Chapter 456 - 415: Seizing the Momentum to Rise

Chapter 456: Chapter 415: Seizing the Momentum to Rise

In the past, the Demon Emperor’s successor had been intimately familiar with all of his Divine Techniques.

Otherwise, he would have slain the Demon Emperor’s successor long ago.

Thus, wave after wave of doubt now assailed his mind.

The other Great Saints exchanged glances upon hearing this but said nothing more.

As far as they knew, Sub-Venerable Han Wu’s late wife had perished during her tribulation to ascend to Tier Eight Great Saint, annihilated without a trace.

The Demon Emperor’s successor back then was not only a Tier Eight Great Saint but also wielded the Heaven-Devouring Demon Coffin. His demonic flames blotted out the sky, and he dominated all in his path.

No matter how they looked at it, they couldn’t possibly be the same person, right?

Doubt filled the hearts of every Great Saint.

.........

Inside the Ten Thousand Flames Hall, the sky was dim and oppressive.

Within the Immortal Forbidden Area, molten lava erupted and pillars of blood-red light shot into the air.

At this moment, the Fire Qilin was writhing on the ground in the middle of a vast Sea of Fire.

Piteous, piercing wails escaped its mouth, a sound so sorrowful it would break the heart of anyone who heard it.

Although it hadn’t been decisively slain by Sub-Venerable Han Wu like the Heaven-Sundering Demon Butterfly during the assault on the Immortal Realm, it had barely escaped with its life, and at a terrible cost.

Its "Dao Fruit," which resembled a jet-black volcano, had been shattered.

The power from its Fire Qilin ancestors was steadily draining away, rendering it unable to inherit any more of their strength.

Destruction is easy; rebuilding is hard.

If it wanted to mend the damage, it would take nearly ten thousand years!

But even more than the damaged "Dao Fruit," it was the lingering effects of Sub-Venerable Han Wu’s Dream Dao Divine Techniques that caused it excruciating, unending agony.

The sky was overcast, and a rain of fire began to fall.

Outside the Immortal Forbidden Area, Di Zhao and Feng Ning’Er exchanged a look, each seeing the profound greed in the other’s eyes.

Every Venerable’s lineage has its own unique path of succession.

For instance, the path of the Red Flame Demon Country is to trace the origin of one’s bloodline.

For the Daoist Mansion of Eternal Life, it is to gain the acknowledgment of the Myriad Laws Dao Altar.

As for the Ten Thousand Flames Hall, their path is the "transformation from mortal to immortal."

In short, if Di Zhao and Feng Ning’Er wanted to step into the domain of a Young Venerable, they needed to obtain and refine the origin of the ’jet-black volcano’!

And that ’jet-black volcano’ was the very key to the Fire Qilin lineage’s bloodline inheritance—it was of paramount importance.

"An opportunity has arrived."

Their gazes met for a moment before they quickly looked away.

They, too, had their own compelling reasons for going to the Immortal Realm!

......

「The Great Xuan Dynasty, Hong Realm.」

With the disappearance of the Great Sun Dragon Lady, the dynasty was left without a clear leader, shattering the established balance of power.

Ordinarily, the Crown Prince should have filled the vacant position.

However, over the many years since the Great Sun Dragon Lady had burst onto the scene, many of the forces that once belonged to the Crown Prince had naturally pledged their allegiance to her.

As things stood now, the Crown Prince simply didn’t have the power to keep everyone in line.

Furthermore, after their repeated encounters with figures like Fang Yang, Sen Yue, and the Great Sun Dragon Lady—and especially after the conflict over the Dao Artifact—the Eldest Princess, Prince Qin, and the other princes and princesses were all unwilling to yield.

They all wanted to take the Great Sun Dragon Lady’s place, to become the bearer of the Hong Realm’s Heavenly Mandate, and in doing so, enter the ranks of the Young Venerables.

For a time, the entire capital was rife with turmoil and intrigue.

The entire imperial court devolved into a chaotic mess, as everyone vied for the succession!

......

「Celestial Demon Palace, Red Flame Demon Country.」

As a super-organization on par with Longevity Heaven and the Vast Sea Pavilion, the Celestial Demon Palace was home to a host of ancient great demons.

Yet today, an oppressive silence hung within the Celestial Demon Palace.

The only sound came from the Celestial Demon Banner as it absorbed the power of faith and incense.

It wasn’t that they didn’t want to discuss matters.

But what was there to discuss?

After witnessing the deaths of the White Tiger Demon Lord and the Heaven-Sundering Demon Butterfly, and even seeing the Celestial Demon Banner fall silent, they had all been forced to face a cold, cruel reality.

In the coming Age of the Dream Dao, there would likely be no place left for their Red Flame Demon Country.

Sub-Venerable Han Wu, Sen Yue, Fang Yang, Su Dao, Jiuzhe...

The Emperor of Great Xuan, the Great Sun Dragon Lady, the Eldest Princess, the Crown Prince, Prince Qin...

The Fire Qilin, Di Zhao, Feng Ning’Er...

The top prodigies and peak combatants of their Red Flame Demon Country were simply no match for those from the other Venerable lineages.

This fact left them feeling utterly helpless.

After a long silence, a sigh echoed through the hall.

"Alas... since this is the case, our priority must be to find the path to the Immortal Realm."

"We can use the Celestial Demon Banner to send a portion of our demon lineages to an Otherworld beyond the Chaos."

"Furthermore, we can have another portion of our lineages seal themselves away within the Eight Domains, to hide and wait for the Age of the Dream Dao to pass."

"Do not plan for victory; first, plan for defeat. Let it be so."

"It seems, then, that our true playing field is not within the Eight Domains, but beyond them."

"The Immortal Realm? The Immortal Realm. The Immortal Realm!"

A divine light gleamed in the eyes of many of the ancient great demons.

If they could reach the Immortal Realm, then with the unique nature of their Demon Race, they could surely dominate the many Venerable lineages of the Eight Domains.

It was not over yet.