Chapter 293: The Threat of the Demon Race

Ensuring the stability of Jingcheng was a shared hope of the imperial house and the Five Great Sacred Lands; thus, all six parties cooperated actively, swiftly finalizing various deployments to prevent potential unrest caused by cultivators entering the capital.

Upon receiving the list of resources submitted by Xue Xian that the four Sacred Lands of Alchemy, Sanctity, Talismans, and Arrays were to supply, the Emperor readily issued an imperial edict.

That very day, notices were posted at all major city gates of Jingcheng prohibiting cultivators from flying or fighting within the city, along with delineations of the respective responsibilities the imperial court and the Five Great Sacred Lands would assume once cultivators entered the capital.

Seeing the imperial house act with such speed, Hua Changxi, Tong Yao, Jing Liao, and Yan Zhenzhen also made their stance clear, promising to deliver the resources to the Northern Town Guard Office as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, starting from the first day of the ninth month, five thousand Demon-Suppressing Soldiers from the Central Sacred Land would patrol Jingcheng alongside the Embroidered Uniform Guard, the Wucheng Military Command, and the Six Doors, maintaining public order in the capital.

Upon receiving this news, the various factions were not particularly surprised.

In truth, most people did not wish for chaos in Jingcheng; seeing the imperial house and the Five Great Sacred Lands unite their front, the various parties made their own deployments accordingly without resorting to any underhanded sabotage.

Of course, there were those who did not wish to see Jingcheng stable and peaceful; in their eyes, only when the capital was in turmoil could they fish in troubled waters.

In a dimly lit basement somewhere in Jingcheng, the walls reflected the massive beastly shadows of a giant snake, a giant rat, a four-headed duck, and a giant lizard.

"Has the Emperor lost his mind? Allowing the Demon-Suppressing Army to patrol the capital—does he not fear losing control over Jingcheng?"

"With so many Imperial Princes under the Retired Emperor, why did he ultimately ascend the throne? Because he knew how to assess the situation and seize the opportunity. Since the rise of the Five Great Sacred Lands was inevitable, why not establish a good relationship with them in advance?"

"The Demon-Suppressing Army of the Central Sacred Land has existed since ancient times; their most formidable ability is identifying demons and monsters. We must immediately withdraw some of our deployments in the capital, and abandon those that cannot be moved. In short, we must absolutely avoid drawing the attention of the Demon-Suppressing Army."

"Damn it! If this continues, all our efforts will be in vain."

"There is no other way; it is too difficult for the Demon Race to hide among the masses. One moment of carelessness leads to discovery. The Demon-Suppressing Army is highly capable; once they track us down and discover a gathering place for the Demon Race, we will become the sinners of our kind."

"Let us wait a bit longer. Once more demons achieve human form, the situation will improve."

"That could take ages. Most ruins and secret realms are controlled by the Human Race; without sufficient resources, we simply cannot support the advancement of the Demon Race."

"It will not be too long. The disturbances in Nanxiang County grow louder by the day. I have a premonition that Nanxiangchengcheng is about to reappear in this world. At that time, if the Demon Race can seize a few blessed lands and heavenly caves, it will be enough to sustain our early development."

"Are you mad? Nanxiangchengcheng is the station of the Zhu Que Emperor in the Central Continent!"

"So what! Although the Four Spirit Emperor Lords of ancient times were indeed humans, the Four Spirit Realm experienced the Great Silence of Heaven and Earth. Now that spiritual energy is recovering and everything begins anew, the positions of the Four Spirit Emperor Lords are something we, the Demon Race, can also strive for."

"Do not forget, when the Human Race first appeared in the Four Spirit Realm, they were merely livestock raised by us, the Demon Race, for food."

"Enough, stop arguing. The Tail-Fire Tiger is watching over Nanxiang County, so we need not worry about that. Our priority is to handle matters in the capital, especially appeasing those humans who have defected to the Demon Race."

Following this, the four demons began discussing how to utilize the captured human pawns to maximize benefits for the Demon Race.

After the discussion concluded, the four-headed duck demon could not suppress his anger: "No, I cannot swallow this insult. It is all the fault of the Four Great Sacred Lands; why did they have to recruit disciples, disrupting all our deployments in the capital?"

