Chapter 69: Demon Lord (14)

Rumors had long spread in the Demon Realm that the Demon Lord had lost his mind after cultivating the Heavenly Demon Sacrificial Codex with his half-blood Heavenly Demon lineage.

It seemed those rumors weren’t entirely false.

The middle-aged scholar’s gaze grew even more cautious as he raised his voice. “Today, King Jinhuang—”

Huai You Nong, however, had no patience for his noise. He tossed the troublesome child in his grasp into Liu Sha’s arms, then swung his whip toward the army below.

The whip slithered through the air like a living serpent, its scales rising as it extended. In the blink of an eye, it lashed out at the middle-aged scholar, the tip slicing a deep wound across his face.

Had he reacted a moment slower, his skull might have been split open.

The scholar, who prided himself on his cultivation, staggered back in disgrace, tumbling into the golden carriage and landing at King Jinhuang’s feet.

Sensing Jinhuang’s attempt to back away, the scholar shot him a subtle but warning glare.

“Remember what you must do.”

Under that displeased gaze, the lavishly dressed King Jinhuang visibly shrank, as if hearing past scoldings, and obediently remained still.

Huai You Nong had no interest in wasting time.

He didn’t even spare the rebellious demon generals or their countless soldiers a glance. The only thing that intrigued him was the supposed Heavenly Demon bloodline that had suddenly appeared.

As he had said before—he had devoured the last of the Heavenly Demon lineage himself.

So was this one real or fake?

Huai You Nong hoped it was real. His Heavenly Demon Sacrificial Codex had reached a bottleneck, and if he could consume another Heavenly Demon, he might finally make progress.

Without hesitation, he shot down from the city gate, shattering the dazzling golden carriage with a single strike, reducing it and the surrounding area to dust.

“Come out and let me see if you’re worth eating.”

Amidst the flying golden debris, a massive beast burst forth.

Its appearance was savage, its face covered in thick bronze-like armor, with the same plating on its back and limbs, giving it a heavy, imposing presence. Beyond that—red fur, golden eyes—a textbook example of a pure-blooded Heavenly Demon.

Neither as grotesque as a Cave Green-Armored Beast nor as soft and furry as Huai You Nong’s own true form.

“Good. Very good.”

Huai You Nong cracked his whip down hard, striking the beast’s sturdy back and splitting its armor with ease.

The scholar retreated to the side, clutching his chest as he shouted, “Generals, what are you waiting for? Attack!”

At his command, the demon generals swiftly led their elite soldiers to surround both Huai You Nong and King Jinhuang.

“You think we’re just going to stand here and die?!”

The Demon Lord’s arrival had reinvigorated his forces. Encouraged, Law Protector Luo Ye leaped from the city walls, his silk blades gleaming.

His weapons had already harvested countless lives that day, and as he approached, many soldiers instinctively recoiled.

“No one disturbs the Demon Lord.”

Luo Ye grinned wickedly. A single flick of his silk blades, and another wave of soldiers collapsed in a spray of blood.

“Drums!” one of the demon generals roared.

The Earth-Shaking Drums pounded faster. Green light pulsed across the soldiers’ bodies, boosting their strength and driving them into a frenzy.

On the city walls, the Second Elder rang his bell. The fallen soldiers stirred, their corpses rising to block the advancing enemy, forming an endless, undead barricade.

Amid the battlefield, a circular space remained untouched—no one dared to step too close to Huai You Nong and King Jinhuang.

Huai You Nong paid no heed to the broader battle. He simply swung his whip again and again, carving deep wounds into the Heavenly Demon Beast.

He didn’t use his powerful Heavenly Demon Sacrificial Codex. He only used his whip, as if treating the so-called “pure-blooded” Heavenly Demon like a disobedient beast, intent on humiliating it.

At least, that’s how the watching soldiers perceived it.

The Heavenly Demon Beast’s fierce roars soon turned into cries of pain. Fear flickered in its golden eyes as it cowered from Huai You Nong’s murderous aura.

Then, in the middle of the battlefield, it tried to run.

Huai You Nong sighed in disappointment, wrapping his whip around his hand. “So weak. Even those in the Demon Palace before were stronger than this.”

“A Heavenly Demon raised to be more useless than a wild beast. The only thing it’s good for… is being eaten.”

With that, he coiled his whip around the beast’s throat and yanked it to the ground.

To the horror of the onlookers, Huai You Nong reached down and tore its head open with his bare hands.

