"What is a monster!" That strange psychic wave resurfaced in my mind once more. "Something like you." "I am not just something," my own thought echoed back, smugly arrogant in the mental space, "I am the unparalleled Crimson Moon Demon, above heaven and beneath earth." The faint mental ripple remained utterly full of himself.

What in the world is this nonsense! Could this really be the Crimson Moon Demon that everyone on the Marfa Continent speaks of in hushed, fearful tones?

To be honest, I feel an indescribable strangeness, an absurdity, about the current situation. "Don't look down on me," the Crimson Moon Demon seemed to sense my thoughts and was overtly displeased.

"I am incredibly, incredibly powerful." "Incredibly powerful," I noted, finding it quite amusing. "If you're so powerful, how did we manage to capture you alive?" "It's because you lot were too cunning," the Crimson Moon Demon sounded aggrieved.

"You knew I feared fire and used fire to burn me." "..." I was stunned silent. Good heavens, this creature has such a bizarre personality.

Could it truly be an ancient monster that has survived for fifteen thousand years, yet acts like a mere child? "In a fight to the death, there's no room for such petty considerations," I thought back testily.

"And another thing," the Crimson Moon Demon persisted coolly, "you ganged up on me—that's not skill. Why don't you let me go, and we can fight one-on-one?" This fellow is clearly a spoiled child whose brain has been waterlogged; I couldn't help but manage a wry, internal smile.

"You're the child!" the Crimson Moon Demon shot back coolly. "Let me go, and we'll fight again, how about that?" "That won't do.

We worked hard to catch you," I thought. Going to the trouble of releasing it?

Who knows who would be unlucky next. "Why did you capture me?" the Crimson Moon Demon was genuinely confused.

"I'm small, and I don't have much meat; I'm not tasty." "..." I was truly defeated by this little guy. "Who said we want to eat your meat?

We want your gall bladder." "Gall bladder." The little one clearly didn't understand why we wanted such a thing, but that wasn't the critical issue. The key was that we hadn't captured it for food—that was relief enough.

"You scared me half to death." How interesting. To think I’d run into such an engaging creature in the world of Marfa.

I began to contemplate how to handle this little fellow. Truthfully, the drastic contrast between the demon's initial image and its current demeanor caught me completely off guard.

If I actually went through with killing it now, I felt a strange reluctance rising within me. After thinking it over, I still hadn't decided on its fate, but one thing was certain: I had definitely stumbled upon a treasure this time.

"Marshal, what do you intend to do with this little thing?" Yin Hu looked at me, lost in thought, with some confusion. "Just kill it," Yin Tao suggested.

"If we let it return to its original form, we’ll have serious trouble." "No! I don't want to die," the little creature's frightened mental plea immediately flooded my mind.

"Alright, I won't kill you for now," I conceded. "But you have to be obedient." "Obedient, I promise to be obedient," the little one seemed utterly terrified.

"Take it back with us first," I stated seriously. "Ah!" Yin Hong and the others stared at me, dumbfounded.

"The Marshal intends to bring this thing back to the Demon Dragon Empire!" Yin Tao's face turned ashen with fright. "This is the Crimson Moon Demon!" Yin Hu grew tense.

"I know what I'm doing," I reassured them. "As long as we don't let it touch the ground or fall into water, it shouldn't be able to cause any mischief, right?" I pulled an iron box from my spatial pouch and placed the little creature inside.

"Mean! I haven't done anything bad, why lock me up?" the little thing complained indignantly.

"Who told you you're so dangerous?" I retorted sharply. "..." Perhaps accepting its fate, the little creature simply stopped paying attention to me.

"..." The others remained silent, simply staring at me, clearly unable to fathom my intentions. It seemed they hadn't noticed the strange, subtle mental connection forming between the little demon and me.

This only added to my bewilderment. "Little one, why is it that you only communicate with me?" "How should I know?" the little one was equally curious.

"Whatever I think, you know—you're the first person in so many years to know!" "Could this be true synchronicity of the mind!" For a moment, I couldn't help but feel a chill run down my spine, raising goosebumps all over my body. Heavens, I actually have a spiritual link with the Crimson Moon Demon.

However, I was intensely curious about the true nature of this little creature. By instinct, I was certain its origins were far from simple; its terrifying lifespan of over ten thousand years alone was enough to open my eyes wide.

Furthermore, I had a persistent feeling that the Crimson Moon Demon's Lair held other secrets; otherwise, why would this little creature never have left this place for over ten millennia? "Little one, how did you come to be, and why have you stayed here for so long?" "I was forced to," the little one's thought echoed in my mind again.

"Forced?" I asked curiously. "I cannot leave," the little one sounded dejected.

"Cannot leave?" I was surprised. "Why?

Are you physically unable to exit?" "I, the Crimson Moon Demon, can go wherever I please," the little one boasted, though its expression quickly turned disheartened. "But I cannot leave." "That is strange," I mused for a moment.

"Is there some reason you must remain here?" "Because I have to guard the house," the little one grumbled indignantly. "Guard the house?" A thought struck me.

Could this little creature have been staying here diligently for over ten thousand years to protect something? "Yes, guard the house," the little one surprised me by volunteering the information.

"Anyway, since you’ve defeated me, my mission is complete." "..." I was utterly shocked. Could it be that this Crimson Moon Demon's Lair truly hides some other secret?

"Of course!" the little one declared coolly. "I am one of the seven greatest Demon Suppressing Beasts of the Divine Dragon Empire, responsible for guarding the King's Forbidden Zone, one of the Seven Great Restricted Areas.

The passage to the King's Forbidden Zone is right beneath me. Since you have defeated me, I suppose I can tell you this secret." The King's Forbidden Zone!

I was stunned speechless! Good heavens, no way.

