Chapter 61: To Battle or Not?

Akali quickly finished the ritual and came down, and the Blood Source Stones swiftly returned to their clustered state. It wasn’t that she wished to stop, but rather that she was utterly exhausted. Three consecutive days of ceremonies had entirely drained her; her body simply couldn’t bear it anymore. She nearly fell from midair, and Zhu Tian hurried to catch her.

But Akali struggled, refusing his help. “Let go of me. You make me sick,” she spat. Zhu Tian didn’t insist and handed her over to the King of the Purple Wheel.

Cradled in the King of the Purple Wheel’s arms, Akali finally quieted down, though her eyes never left Yi Tianling. “I’ve done what I must. You can’t lay a hand on Young Master Yi anymore.”

Xuanyuan Tunhan set Yi Tianling down and even gave him a pill, nurturing him with spiritual energy. Yi Tianling’s complexion improved visibly. Seeing him gradually recover, Akali ceased her struggle and fainted away in his arms.

Now that the Blood Source Stones were usable, and even more effective than before, Ning Xianyu thought both sides shouldn’t have any more problems. But just then, Zhu Tian roared, “Xuanyuan Tunhan, don’t think this matter is over. You’ve destroyed my treasures, stolen my Saintess, and provoked the Demon Realm. We will settle this score, sooner or later.”

Really... This was like the Big Bad Wolf’s classic line: “I’ll be back!”—utterly useless in such a situation. At this point, they couldn’t win a fight, so what was the point of empty threats?

Besides, she wasn’t foolish; it was obvious that the Blood Source Stones were now far more potent than they had been three days ago during the ritual. This meant the Demon Realm had actually profited this time.

The system chimed in: “There’s nothing surprising here. Regardless of pride or shame, as the king of the Demon Realm, he must always fight for his people’s advantage.”

In other words, from Zhu Tian’s perspective, his actions were entirely justified.

Ning Xianyu agreed with the logic, but still—if he wanted to curse someone, why always her?

Xuanyuan Tunhan sent her a voice transmission, instructing her to repeat his words.

“This time, you’re blaming the wrong people. Perhaps you should take a look at this.”

After Ning Xianyu echoed his words, he produced a mirror. The mirror was small, no larger than a palm, yet exquisitely crafted, its antique frame elegant and ornate. The surface was slightly uneven, giving it an unusual, almost unassuming appearance.

Gu Dou exclaimed in shock, “That’s the Sky-Viewing Mirror!”

The system immediately explained, “The Sky-Viewing Mirror—a legendary artifact from ancient times. Its wielder can investigate past events and project them for all to see.”

Ning Xianyu mused, “So it’s basically a VCR player.”

“Indeed,” the system replied, “but this one is difficult to use, consumes enormous spiritual power, and can only be activated once every ten years—hardly convenient.”

“Wow, what a useless player—charges for ten years, plays for five minutes. Pathetic.”

The Sky-Viewing Mirror could indeed project images, casting a massive vision for everyone to see. Amid the demon lords’ confusion, they witnessed scenes of the people of Xu Town living in peace and contentment.

Cangye grew impatient. “Why show us mortal life?”

Meanwhile, the King of the Purple Wheel, holding Akali, quietly stepped back two paces.

Xuanyuan Tunhan said nothing, merely bidding them to keep watching.

The scene shifted. A figure cloaked in black, wreathed in demonic energy, approached the town’s outskirts. He placed arcane artifacts around the settlement, using a formation to encircle the entire town. The inhabitants of Xu Town, oblivious to this, continued their routines.

The stranger channeled his demonic energy into the formation’s core, sending the power to seep slowly into the town, where it was absorbed by the unsuspecting populace. Relieved of his own demonic burden, the figure finally lowered his hood.

“It’s... Purple... What was it again?”

“The King of the Purple Wheel,” the system supplied. “He’s related to Akali, that’s why he’s always looked out for her.”

The demon lords stared. The man in the image was indeed the King of the Purple Wheel; there could be no mistake. Recalling how his cultivation had surged yet his demonic aura had diminished, they realized the mirror spoke the truth.

So, this was the King of the Purple Wheel’s doing.

Xuanyuan Tunhan continued, “The demonic miasma in the Mortal Realm began with your people. If not for the need to clean up your mess, I would never have gone to the Demon Realm.”

“In the end, you’ve no one to blame but yourselves.”

Ning Xianyu now spoke with righteous conviction, finding the King of the Purple Wheel utterly detestable. See? All this began with you, the NPC driving the story forward.

The system was still grumbling, “That arch-villain is shameless. Even without the Xu Town incident, he would have found some excuse to invade the Demon Realm for people and stones. Look at him, pretending otherwise.”

Ning Xianyu urged her to keep it down. “He’s the leader of the Immortal Realm—of course he’ll defend his own.”

The system muttered, “You’re obviously biased. When it was Zhu Tian, you weren’t so forgiving.”

Ning Xianyu had no time to argue, still loudly denouncing the Demon Realm. It was all the King of the Purple Wheel’s fault—if not for him, none of this would have happened.

Stung by the accusation, the King of the Purple Wheel retorted, “And if it is so? They are but mortal ants. To absorb demonic energy for my sake is their honor.”

This time Ning Xianyu needed no guidance. She rebuked him directly, “You call yourself a demon lord, yet speak with such shamelessness. All these years of cultivation, and all you’ve refined is your own thick skin.”

“As cultivators, we owe the world a debt of gratitude, yet you abuse mortals. Truly disgraceful.”

The King of the Purple Wheel’s anger flared. “Easy for you cultivators to talk, standing there with clean air and no miasma. In the Demon Realm, we suffer daily torments. Now we merely release a little demonic energy and you complain.”

“If you disagree, then lower your barrier—let us all share in the suffering. I’d like to see if your Immortal Realm can withstand the miasma running rampant day in, day out.”

He was voicing the resentment of many demon cultivators. Long ago, the war between the Demon and Immortal Realms had been to seize land in the Immortal Realm, to escape the scourge of demonic miasma.

Several other demon lords recalled their own grievances, glaring in united fury.

Ning Xianyu suddenly surged with spiritual power. She pointed, and a distant mountain cracked open. A torrent of snow thundered down in an avalanche. The demon lords, startled, prepared to defend themselves, but she pointed again and the snow was stopped by an invisible barrier, piling ever higher but not a single flake crossed the threshold.

Her mastery of spiritual power—its sheer strength—left the demon lords in awe.

She raised her chin, exuding a cold, unyielding arrogance. “So? Do you wish to fight?”

Standing there alone, Ning Xianyu seemed to embody the might of a thousand armies, like a sword driven straight through their hearts.

Yet none of them knew—inside, Ning Xianyu was terrified. Every action she’d just taken was directly instructed by the arch-villain; she was nothing more than a puppet on strings.

When the demon lords had shouted at her earlier, she’d nearly bolted in fright.

She could almost see them feasting at her funeral banquet already.