Chapter 200 - Sister of the Moon and Son of the Lotus, Whoever Looks at Either Dies!

Lady Hua Lian sighed deeply and chased after Moon Fairy. "Gentlemen, please excuse me for a moment."

The crowd, witnessing this scene, felt a surge of frustration. The once-proud demon race, now cornered into defending themselves within the Ancestral Temple? Even the disappearance of a genius like Tian Lu left them huddled together, searching in vain.

Had it not been for the Gu Emperor's decision to lay low for the night, would they, with their strength, have been subjected to such humiliation? Not just the young ones, even the 108 Demon Saints felt a fiery anger burning in their chests.

Demons, with their beastly and fierce nature, killing was in their blood. Learning to hide and bide their time like humans was against their very nature, a challenging endeavor indeed.

The stronger the demon, the greater their patience. Meanwhile, countless low and middle-tier demons inside the Ancestral Temple were already restless, bumping into everything, their low howls revealing their wild nature.

"Has Moon Fairy gained strength again?" a ghostly flame asked, taking on a human form. This was the Burning Saint, one of the 108 Demon Saints, incredibly close to a Demon Emperor himself.

"Perhaps the wind fire tribulation has solidified his cultivation," the Ape Saint suggested. As a beast demon, he was a general under the Eclipse Demon Emperor. The rise of Moon Fairy had also cast a favorable light on him, so he spoke of him with admiration.

"Realm solidification?" The demons gasped in surprise at the mention.

"It seems the beast lineage is about to produce a peerless genius."

"Congratulations are in order!"

"A fox with such talent is rare indeed!"

"If Yun Xiao is the shining new star of humanity, then Moon Fairy can certainly be the new star of the Demon Continent!"

Everyone glanced at the Gu Emperor and sighed inwardly.

"Alas, tonight, these two stars won't have the chance to clash..."

They could feel it. Even without the ancestral power of the one billion Sword Cultivators, Moon Fairy seemed much stronger than Yun Xiao had been a few hours earlier.

"Moon Fairy and Tian Lu share a close bloodline. This little fox seems quite fond of Tian Lu. If nothing had happened to her, they would have been the talk of the Demon Continent," Ape Saint murmured quietly.

𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"What a pity," the Burning Saint shook his head, his eyes blazing with fire.

ι══????????══ι?

"Lil Moon!" Lady Hua Lian caught up with Moon Fairy, grabbing his sleeve.

"Master, what's wrong?" Moon Fairy turned around, looking at the beautiful master he spent day and night with. His gaze was calm, a stark contrast to his earlier despair.

"You lied again!" Lady Hua Lian looked at him somberly, her eyes filled with complexity.

"I only lie to outsiders." Moon Fairy lowered his head slightly, gazing at her face. "But in front of you, I won't utter a single falsehood."

"Really?" Lady Hua Lian bit her lip. "Then tell me, do you like Tian Lu?"

"Who would care for a stray dog?" Moon Fairy smiled.

"Then why put on such an act?" Lady Hua Lian was puzzled.

"Master..." Moon Fairy held her shoulders earnestly. "I can't tell you now, but one day, I will confess everything."

"When will that be?" Lady Hua Lian asked.

Moon Fairy looked at the weather and said, "When the spring warms and the flowers bloom..."

"Lil Moon!" Lady Hua Lian's eyes were filled with sorrow, perhaps a hint of anger. She lowered her head, her eyes brimming with tears, and said with a worried voice, "I can see your ambition is great. What exactly do you want to do?"

"Of course, to become the overlord of the Demon Continent! You know I have the capability. I can make our Fox Clan the true king of all demons, the most noble bloodline in both the divine and demon realms!" Moon Fairy's eyes blazed with passion.

These words didn't surprise Lady Hua Lian. She shook her head sadly and said, "Every rise and replacement means countless weak ones become sacrifices. The survival path of humanity requires the bones of both races, and your rise will also mean stepping over numerous corpses. These struggles for power, in the end, are but calamities of the world... Can't we just let it go?"

"Not struggle?" Moon Fairy shook his head. "If we don't struggle, what can we do?"

Lady Hua Lian extended her hand, gently embracing him, her cheek against his chest, her eyes filled with tears. "The strife of the world has always existed. In an era of great turmoil, who can truly forge peace? It's impossible... Our lives are short and powerless, with very little we can do. Wouldn't it be better to leave this whirlpool of suffering with your master and live freely and at ease?

"Just the two of us in this world, free from right and wrong, free from troubles, hand in hand witnessing the sunrise and sunset..."

"Master, you are na?ve," Moon Fairy held her face, his gaze intense. "The laws of nature dictate survival of the fittest. You, as a pioneer for the Fox Clan, are the hope of our people. If even you flee, who will stand up for our clan? We are born with our bloodlines and factions; these are the marks of our survival that none can escape.

"There's no such thing as carefree freedom in this world, only evasion, selfishness, and cowardice! Born into the Fox Clan, it is my destiny. As a man of honor, I cannot live just for my own freedom. Even the greatest freedom has its limits. Once faced with someone stronger, our very right to live is no longer in our hands!"

Saying this, Moon Fairy let go of her face, gazed into the darkness ahead, and said through gritted teeth, "I, Yu—Moon Fairy, born a fox, hereby swear never to kneel again in this life! Whoever forces me, may their entire family perish!" With that, he gave Lady Hua Lian a deep look and vanished into the darkness.

