Chapter 128: Duel and Utilization

The heroic laughter echoed on the bustling street, and Xinuo Dragoon, with his hands on his hips, attracted countless strange-looking demons to watch the fun.

Among them were Hell Centaurs with four legs, soft-bodied creatures with many tentacles, and Golden Slimes that didn't look like people at all but were smarter than people.

Looking at the arrogant Fear Demon, a group of demons whispered and discussed.

"That is... someone from the Dragoon family?!"

"Why would those High-tier demons come here?"

"Wait, I just noticed... the emblem on that carriage, it seems to be the Padriqi family?!"

"You just noticed?! I noticed a long time ago!"

"What are they doing?"

"Robbing a human?"

"Too outrageous."

It wasn't just the crowd of demons watching the fun who were stunned; Luo Yan, the person involved, was also stunned.

Good heavens—

After all this time, he wasn't here to find Mi Ya, he was actually here to find him?! It's just that this brother didn't seem to be normally crazy; not only did he pull out a weapon box as soon as he came up, but he also wanted to duel with him.

"Xinuo Dragoon, are you fucking crazy?!"

Before Luo Yan could speak, Mi Ya had already shouted.

A pair of murderous eyes stared fixedly at this guy who was making trouble unreasonably regardless of the occasion, and fire snakes seemed to spray from her heart-shaped pupils.

"You, a Bai Yin-tier demon, actually proposed a duel with a Bronze-tier human?! Do you still have any shame?!"

Forced back half a step by this aggressive gaze, although Xinuo subconsciously shrank a bit, he didn't retreat because of this.

Clearly, he had come prepared.

Seeing this guy raise his head, he said with an arrogant expression:

"This has nothing to do with tier, but a duel initiated in the name of inheritance rights! Since this guy knows his own weakness, he should spit out the Demon King's territory that doesn't belong to him! Even the Cabinet cannot stop the lord's child from asserting justice. Defending inheritance rights is the power bestowed upon us by His Majesty Bayeli! As for you, the eldest daughter of the Padriqi family, does this matter have anything to do with you?!"

This guy was clearly guided by an expert.

The eloquent Mi Ya was actually speechless for a moment, unable to speak.

Indeed.

She could not represent the Padriqi family.

That was something only the current family head was qualified to do.

However, Luo Yan would not be bluffed by this big guy, smiled faintly and said:

"And I can also refuse, right?"

"That's right!"

Glancing hurriedly at the cheat sheet in his palm, Xinuo raised his head, looked down at him with disdainful eyes, and continued:

"You can tuck your tail and run away, but there will be no place for you in the Demon Capital! All demons will see clearly your cowardice, and know that you are an illegal lord! And I will continue to declare my legal rights until the Cabinet changes its mind!"

"Understood."

Luo Yan nodded in realization.

In other words, if he didn't block his mouth once and for all here, then this guy and the Dragoon family behind him would continue to stab him in the back from the rear.

And by that time, in order to settle the matter, the Cabinet would likely still have to use the ancient and sacred duel to solve the problem.

And it might even have to be carried out under the circumstances that the other party had been planning for a long time.

Luo Yan was a person who feared trouble, but that didn't mean he was afraid.

Since this landmine was going to explode sooner or later, it was better to act early.

Thinking this way, he pulled his magic wand from his sleeve.

Mi Ya was startled when she saw this and hurriedly tried to dissuade him.

"Hey... Luo Yan, calm down! You don't need to accept his provocation at all. The Demon Capital isn't the Dragoon family's backyard! He, a Bai Yin-tier Terror Demon, proposed a duel to a Bronze-tier, even if you refuse, no one will think you're losing—"

"Calm down, Miss Mi Ya."

Looking at Mi Ya, who was more excited than he was, Luo Yan appeased her in a gentle tone.

"I am not accepting this duel because I am worried about losing face, but to solve this trouble that doesn't count as trouble early."

"But—"

"By the way..." While extending his magic wand, the tip of the wand flickered with a cold light, "it can also be considered a lesson for this stupid cow who makes trouble unreasonably regardless of the occasion."

A dark green light flickered.

Accompanied by a creaking sound, a skeleton hand grew out of the ground like a stone bamboo shoot breaking through the soil, and two finger bones gently pinched the glove on the ground.

Seeing the other party accept the glove he threw, Xinuo clenched his fists excitedly, and a smile of victory appeared on his face.

"Very good! I, Xinuo Dragoon, admire your courage! If I win, I will leave you some dignity, so you won't lose too embarrassingly, hahahaha."

