Chapter 18: Sun Demon Emperor (Part 2)
Of course, Yu He didn't recognize something like the Snake-Beating Staff. Since time immemorial, truly few had ever seen it. If not for the fact that Li Qiye had lived for millions of years, entered countless Evil Lands, and learned innumerable heaven-shattering secrets, he too would not have known the secret of the Snake-Beating Staff.
Anyone who didn't know its secret would only see the Snake-Beating Staff as an ordinary wooden stick.
"I'll kill you—!" Though his skin was split and his flesh was torn from the whipping, Xu Hui was still ferocious. Unable to get up, he let out a furious roar as two incomparably sharp claws suddenly shot out from under his ribs, clawing viciously toward Li Qiye's chest! These claws could easily tear right through him!
Xu Hui possessed a Golden Eagle Body because his father was a golden eagle that had embarked on the path of Cultivation. Hidden within his body was a pair of incomparably sharp Golden Eagle Claws, ready to deliver a fatal blow at any moment.
BANG—! The Snake-Beating Staff easily struck the Golden Eagle Claws. Being hit by the staff was like a snake being struck at its vital point; the incomparably sharp Golden Eagle Claws instantly went limp with pain!
"You're courting death!" Li Qiye's gaze turned cold. With a SHING, two daggers instantly pierced Xu Hui's shoulders, pinning him to the ground and rendering him immobile.
"You actually tried to kill me? Today, I'll give you a proper beating!" Li Qiye said coldly, holding the Snake-Beating Staff.
"Enough!" At that moment, Guardian Xu could no longer stand by and watch. He landed in the dueling ring and bellowed.
Li Qiye merely glanced at him and said leisurely, "What's this? The junior can't win, so the senior has to step in personally?"
"Junior, don't be so arrogant!" Guardian Xu's glare could kill. He said grimly, "Let him go, or this venerable one will personally cut you down today!"
Hearing this, Li Qiye slowly turned his calm gaze to Guardian Xu. In a slow, deliberate tone, he said, "A moment ago, I might have spared his life. But now that you've threatened me... I'll just have to kill him." As his words fell, he instantly gripped the daggers.
"AHHH—!" Xu Hui shrieked. The daggers pinning his shoulders instantly crisscrossed, slicing his body apart. In a flash, he was dismembered into five pieces, and his blood stained the ground red!
"Hui'er—!" Guardian Xu cried out. He never would have dreamed that Li Qiye would kill just as he said he would, completely without scruples. He had killed his disciple right in front of him.
"You little bastard, die!" Guardian Xu roared. His Blood Qi surged to the heavens in an instant. In that split second, a Ten Thousand Miles Divine Sword slashed down, aiming straight for Li Qiye's head!
At this point, Guardian Mo was scared out of his wits. With his level of strength, it was already too late to save Li Qiye.
BOOM—! Just as the sword was about to tear through the sky, a giant foot stomped down. Beneath this foot, no one could resist. Whether you were a Heroic Hero or a Prince, even a True Saint Emperor would be nothing more than an ant before this single step.
"No—!" Guardian Xu screamed as he was crushed to death on the spot, flattened into a pile of meat paste by the giant foot.
Everyone was stunned. The one who had stomped down was not Li Qiye, but one of the four colossal stone statues standing in the dueling ring. With a single stomp, a man with the power of a Heroic Hero and a Prince like Guardian Xu was instantly crushed to death.
"Don't—!" The sudden turn of events shocked Chief Guardian Yu He. His Blood Qi surged through the Nine Heavens as he slashed at the stone statue, trying to save Guardian Xu.
However, at that very moment, the statue that had just crushed Guardian Xu lifted its foot and kicked. BANG! Even a powerful Prince like Yu He was sent flying by the kick, his entire body slamming into the main peak! He coughed up blood unceasingly.
"Cease your insolence!" A thunderous voice boomed. Instantly, Laws like a Celestial Waterfall swept across the world, and Divine Light filled the entire Celestial Universe. A figure appeared in the Celestial Vault, an endless Divine Light glowing behind his head. With a single move, he could boil the seas and overturn the rivers.
"The Great Elder—!" Everyone in the Nine Saints Demon Gate was aghast as this person suddenly made a move. The Great Elder formed a seal with his hands, suppressing the Eight Desolations, and pressed down on the statue with supreme, godlike grace!
CRACK—! However, the statue raised a hand and brought it down in a vicious chop. Under this one palm strike, the Treasure Seal shattered. The terrifyingly powerful Great Elder of the Nine Saints Demon Gate stained the Azure Heaven with his blood as he was sent flying. Even the Great Elder could not block that single palm strike from the stone statue!
This scene stunned everyone. The Great Elder had been sent flying in a single blow! In that instant, everyone from the Nine Saints Demon Gate was dumbfounded, be they Guardians or Elders!
The stone statues of the Nine Saints Demon Gate's dueling ring had suddenly attacked, crushing Guardian Xu, kicking away Yu He, and slapping away the Great Elder. It was simply too terrifying.
After sending the Great Elder flying with one palm, the statue returned to its original position as if nothing had happened.
"I've said it before. If the Nine Saints Demon Gate doesn't play by the rules, I don't mind tearing it down and starting over." Li Qiye, standing in the dueling ring, was perfectly calm, as if nothing had happened at all.
Guardian Mo and Nan Huairun were petrified. They had never even dreamed of something like this. A stone statue had suddenly become so terrifying. What was even more frightening was that a statue belonging to the Nine Saints Demon Gate had sent one of its own elders flying. This completely shattered their understanding of the world!
