Chapter 10

Panshi has written two books. Without commenting on their content, he has been diligent, never delayed updates, and always completed his works. He has never formally asked for votes or donations. Now, with his third book, he humbly requests that everyone give their valuable recommendation votes to the new book, *Chronicles of the Demon King*. For a new book, this is incredibly important! He also asks that all readers, regardless of how they access the book, support him on Qidian, as it is the best encouragement an author can receive.

---

The sudden situation left Zhaoming and Asura in a panic, but they had no time to escape before they were entangled by the vines in the forest.

Zhaoming, in a hurry, spat out a flame, hoping to burn through the vines around him.

Unfortunately, the vines had been enchanted, and no matter how much he exhausted his strength, they remained unbroken. Moreover, the vines seemed to be coated with some kind of poison, which, once it pierced their skin, left them feeling weak all over.

Although their minds were clear, they could do nothing but watch as the vines tightened, eventually leaving them unable to move and lying helplessly on the ground.

Not knowing what awaited them, both were terrified, their bodies pale and trembling.

Moments later, they heard a rustling sound. Looking in the direction of the noise, they saw a several-meter-long green snake slithering between the trees, its tongue flicking as it approached them.

Zhaoming and Asura were too nervous to speak, only able to stare at the green snake, waiting to see what it would do.

The green snake stopped about three meters in front of them, then stood up and transformed into a half-human, half-demon form.

A demon... Zhaoming was taken aback but then overjoyed, shouting, "Senior, Senior, we are also demons!"

Although they didn't know this snake demon, they were all demons at the end of the day, and he thought there should be some consideration.

However, the snake demon seemed to ignore them, pulling out a few more vines to tie them up and then dragging them deeper into the forest.

"Senior, Senior!" Zhaoming shouted again. This snake demon might not be very powerful, but to him and Asura, it was a formidable opponent.

"We have come to join you. We are not witches, and we have no ill intentions. Please let us go!"

"Where are you taking us?"

After a series of shouts, the snake demon seemed annoyed and lashed out with a vine, striking Zhaoming's mouth, and growled, "Be quiet, or I'll kill you."

Zhaoming had no choice but to shut up, his heart sinking as the situation was far from what he had expected.

The forest wasn't very large, and after a short walk, they arrived at a large courtyard. The courtyard was surrounded by bamboo fences, with a wooden house in the center. Various strange flowers and plants were growing inside, emitting peculiar odors that made Zhaoming feel dizzy.

The snake demon dragged them to the wooden house, knelt down, and respectfully said, "Master, I have returned!"

Master... So the snake demon wasn't in charge. There must be a more powerful demon here, which explained why it ignored their calls.

Zhaoming speculated in his mind, thinking about how to speak when the time came.

"Have you returned? What did you catch this time?" A voice like dry wood being snapped by the wind came from inside the wooden house, sounding extremely unpleasant. When the person inside stepped out, Zhaoming was even more shocked—it was a witch.

This... What was going on? Why was the snake demon calling this witch its master? Zhaoming was full of questions, unable to speak.

The witch glanced at the tightly bound Zhaoming and Asura and immediately exclaimed, "Oh, a Fire Swallower and a Blood Demon! Not bad. You always bring back similar demons, but this time, they are different. Bring them inside!"

"Yes, Master!" The snake demon stood up and carried Zhaoming and Asura inside.

He threw them to the ground carelessly, making them see stars and almost cry out in pain.

The witch rummaged around inside the house, then stood still for a while, frowning. "The Drunken Plague Grass is all used up. That's a problem!"

He then smiled at Zhaoming and Asura. "You two are lucky; you get to live a few more days!"

With a wave of his hand, the vines around them fell off, but the toxins remained, leaving them weak and powerless.

"Take them to my medicinal field and till the soil. I'll go buy some Drunken Plague Grass."

The witch gave a few casual instructions and then limped out, rising into the air and disappearing in the blink of an eye.

"Follow me!" The snake demon said indifferently and walked out of the house.

Zhaoming and Asura exchanged a glance and followed, but as soon as they stepped out of the door, they ran as fast as they could.

The witch had said they could live a few more days, clearly with ill intentions. Zhaoming didn't expect the witch to be kind. The witch seemed to have held off because of a lack of a certain herb. Once he returned, it would likely be the end for them.

Now that the witch had left, it was a rare opportunity. They didn't care about the snake demon's strength; they couldn't just sit and wait to die.

