Chapter 566 - 548: No Longer What It Once Was

"Not afraid to die?" Zhang Xiaopang asked.

Zhao Lingxuan raised her head. "No Holy Hall Disciple is afraid to die. What’s so scary about death!"

Zhang Xiaojiang chuckled. Zhao Lingxuan frowned. Even though she had matured and become more reserved over the years, she could still sense something off about his smile.

"What? Don’t you believe me?"

It wasn’t just Zhao Lingxuan. Anx Dao and Youn Yuqing also had looks of firm resolve.

"I do." Zhang Xiaojiang didn’t say anything more. ’But frankly,’ he thought, ’these kids’ understanding of death isn’t nearly deep enough.’

Zhang Xiaojiang gazed at the vast night sky and fell silent. The fatty was normally all laughs and jokes, but when it came to serious business, he no longer fooled around. Everyone matures eventually.

The fatty stood motionless, and the others stared with wide eyes. Zhang Xiaojiang would never have come here with nothing to do. Could the Demon Race be making a move tonight?

’If they are, what good would one person be?’

After a long moment, Zhang Xiaojiang stretched and let out a huge yawn. Zhao Lingxuan and the other two immediately relaxed. But after his stretch, Zhang Xiaojiang looked up at the night sky and smiled.

"Hey beautiful, I know I’m handsome, but if you keep staring at me like that, you’ll make me blush."

As he spoke, with no discernible movement, his Blast Bow was in his hand, and a beam of light shot into the empty air.

A patch of darkness in the sky suddenly solidified, revealing a Demon.

Zhao Lingxuan and the others immediately went on full alert. They hadn’t noticed a thing until the Demon appeared.

The Demon wore a purple-black outfit. After so many years of fighting the Demon Race, they knew that any Demon qualified to wear clothes had to be of high status. This was a Witch. Her skin was dark, but not rough like that of a low-level Demon; one could sense its smoothness and sheen. Her full bust and long, toned legs gave off none of the bloodthirsty aura typical of the Demon Race.

"Little Fatty, you’re quite an interesting one. Those eyes of yours are pretty sharp."

The Witch showed no intention of attacking. Floating in midair, she watched Zhang Xiaojiang with great interest.

Zhang Xiaojiang’s leering eyes were glued to her. He wiped away some drool. "Hey sister, you look like such a kind person. Why not leave the darkness for the light? Stick with the Holy Hall, and I’ll make sure you live a life of luxury."

The Witch froze for a moment, then broke into a smile and began to giggle.

"A fatty from the Holy Hall with this much nerve... you must be Zhang Xiaojiang, Master Zhang."

Zhang Xiaopang kept his broad smile, but a subtle flicker of caution crossed his eyes. "Tsk tsk, look at you. Not only do you have a nice ass and legs, you even know the great name of I, Master Zhang. It seems you’re not just a nobody. Go on, tell your future husband who you are."

The Witch wasn’t the least bit angered by his teasing. Instead, she sized up Zhang Xiaojiang with amusement. "Little Fatty, I don’t know how strong you are, but you’ve certainly got a big appetite. It’s a shame, but you aren’t qualified to know my name!"

As she spoke, her figure turned illusory and flew toward the archery tower. Zhang Xiaojiang kept his smile, but his attack was merciless. The Blast Bow unleashed a volley of light arrows that filled the sky. Dozens of spatial distortions appeared in midair—the Witch’s forward-moving illusions—and none of them escaped his barrage.

The Witch still had a smile on her face. With a push of her slender hand, a black ring of light shot toward Zhang Xiaojiang. He was suddenly jolted, and Zhao Lingxuan and the others were flung apart as they simultaneously leaped into the air. The spot where the four of them had been standing erupted as the black ring imploded, looking as if a monster had taken a bite out of the ground.

