Chapter 145: The Demon Lord's Entire Body Is a Treasure
"Speak of the devil, and he appears..."
Chu Yang sighed helplessly. As expected, spoiling events really would bring divine retribution—and worse yet, he'd been caught by the very person he was talking about.
Demon Lord Chonglou looked furious.
"We're all on the same side here. Can't we just sit down and talk?"
Chu Yang hadn't even finished speaking before Xu Changqing lashed out in anger.
As the top disciple of Shu Mountain, how could he possibly tolerate the one responsible for destroying the Demon-Sealing Tower?
His sword energy soared into the sky!
"Hmph! Even Qingwei didn't dare act up in front of me. And you, a mere junior Daoist, think you can make a move?"
A red light of demonic energy surged in Chonglou's palm. With a sweeping strike, an overwhelming aura descended upon Xu Changqing like a crashing wave.
The red demonic light smashed through the sword energy and swallowed Xu Changqing whole.
Seeing this, Chu Yang's figure flickered. In the blink of an eye, he appeared beside Xu Changqing, placed a hand on his shoulder, and vanished again.
Chonglou raised an eyebrow in surprise. "So you have some skill. Let's see how you handle another move!"
Chu Yang folded his hands and sneered, "The Demon Lord, famed throughout the Six Realms, turns out to be a shameless bully who picks on the weak. What a disappointment."
Chonglou's expression darkened, killing intent radiating from him. "What did you say?"
Jing Tian, staring at the familiar "red-haired freak," didn't feel much fear and said bluntly, "Hero Chu's not wrong. You've been cultivating for who knows how many years and you're a legendary figure in the Six Realms. But here you are, bullying a few mortals. If that's not picking on the weak, what is?"
"I really don't get how I ever enjoyed dealing with someone like you…"
That offhand remark struck a nerve.
To Chonglou, the evaluation of his "lifelong rival" mattered deeply. Jing Tian's words hit him like a slap to the face.
Above Leizhou, the clouds thickened ominously.
Tang Xuejian tugged on the clueless Jing Tian, panicking. "Are you crazy?! You actually dared to provoke him? One temper tantrum and he could kill us all! Just look at him—he's clearly petty and vengeful…"
Lin Yueru slapped a hand over Tang Xuejian's mouth, looking like she was on the verge of tears. "You're just making it worse. Do us all a favor and shut it."
The veins on Chonglou's temples bulged with rage. He was on the verge of exploding.
"Such sharp tongues! So many mortals back then, and this is what you learned?"
He took a deep breath, then cast a cold glance at the trembling Tang Xuejian before turning to Chu Yang.
"You're a mortal, and I'm the Demon Lord. Suppressing you with my cultivation is indeed unfair. So name the challenge—we settle this today!"
Chu Yang gave Jing Tian and Tang Xuejian a thumbs-up. The two of them grinned like proud schoolchildren being praised by a teacher.
"Such magnanimity. Truly worthy of the Demon Lord's title."
"Cut the crap! Show me what you've got. If you lose, you won't get another chance to talk nonsense."
Chu Yang stepped forward, flicked his sleeves, and smiled.
"Everyone in the Six Realms knows the Demon Lord is unmatched in martial might. I may be a mere mortal, but I'd like to test my strength against yours."
The crowd stared at Chu Yang like he was insane.
A mortal challenging the Demon Lord to a contest of strength?
That had to be pure madness.
Lin Yueru tugged at Li Xiaoyao's sleeve, swallowing nervously. "What's wrong with Daoist Chu? Has the pressure driven him insane?"
Li Xiaoyao brushed her hand away irritably. "What the hell are you saying? You might go crazy, but Brother Chu? Never."
"But who in their right mind would even think of this?"
"I believe in Brother Chu," Li Xiaoyao said with conviction. "Ever since he saved us on Immortal Spirit Island, I've known—there's nothing in this world he can't do."
Lin Yueru pursed her lips and slowly calmed down.
Chonglou stared impassively. "I'll assume you've lost your mind and give you one more chance to speak clearly."
Chu Yang merely smiled, eyes gleaming with challenge.
"If you lose, I won't kill you—but I will break every bone in your body."
"And if I win?"
"I'll grant you one wish."
"Deal!"
Chonglou descended from the sky and landed in the center of the Yun Manor courtyard. He fixed his gaze on Chu Yang. "How are we doing this?"
Under the crushing pressure of the Demon Lord's presence, Chu Yang calmly stepped forward and drew a circle on the ground with his sword.
"Whoever steps out of this circle first loses."
"Fine."
"Senior, using spiritual power counts as a forfeit too."
"You talk too much!"
Chonglou had been waiting for this moment. His fists shot forward like thunderbolts, slamming toward Chu Yang.
The moment his fists struck Chu Yang's chest, a thunderous boom rang out in everyone's ears.
