Chapter 834: Demon Ancestor

Aside from the Jiang family, on the other side, within the Shenxuan Mansion of the Lin family.

A towering Dharma Body likewise rose into the sky, standing alongside Su Zhenyuan's, three half-Emperor Dharma Bodies towering over heaven and earth, upon this Gusu Imperial Star, gazing at the black warship descending from the heavens—as if welcoming, yet also confronting.

The ferocious pressure radiating from the black warship was instantly blocked; the thirty-six thousand immortal citizens of the Imperial Star all felt the might of Su Zhenyuan and the other human half-Emperors, their presence enveloping heaven and earth, alongside the celestial king authority of other sect elders rising into the sky, forming a barrier over the Imperial Star—as if ten thousand li of immortal cities encircled and guarded the human race.

"Su Zhenyuan, Lin Daogong, long time no see. I trust you're well!"

Three figures stepped onto the deck of the black warship—two men and one woman—each shrouded in abyssal energy, yet their eyes blazing bright, unobscured by mist or cloud, locking gazes with the three Dharma Bodies of Su Zhenyuan and others.

"If you've come to pay a visit, why not announce yourselves first?"

Su Zhenyuan's eyes were icy, his words laced with pressure, as if looking down from above in interrogation.

"Were we too frightening for you?"

The purple-robed middle-aged man at the center spoke calmly.

His eyes were sinister, each bearing four pupils—a double pupil—and even his indifferent gaze sent a chilling sensation, as if one's scalp were about to split open.

"Frightening? Not quite. But our human race has always valued propriety and rules. Since you've come to our Imperial Star, you must abide by our rules!"

Beside him, Lin Daogong, lord of the Lin family, spoke coldly—his face slender, hair snow-white, appearing youthful, yet his eyes bore the weight of countless ages.

"If you value propriety, then since we've traveled far, why haven't you welcomed us? Won't you at least offer us rest?"

Another middle-aged man, broad-shouldered and radiating ocean-deep energy, spoke in a low tone.

His eyes were golden, his face shrouded in shadow, yet those golden eyes stood out starkly.

"You arrived uninvited—that alone makes you intruders. We've been generous merely by not expelling you."

The silver-haired woman of the Jiang family, her beauty breathtaking, now radiated pressure equal to Su Zhenyuan and Lin Daogong; unlike them, her words were sharper, her entire being drenched in overwhelming killing intent, utterly unhidden!

Countless heroic souls of the Jiang family had perished on the frontier; as the current matriarch and lord of the Jiang family, her hatred for demons and monsters burned as thick as mountains of corpses and seas of blood.

"Jiang Qiuyu, your Jiang family still has the least decorum—no wonder you die the most."

The purple-robed man glanced at her, expression cold, utterly unmoved by her killing intent, even eager to provoke her.

Even here, on human Imperial Star, they dared come—because they knew the humans wouldn't dare break their word.

Beyond the frontier pressure, their ability to teleport here wasn't due to their own strength.

▲￠o

Hearing his words, Jiang Qiuyu's face darkened; her silver hair flew wildly, instantly transforming into ten thousand silver needles, a terrifying pressure rippling through space, piercing time and space, slamming into the black warship.

With a boom, the purple-robed man kept his hands behind his back, his body barely shifting, yet his four pupils spun—evil energy seeped into time and space, halting the assault.

"Hmph. Is this how humans treat guests?"

The purple-robed man sneered, his gaze condescending, filled with superiority.

Jiang Qiuyu's eyes blazed with killing intent; a dark moon suddenly appeared above the black warship.

That dark moon resembled a falling star, radiating terrifying Emperor power; on Jiang Qiuyu's forehead, the Divine Moon Mark glowed brilliantly. Beyond Gusu City, seven thousand immortal cities within ten thousand li could see the dark moon suddenly descending through the clouds!

It was the Jiang family's Grand Void Dark Moon—an extremely mysterious immortal technique said to be usable only by Celestial Kings with Jiang family bloodline.

On the black warship, the twenty distinctive figures all grew solemn, sensing the dark moon's might.

Without the warship and the three elders ahead to block it, even this single dark moon's fall would be enough to swallow them all!

"Hmph!"

The burly middle-aged man suddenly snorted; his golden eyes blazed fiercely, completely obscuring his shadowed face. He raised his palm—a dragon's roar echoed, piercing the starry sky, as if a fearsome dragon shadow emerged, coiling around the dark moon, ready to swallow it like a pearl!

Jiang Qiuyu's forehead flared with divine light; the dark moon suddenly contracted, unleashing an avalanche of power from its surface, shattering the coiling dragon back.

