Bai Ye didn't believe the words of Karasumaru.
To be precise, Karasumaru's words held no meaning for Bai Ye.
Perhaps Karasumaru would keep his promise, perhaps he wouldn't; both were possible.
If it were merely a fifty-fifty chance, it wouldn't be impossible to take a gamble, but that was not the case for Bai Ye.
In Bai Ye's understanding, he would directly categorize the other party as untrustworthy.
Karasumaru, however, did not give up, constantly trying to persuade Bai Ye. It was only when he was certain that Bai Ye was completely unresponsive that he finally let it go.
After leaving Mount Natagumo, Bai Ye looked around and asked, "Where is the place you mentioned?"
"Don't worry, it's not far from here," Karasumaru replied. "Half a day is enough. If you want to go to a Demon Slayer Corps stronghold later, it's in the same general direction."
Bai Ye nodded. "Let's keep moving."
Bai Ye remained indifferent. Although Karasumaru had given up on obtaining demon blood from Bai Ye, he still chattered on about other things, maintaining a pleasant demeanor, clearly trying to ingratiate himself with Bai Ye.
Bai Ye wasn't surprised. In the world of battle, survival was the primary principle, and there were many ways to survive. Attaching oneself to a powerful individual was certainly one of them.
However, for Bai Ye, there were only two types of people.
Those who could be utilized, and those who could not.
For example, when Bai Ye met Jin Sha on the snowy plains, Jin Sha was someone who could be utilized.
This was because the situation on the snowy plains at that time did not align with Bai Ye's memories, and the reason for this discrepancy was the sudden appearance of beast tamers.
And Jin Sha happened to be a beast tamer. Moreover, she had arrived on the snowy plains earlier than Bai Ye and had been mingling there for some time. Therefore, Jin Sha was someone who could be utilized; she could provide Bai Ye with the information he needed.
Karasumaru, on the other hand, was someone who could not be utilized. The relationship between them was merely a transaction, and in this transaction, Karasumaru needed Bai Ye more, while Bai Ye did not need Karasumaru.
The Cell Gene Recombination Fluid was quite good. Anything that could directly enhance physical attributes, regardless of quality, could be considered a good item. Quality simply represented how good the item was.
However, while the Cell Gene Recombination Fluid was good and Bai Ye did want it, it was not to the point where he absolutely *had* to have it.
So, if Karasumaru had no value for utilization...
Why would Bai Ye invest any effort in him?
Similarly, for anyone who had no value for utilization, anything Karasumaru did was in vain, in Bai Ye's eyes.
Listening to Karasumaru's incessant chatter all the way, they soon passed a field and entered the mountains again.
A rather sizable house appeared before Bai Ye and Karasumaru.
For a mountain cabin, although it was built of wood, it was already considered "villa" sized.
Karasumaru said, "The demon is inside. His name is Kyogai."
Bai Ye nodded. "Let's go!"
Without hesitation, Bai Ye directly opened the main door and walked in.
The time for the gacha machine to reset had not yet arrived. With the Nanming Lihuo Sword in hand, Bai Ye feared nothing. Moreover, even without the Nanming Lihuo Sword, an ex-Lower Rank demon should be weaker than Rui. Bai Ye didn't think it would be much trouble even without relying on the Nanming Lihuo Sword.
However, upon entering the house, Bai Ye felt that things might not be so simple.
Because...
There was something wrong with this house!
Bai Ye stood at the entrance and looked forward. The corridor before him seemed to have no end!
Although this house was not small in size, it was too absurd that one couldn't see the end at a glance.
This was definitely not a normal house structure. The other party likely possessed some "spatial" abilities.
Space and time...
These two abilities were always the most troublesome.
However, since they had already entered, there were no other options.
Bai Ye mused as he walked forward, then spread his hands. "We're inside. You should give me what you promised."
After Bai Ye spoke, his steps suddenly halted.
Because Bai Ye heard no response from Karasumaru.
Bai Ye couldn't help but look back, and then he saw that the house behind him was rotating. Karasumaru was no longer standing on the floor but was hanging upside down.
This was because, with the rotation, the floor had moved to the position of the ceiling.
Karasumaru's face was devoid of its previous enthusiasm. Instead, he wore a cold smile, the expression of someone whose scheme had succeeded.
"You want it?" Karasumaru grinned. "We'll talk about it after you can leave here alive!"
Bang!
At this moment, a drum sound suddenly echoed from the end of the corridor, followed by another rotation of the house.
This time, it wasn't just where Karasumaru was. The ground beneath Bai Ye's feet also began to rotate horizontally, completely separating Bai Ye and Karasumaru.
Bai Ye glanced at the tatami mats beneath his feet and the surrounding walls.
"So that's how it is," Bai Ye murmured. "They're targeting me?"
The struggle between chosen ones was normal. The reason for targeting Bai Ye was simple.
Regardless of how many fragments of the Sunstone Bai Ye possessed, having completed the forbidden zone of Mount Natagumo meant he had at least fifteen. If they defeated Bai Ye and obtained the Sunstone fragments, the minimum gain would be fifteen.
This number was worth making a move for.
And the fact that the other party wanted demon blood suggested they intended to extract something from Bai Ye beforehand.
Bai Ye mused as he walked forward.
He could understand the intention to kill him, but what about the intention to lure him here with the Cell Gene Recombination Fluid?
This implied that, under normal circumstances, the other party knew they couldn't kill Bai Ye.
However, in other words...
It meant the other party believed they had a chance to kill Bai Ye within this house.
Thump, thump-thump!
At this moment, the drum sound came again from the depths of the house, and then the house began to rotate again.
On the other side, Karasumaru quickly moved through the house, flipped open a section of the ceiling, and jumped into a room.
A tall man stood in the room, his upper body bare. Six drums hung from him. The characters "Lower Six" were carved into his right eye, but a cross-shaped scar on his right eye had crossed out the characters.
After landing, Karasumaru spoke to the man, "Kyogai, I brought back another one. He looks quite strong. Can you handle it?"
"The stronger the better!" Kyogai licked his lips. "The more powerful the person, the rarer their blood. As long as I drink his blood, I will definitely become stronger, and then the Demon King will surely recognize me."
Karasumaru hesitated for a moment. "We're no longer in the original world. Is becoming one of the Twelve Kizuki again such an important matter?"