by <unknown>
The young demons' muscles were all bulging, their eyes bloodshot. They were as still as towers.
The mayor gritted his teeth and staggered close with his club. Then he beat the young demons with the stick and yelled, "Why are you not moving? How many heads do you think you can afford to lose if the masters are delayed while they are hunting the Blade of Chaos? Go now!"
Pada!
After the mayor beat them, he fell over due to a loss of balance.
"Mayor!"
The villagers immediately lost their cool. They hurried to help him to his feet.
Those who were timid were already walking to their homes, however reluctantly.
The younger demons who were gnashing their teeth in fury lost their determination, too. Those who had feet stomped on the ground, and those who did not, bashed the earth hard with their tails and squatted, covering their head with their hands.
All the villagers lost their will to resist. They prepared to pack everything up gloomily.
"Wait."
Right then, Jin Xinyue, the saintess of Pantheon of Demons who had been at the center of the high-level demons, suddenly opened her mouth and stopped the villagers.
Her voice sounded very young, but it was sweet like a refreshing spring, making everybody who heard it feel comfortable from their ears to the heart.
The villagers looked at each other in a daze, confused. They sensed that the saintess was different from other Gold Shadow Guardians.
Jin Xinyue glanced over all the villagers warmly as she smiled and said, "The Gold Stamen Liquid is your livelihood. I did not expect that you would offer all of it willingly without any complaint. It is indicative of your loyalty to the Pantheon of Demons.
"Rest assured. We are not so unreasonable as to take your livelihood away just like that.
"Just now, it was only a minor test to determine your loyalty to the Pantheon of Demons.
"Now that you have proved your faithfulness, as a saintess of the Pantheon of Demons, will I simply let you suffer the losses?"
While talking, Jin Xinyue extended her jade-like hand and snapped something silver into the mayor's hand, which turned out to be a glamorous silk bag.
The mayor swallowed hard and opened the bag. He gasped so hard that he almost fell over again.
The mystic rays inside the silk bag illuminated his face.
"The 'Five-Colored Pearl' inside the bag should be three times more valuable than your garden of Ghost Teeth Flowers. If you sell it in the town, you should be able to get through the difficult times," Jin Xinyue said casually.
"Three times!"
The desperation and fury of the villagers immediately turned into ecstasy and gratitude.
"Moreover…" Jin Xinyue's wings slowly stretched out. One of the golden feathers fell softly and flew to the mayor's pocket as if it were alive. "This feather is my badge. When the tax officer in charge of your village comes here, show him the feather and tell him that Princess Xinyue has decreed that all the taxes of the village will be reduced by half in the next three years!"
"Half taxes?"
Many villagers were already jumping to their feet.
"Lastly…"
Jin Xinyue glanced at the healthy, strong demons in the village with delight in her eyes. She then said crisply, "The new call of soldiers is coming soon. A new war between the Blood Demon Sector and the Heaven's Origin Sector is about to commence.
"The war will be the final confrontation between the two Sectors. We will sweep across the Grand Desolate Plateau, break through the Giant Blade Pass, and march all the way to the capital of the Star Glory Federation, conquering all the human beings of the Heaven's Origin Sector!
"Only the bravest, most loyal soldiers are entitled to join the greatest war in the history of the Blood Demon Sector!
"Logically, one or two soldiers will be conscripted from villages such as yours.
"But just now, your loyalty moved me. I will conscript… fifty soldiers from your village!"
Chapter 842: Deep Inside Hundred Desolation Mountain |
Hearing her words, all the chaotic-blood demons could not help it any longer and yelled in excitement.
The disaster turned out to be a bless in surprise. Not only did they receive a high reward, half of their taxes had been waivered, too. Moreover, fifty villagers would be enlisted to defend the glory of the Blood Demon Sector on the battlefield.
Princess Xinyue was so merciful and benevolent. How could they not be grateful and loyal?
"Saintess, we—we can't return your favor even if we die—"
The mayor was crying, unable to control his voice.
