Chapter 178: Golden Crown Successor

The four Peacock Demons, subdued by the power of Peacock Valor, were now genuinely trembling in fear. Attempting to assassinate a member of the royal family was already a grave sin, let alone one with the Peacock Golden Crown, who was for all intents and purposes a future Demon King. Escaping death seemed nearly impossible.

The Peacock Golden Crown shone brilliantly, with intense golden light. Despite Wang Yan being a level higher in cultivation and unaffected by Peacock Valor due to his royal bloodline, he was deeply intimidated by the presence of the Peacock Golden Crown. He had never been a warrior of absolute courage, or any kind of warrior, for that matter.

"Sister... I..."

"Pick up your peacock plume. Do not disgrace our royal family. Aren’t you contending for the throne? I give you this opportunity and right to challenge me." Mei Gongzi said coldly.

She had the right to say this, for she bore the Peacock Golden Crown. Its presence meant that no demon could question her bloodline. The Peacock Golden Crown gave her indisputable superiority among the Peacock Demons. Even though Wang Yan was the legitimate eldest son, his ranking would be below Mei Gongzi's until he manifested his own golden crown.

"I, I... Sister, if I say this was all a misunderstanding, would you believe me?" Wang Yan involuntarily took two steps back. In the face of Mei Gongzi’s powerful aura, he didn't even have the heart to fight back.

Mei Gongzi simply looked at him coldly, the light from the peacock plume in her hand growing increasingly intense. The vast wings and tail feathers spread out behind her were fabulously resplendent.

Female Peacock Demons usually did not have long tail feathers, except those of royal lineage. The tail feathers of the royalty, however, were even longer and more dazzling than normal male Peacock Demons’ feathers. Mei Gongzi was already stunningly beautiful, and her appearance was further enhanced by the spectacular tail feathers, rendering her beauty beyond compare.

"Greetings to the Crown Successor with the Golden Crown!" Wang Yan suddenly exclaimed, kneeling down on one knee.

Mei Gongzi’s lips twitched. Even someone like her could barely maintain her icy demeanor.

Is this all Wang Yan is capable of?

"I was wrong; I disrespected the Crown Successor with the Golden Crown. I was momentarily blinded and I did not know you had already formed the Golden Crown. I only aimed to ensure the purity of our peacock lineage. I deeply realize my mistake now. My subordinates were incited by me as well. Please grant us an opportunity to compensate for our sins," Wang Yan pleaded, tears streaming down his face, his eyes filled with sincerity.

If Tang San were here, he would want to ask him,

Are you trying to be funny now?

In terms of talent and ability, Wang Yan certainly fell short. But he could even rival the Rhino clan’s bloodline in terms of sheer thickness of the skin.

Mei Gongzi slowly lowered the peacock plume in her hand and said indifferently, "Leave. Don't spoil my mood."

"Yes, yes," Wang Yan breathed a sigh of relief, quickly got up from the ground, and prepared to run.

"Wait," Mei Gongzi spoke again.

Wang Yan quickly turned around, his face obsequiously asking, "Crown Successor with the Golden Crown. Do you have any other orders?"

"Clean these crossbow bolts before you leave," she said flatly.

"Alright." Wang Yan hurried forward, and the other four Peacock Demons also managed to get themselves off the ground. The effect of Peacock Valor’s intimidation had worn off, and they didn’t want to make Mei Gongzi use it again.

Mei Gongzi deactivated her transformation and sat back down by the campfire.

Wang Yan and his subordinates quickly cleaned the crossbow bolts and neatly placed them in front of Mei Gongzi. Then, they slowly backed away and promptly disappeared into the darkness.

Mei Gongzi looked in the direction they left, murmuring to herself, "A Peacock Demon race that has lost its pride, still dreaming of returning to the Ancestral Court?" From Wang Yan, one could see the decline of the Peacock Demon race. Once mighty demons, even contenders for the leadership of the Ancestral Court, they had failed in the end but left a glorious mark in history. However, due to the absence of a Demon Emperor, the Peacock Demon race had declined. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be just overseeing the remote Kali City.

She picked up a cleaned black-gold crossbow bolt, examining it closely.

The crossbow bolt had intricate patterns and grooves, and even had a tiny array etched into it. It seemed that the function of the array was to prevent the bolt from making a sound, as it was completely quiet even when she swung it through the air. The craftsmanship of this crossbow bolt was the most exquisite Mei Gongzi had ever seen.

Did Asura make this? It's such a delicate weapon. His aura didn’t feel very powerful, he’s definitely not stronger than me, at least. Yet, this crossbow bolt injured five Peacock Demons. Even though they’re weaklings, they’re still Peacock Demons with top-tier bloodlines, and at the eighth order to boot. So what exactly is this weapon?

𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

At that moment, her eyebrows rose slightly. A figure appeared from the flames, towering in front of her like a massive beast.

"Your companions are approaching. They must be coming back to check on the situation," Zhang Haoxuan said with a smile.

"Then why are

you

still here?" Mei Gongzi looked at him.

"I came to give you something." While speaking, he placed a Godly Zhuge Crossbow in front of Mei Gongzi.

Seeing the crossbow, Mei Gongzi paused, "Did you intercept that person?"

Zhang Haoxuan shook his head. "He appeared just to protect you, with good intentions. He asked me to pass this Godly Zhuge Crossbow to you."

Mei Gongzi picked up the Godly Zhuge Crossbow. Looking at its intricate structure, her eyes showed even more surprise.

"He also asked me to tell you to take good care of yourself." While speaking, Zhang Haoxuan taught Mei Gongzi how to use the Godly Zhuge Crossbow.

"Do you know who he is?" Mei Gongzi asked.

Zhang Haoxuan shook his head. "I don't know. But I felt that he had something that could threaten me, so I didn't probe further. However, his actions toward you seem benevolent. I just don't know why he came; he is quite mysterious. But you shouldn't have revealed your mark in front of him."

"Hmm, I acted impulsively, thinking he was one of ours." Mei Gongzi lowered her head, fiddling with the Godly Zhuge Crossbow in her hands.

"I should leave now. They are returning." Zhang Haoxuan's figure flashed and again merged into the flames, disappearing.

Mei Gongzi collected the Zhuge Divine Crossbow and the crossbow bolts in front of her. She took a small pot from her spatial bracelet and started brewing milk tea.

Soon, a surprised voice rang out, "Are you alright? Where are they?"

Following that, the teammates of the Beauty and the Beasts Team, one by one, returned to the camp with embarrassed faces.

They all had expressions of surprise. Seeing Mei Gongzi sitting there, calmly drinking milk tea, they sensed something was amiss.

How come she wasn't taken away? What’s happening? Those were five eighth-order demons!

"I'm tired. I need to rest," Mei Gongzi said without glancing at Song Junhou and quietly returned to her tent.

Song Junhou and the other demon race students exchanged glances, their faces a mix of disbelief and incredible embarrassment. Although they had been clearly blasted away by their opponents, their escape had been just a bit

too

smooth and they had taken just a bit

too

long to return.

"What should we do, captain?" the bear demon asked in a low voice.

"Let's rest first. It seems Wang Yan and his group have already left. We can only wait to ask when we return."

"What about our training mission..."

"Everything as usual."

"I don't know how she did it. Could it be that the Peacock Demons are also protecting her in secret? Then—"

Song Junhou frowned deeply, waved his hand, and didn’t let his teammates continue. He was feeling rather irritable. He had already made his decision earlier, but now, he felt that he might have picked the wrong side. Mei Gongzi seemed to be different from what he had imagined.