Heilong-kou (Black Dragon-Mouth/Pass)
Heilong-cheng (Black Dragon-City)
Heilong-yuan(Black Dragon Wall)
Heilong Bay (Black Dragon Bay)
Heilong Ridge (Black Dragon Ridge)
Censorate (Supervisory Court)
Yuling City (Jade City)
Jingui Town (Golden Turtle Town)
Xuanwu City (Black tortoise City)
Qinglong (Azure Dragron)
…
The Xuanwu Demon Lord first arrived at Black Dragon pass, and just as the young man from Yuling City had described, it truly was no less prosperous than Xuanwu City.
"This is impossible!" Elder Turtle muttered in disbelief.
Golden Turtle, however, saw nothing but opportunity—money seemed to be strewn all over the streets of Black Dragon pass.
No matter how stubborn Elder Turtle was, even he couldn't deny the truth any longer. He could only hang his head and follow obediently behind the Demon Lord, though he kept muttering under his breath:
"How could this be? Isn't this the Black Dragon Clan?!"
At the same time, on the border of the demon realm, a small group of people slipped quietly across.
They were a merchant caravan from the human realm, long-time trade partners with the Xuanwu Clan. Though demons couldn't eat human food, they loved human trinkets.
For instance, demon women adored human cosmetics and hair accessories, while demon men collected human poetry and paintings, or elegant items like folding fans and guqins.
These merchants traded in secret, bartering for the demons' valuable shells and pearls.
A pearl the size of a chicken egg was a once-in-a-lifetime treasure in the human realm. Just one was enough to guarantee endless wealth and luxury.
This particular caravan, however, had a few unfamiliar faces—men who didn't seem to belong to any of the border tribes.
A closer look would reveal that their beards and rough features were fake. Beneath the disguise, their faces were soft and refined, with eye colors identical to the Queen's.
That's right—they were secret guards sent by Yin Ao, the current Emperor of the Yin Dynasty, to confirm whether his elder sister, the former Princess Royal, was still alive and, if possible, bring her back from the demon realm.
The four secret guards were named Long Da, Long Er, Long San, and Long Si.
To infiltrate the caravan, they had spent months hiding out among the barbarian tribes and had paid a hefty price to join as mere porters.
The caravan leader spoke heavily accented Common Tongue: "Long Da, come here and massage my legs."
Long Da kept his head low and obeyed without complaint.
This barbarian wasn't particularly capable—just gutsy enough to do business with demons. Not too bright either. As long as the profits were good, he could be easily bought.
Though he had doubts about the newcomers, the gold they'd offered was enough for him to accept them as hired hands.
Long Er eagerly offered to knead the barbarian's shoulders. "Sir, now that we've entered the demon realm, where do we go first?"
The caravan leader, clearly annoyed, still answered.
"We go to Xuanwu City first. Keep following this road and you'll reach Black Dragon City. But listen well—if you don't want to die, don't go to Black Dragon City. The demons there are always half-starved. You go there, you're just appetizers."
Long San passed him a water pouch and feigned confusion. "But I thought demons didn't eat humans?"
The leader scoffed like he'd just heard a ridiculous joke.
"You believe that old tale? That's a ten-thousand-year-old rumor. When they're starving, what do you think you are? A walking snack! The bigwigs in Xuanwu warned us—don't go near the Black Dragon Clan, and don't go near the Qingluan Clan."
Long Er asked, "Why not Qingluan Clan?"
The barbarian scratched his beard-covered, weather-worn face. "Their Empress is a lecherous one. Any man she fancies becomes her bedmate—locked up in the Qingluan Palace for life."
Long Er flushed with shame and indignation. "What indecency! What kind of demonic ruler has no regard for female virtue?!"
That hit a nerve with the barbarian leader, who eagerly launched into more gossip.
"You know the Black Dragon Clan has the strongest military might in the entire demon realm, right? The demons have four great clans, plus scattered tribes and undiscovered groups—but they all fear the Black Dragon Clan. Know why?"
The four guards shook their heads.
"Because the Black Dragon Clan's Demon King is the most powerful being in all of Cangqiong Continent. Offend him, and he could destroy the entire demon realm in his true form."
The secret guards were all stunned.
"That strong?!"
The barbarian leader nodded, pleased with their reaction. "I'm not exaggerating. That's what the Xuanwu elders told me. So never mess with the Black Dragon Clan. Even if only one of them is left alive, as long as it's the Demon King, no one will dare lay a finger on them."
Long Si asked, "So… where is the current Demon King now?"
The barbarian leader stood, clearly done with the conversation. "How would I know? Let's get moving. We need to find a place to rest by nightfall."
That night, the four secret guards exchanged looks—and quietly set off toward Black Dragon City.
The barbarian leader opened one eye and made no move to stop them.
They'd been dealing with demons for years. There was no way he'd trust strangers so easily.
"Captain, they used us," one of his guards muttered in their tribal tongue.
The leader lifted a hand and sneered, "That road's dangerous. We don't need to do anything. Sleep. We've got miles to go tomorrow."
Pity. He'd finally found four decent porters, and now they were off to get themselves killed. He thought they might have some secret skills—but turns out they were just a bunch of reckless fools.
The four secret guards darted through the forest under the cover of night. They had no idea how dangerous the area truly was—after all, no one from the Yin Dynasty had ever set foot in the demon realm.
Only tribes near the border dared sneak in, like this barbarian merchant caravan.
The forest was deathly silent.
Afraid of being chased, the guards made the worst possible decision—they avoided the main road and chose to travel through the woods.
Back in the human realm, that would've been ideal for staying hidden. But here, the forest's silence was unnatural.
Long Da suddenly halted.
"There's something."
The others scattered just in time as a massive creature smashed into the tree beside him—a fully grown Fangtooth Tapir.
Long Er shouted, "Boss if the barbarians didn't chase us, does that mean this path is unsafe?!"
Long Da grits his teeth. "Unsafe or not, Black Dragon City is ahead. We can't turn back now."
It was the only known road leading to their destination. If they retreated, where would they go?
Everyone understood. The beast attacked again.
They dodged swiftly.
Long San noticed something. "It's always a second too slow. It must be blind—tracking us by scent."
Demons might not eat humans, but demonic beasts had no such reservations—and humans were like hors d'oeuvres to them.
Returning to the main road now would be even more dangerous. Despite the risk, they still felt safer in the forest.
They fought the beast for two full hours, each of them injured and exhausted. In the end, the Fangtooth Tapir collapsed—it had died of exhaustion.
Everyone was wounded and on high alert.
Long Er spat out a mouthful of blood. "Can't believe demonic beasts look so much like our wild boars back home."
Long Si leaned against a tree, panting. "Maybe that is the demon realm's version of a wild boar."
Seeing his brothers in such bad shape, Long Da finally made a decision.
"We're going back to the main road. If the barbarians catch up, we won't engage them directly."
Of course, they never did see the barbarian caravan again.