ASER - Chapter 233
Chapter 233: Putting on a Show
Live streaming was something the Imperial Family cooked up from the start. The reason was none other than A'Diao's soaring reputation in the past. Now, they had finally seized the opportunity of the Guixu incident to frame and slander Chen A'Diao. During her predicament, with her reputation plummeting and countless fans turning against her, the Imperial Family figured it was the perfect time for them to display their might.
Imagine, Chen A'Diao was branded as the incarnation of a demon king, and when the nation was in peril, their Imperial Family's numerous powerful experts would make a grand entrance, turning the tide. Wouldn't their reputation then come soaring back to the Imperial Family? Karmic luck would naturally return as well.
Their calculations were clicking away. Among the imperial clansmen, who were vassals and sycophants of the Imperial Family, some were already in charge of media. At the time, they even demanded the use of the most advanced live streaming equipment, striving to capture the battle scenes perfectly to showcase the Imperial Family's powerful and flawless side – after all, didn't Chen A'Diao master the code to popularity through her dramatic comeback and her own beauty? This approach was good; it could be learned.
So they learned.
They thought that as one waned, the other would wax, allowing them to reap all the benefits.
Unfortunately, their first appearance hit a snag. First, their group attack failed, and they were suppressed by the Demonic Spirit clan. Then, before they could regroup, the three demon kings appeared, scaring several Imperial Family experts into fleeing.
This scene was naturally witnessed by the common people. At that moment, who cared if the others were from the Imperial Family – Chen A'Diao had arrived.
She arrived and directly took down two lesser demon kings.
A group of old fogeys from the Imperial Family hid upon seeing the lesser demon kings. A young girl, not even twenty, arrived and defeated them.
What a world of difference.
The media department didn't know how to edit it to favor the Imperial Family. And because it was live, it was difficult to manipulate. The think tank wanted the media department to pause the live stream and later claim a power outage prevented further broadcasting. However, a problem arose – the system suddenly went out of control and couldn't be stopped.
Damn it!
This must be the work of Chen A'Diao or Chen Xun.
So the live stream continued, and the Imperial Family lost all face. But it was indeed a case of one waning while the other waxed – for A'Diao.
In the borderlands, the stationed armies were waiting for orders from their respective imperial courts. On the Lie Qin side, Tong Huang's stance on this matter was to wait and see before acting – if Tang Song couldn't hold on, they would dispatch troops with Nan Jin, seize the Tang Song heartland, and divide the Tang Song territory under the pretext of protecting the human race. But if there were other developments on the Tang Song side, it was best to remain stable and not make a move.
The Lie Qin Monarch could naturally remain steady. Unfortunately, after waiting and waiting, just when the situation seemed excellent, an unexpected event occurred.
The biggest surprise was Chen A'Diao.
"This person, could she be a chosen one of heaven?" The Lie Qin Monarch was truly perplexed by A'Diao and asked Tong Huang, "From the perspective of our human race's genetic level, I fear even the three great founders were not so formidable in their time."
Tong Huang lowered his head. "The Old Ancestors are investigating, but this person is definitely suspicious."
This was an admission of the human race's genetic limitations.
After all… The Lie Qin Monarch said thoughtfully, "As far as I know, even Changting, who was designated as the spokesperson for the Celestial Clan back then and received help from a goddess, couldn't achieve such terrifying strength in such a short time – looking at it this way, if this Chen A'Diao isn't an incarnation of a demon king, perhaps she's related to the Celestial Clan."
Even if there were many possibilities proving Chen A'Diao had absolutely no connection to the Celestial Clan, her terrifyingly rapid progress, surpassing genetic limits, made some people feel that such impossibilities were irrelevant; otherwise, it was difficult to explain her current strength.
Tong Huang was silent, but he was also pondering this matter – judging by his understanding of the Tang Song Imperial Family's involvement, it was highly probable they were behind the 'demon king incarnation' accusation against Chen A'Diao. However, the likelihood was low, because if Kunlun wasn't dead, he would surely see through the trickery and wouldn't allow a demon king incarnation to control Lushan.
Then that meant… Chen A'Diao was related to the Celestial Clan?
If so, it would be good to find evidence.
Here, the Lie Qin Monarch was decisive and had already begun to handle official matters: "Tell the border troops not to move. Withdraw them once the dust settles. Ministry of Foreign Affairs, prepare."
"Your Excellency, Mountain Head, please continue to investigate Chen A'Diao and Yan Xi. I need to know if Yan Xi is cooperating with her and thus helping her, or if he is controlled by her."
"If he is controlled by her, then it will be troublesome."
Bronze Mountain was concerned about Chen A'Diao's strength and karmic luck, because their foundation was cultivation. But the Lie Qin Monarch knew that the real threat to a nation was never individual strength, but the army.
So his first reaction was whether Chen A'Diao would become arrogant and scheme for a larger ambition.
Speaking of which, her temperament was far more dangerous than that of Kunlun and the others.
Therefore, this matter still required careful observation to see her future plans.
At this moment, although Tong Huang, the Mountain Head of Bronze Mountain, and the Lie Qin Monarch had different thoughts, the outcome was quite consistent – both wanted to see what the future held for this Chen A'Diao.
But later, they all found their thoughts at this moment rather laughable.
The crisis in the Huaiguang Mountain Range was resolved just like that, it seemed. The people of Tang Song felt reassured. Especially when the court officials learned that Lie Qin and Nan Jin had collectively retreated three thousand li after making hypocritical statements through their foreign ministries. Although they feigned stubborn disdain, this group of old political foxes collectively breathed a sigh of relief.
Internal turmoil and external threats; the destruction of the nation was not far off. Fortunately, the crisis was resolved.
It was all thanks to this Chen A'Diao… The imperial court had lost all face.
