Chapter 2505: Chapter 2505
"I’ll let you off on one condition. Take your kind and search another desert for traces of the alien race to redeem yourselves.
And you, Demon Flood Dragon, mobilize your forces to do the same!"
Ye Liuyun issued his commands without hesitation.
Having these professional helpers delivered right to his doorstep would undoubtedly boost his search efficiency far beyond going solo.
Afterward, he retrieved his reserve army and the Falcon Fleet, deploying two massive 100,000-class battleships. He assigned the Venomous Scorpion and the Demon Flood Dragon to each vessel, ordering his soldiers to transport them to separate deserts to hunt for the alien race’s traces.
The Venomous Scorpion had sought out Ye Liuyun of her own accord, only to walk right into a trap. Now, she had no choice but to work for him. To protect herself and her kin, she had to give it her all—this was her only shot at redemption.
Venturing into another desert’s territory, they were naturally seen as invaders. But their sheer numbers overwhelmed the local scorpions before they could even mount a defense.
Fortunately, they were of the same species, making them easy to manage. In no time, the Venomous Scorpion had established herself as the new ruler of the desert.
She mobilized every scorpion under her command, conducting a meticulous, grid-by-grid search for any trace of the alien race.
Yet after scouring the underground, they found nothing.
Undeterred, the Venomous Scorpion conquered several other desert beast factions, rallying all forces under her control to launch a comprehensive search—both above and below ground.
The Demon Flood Dragon’s progress was slower. As a Devil Beast, it was of a different lineage than the desert creatures. But with superior combat strength, it fought its way through the sands, completing its own sweep—also with no results.
"Could they not be in the desert at all?" Ye Liuyun began to doubt his initial assumption.
Just then, the Venomous Scorpion reported a discovery—an entrance to a hidden realm.
Without delay, Ye Liuyun rushed to investigate.
The venomous scorpion demon had also gathered several other ferocious beasts from the vicinity, all of whom confirmed that the entrance to this secret realm had appeared roughly six or seven months ago. The timeline seemed to align.
Some of the beasts had previously attempted to venture inside, but none who entered ever returned.
Ye Liuyun, unfamiliar with the situation, hesitated to rush in recklessly. If this were the spatial domain of some powerful entity, stepping inside would mean falling under their control—with no hope of escape.
"Select some of the weaker, smaller scorpions to scout ahead," Ye Liuyun instructed the venomous scorpion demon. "Tell them to retreat immediately if they sense the vile aura of the alien race."
Yet even these ordinary scorpions vanished without a trace once they entered.
Determined, the scorpion demon issued a new command: the next batch was to enter and exit right away. But the result remained unchanged—none returned.
By now, Ye Liuyun and the others were certain—this secret realm was undoubtedly a controlled spatial world. Even the tiniest insect would be detected and swiftly eliminated the moment it crossed the threshold.
Still, whether this was the work of the alien race remained uncertain.
After a moment’s thought, Ye Liuyun branded several low-level scorpions with slave seals and sent them into the realm once more.
This way, the moment they entered, they could relay information back to him.
Finally, Ye Liuyun obtained definitive answers.
The scorpions sensed the overwhelming presence of the alien race the instant they stepped inside. Though they never laid eyes on the aliens themselves, the oppressive aura was unmistakable.
They were detected immediately, crushed before they could even comprehend who—or what—had struck them down.
"That’s enough. No more attempts," Ye Liuyun declared, halting further exploration now that he had his answer.
He first relayed this information to Xiao Mu’an, Liu Kui, and the others. At the same time, he instructed Xiao Mulin to bring Nolin over.
Nolin was a captured outsider that Ye Liuyun had apprehended, and he intended to send the creature inside to scout the situation among its kind.
Of course, Ye Liuyun hadn’t forgotten to demand the promised rewards from the Sacred Dynasty either. He handed all those resources over to the Scorpion Beast.
Ye Liuyun told her, "These resources are rightfully yours—I made sure you got them. Besides, I see you’ve already taken control of the scorpion tribe here. With little standing in your way to dominate this territory, why not just stay?"
The Scorpion Beast pondered for a moment and found his suggestion appealing. Staying meant she wouldn’t have to return and fight other demonic beasts for territory, so she agreed.
Moreover, she felt genuine gratitude toward Ye Liuyun. Despite having control over her, he hadn’t withheld the rewards meant for her tribe—proof that he wasn’t selfish.
She had provoked him first, only to end up under his control. It was no less than she deserved. Yet seeing how well he treated them, she became all the more willing to cooperate.
She even stationed numerous scorpions near the secret realm’s entrance to help Ye Liuyun monitor the area.
Meanwhile, Ye Liuyun escorted the Demon Flood Dragon’s kin back to their original desert, keeping only the Flood Dragon itself by his side to assist in guarding the secret realm.
The Demon Flood Dragon, witnessing Ye Liuyun’s integrity—releasing its kin and even removing their greatest rival, the scorpion tribe—cooperated without hesitation.
When Nolin arrived, Ye Liuyun didn’t send him in immediately. Instead, he had the Demon-Sealing Stele drain some of his power, weakening him to the ninth level of the Immortal Realm.
This way, even if Nolin fell into the outsiders’ hands, he’d pose no real threat.
Ye Liuyun only needed him to gather intelligence, not wreak havoc.
The moment Nolin entered, an outsider powerhouse detected him.
Fortunately, the outsider recognized Nolin and refrained from killing him on the spot.
Seizing the opportunity, Ye Liuyun also instructed Nolin to release his divine sense, probing the secrets within the hidden realm.
The realm wasn’t particularly vast, indicating that the spatial world of the alien powerhouse wasn’t extensive either. Yet, it was already densely packed with six million alien troops.
A colossal warship loomed within the realm, accompanied by a sprawling fleet of smaller vessels, occupying nearly half the space.
Clearly, the realm could no longer accommodate additional forces or equipment—undeniable proof that the aliens were on the verge of launching their invasion.
Moreover, Nolin detected the presence of an exceptionally powerful alien warrior, his aura thick and oppressive, a clear testament to his formidable strength.
Ye Liuyun urged Nolin to scout for more alien powerhouses, but the moment Nolin had identified just over forty, the alien leader struck him down without hesitation. Based on the area Nolin had managed to survey, Ye Liuyun estimated there were at least two hundred alien warriors at the third level of the Heavenly Realm.
Without delay, Ye Liuyun relayed all this intelligence to Xiao Mu’an, urging him to prepare in advance.
Meanwhile, he sent the demonic serpent back to its lair and ordered the venomous scorpion beast into hiding.
The aliens’ strength was overwhelming. If they emerged and discovered these creatures immediately, they would undoubtedly turn them into mindless puppets.