It felt like a giant boulder was pressing down on their hearts—even the air grew heavy.
Chu Yang took a single step back before standing tall again, completely unfazed.
Chonglou paused, intrigued. "Impressive physique. No wonder you dared challenge me. You're… not human, are you?"
Chu Yang smiled politely. "You jest, senior. I'm a hundred percent human." He raised his fist. "Now it's my turn. Please prepare yourself."
Chonglou folded his hands behind his back, full of arrogance, clearly dismissing Chu Yang's warning.
"I did warn you…"
Chu Yang shook his head helplessly, then his eyes gleamed with madness. He pushed the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Power to its peak—one hundred dragons, one hundred elephants' worth of strength surged into his fists.
He struck!
The air itself split open.
Chonglou's expression instantly changed.
The next moment—
"You—!"
Before he could finish the sentence, pain exploded in his chest. The world around him flipped, walls shattered, and frigid wind howled past his ears.
By the time Chonglou regained his senses, he was already outside Leizhou. In front of him, the city wall bore a human-shaped hole exactly his size.
Did I just get sent flying… by a mortal?
Staring at his hands, Chonglou was plunged into deep self-doubt.
Back in the Yun Manor courtyard, Xu Changqing and the others stared at Chu Yang in shock.
They hadn't even seen what happened—just blinked, and Chonglou was gone.
"He… won? That was it?"
After a stunned moment, Tang Xuejian leapt into the air with excitement.
The others finally broke into grins as well.
Xu Changqing rushed over, fussing, "Junior Brother, are you alright?"
"Two grown men feeling each other up? Weird look, you know." Chu Yang slapped his hand away and muttered, "If I were really hurt, would I be standing here talking to you?"
Xu Changqing looked even more confused. "But you took a direct punch from the Demon Lord and weren't even scratched?"
Chu Yang rolled his eyes.
Scratch-free, my ass. That punch nearly blew up my internal organs. If it weren't for my insane recovery abilities, I'd be six feet under by now.
Thank god for the "Wu Wei Transformation" from our top-ranked bro!
That thing's incredible!
Chonglou came back.
And he came back angry.
Everyone tensed up, fearing the temper of the Demon Lord who dominated the Six Realms.
Chonglou walked straight up to Chu Yang, face cold as ice, eyes full of murderous intent. They stood barely a foot apart.
He'd been played.
The mighty Demon Lord had been played by a mortal!
Chonglou growled, "You're good. I'll grant you one wish. But next time we meet, I will kill you!"
Chu Yang smiled lightly. "You don't look very convinced, senior Demon Lord."
Chonglou's veins bulged again. "You cheated—and you dare act smug?"
Chu Yang frowned. "And where, pray tell, did I cheat?"
Chonglou snapped, "You're a mortal! How could you possibly have more strength than me? It defies common sense!"
"Common sense? Ha!" Chu Yang laughed to the sky. "The mighty Demon Lord, speaking of common sense? Now that's absurd. Isn't your demon race supposed to defy all logic?"
Chonglou's clenched fists suddenly relaxed, and for the first time, he smiled faintly. "You really are an interesting human. Aside from Feipeng, no one's left me in such a state in a long time."
"Oh? So you're not going to break my bones after all?"
"I'll challenge you again another time. Same rules—you pick the terms. But if you lose, I'll still break your bones."
Well, that backfired.
Chu Yang gave Jing Tian a resentful look. He'd thought Jing Tian was his trump card, only to realize he was just a wild card.
"State your wish. I'll do everything I can to make it happen!"
Chonglou was a man of his word. Since Chu Yang had beaten him fair and square, he would honor the agreement.
But for some reason, he couldn't shake the feeling that this little Daoist kept staring at him.
What on earth did he want?!
Chu Yang was actually struggling with that question himself. What should he ask for?
Have Chonglou kill Bai Yue or Evil Sword Immortal?
Help them collect the Five Spirit Orbs?
Both sounded good—but somehow, they felt like a waste.
For one, with the Devourer Gu and Golden Silkworm Gu, his power was growing rapidly. It wouldn't be long before he could deal with Bai Yue and the Evil Sword Immortal on his own. It was just a matter of time.
Second, if he asked Chonglou to collect the orbs, Xu Changqing probably wouldn't approve. In his eyes, Chonglou was the root of all evil.
Accepting help from him would be worse than death.
Besides, collecting the orbs wasn't all that hard. Chu Yang had already tested two false leads; from here on, it was just a matter of following the process.
Thinking it over, Chu Yang decided it would be better to get some bloodline material from Chonglou. If he could extract a "Demon Lord" bloodline…
That would be the real jackpot.
But with Xu Changqing and the others present, he couldn't very well ask for blood essence directly. So he gave Chonglou a meaningful look.
"Something wrong with your eyes?"
Cough cough... "What I meant was—can we talk privately?"