"Heh, save that talk until after you win."

Facing the arrogant Xinuo and the surprised Mi Ya, Luo Yan just smiled faintly, waved the magic wand in his hand lightly, and threw the glove pinched between the two finger bones onto the suitcase beside the carriage.

Just like putting away a dirty rag.

"Tell me, how do you want to compete."

Xinuo raised his chin and said:

"Of course, it's the oldest and most direct way—in the arena of the Demon Capital, under the gaze of all the demons in the Demon Capital, to decide the winner!"

Luo Yan was about to agree, when Mi Ya suddenly spoke:

"Wait a minute! This is unfair. Luo Yan just returned to the Demon Capital and hasn't adapted to the climate here. It's one thing for you, a Bai Yin-tier warrior, to propose a duel to a Bronze-tier mage, but you also want to take advantage of the other party's acclimatization issues and the warrior's advantage in close-to-medium range to win unfairly... tsk tsk, could the Dragoon family be too shameless?"

When saying this, Mi Ya, who was hugging her arms, had a look of disgust on her face, just like looking at a bug.

Facing that look of contempt, Xinuo Dragoon's old face turned red, and he suddenly felt that he couldn't hold his face up.

Especially since the surrounding demons were whispering and discussing, and the name of the Dragoon family and Bai Yin challenging Bronze appeared frequently in the discussion.

Of course, the most critical thing was that he didn't think he had any possibility of losing at all, so he acted refreshingly and said:

"Then what do you want?"

"A Demon King tests not only strength, but also the ability to command subordinates, as well as the strategy to win thousands of miles away," Mi Ya narrowed her eyes slightly, just like looking at prey that had fallen into a trap, "Therefore, I propose! Use 'Exchange Siege' as the competition item!"

"Oh? Exchange Siege? Interesting!"

Xinuo touched his chin with interest, but accidentally rubbed off the cheat sheet in his hand, which startled him.

However, things had reached this point, and it seemed there was no need to look at the cheat sheet, so he improvised and said:

"Then let's do as you say."

Seeing that things seemed to be getting troublesome, Luo Yan gave a light cough and said:

"Can someone explain to me?"

Mi Ya looked back at him, blinked, and said:

"This is a way for nobles to resolve conflicts. Both sides designate one of their own castles as the 'fortress' for the siege battle and station defensive forces to guard it. The defensive side needs to resist the offensive side's attack in an open battle, while the offensive side only needs to capture the other party's fortress to win... The methods include but are not limited to making the other party lose combat effectiveness, or destroying the fortress."

So that's it.

It's just a one-on-one turning into a group fight.

A look of realization appeared on Luo Yan's face.

Looking at it this way, a siege battle seems to be indeed more suitable for him than an arena.

From Mi Ya's perspective, a Bronze-tier mage has no chance of winning in the arena, but has a chance to beat a Bai Yin-tier warrior on a sufficiently wide battlefield.

Not only that, both sides can also call for help and pre-formulate combat plans, thereby further smoothing out the gap in strength between each other.

Luo Yan's gaze toward Mi Ya couldn't help but carry a few parts of gratitude.

It's a pity she didn't know that his strength was no longer what it used to be; even if the Minotaur's horns were sharp, his magic wand was not necessarily blunt.

"But I have no foundation in the Demon Capital, how can I compete with the Dragoon family in a siege?"

"You're stupid!"

Mi Ya stomped her feet anxiously, leaned into his ear, and whispered at a distance almost close enough to bite his ear.

"You're here... at least you still have me, right? What does he have in the labyrinth of Lei Ming County? Can he command his father's old subordinates?"

Luo Yan was slightly stunned.

"This works too?!"

Damn!

Doesn't that mean... he can borrow a knife to kill someone?!

Seeing that Luo Yan finally got the hang of it, Mi Ya smiled slightly and continued:

"Of course it works. The castle or manor designated as the fortress doesn't necessarily have to be within the Demon Capital. Since the other party took the initiative to propose a duel, and you don't have a castle in the Demon Capital, choosing the Demon King's territory as the battlefield is also a matter of course."

Actually, what Luo Yan didn't know was that his old classmate was most worried not about whether he could win, but about him dying or breaking during the duel.

People dying in duels is a common occurrence, but in siege battles, the commanders of both sides rarely die.

Even because the hatred is separated by a level, the generals sent by both sides rarely deal fatal blows... unless they are blinded by killing.

In the end, it is highly probable that the cannon fodder bears everything.

