Soon, Zhou Hong arrived at the exit.
Zhou Hong spotted Lang Qihua waiting for him at the exit at first glance.
"Zhou Hong, you're finally out. It's been over ten days. If you hadn't come out sooner, I would have thought you died in there," Lang Qihua said, full of worry. If Zhou Hong died, she wouldn't live either.
"What, if I didn't come out, you were planning to leave on your own?"
"How could that be? I'm weak all over and feel terrible. Hurry and give me an antidote."
Zhou Hong chuckled. It had been a month since she last took the antidote. If Zhou Hong didn't come out, her meridians would be in agony.
Zhou Hong took out a box of antidotes from his person, containing at least twenty to thirty pills.
"I'll give you thirty pills at once. You won't need to find me for the next few years."
"Thank you." Lang Qihua was extremely happy. If she had to find Zhou Hong for an antidote every month, life would be too inconvenient.
The reason Zhou Hong gave her so many at once was that she had already experienced the pain of not having the antidote, so he could give her more. After all, asking Zhou Hong every month was also a hassle for him.
"Let's go back quickly."
For the next two months, Zhou Hong was on the road.
Two months later, Zhou Hong successfully returned to Wumeng City.
"Zhou Hong, you're back! You've been gone for almost half a year," Hei Xiaolu said happily as she rushed to meet him upon his return to Heilong Mansion, as if something good had happened.
"Xiaolu, what's making you so happy?"
"Guess."
"Could it be you're pregnant?" Zhou Hong blurted out subconsciously. The reason he asked so impulsively might be that he had learned from Long Yu that he had become a father, while he himself still didn't have a pregnant woman, which led him to ask.
"What nonsense are you talking about?" Hei Xiaolu's face flushed.
"Haha, it's good that it's not," Zhou Hong breathed a sigh of relief. In fact, he didn't want it. If he were to have a child with Hei Xiaolu, it would be a lot more trouble. Zhou Hong wasn't ready to be a father yet.
"Don't you like children?" Hei Xiaolu asked, confused. After Zhou Hong said that, she suddenly felt that if she were pregnant, it might not be so bad.
"That's not it. The time isn't right now. Alright, you should tell me what's making you so happy."
"I broke through! I finally broke through to a Grade Four Demon!"
Zhou Hong was speechless. After such a long time, finally breaking through from Grade Three Demon to Grade Four Demon, and being so happy.
"Congratulations. You've moved up a level."
"It's a shame. What was originally a happy occasion feels like I'm a waste when compared to you," Hei Xiaolu pouted.
"Don't compare yourself to me. Just compare yourself to yourself."
Hei Xiaolu changed the subject and asked, "Did you find the Soul Locking Grass in the Immortal-Demon Mountain Range?"
"I found it."
"That's great! You can refine the City Lord into a puppet magic weapon now, and you can firmly secure your position as the City Lord of Wumeng City."
However, Zhou Hong merely gave a disdainful smile. Now, even without refining the City Lord into a puppet, he possessed strength no less than the City Lord.
On his way back, Zhou Hong's Demon Subduing Pestle, nourished by over a hundred Nascent Souls, successfully advanced to Grade Four, becoming a Grade Four magic weapon.
With the power of a Grade Four magic weapon, Zhou Hong could directly pierce the Nascent Soul of a Grade Three Demon King with a single stab. Refining the City Lord into a puppet would result in a strength inferior to his Demon Subduing Pestle. This was because the City Lord's realm was only Grade Three Demon King, and a puppet refined from a Grade Three Demon King, no matter how powerful, could not defeat a Demon King of the same grade.
"Zhou Hong, why aren't you happy?" Hei Xiaolu looked at Zhou Hong's indifferent expression and felt confused.
"Haha, what's there to be happy about?"
At this moment, Black Orchid Great Demon King arrived.
"Zhou Hong, you're back," Black Orchid greeted him.
"Yes. Is everything alright at home?"
"Don't worry, everything is normal. The City Lord is still locked up in the underground secret chamber. He can't escape even if he wants to."
"Good," Zhou Hong nodded.
"Then let's hurry and refine him into a puppet, lest there be any more complications," Black Orchid urged. The sooner the City Lord was refined into a puppet, the safer it would be for Zhou Hong, or so he thought.
"Heh, no rush." Zhou Hong had just returned and wasn't in a hurry to refine him. He could do it later.
"How can you not be in a hurry? It's already been five or six months. During this time, many people have been looking for the City Lord, and his absence has already caused many to be suspicious. What if someone discovers it and your enemies come to kill you? How will you protect yourself? I'm only a Grade One Demon King, and I can't protect you. The other seven Demon Kings of Wumeng City haven't managed to refine the Eight Divisions Pagoda in the past half-year. So, you should quickly refine the City Lord into a puppet. That way, I'll feel more at ease."
"Heh, Father-in-law, to tell you the truth, even if I don't refine the City Lord into a puppet now, my life is not in danger, at least not within Wumeng City."
"What do you mean?"
Zhou Hong didn't hold back. He instantly took out the Demon Subduing Pestle, and in a blink of an eye, its tip was pressed against Black Orchid Great Demon King's eyelid, just 0.01 millimeters away.
"You...!" Black Orchid Great Demon King instantly felt as if his soul was about to leave his body. A sharp aura attacked his soul.
"This is my Demon Subduing Pestle, a Grade Four magic weapon. With this weapon, I can now directly rip out the Nascent Soul of a Grade Three Demon King with a single stab. Do you think refining the City Lord into a puppet can be stronger than my Demon Subduing Pestle?"
Black Orchid was immensely shocked. He hadn't known that Zhou Hong possessed such a magic weapon before.
"Heh, this Demon Subduing Pestle wasn't obtained on this trip. I got it long before I ascended. It was only a Grade Three magic weapon before, and after this trip and gaining some fortuitous encounters, it ascended to Grade Four."
"Congratulations, Zhou Hong. I didn't expect your fortuitous encounters to be so powerful. It seems I was worried for nothing. Then I won't disturb you. You've just returned, so you should rest first." Black Orchid Great Demon King turned and left, his shock lingering.
"Zhou Hong, can you really kill a Grade Three Demon King with one blow?" Hei Xiaolu asked, looking incredulous.
"Do you want me to find someone and show you?" Zhou Hong smiled slightly.
"That's not necessary. Besides, in Wumeng City, besides the City Lord, no one else is a Grade Three Demon King."
For the next few days, Zhou Hong and Hei Xiaolu enjoyed their time together. Only after their fatigue had subsided did Zhou Hong head to the underground secret chamber to prepare to refine the City Lord into a puppet magic weapon.
In the secret chamber, the City Lord sat in a corner, his face filled with anger. Seeing Zhou Hong arrive, he roared, "Zhou Hong, let me out!"
"Heh, why should I let you out? To eat shit?" Zhou Hong sneered.