Did I accidentally stumble upon the legendary King's Forbidden Zone? I have been in the world of Marfa for six years now, and I have a decent understanding of its history.

The concept of the Seven Great Restricted Areas originates from the ancient text, The Origin. In fact, these seven areas comprise the legendary Six Dark Sanctuaries and the King's Forbidden Zone.

The seven sites—the Hall of Confusion, the Hellfire Abyss, the Demon Domain, the Fallen Graveyard, the Pincers’ Nest, the Temple of Death, and the King's Forbidden Zone—total seven, hence the name. Within these seven Restricted Areas are hidden the legendary Seven-Colored Bright Pearls.

According to The Origin, there are seven Hero Sites left behind by the Wolong Villa on the Marfa Continent, and each site holds a sleeping hero. Finding just one of the Seven-Colored Bright Pearls would reveal the resting place of one of these heroes.

This is precisely why the St. Word and Moro two great alliances have waged wars lasting over two thousand years just to claim the Hall of Confusion, Hellfire Abyss, and Temple of Death.

However, for a long time, people only knew the general locations of the first six sites: the Hall of Confusion, Hellfire Abyss, Demon Domain, Fallen Graveyard, Pincers’ Nest, and Temple of Death. As for the location of the King's Forbidden Zone, no decipherable records remained, causing people to gradually forget its existence and focus their efforts on the Six Dark Sanctuaries for which clues existed.

Yet, I never imagined this secret had been held by the Crimson Moon Demon all along. And now, through sheer coincidence, it has been revealed to me!

I truly don't know if this counts as good fortune! "Marshal, are you alright?" Yin Hu's anxious voice brought me back to my senses.

"F-fine," I muttered. "We really did find a treasure this time." "Found a treasure?" Yin Tao and Yin Hu just stared at me blankly, completely failing to grasp what had agitated me so much.

"Yes, we found a treasure!" I said, my voice trembling. "Beneath the Crimson Moon Demon's Lair lies the King's Forbidden Zone." "Ah!

The King's Forbidden Zone!" Yin Hu and the others could hardly believe what they heard. They looked at me as if they had seen a ghost, trying to discern something from my expression.

"Marshal, how can you be so certain?" "This little one told me," I managed to suppress my overwhelming joy and said seriously. "Brother Feng, we have the gall bladder; I leave Mom's treatment to you now." "Ah?" Chen Feng was surprised.

"Do you intend to look below?" "Yes," I confirmed. "There’s no time to lose.

Since we know it’s here, there’s no reason not to go in and take a look." "..." Everyone was somewhat bewildered, but my expression suggested I was dead serious. "Fine, I’ll follow your lead," Chen Feng replied gravely.

"When we return, report this situation to the Emperor and have him prepare reinforcements," I continued. "I don't know the situation inside, so I'll have to scout ahead." "Understood," Chen Feng carefully secured the gall bladder.

The remaining men—Yin Hu, Yin Tao, and the others—just kept staring dumbfounded, obviously confused by the turn of events. And I knew it was too difficult to explain anything to them right now!

The only thing to do was to let them witness the truth of the matter. "Little one, how do we get in?" "In the center of the main cavern, there is a stone platform with a mechanism.

If you pull the handle on that mechanism, you will see the entrance to the passage," the little creature instructed. "This is truly fascinating," I hurried to the center of the main cavern and, sure enough, there was an unassuming stone platform with a single handle.

I grabbed the handle and pulled with all my might! Rumble!

Rumble! A deep, muffled roar suddenly erupted, accompanied by violent shaking.

Faintly, I could hear the grinding sounds of machinery turning. The wall on the western side of the Crimson Moon Demon's Lair suddenly cracked open, revealing a massive passage.

"Ah!" Everyone stood slack-jawed. "There really is a mechanism," Yin Hu muttered.

"How did the Marshal know?" Yin Tao stared blankly at the iron box in my hand. "Did that little thing really tell the Marshal?" "Do you believe me now?" Truthfully, the scene before me had startled me too.

"Yes," the others nodded repeatedly. "The Marshal is the Marshal," Yin Tao murmured.

"Truly different from ordinary people," Yin Hu added, nodding knowingly. "..." Bai Yan just gazed foolishly at me, then instinctively at the iron box in my hand, clearly now fully convinced by my earlier claims.

Chen Feng was completely astounded. He couldn't make sense of how I managed to communicate with the Crimson Moon Demon, but the facts were undeniable; he had no choice but to believe it!

"Brother Feng, you should go back first," I said firmly. "Mhm," Chen Feng nodded slightly, but not forgetting to caution, "Be careful, Marshal." "Don't worry," I then took out the Thousand Mile Sound Transmission Device.

"Activate Heaven and Earth Unity, send Brother Feng back first." "Ah? Aren't you all coming back too?" came Chi Hao's voice from the other end.

"The situation has changed. The Crimson Moon Demon's Lair hides a secret passage leading to the King's Forbidden Zone.

Silver Lake and I are preparing to go in and check it out." "The King's Forbidden Zone!" Chi Hao sounded utterly dumbfounded. "Ask Brother Feng for the specifics once he returns." "Understood." Soon, through Heaven and Earth Unity, Chen Feng’s figure vanished from the Crimson Moon Demon's Lair.

"Just in case, General Yin Tao, you stay here," I instructed. "Be extremely careful." "Yes." Although Yin Tao was somewhat reluctant, he had to accept my arrangement.

The rest followed me as we stepped into the passage. Having learned from the last experience, the mounts of the Great Mammoth King and those who had remained in the hidden valley tunnel—Yin Hong, Bai Yan, and the others’ Blood Colored Giant Wolves—were also summoned and entered the passage together.

The King's Forbidden Zone! What other secrets are hidden within!

Are the legendary Seven-Colored Night Pearls there?