The infuriated young demons were so embarrassed that they lowered their head, regretting their stupidity and rashness.
Jin Xinyue smiled and said in an even gentler voice, "I don't want you to die, but I want our enemies, the evil human beings and the sordid believers of Chaos, to be annihilated! Can you do that?"
"Yes. Of course!" the hot-blooded young demons all shouted.
"Long live the saintess!"
"Long live Princess Xinyue!"
"Long live the Pantheon of Demons!"
"Break our enemies, annihilate the evil human beings, and conquer the Heaven's Origin Sector!"
"Obliteration! Rebirth! Immortality!"
Above the garden of the Ghost Teeth Flowers, the fire was still burning furiously, but the temperature there seemed to be lower than around the villagers.
Jin Xinyue looked at the villagers in a smile. There seemed to be both satisfaction and expectation in her eyes. Every villager who made eye contact with her experienced all kinds of hallucinations. They envisioned themselves fighting valiantly in brilliant suits and soaring into a magnificent palace in the high sky among the clouds where they ate, drank, and enjoyed the ultimate pleasure in the world.
All the demons were yelling in frenzy and shaking as if they were having a seizure. Their enthusiasm tore apart the dark night and echoed in the sky.
Jin Xinyue rolled her eyes and glanced over the villagers. Suddenly, she stopped at Li Yao.
Li Yao frowned and secretly cursed.
Although he was also raising his arms and shouting like all the other villagers, he was short of the wholehearted fervor. Therefore, he appeared much calmer than his companions.
Besides, his left eye and left arm were tied up in bandages, which was quite eye-catching.
"Who is that?" Jin Xinyue asked the mayor very curiously.
But Li Yao sensed the coldness of a viper from the seemingly innocent, beautiful eyes.
Li Yao sneered in his heart. The mental devil in his brain bared its sharp fangs and released a lot of bloody streaks that were spreading among his brain cells.
Jin Xinyue was indeed a terrifying demon. After only several words, all the demons here were willing to die for her.
Li Yao did not believe that the poor story that the villagers had made up could fool her.
With a crooked smile, the mayor told her Li Yao's 'identity'.
"Is that so? The best hunter of the village was badly burnt in the forest fire half a month ago and lost his memories?"
Jin Xinyue was smiling even more delightedly. Her eyes were fixated on Li Yao's left eye and left arm, which were covered in bandages.
She observed the bandages so hard that bright golden bugs seemed to be crawling into Li Yao's body.
Li Yao sighed. He could not stop someone from killing themself. Now that the saintess was asking to be killed, he could only fulfil her wish.
Jin Xinyue was merely a demon king, and her subordinates mostly seemed to be demon generals. They were not worth mentioning in Li Yao's eyes.
Although they had 'biochemical beasts' that could boost their combat ability like crystal suits, it was not enough to stop Li Yao from killing anyone he wanted to kill!
After being infected by the Blood Stripe Virus, Li Yao was much more resolute in killing. He had made up his mind that, if Jin Xinyue interrogated him, he would slay the saintess
from the Pantheon of Demons when he found the appropriate timing and position before he ran away in the riot!
Jin Xinyue had no idea that she was about to die.
She was indeed suspicious of Li Yao.
She officially joined the Pantheon of Demons at the age of seven for the saintess training. Saintesses were the sharpest claws and teeth for the Pantheon of Demons. They were a combination of spies, assassins, saboteurs, agents, and interrogators. The first lesson she ever learned was that those who lost their memories were the most suspicions suspects!
Real life was not some fairy tale. What were all the memory losses about?
The smile on Jin Xinyue's face remained unchanged. Her hands were kept in the original place, too. However, she shook her feathers and secretly informed the Gold Shadow Guardians behind him.
The Gold Shadow Guardians were the imperial guards of the Gold Crow Kingdom. They were sort of her private bodyguards, well-trained, obedient, and capable. They immediately dispersed without alarming anyone.
The golden eagles in the sky were hovering in smaller and smaller circles, too. Feathers as broad as banana leaves fell slowly between Jin Xinyue and Li Yao.
