Chapter 1508: The Ignorant Are Fearless

Upon witnessing this scene, the Second Prince was thoroughly pleased.

Long, long ago, he had known the throne was not his, but his elder brother’s. If it were merely due to inferior intellect or talent, he might have accepted it. But he was clearly not lacking in either, even excelling in both. Was he truly destined never to be emperor simply because his mother was not the Empress? He was unconvinced, yet he knew the Demon Emperor would never pass the throne to him.

"If you won't give it to me, I'll take it myself."

Thus, a long time ago, he volunteered to serve in the military for experience. Due to frequent and often unfavorable battles against humans, the military was extremely perilous, with a very high casualty rate. Not to mention princes, even slightly influential nobles in the royal court were unwilling to send their offspring to join the army. Yet, he went without hesitation and rose to become one of the four famous generals of the demon race.

Even so, his father the Emperor never truly acknowledged him, merely seeing him as a sharp blade for the Crown Prince to wield—a tool to expand his territory under his command once he ascended to the throne. Understanding this, he seized the opportunity while leading troops away from the capital to extensively recruit various experts. Other experts were not worth mentioning, but he acquired four Grandmasters.

Though Duan Tianchou's cultivation was high, he was the easiest of the four to win over. The Night Elves held a sworn enmity with the Elf tribe, and since the Elf tribe was now one of the three major royal families in the imperial court, representing official power, the Night Elves naturally symbolized the opposing force. The Night Elves longed to change this and could only hope for a revolution in the imperial court, a complete reshuffling of power. Thus, the two immediately found common ground.

Sixth Uncle was also not too difficult; he valued longevity and, having only recently joined the Elder Council, had not yet forgotten the allure of the mortal world like the older conservatives. Therefore, it was natural to persuade him by appealing to his desires.

Blacktooth Suia's back was against the wall back then. Furthermore, his original wife was also from the Blacktooth clan, so recruiting him was initially not difficult due to this connection. The challenge, however, arose after his recruitment: the reason he became an outcast was his need to consume living beings—not ordinary animals, but those with cultivation, whether human or demon. If he didn't eat a human for a day, he would turn hostile and recognize no one. It was unlikely anyone in the world could afford to keep him fed.

Fortunately, leading an army offered much more operational flexibility. For instance, human captives or criminals facing military justice could be used. Sometimes, if these weren't enough, he could find a remote village, feign a human or ferocious beast attack, plunder it, and then feed the villagers to Blacktooth Suia.

Mr. Bat was the most troublesome; even among the Blood Clan, he was a notoriously infamous figure. He once took many disciples, enslaving them to capture experts everywhere for him to drain their essence. To this end, he established a complicated assessment system: the top three performing disciples would receive generous rewards, those in the middle would neither be rewarded nor punished, but the disciple with the worst performance each year would meet a tragic end, having all their vital blood and essence drained by him. Thus, his disciples worked themselves to the bone, with none wanting to be the unfortunate last one.

Among the disciples, internal strife and vicious competition were rampant. Some considered resisting or escaping, but none succeeded; instead, their fates were even more tragic, leaving them unable to live or die. Over several decades, it was said that only one disciple managed to escape, seemingly named Mosquito Daoist, a demon terrifying to both the demon and human races. If even a disciple was so formidable, one could imagine how powerful their master was.

However, Mr. Bat's perverse actions eventually became unbearable for his apprentices, who allied with Mr. Bat's external enemies and successfully overthrew his rule. That battle was extremely brutal; nearly all the disciples perished or were gravely injured, and Mr. Bat escaped with severe wounds.

The Second Prince had rescued him by chance. Naturally, he knew such a demon would never feel gratitude for being saved, so he never took credit or boasted, instead binding Mr. Bat through mutual interest. Previously, Mr. Bat relied on enslaved disciples to find victims. Now, with the Second Prince able to mobilize far greater human and material resources, Mr. Bat was naturally content to stay.

