The Night Emperor was attacking as well. He had an ancient artifact—a soft sword—in his hand. As he vibrated it, they heard an ear-piercing sound. A sword shadow appeared, making little cuts in the air all around them. It looked formidable.
Tsk! Tsk!
The Night Emperor thrust his sword forward with all his might, causing a ball of light to shoot out and fly forward. The sound of that ball of light cutting through the air was extremely sharp and ear-piercing. Jiang Yi subtly nodded his head. With this ancient artifact, the Night Emperor’s powers would be akin to a seven-star martial artist. If the sound was just a bit louder, it would be able to affect even one’s soul spirit.
Clang-clang!
Fireworks appeared in front of them, and they heard the sound of two golden poles hitting one another. The big tree swayed, and immediately, everybody’s expressions darkened. The Night Emperor’s attack left an even deeper mark than the Yin Emperor’s did, but it still did not break the tree. With the branches of the tree thrusting in all directions, nobody dared to attack carelessly as well. What if they killed the people caught in the branches by accident?
The Yin Emperor turned to the Buddha Emperor. Among them all, the latter was the strongest. His combined combat ability was akin to that of an eight-star formidable martial artist. If even he could not break the tree, the people caught in the tree’s branches were without hope. The Buddha Emperor touched his bald head and pursed his lips. “Old Yin, there’s no point looking at me. I can’t cut the tree. Ask your son-in-law.”
“I’ll give it a shot.”
Jiang Yi watched as the two people atop the tree transformed. He did not have the heart to sit back any longer; neither did he dare to make the Yin Emperor beg him for help. If that happened, Yin Ruobing would probably never allow him on her bed again.
Jiang Yi’s Fire Dragon Sword danced around in the air, causing the heaven and earth to change. The Heaven and Earth powers around them congealed three Fire Dragons which charged fiercely toward the huge tree.
“Uh!”
The moment Jiang Yi struck, he showed his real ability. At first, many Demigods were still unwilling to submit to him. They knew that he realized the Divinity Slayer, but since they had not seen it with their own eyes, they did not really believe it for themselves. Now, their expressions—as well as those of the Night Emperor and the Yin Emperor—changed. This was really a nine-star dao pattern. It contained a terrifying amount of energy that even they would not be able to defend themselves against.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The three Fire Dragons kept attacking the tree, causing many explosions. The terrifying force caused even the thick roots of the tree to be torn out of the ground. The tree remained standing at first, but as the branches continued to move around violently, the tree fell over. Still, its trunk remained unbroken.
Swish! Swish!
The Night Emperor quickly shot out several sword lights. The remaining Demigods also moved forward, trying to cut the tree trunk into pieces. At the moment that the tree broke apart, the branches that were holding onto the two Demigods finally lost its glow. Listlessly, it let them go.
Swish!
The two Demigods suffered many burnt wounds, but they still managed to sprint away from the tree and roll toward the remaining clan members. The Demigods from those clans reached out and carried them back the rest of the way. It was obvious that the two of them were still in shock. It seemed like a fair amount of their blood lipids had also been absorbed.
“Go back and recuperate.”
Jiang Yi waited for the Demigods from the two clans to feed the two casualties recuperation medicine before he checked their bodies. After realizing that they were back to being mid-tier Heaven Monarchs, he heaved a huge sigh. Too much of their essence force had been taken away from them. Even if they recovered, their combat skills would probably be akin to a Heaven Monarch’s now. The Yin Emperor had made a bad decision, causing the entire group to lose two capable warriors.
After the two men were brought into the Mystic Divine Palace, Jiang Yi turned to the Buddha Emperor. “Should we allow everyone else to go in? The five of us can inspect the rest of the island?”
“Alright!”
The Buddha Emperor nodded. There was no point in having too many people inspect the island. If they lost more helpers, they would probably be in deeper trouble when another strong monster attacked them.
The Yin Emperor and Night Emperor kept silent, not daring to say anything else. Jiang Yi sent all the Demigods into the palace, leaving behind the Buddha Emperor, Yin Emperor, and Night Emperor. Jiang Xiaonu was still sleeping. Naturally, Jiang Yi did not have the heart to wake her up.
Mei Ru was not teleported into the palace. Instead, Jiang Yi asked her to lead the inspection. Mei Ru was—of course—unwilling, but with Jiang Yi’s Fire Dragon Sword on display, she had no choice but to obey. The Buddha Emperor followed behind and watched as Mei Ru walked, exposing her beautiful legs and ample bottom. Suddenly, he turned to Jiang Yi and whispered, “Jiang Yi, this Black Sea Demon Sovereign is not bad. Look at her buttocks and her thighs. She’s so curvy! It’s a pity she’s a demon…”
Plop!
