Wait a minute, where is my master?

Little White, who was somewhat agitated, upon hearing this, mumbled to herself as if she had just snapped back to reality, appearing to be belatedly aware.

"Right, there are other tribes around us!"

As she spoke, she shook her head, shaking off quite a few of the snowflakes that hadn't melted from her fur.

Seeing her like this, Jin Xu silently sighed in his heart, then walked over and patted her.

Little White, although appearing carefree most of the time, was actually quite unsettled when she found out her people had disappeared.

"I've used my Spiritual Sense to scout the vicinity, and there are about five or six demon tribes relatively close by. Which one has better relations with your Snow Wolf Clan?"

Since the decision to inquire nearby had been made, the little Taoist definitely needed to choose a relatively friendly one.

"Hmm... the Three-Scaled Cold Python tribe won't do. I once carried them back to our clan during their hibernation. The Arctic White Bear clan won't do either; we fight on sight, being sworn enemies for many years. As for the Six-eyed Snow Crow..."

Little White listed them off, marking a cross on the ground with her massive wolf claws.

After drawing six crosses, she finally stopped and said to the little Taoist, who was getting a bit of a headache from listening.

"Temple master, competition is fierce in the Demon Realm; it seems no demon tribe is friendly with us. But I remember before I left, my father mentioned he was about to form a recuperative pact with the Golden Lion Clan. Maybe... we should try our luck with them."

"Hmm, it's the only option we have."

Jin Xu pinched the bridge of his nose with a sense of helplessness, thinking that the intense competition in the Demon Realm was not for nothing.

The principle of 'fostering close relationships for mutual aid' was not reflected by the Snow Wolf Clan at all.

He mounted Little White, and the group headed toward the location of the Golden Lion Tribe.

En route.

The little Taoist had previously used his Spiritual Sense to scout the situation of the Golden Lion Clan and suddenly asked Little White, who was beneath him.

"Little White, if the Golden Lion Clan can fight toe-to-toe with your clan and even prompted your father to use the term 'agreement,' their numbers and the strength of their warriors must be quite comparable to your Snow Wolf Clan, right?"

"The Golden Lion Clan has fewer members than ours, but their tribe's top combatants are indeed on par with our Snow Wolf Clan.

"Temple master, why do you suddenly ask this?"

Little White responded curiously as she rapidly made her way through the heavy snowfall.

"If that's the case, then there's something off about the Golden Lion Clan."

Jin Xu's tone carried a hint of doubt. He had made only a quick sweep earlier and only knew there were several tribes nearby. Now, after hearing Little White's response, he covered these tribes with his Spiritual Sense, meticulously investigating further.

As the Spiritual Sense probe continued, his frown deepened.

"Something is off, very off.

"In the Golden Lion Tribe, I only see some with low cultivation or the elderly and children with weakening vigor moving around, and I've only encountered an individual with fluctuations in Spiritual Power like the 'Three Friends in Cold' at the entrance. I just checked the nearby Arctic White Bear, Six-eyed Snow Crow, and other tribes again, and noticed the situation isn't much different."

"This suggests that something we're unaware of must have happened in the Demon Realm or at least in this vicinity, leading to the disappearance of the high-level combatants from the nearby tribes.

"I have a premonition that this is closely related to the empty lands of your clan. Perhaps, figuring out why only the weak are left in their tribes will also unravel where your people have gone."

After the little Taoist finished sharing his findings and speculation, he could feel Little White beneath him picking up the pace.

A short time later.

The trio arrived at the entrance gate of the Golden Lion Tribe sooner than anticipated.

Of course, calling it a gate was an overstatement; it was just a stone archway built on a mound of earth. Unlike the Snow Wolf Clan, which had built walls around its territory, there was nothing here.

Next to the archway, where 'Golden Lion' was inscribed with Spiritual Power, there was no one in sight.

The residence of the Golden Lion Clan was still a short distance away from it.

This arrangement led to a sense of lonely vastness emanating from the green stone arch that stood alone on this vast plain, no matter how one looked at it.

As the three approached the archway, they discovered an old Golden Lion lying beneath, dozing off with an old face, seemingly oblivious to their arrival.

Jin Xu's eyes flickered with a hint of confusion. You're a wild animal, after all, he mused, even in old age, your vigilance shouldn't have deteriorated this much.

With a puzzled heart, he leapt down from Little White's back and instructed the two women to follow. In a few strides, he was at the old creature's side.

"Ahem."

Jin Xu coughed lightly, intending to alert the other party, Time to wake up, we're here.

But the old lion simply rolled over and continued to snooze!

"..."

The young Taoist had just reflected on the harsh living conditions in the Demon Realm and the fierce competition among the clans for survival, but now he found himself questioning life.

With this level of alertness, any of the underlings Little White had recruited outside Gusu City would surely be more vigilant than this one.

He stepped forward, intending to wake the other party by hand.

However, before the young Taoist could act, the old Golden Lion lying on the ground suddenly opened its eyes, glanced at him, and then yawned widely, listlessly.

"*&%&...?"

After yawning, the old lion seemed to ask Jin Xu something, but the young Taoist didn't understand a word of the strange pronunciation.

Seeing the look of confusion on Jin Xu's face, the old lion yawned again and then awkwardly switched to the language of the Nine Provinces Realm.

"You, a mere mortal, are quite bold. To trespass into the territory of our Golden Lion Clan and even dare to approach me, aren't you afraid of being eaten?

"At such close range, those two Nascent Soul Realm kids behind you won't be able to protect you."

The old lion's words in the language of the Nine Provinces Realm became more fluent.

His eyes looked at the young Taoist with a human-like playfulness, and his tail swayed casually behind him.

With these words,

Jin Xu finally understood why the other party's alertness was so "poor."

Turns out, seeing that he had no fluctuations of Spiritual Power, and deeming Little White and Little Yu as mere Nascent Soul Realm, the old lion had not taken the three of them seriously at all.

Understanding the reason, the young Taoist's face displayed a self-deprecating smile.

He bowed politely to the other party.

"Not afraid."

And then...

A golden strand of Thunder Arc instantly appeared in his palm.

Under normal circumstances, Jin Xu's mischievous nature might have compelled him to play along with the other party for a while before revealing his strength for a surprised reaction.

But at the moment, he clearly wasn't in the mood for such games.

Moreover, Little White had mentioned that the Demon Realm adhered to the law of the jungle, where strength reigned supreme.

If that was the case, then it was more satisfying to show his strength upfront.