When they finally realized who Qingyi truly was, whispers began to spread.
They started with the high-ranking elders who had followed Tianjin there and, by word of mouth, trickled down through the ranks until they reached the ears of even the most menial laborers.
In a matter of moments, the expressions of everyone present shifted.
The Dragon God of Corruption. Slayer of Celestial Emperors. A monster capable of single-handedly taking on hundreds of enemies at the same cultivation realm.
He had been a true terror throughout the central region, no less than the Heavenly Demon himself.
The moment the elders—especially those from the faction opposed to Qingyi’s presence—began discussing the matter and "accidentally" let certain words slip to the ears of the mon servants, the news spread like wildfire.
Some gazed at Qingyi with hope shining in their eyes. Others were overe by fear. Some even bowed their heads in silent reverence.
Every pair of eyes turned toward Qingyi, Qianyao, and Rou’er with a different gleam.
Still, fortunately, most of them maintained absolute trust in Tianjin.
He had been their Lord for hundreds of thousands of years. It was he who had dealt the final blow to the Dragon God of Corruption. He was the main guide of the current Orthodox Path.
For the vast majority of ordinary cultivators, Tianjin’s words were like the decree of a god.
If he said Qingyi was good, then Qingyi was good.
Of course, as the news spread, it wasn’t long before the demons infiltrating the alliance began sending urgent messages to their masters.
***
In a black castle vast as a moon, its depths harboring many ancient horrors, a roar of pure rage tore through the silence of the corridors.
"DAMN YOU!"
The entire castle shook to its very foundations. On the heels of the roar came a piercing scream laden with utter despair.
Blood stained the black floor of the throne room.
Yet another demon corpse collapsed heavily beside the dozens already scattered across the ground, another victim of the Heavenly Demon’s uncontrollable fury.
Before a throne forged of skulls, bones, and black steel, a man stood tall and imposing.
Black horns rose gloriously above his head, his skin the ashen gray of volcanic soot, his eyes burning a deep blood-red.
Standing nearly three meters tall, his normally handsome and posed features now contorted by pure fury, he truly resembled a bloodthirsty demon in his most brutal form.
"That damned Long Qingyi... hahahaha!"
With every thunderous laugh from the Heavenly Demon, his castle crumbled a little more.
Entire towers toppled in the distance, cascades of black stone crashing down amid deafening roars.
Gravity itself seemed on the verge of collapsing in on itself around him, the dense, oppressive air crushing anything foolish enough to breathe.
He hadn’t even lifted a finger.
The mere timbre of his voice had been enough to cause such devastation and, with ease, snuff out the lives of tens of thousands of his most loyal servants.
"My brother, control yourself!"
A new roar echoed through the hall, acpanied by an aura no less powerful than that of the Heavenly Demon.
Among the seventy-two demons, he was the second most powerful: the Demon of Eternal Slaughter.
Well, second in theory.
In practice, in terms of raw power, he was considerably stronger than his brother. But the Heavenly Demon possessed countless tricks at his disposal.
His power went far beyond mere strength.
The Demon of Eternal Slaughter was a towering figure with blood-red skin and a body that was part human, part goat.
On his back he bore a serrated sword so enormous that it dragged along the floor, even though he himself stood over four meters tall.
The Heavenly Demon stopped laughing and turned toward his brother with icy eyes.
"What do you want?" he asked, his voice as cold as sharp steel.
"I want to know since when my brother has been so desperate over a little dragon who’s barely out of diapers. Will I have to knock out your teeth to make you see some shame?"
"The other seventy Demon Lords will be here soon. Don’t think they won’t pounce on you at the slightest sign of weakness. And if they don’t, I’ll do it myself. The position of Emperor of the demon race is highly coveted."
At those words, the Heavenly Demon fell silent.
His brother was right.
Slowly, he turned back toward his throne.
Beside it, motionless as a statue carved from obsidian, a faceless demon woman stood in silence—the most powerful Celestial Empress under his mand.
"I want you to make an announcement. Tell everyone, publicly. I, the Heavenly Demon, already possess everything necessary to resurrect the Divine Sword Fairy."
"Exactly one year from today, the ritual to resurrect her will begin. Upon its success, I will take her as my concubine—her, and that cursed sword of hers too."
"Make sure the news reaches those hypocritical pigs of the Celestial Orthodox Martial Alliance. The consummation of our marriage will be public! Everyone is invited to e and watch!"
A disgusting laugh, laden with lust, escaped the Heavenly Demon’s lips after those words.
"HAHAHA! You really are a sick and crazy bastard, brother. To forcibly take the Divine Sword Fairy at a public event? Hahahaha!" the Demon of Eternal Slaughter declared, barely containing his own maniacal laughter.
"This will pletely shatter the morale of those damned Orthodox. Very well, I’ll want to see this with my own eyes."
To him, that plan was already as good as acplished.
The only realistic way to wrest the Divine Sword Fairy from there would be through a large-scale war, but the Orthodox had not yet fully recovered from the damage inflicted by the Dragon God of Corruption.
They wouldn’t risk a war in their current state.
And without a war, it was impossible to remove her from there. Not without the rebirth of another expert on par with the Celestial Space Emperor—who had been killed by Long Wujin.
That, of course, was impossible.
How could such a powerful space master emerge again in this era?
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