Douluo Continent: The Underworld Emperor Halosa Lets Three Fly

Chapter 145 Demon Emperor

The Demon Emperor's already gloomy face instantly froze into an eternity of ice under Ye Lan's undisguised threat. She leaned slightly forward from her throne, and a terrifying, suffocating pressure erupted like a tangible tsunami!

The deep purple demonic runes on her bare skin suddenly lit up, as if they had come to life, emitting a low hum. The entire space of the Eye of Return to Nothingness seemed to groan under the weight, and the evil soul masters at the Title Douluo level below turned pale, swaying precariously like straws in a storm.

"I disagree!" The Demon Emperor's voice was icy cold, each word like an icicle carved from the deepest abyss. "Little girl, do you think you can make me submit with just nine broken skeletons? I have roamed the deep sea for millennia and have never been threatened like this before!"

"Heh." The lazy smile on Ye Lan's face vanished completely, replaced by an almost eerie coldness. She slowly sat up straight, the hidden diamonds on her black court dress seeming to absorb all the light, making her look like a deep black hole.

She did not unleash her power to fight the Demon Emperor, because she was no match for him. However, the invisible, chilling aura and sense of control that originated from the depths of her soul caused the killing intent in the entire space to boil instantly!

"Then let's give it a try!" Ye Lan's voice wasn't loud, but it clearly pierced through the Demon Emperor's oppressive aura, like a viper flicking its tongue. "Let's fight! Let's fight to the death! This Holy Maiden wants to see whether your ten-thousand-year-old demon whale's overwhelming battle power is superior, or whether my immortal knights can better interpret the true meaning of 'immortality'!" Before she finished speaking, her slender finger swept through the air!

Buzz!! Buzz!! Buzz!!

Nine grayish-white spatial rifts, like ferocious wounds, instantly tore open above the lava pool! Nine tall, broken skeleton knights, clad in ancient, tattered armor, stepped out silently! Cold, grayish-white soul fire burned in their eye sockets, and dark red bloodstains congealed on the broken bone blades or giant axes in their hands.

A terrifying aura, a mixture of icy stillness and indomitable fighting spirit, erupted like nine volcanoes dormant for millennia, awakening simultaneously! Although each aura was much weaker than at its peak, with cracks covering their armor and obvious defects in their bones, the combined pressure of these nine deathly wills at the half-step god level was enough to plunge the entire Eye of the Ruins into a deathly, icy hell!

Splash!

The previously trembling crowd of evil spirit masters below suddenly exploded like ants thrown at them by a boulder! Almost without hesitation, the crowd split into two distinct camps! One group quickly gathered in the shadows beneath the Nightfall Throne, their eyes filled with fanaticism and loyalty;

The other group, as if they had found their anchor, gathered around the Demon Emperor's throne with awe and anticipation. The tense atmosphere instantly reached its peak, and the fluctuations of soul power, like lava about to erupt, clashed and collided fiercely in the vast space, emitting low, booming sounds.

The Demon Emperor's purple-gold pupils narrowed dangerously, like a venomous snake locking onto its prey.

She surveyed the divided crowd below, her voice laced with biting sarcasm and a barely perceptible weariness: "Very well! Very well indeed! Saintess of Nightfall, you certainly have some tricks up your sleeve! Back then, it was your Holy Spirit Cult's Ghost Emperor who knelt outside the Abyss of Return to Nothingness, begging me to join him in our grand undertaking! Promising to share divine positions and reshape the universe! Now, the Ghost Emperor has vanished without a trace, and you, a mere young girl, have seized power, yet you've already learned to sow discord among your followers and engage in infighting?!"

Her gaze swept over the evil spirit masters standing on Ye Lan's side, including some former subordinates of the Ghost Emperor, who were now bowing and scraping to Ye Lan.

However, her provocation did not shake the positions of either side. Those who followed the Demon Emperor were mostly veteran evil soul masters who had transformed from deep-sea soul beasts or relied on her power. They longed to accumulate power so that they could infiltrate and erode her in a more secure way, and finally launch a blood sacrifice with a thunderous blow, rather than engaging in pointless consumption.

Those on Yelan's side were mostly upstarts and outlaws attracted by the "miracles" she displayed (the immortal spirit rider) and the tangible benefits (all the gains from the operation belonged to the individual, and Yelan would also reward them with a large amount of resources). They craved chaos, destruction, and instant power! The ideological differences were already deeply rooted.

