Facing the High Priest's threat, Jian Lin remained unfazed.
She retorted, "If you truly possessed foresight, you would have foreseen that I am the one destined to alter the heavenly mechanisms. You've been muttering nonsense all this time, haven't you ever considered that you've been wrong from the very beginning?"
The High Priest stared intently at her, then suddenly let out a soft chuckle. "I have considered it. It's just that I have no path to turn back. If I did, I would hope for Miss A'Pei to offer me some guidance."
Jian Lin rolled her eyes so hard she felt like she would die of exasperation.
The High Priest, this walking dead man, was impervious to reason. He maintained a low posture, begging her for help, yet simultaneously employed tactics to obstruct her. He was utterly deranged.
The last sliver of pity she had for him vanished completely that night.
"Bai Xian," she called him by his name, her voice chillingly soft, "Do you fear that I will hate you?"
Meanwhile, while Jian Lin was speaking, the Demon Emperor surged forward, unleashing a palm strike directly at the Demon Lord.
Unlike the playful skirmishes with Jian Lin, the Demon Emperor poured all his might into this attack. The force generated by his palm wind made all the surrounding demons gasp, as if a colossal hammer were about to strike the Demon Lord's unsuspecting form.
With a resounding clang, golden light erupted around the Demon Lord, revealing what appeared to be a protective formation. It dispersed the Demon Emperor's palm strike, leaving him motionless and seemingly unharmed.
"Good!" Jian Lin cheered loudly for the Demon Lord. "The number one Demon Lord of the Three Realms is the best! All these Demon Emperors and Ghost Emperors are just defeated foes!"
Unable to move, Jian Lin still wanted to contribute to protecting the Demon Lord.
The Demon Emperor extended his arms, gathering power to set up a magic array. The array absorbed the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, then coalesced into a spear. With a low growl, the spear shot towards the Demon Lord's chest.
"Mo Xun, be careful!" Jian Lin shouted a warning.
As her words fell, a semicircular protective shield suddenly materialized around the Demon Lord. Runes flickered on the shield, displaying immense power.
The spear pierced through the air, but halted abruptly as it neared the protective shield. The two forces clashed, locked in a stalemate.
The Demon Emperor hovered in mid-air, channeling his demonic energy. With a mighty roar, he infused more power into the spear.
The shield pulsed with golden light, unyielding, resisting the spear's assault.
Enraged, the Demon Emperor cursed under his breath. He suddenly ascended a hundred meters into the sky before plummeting downwards, his entire being transforming into an attack point, channeling all his power into the spear!
It was like swinging a sledgehammer to drive a nail!
Jian Lin was frantic, yelping incoherently. She couldn't comprehend the Demon Lord's pursuit of cultivation; if his life was at stake, what was the point of breaking through?
In the final moment, Jian Lin closed her eyes, unable to watch. She felt a surge of powerful demonic energy scatter, shattering stones and crackling all around.
As the demonic energy subsided slightly, Jian Lin opened her eyes. She saw the Demon Emperor standing on the spear with one foot, the tip of the spear embedded in the protective shield. The runes on the shield spun wildly, and cracks began to appear.
The Demon Emperor had broken through!
However, the Demon Lord's eyes remained closed. The spear's sharp tip was about to pierce his brow. At this most critical juncture, a crimson light flashed from the Demon Lord's chest, and a fiery fox shot out, delivering a heavy blow to the Demon Emperor's jaw.
The Demon Emperor was forced to dodge, swatting at the fox's abdomen. The fox nimbly evaded, beginning to circle the Demon Emperor, constantly disrupting his attacks.
The Demon Emperor's consecutive strikes were all dodged by Hong Qu. She ran with all her might, her body transforming into a red afterimage.
However, maintaining such speed required immense demonic energy. Soon, Hong Qu's stamina faltered, and her speed began to wane. The Demon Emperor landed a blow on her back, eliciting a cry of pain. She plummeted downwards, and before she could fall halfway, she was violently kicked by the Demon Emperor. She flew out like a red cannonball, crashing into a large rock nearby.
With a series of cracks, the massive rock fractured. Hong Qu whimpered in pain, her cries growing weaker.
Jian Lin winced in sympathy, feeling the pain herself. That one palm strike and kick had nearly cost Hong Qu her life.
The surrounding demons erupted in fervent cheers, shouting excitedly, "Demon Emperor is mighty, Demon Emperor is invincible, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill!"
The Demon Emperor raised his arms, basking in the adulation of the surrounding demons. He then grew more emboldened, gathering power once more to kick the spear.
The sound of shattering glass echoed as the golden protective shield vanished. The spear surged forward, striking the Demon Lord. Jian Lin dared not watch, quickly turning her head and closing her eyes.
With a thunderous boom, Jian Lin cautiously peeked open one eye. She saw a deep pit where the Demon Lord had been seated, while he himself floated in mid-air, still in his cross-legged meditative posture.
The Demon Emperor growled in frustration, retrieving the spear and resuming his attack. With a shimmering glow, he wielded the spear with formidable force, weaving an impenetrable net. Yet, the Demon Lord managed to dodge every strike.
He kept his eyes closed, his black robes and long hair billowing with demonic energy, indicating the absence of any protective formations around him. Still, the Demon Emperor couldn't land a blow.
This casual demeanor successfully enraged the Demon Emperor. The surrounding demons fell silent, not daring to make a sound. Only the Demon Emperor's furious roar could be heard as he retracted the spear and swung a fist, directly engaging the Demon Lord.
At that precise moment, a blinding golden light erupted around the Demon Lord. A powerful demonic aura instantly filled the entire space. The demons sensed danger and immediately covered their heads to take cover. Even Jian Lin was affected, her ears ringing with a sharp buzzing.