At that moment, Jin Xinyue still had no idea what a terrible existence she was planning to deal with.
She was wondering who Li Yao really was. He could not be one of the suspects she was chasing after because he had appeared in the village half a month ago. The timing was not right.
Forget it. Even if he is not related to the Blade of Chaos, he must have secrets that he would rather not tell. Let me take him down first!
Jin Xinyue stepped toward Li Yao.
She did not know that death was only 0.5 seconds away from her.
Li Yao's left eye was burningly hot, and streaks of blood were leaking out of the bandage over it.
Suddenly—
A shriek echoed deep within the Hundred Desolation Mountain. A streak of golden brightness soared into the sky and split into a three-legged bird.
The golden brightness that looked like fireworks made the faces of all Gold Shadow Guardians blanch.
The male demon observed the signal and said earnestly, "Princess, Zuo Shaochong and the rest of them have found the target. They are fighting hard and requesting immediate reinforcements!"
Pondering for a moment, Jin Xinyue looked at Li Yao deeply and waved her hands. "Let's follow up. We must get the item!"
All the Gold Shadow Guardians soared into the sky. The crazy wind that their wings raised almost blew everybody to the ground. Even Li Yao was shaking in the middle of the wind. He was becoming more and more curious.
What item did the remnants of the Blade of Chaos bring exactly that a saintess of the Pantheon of Demons and the princess of the Gold Crow Kingdom needs?
To retrieve the item, she does not even have the time to investigate me, who has apparently caused her attention.
Is it true that the item can 'change the future of the Blood Demon Sector' as Lei Qi said?
Seeing that Jin Xinyue and the dozens of Gold Shadow Guardians had turned into streaks of golden brightness and rushed toward the depths of the Hundred Desolation Mountain, Li Yao made up his mind and dashed into the forest, too, not caring about the surprised villagers.
After half a month of recovery, his wounds had recovered, and he had a basic understanding of the Blood Demon Sector now. There was no need to keep staying here any longer.
Besides, Jin Xinyue had grown suspicious of him. If he lingered in that place, he might have brought unexpected disaster to the Dry Leaf Village.
Li Yao was rather curious about the organization named 'Blade of Chaos'. He did not know how large the organization was and whether or not it had really been suppressed, but as long as the organization was not entirely dead yet, it could potentially stir trouble behind the high-level demons during the head-on clash between the Blood Demon Sector and the Heaven's Origin Sector. If so, the pressure on the Heaven's Origin Sector would be more or less relieved.
With that in mind, it was necessary to get in touch with the Blade of Chaos and help them solve the problem at hand.
Besides, Li Yao was rather interested in the secret technique of the Blade of Chaos that allowed its members to freely change into different forms of demons. Such a secret practically overturned all his knowledge about the demon race.
In the Hundred Desolation Mountain, there were nothing but hills, ravines, and swamps. It was impossible to find a road.
Jin Xinyue and the other demons all had wings. They could fly in midair and ignore the roughness of the mountain.
Although Li Yao had flying swords and crystal suits, too, they had to be kept a secret right now. He could not fly into the sky on one of the flying swords blatantly.
Therefore, he could only summon Black Wing in secret and slide just above the trees while making sure that his presence was not exposed. Naturally, he was much slower than Jin Xinyue.
When he approached the battlefield filled the stink of blood and noises of fighting, he was already several hundred kilometers into the Hundred Desolation Mountain. Giant trees almost a thousand meters high were everywhere amid the endless ridges. The crowns of the trees were so overwhelmingly huge that nearly all the sunlight was blocked.
Li Yao stowed away Black Wing quietly. Like a giant boa covered in mud, he slithered without making a sound among the bushes with the strength of his muscles.
In front of him, the trees had almost all collapsed, leaving an empty area.
Hundreds of demons, apparently on two sides, were confronting each other.
One side consisted of the shining, unbelievably elegant members of the Gold Crow Kingdom.
