King of Ten Thousand Years

’That thing... it actually slept with the Black Feather Great Demon’s favorite concubine?’

Not far away, Luo Tian was also dumbfounded.

No wonder this year’s Beast Tide had so many Demon Birds.

And no wonder the Black Feather Great Demon was attacking with such crazed, reckless abandon.

Any normal man whose woman had been slept with wouldn’t be much more rational than the Black Feather Great Demon.

”Er... I slept with over a hundred beautiful female birds, but the Black Feather Great Demon’s favorite concubine had the most... unique charm.”

The Crow muttered under its breath, a wistful look on its face as if reminiscing about something pleasant.

”...”

Luo Tian’s mind was in chaos. Learning this ”truth,” he found it hard to even describe the Crow’s talent for causing trouble.

”Luo Tian, you bastard! Take this Crow back! I... I want a refund!”

Yue Jing snapped back to his senses, his eyes bloodshot and his face contorted with rage.

’This Crow must be some kind of cursed object that Luo Tian used to screw me over!’

If the situation weren’t so critical, he would have loved nothing more than to flay them both alive to vent his fury.

WHOOSH!

Yue Jing didn’t dare to linger for another second. He flung the Crow away and vanished into an afterimage, fleeing deeper into the Battle Castle.

”Don’t get too close to me!”

Luo Tian also dodged the Crow, searching for cover within the Battle Castle.

CRACK-BOOM!

The fortress walls crumbled and defensive structures collapsed as the Black Feather Great Demon charged in, seemingly unstoppable.

”Foul beast, die!”

Suddenly, a voice like rolling thunder echoed across the heavens.

A middle-aged man in dark robes appeared atop the Battle Castle, deep blue currents of energy swirling around him, roiling the very clouds in the sky.

”Vice Manor Master Yue!”

The Mentors and disciples of the Sun Chasing Holy Mansion cried out in joyful surprise.

”Uncle!”

Yue Jing looked as if he had seen his savior, a wave of relief washing over him.

The Vice Manor Master’s robes whipped in the wind as he unleashed a torrent of immense, deep-blue palm-light attacks. They crashed against the Black Feather Great Demon like endless waves upon a shore.

The terrifying power and pressure were so suffocating that none of the Martial Artists present dared to approach, not even the Spirit Level Martial Artists.

BAM! BAM! CRACK!

Suppressed by the Vice Manor Master’s Palm Force, the Black Feather Great Demon was unable to advance another inch. A hint of fear flashed in its sharp eyes.

Soon after.

With many other Spirit Level Martial Artists joining the fray, they finally managed to push back the army of Demon Birds, led by the Black Feather Great Demon, by several hundred meters.

PHEW!

Throughout the Battle Castle, countless Martial Artists breathed a collective sigh of relief.

However, the Black Feather Great Demon still lingered outside the Battle Castle, its hateful and furious gaze fixed on the fortress below.

”Send the distress signal.”

Seeing this, Vice Manor Master Yue frowned slightly and gave the order.

The Black Feather Great Demon was clearly not ready to give up. It would surely regroup for another attack, possibly with reinforcements.

Sure enough, half an hour later... another massive wave of Demon Beasts surged out of the Celestial Extreme Mountain Range, this time consisting mostly of land-based beasts.

Suddenly!

The horde of Demon Beasts before the Battle Castle suddenly began to tremble and prostrate themselves, parting to form a clear path.

THUD! THUD! THUD! THUD!

A two-headed lizard covered in green scales, standing two meters tall and over ten meters long, stomped forward, leaving massive, crater-like footprints in the ground.

Vicious light glinted in the four eyes on its two heads as it radiated the domineering aura of an overlord that shook the entire battlefield.

PSSSHH!

The two-headed lizard spat a stream of green venom, instantly corroding a hole through the several-meter-thick wall.

A few nearby Martial Artists were splashed by the venom and instantly melted into puddles of blood and gore.

”My God! It’s the Green Poisonous Two-headed Lizard!”

”That’s a Great Demon on the same level as the Wuyu Demon King! It might even be more terrifying!”

All the Martial Artists present gasped in horror.

The expressions of Vice Manor Master Yue and the other higher-ups from the Holy Mansion turned grim.

The Wuyu Demon King was the ruler of the flying beasts, while the Green Poisonous Two-headed Lizard was the overlord of the land beasts.

The two were not known to be on friendly terms.

’But now, the two Great Demons are actually attacking together?’

Fortunately, Vice Manor Master Yue had already sent the distress signal, and powerful Spirit Level Martial Artists were arriving one after another as reinforcements.

”Activate the Array!”

Vice Manor Master Yue commanded.

BZZZZZ!

A massive, pale red membrane of light flared to life, enveloping the entire Battle Castle.

At the same time.

The Black Feather Great Demon and the Green Poisonous Two-headed Lizard led the vast army of the Beast Tide in a frenzied assault on the Battle Castle.

Vice Manor Master Yue took on the highly mobile Black Feather Great Demon.

The other Elder-level Spirit Sea Realm experts and the powerful reinforcements used the Array’s power to hold off the Green Poisonous Two-headed Lizard’s assault.

On the fortress wall, in a corner near a collapsed structure.

”Ugly Bird! Did you do something else? The Green Poisonous Two-headed Lizard isn’t a bird.”

Luo Tian demanded, his expression dark.

The Green Poisonous Two-headed Lizard was a land beast; it had nothing to do with the hundred-odd female birds the Crow had slept with.

