Start slaying demons from the proficiency panel.

Amidst a deafening roar, the thing sped away, quickly becoming a tiny black dot on the horizon, and only then did Demon Buddha Ningxiu breathe a sigh of relief.

Fortunately, the other party did not notice him, or rather, did not bother to lay a hand on him.

"What exactly is that? Are all the demons and monsters jumping out to cause trouble now?"

Looking at the people following behind him, Demon Buddha Ning Xiu felt increasingly uneasy. It seemed that these ordinary people would have a hard time surviving in this era.

Unconsciously, a wicked thought was born in the mind of Demon Buddha Ningxiu.

Anyway, these people can't survive, so why not just get rid of them and save them from being a burden to me?

If he hadn't been carrying these burdens, Demon Buddha Ningxiu could have returned to the Great Shang territory long ago by relying on the flight of the Black Lotus Platform.

Once this evil thought appeared, it grew stronger and stronger, to the point that Demon Buddha Ningxiu could not control it at all, and wanted to take the lives of these people.

But at that moment, the white butterfly that had been perched on his shoulder suddenly took flight and landed on Demon Buddha Ningxiu's nose, gently stroking it with its wings.

.

Touching the other person's cheek.

Instantly, a sense of calm welled up within Demon Buddha Ning Xiu, allowing him to regain his composure.

"Thank you."

The group continued on their way, unaware that the starving people had just narrowly escaped death.

……

At night, the entire Demon Subduing Division became incredibly lively.

Since the emergence of the Xuan Yin Domain, the Demon Subduing Division has not been this lively for a long time. The news that Ning Xiu, the Golden Dragon Demon Subduing Captain, led a large group of Demon Subduing Captains back alive from the outer domain has spread throughout the entire Demon Subduing Division.

Every Demon Slayer was overjoyed to see that his colleagues were still alive.

Therefore, Emperor Wu arranged to hold the banquet tonight within the Demon Subduing Division, which would allow every Demon Subduing Officer to participate.

And tonight's main characters are naturally Ning Xiu and his group of Demon-Subduing Officers who returned alive from the outer realms.

Inside the largest hall of the Demon Subduing Bureau, all unnecessary shelves and cabinets had been cleared away. The Martial Emperor sat in the main seat, with the Imperial Preceptor Shen Jiangxing and Ning Xiu beside him.

Having experienced what happened during the day, Shen Jiangxing still looked completely lost and confused. He couldn't understand why he was the only one who had encountered such a dreamlike experience.

It's hard to imagine who exactly became the Inner Sacred Realm in the Great Shang Dynasty.

Shen Jiangxing had always thought he would be the first Demon Subduer of the Inner Realm in the Great Shang Dynasty, but now that he had been overtaken by someone else, he felt quite discouraged.

What's worse, he still doesn't know who this person who broke through to the Inner Realm Saint is. He feels a little embarrassed to ask, so he can only keep it to himself and refrain from asking.

But this makes people feel very uncomfortable, and holding it in isn't a good thing either.

Seeing the Grand Preceptor's appearance, many people present felt very strange, but were too embarrassed to ask him.

Ning Xiu sat calmly to the side. At the Inner Realm Saint level, it was very easy to hide one's cultivation. Others would not be able to tell that he had reached the Inner Realm Saint level unless Ning Xiu himself was willing to reveal it.

"Ning Xiu's safe return to Da Shang with over thirty Demon-Subduing Guards is a great joy for the Demon-Subduing Division. Let us all raise a toast to Lord Ning Xiu," Qin Daorong said loudly, holding a wine cup.

All the Demon-Subduing Officers present raised their glasses in toast, their eyes filled with admiration and worship as they looked at Ning Xiu. As far as they knew, several Golden Dragon Demon-Subduing Officers had failed to return and had not been heard from since.

If nothing unexpected happens, or if someone possesses supernatural powers like Ning Xiu, they would most likely have already died in the outer realms, unable even to have their remains returned home, which is truly lamentable.

Ning Xiu saved more than thirty Demon-Slaying Officers, which can only be described as a heroic feat, worthy of being recorded in the history of the Demon-Slaying Division.

"Lord Jingning!"

"Lord Ning is truly awe-inspiring!"

"Lord Ning is truly a divine being of the Demon Subduing Division."

Generally, Golden Dragon Demon Subduing Officers spend hundreds of years advancing from the ninth rank to the next, and they all have their glorious youthful experiences to remember.

However, a rising star like Ning Xiu, who has risen so rapidly in less than two years, is truly unprecedented.

Ning Xiu raised his cup with both hands to greet his colleagues, but just as he was about to say something, his expression suddenly changed.

In his perception, something incredibly large was approaching Chaotiandu at a speed that was beyond the comprehension of ordinary people.

The speed at which this thing bursts forth is so great that even if it passes right in front of ordinary people, they won't notice it at all.

Such a terrifying being suddenly approaching the capital of the Great Shang Dynasty is definitely not a good thing.

Ning Xiu mobilized his destiny star, using all his vision to direct his gaze toward the direction from which the thing was approaching.

Then they saw an enormous, colossal creature approaching relentlessly. Its size was so great that it blotted out the sky and plunged the earth into darkness.

Ning Xiu's eyes sharpened. What caught his attention was not the enormous creature itself, but the fact that there seemed to be a person standing on its body.

The aura emanating from this person was extremely terrifying, far surpassing the power of previous era figures like the Black Demon Ancestor and the Divine Tree Emperor.

Noticing that someone was secretly watching him, the person gave a strange smile.

The next moment, a giant face slowly emerged in the sky, its mouth churning with molten lava-like flames.

