The ox''s form flickered and shrank to a size of about three meters, just as it was about to demonstrate its achievement to Zhou Yi when a rough voice came from the sky.


    "I am Yu Ya, congrattions to fellow Daoist on your sessful transformation!"


    The Jade Fang Demon King stood upon the clouds as he spoke, followed by thousands of demon soldiers, looking down like a dark cloud looming over the city.


    At that moment.


    Six streaks of light flew out from Mo Cloud Cave andnded beside the ox.


    Thousands more demon soldiers converged at the mountaintop, each wielding magic artifacts and des, arranged in tactical formations behind the ox, their presence every bit as imposing.


    Yu Ya couldn''t help but feel surprised, wondering when such a force had emerged on Flying Cloud Ridge.


    "This ox demon appears extraordinary, its aura is exceptional and it must possess a heterogeneous bloodline, making it a tough opponent in battle. Among its ranks are several great demons that are far from ordinary, especially that young man who even makes me sense danger!"


    "Although these demon soldiers might be weaker, they are well-trained, each armored and armed, and will not be easy to face."


    With these thoughts, the Jade Fang Demon Kingpletely abandoned the idea of subduing the ox, ordering his soldiers to retreat ten miles and descending from the clouds alone, his heartyughter easing the tense atmosphere.


    "Hahaha, I have specially brought a congrattory gift."


    Upon saying this, he produced a jade box containing a Five-Hundred-Year-Old Ginseng, of exceptionally high quality.


    Such Spiritual Medicine was extremely precious even in the eyes of a Demon King; originally, he had prepared a two-hundred-year-old medicinal herb, but Yu Ya had switched the gift at thest moment.


    "Thank you, fellow Daoist."


    The ox suppressed its displeasure, epted the century-old ginseng, and listened as Zhou Yi said through a voice transmission, "I am just fortunate to have borrowed this sacred ce for secluded cultivation and to have luckily weathered the Heavenly Tribtion. I am indebted to you, fellow Daoist."


    "No trouble at all, Flying Cloud Ridge is not mine to im. If anyone is to be called the owner, it should rightly be the Dragon Lord."


    Yu Ya reminded him, "Now that fellow Daoist has seeded in transformation, within a few days messengers from the dragon pce will surelye, asking if you wish to join Greenwave Pond, you should consider your decision beforehand."


    "What are the differences between joining and not joining?" the ox asked, puzzled.


    "The Dragon Lordmands the northern part of the hundred thousand mountains. After joining the dragon pce, you can choose a Spirit Vein to rule over, with a domain spanning thousands of miles, and receive various Spiritual Objects as rewards."


    Yu Ya exined, "Choosing to be a Loose Cultivator Demon King means living in seclusion and facing hardships whenever wars between the two factions break out..."


    The ox then nodded in understanding, bowing and saying, "I am willing to join the Dragon Lord''s subordinates."


    "Haha, then in the future we shall be colleagues, and we must get along well."


    Yu Ya looked at Zhou Yi and said, "These few appear extraordinary. May I ask how they are rted to fellow Daoist?"


    "We seven demons often feast together to celebrate, finding great joy andpatibility in each other''spany, so we have sworn brotherhood. This is my eldest brother, Jin Yi, and my third brother, Golden Eagle..."


    "I see."


    Yu Ya''s gaze sharpened slightly, his esteem for the ox increasing as he spoke, "Once you return from the dragon pce, we will celebrate your ascension as a Demon King, and I will surelye to offer my congrattions."


    "That''s kind of you."


    The ox proceeded to enquire about what to pay attention to when visiting the dragon pce, and Yu Ya answered every question before finally leaving behind a jade slip formunication and departing on a cloud of demons.


    "Seventh sister, this Spirit Ginseng is for you. Remember to eat plenty and nourish yourself; you might be able to transform in the future!"


    "Thank you, brother ox."


    The Chicken Demon Hu Xi showed a delighted expression. She and Ao Dian had surrendered in the midst of battle, so naturally, their treatment was not the same as that of the ox and the other four demons. Although they had received quite a few rewards on regr days, it was still far from enough to eat Spirit Ginseng until they were full.


    Zhou Yi nced at the ox and thought to himself that this creature, seemingly honest and straightforward, was actually quite cunning.


    It was already quite something to raise a group of fox spirits on the mountain, and to be involved with several snake spirits was another matter, not to mention somehow getting entangled with a chicken demon.


    The ox asked, "Immortal, do you have any instructions for my trip to the dragon pce? Which territory should I choose to rule?"


    "Just eat and drink what you''re offered when you''re there, seize any good opportunities thate your way, and when asked tomit to something, give a nomittal answer. The demon race is not like the sects; they don''t strictly control their Demon Kings, except in times of major battles between the two factions."


