Chapter 597: Killing Ten Stars Like Slaughtering Dogs

The Demon Emperor said calmly, "Haimei, you are now a Demon King. You should pay more attention to the younger generation in the clan. Otherwise, not knowing the strength of the juniors will make you look foolish."

Haimei’s heart trembled. She quickly bowed and said, "Haimei knows her mistake."

The Demon Emperor withdrew his gaze. He turned to look at Jiang Fan and said, "Do you have nothing to say this time?"

Jiang Fan smiled, unfazed by the Demon Emperor’s authority: "Killing a few demon elites before I die would be a huge gain for me."

The assembled demon powerhouses let out cold snorts."He’s truly arrogant!""Let him be. What does it matter if a dying man speaks a few wild words?""Everyone, please remember his current expression. When he faces the Ten Stars, his face will surely be interesting."

The Demon Emperor also chuckled. He shook his head slightly. Kill the Ten Stars? Jiang Fan truly dared to say that. Even Xia Chaoge, known as the Nine Sects' top prodigy, might not possess such immense power. Much less Jiang Fan?

In merely a short while, outside the Demon Emperor's Hall, ten figures of varying heights, builds, and sizes approached side by side. All of them were similar to human form. The tallest were over twenty feet tall, more than three times Jiang Fan's height. The shortest only reached Jiang Fan's waist. But without exception, all emanated a powerful demonic aura. The weakest was stronger than Heize, who was at the fifth layer of the Core Formation realm. The strongest faintly possessed the captivating aura of the sixth layer of the Core Formation realm.

Most crucially, they were different from ordinary demons. Each of them secretly harbored an innate bloodline. Based on previous encounters with the Beast Kings, the demonic innate bloodlines were extremely troublesome. Demons with innate bloodlines were often invincible within the same realm. Some even possessed the ability to fight beyond their level.

"The Ten Stars pay their respects to the Demon Emperor."

The Ten Stars of the demon race stepped forward in unison and knelt on one knee. Their voices were resonant, and their eyes held power. Their entire beings exuded powerful confidence from within.

The Demon Emperor nodded slightly, satisfied, "Rise. I summoned you here today to introduce you to a friend."

The Ten Stars exchanged glances. A friend?

The Demon Emperor said with a faint, unreadable smile, "Have any of you heard the name Jiang Fan of the human race?"

At the mention of Jiang Fan, the Ten Stars immediately became agitated."Of course, we know! He’s the human brat who decimated our army of ten thousand undead demons!""Hmph! He only succeeded because our younger generation of demons hadn’t made their move yet.""Otherwise, how could he have been qualified to rampage on the battlefield? We would have beheaded him long ago.""Once the North Sea demons leave, I’ll immediately head to the front lines to confront this Jiang Fan."

As someone who had brought shame upon the entire demon race, few demons didn't know his name. Especially the hot-blooded younger generation. Had they not been assigned more important tasks, they would have rushed to the front lines long ago.

The Demon Emperor chuckled, "There's no need to go to the front lines to meet him. I have already brought him here."

Jiang Fan? The Ten Stars were startled, their gazes sweeping around. When they spotted the human youth in the hall, they all showed expressions of surprise and doubt.

"Demon Emperor, is this truly the human Jiang Fan?"

The Demon Emperor nodded slightly, "Indeed! I have found him for you! Today, you Ten Stars can spar with him as much as you like, regardless of life or death. What do you say, do you dare to challenge him?"

Upon realizing that the youth before them was truly Jiang Fan, and that they were allowed to personally spar with him, the Ten Stars' aura surged. Each of them radiated overwhelming killing intent.

"Demon Emperor, you jest. This is a common enemy of the demon race; we'd be quick to slay him. How could we possibly say we don't dare?""Thank you, Demon Emperor, for granting us the chance to personally kill this common enemy of the demon race. I, Zixing, am willing to be the first to spar!""Zixing, you are the head of the Ten Stars; please leave such sparring opportunities to us."

Seeing the Ten Stars brimming with fighting spirit, the Demon Emperor nodded and said, "Chengxing, you go first. The rest of you wait."

Hearing this, the other nine stars showed expressions of envy."Chengxing, take it easy. Don't kill him in one go.""Leave some chances for us too."

Chengxing stepped forward from the group. He was the over twenty-foot-tall demon, with an orange star imprinted on his forehead. His body was very thin, and his bare upper body was almost skeletal. He turned his gaunt head and smiled at the nine stars behind him.