"Isn't Shu Mountain supposed to be all about righteousness? Since when do you have things to say behind people's backs?"
"You haven't had a conversation with anyone in thousands of years, have you?"
"Oh? How did you know?"
"Because you're the first person I've met who can kill a conversation in three lines. Impressive."
Chonglou: "…"
Tang Xuejian and Lin Yueru couldn't hold back and turned their heads, stifling their laughter.
Jing Tian wanted to laugh too, but Chonglou kept glancing his way, and he didn't dare.
Xu Changqing leaned over and whispered in Chu Yang's ear, "Junior brother, what exactly are you trying to do? Why can't you just say it in front of everyone? I beg you—don't go down a dark path."
Chu Yang shoved Xu Changqing aside. It was exactly this kind of cryptic behavior from Xu Changqing that made him want to talk privately with the Demon Lord in the first place. Unfortunately, the guy across from him turned out to be just as dense.
Helpless, he could only change his tone and say, "I hope the Demon Lord will step in to help us when we're truly in danger."
If I can beat him once, I can beat him twice. He made the rules himself—don't blame me for milking this for all it's worth, Chu Yang thought to himself.
"You're a sharp one."
Chonglou gave him a deep look and nodded in agreement. He caught the implication behind Chu Yang's words.
If it was a danger they could handle themselves, Chu Yang wouldn't acknowledge any help Chonglou gave them. This little Daoist was as sly as someone from Qingwei Sect—scheming through and through.
Still, having a life-saving guarantee in hand made Chu Yang feel a lot more at ease.
After all, who knew what might happen in the Ghost Realm or the Divine Realm?
There were plenty of dangerous figures in the Six Realms besides the Demon Lord Chonglou. This wasn't just the world of Chinese Paladin 1 or Chinese Paladin 3.
Hearing the wish Chu Yang made, Xu Changqing finally let out a sigh of relief. He'd been terrified that Chu Yang might beg Chonglou to forcibly raise his cultivation—or even fall into darkness to save the world.
"We must resolve the issue of the Five Spirit Orbs as soon as possible. I can't let my junior brother lose himself trying to save the world!"
Resolved, Xu Changqing's eyes grew unusually firm.
"So be it. But let me give you a warning. The day I intervene will be the day the second round of our duel begins. Be prepared."
Chonglou turned to leave. As he passed by Jing Tian, his face showed disappointment.
"The little Daoist was right. You really aren't him."
Jing Tian gave a carefree smile and replied, "Of course I'm not General Fei Peng. I'm just me—Jing Tian. Jing as in scenery, Tian as in sky."
Chonglou burst into hearty laughter. "Now that's something he'd say!"
Jing Tian's smile froze instantly, and he erupted in frustration.
This guy really doesn't know how to talk to people!
Yet the more upset Jing Tian got, the more delighted Chonglou became—it felt like he'd regained a bit of face after losing to Chu Yang.
Suddenly, a black hole appeared in the void. Chonglou laughed as he stepped inside, and the hole closed behind him. He was completely gone.
Chonglou's teleportation was clearly superior to Flying Thunder God or Illusory Shift—true instantaneous movement that let him freely travel the Six Realms.
"The Demon Lord is practically a walking treasure trove," Chu Yang thought silently.
Tang Xuejian wiped the sweat off her forehead and let out a long sigh of relief. "He's finally gone. That guy scared me half to death. So-called Demon Lord Chonglou? Hmph—he's not so scary after all!"
Jing Tian jumped in fright and rushed to cover her mouth. "My dear lady, please stop talking! What if you summon him back? You really think he can't hear you?"
Hearing that, Tang Xuejian's face turned pale. The sass she'd had a moment ago disappeared completely.
Lin Yueru shook her head in exasperation. "You're way bolder than I was when I first entered the martial world. And my father's the Wulin Alliance Leader—I still wouldn't dare talk like that. You'll get yourself killed one day, talking like this."
Tears welled up in Tang Xuejian's eyes.
Li Xiaoyao also spoke up, "Miss Tang, you really should take everyone's advice to heart. When you're out in the world, trouble often comes from careless words."
Everyone meant well, but Tang Xuejian was still just a young girl. Being lectured by so many people at once hurt her pride.
She ran out of the Cloud Manor in tears, disappearing down the street.
"Miss Tang!" Jing Tian shouted after her anxiously. Not even bothering to grab the Demon Sword, he rushed out in pursuit.
Oddly enough, the Demon Sword didn't automatically follow him this time. Instead, it remained quietly in the courtyard.
Chu Yang chuckled. "What, jealous? Keep hiding in that sword, and your prince is going to run off with another girl!"
The sword suddenly trembled violently. After a long pause, a blue figure shot out from within and flew off in a hurry.
Li Xiaoyao and Lin Yueru were both wide-eyed.
"In broad daylight… was that a ghost?!"
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