The other side was a mishmash of miscellaneous species. They were all wearing ragged soft armor, and they were exhausted and heavily wounded.
An old demon who had white hear and a giant turtle shell on his back that had grown long, crimson fur panted and yelled, "Jin Xinyue, kill me if you want to, but I will not give it to you!"
He looked like a turtle man who stood on his feet.
Jin Xinyue was shrouded in an entirely different air from when she was in the Dry Leaf Village. Her sweet and beautiful face resembling that of a young girl was brimming with the malicious smile, reminiscent of a cat that had caught a rat. She said unhurriedly, "Ning Zhongze, honestly speaking, although you are one of the four elders of the Blade of Chaos, I'm not very interested in you.
"In my opinion, the Blade of Chaos is just a bunch of nobodies. All the elders and deacons of yours are jesters who have been making a fool of yourselves. You used to be monkeys pretending that you were wearing a crown, and now you are no better than stray dogs.
"It's not unnegotiable if you want me to let go of you.
"But I'm really curious about one thing. What item have you found that makes 'Elder Nether Spring' hunt after you so crazily?
"In fact, in my opinion, with the miserable, devastated situation that the Blade of Chaos is in right now, you will not be able to make the best use of the item whatever effects it has. Why don't you give it to me? As a reward, I'll spare your lives. How does that sound?
"You all know that Elder Nether Spring and my father, Jin Tuyi, are the most hostile two among the twelve demon emperors. The two of them have been fighting for the post of the commander-in-chief of the coalition army of demons and are on the verge of an open fight.
"Therefore, I only wish for Elder Nether Spring to die sooner!
"If you really know a big secret about Elder Nether Spring, why don't you give it to me and let me deal with him? Isn't that a much better option?"
Chapter 843: Incoming Nether Springs |
Ning Zhongze, one of the four elders of the Blade of Chaos, smiled bitterly and shook his head. "Jin Xinyue, you don't know the value of the item at all. It can possibly reveal a great secret between the Blood Demon Sector and the Heaven's Origin Sector, or even between the entire demon race and human beings! You and Elder Nether Spring are just jackals of
the same lair biting each other. If I give the item to you, it is very likely that you will make a deal with Elder Nether Spring!
"Besides, everybody knows that Jin Xinyue is the most cunning and ruthless one of all the saintesses of the Pantheon of Demons. There is no telling how many brothers of the Blade of Chaos have been killed by your seemingly innocent smiling face!
"Right now, you don't know where the item is hidden. That's why you are pretending to negotiate with us. I'm afraid that we will be killed immediately after we bring the item out, won't we?"
The sweet smile on Jin Xinyue's face remained unchanged, but the brightness deep inside her eyes was getting colder and colder. The two entirely opposite airs mixed with each other and gave a creepy feeling.
She continued smiling as she said, "No wonder your organization entrusted the item to you. Your tongue is harder than your turtle shell!
"But I wonder, after I shatter your turtle shell and pluck the pieces off your body, will your tongue be as tough as it is right now?"
The trees nearby all began glowing because dozens of eagles had landed on the top of the trees. The scorching heat that they released illuminated the forest as if it were an inferno.
The Gold Shadow Guardians grinned hideously and drew close to the remnants of the Blade of Chaos.
Holding her arms, Jin Xinyue observed with great interest.
Li Yao narrowed his eyes. Bloody strains seemed to be extending into his heart along his veins from the depths his brain. His heart was beating faster and faster, and a weird strength was released.
His withered left arm continued expanding. The thick bandages were not enough to block the unstoppable strength that was spreading out.
Li Yao locked onto the back of Jin Xinyue's head precisely. There was only a distance of ten meters between them.
Three seconds!
In the intense forest, a fierce battle between the Gold Shadow Guardians and the Blade of Chaos was about to begin, and Li Yao would perform an assault the moment the battle began.
With his terrifying Cultivation right now, when he was determined to kill a demon, even one of the twelve demon emperors of the Blood Demon Sector might not be able to stop him.
