Yun Qingyan’s absence from the Phoenix elder’s birthday banquet finally changed the tone of the whispers in the Demon Realm. As the Demon Monarch and the true ruler of all demons, Yun Qingyan had the prerogative to skip any banquet he didn’t wish to attend. However, the elder was the oldest being in the Demon Realm. Before Yun Qingyan became the Demon Monarch, he had sought out a young genius of equal fame from the Phoenix clan. They fought for seven days and nights under the Phoenix tree, and Yun Qingyan not only won but also took a branch of the Phoenix tree upon his victory. This battle solidified Yun Qingyan’s fame and slightly angered the head of the Phoenix clan.
However, this particular elder, far from being angry, cheerfully sent the Phoenix clan’s array needed to refine the Phoenix tree branches, the infamous Lihuo Great Fire Array. The authentic version of this powerful array, capable of burning everything, was needed to refine the incredibly hard Phoenix wood into shapes useful for cultivators. Although plenty of modified Lihuo Fire Arrays existed outside, the authentic version had always been kept secret by the Phoenix clan.
The elder stated that the conflicts between various clans of the celestial demons had been forever but were never meant to be deadly; they were for the prosperity and strengthening of the Demon Realm. So, he didn’t want this small incident to cause a rift between the young generations of the two royal demon clans.
When Yun Qingyan learned about this, he personally visited to express his gratitude. The elder entertained him, and the two enjoyed drinks under the Phoenix tree. Since then, Yun Qingyan never missed the elder’s birthday feasts held once every ten years, and he didn’t cease this habit even after winning the Demon Monarch Order and becoming the current monarch.
Thus, Yun Qingyan’s absence from the elder’s 1,600th birthday, especially this being a very important occasion that marked his eighth successful Nirvana, raised concerns. The White Tiger clan sent gifts, explaining that part of them was from the Demon Monarch, who was in seclusion and couldn’t attend. But the growing doubts could no longer be contained. After the elder’s birthday feast, ambitions that had been suppressed for centuries began to resurface among some demons, akin to seeds sprouting after a spring rain.
They played it safely at first. Instead of directly attacking Yun Qingyan, they first tested the water by sending some vicious demons through the rifts that existed between Three Thousand Worlds and the Demon Realm. Although Yun Qingyan rarely interfered in the affairs between various demon clans, he never allowed them to cross the boundary and harm cultivators of the Three Thousand Worlds. Especially because those who were harmed by demon cultivators were often regular people or low-level cultivators. In the past, demons caught breaking the rules and crossing the boundary were met with only one fate: death!
But this time, Yun Qingyan did nothing.
Seeing this, those demons deliberately ordered the subordinates they dispatched to commit heinous acts in the Three Thousand Realms, such as harming disciples of the major sects. They knew one of Yun Qingyan’s trusted subordinates, Su Junmo, was often in the Three Thousand Worlds and that these actions would definitely reach his ears.
Yet Yun Qingyan still didn’t intervene, causing rumors of his injury to resurface more intensely. More and more demons became restless, and after carefully investigating the rumor regarding Yun Qingyan’s injury, they concluded he might have indeed been severely wounded by the heavenly tribulation brought to him by the will of the Three Realms. Most probably, this meant he would never recover again.
Those ambitious demons rejoiced. The next emergence of the Demon Monarch Order was less than a year, and they began to prepare frantically. Initially, they were still worried Yun Qingyan might suddenly appear and crush them all in one fell swoop. But as time passed, not only did Yun Qingyan remain absent, but even the White Tiger clan became quiet.
As a result, those demons grew increasingly bold. Over the past year, the Demon Realm has undergone significant changes. Even Sikong Xing’s father, who typically stayed out of clan affairs, started to feel the mounting pressure. Sikong Xing’s mother was a human cultivator from the Three Thousand Worlds, and her father’s lack of involvement in clan management and exclusion from the council were all due to this. Their family had always faced some ostracism in the clan, as the Red Fox clan firmly belonged to the third faction that inherently disdained the human race.
Later, when Sikong Xing followed the clan members she hated to the Three Realms, her main goal was to find her mother, whom she had never met. She never intended to join her fellow red fox youngsters in misdeeds against humans. That’s why, when she met Meng Qi and the others, she willingly chose to follow them, never expecting that decision would lead her to where she was now.
These thoughts flashed through her mind, all came from the information her father had shared with her on the eve of her departure from the Demon Realm. He had also told her that if the Demon Monarch changed, she shouldn’t return to the Demon Realm. If she found her mother, she was to stay with her; if not, the abundant spiritual stones he gave her would ensure a comfortable life in the Three Thousand Worlds.
Sikong Xing remembered the serious yet somewhat melancholic expression on her father’s face when she left. Of course she would never abandon her father alone in the Demon Realm, and yet, she had come to the Three Thousand Worlds. She wanted to find her mother and ask if she wished to reunite with her and her father. If not, Sikong Xing was prepared to return to the Demon Realm, even amidst its upheavals, to stay by her father’s side.
“Sikong Xing! Sikong?!” A hand waved in front of Sikong Xing, snapping her back to reality. She looked up to see Chu Tianfeng’s slightly furrowed brow. “Huh? What is it?”
“What were you thinking about?” Chu Tianfeng asked suspiciously, “Do you know something?”
“I…” Sikong Xing opened her mouth hesitantly. The eyes of those around her were all focused on her intently. These people were indeed comrades with whom she had shared life and death experiences, but they were still human cultivators from the Three Thousand Worlds. Sikong Xing hesitated. The complex details surrounding the battle for the Demon Monarch Order were the Demon Realm’s internal matters. Could she share it with them?
“Why did you stop speaking halfway?” Chu Tianfeng frowned and bluntly asked, “What about Meng Qiqi? What is she to you all?”
“…The Demon Queen.” Sikong Xing said in a low voice.
“???”
Chu Tianfeng was baffled, “What?!”
“If it really that person, then Meng Qiqi would be our Demon Queen,” Sikong Xing took a deep breath, “The Demon Monarch Order appears every hundred years, and it’s about time for it to reappear. Once that happens, the battle for the Demon Monarch’s position will begin again.” She decided to tell her friends everything she knew, as it concerned Meng Qiqi.
Moreover…
Sikong Xing’s gaze swept over her friends. While people like Pei Mufeng and Li Che hadn’t spoken much, she felt a bond formed through shared life-and-death experiences in the Starfallen Sea. They were all friends of Meng Qiqi, just like her, and she chose to trust them.
“Before the emergence of a new Demon Monarch, if Meng Qiqi truly became the Dao companion of that person, then she would be our… our Demon Queen,” Sikong Xing concluded. She still found it a bit awkward to refer to Meng Qi in such a manner, but the truth was the truth.
“…” Chu Tianfeng took a deep breath, then suddenly asked, “But isn’t your Demon Monarch already in power for 300 years? Doesn’t he have other women? Isn’t it said that the powerful celestial demons of your realm, like those big shots in the Devil Realm, can have many women?”
As he spoke, Chu Tianfeng’s tone grew anxious, “Here in our realms, if you’re bonded as Dao companions, you can only have one.”
“There aren’t any,” Sikong Xing said sternly, “The current Demon Monarch is also from the White Tiger clan.”
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