Also losing face were many common people of Tang Song. Given the previous overwhelming insults, there was now one-sided praise. While praising her, many tried to follow her, only to find a system prompt saying they couldn't.
???
What was going on?
Upon closer inquiry, the system automatically replied: "Adding new followers has been disabled. So, those who have come, scram!"
Both polite and domineering.
The common people: "!!!"
Why is she like this?
We didn't mean to misunderstand her.
Her suspicion was just too great. But, but she has now proven she protects us, why is she so stubborn?
A'Diao's ruthless move made many returning fans very annoyed and embarrassed. Some fans genuinely felt guilty. Anyway, it was another round of commotion.
Some continued to curse her, even calling her arrogant. Others continued to speculate conspiratorially that she was deliberately whitewashing herself, that she was actually a true demon king incarnation, and that these lesser demon kings and Demonic Spirits were all paving the way for her.
Of course, some didn't think this way and instead shifted the blame. They felt it must be those haters causing trouble, angering Junior Sect Master A'Diao, and implicating innocent people like them. They had clearly trusted her at first, but wasn't it these haters who manipulated public opinion and slandered her, causing them to misunderstand?
It's all their fault!
Anyway, the two groups started arguing.
Perhaps the most steadfast were those who had never unfollowed and had always firmly believed in A'Diao – these people, in fact, had very similar backgrounds; they were mostly students. Why?
Because they were in the same circle as A'Diao, they had paid attention to and been impressed by her during the Lushan assessments. Moreover, their own intelligence and knowledge were sufficient for them to discern information.
Of course, there was another reason: a sense of identification – they all considered themselves the future core class of the nation, destined either for the battlefield or core departments. Given time, if they fought for the nation only to suffer such cold distrust and slander from those they protected, the thought alone was heartbreaking. More importantly, they also detested being morally blackmailed, being exploited, and being told they "ought to sacrifice," so they were the most resolute.
Of course, this steadfast mentality also led to a bit of secret delight when they learned A'Diao had disabled new followers: "See, I was the wisest and most discerning, never doubting her. You all backed out, and are no longer her people, but we are."
There was a feeling of being cherished and more noble.
Anyway, mental power exploded in reverse again.
Toilet: "…"
Whether this was fan purification or something else, let's not discuss it for now. Regardless, it undoubtedly manipulated human nature, bound the hearts of high-quality individuals on a deeper level, and also PUA'd those easily fooled netizens.
While the internet was in an uproar, the dust settled in the Huaiguang Mountain Range. The Imperial Family naturally had to make a statement.
Dantai Ye and other members of the Imperial Family, along with important court officials, also emerged from the royal vessel.
The great battle was won, and the greatest contributor was right before them; she truly deserved commendation.
"Prince Diaodiao, I was saved by you this time; the fate of the nation also rested on you. For such a great merit, a grand banquet should be held."
The Monarch was very happy, very pleased; his gaze was so affectionate it could drip water. Everyone watching let their imaginations run wild.
Prince Diaodiao was also very happy, very pleased, grabbing the Monarch's hand and patting it several times.
"Alright, alright, thank you, Your Majesty. You are truly kind."
"It is as it should be."
Onlookers found it cloying. The Imperial Family members had lost much face, but seeing this scene, they felt it was acceptable again – they had always felt there was something sweet between their Monarch and this Prince A'Diao. Although the Monarch was a bit delicate and refined, a strong woman and a weaker man complemented each other perfectly, didn't they?
Who couldn't see through the Imperial Family's scheme? Behind them, Yu Xuanji sneered, reached out, and pulled A'Diao's 'paw' back. "A banquet, eh? Good, good. All of us from Lushan will definitely attend."
What business is it of your Lushan?
Don't come, please don't come.
The Imperial Family and the Lushan people were like fighting cocks, eyeing each other. Qing Zan and other Spirit Kings were already at odds with the Imperial Family's Spirit Kings. Having just gone through a major battle, still bloodied, they began to sneer at each other. But they didn't completely drop pretenses; this was all for the Tang Song citizens to see – to stabilize the nation, all personal grudges could be set aside.
This was the bigger picture.
It was as if all previous schemes against A'Diao had vanished into thin air.
Chen Xun stood among the smiling high officials, who seemed to be burying hatchets over wine and singing praises of peace, coldly observing everything, his eyes devoid of ripples. However, when Dantai Ye and other nobles passed by, he would bow his head in salute, the hidden glint in his eyes identical to the smiling goodwill in A'Diao's.
All unspoken implications.
And at this moment, Dantai Ye also sent a voice transmission to A'Diao.
"Those strongest few from Dantai are about to awaken; they are supremely powerful and invincible. Unless Kunlun recovers to his peak, your safety cannot be guaranteed. Why don't we join forces and share peace?"
This was his only bargaining chip now. And according to his understanding of A'Diao, although she was ruthless enough to take revenge on the same day, she also always considered the long term – in her eyes, he was no longer an absolute threat, but she would naturally be willing to make concessions for a greater threat, to bury the hatchet with him.
While A'Diao was chatting and laughing with him, she also replied via voice transmission: "Alright."
Such a simple reply.
Dantai Ye's expression relaxed slightly, and he gave A'Diao an even gentler smile.
Just then, everyone suddenly felt a fierce wave of corpse qi surging over. As they were alarmed, A'Diao stepped forward, intercepting the attacking black cloud before the other Imperial Family experts could.
It was actually Yan Xi. This person, looking fierce and malevolent, roared angrily: "You clearly agreed to cooperate with me, why did you break your promise?"
Who?
Everyone subconsciously thought Yan Xi was saying this to A'Diao.
After all, everything before them clearly indicated cooperation between Yan Xi and A'Diao.