Jiang Yi’s legs turned to jelly, and he tripped on his own leg, falling to the ground. The Yin Emperor and the others were not surprised and only rolled their eyes. Jiang Yi got to his feet awkwardly, looking at the Buddha Emperor who was smiling slyly. He could not tell if the Buddha Emperor was just testing him or if he was really that lustful. Thus, Jiang Yi said cautiously, “Uncle Yi, if you’re in such a good mood…”
“No, no, I’m just saying!”
The Buddha Emperor grinned and patted Jiang Yi on the shoulder. “Your aunties are very powerful. Hehe, little brat, once we get back, marry my Yi Chan. Then, you’ll know the hard life. If you dare to continue playing around with women outside, get ready to kneel for several days in a row!”
“…”
Jiang Yi had no more words. He did not know how to respond to the Buddha Emperor so all he could do was smile at him. The Buddha Emperor’s image was completely ruined in Jiang Yi’s heart now. Probably only someone like the Buddha Emperor would talk to his own son-in-law about women in this manner.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
On seeing the Jiang Yi’s expression, the Buddha Emperor sighed in disappointment. “I thought you were different. I thought you were someone else. Who knew you would just be like any other ordinary man? Jiang Yi, why don’t you train yourself in zen like me? There are many troubles in life, it is far too tiring. If you still have to put a mask on all the time, what kind of life would you be leading? The heart of zen focuses on following one’s own heart. You would never have to be concerned about how others view you again. You can let all of these burdens go and do what your heart truly desires. This way, you will truly be able to die without any regrets.”
Jiang Yi remained quiet. The Buddha Emperor sounded easy-going when he talked and seemed that way even in his actions. However, Jiang Yi knew that there were many things he would not be able to let go of easily. Could he really say he wouldn’t care about them? He did not bother to object to the Buddha Emperor’s teachings. Instead, he could only hold admiration and respect for the Buddha Emperor’s temperament and attitude.
“Ah?”
As they inspected the island, Mei Ru suddenly screamed out. Jiang Yi was the first to look up, his expression changing. The big tree in front of them was moving all of a sudden. It waved its branches around, catching Mei Ru in its grip and pulling her into the air at once.
Swish!
Jiang Yi’s Fire Dragon Sword lit up, immediately congealing three Fire Dragons that charged forward. Mei Ru’s skills would be useful for them in a place like that. Of course, Jiang Yi could not afford for her demonic strength to be absorbed. Their combined combat skills would definitely take a hit if he did.
Swish! Swish!
The Yin Emperor and Night Emperor got moving at once as well. They uprooted the tree, causing it to fall on its side. Mei Ru fell down and landed hard, panting and reeling from the shock of what had happened.
“You’re a Thearch of the demons. Even if your soul has been made a slave, you should not be this fearful.” Jiang Yi’s eyes twinkled as he asked, “Mei Ru, how old are you this year?”
Mei Ru blinked. “Twenty-seven!”
Jiang Yi frowned, confused. “I’m not asking how old you are as a human. I’m asking how many years it’s been since you were born.”
Mei Ru looked equally confused as she answered, “Twenty-seven years. Is there a problem?”
“You’re so young?”
Jiang Yi and the Buddha Emperor were all taken aback. Demons lived long lives. The strongest demons were at least thousands of years old. Mei Ru was only twenty-seven years old. This meant that she was a baby in the eyes of other demons. No wonder she was this unstable.
“You’re bragging. You’re twenty-seven years old, and you’re a thearch? Who are you trying to bluff?” The Yin Emperor called out mockingly.
“Keke!”
Mei Ru responded proudly. “In terms of skills, no demon can compare to me. However… I only became a demon empress because my Majesty Father passed down all his demonic strength to me.”
“Oh, oh. Let’s continue walking. Don’t worry, Mei Ru, you won’t die.”
Jiang Yi waved his hand. Mei Ru had no choice but to continue walking. The entire group did not bother to talk any more nonsense. They focused instead on the situation around them. Jiang Yi, especially, was on high alert. If he got distracted this time and got his essence force taken away from him, it was likely that no one would be able to save him.
“Eh? What is that?”
After walking around carefully for two hours through hundreds of kilometers of forest, they once again met strange trees that could absorb their powers. Mei Ru cried out immediately, catching Jiang Yi’s and the others’ attention. The Night Empress’s eyes suddenly lit up a thousand times. He shouted out, “That’s Majesty Mother’s red whisk dress.”