"Nascent Soul stage seventh layer, this..." The High Priest's confused murmur could be heard. "He has just entered the late Nascent Soul stage, so why are the ninety-nine heavenly tribulations appearing?"
Jian Lin's heart leaped with joy. Regardless of the circumstances, the Demon Lord had finally achieved a breakthrough!
"Lord Demon Lord! You succeeded! Congratulations! Hurry up and kill your way back!" Jian Lin shouted excitedly.
The Demon Emperor hovered in the air, exclaiming in surprise, "So you've just reached the seventh layer of the Nascent Soul stage. Then who is undergoing the lightning tribulation?"
"It's not important," the Demon Lord slowly raised his hand, gazing at his glowing body, and said disdainfully, "You only need to remember one thing: I have endured the ninety-nine lightning tribulations, and you dare not."
"You have only reached the seventh layer of the Nascent Soul stage, while I have long since attained the eighth layer," the Demon Emperor declared haughtily. "In terms of cultivation, you are inferior to me. Your arrogance stems from your ignorance!"
"No matter what, I dare to face the tribulation, and you do not," the Demon Lord clung to this point. "If you cannot find the Dragon Core, you will go mad. You lack self-confidence and can only rely on external aids. How pathetic!"
"My lack of confidence in facing tribulations has nothing to do with you," the Demon Emperor said confidently. "So what if I cannot overcome the lightning tribulation? I can still kill you!"
"Then come!"
With that, the Demon Lord raised his hand and attacked first, kicking towards the Demon Emperor. The Demon Emperor swiftly dodged, raising a palm to strike the Demon Lord's chest.
The bright moon hung high, lanterns blazed, and despite the clear light, the combat moves of the Demon Lord and Demon Emperor were indistinguishable, simply because they were too fast.
The man and the demon fought higher and higher. Jian Lin watched tensely, seeing only two balls of light entangled. Suddenly, one side gained the upper hand, and a black dot plummeted straight into the giant pit, with another black dot pursuing it.
Explosive sounds followed as they fought from the sky into the ground. Within the giant pit, shattered stones floated, lifted by immense power, forming an array in mid-air.
Jian Lin was utterly bewildered and had to ask the High Priest, "High Priest, who has the upper hand right now?"
"It's difficult to say," the High Priest coughed twice, reaching out to steady the sedan door. "I knew the Demon Lord was formidable, but I never expected him to be this powerful."
Jian Lin suddenly remembered something. The conversation between the Demon Emperor and the High Priest that night. The Demon Emperor had said that it would be difficult to kill the Demon Lord with his own power alone, but if they joined forces, they surely could.
A sharp glint flashed in Jian Lin's eyes, and killing intent surged. She had to seize this moment to eliminate the High Priest; it was the safest course of action!
She closed her eyes and communicated with the system. The High Priest's existence was neither alive nor dead; she didn't know how to kill him to ensure his true demise. She only had one chance and had to make it foolproof.
While she was engrossed in communicating with the system, a tremor suddenly ran through the ground beneath her. Jian Lin opened her eyes and saw a colossal rock dragon erupt from the giant pit, spinning rapidly and impacting the stone formation.
The clash of demonic energy and demonic aura formed a vortex, causing the lanterns to sway. Rocks obscured the moon, casting deep shadows.
Now was the time. Jian Lin exchanged her points for the invisibility function, layering it with a teleportation talisman. At a moment when the system's bug was triggered, she broke free from the High Priest's silk restraint.
She then replaced herself with a piece of dried meat in the silk restraint, transforming it into a dull substitute.
Although it was obviously fake, as long as the High Priest didn't examine it closely, he wouldn't notice.
Jian Lin moved behind the Demon Emperor's sedan, intently watching the High Priest. If he made any move to assist, she would find a way to stop him.
The system was still searching and could not immediately provide a method to kill the High Priest. Jian Lin could only wait.
In the meantime, the stone formation's round of combat concluded. The giant stones scattered back into the deep pit, shaking the heavens and earth.
Suddenly, the surrounding Ling Yu Guards flew up and gathered in the air. Jian Lin looked up, her heart filled with both joy and worry.
The joy was that the Demon Lord was clearly gaining the upper hand. The worry was that the Demon Emperor fought dishonorably, and with so many demons around, their combined efforts against the Demon Lord were utterly unfair!
As expected, the stone hurricane dissipated, and the Demon Emperor retreated, shielded by the Ling Yu Guards.
The Demon Lord stood with his hands behind his back, his expression serene and arrogant. "Demon Emperor, you have lost."
"How could you, alone in the Demon Realm, win so easily?" the Demon Emperor laughed wildly. His expression suddenly turned serious, and he addressed the demons below, "Form the array!"
Form the array? What array?
The crow guards quickly gathered around the High Priest, dragging him into the air. The accompanying demons dispersed, forming a massive circle with the High Priest at its center.
"Demon Lord, I admire you. You have cultivated to the late Nascent Soul stage," the Demon Emperor said, adjusting his mask. His tone suddenly shifted to arrogance. "Unfortunately, you are destined never to see the scenery of the Divine Realm. But rest assured, I will see it for you."
Jian Lin had been watching the High Priest intently. Hearing the Demon Emperor's words, her heart tightened. Had they decided to use that method?
Although she didn't know what it was, the sheer number of demons gathered to form the array, and the terrifying power it possessed, was surely beyond Jian Lin's imagination.
This could not happen. This array must not be completed. Jian Lin quietly followed, staying close to the High Priest.
She had to kill him. She must.