Blood gushed, soaking his exposed chest and indifferent face.

A Heavenly Demon’s body contained more than just flesh and blood—it held a core inner pill, the true treasure that could enhance a demon’s bloodline.

Huai You Nong withdrew his hand, about to absorb the inner pill. But then, as if recalling something, he hesitated. Instead of consuming it, he stored it away, merely refining the beast’s body with his demonic energy to extract its essence.

No one dared to approach, so they could only watch as the Demon Lord devoured the Heavenly Demon whole.

The once-mighty King Jinhuang had been reduced to nothing so swiftly that many soldiers stood in stunned silence. Yet, surprisingly, they did not scatter. Instead, they regrouped and retreated in an orderly manner, proving their discipline.

With the most important matter handled, Huai You Nong returned to the city walls and issued a simple command to the protectors and elders:

“Go. Kill them.”

It was obvious whom he meant—the rebellious demon generals.

With him standing guard, none of his forces hesitated any longer. They charged into battle, slaughtering the traitors without restraint.

Meanwhile, Huai You Nong approached Liu Sha and coldly stared at the child in his arms—an exact replica of his own face.

After a moment, he abruptly reached out and shoved something into the child’s mouth.

It was the Heavenly Demon’s inner pill.

A lazy, mischievous brat like this—if he didn’t do something, who knew when she would ever grow as strong as him?

She was used to being fed. Feeling something in her mouth, she instinctively chewed twice and swallowed.

Sweet. Like candy.

She hadn’t eaten anything in the closed-off cave for a while, and the moment the “candy” melted on her tongue, her hunger flared up.

She immediately raised both hands and demanded, “I’m hungry! I want food!”

Huai You Nong recalled all the trouble she had caused, his expression darkening as he considered giving her a beating right then and there.

Liusha glanced at his hair and complexion, then carefully suggested, “Demon Lord, you’ve had a long day. Why not take the young master back to rest first? Leave the cleanup to me.”

With the Demon Lord having decisively slain the rebel leader, King Jinhwang, the rebels’ morale would surely crumble, and they wouldn’t be able to hold out much longer.

Huai You Nong decided to return to his chambers immediately—to discipline the child.

Just then, the drums below the city walls thundered once more. The demonic generals and soldiers were still fighting bravely, and several generals were even flushed with excitement.

The middle-aged scholar who had been standing atop the golden chariot was now among the demonic generals, his face filled with ecstatic joy as he shouted, “The Demon Lord is dying! The Demon Lord is dying! The Demon Lord is dying!”

“Demon Lord, you must be paralyzed by now, aren’t you? Hahaha!”

Huai You Nong: “……”

What was he talking about?

The middle-aged scholar, radiating the confidence of someone who believed he had everything under control, sneered, “Demon Lord, you’ve always looked down on us like ants. Did you ever expect to die at our hands?”

Turning to the demonic generals, he bellowed, “There’s no need to fear! He has absorbed the Heavenly Demon Beast’s body, and the Devourer Gu sealed within its inner core will destroy his Heavenly Demon Sacrificial Codex, preventing him from using demonic energy! This is the perfect time to kill Huai You Nong!”

Inner core. Devourer Gu.

Huai You Nong’s face remained blank as he slowly turned his gaze to Qian, who had just swallowed the inner core.

Qian blinked her eyes and mumbled, “I’m hungry.”

The middle-aged scholar had schemed for years, raising that useless Heavenly Demon for over a decade just to deploy it today.

Yes, King Jinhwang had only been a ruse—he was nothing more than a poisoned offering of blood and flesh!

What the scholar could never have foreseen was that the cold-blooded Demon Lord wouldn’t consume the precious Heavenly Demon inner core himself but would instead give it to a lazy child.

Still immersed in his triumph, the scholar continued to incite the demonic generals.

Suddenly, a massive surge of black mist rose from the city walls. The demonic energy coalesced into terrifying shadows, blotting out the dark clouds overhead as they descended upon the rebel forces below.

Anyone touched by the demonic mist was instantly dissolved into a pool of blood. Even some of the Demon Palace’s own soldiers, who failed to retreat in time, were not spared by this indiscriminate destruction.

This was the Demon Lord’s most fearsome power—the Heavenly Demon Sacrificial Codex!

“What’s happening?! You said Huai You Nong couldn’t use demonic energy anymore—that he couldn’t use the Heavenly Demon Sacrificial Codex!”

“You bastard! You lied to us!”

