"The white fog has a disorienting effect. Once you’re caught inside, you lose your sense of direction. If we try to retreat now, we may not be able to find our way out," Tobias added.

"So it’s a Tree Demon."

Noah immediately understood. No wonder this Demon King hadn’t moved for over a hundred years.

Tree Demons were naturally limited in mobility. Of course, as a demon, it wasn’t completely rooted like an ordinary tree, but moving would come at a significant cost.

"Then how did you obtain this information, if no one can leave?" Noah asked.

"People may get lost, but objects do not," Ronan replied in a low voice. "This information was sent back by those who entered the white fog at the cost of their lives."

Noah nodded slightly.

He now had a clearer understanding of this Demon King.

Just then, hurried footsteps echoed through the white mist.

Moments later, a massive yellow ox, several meters tall, emerged in front of them.

Its body was covered in strange demonic patterns, and its eyes glowed with an eerie blood-red light.

"Monster Puppet," Ronan said.

Noah’s gaze swept over the yellow ox.

[Yellow Ox Monster Puppet (Elite)]

[Tier: Second Order]

[Attributes: Strength 7000, Agility 5500, Constitution 8000, Spirit 5000]

This yellow ox had originally been nothing more than livestock, at most a First Order existence in this instance. But after being turned into a Monster Puppet, its strength had increased dramatically.

The group handled the Fourth-Order Monster Puppets with ease, and even the Third-Order ones posed no real threat.

But once Second-Order Monster Puppets began to appear in large numbers, the situation changed.

More importantly, the Demon King itself had begun to act.

Without warning, thick tree roots burst out from the ground, lashing violently toward the four of them like giant whips.

The pressure surged instantly. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

Caught off guard, Noah was struck by a root as thick as a house and sent flying backward.

"Mr. Noah!" Ronan shouted in alarm.

Along the way, they had already learned Noah’s name.

"It’s nothing."

Noah smashed the incoming tree root with a punch, shattering it into pieces as black sap splattered everywhere. He took a short breath and said,

"The Demon King in the Demon Country was too powerful. I had to use some forbidden methods to deal with it, so I’m a bit weakened right now."

"Alas, Mr. Noah, if that’s the case, why rush here to Varkesh City?" Tobias said anxiously. "Wouldn’t it be better to recover first before dealing with this demon?"

Noah let out a faint, bitter chuckle.

"If I wait until I recover, this Tree Demon will probably disappear without a trace."

He paused briefly, then added,

"Besides, since it was a forbidden method, recovery won’t be easy. I don’t have much time left."

"This journey is dangerous and uncertain. I never planned on leaving alive. So I ask the three of you to give it your all. My last efforts shouldn’t be wasted on these Monster Puppets."

Hearing this, the three were deeply moved.

They hadn’t expected Noah to carry such resolve.

Without hesitation, they fought with even greater intensity, intercepting most of the Tier 2 Monster Puppets and the attacking roots.

"Pfft—"

Suddenly, the Jade-Faced Demon Fox let out a scream and was sent flying by a tree root.

"Lord Kael, what’s wrong?" Ronan rushed over to support him.

The Jade-Faced Demon Fox forced a smile. "I was careless earlier and got ambushed in the Demon Country. I suffered some injuries, but it’s nothing serious. I can still fight."

Despite his words, he was struck again by a Monster Puppet moments later, coughing up blood repeatedly.

Noah watched coldly, fully aware of what was happening.

The Jade-Faced Demon Fox could mimic Kael’s appearance, but it couldn’t replicate his true strength. Unless it shed its disguise and revealed its real form, its combat power would remain limited.

But doing so would expose it.

So instead, it chose to act injured.

"If only another Heavenly Rank Demon Executioner from your Demon Suppression Division could come," Ronan said with a sigh.

Among the civilian forces, the strongest were just the two of them, while the Demon Suppression Division had four Heavenly Rank Demon Executioners.

"Don’t worry. I’ve already found a way to send out a message. Reinforcements should arrive soon," the Jade-Faced Demon Fox replied slowly.

Earlier, it had indeed scattered objects in multiple directions, supposedly as signals.

Ronan and Tobias both nodded.

This demon domain was extremely dangerous. Under normal circumstances, they wouldn’t have dared to step inside. But with Noah, a man who had already slain a Demon King, they found the confidence to take the risk.

Who could have expected that Noah was actually in a weakened state?

By the time they realized it, there was no turning back.

A Heavenly Rank Demon Executioner and two top experts were now trapped inside. The Great Zhou Dynasty simply couldn’t afford to lose all of them.

There was only one option left.

Reinforcements had to be sent in, no matter the cost. They would have to gather all their strength and eliminate this Demon King once and for all.

Ronan and Tobias were, after all, Fourth Order leader-level powerhouses. Their strength far surpassed that of ordinary or elite Fourth Order Monster Puppets.

As for the Demon King’s Fourth Order puppets, their numbers weren’t large, and most of them were only at the ordinary level.

Noah and the Jade-Faced Demon Fox were merely in a weakened state, not critically injured.

Because of this, although Ronan and Tobias were under heavy pressure, it was still manageable.

After cutting down a portion of the Fourth Order Monster Puppets and shattering all the incoming tree roots, the battlefield suddenly fell quiet.

Like a receding tide, the Monster Puppets withdrew.

"Hm... did the Demon King realize it couldn’t deal with us and retreat?" Ronan asked, breathing heavily.

"I’m afraid it’s not that simple," Tobias said, shaking his head.

This was a Demon King.

With the sheer number of Monster Puppets under its control, its overall strength was likely no weaker than that of the entire Demon Country.