width, resembling a black scar on the altar. Looking through it, one could only see an unfathomable, dark depth.

Currently, a large amount of demonic energy was gushing out from the crack, like a fountain with an astonishing volume of water.

At the same time, this demonic energy, once emerging, was repelled by the golden runes on the altar, naturally distancing itself and slowly permeating the entire valley.

"I knew it. The demonic energy in this valley is indeed emanating from here."

A glint flashed in Jiang Che's eyes as he fixated on the mysterious crack, then slowly approached it.

Clearly, the seal had been broken. If an ancient demon was truly sealed within, it would be a serious issue.

Because, for a long time to come, Tiger King Ridge would constantly face the threat of the demon breaking free.

"Big brother, be careful. There may be danger beneath this altar!"

Nangong Luo, recalling rumors from a past life, cautioned worriedly.

There was a significant possibility that an ancient demon was sealed here. Although it hadn't broken free, no one knew if it might have the power to act.

After all, even if her big brother's strength was great, compared to such an ancient demon, there might be a huge gap. If injured or corrupted by the demonic energy, it would be disastrous.

"Understood, third younger sister, you and the second one have lower cultivation. Stay there and don't come over!"

Jiang Che, not daring to be careless, turned and warned the second and third siblings.

Soon, a purple stream of light, which was the Donghuang Bell, flew out from Jiang Che's body and hovered above his head.

Dong!

The Donghuang Bell vibrated slightly, scattering the surrounding demonic energy instantly. Its misty purple aura slowly descended, forming a purple barrier that enveloped Jiang Che.

With the Donghuang Bell's protection, Jiang Che felt considerably more at ease.

With the Donghuang Bell guarding, even if an unexpected situation occurred, he would be able to react and respond promptly.

While Jiang Che cautiously approached the crack, Fang Yuan stood in a corner of the altar, reveling in absorbing the demonic energy.

"Kekekeke, invigorating, absolutely invigorating. If I could stay here and cultivate, this Demon Monarch might even surpass the boss."

"For this Demon Monarch, this place is simply paradise. Perhaps I should just move here from Peach Grove Valley!"

Feeling the obvious change in his cultivation, Fang Yuan couldn't stop grinning sinisterly and felt extremely excited. In his mind, he had already begun envisioning the day he would surpass the boss.

Though the boss was an eighth-rank, and he was only sixth-rank, with the help of this demonic energy, he was full of confidence.

"However, the demonic energy here is still not dense enough. I need to move closer to the crack!

Anyway, with the boss in front, there shouldn't be any problems."

Seeing the boss nearing the crack, Fang Yuan couldn't help but follow closely, moving forward slowly.

This pure demonic energy was as tempting to him as the Blood Qi of an eighth-rank powerhouse.

"Second brother, where are you going? We don't even know if that crack is dangerous. Don't go near it."

Seeing Fang Yuan suddenly step forward, Nangong Luo's expression changed slightly. Was the second brother getting cocky, thinking he's the big brother?

If an accident happened, the closer to the crack, the harder it would be to escape. Getting too close could drag the big brother into rescuing him.

"Don't worry! The boss is fine, isn't he? This Demon Monarch won't get too close, mind your own business!"

Fang Yuan waved at Nangong Luo, continuing forward.

Unexpectedly, after taking a few steps, Fang Yuan paused, staring straight at the jade wall of the altar beside him.

On that jade wall, there seemed to be carvings of something. As the engravings were shallow and veiled with light, they were easy to miss if not closely examined.

Interested, Fang Yuan quickly stepped forward to observe carefully.

He found ancient, weathered text etched into the jade wall, faintly shimmering under the light, appearing almost alive as they slowly rotated. These texts were extremely complex, each like a vortex, giving a dizzying sensation at a glance.

"This... This is an ancient script?"

Fang Yuan was startled, not expecting ancient script to be engraved here.

As an Ancient Demon Monarch, he had some knowledge of various ancient scripts.

"Ancestral Demon Land… Seal…"

After reading the information, Fang Yuan's pupils constricted, his heart suddenly overwhelmed by tumultuous waves.

This Ancestral Demon Land… In ancient times, it had another name.

And that is the Ancestral Demon Realm!

It's said that the Ancestral Demon Realm was the origin place of the Demon Dao and the birthplace of ancient demons. All the demonic energy in this realm was leaked from the Ancestral Demon Realm. Without demonic energy, demonic cultivators wouldn't emerge in this realm.

This Ancestral Demon Realm had no Spiritual Qi but was filled with dense demonic energy — hell for ordinary cultivators, but paradise for demonic cultivators.

In ancient times, many demonic cultivators had the grand desire to enter the Ancestral Demon Realm and indulge in its overwhelming, endless demonic energy.

Moreover, since the Ancestral Demon Realm was composed solely of demonic energy, all the heavenly treasures it naturally produced were more suited to demonic cultivators. This was one of the reasons demonic cultivators sought entry into the Ancestral Demon Realm.

Anyone who could enter the Ancestral Demon Realm and survive was highly likely to become a formidable demon dao cultivator, dominating regions around them.

In his past life, Fang Yuan had been relentlessly searching for the Ancestral Demon Realm, and even after ascending to the rank of Demon Monarch, he couldn't let go of his desire.

The allure of the Ancestral Demon Realm was simply irresistible for demonic cultivators.

In this world, even if you trained tirelessly, your cultivation might only improve at a speed of seven, whereas in the Ancestral Demon Realm, even if you slacked off, your improvement speed could reach ten.

This disparity made the Ancestral Demon Realm so appealing even to Fang Yuan.

Regrettably, during the ancient times, Fang Yuan spent years searching but never found any trace of the Ancestral Demon Realm and, even when besieged and eventually falling by the hands of hypocrites from the righteous path, he couldn't let go of his obsession.

Yet completely unexpectedly, in this life, the Ancestral Demon Realm, which he had yearned for intensely, was so easily discovered.

Truly, destiny is unpredictable!

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