BOOM—! Though injured, the Great Elder's Blood Qi surged to the heavens as he once again stood in the Celestial Universe. With each step he traversed a universe, preparing to fight the stone statue again. In truth, even as the Great Elder, he had been thoroughly frightened. A stone statue of their Nine Saints Demon Gate had actually attacked them!
"Elder, do not be rash. That is our Nine Saints Demon Gate's Guardian God!" At this moment, an imperious, regal voice echoed from the deepest part of the Nine Saints Demon Gate.
"The Sect Leader—!" Upon hearing this voice, everyone in the Nine Saints Demon Gate knew who it was: the Sect Leader of the Nine Saints Demon Gate, the Sun Demon Emperor, a peerless genius of his generation!
The Great Elder abruptly halted his steps. He stared at the stone statue, his expression a mixture of shock and suspicion.
In fact, hearing the Sect Leader's words, all the disciples of the Nine Saints Demon Gate were filled with shock and doubt. Even the high-ranking elders found it hard to believe. They had never heard that the Nine Saints Demon Gate had a Guardian God. Even more terrifying, their Guardian God had just attacked them.
"Great Elder, Guardian Yu, please invite Young Master Li to the Celestial Hall for a discussion. I wonder if Young Master Li would be amenable?" The Sun Demon Emperor's dignified and imperious voice rang out once more.
Hearing the Sun Demon Emperor's words, Li Qiye remained as leisurely as ever. The corner of his mouth curved up as he smiled and said, "Since there's someone who knows what's what, what's the harm in a little chat?"
With great difficulty, Chief Guardian Yu He came forward to invite Li Qiye. As he looked at Li Qiye now, he couldn't help but shudder. He felt that the thirteen-year-old boy before him was just too unnatural!
The Celestial Hall was a sacred place for the Nine Saints Demon Gate. All major decisions within the sect were made in the Celestial Hall, and only elders were qualified to be present.
Neither Guardian Mo nor Nan Huairun was qualified to enter the Celestial Hall. Moreover, the Celestial Hall floated high above the deepest part of the Nine Saints Demon Gate's Sect Territory. Li Qiye, of course, could not fly. However, today, a powerful Prince like Yu He personally knelt down to carry Li Qiye on his back.
Inside the Celestial Hall, all the elders of the Nine Saints Demon Gate were present, including the Great Elder. Every elder in attendance radiated Divine Light, their longevity wheels ebbing and flowing. The Laws circulating around them seemed to evolve into their own separate worlds. These were not Princes; they were True Masters!
A single Prince was likely enough to annihilate the Xiyan Ancient Sect. As for a True Master, their power was frightening beyond measure! The foundation of the Nine Saints Demon Gate was terrifyingly deep; no wonder they could rule the Ancient Ox Territory in this era. With such strength, the Xiyan Ancient Sect stood no chance of contending with them. A single True Master from the Nine Saints Demon Gate could effortlessly suppress the entire Xiyan Ancient Sect.
Yet even with so many True Masters present, Li Qiye remained composed and at ease, sitting comfortably in the Celestial Hall.
"Throughout the eons, no one has ever been able to communicate with the Guardian Gods of my Nine Saints Demon Gate!" the Sun Demon Emperor's voice rang out once more, but he was nowhere to be seen.
Li Qiye shook his head and said, "I don't speak with cowards who hide."
These words caused the expressions of the Nine Saints Demon Gate elders to darken. If Guardian Mo were here, he would surely be scared witless. The Sun Demon Emperor—what a terrifying existence he was! Even all the elders of their Xiyan Ancient Sect would have to be trembling with fear before the Sun Demon Emperor. Yet, Li Qiye treated him as if he were nothing.
"It is not that I am unwilling to meet Young Master Li, but I am currently in seclusion and it is inconvenient to see anyone." The Sun Demon Emperor, a lofty existence who reigned as Sovereign over the entire Ancient Ox Territory, surprisingly did not get angry and instead offered an explanation.
"Fine. I won't make things difficult for you. At least I'm a reasonable person," Li Qiye said with a small smile and a nod.
Li Qiye's arrogant attitude made all the elders of the Nine Saints Demon Gate suppress their anger. Their Demon Emperor was a supreme being. Countless Princes and even True Masters in the Ancient Ox Territory wouldn't dare act presumptuously before him. Yet, a thirteen-year-old boy dared to be so insolent in his presence.
"I would like to hear how Young Master Li communicated with our Nine Saints Demon Gate's Guardian Gods," the Sun Demon Emperor said.
At this, all the elders of the Nine Saints Demon Gate were filled with shock and doubt. They had never heard anything about Guardian Gods before. Even as elders, they had never known that their Nine Saints Demon Gate had such protectors.
The Sun Demon Emperor then explained, "Our Nine Saints Demon Gate has four Guardian Gods. They are the four stone statues in the dueling ring. Our sect's founder personally invited them to protect the Nine Saints Demon Gate. Furthermore, beneath the dueling ring lies the Earth Vein of our Nine Saints Demon Gate's Heaven and Earth Essence Qi, which the Guardian Gods personally watch over! However, since the founding of the Nine Saints Demon Gate, the four Guardian Gods have never once revealed their Divine Techniques... until today!" As he spoke of this, even the Sun Demon Emperor's voice grew grave.
At that, all the elders stared at Li Qiye. They couldn't believe it. The Guardian Gods, who had never revealed their Divine Techniques since time immemorial, had actually taken action for Li Qiye. It was simply inconceivable!