But Dantai Ye had a guilty conscience, believing Yan Xi was about to expose his previous plans in Guixu. Just as his eyes darkened and he was about to say something, A'Diao interjected: "Yes, I did promise you, but I also gave you benefits. Today you protected the people of my Tang Song; you will be a hero in the future. What else is there to feel wronged about?"
Yan Xi was furious: "What you promised me before was to help me retrieve the Undead Sky Lantern and also to help me take revenge on this treacherous person. What, are you going back on your word now?"
A'Diao's expression changed, and she said seriously: "I haven't. I said before, only the Imperial Family has the Undead Sky Lantern. If you save Tang Song in its time of great peril, the Imperial Family will naturally give you the Undead Sky Lantern. This is our promise."
Everyone, along with Yan Xi, immediately looked towards the Imperial Family.
The Imperial Family's Great Elder and others: "…"
What could they do? Naturally, they had to agree.
The damn live stream was still on!
But Dantai Ye felt a chill in his heart; the Undead Sky Lantern was in his hands!
Chen A'Diao was forcing him to return the lantern to the secret vault…
But he didn't want to return to Kyoto at all. He only thought of escaping with his main body on the way back to the city and sending a clone in. Otherwise, his situation would be too dangerous.
Could it be that Chen A'Diao was deliberately forcing him, not letting him escape?
Dantai Ye had been worried that A'Diao would suddenly attack him. Now, seeing that she seemed to be forcing him back to the throne, he guessed a few things – she had probably grasped a handle on his identity, thinking that by controlling him, she could indirectly control the entire Tang Song, and was deliberately doing so.
In this way, he felt somewhat more at ease.
One isn't afraid of being used, but of losing value and being eradicated. Now, the situation was beyond his control, and he could only submit to this person, moreover…
Dantai Ye was a man with a thousand schemes in his heart; he had calculated several moves in minutes. After being tricked by A'Diao this time, his mentality surprisingly stabilized. So, under the Great Elder's signal, he deliberately invited Yan Xi to the state banquet, showing clear intent to recruit him.
Yan Xi, however, refused, sneering: "I dare not believe the words of your Imperial Family. Otherwise, I wouldn't have died so miserably back then. I will wait here in the Huaiguang Mountain Range. I hope you can give me an answer soon."
If Dantai Ye had a weakness exploited by Yan Xi, then so did the Imperial Family. Regarding the events of three hundred years ago, the three major imperial families felt like they had a fishbone stuck in their throats. How could they dare say more? They could only let it be.
The Great Elder looked at Chen A'Diao, who was at the height of her power, and then at Yan Xi, who commanded tens of millions of Demonic Spirit corpse soldiers. For a moment, he felt a chill in his heart.
It would be best if these two weren't colluding. If they were…
Therefore, the Undead Sky Lantern must be given to Yan Xi. After all, his core objective was the Undead Sky Lantern. Compared to any benefits Chen A'Diao could offer, surely none could surpass the Undead Sky Lantern.
Perhaps they could win Yan Xi over one more time.
Everything seemed to have settled. Everyone showed relaxed smiles, planning to go home, wash up, and sleep. After all, the Huaiguang Mountain Range was truly difficult to defend. Whether it was the young cultivators lurking in the city's waters or the veteran cultivators guarding the mountain range, all had felt the terrifying pressure from the demon den.
If they felt this way, the ordinary commoners were even more panicked, which was why the hostility had been so intense.
There truly was a grand feast. Except for those involved in construction and military personnel left to handle the aftermath, everyone else returned to the city.
As A'Diao returned to the city, she glanced at the demon den, which was beginning to be sealed, raised an eyebrow, and sneered.
Meanwhile, within the demon den, two beings devoid of any living aura, disguised as Demonic Spirits, had apparently entered the Demonic Spirit headquarters.
The Ministry of Rites was impressive; they took full responsibility for organizing a grand feast that very day. The entire Kyoto was decorated with lanterns and colorful banners, seemingly celebrating the disappearance of the crisis and the return to days of peace and prosperity.
As it was in Kyoto, so it was elsewhere.
Of course, there were victims, but in this world, true empathy was rare.
At that time, people who had been fighting life-and-death battles in the morning were now all returning to their respective homes.
A'Diao also returned to the Chen family residence in the capital. Everyone in the world knew that merits would surely be awarded today, and all eyes were on the Chen family.
And the Chen family? It was still that old residence.
A'Diao, having emerged from her bath, donned a gold and red royal robe, clear water droplets still trickling from her steps. The skin on her ankles was like white jade moistened by snow, as if melting into water. The sash was not yet fully tied, hanging loosely, her waist seemingly boneless. She stood thus by the window, gazing at the splendid and much softer afternoon halo outside, able to see through to the core power and decadence of the entire kingdom with a single glance.
Toilet: "The splendor of human civilization originates from humanity's upward ambition and drive. But once a secure environment is obtained, the inertia of pleasure-seeking naturally arises."
A'Diao: "Why think so much? Others are others, and I am myself."
She and this world could never be spoken of in the same breath.
Since she aimed for a higher future, she could not let herself dissolve into the mundane world.
She never believed that those in power could share joy with the common people – that was for saints. And throughout the millennia of human civilization, how many rulers were saints? And among saints, how many were rulers?
For those in power, calmness and restraint were the most precious qualities.
She smiled, one hand resting on the window, the other slowly and methodically tying the sash.
It was time to go to the Imperial Palace.
In the Tang Song Imperial Palace, guests were as numerous as clouds, and experts even more so. Anyone who had made a contribution to this battle was invited. However, Song Ling and her group had not participated in this battle; it was said they were undergoing arduous training at Lushan, and others found this unsurprising.
But the Imperial Family, on one hand, invited envoys from Bronze Mountain, Wu Mountain, and the two kingdoms for diplomatic purposes.
Internally, they also invited the Chen family.