Seeing her gain slight advantage, the purple-robed man's double pupils sharply contracted; an alien erosion force spread—black energy oozed from space, as if a celestial dog devoured the moon, attempting to blot out the dark moon.

"Enough, you've gone too far!"

Su Zhenyuan's gaze turned sharp; behind his Dharma Body, a brilliant golden shadow faintly emerged—seemingly a Dharma Body within a Dharma Body, radiating terrifying Emperor power!

As the golden shadow appeared, the dark aura over the dark moon was immediately pushed back. The purple-robed man's expression hardened as he glanced at Su Zhenyuan, then slightly raised his hand, signaling the burly man beside him to dim his golden gaze.

Jiang Qiuyu was about to unleash another strike, but Su Zhenyuan whispered: "Enough. They have demonic Emperor watchers behind them. Fighting now gains us nothing."

Jiang Qiuyu heard him, her eyes flashing killing intent—but she ultimately held back.

The dark moon vanished. In the distant void, figures stepped through space—each resembling a Dharma Body—ancient elders of various sects arriving in midair.

They joined Jiang Qiuyu, Su Zhenyuan, and Lin Daogong, their combined might forming a thick celestial wall that completely obscured the black warship's aura.

Seeing this, the purple-robed man frowned slightly, yet showed no fear, calmly saying: "Shall we discuss the matter at hand? Is the arena prepared?"

"Naturally."

Su Zhenyuan spoke coldly, then raised his hand; beside him, Jiang Qiuyu and Lin Daogong also extended their palms. Three forces intertwined, carving a rift in space—time-space laws surged within, followed by a chorus of dragon roars and clanking chains.

The dragon roars were ancient, echoing from primordial times; the chains trembled, clattering across heaven and earth, sounding like souls being ground to dust.

From the rift, dragon heads emerged—one by one, a hundred dragon figures, each bound in chains.

Behind them, at the end of the chains, a land radiating the scent of corpses and blood seas was slowly dragged forth!

The peaks and forests upon that land seemed drenched in blood, exuding boundless malevolence, stained with black demonic blood, all dark and cold.

"The Demon Ancestor's Arena—Descendants of the Azure Dragon!"

Seeing this, the purple-robed man and the twenty demonic prodigies on the black warship all paled.

The hundred chained dragons—they recognized them as members of the Azure Dragon Clan, a great demonic tribe of the Northern Region!

And the land they dragged—was the famed sacred site of the demonic realm, said to be the place where a demonic Emperor once sat in final meditation and passed away.

That Demon Ancestor Emperor had once fought a life-or-death battle against the Northern Region's human Emperor, was gravely wounded and fled, then soon after sat in meditation and perished—right here, this Demon Ancestor's Arena!

The demonic race once sent powerful warriors to seize it, but a great battle erupted, and the arena vanished. No one expected it to fall into human hands.

The corpse of the Demon Ancestor who had sat in meditation there—undoubtedly now lay in human possession.

"You dare…"

The purple-robed man's face darkened, his eyes glinting with cold fury. The Demon Ancestor had once carved vast territories for the demonic race, his achievements legendary. Now, his death site was held by humans—and dragged out as a battlefield? The meaning was unmistakable.

"How do you find this arena?"

Su Zhenyuan spoke coldly.

"Good. Very good!" The purple-robed man clenched his fist, all four pupils blazing with rage.

As the Demon Ancestor's Arena appeared, overwhelming demonic energy filled heaven and earth. Though the Demon Ancestor had passed five ten thousand years ago, the land still radiated a trace of Emperor power—instilling awe and dread.

"Children, on this Demon Ancestor's Arena—only victory, only death. No retreat!"

The purple-robed man turned his gaze away, his voice icy as he spoke to the twenty demonic prodigies behind him.

The twenty demonic prodigies' expressions hardened, their eyes brimming with killing intent.

"You arrived early. We still have disciples in seclusion. The battle begins tomorrow. Rest here tonight—we offer no hospitality."

Su Zhenyuan waved his hand.

"Do not leave this place on your own. Our Imperial Star's rules are strict. If anything happens, don't blame us."

Lin Daogong stated calmly.

Jiang Qiuyu merely glanced at the black warship, then retracted her Dharma Body and returned to the Jiang family.

The purple-robed man and others paid no mind—a single day was but a blink.

Once Su Zhenyuan and the ancient elders of each sect retracted their Dharma Bodies, only the black warship remained suspended in the sky—but the once unrestrained aura it had radiated was now fully contained.