Zhang Xiaojiang’s chubby figure was already moving to intercept. His eyes had turned silver. The Blast Bow fired in rapid succession, arrows piercing the night sky, but... his target wasn’t the Witch.

BOOM...

From the darkness, another Witch materialized, while the first one gradually faded away.

The Witch smiled faintly. "So this is the legendary Eye of Truth? You could actually see through my Demon Shadow Substitute. How interesting."

Zhang Xiaojiang chuckled. "Sister Chi Qing, you really underestimate the Holy Hall. Trying to break in with a mere Substitute Shadow Technique? Do you really think our Holy Hall is undefended?"

’The Witch before me is still an illusion,’ Zhang Xiaojiang thought. ’But to use the Demon Shadow Skill at this level, she must be a top-tier figure in the Demon Race.’ He was fairly certain now. ’This is very likely one of the Five Demon Kings. The boss’s guess was right on the money.’

The Witch stared at Zhang Xiaojiang. "How did you know I was coming tonight?"

Zhang Xiaojiang gave Chi Qing a lecherous grin. "My grand-uncle visited me in a dream last night. He said he was sending me a girl with a great ass, so of course I had to come take a look today. Too bad he wasn’t entirely accurate. Only a shadow showed up."

No matter how you looked at it, Chi Qing was one of the Five Demon Kings, possessing a noble and powerful bloodline. Today, she had used the Puppet Shadow Technique to personally test the strength of the Burning Castle, only to unexpectedly run into Zhang Xiaojiang.

Other experts, even those at the Great Perfection stage, would have difficulty detecting her shadow techniques. But Zhang Xiaojiang was without a doubt her nemesis. For the past three years, although the Five Great Demon Kings were well-known, in truth, all but their leader had remained behind the scenes. The Demon Race’s primary objective during this time was to secure their footing, establish an unassailable position, and mobilize their armies from the Abyss, all while lulling the Star Alliance into a false sense of security.

’A coincidence?’

Seeing that Zhang Xiaojiang was clearly prepared, Chi Qing suppressed her anger and revealed a seductive smile. The Demon Race, the Human Race, the Demon Race, and the Dragon Race were all fundamentally created in the image of gods; there wasn’t much difference between them overall. In terms of appearance, however, Chi Qing was a peerless beauty in any of them. The dangerous aura of the Demon Race only added to her allure. Within the Demon Race, she was a figure others could only look up to. In the Great Yuan Realm, everyone else feared her. Zhang Xiaojiang was the first person to ever be so brazen with her.

"Zhang Xiaojiang, if you tell me why you’re here at this exact time, I might just give you a chance."

Zhang Xiaopang chuckled. "Sister Chi Qing, if you’re willing to strip naked and let me verify your authenticity, maybe I’ll give *you* a chance."

At this, how could Chi Qing not realize he was deliberately provoking her? Her expression turned cold, and her figure suddenly lunged at Zhang Xiaojiang. But Zhang Xiaojiang was more than ready. The instant she moved, a silver light shot out, a perfect Shadow-Following Form.

RUMBLE...

Shadow Burst.

Black Demonic Qi scattered in all directions. Zhao Lingxuan and the others hastily put up their defenses; injuries from Demonic Qi were notoriously difficult to heal.

When the Demonic Qi dissipated, a gap had been blasted open in the outpost’s outer defenses. More than ten disciples were injured by the Demonic Qi. A chill ran through Zhao Lingxuan and the others. ’If a single Shadow Clone has this much power,’ they thought, ’how strong must her real body be?’

’If Zhang Xiaojiang hadn’t been here tonight, our chances of survival would have been slim.’

Although Zhao Lingxuan idolized Wang Meng, she never really thought Zhang Xiaojiang was all that powerful. Respect was one thing, but genuine admiration was another. However, after that brief display of skill, Zhao Lingxuan understood the gap between herself and him.

For Zhang Xiaojiang, this was just a very ordinary battle. But if it had been them? (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendation votes and monthly passes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)