"Today, the most ideal outcome would have been to drag the Illusion Demon Lord out from the All-world desolate graves and slay him on the spot, but this was not achieved. He eventually escaped, and I only accomplished a secondary goal."

He extended his hand flat, allowing Jiang Wang and Dou Zhao to clearly see the ever-changing multicolored human face in his palm: "This is the Illusion Demon Lord’s mask. To my knowledge, the Illusion Demon Lord only has nine masks in total, which are the foundation of his cultivation. Without a hundred years of effort, he won’t be able to restore this one."

He looked towards Jiang Wang, speaking slowly: "This signifies something that Marquis Wu’an must surely understand. So, I indeed admire Yu Beidou. With Dongzhen cultivation, he accomplished something quite similar."

"Of course, I am not saying this to make you acknowledge risk and sacrifice. You have come from afar as guests and should only receive respect and honor, with absolutely no obligation to contribute to my scheme. Taking a step back, you are pillars of state and talents numbered among the best under heaven. Moving forward, you are almost seen as the future of the Human Race. I believe that if informed about this scheme beforehand, you would agree to take risks. But informing only after the fact is deception. Driving the situation with deceit, regardless of the initial goal or final outcome, can never be considered a friendly act by those involved."

"So, the first thing I want to say is—I did not deceive you. Involving Marquis Wu’an was not my design. No matter how grand the reason, Mugu would never use an emissary from a friendly nation as bait. Especially today, here in the Supreme Royal Court."

"Marquis Wu’an, you may wish to consider whether your decision to go to the Border Wilderness was influenced by anyone. Was the route you chose and the timing affected by guidance? Could I, at the Dongzhen realm at that time, have stopped the actions of the Illusion Demon Lord who was plotting against me?"

"I did use special methods over nearly a hundred years to mislead the Illusion Demon Lord into considering today as the appropriate time. But I couldn’t be sure of his entry point. My preparation was for this moment in time, not aimed at a specific person or place. The reason for such timely closure is that several lords have been on standby at the Royal Court on this particular day."

He did not elaborate on the methods used to mislead the Illusion Demon Lord, but Jiang Wang thought it must be related to the Illusion Demon Lord’s earlier furious shout of "Hunaba."

Hunaba is the Guardian Wolf God, and the words "Guardian" carry significant weight.

Under what circumstances could the Guardian Wolf God become a problem, thus being seen as an opportunity by the Illusion Demon Lord?

Jiang Wang restrained himself from thinking deeply. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

Tu Hu gave Jiang Wang a deep look and continued: "The Illusion Demon Lord’s methods, as you might imagine, are not easily discovered. I have set this scheme over a hundred years, but the Illusion Demon Lord has been stationed on the Life and Death Line for even longer. Man schemes against the tiger, and the tiger likewise schemes against man. Before the final outcome, who can say who will prevail?"

"We do not know how many means he has hidden or bridges he’s built on the grassland, but Marquis Wu’an was certainly not his only target. Recently, many have been caught up in his pursuit of me at the Border Wilderness. Few could withstand it."

"Until today, I could not fully determine whether he would join the scheme, nor in what manner. I did suspect that he might use Marquis Wu’an for something but could not openly investigate. Firstly, it would surely alert him, and secondly, Marquis Wu’an might not agree."

This was indeed true.

If Tu Hu had suddenly suggested earlier that Jiang Wang might be influenced by the Illusion Demon Lord and asked him to allow a thorough check, Jiang Wang would have never agreed.

As an emissary of Qi Country, how could he possibly let his guard down entirely against the True Monarch of another country?

Tu Hu continued: "Today’s Supreme Royal Court has already activated the grand formation, and other than me, four Yandao Experts are on standby! Anywhere demonic Qi appears in the Royal Court, Yandao Experts can arrive immediately. This is the preparation we made for today."

"Therefore, no matter what happens today in the Royal Court, the safety of Marquis Wu’an can be assured. This is also why I previously did not proceed further with an inspection of Marquis Wu’an."

"Furthermore, the Illusion Demon Lord used Marquis Wu’an as a guide and demonic Qi as a beacon to cross the realms and descend upon the Gray Wolf Fighting Arena. I chased the Illusion Demon Lord, using the Ghost Demon as a guide, which allowed me to arrive in time."

Tu Hu laid out all the considerations, and the whole logic was indeed clear.

Given his status as a Yandao True Monarch and the fact that he stripped the mask off the Illusion Demon Lord today, completing a deed destined to shake the world, providing such a detailed explanation was already exceptionally gracious.

He continued, "However, said a thousand words and explained ten thousand others, you two are distinguished envoys, coming from afar to the grassland as esteemed guests. You were meant to peacefully enjoy the grassland’s scenery but were unexpectedly disturbed, which undoubtedly reflects poorly on Mugu’s hospitality."

He placed a hand over his chest, bowing his head sincerely: "Please allow me, in the name of the Minhe Temple, to represent Mugu in apologizing to the two envoys."

Jiang Wang and Dou Zhao immediately turned aside, unwilling to accept the gesture.

Two Godly cultivators could not carelessly accept a Yandao True Monarch’s courtesy. Even someone as arrogant as Dou Zhao could not bring himself to do so.

Tu Hu then turned to Helian Yunyun: "Your Highness, did you record the duel just now?"