In the deep courtyard of the Su family.

As Su Zhenyuan's Dharma Body retracted, he immediately sent word summoning all Su family disciples.

In the Zhexian Courtyard, Su Muqing's gaze withdrew from the black warship, then without looking back, she rushed straight toward Minghuang Palace.

Li Hao also glanced at the black warship, then followed Su Muqing.

Before Minghuang Palace, numerous Su family disciples had gathered.

Su Jingcheng and others also appeared—the arrival of the black warship had shaken the entire Gusu Imperial Star; they had all been roused from their seclusion.

Yet now, as they assembled, they all knew: their soul lifespans had expired. They could not fight.

"Muqing, Wanqing, Wanxue—have you all prepared?"

Su Zhenyuan's gaze fell upon his three daughters. Among the younger generation of the Su family, they were the most gifted—and the ones chosen to shoulder this burden.

"Father, I'm ready!"

Su Muqing's eyes were resolute as she spoke to Su Zhenyuan.

"Tomorrow, I will avenge Mingzhe's death!"

Su Wanxue's eyes blazed with killing intent.

Su Wanqing said nothing, but her gaze was utterly determined.

Su Zhenyuan nodded. "In this battle, use any means—even consume immortal elixirs or demonic pills!"

He waved his hand; glowing elixirs floated into view, radiating fragrance and strange phenomena.

"You all know these elixirs. If necessary tomorrow, take them—even if it ruins your foundation, you must not lose. You must not fail!"

As he spoke, his heart tightened.

These were his own children—geniuses beyond compare. Had it not been for the greater cause of humanity, how could he ever give them these elixirs?

It was as if forcing his own children to drink poison!

Yet his face remained stern and grave, showing no trace of pain.

Hearing their father's words, Su Muqing and the others fixed their eyes on the elixirs, their gazes sharpening.

They all recognized these elixirs and understood their effects: though they granted immense combat boosts, they destroyed one's foundation—equivalent to betting one's future on tomorrow.

In past times, they wouldn't have even glanced at them. But now, each of them reached out and took their allotted elixir.

"Wanqing won't disappoint Father."

Su Wanqing gripped the elixir tightly; her usually gentle nature now radiated grim killing intent.

Su Muqing and Su Wanxue also took their elixirs, their eyes resolute.

Li Hao gazed at Su Muqing's profile; only now did he sense that the girl before him was the supreme disciple of the Emperor who had reigned unchallenged in the Southern Realm's Immortal Lord realm.

Similar scenes unfolded not only within the Su family, but also among other noble clans and great houses.

The Demon Ancestor's Dao Hall had appeared; they intended to revive the glory of fifty thousand years ago upon this Dao Hall.

The human race must not lose!

A single day passed in the blink of an eye.

By the end of that day, the thirty-six thousand immortal cities of Gusu Imperial Star all knew the source of the demonic aura, and the wager between humans and demons.

Countless great clans from the immortal cities behind Gusu City raced through the night in their flying ships, gathering outside Gusu City.

Streams of light streaked across the heavens; from the stars above, the entire backside of Gusu Imperial Star blazed with radiant trails, as if a meteor shower were imminent—and all these trails converged upon Gusu Imperial City!

The dawn's light slowly rose, bathing the countless gates of Gusu Imperial City.

Countless divine manifestations hovered in the air, shimmering with brilliance, having already encircled Gusu Imperial City; the ground teemed with people.

High above, the Demon Ancestor's Dao Hall hung suspended; over a hundred descendants of the Azure Dragons were bound by chains, their essence and spirit drained, slumped lifelessly as they coiled in midair.

"Hmph!"

On the black warship, the purple-robed middle-aged man and others gazed at the boundless wilderness beyond the imperial city, where countless figures filled the landscape—and even farther away, more humans continued to arrive.

Had this not been human territory, with such a dense concentration of delicacies, they would have already struck to feast their fill.

"Do these human vermin truly believe they stand a chance of victory?"

"Then let us slaughter their human prodigies right before their eyes. If they dare not send their top prodigies, we shall torture their opponents to death in full view—let them know what despair truly is!"

Coldness glinted in their eyes.

Behind them, the twenty demonic prodigies either stared blankly or already glowed with bloodthirsty killing intent, fists clenched, barely containing their eagerness.

Soon, Su Zhenyuan, Lin Daogong, and the ancestral elders of various clans arrived with their respective clan's prodigies.

High above, apart from the black warship, only the humans remained—and in sheer numbers, they vastly outnumbered the warship, their aura soaring like a storm.