Fortunately, the snake demon seemed somewhat dull. Seeing them run, it didn't react at all, standing still. Zhaoming was pleasantly surprised, but just as he was about to run out of the courtyard, he felt as if he had hit a wall. There was a loud "bang," and they were bounced back, falling to the ground.

The snake demon looked at them and sneered. "My master is a Golden Immortal. There are restrictions around this courtyard. You can't even defeat me, yet you think you can escape? How foolish."

Zhaoming, in pain, gritted his teeth and coldly replied, "You can't escape either!"

The snake demon smiled. "Who said I can't? My master taught me how to enter and leave."

Zhaoming was taken aback and asked, "Then why don't you run?"

The snake demon looked at him as if he were an idiot. "Why would I run? This is my master's home. Where he is, I will be too!"

Zhaoming's mind was in a whirl. In his heart, demons and witches were supposed to be mortal enemies. How could it be like this?

The snake demon's face darkened. "Stop talking nonsense. If you don't start working, don't blame me for getting rough!"

Zhaoming had no choice but to follow the snake demon and Asura to the medicinal field in the back of the courtyard.

"How can this be?" Asura whispered. He, like Zhaoming, thought demons and witches were sworn enemies, but the snake demon seemed to be willingly serving the witch.

Zhaoming remained silent, unable to provide an answer immediately. However, he felt a sense of familiarity from the snake demon. After some thought, he remembered something.

He had seen similar demons in the Demon Garden, but they didn't recognize witches as masters. Instead, they believed witches were stronger than demons, and it was natural for demons to be oppressed by witches.

Thinking deeper, it wasn't just them; even he had once felt that demons were inferior to witches and had been pained by the weakness of demons. In the dark and oppressive Demon Garden, such thoughts were common.

Without the comfort and guidance of Acao, and without the stories of the once powerful demons, he would have been no different from those demons.

This was a profoundly sad realization. Once the idea that others are stronger than you is ingrained, it becomes difficult to have the ambition to surpass them.

The snake demon was even more pitiful, having become so numb that it saw its enemy as a benefactor and master. It wouldn't even think of escaping; if the witch ordered it to commit suicide, it would do so without hesitation.

With this in mind, Zhaoming tried to speak to the snake demon, but as expected, it was already completely devoted to the witch, even proud to be its servant.

When Zhaoming suggested letting them go and mentioned the cruelty of witches, the snake demon not only didn't sympathize but even lashed out at him with a whip.

Seeing this, Zhaoming gave up all hope.

A few days later, a black cloud appeared overhead and landed in the courtyard. It was the witch returning.

"Master, these two tried to make me let them go and said many bad things about you!" The snake demon immediately reported the recent events, wagging its tail in a fawning manner, which made Zhaoming's heart sink. He had forgotten about this possibility.

"Ha ha!" The witch laughed strangely and approached them.

Zhaoming was tense, protecting Asura behind him, his heart pounding as he watched the approaching witch, trying to think of what to do but finding no solution.

The witch walked closer and reached out to grab them. Zhaoming, in a moment of desperation, spat out a stream of flames.

Unfortunately, it had no effect. The withered arm passed through the flames and grabbed his chest.

However, the witch didn't harm him but instead took the jade pendant and medicine gourd hanging from Zhaoming's neck, as well as the Fire Thunder technique bound to them.

Examining the jade pendant, the witch was delighted. "Oh, a Heart Sound Red Jade! You, a little demon, actually have such a treasure. This is a pleasant surprise."

The Heart Sound Red Jade was an extremely high-quality material for forging, not to mention its rarity. Even if not used for forging, it could enhance one's mental power. The witch never expected these little demons to have such treasures.

"Give it back! You can have the medicine gourd and the book, but I need the jade pendant." Zhaoming mustered the courage to shout. The jade pendant was a memento from Acao, more important than the medicine gourd and the Fire Thunder technique.

The witch looked at him coldly, uncorked the medicine gourd, and sniffed it, immediately looking surprised. "What... What kind of pill is this? Where did you get it?"

As he spoke, he poured a pill into his hand and was about to put it in his mouth.

Zhaoming's heart raced, silently urging him to eat it.

Sun Jiuyang had said that while the pill was miraculous, if one's cultivation was insufficient, it could be fatal. He didn't know if the witch's cultivation was enough, but there was a chance.

As the pill neared the witch's withered, disgusting mouth, it suddenly stopped just before it reached his lips.