The nobles on both sides have vented their anger, and the matter is half solved.

Although it sounds a bit cruel, this kind of operation of passing hatred and costs from top to bottom is not just Hell's patent.

The Empire also has similar traditions, at most just changing the packaging.

"If I win, you will voluntarily give up the title of Demon King and return the labyrinth beneath Lei Ming County to me!" Xinuo Dragoon said arrogantly.

"No problem." Luo Yan said with a bright smile, "But if I win, I want you to publicly promise to give up the so-called inheritance rights to the labyrinth in the Lei Ming County area, and swear that you are the last person in the Dragoon family to challenge my authority, and apologize in the newspaper for your rude words and deeds."

"No problem!" Xinuo Dragoon sneered and said, "See you at the arena of the Demon Capital tomorrow, I hope you won't be too scared to show up."

Luo Yan smiled faintly and said:

"Likewise."

Neither of them asked what to do in case of a draw.

After all, in Xinuo's eyes, as a Bai Yin-tier, he had no possibility of failure at all.

And in Luo Yan's eyes, this guy was already a dead cow!

Watching the back walking toward the temple with the suitcase, Mi Ya remembered that she had originally planned to let Luo Yan formally introduce her to his family.

However, it seemed a bit too late to catch up now.

Watching the old and young disappear at the entrance of the temple, she stomped her feet in annoyance, then turned her head and glared fiercely at Xinuo Dragoon.

"Are you sick?! Why does it have to be today?"

Xinuo chuckled and said proudly:

"What do you mean I'm sick, I've been squatting here for almost a week!"

Mi Ya: "..."

Xinuo continued:

"And you said it yourself, as long as you are nearby, it's no problem for me to find him, why are you in a hurry instead?"

Although Xinuo didn't intend to fulfill this promise at all, and hadn't even promised it, he still remembered what this succubus said when she was at the Internal Affairs Department.

Mi Ya gritted her teeth and said:

"If he has even the slightest mishap... I swear I will kill you."

Xinuo Dragoon's bull eyes glared back unceremoniously.

"Do you think I'm scared?"

Although he said so, he didn't really intend to kill that Bronze Demon King.

After all, once the Demon King dies, the core shatters, and starting over is a small matter; the main thing is that the Demon King's territory core is really too precious.

Moreover, that guy is actually a talent, actually able to fascinate a succubus.

Xinuo even thought that as long as he obediently handed over his father's Demon King territory, it wouldn't be impossible to make him his pawn.

Mi Ya snorted coldly and turned back to the carriage.

The wings of the Pegasus pulling the carriage flapped, dragging the huge carriage body into the air, directly disappearing into the darkness above the street.

Walking slowly on the street before was intentional on her part.

If she really used her full strength, that distance wouldn't take five minutes.

Seeing that there was no fun to watch, the surrounding demons dispersed one after another, leaving only the tall and big Xinuo standing in place like a fool.

He glanced at the direction of the temple, raised his arrogant head, and then turned to walk to the side of the street.

A giant warhorse as strong as a young elephant stopped on the side of the road, gracefully moving its front hooves beside the street lamp pole.

Walking to the side of his mount, Xinuo was about to flip onto the horse and leave here, but saw a pair of eyes gazing at him from an alley not far away.

Xinuo's eyebrows raised slightly, his thick hand patted the horse's back, muttered "Wait for me a while," and then strode into the narrow alley.

The buildings here are not very high, and some low eaves can't even cover his thick eyebrows.

Xinuo searched around for the person who had spied on him earlier, but couldn't find the person's shadow, so he roared in a suppressed voice:

"Who? Sneaky, come out if you have something to say!"

At this moment, a half-bitten apple fell to the ground, rolling slowly from the shadow in front to his feet. Xinuo looked up, only to see a petite figure in a western dress sitting on the low wall in front, her legs dangling by the wall swinging back and forth.

Her skin was as pale as moonlight, her long hair as purple as the night hung to her waist, and a pair of scarlet pupils exuded a lazy and playful light, just like a ghost wandering in a graveyard.

Especially the bats that surrounded her in the middle like stars arching over the moon, making the low wall under her look more like a nameless tombstone.

And she was like the owner of that graveyard.

"What's wrong, big guy, scared by my little cuties?"

She extended her index finger to gently stroke the bat sitting beside her, the latter revealing sharp fangs at the corner of its mouth, its throat making a sound like a kitten.

Vampire? With his back to the faint light of the crystal dome, Xinuo couldn't see her face clearly, especially since that fellow used magic to blur her appearance.