Except for the old madam, the other members of the Chen family couldn't very well refuse to go; after all, this was a national-level victory banquet.
A'Diao left on her own. The Chen family knew she wouldn't go with them, so they prepared according to the banquet etiquette.
Xu Zhaoyin glanced at Chen Yang, who was constantly looking towards the entrance, and deliberately asked the nearby steward, "Where has the Master gone?"
The steward lowered his head: "The Master suddenly received a report this morning and went to deal with a flood. I'm afraid he's stuck on the road now and won't make it back in time. He has already submitted an apology to the court in advance."
What era was this, still using traffic problems as an excuse?
But Master Chen used it, and it worked every time. Now the entire court knew that Master Chen Ran feared Chen A'Diao like a tigress.
Wherever his daughter went, he fled.
How could Xu Zhaoyin not know about this? She was just saying it for Chen Yang's sake, lest the young boy miss his father after not seeing him repeatedly.
As a result, when Chen Yang heard this, he immediately sighed in relief, patting his chest as if greatly fortunate. "That's great! I can sit with Mother and First Madam."
The old steward: "…"
Xu Zhaoyin and Xie Yuqing exchanged a look, their expressions subtle.
However, Xu Zhaoyin also had the responsibility of educating the children. She glanced at Chen Yang and said lightly, "Such thoughts are wrong. Your father would be very sad if he knew."
Chen Yang: "?"
Xu Zhaoyin: "Put yourself in his shoes. Suppose I hoped that you, Yangyang, would fail an exam and be called by the teacher for remedial lessons, so that I could sit with your mother. Would you be happy?"
Chen Yang was stunned and subconsciously replied: "Well… well… if you and Mother are both happy, then I'm happy too."
If one ignored his handsome little face, contorted in pain like a bitter melon.
Perhaps they would have believed him, but Xie Yuqing and Xu Zhaoyin were both amused.
"It's about time. Let's go."
After Xu Zhaoyin finished speaking, they went to the Imperial Palace.
Half an hour later, the hall was full. Princes, dukes, and high officials were countless, and noble ladies were also numerous.
Important figures from Lie Qin and Nan Jin were also present.
The two Mountain Heads did give face; Tong Huang and Baiyue Mochou were both present. They had been feigning civility with Yu Xuanji, full of schemes, when they heard the attendant announce the arrival of the Chen family,
At that moment, looking at the people seated in the Chen family's section, countless people in the hall couldn't help but glance over. All were cursing inwardly: Damn Chen Ran!
Daoguang Jingci sat at the lower end of the high platform, looking at the Chen family members also seated on the platform opposite her, her gaze meeting Chen Xun's. She lowered her eyes, sipped her water, and thought: The Chen family, now holding a super-rank princely title, higher than a duke, is actually only one step away from the highest imperial rank.
After a while, Dantai Ye arrived. His entourage was neither too large nor too small, his demeanor gentle and measured, truly a proper and flawless monarch. After taking his seat, he spoke some official pleasantries, then asked, "I wonder if Junior Sect Master A'Diao has arrived yet?"
She had.
The doors opened, and Wu Xie, now promoted to the head eunuch, led A'Diao in. A'Diao glanced at him with lowered eyes and said with a smile, "Thank you for leading the way, Lord Wu Xie."
Wu Xie returned the courtesy, "Your Highness is too kind. This way, please."
Wu Xie personally led A'Diao to her seat, but A'Diao walked to the center of the hall to pay her respects.
Dantai Ye narrowed his eyes, personally stepped down from the dais, and, to show closeness, reached out to support A'Diao, saying: "Regarding rewards for merit this time, your contribution is paramount. Have you thought about what reward you would like?"
A'Diao lowered her head. "It was merely my duty; I dare not ask for a reward. But Your Majesty asked me a question before, and actually, I didn't tell you everything at the time."
Dantai Ye suddenly felt a sense of unease but still asked with a smile, "What matter is it?"
"That is, Your Majesty once asked me if I was willing to be with you… My answer at the time was yes, and the words that followed were…"
Holy crap!
Dantai Ye confessed? And A'Diao even answered "yes"?
While everyone was shocked, A'Diao looked up, her face still carrying the shy and timid smile from her earlier inquiry. At this moment, she suddenly struck – fast, ruthless, and precise. The blood-dropper that flew out from her body instantly transformed into a white bone fork; this was its true form. And its true power was truly terrifying, far surpassing the blood-dropper, almost rivaling the power of a sect-protecting treasure like the Eastern Emperor Bell. At least, that's what Yu Xuanji thought at the time. And in that instant, when no one expected it, she struck.
The movement was clean and decisive, like Runtu spearing a badger.
Dantai Ye was the badger she had long since targeted in the melon patch.
A'Diao thrust the fork into Dantai Ye's body, not even giving him a chance to fight back. She directly unleashed the strongest attack she had previously demonstrated – if it could kill three demon kings, it could certainly kill him.
After all, even if Dantai Ye turned the world upside down, he couldn't cultivate his strength to a higher level in such a short time.
His fear of her also stemmed from this.
Thus, he was indeed instantly killed by her. One thrust of the fork sent him flying, impaling him firmly onto the Dragon Throne above.
Blood splattered around, even staining the wine cups of Baiyue Mochou and others.
Daoguang Jingci wiped the blood from her face, frowning in surprise. She sniffed the blood on her fingertips, her brow furrowing even more.
– This was human blood.
A mental power critical hit! A critical hit on the entire audience! And under the live broadcast of the state banquet, people from the three nations also saw this scene. At that moment… A'Diao instantly gained thirty thousand stars of mental power.
Very good, Dantai Ye died a worthy death.
Toilet thought to itself.