"Your Majesty's skill in sowing discord is far inferior to your true form as a deep-sea demon whale," Ye Lan chuckled, completely unconcerned by the Demon Emperor's accusations, even displaying a hint of contempt. "To be weak is to be weak; why bother using old grievances as a fig leaf?"

She slightly raised her chin, revealing her swan-like, graceful neck, but her eyes were sharp as knives. "I'm not afraid to tell you, Ghost Emperor? Ha, a piece of trash who couldn't even withstand a wisp of the Underworld Emperor's aura, already crushed into dust! As for the existence behind this Holy Maiden," she deliberately dragged out her words, her gaze sweeping over the nine silently floating, undead knights radiating an increasingly powerful aura, "Did you sense it? Their dormant origins are reviving! They are resonating!"

As she spoke, the greyish-white soul flames in the eye sockets of the nine undead knights suddenly blazed fiercely! Their broken bones emitted a faint, metallic hum, and the aura of death surrounding them was no longer simply deathly stillness, but possessed an indescribable pull, as if originating from a higher dimension! It was a yearning for return! A thrill of being summoned by a distant source!

"Because," Nightfall's voice carried an almost fanatical certainty, "their supreme lord—the Underworld Emperor!—is on his way back! His will, his essence, is traversing the endless sea of ​​stars, approaching this realm! These knights have merely sensed their lord's glory and awakened prematurely!"

The Demon Queen's expression turned truly grim at this moment. She stared intently at the nine undead knights whose auras were indeed slowly but steadily rising.

She had never doubted that someone was behind Ye Lan. The owner of such a terrifying, immortal undead creation must be an unimaginably terrifying being.

In a one-on-one fight, she was confident she could suppress or even severely injure any one of the knights, but what about facing nine invincible, inexhaustible monsters at the half-step god level in a gauntlet? Even she felt a chill run down her spine. It would be an extremely difficult and thankless battle that would greatly deplete the power she had accumulated for her final revenge.

And now, the "Emperor of the Underworld" that Ye Lan had praised to the extreme is actually returning! The unusual reactions of these knights seem to be the best proof of this.

This means that her position as the Demon Empress within the Holy Spirit Cult will be more passive than ever before! Her absolute advantage in strength, which she is so proud of, may very well become insignificant in front of the opponent's true master!

The Demon Empress's mind raced, countless pros and cons clashing fiercely in her mind. Her ultimate goal was revenge—revenge against Tang San, the Sea God who reigned high above the gods and looked down upon all living beings!

Therefore, she needs power, she needs to devour the life essence of countless beings in the Douluo plane, and she needs to establish her own foundation in the God Realm!

The initial cooperation with the Ghost Emperor stemmed from their shared goal of destruction and devouring. But now, the Ghost Emperor is gone, Ye Lan is in power, and what is this madwoman doing?

Commanding the Undead Knights and their followers, they launch attacks across the continent, creating panic and carnage, but like children playing house, they never organize any real large-scale blood sacrifices!

Those precious life essences, which could be directly converted into power, were just wasted! In her view, this was utterly foolish! It was using the power of the Holy Spirit Cult to help the Federation and the Sea God Pavilion temper their armies and cultivate opponents!

What is her purpose?

"A mere skirmish?" The Demon Queen's voice was like a volcano at its most simmering, carrying the scorching heat of lava. She abruptly rose from her throne, her long purple-gold dress billowing and rustling even without wind. Her powerful aura caused those near her to involuntarily take a step back. "Ye Lan! Tell me! All these years, you've been directing your followers and these skeletons, running around the continent, killing insignificant figures, destroying a few harmless strongholds. Besides wasting the power of my Holy Spirit Cult, exposing our existence, and training troops for those hypocrites, what have you actually gained?!"

Her purple eyes burned with rage as she fixed her gaze on Ye Lan: "My demands have never changed! A massive blood sacrifice is necessary! Using the lives of billions as kindling, we must ignite our path to the throne! This is the foundation of revenge! This is the shortcut to power! Not this farce you're playing around with!"

The last two words were practically screamed from her, filled with endless disappointment and anger. She couldn't place her hopes on a mysterious and unpredictable "Underworld Emperor"! She could only rely on herself, and the last will of her husband, the Deep Sea Demon Whale King, who had also perished at Tang San's hands two years ago!

Ye Lan shook her head and said, "Demon Emperor, don't you still understand? What kind of existence is the Underworld Emperor? He can create ten undead spirit creatures that are half-step gods. He must have even more terrifying strength. Let me tell you, the Underworld Emperor is the master of a god realm. Tell me, what is the purpose of all this that I, the Holy Maiden, have done? Is it really just for fun?"