Thick, crimson light was sucked into the massive maw. The Blood Demon panicked and reverted to his true form, which only made it easier for the little black dog to devour him. That enormous mouth snapped shut, clamping around the Blood Demon's waist, and no matter how he struggled, he could not break free.
The Blood Demon was pale with terror, screaming for help, but which Demon would dare rescue him? The little black dog's aura wasn't particularly strong, but that unique presence sent a chill straight through their bones. Combined with the Shadow Demon's earlier scream of annihilation, they were already scared out of their wits — all they wanted now was to get as far away from the creature as possible.
The Blood Demon was devoured bit by bit, unable to unleash any of his supernatural abilities whatsoever. He was like an ordinary Demon who had never cultivated at all, unable to even stir the demonic energy within his body.
From the outside, the scene looked remarkably like a great serpent swallowing its prey. Pythons and similar creatures could swallow prey many times their own size — and the little black dog was no different.
A scarlet blaze erupted as scorching power detonated outward. It was Zhu Qing and Zhu Lie making their move.
Both of them were red dragons who had deeply refined the elemental force of fire. The instant they struck, the temperature of the surrounding space soared, as though heaven and earth had been transformed into a single massive furnace, threatening to melt every last Demon within it.
Dragon breath billowed. Spinning fireballs hurtled through the air, blazing fire-blades slashed from on high, sweeping across the battlefield in every direction. The Demon horde was thrown into instant chaos — men and horses toppled, creatures scrambled in every direction, and Demons fell like stalks of wheat being mowed down.
Though these Demons were numerous and most of their abilities were strange and hard to guard against, even without Yang Kai and Zhu Qing stepping in, Zhu Lie would not have come out at a disadvantage.
An eighth-rank red dragon — a being that had surpassed the third level of the Emperor Realm — was more than enough to annihilate this entire Demon squad.
In just the first exchange, over a hundred Demons had been killed or gravely wounded. Not a single one caught in those searing flames had survived — they were all dead.
The Charm Demon shrieked, the Shadow Demon's face changed color, and the Sand Demon tried to burrow underground to escape. But the surrounding space had been sealed — the earth-escaping art was completely unusable. He had barely plunged into the ground before being bounced right back out.
Zhu Qing dashed forward, her delicate fist slamming into the provocatively clad Charm Demon's body. Violent force exploded outward, reducing her to a cloud of blood mist in an instant — not even bones remained.
She had been sick of this Charm Demon for a while now. The way she kept casting seductive glances around, not even bothering to hide it — and worst of all, someone had actually been eating it up.
The Sand Demon had just found his footing after being rejected by the earth when Zhu Lie's fire-blade descended from above, cleaving him clean in half.
That left only the Shadow Demon, standing alone. He looked around wildly. Their army of a hundred had been slaughtered to virtually the last man in the blink of an eye, and he was the sole survivor. His whole body went cold, his hands and feet turning to ice.
Two members of the Dragon Clan, who hadn't even revealed their true forms, had displayed such overwhelming power. If they transformed, they could crush ten times this number without breaking a sweat.
Zhu Lie charged at the Shadow Demon. The Shadow Demon tried once more to deploy his life-saving art, but the dragon's might washed over him and sent his head spinning. He couldn't manage it. Zhu Lie's fist smashed into him, shattering his skull. Red and white splattered in every direction — a truly gruesome sight.
At that same moment, the little black dog finished swallowing the Blood Demon whole. A loud gulp echoed from its throat. It seemed somewhat unsatisfied still, but when it turned to look around, there were no living Demons left — over a hundred of them had been killed to the last.
It snorted through its nose, paid no more attention to the corpses, and simply raised its head to look at Yang Kai.
Yang Kai had not lifted a finger the entire time. Apart from establishing the spatial cage, he hadn't killed a single Demon, because he knew there was no need for him to intervene.
He stepped over to Li Jiao's side and looked down at him.
Li Jiao had just opened his eyes. Seeing Yang Kai, he forced a smile that looked worse than crying. "Palace Master Yang… save me."
Yang Kai raised an eyebrow. "What exactly do you mean by that, Brother Li? You look fit as a fiddle, brimming with energy — I can't see where you'd need me to save you."
Li Jiao blurted anxiously, "Palace Master Yang, you can't just look me in the eye and say that. I've… I've been corroded by demonic energy! Can't you see?"
He and Zhu Lie had ended up stranded in the Wheel World, but unlike Yang Kai, they hadn't been fortunate enough to have someone guide them to the Human Emperor's City. They had remained out in the wilderness. When the laws of heaven and earth had shifted and demonic energy flooded the world, even Li Jiao, at the third level of the Emperor Realm, hadn't been able to fully resist it. The demonic energy had ultimately seeped into his body.
That wisp of demonic energy was incredibly tenacious — like maggots burrowing into bone. No matter what he did, he couldn't drive it out. Had it been otherwise, someone of his cultivation would never have been controlled by a single Charm Demon just moments ago. The injuries Zhu Qing had dealt him were minor — a few broken bones and some spilled blood that would heal with rest. But being corrupted by demonic energy? That was a death sentence. It could very well send him into Qi Deviation.
The moment he laid eyes on Yang Kai, it was like grabbing onto a lifeline.
"I can see that," Yang Kai said, stroking his chin. "But I'm afraid there's nothing I can do about your situation."
Li Jiao nearly broke into tears upon hearing this. "Palace Master Yang, you can't just watch me die! I came all this way for your sake. If you hadn't insisted on inviting me along, how would I have ended up stranded here? Back at the Li Dragon Palace, I would have been living in comfort and luxury. And now look at me — falling to this. When you think about it, Palace Master Yang… you bear some of the responsibility." He spoke while carefully watching Yang Kai's expression, terrified of angering him.
Yang Kai was indeed annoyed. His face hardened as he said, "You can eat whatever you want, but you'd better watch what you say. You agreed to come with me after we negotiated terms beforehand — it wasn't for nothing. And I'm the one who corrupted you with demonic energy, was I? It was your own inadequate strength and weak willpower. What responsibility am I supposed to bear?"