?ι══????????══ι?

In the streets of the Spirit Treasure Palace, groups of demons moved eerily through the deep night.

The Nine Heavens Immortal Army, short on hands, could only keep a watchful eye on them.

"Are these demons looking for someone?" Chen Jin stood at the grand entrance of the Spirit Treasure Palace, patrolling with a group of the Nine Heavens Immortal Army.

"Commander, they are calling for Tian Lu," someone reported.

"The sister of the Eclipse Demon Emperor?" Zhao Xiaotang snickered coldly. "It reminds me of a popular saying in the Demon Continent."

"Let's hear it," Stray Dog, standing nearby, said with keen interest.

"'Sister of the Moon, son of the Lotus, whoever looks at either dies,'" Zhao Xiaotang said with a grin.

"The Moon refers to the Eclipse Demon Emperor, and the Lotus to Red Lotus. So, this is about Tian Lu and Xue Qi, two brutal geniuses of the Demon Continent, right? Whoever sees them dies?" Stray Dog asked.

"Not exactly," Zhao Xiaotang shrugged. "It means they are the darling hearts of the two Demon Emperors, their absolute untouchables! Anyone who dares to glance at them risks the wrath of the Demon Emperors."

"Got it. It's an exaggeration, but it shows how much the Demon Emperors love their sister and son!" Stray Dog realized.

"Beastly love, twisted and ludicrous," Chen Jin sneered.

"At such a sensitive time, to mobilize such a force for a search reveals much," Nangong Xu said gravely.

Just then, they spotted a group!

"Ghost Marriage? White Bone Spirit? And there's Angry Cauldron, Xue Qi... and even the seventh princess of Violet Sky." Zhao Xiaotang raised an eyebrow.

"With all of them gathered, they're probably looking for Tian Lu," Chen Jin surmised.

There was a gaunt young man carrying a paper effigy of a woman, a skeletal figure, and a burly man with dark skin and fire patterns...

This group included the top three in the initial betting odds for the War of Immortals. The son of the Red Lotus Demon Emperor, Xue Qi, ranked fourth.

Seeing this group under the protection of the Demon Continent's elite, their eyes burning with rage, Zhao Xiaotang had an idea. "I'll tease them a bit."

Despite his effeminate appearance, he was quite daring!

"Hahaha, brothers, this is hilarious!" Zhao Xiaotang suddenly laughed shrilly, bending over in glee to Chen Jin.

"What's so funny? Share with us," Stray Dog played along.

"I bet, the brothers from the Demon Continent are here for charity this time!" Zhao Xiaotang exclaimed.

"How so, brother?" Chen Jin asked.

"Just think about it. A few days ago, in our Spirit Treasure Palace's betting pool, millions of demons bet all they had on the top five in the odds. They bet fiercely, but guess what? They withdrew from the fight! The entire Demon Continent's geniuses graciously allowed our Yun Xiao to become the top Immortal. Isn't that a pure loss? Haha!"

Zhao Xiaotang's expression was exaggerated, his voice irritatingly loud, laughing so hard that his voice carried far.

"That's impossible!" Stray Dog shook his head in mock disbelief. "I heard the Demon Continent and Violet Sky Immortal Empire's withdrawal was fake news. Once the big battle starts, they might ambush and attack us! Think about it, those Demon Princes and Princesses of the Demon Continent are so proud, how could they be cowards? Wouldn't that be like giving away all the Demon Continent's money to us? Only our grandchildren would do something like that!"

"I also think it's impossible. I've seen those Demon Princes and Demon Princesses before; they strut around like they own the place. How could they be too scared to fight, running away with their tails between their legs? Even my grandma isn't that cowardly!" Chen Jin shook his head.

The three of them sang in harmony! The passing imperial youths, already burning with anger inside, felt their faces tear with rage at these words.

"Shut up!" the burly man with dark skin bellowed, his black fury erupting towards Chen Jin and his companions.

BOOM!

Chen Jin and his group managed to block the attack with their magic, but they were left disheveled, rolling away in retreat. Their faces changed drastically as they hastily fled back to the Spirit Treasure Palace.

"He's strong! Terrifyingly strong! Such a fearsome demon, yet he's got less backbone than the droppings I pull!" Zhao Xiaotang exclaimed, clicking his tongue in amazement.

"Zip it! They're just pretending. They're definitely going to join the battle! Even my grandma wouldn't tolerate such humiliation," Chen Jin asserted confidently.

"How old is your grandma?" Stray Dog inquired.

"She's passed away!" Chen Jin chuckled. "Honestly, if someone insulted her to this extent, she'd climb right out of her grave. I can't believe that these Demon Princes and Princesses of the Demon Continent have less spine than ash. It's unbelievable!"

"Enough talk, let's count our money!" Zhao Xiaotang laughed.

BANG!

As they spoke, the doors of the Spirit Treasure Palace slammed shut.

Outside, the group of imperial youths stared at the Spirit Treasure Palace, their hearts ablaze with fiery blood.

?ι══????????══ι?

Finally, midnight arrived.

Around the Ascension Gate, it was a sea of people, both humans and demons. The Demon Emperors, Demon Princes and Princess, and millions of demons were present as well.

Even those who were not participating in the battle were personally invited by the Supreme Marshal, with all manners of pleasantries exchanged, to come and observe.

Under the gaze of the masses, a young man in white descended from the sky, Sovereign Sword underfoot!