However, for the Second Prince, keeping Mr. Bat was the most challenging. This was because Mr. Bat's craving for blood was no less than Blacktooth Suia's need for flesh and blood. Crucially, Blacktooth Suia devoured everything, effectively destroying all evidence. Mr. Bat, however, only consumed blood, leaving the drained bodies with obvious characteristics. If exposed, even as a prince, it would be extremely troublesome. Thus, each time, not only did he have to secretly find victims, but he also had to help clean up the aftermath, which was truly unbearable.

These four Grandmasters were formidable, but the cost was immense. Moreover, while the Demon Emperor was alive, they absolutely dared not make any moves. Sometimes, the Second Prince even wondered if such a massive investment in recruiting individuals who wouldn't dare act against his father was worthwhile.

As fate would have it, his father, the Emperor, met an accidental death within the secret realm. With only the normally arrogant Crown Prince left, there was nothing more to say. It was time to strike!

Yet, even under these circumstances, he had refrained from letting Blacktooth Suia and Mr. Bat take action until now. After all, these two fiends were simply too infamous and could easily bring him negative repercussions. But as things stood, he had no other choice. He had never anticipated that the opposing side would have three Grandmasters! He knew that the longer he delayed, the more variables would arise, so he decisively ordered the two to act. As for the subsequent repercussions, once he became the Demon Emperor, he wouldn't even need to give instructions; countless subordinates would automatically resolve these issues for him.

"Mr. Bat's cultivation is truly formidable; even from this distance, the blood within me feels stirred within my veins."

Seeing many in his army being accidentally injured, the Second Prince remained expressionless. At this moment, his sole focus was on capturing the Young Prince. For the sake of this greater objective, other minor sacrifices were acceptable. At worst, he would simply increase the compensation for the families of the fallen soldiers afterwards; they would surely be grateful then.

Just then, Mr. Bat charged towards the palace gates. The Young Demon Empress's confidantes and some experts from the Xiao family moved to intercept him. To their shock, with a mere wave of Mr. Bat's hand, those individuals exploded into a mist of blood, instantly reduced to desiccated corpses. At this, experts from the Elf, Demon, and Sea races all recoiled in fear. Each race, in an effort to keep their options open, had not sent Grandmaster-level experts this time, so no one dared to confront such a terrifying fiend head-on.

The fastest to flee was Chiwen. Though infatuated with the Young Demon Empress's beauty, what good was a beauty's favor if he was drained into a husk? This left only Zu An and the pale-faced Yu Yanluo beside the Young Demon Empress and her son.

"A'Zu!" Qiao Xueying worried about her lover's safety, but the Elf experts behind her held her back tightly, preventing their princess from rushing to her death.

Mr. Bat remotely extended a hand towards the Young Prince, and a terrifying suction force immediately emanated. The Young Demon Empress could only desperately circulate her cultivation to barely prevent her blood from being drawn out of her body. She wanted to protect her son, but at this moment, her will was strong, but her power was insufficient.

Fortunately, there was Zu An! Her son was currently shielded behind Zu An. Seeing the man's calm face, she breathed a slight sigh of relief. However, her heart quickly leaped to her throat again. Although Zu An had previously slain Grandmaster Shi Zhentian with a single arrow, it seemed more likely that he had relied on the divine power of the Sun-shooting Bow. At such close range now, he wouldn't even have time to unleash the bow. Moreover, how could he simultaneously protect both Queen Medusa and the Young Prince?

Mr. Bat also noticed that the young man appeared unusually calm, and sneered inwardly. "Young people today truly lack discernment. I've been in seclusion for so many years; he probably doesn't know the horror I embody. Ignorance truly breeds fearlessness. When my divine skill draws you in, you'll immediately lose control of your bladder and bowels. Let's see how you'll act cool then. I detest these handsome young men, these pretty boys. Back then, my most cherished and beloved disciple, Mosquito Daoist, was lured away by a pretty boy! The 'cabbage' I had painstakingly cultivated was actually taken by another 'pig'!"

Rage value from Mr. Bat: 999,999,999...

Seeing the string of rage values rising in the background, Zu An felt a bit strange. He hadn't provoked him, had he? Why such immense anger? However, the faint boiling sensation in his blood left him no room for hesitation; he immediately sent a "Yi Ku Experience Card" toward the opponent!

***

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