Yu Xuanji was shocked at that moment, but his years of cunning and deceit came into play. He judged others by himself; with his temperament, no matter how much he detested the Imperial Family, he wouldn't ruin his own grand plan or bring too great a loss to himself and Lushan.
If he could endure, he would. If he couldn't, he would still control the extent of his outburst to be able to clean up the mess.
If he was like this, A'Diao, who was much more formidable than him, would naturally be even less likely to do such a major thing. So, since she did it, did she have a reason and was she confident?
At this moment, Yu Xuanji and many from Lushan had the fervor of die-hard fans, not thinking A'Diao was wrong at all, but rather feeling she must have a reason. So when the Imperial Family reacted with fury and was about to attack A'Diao, Lushan and many others jumped up, either to confront and attack, or to mediate and speak good words, trying to create room for maneuver.
But others wouldn't give them time, and the Imperial Family didn't even want the truth. Although the Great Elder didn't know why A'Diao would assassinate Dantai Ye, this was a golden opportunity, so he immediately roared: "Chen A'Diao, you dare to kill the Monarch! You truly are a demon king incarnation! Everyone, please join forces to execute this traitor and fight for the safety of our human race! If anyone still aids this traitor, they are equivalent to a traitor of the human race!"
This was a warning to the sycophantic Duanmu and Cao families, and other ducal and marquis households, telling them to get their priorities straight and not court death.
This threat was potent. At that moment, many people were shocked and didn't know what to do; it was impossible for them to fearlessly stand with A'Diao.
Of course, A'Diao didn't need them to take a stand, nor did she even care about Lushan's attitude. After she killed Dantai Ye, she saw that Dantai Ye's body did not leak demonic energy…
Toilet: "Oh no, this isn't his main body! There's no demonic core! It's over, A'Diao, you can't prove his identity!"
The demon den world couldn't record videos; those events couldn't be documented. Even though they knew Dantai Ye was a Human-Demon, there was no proof!
Previously, Toilet knew A'Diao was prepared to kill Dantai Ye, but it also thought his corpse could be used as evidence when he was killed on the spot. But now…
Everything was disrupted. That dog Dantai Ye had clearly been prepared and had switched bodies long ago!
If they had known, they should have killed him back in the Huaiguang Mountain Range.
It was just unknown why A'Diao still waited until the palace banquet…
At the palace banquet, the emperor drank blood. This scene startled even Tong Huang and the others. But whether it was Tong Huang or the experts from the two imperial families, they all reacted under the strong suggestion of the Tang Song Imperial Family's Great Elder. Tong Huang leaped out directly, his aura violent, and summoned the Eastern Emperor Bell, pointing it at A'Diao. "Demon king incarnation, the ultimate enemy of the human race!"
But Baiyue Mochou had exchanged a look with A'Diao and received a voice transmission from her. Startled, her thoughts raced, and she reacted immediately. "Wait, there's something wrong with Dantai Ye's corpse! My Wu Mountain is most skilled in this area. Listen to me, Chen A'Diao, what do you have to say?"
The Wu Mountain Head's intervention was effective. Yu Xuanji glanced at Baiyue Mochou, looked at the clearly real human corpse on the ground, and also lied through his teeth. "That's right, I also see something wrong with the corpse. I fear this Dantai Ye is problematic. Everyone, please wait a moment while we investigate thoroughly."
Baiyue Lingxi, Ling Zan, and others: "???"
Hmm, they could all see you were talking nonsense, but… buying time?
The people of Nan Jin didn't expect Wu Mountain to favor Chen A'Diao so much; this was like stabbing themselves in the lung. Damn Chen A'Diao, having Lushan wasn't enough, she even poached my Nan Jin's sect leader.
The people of Nan Jin and Lie Qin hated A'Diao to the bone. Amidst the clamor, the two camps were about to diverge… Tong Huang and the experts of the three imperial families wanted to forcibly kill A'Diao, but they also knew that if Wu Mountain and Lushan joined forces, coupled with A'Diao's own terror, they would be utterly unable to take her down.
The Great Elder became anxious and immediately sent a message to someone in a hidden area of the palace: Increase the dosage! We can't let this Chen A'Diao escape! She's too great a threat, the future troubles will be endless. She must be killed today!
Unfortunately, he found his voice transmission had been cut off.
Damn it, it's Chen A'Diao!
She doesn't want our old ancestors to revive! She's going to escape!
Just as the Great Elder feared, A'Diao was indeed about to flee, and she even threw out a line, "Dantai Ye, you're really something, leaving a human body here to frame me, thinking I can't find evidence to prove your identity? Just wait, I'll be back…"
Just as she was about to tear open space, some people probably got anxious. Her storage ring suddenly exploded.
The corpses of two lesser demon kings floated out. Driven by their demonic cores, they merged into one, flesh and blood reorganizing, forming a summoning space. Then, a pale hand reached out, and a pale, handsome man appeared just like that.
This was not a human, but a lesser demon king, and one of the 24 lesser demon kings – Gong Shang!
After Gong Shang appeared, demonic energy erupted. The entire Kyoto seemed to be enveloped by such terrifying demonic energy, and the ambient temperature turned bone-chillingly cold. This fearsome lesser demon king turned his head, his handsome cheeks showing faint dragon scales, and said to A'Diao: "A'Diao, you indeed kept your promise, summoning me to the human world, killing this Tang Song Monarch, and even helping me gather these human elites. Today, you and I will go on a killing spree, and this Tang Song nation will be ours."
At this moment, perhaps only Toilet had an epiphany – this was Dantai Ye and Gong Shang's plan. From the very beginning, Dantai Ye never intended to join forces with A'Diao. As for Gong Shang, although he had murderous intent towards Dantai Ye, he also knew how to maximize Dantai Ye's benefits. Regardless of whether Dantai Ye had previously killed Yin Yi and the other for selfish reasons, he would no longer be trusted by the Demon King Palace, so his value had to be completely squeezed out. Therefore, the two, each with their own ulterior motives, collaborated to trap A'Diao.