    Zhou Yi pointed with his finger, and Mana condensed into a light screen in the air, disying a map of the hundred thousand mountains. He pointed to a section of a mountain range and said,


    "Choose the northeast part of Thorn Ridge as your domain. Although the Spiritual Energy is somewhatcking, it is close to Cloud Continent and the Eastern Sea, which will allow for an easy retreat or advance!"


    ...


    Several monthster.


    Returning from the banquet at the dragon pce, the ox wore a suit of golden chainmail and held a purple-gold iron rod in its hand.


    The regalia gifted by the Bibo Dragon Lord were not as powerful as magic artifacts, but they were exceptionally sturdy and heavy, suitable for the demon race''s style of closebat.


    He also received a seal, carved from top-quality Spirit Jade, with a coiled dragon on the knob and six demon characters inscribed on the base: "King of the Northern Defense of Thorn Ridge."


    "Let''s start moving."


    Zhou Yi instructed, and not a single person of the human race in Moyun City opposed. They were well aware that without the Demon King''s protection, they could not establish a foothold in the vast mountains.


    Besides, the northern part of Thorn Ridge stretched for thousands of miles, and the mountains on both sides were under the control of the Yellow Ox. There, they had better prospects for development and might even establish a nation where humans and demons coexisted, with the support of the Demon King.


    …


    In the southern part of Thorn Ridge, a Demon King was in charge, whose original form was that of a thousand-year-old pine tree, known as the Green Pine Demon King.


    This tree spirit was gentle by nature, friendly towards living beings, and not fond of fighting or killing. Evenzier than the Jade Fang Demon King, this was a significant reason Zhou Yi chose this location.


    Having good neighbors meant fewer disputes.


    Several yearster.


    The Yellow Ox held a Demon King feast, the Dragon Lord sent envoys to congratte, and more than ten Demon Kings from the same Greenwave Pond came to join in the fun.


    Exquisite food, spirit fruit, and spiritual wine, the demons feasted for days until they were joyfully sated before dispersing.


    Peaceful days resumed afterwards.


    Fifty yearster, Zhou Yi finally mastered the Tiger Transformation.


    Roar!


    With the full force of the Ox, Eagle, and Tiger Transformations, Zhou Yi grew into a twelve-zhang giant, with golden horns on his head, double wings on his back, and his palms turned into sharp tiger ws, his thoughts extending des a zhang long.


    "Child of the Ox,e test your strength!"


    Zhou Yi felt the boundless surge of power inside him, as if he could lift mountains and leap over seas, and couldn''t help but want to wrestle with the Yellow Ox.


    Momentster.


    A thunderous boom echoed across the sky, rolling without end, the sound spreading for dozens of miles.


    Boom!


    A figure plummeted, crashing down into the mountain for dozens of zhang before stopping, copsing half the mountain peak.


    "You really don''t understand tact, my friend. When sparring, one should pretend to exert all their effort, only to narrowly emerge victorious."


    Zhou Yi leaped up from the ground, unable to suppress his excitement. In terms of physical strength alone, he should be no weaker than a true human lord, yet there was still a significant gappared to the Demon King.


    "Just short of the Spirit Refinement Art, my essence, energy, and spirit have reached the limit for Foundation Establishment, and my formations and prohibitions have been tested by the Transformation Tribtion. Once the lotus seeds mature, I should have at least a ny percent chance of sessful Core Formation!"


    …


    Another thirty-four years passed.


    Zhou Yi awoke from his cultivation retreat, calcted with his fingers, and realized he was now seven hundred years old.


    "I hope everything goes smoothly, I''d rather not embarrass myself by exhausting a Nascent Soul ancestor before solidifying the pill!"


    …


    Today.


    It had been two hundred years since he obtained the seven-colored lotus from White Bone Cave.


    Beneath Thorn Ridge, in an undergroundke.


    Layer uponyer of formations, a multitude of prohibitions.


    In the center, the petals of a seven-colored lotus wilted one by one, leaving only the green lotus seed in the middle, emitting a refreshing fragrance.


    "It''s finally matured!"


    "Since perfecting the Spirit Refinement Art, I have sat withering underground. I''ve waited for fifty years; in the secr world, two generations have lived and died—a blink of an eye to me, no more than a flower blooming and wilting!"


    Zhou Yi slowly grasped why immortals were indifferent. Washed by the currents of time, all emotions and conflicts were but fleeting smoke.


    "Let''s cast a divination for the chance of Core Formation, I must pick the best sign!"


    So saying, he slowly shook the divination cylinder, and a spirit sign fell to the ground, gradually coalescing into two characters.


    Ny-nine!


    Zhou Yi frowned deeply, pondered for a long while, with his self-built foundation, his essence, energy, and spirit were at Great Perfection, and he had every necessary spiritual object for Core Formation—but something was still amiss.


    "Where exactly am Icking this one part..."