”After I slept with some beautiful birds, I took a stroll deep in the Celestial Extreme Mountain Range and just happened to pick something up.”

The Crow said evasively, a look of pure innocence on its face.

’Just happened to pick something up?’

The corner of Luo Tian’s mouth twitched. ’This Ugly Bird probably stole some incredible treasure from the Celestial Extreme Mountain Range. Otherwise, a Great Demon on the level of the Green Poisonous Two-headed Lizard wouldn’t have shown up personally.’

’The aura from that treasure must be what’s causing all of them, birds and beasts alike, to attack relentlessly.’

’Sleeping with the birds was probably just a secondary reason, explaining why there are more flying beasts than in a typical Beast Tide.’

”Tell me the truth! What did you steal?”

Luo Tian demanded.

”Kid... I got that with my own skills. Don’t you even think about getting any ideas!”

The Crow’s expression changed, suddenly wary.

Luo Tian sneered. ’This Ugly Bird is being so evasive, making up all these excuses. In the end, it just wants to keep the stolen treasure for itself.’

”Get back in.”

Seeing that no one was watching, Luo Tian focused his mind. An invisible power surged from the Celestial Book in his consciousness.

WHOOSH!

The Crow dissolved into a black mist that shot into Luo Tian’s body and vanished.

At that very moment.

The two rampaging Great Demons, along with several Spirit Level Demon Beasts, suddenly faltered in their attacks.

No one else noticed this small detail.

But Luo Tian saw it with perfect clarity.

Over the next half-hour.

Vice Manor Master Yue and the others discovered that for the first time, the Beast Tide’s assault had begun to weaken.

The two Great Demons lingered near the Battle Castle for a long time, their expressions full of reluctance, before finally ceasing their attack and retreating several miles away.

’Just as I thought! By recalling the Crow into the Celestial Book, the aura of the item attracting the Demon Beasts has been shielded.’

Luo Tian nodded to himself.

Now.

Although a large-scale Beast Tide still raged around the Battle Castle, the immediate pressure of an impending slaughter had lifted.

Luo Tian returned to the front lines, taking the initiative to slay Demon Beasts, hone his Martial Skills, and earn Contribution Points.

After a good while, Yue Jing cautiously approached the fortress wall.

”Where is that Crow?”

Yue Jing scanned his surroundings, terrified that the walking disaster would pop out from some corner and bring calamity down on his head.

That Crow had left him traumatized.

”It flew off. A cursed thing like that is better off as far away as possible.”

Luo Tian said calmly.

Yue Jing heaved a long sigh of relief. He then resumed his stern, imposing demeanor and began directing the defensive operations in his sector.

...

「That evening.」

Deep within the Battle Castle, inside a great hall.

”Reporting to the Vice Manor Master and all the lords, we have identified the cause of the Beast Tide’s premature outbreak.”

A ghostly figure in black robes knelt on one knee.

”Oh? You’ve finally found the cause.”

A smile touched Vice Manor Master Yue’s lips.

”Well, spit it out!”

A nearby Holy Mansion Elder said impatiently.

”According to our investigation, a ’Demon Emperor Bone’ was stolen from within the Celestial Extreme Mountain Range. This enraged the ’Black Wind Demon King,’ who then triggered the Beast Tide’s premature eruption.”

The man in black replied quickly.

”A Demon Emperor Bone!”

Inside the hall, several important figures from the Azure Cloud Kingdom cried out in shock.

The Celestial Extreme Mountain Range stretched across more than half the continent, and the Demon Beasts within numbered in the hundreds of millions.

Within this vast, endless mountain range lived a few ”Demon Kings” who commanded all other demons and were the true rulers of the Celestial Extreme Mountain Range.

The weakest of these Demon Kings had a Cultivation at the Earth Element Realm. Each of them possessed a piece of a ”Demon Emperor Bone,” which was what allowed them to proclaim themselves as Demon Kings and command their countless Demon Beast subjects.

”According to the agreement between humanity and the great Demon Kings, Earth Level Demon Beasts are forbidden from entering human territory, and the same rule applies to human Earth Element Realm experts.”

The white-haired elder, Nangong Yu’s grandfather, suddenly spoke.

”As it happens, both the ’Black Feather Great Demon’ and the ’Green Poisonous Two-headed Lizard’ that attacked us today are subordinates of the ’Black Wind Demon King.’”

At these words, a deathly silence fell over the hall. Fear was visible on the faces of some of the Martial Artists.

With the Black Wind Demon King’s terrifying power, destroying a single Azure Cloud Kingdom would be easy; even wiping out several neighboring kingdoms wouldn’t be difficult.

Fortunately, the agreement between humanity and the major Demon Kings forbade Earth Level experts from invading each other’s territories.

”Nangong Elder’s analysis is correct,” Vice Manor Master Yue nodded.

”However, since this matter involves a ’Demon Emperor Bone,’ it is beyond what we at our level can handle. We must report this to the Mansion Master, as well as the Monarch.”

Vice Manor Master Yue said gravely.

The Demon Emperor Bone came from an Ancient Demon Emperor who lived hundreds of thousands of years ago.

After this Demon Emperor fell, his bones were scattered. For any Demon Beast, obtaining even a single piece of the Demon Emperor Bone was a world-shaking opportunity.

The Demon Kings who controlled a ”Demon Emperor Bone” possessed monstrous power, capable of annihilating cities and kingdoms with ease.

Of course, a Demon Emperor Bone was useless for the cultivation of ordinary human Martial Artists, unless it was used to forge powerful Divine Soldiers.