At least in the matter of killing A'Diao, their interests were aligned.
It was also slander.
Once Gong Shang said this, A'Diao's identity as a demon king incarnation was confirmed, as was her status as a traitor to the human race. Today, someone from the human race would kill A'Diao, and the human race would no longer be able to enhance its strength due to A'Diao's existence.
Not getting bogged down by Dantai Ye's threat, but choosing to use him to eliminate an even greater threat – how venomous! This Gong Shang was formidable indeed, truly worthy of being the foremost among the lesser demon kings.
The effect was also enormous. Everyone present was shaken, and the Chen family, in particular, became the target of many. Chen Yang was not a cultivator and didn't understand the significance. His first reaction was to speak up and argue for A'Diao, "You're talking nonsense! My sister is not…" Xu Zhaoyin's and Xie Yuqing's hands covered his mouth, one on top of the other. As the back of one hand touched the palm of the other, they exchanged a look. Xu Zhaoyin withdrew her hand, calmly looking forward, neither moving nor speaking, just watching everything.
The moment Gong Shang appeared in the human world, Kunlun, inside the Lushan study, frowned. "The Demon King Rebirth Technique. What a scheme."
What was the Demon King Rebirth Technique? Only those like Kunlun, who had slaughtered many demon kings in the first era, knew. It involved using the bodies of other demon kings to establish a contract. Once they were killed, their corpses and demonic cores would combine to become nourishing energy. Under the teleportation formed by the contract, a stronger demon king, originally unable to come to the human world, could be summoned.
This was the Demonic Spirit clan's second method of arrival, aside from the demon dens, generally used by demon king-level experts. However, the cost was too great, and generally, no demon king was willing, so Kunlun had only seen this forbidden technique once. But it was mentioned in the books he had written for A'Diao.
So, why did she still fall for it?
The current situation was not good.
Kunlun propped his furry chin (though he didn't actually have one) on his furry arm. He watched the water mirror in front of him, unmoving, but Xiao Yuanbao saw a teleportation vortex beside his hand.
Clearly, if necessary, this Panda Old Ancestor would go over in an instant.
The situation was on the verge of exploding, killing intent rampant. While everyone was terrified and bewildered, Gong Shang successfully slandered A'Diao. Without waiting for the people of the three imperial families to seize the opportunity to accuse A'Diao, he chose to strike directly!!!
Boom!!
The great battle erupted directly.
The peak combatants, especially experts at the Middle Spirit King realm and above, chose to attack forcefully. However, Gong Shang was very cunning; he alone couldn't handle so many experts. He chose to attack the people from Lushan and Wu Mountain, while letting other masters kill A'Diao.
He wanted to take them all!
A'Diao was immediately surrounded by Tong Huang and others. This fellow Tong Huang's cultivation had advanced, who knows what he consumed, to the point where he was comparable to a Great Spirit King. Moreover, once the Eastern Emperor Bell appeared, space trembled, and it came crashing down directly towards A'Diao's head.
The Eyes of the Yellow Springs opened, and A'Diao directly dodged. Verbally, she explained that she had not colluded with Gong Shang and was framed, and so on.
Others naturally wouldn't believe her. Anyway, they didn't give A'Diao a chance to speak, attacking fiercely, while Gong Shang suppressed Yu Xuanji, Baiyue Mochou, and others.
One person could handle two sect leaders?
This was too terrifying.
Buzz! A huge energy domain and spiritual domain suddenly appeared, directly protecting the others, especially the innocent guests. And A'Diao raised her hand, changing the composition of space, transferring the battleground of the experts to high altitude, avoiding the banquet area below.
Chen Yang and the others looked up and could see high above, amidst turbulent energies, nearly a hundred Radiant Spirit Kings within a vast silver energy field. These were all experts from the three nations.
So many experts, all under A'Diao's control at this moment.
Dual domains, she controlled them simultaneously.
The only one not under her control was Gong Shang, because Gong Shang was stronger than her. But he couldn't kill her in an instant, and to prevent her from escaping, he used others to tie her down while he focused all his efforts on dealing with Wu Mountain and Lushan.
He exploited the internal conflicts among the three nations of the human race, seizing upon their fear of A'Diao. If things went smoothly, today he could eliminate two human sect leaders and A'Diao in one fell swoop, severely crippling the human race's power. Then, with another major demon den offensive, the human race would be finished.
And if he led the Demonic Spirit clan to conquer the human race before the Great Demon King awakened, his karmic luck would reach its peak, far surpassing the Great Demon King's!
Gong Shang's ambition was fully revealed at this moment, yet he also felt a vague, inexplicable unease, especially when he met A'Diao's gaze…
He saw the latter smile.
"Gong Shang, your Demon King Rebirth Technique has a bug, doesn't it? It's actually a splitting technique, much like what we humans secularly call soul separation. You teleported your soul to the human world and injected it into the reorganized bodies of two demon kings, but your original body lost soul control and is inevitably at its weakest. In this state, you naturally wouldn't trust any demon king to protect you. If something happened to your soul in the human world, those demon kings would have every reason to devour your body to evolve and then usurp your position. So you would only hide it, hide it in a place where you thought no one could find it."
"However, you were still found."
As these words were spoken, Gong Shang's expression changed drastically. And at this moment, in the demon den world.
In Gong Shang's secret lair, a secluded space unknown to the other lesser demon kings, Gong Shang's body sat cross-legged, motionless. This enclosed space was surrounded by dense restrictions; anyone approaching would be attacked, but…
Boom!!
It was found, and directly blasted open.
The ones who blasted it were two people.
Generally speaking, not quite human.