"Since the people of the Four Great Sacred Lands are stationed at the four city gates of East, South, West, and North, let us go meet them. This will also give us a chance to probe the strength of the Human Race."

Seeing the other three demons remain silent, the four-headed duck demon added, "The Five Great Sacred Lands are the stabilizing pillars of the Central Continent. If we truly deal with the successors of the Sacred Lands, it will surely boost the morale of the Demon Race."

The snake demon spoke up: "We can give it a try, but we must not act rashly. We need to make arrangements first; at the very least, we must avoid the Demon-Suppressing Army."

The rat demon said, "The four of us will act together, targeting one person at a time. Even if discovered by the Demon-Suppressing Army, we will still have the ability to escape."

The four-headed duck demon laughed: "That is a good idea; it is settled then."

The beastly shadows on the wall twisted and transformed sequentially into two men and two women, who then left the basement one after another.

On the other side, Hua Changxi, along with Tong Yao, Jing Liao, and Yan Zhenzhen, walked out of the Northern Town Guard Office, accompanied by Chu Junling.

The five parted ways at the entrance of the government office, after which Hua Changxi and the other three departed together.

Left alone, Chu Junling watched the retreating figures of the four, narrowing her eyes slightly.

The relationship between Hua Changxi and the other three is extraordinary; it seems the four Sacred Lands of Alchemy, Artifacts, Talismans, and Arrays maintain very close ties!

After leaving the street where the Northern Town Guard Office was located, Hua Changxi turned to look at Tong Yao and the others: "Do you truly believe unrest will occur when cultivators from various regions enter the capital?"

Tong Yao and the other three fell silent for a moment, then nodded in unison.

Tong Yao spoke: "The Chu Imperial Dynasty is gradually declining and can no longer suppress the various factions. Yet, a new power capable of commanding the world has not yet emerged. During this interim, turmoil is unavoidable."

"Struggles for power and profit will inevitably drive people to fight; there is no avoiding it."

Yan Zhenzhen also wore a serious expression: "Besides the internal struggles within the Human Race, the Demon Race is also watching us like a tiger eyeing its prey."

Jing Liao added: "The Nine Netherworlds are not peaceful either."

Having spoken, the three sighed in unison.

Looking at them, Hua Changxi reminded: "Perhaps, we should also add cultivators from outside world to the list."

Tong Yao smiled: "There are indeed some cultivators from outside world in the Four Spirit Realm, but they are a minority and do not pose a significant threat."

Hua Changxi frowned: "Is that so?" She felt the threat from cultivators of the outside world was quite substantial.

Yan Zhenzhen looked at Hua Changxi: "Our greatest threat is the Demon Race."

"You may not know that for a long time after the birth of human beings in the Four Spirit Realm, we were merely livestock raised by the Demon Race for food. The Demon Race holds secret blood curse techniques that allow them to control humans."

"Why is guarding the Demon Prison so important? Because once demonic energy escapes into the human world, although human transformation upon absorption is a concern, the primary danger is that demonic energy helps the Demon Race activate their blood curse techniques."

"Once the Demon Race controls a large number of humans through these blood curses, the resulting harm is unimaginable."

Hua Changxi's expression also turned serious; she knew little about the Demon Race and was indeed unaware that their threat to humans was so great.

With a grave face, Tong Yao said: "This time, as we take over the four city gates, we must thoroughly investigate every corner of the capital during our patrols."

"According to intelligence from the Heaven Department, the Demon Race has planted many human spies within the city, and some shapeshifted demons are even hiding among the populace."

Hua Changxi asked curiously: "Will humans afflicted by the blood curse technique show any differences?"

Yan Zhenzhen, who knew the most about this matter, shook her head: "They are no different from normal people, unless a great war breaks out and they unleash demonic divine abilities."

"However, some human cultivators with ancestral bloodline regression can also use demonic divine abilities, so relying solely on this point makes identification impossible."

"Humans struck by the blood curse can be said to be completely aligned with the Demon Race in both body and mind, posing an even greater danger than the demons themselves."