.

[197] Heavenly Dao Inscription

The giant face smiled, just like the one standing on that enormous creature.

A large amount of molten lava churned in his mouth, and with a forceful expulsion, it all gushed out, filling the sky and turning the heavens a crimson red.

Molten lava dripped from the sky, like a rain of fire, scorching the ground into pits and leaving it ablaze.

Such a declaration of war immediately made Ning Xiu narrow his eyes; the newcomer was clearly up to no good.

Suddenly, a mysterious and powerful figure appeared, approaching the Central State of the Great Shang Dynasty. It was clear at a glance that he didn't have any good intentions.

Now that Ning Xiu is a Saint of the Inner Realm, he naturally has the responsibility to oversee the Great Shang Dynasty and protect all the people of Zhongzhou.

He didn't care about drinking anymore; he stood up and vanished from the spot in an instant.

"Huh? What's going on?"

"Where did Lord Ning go? He left so suddenly."

"There must be something going on, otherwise why would they just leave like that?"

Emperor Wu remained calm; he was probably the only one who had guessed that Ning Xiu had entered the Inner Realm of Sainthood.

This level of attainment has only been achieved by three sages in the hundreds of years since the founding of the Shang Dynasty, making them arguably the foremost figures in the Shang Dynasty today.

Even when facing Ning Xiu, Emperor Wu could not display imperial authority just because he was young; he had to treat him as an equal or even respectful person.

Just like how the late emperor treated the three saints, Emperor Wu thought that Ning Xiu's sudden departure must be because the other party suddenly had something urgent to do and did not have time to explain.

Shen Jiangxing wondered, "Could something have happened?"

He immediately mobilized his destiny star to observe all around Chaotiandu, but found nothing.

Then, the life star was mobilized again to spread to more distant areas, but still no findings were made.

In reality, at this moment, the stranger had already quietly arrived at a place not far from Yang Yaohuang's Extreme Formation. The fact that Shen Jiangxing did not notice the guy's presence meant that the other party's strength far surpassed his own.

Ning Xiu stood high in the sky, confronting the approaching figure.

The creature standing beneath them was actually a giant whale thousands of feet long. Calling it a whale was somewhat inappropriate, as the creature's body was covered in gray feathers, and its pair of wings, when spread out, were enough to blot out the sky and sun over the area.

A thought suddenly popped into Ning Xiu's mind: Could this be a Kunpeng?

Ning Xiu knew that there were demons in this world, but they were nothing more than common wild beasts that had become spirits, such as wolves, tigers, lions, eagles, dogs, snakes, foxes, and birds.

Even rarer are the dragons, which are among the most powerful beings of the demon race in this world.

Ning Xiu never imagined that the Kunpeng, a great demon that only existed in legends, could actually exist.

"Indeed, if you live long enough, you can see everything," Ning Xiu thought to himself.

The one standing on the back of the Kunpeng had skin as clear and pure as a diamond, and his hair was also crystal-like, radiating light.

Ning Xiu was unsure whether this guy was human or not, and what his purpose was in coming to the Great Shang Dynasty today.

"The territory ahead belongs to the Great Shang Dynasty; travel is prohibited," Ning Xiu said calmly.

Although he didn't speak loudly, his voice was like thunder, booming and resounding, and no one within a hundred miles could fail to hear it.

"Hand over the Heavenly Dao Inscription, and I will show you courtesy and not take action myself. Otherwise, I will search high and low to find what I need."

"The Heavenly Dao Stele..." Ning Xiu frowned slightly, not understanding what it was. However, he remembered that after he entered the Inner Realm, mysterious runes identical to those on the surface of the Divine Stone Stele appeared in the sky above the Great Shang Dynasty.

He suddenly realized, could that thing be the Heavenly Dao Inscription Tablet?

After hundreds of years, finally someone appeared who knew the details of the sacred stone tablet.

However, the person in front of him clearly had ill intentions and his attitude was different. The Great Shang Divine Stone Tablet had been in the Great Shang Dynasty for hundreds of years and had brought great help to the Great Shang.

Based on this point alone, how could Ning Xiu possibly hand over the Divine Stone Tablet to an outsider? Don't even think about it.

"Who do you think you are, coming here to demand something like this?" Ning Xiu unleashed his full power, his intentions becoming very clear.

After achieving the Inner Realm Saintly status, he had not yet truly unleashed his full potential. This mysterious figure before him was the perfect whetstone.

"You're asking for trouble. Don't blame me for taking action. You bear 90% of the responsibility for the destruction of this country today." The man let out a cold laugh, and the giant human face in the sky spat out a furious spit.

A massive amount of flames erupted, like a river of fire pouring down, creating an extremely astonishing spectacle.

boom!

The river of fire also contained a large amount of molten lava, which did not appear to be an illusion, but rather a real substance.

Ning Xiu's heart stirred, and the earth instantly cracked open in multiple fissures, with jets of water shooting into the sky, forming a water curtain that blocked the river of flames.

When water and fire clashed, a large amount of scorching mist instantly rose up and filled the entire sky.

The art of controlling water and fire was originally an exclusive technique of the immortal path, but upon reaching the Inner Realm Saint Realm, multiple paths are integrated into one, and the abilities of many paths can be used through the power of thought.

Just as the sky was filled with hot steam and visibility became extremely hazy, Ning Xiu suddenly reached out and threw a punch forward.

As if predicted, it collided directly with the man's fist.

boom!

Both of them possessed considerable strength, and the force of their punch instantly cleared away all the mist in the sky.

"Ok?"