Qu Xia'er, in flawless white robes, cold and stunningly beautiful, stood at the entrance, coldly watching Gong Shang's body ahead. Behind her, Qu Jiangnan controlled a qin, its music bewitching the numerous puppet spirit bodies that appeared after the restrictions were triggered, preventing them from approaching to attack.
The two sisters struck, aiming straight for the core. And now, Qu Xia'er wasted no words. Upon seeing Gong Shang's body, she directly raised her hand…
She used her strongest attack, thus revealing an immense corpse qi.
Experts throughout the demon den world sensed it. A dozen or so lesser demon kings were enraged, soaring into the sky and flying towards the location of the two. And no matter how powerful Gong Shang was, his body, without its soul, could not be Qu Xia'er's opponent.
So… his demonic core was shattered.
Pfft!!
The instant Gong Shang's demonic core was shattered, Gong Shang's soul body in the human world, that is, his entire spiritual sea, exploded!
He was never perfectly compatible with this body in the first place. With the explosion of his spiritual sea, this cheap body of his also exploded. And at this moment… A'Diao struck decisively.
Gong Shang also knew A'Diao wanted to kill him. Now, because his demonic core had exploded, his soul body couldn't return to the demon den, so he could only flee in the human world.
No, he couldn't die here!
So he frantically burned this body's essence blood – self-detonation!
The demon king's body, all its energy and flesh, self-detonated, seeking to allow the spiritual body to escape in the explosion.
A massive shockwave was released, its destructive range even reaching the peak of the mid-grade Great Spirit King realm… At that moment, everyone almost thought they would die.
Tong Huang immediately used the Eastern Emperor Bell to expand its protection over the people of Bronze Mountain.
And at that moment, all material particles within the Imperial Palace grounds were instantly reorganized; immense spirituality and energy were drawn out… When the Great Elder saw space distorting over at the forbidden land, he immediately realized A'Diao's scheme and roared, "Stop…"
It was too late.
A'Diao drew out all this energy in one go, especially the energy bodies in the forbidden land that supplied the Dantai Imperial Family experts for their resurrection; she drew it all out. Adding her own mental power – a total of fifty thousand stars of mental power, she drew out forty thousand.
After the outburst… ten spiritual divine weapons merged into one with the white bone fork, and reorganized spatial molecules enveloped the white bone fork, expanding its form hundreds of times. Then, with a swipe of A'Diao's finger.
Go!
Swish… A single strike pierced the firmament, broke through the clouds, and split the light source.
After the strike, the energy shockwave from Gong Shang's self-detonation was cleaved like a water wave… It aimed directly at Gong Shang's spiritual body, which was mixed within, attempting to flee.
No!!
As Gong Shang screamed, the strike pierced it. Severely injured, the spiritual divine weapon stabbed in.
The expanding spiritual body exploded.
Although his true dragon body was in the demon den, when he was truly slain, as a peak species of the Great Demon King lineage, the explosion of his spiritual body also revealed a colossal black dragon celestial phenomenon, like a coiling dragon entering the sea.
It attempted to perish together with them; this enormous black dragon, as it fell, lunged towards the guests below.
In such a state, killing A'Diao was impossible, and killing other experts was also impossible, but it could annihilate the high-end elites of the human race. Many below were the young foundations of the human race.
So…
Just as the enormous black dragon was about to swallow everyone below, Duanmu Biexue covered the eyes of a young girl from her clan. But she saw that on the Chen family's side, no one covered or closed their eyes.
That Chen Xun was even holding a cup, drinking juice.
So calm, calmly watching… the falling black dragon being intercepted and killed by the enormous Yinglong that A'Diao had transformed into.
"Chen A'Diao, you kill me, but you'll also have to sacrifice those two, Qu Xia'er and the other! You can't be considered the winner!!!"
"Idiot! I, Chen A'Diao, never suffer a loss! You think you're worthy of being exchanged for my Master and my great-aunt? Go to hell!"
Nine claws tore through the air, completely shredding the black dragon's spiritual power, and then swallowed it in one gulp.
So ferocious, utterly deranged.
After swallowing it, she even let out an unrestrained dragon roar towards the surroundings.
Unfortunately, the dragon died.
A dragon killed a dragon.
And behind this terrifying dragon-slaying scene, the Dantai Imperial Family's palace was collapsing everywhere, a complete mess.
The Seventh Prince, Dantai Sheng, turned his head and saw that both the forbidden land and the ancestral temple had collapsed.
She did it on purpose.
She absolutely did it on purpose.
To sever the Dantai Imperial Family's foundation, she used Gong Shang to throw the palace into chaos – this was why she didn't act in the Huaiguang Mountain Range, because she wanted to lure Gong Shang to the Imperial Palace. And didn't Gong Shang also want to use this opportunity to severely injure human experts? She catered to his desires and also gave Dantai Ye time to scheme.
Of course, more importantly, Qu Xia'er and Qu Jiangnan needed time. They probably entered the demon den world through the opening of the demon den while everyone was fighting in the Huaiguang Mountain Range. Because Qu Xia'er was not a living being, the Demonic Spirit clan couldn't detect her at all. And Qu Jiangnan could be human or corpse, freely transforming, and could also go together. So they went in and successfully found Gong Shang.
As for how they found him – Gong Shang had once used his own demonic core to connect with Yin Yi to search his memories. And Yin Yi's corpse was in A'Diao's hands. The latter was very cunning; she had dissected Yin Yi's corpse long ago during her period of dormancy after leaving the demon den, extracted the demonic core, and found its connection to Gong Shang.
Because the connection was recent and still fresh, A'Diao gave this demonic core to Qu Xia'er.
The reason for doing so was that Qu Xia'er gave her the inspiration. Just as A'Diao could sense Yan Xi after swallowing half of his original core, Qu Xia'er could similarly sense Gong Shang.