His eyes narrowed, and he shouted in a low voice:

"Your name!"

The girl yawned and said in a slow, deliberate voice:

"You don't need to know."

"Are you also here to plead for him?" Xinuo roared in a low voice, his anger like waves in his chest.

How many women has this pretty boy seduced! Too much!

However, contrary to Xinuo's expectations, the girl sitting on the wall smiled after listening to his words, pursed her crimson lips and said:

"Just the opposite, I hope you act quickly."

Xinuo narrowed his eyes.

"What do you mean?"

"Very simple."

The girl gently stroked the bat and said in a slow, deliberate voice:

"I want him dead."

Xinuo's breathing stagnated slightly, then he said angrily:

"None of my business!"

He just wanted to take back the inheritance left by his father and protect his father's life's work, how come these guys come one after another to teach him what to do!

He is a Terror Demon, not a Minotaur!! Looking at the suddenly irritable Minotaur, the girl's eyebrows raised slightly.

"Oh? Don't you want him dead?"

Xinuo raised his neck proudly and said:

"I want to defeat him, defeat him on the battlefield, not like some sneaky guys who only dare to hide in the dark and engage in conspiracies, or shameless murder!"

A look of indignation appeared on the girl's face.

"Shameless? Who is the shameless one—"

When she said this, she suddenly took a deep breath and calmed down.

"Forget it, I don't have time to talk about this with an outsider like you, in short... do you think you have already won?"

Xinuo said without hesitation:

"Isn't it?"

"Idiot," the girl mocked, "Didn't you see the woman beside him? That is the eldest daughter of the Padriqi family, the next family head by law. Do you think she is like you, so poor that she doesn't even have a carriage."

"Who said I don't have one!" Xinuo retorted angrily, "It's just that an ordinary carriage can't sit... I'd rather ride a horse!"

"Is that the point?! You idiot!"

Seeing this guy always changing the subject, the girl couldn't care about the lazy image anymore and couldn't help but curse:

"You are just a second son without inheritance rights. How many resources do you think the Dragoon family will invest in you? I g... phew! In short, the woman beside that guy only needs to move her fingers to press your poor servants to death at the foot of the city wall. And as long as he doesn't die, the Padriqi family will always be a hidden danger to you!"

"You said so much, what do you want to express?" Xinuo narrowed his eyes and said.

"What I want to express is that if things continue like this, you are doomed to lose. That man has more city government than you imagine, and is good at hiding and enduring..."

When she said this, the girl suddenly changed the subject and said slowly: "But I can help you win."

Xinuo raised his head arrogantly.

"I don't need the help of a nobody."

Seeming tired of this progress-less exchange, the girl finally chose to end this riddle.

"Vivian."

"What?"

Xinuo was slightly stunned, seeming to have heard this name somewhere, but couldn't remember where he had heard it for a while.

This situation is very common.

Even if they had met at a banquet, it didn't mean they could remember the other party's name.

The girl sitting on the wall didn't explain, just leaned her body backward slightly.

The moment she fell behind the wall, the petite body suddenly transformed into bats all over the sky, scattering into the boundless night.

As if she had never been here.

"This is an olive branch thrown by the next-next family head of the Colin family."

"Think about it carefully, you stupid donkey."

The temple on Ghost Street.

As the guests who came to pray left one after another, the entire temple had turned into a paradise for orphans.

Looking at the big brother who returned from the Demon King's territory in the distance, a group of cute, lively, and evil little demons immediately surrounded Luo Yan, excitedly talking all at once.

"The Demon King is back!"

"Ooooooh!"

"Did you catch the adventurer?"

"What does the human princess look like? Is she prettier than the acolyte sister?"

"Did the female knight beg for mercy!"

Listening to those remarks that were even more improper than the players', Luo Yan couldn't help but laugh out loud, reached out and rubbed the head of a Golden Shi Shi Laimu, and said kindly:

"Haven't seen the female knight and the princess, but I did catch quite a few adventurers."

A demon shaped like an octopus excitedly stood up its eight tentacles.

"Train, train!"

Luo Yan smiled and said:

"Oh! Trained, already trained into my shape."

After winter, he planned to let the people go.

Hearing Luo Yan's answer, a burst of exclamations sounded around, and pair after pair of eyes completely turned into the color of worship.

"No, no, as expected of Lord Demon King!"

"I want to be a Demon King when I grow up!"

"I want to be the Demon King's pawn!"

"I'll be the Demon King's wife!"

