After I stopped trying, a rich woman trained me into a demon emperor.

The array on the top floor of the Magic Crystal Inn was not removed. The three-layered sky-covering array was like three silent shells, suppressing the atmosphere in the secret room.

Zhou Ran sat cross-legged on the obsidian array eye. The penetrating wound on his chest had scabbed over, but with each breath, he felt a tearing sensation from the severed meridians.

He didn't open his eyes, but simply raised his hand and pressed it against his chest.

Reaching the Nascent Soul Realm doesn't mean you've secured your position.

He broke through his realm on White Tower Island by using high-purity crystals, and then forcibly opened a gate between realms. After crossing the two realms, he fell into the sixth heaven's hundredfold gravity field. He had just used the Demon Emperor's origin and rules to suppress others, and the newly generated Nascent Soul demonic energy in his body had been squeezed down to only a thin layer.

Currently, he appears to be the Demon Emperor who annihilated the combined Demon Lord.

In fact, any peak Void Refinement cultivator who could withstand the pressure of the Origin Force would have a chance to be dragged to death here.

"master."

Qin San stepped out from behind the screen, holding a piece of ground black bone in his hand.

"The crowd outside the inn hasn't dispersed; in fact, it's growing. Several forces from the east, north, and west of the city have sent people over, with at least three Nascent Soul stage cultivators watching from the shadows."

"They are waiting."

Zhou Ran opened her eyes and looked out the door.

"Wait for me to show myself, wait for the formation to dissipate, wait for Xuan Ying and Gu Li to give up, wait for them to confirm whether I am Ye Futian or not."

Qin San was silent for a moment, then asked:

"Should I clear out a batch first?"

"Need not."

Zhou Ran raised his hand, and the illusory image of the White Bone Brush appeared between his fingers.

"The fact that they dared not make the first move shows that the death of the Netherworld Demon was valuable enough."

Since they're already here, let's not let them come for nothing.

Outside.

Xuan Ying and Gu Li stood guard at opposite ends of the corridor.

Xuan Ying's chest wound had not fully healed, and black blood dripped down through his armor, but he stood very straight, like a demonic flag planted in front of a door.

Gu Li sat on the steps, toying with a piece of curved horn left by Ming Sha in his hand. He looked up after hearing the voice coming from inside the door.

"Mysterious Shadow".

"Um?"

"Our master is going to trick us again."

Xuan Ying's lips twitched slightly.

"Watch your wording."

Gu Li looked down at the dense array of probing divine senses below and grinned, "I misspoke. It's the Emperor who wants to establish new rules for Black Wind City."

A moment later, Xuan Ying pushed open the window on the top floor of the inn.

The sky over Blackwind City remained gloomy, with volcanic ash drifting in the distance. The demons who had been pretending to be passing by on the street suddenly stopped.

All eyes turned up at once.

Xuan Ying didn't use much demonic energy, but the token of his encampment, stained with the blood of a demon general, was already quite conspicuous.

"The Emperor's decree is hereby conveyed."

As the sound faded, the entire street fell silent.

"The Emperor has descended upon the Sixth Heaven, but his old wounds have not yet healed, and he needs to rebuild his golden body. Since Black Wind City is within the reach of the Emperor's power, it is only right that we fulfill our duties as his subjects."

"Within three days, offer three kinds of top-grade spiritual materials: Nine Nether Marrow, Star Transformation Grass, and Demon Infant Fruit."

All qualified tribute items were recorded by the Emperor as a testament to his loyalty.

Anyone who conceals information, obstructs the collection of supplies, or secretly aids the enemy will be considered a traitor and will be purged completely.

As he finished speaking, his gaze swept over several people in black robes on the street corner.

"Furthermore, the Emperor does not accept waste or counterfeit goods. Anyone who dares to offend the eye with substandard products will pay with their own life."

No one was talking on the street.

A moment later, a burly man with four horns on his head and wearing animal skin armor stepped out from the crowd.

He is the leader of the Beast Bone Society in the western district of Blackwind City. His name is Kuishan, and he is in the late stage of the Void Refinement realm. He made his fortune by running a business dealing in the flesh and blood of magical beasts and has nearly a thousand thugs under his command.

Kuishan looked up at Xuanying, grinning with his mouthful of sharp teeth.

"Now that the Emperor has returned, why doesn't he come out to collect it himself?"

"Could it be that the Emperor is too badly injured to see anyone?"

As soon as he finished speaking, none of the people from the surrounding factions responded, but their eyes clearly brightened.

The test has begun.

Xuan Ying's eyes turned cold, and just as he was about to speak, a very calm voice suddenly came from the top floor of the inn.

"You wish to see me?"

