Chapter 2504: Chapter 2504
"I’m the commander. Speak directly to me!" Ye Liuyun declared without hesitation.
"You? A commander personally scouting the situation?" The woman shook her head repeatedly, clearly skeptical of his claim.
After a moment’s thought, Ye Liuyun summoned ten thousand soldiers from the reserve forces in his spatial world. "Will these troops suffice as proof?" he asked, gesturing toward the assembled ranks. "If not, I can produce more!"
Both the woman and the surrounding scorpions recoiled in shock. Though these reserve soldiers weren’t particularly strong, their sheer numbers were impressive. Dressed in full military armor, they at least confirmed that Ye Liuyun was no minor officer.
The woman couldn’t discern whether the soldiers’ uniforms matched those of the Holy Land Dynasty’s forces.
"Alright, I believe you," she conceded reluctantly.
Nodding in satisfaction, Ye Liuyun recalled the troops back into his spatial world and pressed her for information.
"A few days ago," the woman explained, "our companions were foraging deep in this desert when they stumbled upon an underground cavern. The space inside was vast—easily large enough to conceal an entire alien army. But before they could investigate further, they were ambushed by demonic beasts guarding the area. There were demon scorpions, red-tailed snakes, and other creatures, all radiating a sinister aura. We suspect those beasts have been corrupted by the aliens."
"Did you actually see any aliens or corpse demons?" Ye Liuyun pressed.
"No, we didn’t," she admitted honestly.
Regardless of whether her story held water, Ye Liuyun intended to check it out himself. Even if no aliens were present, he could capture some desert-dwelling demonic beasts and use them for reconnaissance.
"Let’s go take a look. Who’s coming with me to lead the way?" Ye Liuyun was already eager to set off.
"You’re going alone? Without mobilizing your army?" the woman asked, her voice tinged with concern.
"Don’t worry, I have more than enough troops at my disposal!" Ye Liuyun reassured her.
"Very well! I’ll rally my entire clan to assist. After all, if those outsiders gain strength, it’ll affect us too." The woman spoke with an air of righteousness.
With that, she led Ye Liuyun toward the heart of the desert, while the giant scorpions vanished once more beneath the golden sands, off to summon their kin.
Meanwhile, Ye Liuyun had his doppelgänger pilot the Falcon, keeping watch from above to ensure the outsiders didn’t catch wind of their approach and flee.
Just as Ye Liuyun neared the underground cavern, his doppelgänger suddenly noticed something alarming—tens of thousands of scorpions, large and small, were stirring beneath the dunes, their movements churning the sand as they converged on the cave.
"These venomous scorpions mobilized awfully fast... almost as if they were prepared in advance," the doppelgänger muttered suspiciously.
Ye Liuyun’s guard went up immediately, his wariness toward the woman growing.
At that moment, the sand before them erupted as a swarm of red-tailed rattlesnakes, demon scorpions, and other vicious beasts burst from the ground. Behind them, the massive, earthen-scaled head of a demonic sand viper emerged from the dunes, its cold gaze locking onto Ye Liuyun.
"These are the ones guarding the underground cavern!" the woman confirmed.
Ye Liuyun studied the demonic beasts before him. There wasn’t a trace of malevolence in their aura—just raw demonic energy. Still, he wasn’t about to pass up such convenient reinforcements.
*So these scorpions are using me to wipe out these demonic beasts for them.*
The realization struck him—this was the scorpion-woman’s ploy all along. But he gave nothing away, calmly summoning the *Nine Nether Prelude* to seize control of the demonic creatures.
At the same time, he deployed a reserve force of 100,000 soldiers, along with a squadron of Falcons, forming a barrier between the demonic beasts and the scorpions to prevent any clashes.
Then, with a commanding presence, Ye Liuyun unleashed the Nine-Headed Demon Dragon, its overwhelming demonic aura freezing the creatures below in place.
The sand viper, in particular, stiffened at the sight of the dragon, not daring to move a muscle.
Soon, some of the demonic beasts controlled by the Nether Overture began sinking beneath the golden sands.
"Hey, they’re getting away! Aren’t you going to stop them?" The female scorpion demon grew anxious when she saw Ye Liuyun showed no intention of fighting.
"Patience," Ye Liuyun replied calmly. "They’ll be under my control soon enough." He continued playing the Nether Overture, its eerie melody weaving through the air.
Before long, the demonic beasts retreated in droves, vanishing into underground caverns. Even the mighty demonic flood dragon succumbed to the haunting tune, slithering obediently before Ye Liuyun to surrender.
Without hesitation, Ye Liuyun branded it with a slave seal to prevent any rebellion. A quick soul search confirmed the existence of an underground lair—though none of the creatures had encountered any so-called "alien beings."
The confrontation had stemmed from an old feud between the flood dragon and the scorpion demoness. Clearly, she had seized the opportunity to eliminate her rival under the pretense of hunting outsiders.
Keeping his composure, Ye Liuyun turned to the scorpion demon. "The flood dragon is now under my command, which means I rule here. But it claims there really are aliens below. Care to join me and see for yourself?"
With that, he dismissed the nine-headed demonic dragon and leaped onto the flood dragon’s back.
"Just like that? How did you manage it?" The scorpion demoness eyed him warily, unnerved by how effortlessly he had subdued the flood dragon and its minions. She couldn’t help but fear the same fate awaited her.
"I have a technique specifically for taming demonic beasts," Ye Liuyun explained. "It doesn’t work on other beings."
Relieved, she exhaled inwardly and agreed to accompany him.
Meanwhile, his scout clone descended from the starry void, recalling its eagle form before landing on the flood dragon’s back. Together, they plunged beneath the shifting sands, heading toward the underground cavern.
The scorpion demoness followed with her four strongest warriors in tow.
She was eager to see what treasures lay hidden below—and secretly hoped Ye Liuyun would hand over control of the flood dragon once he dealt with the supposed alien threat.
Truthfully, she hadn’t expected any outsiders to be here at all. So she had already prepared a backup plan: if Ye Liuyun turned against her, she would strike first.
But who would have thought that the demonic flood dragon had indeed been hiding an outsider? This turned out to be a windfall for her—not only had she dealt a blow to her rival, but she would also receive a hefty reward from the dynasty.
Yet, the moment she and her group descended into the underground cavern, Ye Liuyun and his doppelgänger launched a devastating soul attack against her. Meanwhile, the four venomous scorpion warriors she had brought along were swiftly subdued by the martial experts Ye Liuyun had unleashed.
Desperate, they tried to call for reinforcements from the scorpion army outside, but the cavern’s strange properties blocked their psychic signals, leaving them completely cut off.
Just like that, the scorpion demoness and her four subordinates were all branded with slave seals.
"Remember what I told you before?" Ye Liuyun’s voice was icy, his gaze piercing. "If you dared deceive me, death would be the least of your worries. I’d wipe out your entire clan."
Trembling, the scorpion demoness dropped to her knees, begging for mercy. She swore oaths of eternal loyalty, pleading with him to spare her people.