So, she had an excellent plan.
So, they killed Gong Shang together.
They killed a super expert of the Demonic Spirit clan, currently the most powerful and with the most potential to advance to Great Demon King.
While Dantai Sheng's heart was pounding, he saw that the dragon-transformed spiritual body had already returned to A'Diao's body. For a moment, her aura reached its peak, as if she was about to break through to the Spirit King realm, but she suppressed it. She swept her cold gaze across the entire assembly. Seeing this, everyone lowered their heads, even Yu Xuanji.
Too terrifying.
Too frenzied.
She was a devil.
And this gaze was also broadcast live to the three nations… The originally bustling and boiling comment sections and bullet-screen areas fell into dead silence, like a mass grave.
Who would still dare to say she was disloyal, untrustworthy, or unrighteous?
The strong didn't need these.
The victor is king, the loser is a bandit.
Just like what the three imperial families did back then… she was now doing something similar with a different approach.
The Dantai Great Elder and others trembled, basically thinking they were doomed. Chen A'Diao would definitely finish them off, because she had now pulled the rug out from under their Dantai Imperial Family.
People from the other two nations also trembled. Tong Huang's scalp tingled; even holding the world's number one defensive treasure, he felt no sense of security.
The people of Bronze Mountain looked at the people of Wu Mountain, who were now standing tall and straight, their hearts feeling exceptionally subtle – had they chosen the right side? Were we wrong?
However, A'Diao had a characteristic: although she often got what she wanted, she always managed to attract even greater crises. For example… A'Diao's expression suddenly changed slightly, and she looked at a certain spot in disbelief.
No way, was she this unlucky? Or had she underestimated the Dantai Imperial Family? The plan was originally perfect; if an accident occurred…
At this moment, A'Diao's mind was racing.
Just then, a blazing pillar of light shot up into the sky from within the palace.
"The Old Ancestor is about to revive!"
"It's a Great Spirit King realm expert!"
"Could it be Dantai's…"
While everyone was shaken, A'Diao saw a laser beam split off from that blazing pillar of light, shooting straight towards her.
An attack at the peak of the Great Spirit King realm.
Sworn to annihilate her!
And its destructive power was strong enough to annihilate everyone from Lushan and Wu Mountain not far behind her.
As a result, A'Diao didn't move, coldly watching this attack. Then she reached out and clawed at the void. In the space, a clone appeared, holding a person's body, and blocked in the path.
Boom!!!
This attack landed on that person.
Everyone saw it and was collectively shocked.
"It's Dantai Ye!!"
"This is?"
A'Diao coldly watched as Dantai Ye took this blow. The Undead Sky Lantern popped out of his body, protecting his spiritual sea, but his body was severely injured, and monstrous demonic energy leaked out.
This thing was indeed formidable; no wonder Yan Xi wanted to obtain it.
"Demonic energy? Dantai Ye, he…" Everyone seemed to understand, but A'Diao made them understand even more clearly. She said nothing and just did two things.
First, she plunged her fingers into Dantai Ye's abdomen and ripped out his demonic core.
Second, she took out a World Order from his body, a contract-type spatial teleportation object, and sent it into a dimensional space…
The former was irrefutable proof; the latter was to ensure the completion of her and Qu Xia'er's plan.
Kill and retreat, but without the World Order, they would undoubtedly die.
And killing Dantai Ye was imperative. His clone and main body had long been under A'Diao's surveillance.
Toilet suddenly understood. No wonder she wasn't anxious at all. That's right, as long as there was irrefutable proof that Dantai Ye was a Human-Demon, her actions today were justified, and no one could kill her!
And as for Dantai Ye, she could completely monitor him before, so how could she not know that this dog had swapped his clone and main body? She was just playing along with his act.
You act? This old lady acts even better than you.
Dantai Ye, however, smiled bitterly after his shock.
He thought he could soar ninety thousand li among the clouds, but he turned out to be just a chicken in a cage.
He actually chose to be an enemy of such a person? He was simply courting death.
However, this Chen A'Diao would probably find it difficult to escape today. She didn't expect it, did she? She destroyed the Dantai clan's forbidden land, but unexpectedly, the Dantai clan had another place where they hid the bodies of experts. Moreover, these experts were the true core powerhouses of the Dantai clan, belonging to the founding generation, each at the peak of the Great Spirit King realm, in the same circle as Kunlun and the others, very difficult to deal with.
Dantai Ye sneered inwardly, wondering how she would deal with all this.
A cunning rabbit has three burrows. This Dantai Imperial Palace was divided into three sections; the deepest and most forbidden section was where the laser beam had just been fired from.
And now, although the opponent had not fully revived, a huge dharma image appeared, looking down on A'Diao and coldly observing everything. He naturally saw the demonic core, but still attacked!
You see, the Dantai clan, from top to bottom, inherited ruthlessness. How could they care about truth or right and wrong? What they wanted was to eliminate threats and protect their own interests.
So… was A'Diao's effort futile?
But!
At this moment… a vast light appeared on the horizon.
Space tore open.
The person who tore through space from the south was the founder of Wu Mountain, an old woman. From the north, it was the founder of Bronze Mountain, an old man.
Only the person who emerged from the torn space behind A'Diao…
Was a giant panda.
The giant panda's plump figure stood behind A'Diao, making her appear exceptionally delicate by comparison. And this giant panda extended a chubby paw, blocking the attack.
It didn't speak, just gazed faintly at the Dantai Imperial Family's dharma image. The dharma image's expression changed slightly, as if wondering who it was.
Lushan even raised a panda spirit?
The founders of Wu Mountain and Bronze Mountain were also astonished!
Everyone stared dumbfounded at this giant panda…
No, it seemed the people from Lushan were even more surprised.
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