The Demon Kings were startled by Feili's words — partly because of the intelligence he had revealed, and partly because they had been completely unaware of it. All of them had dealt with the alien race before. They knew what kind of crude, brute-strength fighters those hulking aliens were, and several had personally beheaded so-called powerhouses among their ranks. None of them considered the aliens to be particularly difficult to handle.
Had the Demon Saints not issued orders to stay on the defensive before entering seclusion to heal their injuries, they would have gone on the offensive long ago and conquered this land. So hearing Feili say that Sha Ya's territory had already fallen and her entire following had been wiped out was naturally somewhat surprising.
"Impossible. The aliens are that powerful?"
"Really, Feili — could you have gotten something wrong? Sha Ya's strength may not be much, but she is still a Demon King. How could the aliens possibly manage something like that?"
Several uninformed Demon Kings voiced their doubts, while the rest chose to sit back and watch.
Facing their skepticism, Feili merely let out a cold laugh. "Why don't you ask her yourself? I have no grudge against her — why would I target her?"
Every gaze in the hall swung toward Sha Ya.
Knowing there was no hiding it, Sha Ya could only say hoarsely, "Feili speaks the truth. The territory I ruled has indeed fallen, and all three thousand of my kin have been killed in battle. This is my failure and my incompetence!"
Hearing Sha Ya admit it with her own lips, the Demon Kings who had just voiced their doubts fell silent. The looks they directed at Sha Ya gradually turned cold — the coldness of disdain and contempt.
Ever since they had invaded this land and the alien race had risen up in resistance, it seemed they had not suffered any real losses. Even when the aliens won the occasional skirmish, it was always some trivial, inconsequential victory. Not a single Demon King had tasted the flavor of defeat.
But Sha Ya had not only lost her territory — she had gotten every last one of her kin killed. This was nothing short of a disgrace to the Demon race.
She had truly failed the Demon Saints' expectations. A loss of this magnitude was enough to strip her of her right to be called a Demon King.
"She deserves to die!" Feili's voice grew ever colder, as if Sha Ya's failure had cost him face as well.
No one spoke up for Sha Ya this time. Even Baoqi did not dare open his mouth casually, lest someone notice something amiss.
Sha Ya still hung suspended in midair. Feeling the pressure of Feili's skeletal fingers, she actually began to laugh. "I do deserve to die. But I want you all to know — my kin did not sacrifice themselves in vain. They fought to the last breath against more than ten thousand aliens. Not one of them retreated or fled. Before they died, they made the aliens pay an enormous price!"
Baoqi heard these words and knew perfectly well she was spouting nonsense.
But the other Demon Kings were visibly moved, as though they could picture those three thousand demons surrounded by enemies several times their number, fighting back to the bitter end without a shred of surrender, only to be annihilated by sheer disparity in strength. The coldness on their faces thawed somewhat.
"Then why didn't you go down fighting alongside them?" Feili seemed unmoved, though the ghostly flame in his eye socket flickered slightly.
Sha Ya opened her mouth but did not bother with any excuses. She simply said, "Kill me. Having lost my territory and my people, I no longer deserve to be a Demon King."
She stopped struggling entirely, adopting the posture of someone resigned to slaughter.
The ghostly fire in Feili's eye sockets turned glacial. He gave a slight nod. "At least you still have some sense of shame. Rest easy — I'll make it quick."
With that, just as he was about to deliver the killing blow to Sha Ya, the silent Baoqi suddenly spoke up. "Wait!"
Feili turned his head toward him. Sha Ya exhaled with relief deep inside, though her expression did not shift one iota — she maintained that look of fearless defiance, lest anyone glimpse her fear.
Feili said nothing. He simply stared at Baoqi, seemingly willing to hear what the latter had to say on the matter. Of course, pleading would do no good. Since he had already decided to kill Sha Ya, no appeal from anyone would change his mind — unless the Demon Saints themselves issued a command.
"Sha Ya deserves death, but she shouldn't die by our hands," Baoqi said calmly. He reached out and pointed at the disguised entrance. "Why not send her in as a scout to see what the situation is inside? I doubt any of us want to be the first one through, do we?"
The moment these words left his lips, the Demon Kings' eyes lit up. They exchanged glances, and a few even lowered their heads to exchange a few whispered words before nodding one after another. It was clearly an idea they found appealing.
The site where an ancient saint had perished held tremendous appeal for the Demon Kings, but the sheer unknown of it left everyone somewhat uneasy. If even an ancient saint had fallen in there, there was certainly danger lurking within.
Though they had never discussed it openly, every one of them had privately wondered: who would be the first to go in?
There was no denying it — that was an exceedingly perilous task. The first person inside might encounter unique opportunities, but far more likely they would walk straight into unforeseeable hazards. These Demon Kings all valued their lives. Not a single one was foolish enough to volunteer as a pathfinder for someone else's benefit.
But now there was a perfectly suitable candidate right in front of them.
Feili did not move. The ghostly flame burning in his eye sockets had calmed considerably, as though he were weighing something.
Baoqi pressed his advantage. "Feili, if you insist on killing her, I won't stop you. But you have to go in first."
Under Baoqi's original plan, he had intended to volunteer himself as the scout to dispel everyone's suspicions. After all, he knew exactly where this vortex led and was certain there was no danger. But if he did that, his persuasiveness and credibility would suffer considerably — after all, it was he who had discovered this "site of an ancient saint's fall."
But if Sha Ya were to do it instead, that would be entirely different.
As long as she went inside, made a circuit, and came back unharmed, everyone's doubts would surely vanish.