The battlefield instantly turned into a river of blood. As the powerful demonic generals scrambled to escape, they finally recalled the legendary carnage from when the new Demon Lord first ascended the throne.

Huai You Nong stood atop the city walls, his robes billowing in the wind. Behind him loomed an endless abyss of shadow, while in front of him stretched a vast, blood-drenched battlefield. The walls fell into complete silence.

At that moment, no one paid attention to his appearance or attire—only to the suffocating bloodlust and the nightmarish scene before them.

For many present, this was the first time witnessing the Demon Lord’s use of the Heavenly Demon Sacrificial Codex.

Only now did they realize how foolish it was to provoke such a beast before confirming that it had truly lost all its power.

The middle-aged scholar was in utter disbelief. Half of his body had been melted away, leaving him sprawled atop a pile of debris.

Still clutching onto his denial, he was dragged by Luo Ye’s silk threads and thrown before Huai You Nong.

Barefoot, Huai You Nong strode through the pool of his melting blood and stepped on his face.

“The Devourer Gu. What’s going on?”

The scholar’s bloodshot eyes struggled to look up, meeting the Demon Lord’s chilling golden gaze, hidden within the shadows.

His body trembled with madness as he shrieked, “Impossible! Impossible! How could you be so lucky?! You evaded it last time—how are you still alive now?!”

“My Devourer Gu came from the ancient Heavenly Demon secret realm! I spent so much effort, and only managed to cultivate two! Even the most powerful ancient Heavenly Demons would have been consumed by them—how can you be unscathed?!”

“No! You must be dying right now! Hahaha! My lord, my lady, I have avenged you!”

He had already descended into the delirium of his final moments.

Huai You Nong had no interest in knowing which unfortunate soul he was babbling about—all he heard was ancient Heavenly Demon secret realm.

The ancient Heavenly Demon secret realm had been the last of its kind, and it collapsed over a decade ago. Anything that had been brought out of it was bound to be strange and unpredictable.

Unable to suppress his fury, Huai You Nong stomped down hard.

Crack.

Then, without another glance, he turned and ordered Liusha—who stood in the corner holding the child—“Take her to the healer.”

Without waiting for a response, he strode away toward his chambers.

The moment he stepped into the empty palace, Huai You Nong’s steps faltered, and he coughed up a mouthful of blood.

His battle with King Jinhwang had been conducted entirely in human form, using only a whip—not out of arrogance, but because the Heavenly Demon Sacrificial Codex had suffered a backlash when his seclusion was interrupted. To prevent further deterioration, he had been forced to fight in that manner.

The weaker he was, the more he had to maintain the illusion of strength—lest the weak, like a swarm of ants, sensed an opportunity to devour him whole.

Still, he had failed to control his rage.

And worse, the words of the middle-aged scholar had planted a seed of doubt in everyone’s hearts. If he didn’t respond with overwhelming force to reassert his dominance, future troubles would only multiply.

Back on the city walls, he had already sensed that his condition was worsening. But after today’s show of power, even if his strength waned for a time, no one would dare act recklessly again.

Splash.

Huai You Nong collapsed into the pool within his bedchamber.

Crimson bloomed across the water’s surface.

Meanwhile, Qian was sprawled over the table, her cheeks puffed up as she stuffed her face, nearly burying herself in the bowl.

Judging by how ravenous she looked, she might as well have starved for ten years.

Han Qiu, holding her right hand for inspection, frowned deeply as Qian clumsily scooped up more food with her left.

“Wuwah, wuwah.”

“Slurp, slurp.”

“Chomp, chomp.”

As the happy sounds of a little piglet feasting filled the air, Han Qiu’s brows furrowed even tighter.

“This is bad. The young master’s body now contains two similar Gu. Not only are they difficult to remove, but I fear they may also…”

Liusha had personally witnessed the Demon Lord feeding the young master the Heavenly Demon inner core, only to hear about the middle-aged scholar’s scheme moments later.

Now, her face was filled with worry.

“Will the young master’s life be in danger?”

“……”

Sensing their solemn mood, Qian turned her head, her round, shiny black eyes darting between them.

Her cheeks puffed up as she mumbled through a mouthful of food, “There are two of them, so now they have company.”

The Demon Lord’s bedchamber fell into a long silence.

Then, suddenly, a small hand emerged from the edge of the pool, gripping the step.

It was the hand of a child.

Huai You Nong surfaced from the water, his gaze landing on the reflection of a young child’s face in the rippling pool. His expression remained cold.