Kuishan's smile froze.

The voice wasn't loud, but it seemed to press down from the abyss behind the city wall, directly entering his consciousness.

The next moment, the three-layered sky-covering array above the inn trembled slightly.

The array pattern was not activated; only a crack was visible.

A wisp of dark golden aura leaked out from the crevice.

There was no burst of oppressive force.

There was no surge of spiritual energy.

Ke Kuishan's face turned pale instantly.

It felt as if a red-hot iron needle had been inserted deep into his veins, causing the demonic energy within him to leak out uncontrollably. His knees buckled, and he almost knelt down in the street.

He bit his tongue to stay upright, but his eyes were filled with terror.

That wasn't ordinary demonic energy.

That is the origin of the Demon Emperor.

It was exactly the same as what Ming Sha felt before he died.

Kuishan dared not gamble on whether the man in the inn was injured or not.

Xuan Ying said coldly, "The Emperor is asking you a question."

Kuishan lowered his head, his Adam's apple bobbing.

"Your subordinate dares not."

"Weren't you so bold just now?"

Zhou Ran's voice came out again.

Black sweat beaded on Kuishan's forehead.

He looked at the dark red stone slabs at his feet and finally knelt down.

"Your subordinate has acted rashly; please punish me, Your Majesty!"

"Go and bring that seven-thousand-year-old Star-Transforming Grass from your Beast Bone Society's warehouse. If you're missing even a single leaf, I'll turn you into fertilizer."

Kuishan's face twitched.

He had stolen that Star Transformation Grass from the nest of a Nascent Soul stage magical beast, and had nurtured it for a hundred years, preparing it for use when he attempted to break through to the Nascent Soul stage.

But he dared not hesitate.

"I'll go get it right away!"

Kuishan turned and left, his figure moving several times faster than when he came.

The people on the street fell completely silent.

Standing on the stairs, Gu Li watched Kui Shan's hasty departure and couldn't help but sigh softly:

"Master, this isn't just accepting tribute; it's including their ancestral graves in the calculation."

Xuan Ying glanced at him.

"Shut up, the Emperor can hear you."

Half an hour later, the Beast Bone Society's convoy arrived at the Magic Crystal Inn.

Thirty-six black-armored magical beasts pulled an iron cart piled high with flesh, ore, magic crystals, and spiritual materials.

Kuishan personally carried a black jade box and knelt outside the inn.

"Your Majesty, here is the Seven Thousand Year Star Transformation Grass, along with 30,000 mid-grade magic crystals, 3,000 high-grade magic crystals, and 120 sixth-grade magic beast blood cores. I humbly request Your Majesty to accept them."

Xuan Ying took the black jade box, opened it, and glanced inside.

Inside the box grew a deep purple spiritual herb, with star-like specks flowing through its leaf veins, exuding an extremely rich spiritual energy.

He closed the jade box and said calmly, "Your Majesty has remembered it."

Kuishan felt as if he had been granted a pardon and immediately kowtowed.

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for sparing my life!"

This statement is like a signal.

The Blood River Merchant Guild from the east of the city has arrived.

The Black Scale Clan from the north of the city has arrived.

Lava Fortress from the South District has also arrived.

Some people gave away Nine Nether Marrow, some gave away Demon Infant Fruit, some gave away high-level magic crystals, some gave away rare bloodline magic beasts, and some even gave away contracted servants and the land deeds for the entire mine.

The Bone-Swallowing Duke is still far from Blackwind City.

The "Emperor" before us is in the inn.

Whoever pays first gets their life saved.

The reasoning is that simple.

Inside a sealed room.

Xiao Rou sat amidst a pile of wooden crates, holding a Gu box in her arms. She opened a box of medicinal herbs and rummaged through it, a rare look of satisfaction on her face.

Qin San handed the newly arrived list of tribute items to Zhou Ran.

Zhou Ran glanced at it, his gaze lingering on the last line—Nine Nether Marrow, three portions.

enough.

The materials for repairing the meridians have been gathered.

He raised his hand to put away the list, and sent a wisp of his divine sense to scan the three Nascent Soul stage auras in the shadows outside the inn.

They are still here.

They didn't leave, nor did they get any closer.

"Qin San".

"exist."

"Having received news of Ming Sha's death, how quickly will it take the Grand Duke of Bone Devouring to reach Black Wind City?"

Qin San closed his eyes and calculated for two breaths before giving his answer: "Based on the spatial distance of the Sixth Heaven and his known location, the fastest it could be is seven days."

Seven days.

Zhou Ran closed his eyes and sank back into the center of the formation.

Within seven days, he must firmly establish himself in the Nascent Soul Realm.