The night wind rustled.
The surging bonfire cast a faint light into the dark night. Chen Yu, propping himself up with one hand, scanned his surroundings alertly, observing every stir of wind and rustle of grass.
Frankly, Chen Yu hadn't actually detected anyone tailing them.
Their journey from the Batu Kingdom to the Tatu Kingdom had been smooth sailing. They hadn't encountered any assassinations or peculiar individuals.
At most, they ran into planes occupied by monstrous creatures, which Chen Yu promptly cleared out.
There was no sense of pressure throughout the entire trip.
This ease had significantly lowered his sense of vigilance.
"Where is it?" Chen Yu asked in a low voice after surveying the area. "Is it close to us? What's its strength? Can it pose a threat to us?"
"Hmph, only now you're getting vigilant,"
The little demon, arms crossed, began her taunting again, humming and pouting.
"I thought, our Saint Chen, was invincible, looking down on all enemies, utterly unconcerned about hidden foes. Truly, you make me so captivated."
Chen Yu: "..."
What was this?
Where did this little demon learn these sarcastic phrases?
Unconsciously, Chen Yu glanced at Nuo Yi, who was gnawing on a lamb shank. During the journey, the little demon had interacted most frequently with Nuo Yi, and Nuo Yi had always been by Su Zhan's side.
Su Zhan was the one who loved watching palace dramas the most.
Nuo Yi, gnawing on the lamb shank, seemed to sense a chill from behind. She turned her head in confusion. Chen Yu grinned at her, and Nuo Yi, returning the smile, happily went back to her lamb shank.
"Sister Ba, what are you doing again?"
Chen Yu, with a face full of helplessness, frowned and sighed, spreading his hands.
"What have I done to offend you? If you have something to say, let's talk properly. Don't be so sarcastic, okay? Let's communicate. Who exactly is following us? Tell me."
"No one."
"Eh?"
Chen Yu, not quite reacting, blinked in surprise.
"No one is following?"
"If someone were watching you from the shadows, I wouldn't have the leisure to be saying all this useless stuff with you," the little demon rolled her eyes vigorously. "As for you, can you reflect a bit? Don't you think you've become too lax? In the beginning, you at least knew to check the situation in the area. Now, you're too lazy to even check."
"..."
Chen Yu really didn't know how to make excuses for this.
He had indeed become lax.
The campaigns against monsters had been unimpeded, and the anticipated ambushes hadn't materialized, which had diminished the tension Chen Yu felt when he first detonated his Tiger Talisman.
The little demon pointing this out to him now was not wrong at all.
"I admit it," Chen Yu nodded frankly. "This is indeed my failing. Our journey has been too smooth, making me a bit too relaxed."
"Exactly, that's the problem!"
The little demon suddenly lowered her voice, grabbing Chen Yu's shoulder and whispering.
"Don't you find our journey too smooth? With so many factions in the entire cave-dwelling, the news of your Tiger Talisman detonation has been out for half a month. Even if they are slow, they should have found us by now. Yet, there's still no movement from them. Don't you find this very strange?"
Chen Yu, with tightly furrowed brows, propped his chin and pondered.
Strange.
This was inevitable.
Although Chen Yu had envisioned that various factions might restrain each other for the Tiger Talisman, with none willing to be the first to attack him.
But it had been half a month, and surely someone impatient should have shown up.
He hadn't encountered even half a shadow of an assassin.
Just as the little demon said, Nuo Yi was clearly sent by Su Zhan to protect them, yet Nuo Yi had gained several pounds during the journey.
"Little Nuo, are we almost at Tatu Royal City?"
Chen Yu called out, his brows knit. Nuo Yi, in front of the bonfire, glanced around and then looked down at her wristband.
"The Royal City is still some distance away, but we have indeed entered the Tatu Kingdom."
The most obvious distinction between the Tatu Kingdom and the Batu Free Federation was the ecological environment. Zhenshoubianjing's River Town was filled with yellow sand, while the Tatu Kingdom was mostly rainforest.
The territory of the giant sheep Chen Yu and his companions had just cleared was a grassland as far as the eye could see.
This was the characteristic ecology of the Tatu Kingdom.
"We've already entered Tatu Kingdom territory, and still, no one has contacted us," the little demon whispered, her voice grave. "What do you think they are thinking?"
Letting out a long sigh, Chen Yu remained silent for a while.
It was truly peculiar.
Their long journey had given the various factions ample time. No matter how vast the cave-dwelling was, half a month should have been enough for factions bordering the Batu Federation and the Tatu Kingdom to reveal themselves.
At the very least, someone from the Tatu Kingdom should have come by now.
No one had contacted him to date. What schemes were these kingdoms hatching behind the scenes? Did they have no interest in the Tiger Talisman?
Was it the overactive sense of crisis from the little demon and Suona?
Absolutely not!
Clearly, in River Town, Su Zhan had emphasized the extreme importance of the Tiger Talisman. Those lurking in the shadows probably wished the Tiger Talisman was already in their hands.
"Do you have any ideas?"
After a long period of contemplation, Chen Yu narrowed his eyes and looked sideways at the little demon.
"I fear this trip to Tatu Royal City won't be too easy," the little demon said with a serious gaze. "After we enter the Royal City, we might need to be cautious."
"You mean, they are in the Royal City?" Chen Yu frowned.
If all factions were in the Royal City, it would mean...
Chen Yu's expression suddenly changed drastically.
"They want to..."
"No top-tier faction is willing to have its throat held," the little demon scoffed. "You possessing the Tiger Talisman and using the threat of its destruction to coerce them indeed makes them hesitant. But those factions aren't fools; they are well aware of your identity and are not someone they can negotiate with as equals. Rather than fighting in secret and allowing you to gain benefits, thus creating a potential future threat, it's better for everyone to join forces, get the Tiger Talisman from you first, and then negotiate among themselves for its ownership and the division of resources."
"They're quite cunning," Chen Yu scoffed lightly.
"It's not that they are cunning; it's more that we've oversimplified the problem and underestimated them," the little demon whispered. Chen Yu, however, snorted dismissively, "If they don't want to be hesitant, I'll just force their noble heads down."
"Chen Yu, what scheme are you cooking up now?"
"Shh~"
To the little demon's surprise, Chen Yu suddenly lay down, propping his head on his arm, smiling and shaking his head. He then slowly opened his eyes to look at the round moon above.
"The wind is rising."
A gentle breeze rustled the grass, leaving behind shapes formed by the wind.
Not long after, countless heavy footsteps could be heard from a distance. Nuo Yi, who was gnawing on a lamb shank, instantly teleported beside Chen Yu and his companions, her eyes alertly fixed on the direction of the footsteps.
"Halt!"
Bathed in the bonfire's glow, a man in silver armor with a helmet approached Chen Yu and his companions. He raised his hand slightly, signaling his followers behind him to stop, and then whispered respectfully.
"May I ask, are you Mr. Chen Yu?"
"Our City Lord requests your presence."