"Then I'll play the captured female knight!"

"Ya~!"

The education of this group of demons is becoming more and more worrying.

Looking at the Slimes and Octopus people playing together, Luo Yan couldn't help but sweat for the acolytes and Priest Jiefuli who usually took care of them.

At this moment, a pair of curious big eyes stared at him motionlessly, the eyeballs shining like light bulbs.

"How did you do it?!"

Luo Yan smiled slightly.

"That's a long story..."

Just in time for dinner, Luo Yan told the ghost stories he heard from the players to this group of little guys.

Facts have proved that those bizarre stories are not only effective for people, but also have magical healing effects for demons.

Several little demons who were shouting to train adventurers were scared to hide in their quilts and didn't dare to come out.

"Labyrinth... too scary."

"Scary!"

Looking at the scared demons, Luo Yan gave a light cough and said:

"It's not as scary as you think... let's go, it's time to eat."

Meal time is here.

The dinner bell rang outside the corridor.

This group of demon children seemed to have formed muscle memory, rushing into the cafeteria next door, running to their seats, sitting down obediently, and eating with relish while holding their bowls.

After playing with the children for a long time, Luo Yan also felt a bit hungry, and couldn't help but have a big appetite in the face of a table of delicious food, eating it all up in a wolf-like manner.

Although it couldn't catch up with his imperial chef Xiao Yu Gao Zhi, in terms of Hell's dietary level, this dinner was already quite delicious!

After dinner, Luo Yan had nothing else to do, so he followed Priest Jiefuli to the main hall of the temple, sat on the bench under the candlestick, and chatted.

"Speaking of which, who is that succubus?"

"Classmate."

Looking at the nervous Luo Yan, Priest Jiefuli smiled and said meaningfully:

"Just a classmate?"

"Uh... yeah."

Actually, not just a classmate, but also half a superior.

Luo Yan scratched the back of his head embarrassedly and said with a smile:

"I originally planned to introduce her to you, but some accidents happened, so I forgot..."

Speaking of which, I feel sorry for Miss Mi Ya.

It can be seen that she was still looking forward to him introducing her to his foster father and godfather.

Luo Yan originally thought Priest Jiefuli would remind him to keep a distance from the succubus, but unexpectedly found that the latter was not as pedantic as he imagined.

"I saw what happened outside just now... and that girl. It can be seen that she cares about you, and it doesn't look like it's faked."

"Right?" Luo Yan smiled, "Actually, she is quite a good person, just sometimes a bit... paranoid."

Having said that, he didn't have anything worth Miss Mi Ya's concern.

Although the word Demon King sounds nice, it is not a rare thing in Hell.

At least for a big family like Padriqi, there is nothing to show off.

"Paranoia is not a bad thing. By comparison, indecision and fear of taking responsibility are worse... Some problems were not problems, but they turned into big mistakes as they dragged on."

Luo Yan had deep experience.

"You are right, but I don't think she is that kind of person."

"I wasn't talking about her."

Priest Jiefuli looked at Luo Yan meaningfully, then cast his gaze outside the wall window of the temple.

Coincidentally, at this moment, a group of bats took off from an alley not far away and merged into the gradually dimming dome outside the window.

Watching the bats flapping their wings, Priest Jiefuli seemed to have thought of something, sighed lightly and said:

"I don't have many requirements for you and your other half. Since you didn't plan to take the same path as your mother, you naturally don't have to consider any precepts like her. Just do what you want to do and become the person you want to become... as long as you don't live up to your original heart."

Luo Yan smiled and said:

"It's too early to say this now."

"It's not early." Priest Jiefuli shook his head, "Your mother was about this age... sorry, I didn't mean to bring it up."

Indeed, Priest Jiefuli rarely mentioned his parents, but I don't know why he mentioned it so many times today.

However, Luo Yan didn't take it too seriously, just changed the subject.

"Speaking of which, it's strange, I thought you would hate succubi."

Priest Jiefuli looked at him and asked back with a smile:

"Why hate one of His Majesty the Demon God's servants."

"I heard..."

"Those are all rumors, they can't be taken seriously," Priest Jiefuli shook his head, staring at the candlestick on the side, and muttered to himself, "By comparison, I hate vampires more."

Luo Yan frowned slightly.

"Vampires?"

Priest Jiefuli hurriedly stopped the topic as if he had let it slip, stood up from the bench, and extinguished the candlestick on the side.

"It's getting late, go to sleep."

Always late these two days, finally early today T. T (End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 129 =====