"Well, I can’t guarantee that. If he's too fragile and can't withstand a single slap from me, don't blame me."

Having said that, he looked at Jiang Fan, a cold glint in his eyes: "Jiang Fan of the human race. I've long heard of your great name! Chengxing of the demon race requests your guidance!"

Jiang Fan stepped forward, dragging the chains, and said indifferently, "You'd better use your full strength. Otherwise, you will die."

Chengxing was probably only at the fifth layer of the Core Formation realm. Killing him would be as easy as turning over one's hand.

Chengxing glanced at Jiang Fan's chains, frowned slightly, and said: "Demon Emperor, please remove his chains, lest it be an unfair victory. What comparison could there be with someone whose limbs are bound? It wouldn't be a satisfying fight, and winning would only invite ridicule for bullying a man in shackles."

"Yunxia, unbind him," The Demon Emperor accepted the suggestion and gave the order.

The key to the Dragon-Binding Chains was on Yunxia. Only she could unlock them. Yunxia's expression subtly changed. How could she have the key? What she had was a fake key. Previously, to help Jiang Fan keep the secret of reaching the mystic realm first, she had lied to the Demon Emperor, claiming she had helped unlock the chains. Now, she was about to be exposed.

Hesitantly, she had just begun to move. But Jiang Fan scoffed, "Mere Ten Stars, do I even need these chains unbound? Even without my hands and feet, I'll still defeat you!"

Consort Yunxia inwardly let out a slight sigh of relief. Then, Jiang Fan's mental message, using a 'silent meditation' technique, reached her mind."You nasty woman, I've repaid my debt to you. We're even."

Consort Yunxia retorted playfully, "Who are you calling a nasty woman?" But she found that the 'silent meditation' communication had already ceased. Jiang Fan gave her no chance to vent her frustration. She raised her eyes to look at Jiang Fan, a wave of sadness washing over her heart. This was probably their last conversation, wasn't it? Regardless of whether Jiang Fan succeeded in challenging the Ten Stars or not, the outcome would be the same. If he failed the challenge, he would die at the hands of the Ten Stars. If he succeeded, the Demon Emperor would be even less tolerant of the human race possessing such an peerless prodigy. Pondering this, she somewhat regretted taking Jiang Fan to the Ancient Capital of Nine Dynasties. If she had released him midway, he wouldn't have ended up in this desperate situation, trapped within the Demon Emperor's court, would he?

Meanwhile, Jiang Fan’s words caused ripples of commotion. The Ten Stars erupted in uproar."This is outrageous!""What audacity, human Jiang Fan, to underestimate our Ten Stars so greatly!""Chengxing, don't hold back. Break one of his ribs first. He'll learn how to speak to us when he feels the pain!""Just attack directly, no need to be polite!"

Chengxing was enraged. He felt insulted, deeply insulted."Good, good, good!" Chengxing uttered three 'good's in succession, saying, "Let me see how you plan to defeat me, Chengxing, while wearing those chains!"

He let out a low roar. Loud cracking sounds erupted from his thin body. His skin and flesh gradually transformed into stone. It was not only incredibly hard but also filled with power.

"Take this punch first!" Chengxing charged at Jiang Fan with thundering strides. Petrified, each of his steps was as heavy as a mountain, making the ground tremble. His clenched fist was laden with an incredibly powerful blow that a Core Formation fifth-layer cultivator could not withstand.

Jiang Fan remained expressionless. With a thought, his figure suddenly sprang forward, lightning dragons swirling around his legs.

"Lightning Dragon Electric Leg!"

Bang—

The lightning erupting from his legs struck Chengxing's chest fiercely. Previously, the Lightning Dragon Electric Leg already had the power to break through the defenses of a Core Formation fifth-layer cultivator. Now, with the enhancement of Void Current Thunder Energy, even the defenses of a Core Formation seventh-layer cultivator could be easily breached. Let alone a petrified person in front of him?

Crack, crack, crack—

In an instant, the lightning dragons shattered the stone blocks on his body. Immediately after, the force from Jiang Fan's legs mercilessly pierced through his chest. His heart was instantly crushed.

Thud—

Chengxing tumbled backward through the air for over two hundred feet. He crashed heavily onto the ground, motionless.

Someone exclaimed and rushed forward to check, then stammered: "Chengxing… is dead!"