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"Since everyone agrees, then let's activate the Lord of the City's power and open the space!"
Seeing the other demon lords nod, Liyan was the first to raise his hand. A wisp of black energy spiraled from his body and sank into the palace.
At the sight of this, the other demon lords quickly followed suit.
Eight streams of dark energy converged and instantly formed a yin-yang, bagua (eight trigram) pattern. In the center, a swirling vortex appeared.
Looking up, the mysterious space radiated an ancient, timeless vibe. Around them, the air shimmered with a mix of ink-black darkness and bright, translucent light.
It was a perfect balance of yin and yang coexisting and blending, maintaining the world's harmony.
At the convergence of light and darkness stood a massive book glowing faintly with golden light.
But the book wasn't whole—it looked incomplete, with seven gaps or missing parts. Though it had a form, it was partly just an illusion sustained by emptiness, keeping the book "whole."
"Let's go, everyone!"
As one of the eight demon lords who wielded the strongest power to open spatial portals, Liyan glanced at the huge book, a sly grin creeping on his lips.
Deep in his eyes was a hidden, crafty plan.
After speaking to the others, he was the first to step into the mysterious space.
The other demon lords didn't notice Liyan's subtle oddness and followed him into the space.
Once they all stepped inside, the portal slowly closed up inside the palace.
At Huomu City, after a whole day, the Demon Day finally arrived.
In the grand hall, Shendu looked at the bat-like demon from the sky, Ximu, and raised his cup in a cheerful toast.
"Welcome, my brother!"
Ximu returned the toast, downing his drink in one gulp.
"Brother Six, your territory's really peaceful. Not like mine—demons don't obey me, and human slaves even dare to rebel!"
Right away, Ximu complained. It was hard to imagine just how many demons and humans he'd slaughtered to secure his land.
"But hey, where are your demon dragon followers? Wouldn't it be great if they came out and served us?"
"Why settle for just a few human slaves serving us? That's boring!"
"Come on, get up and dance, maybe sing a song for me to enjoy!"
Suddenly, Ximu pointed at Xue'er, who was serving Shendu nearby, and gave an order.
Other than Xue'er, there were hardly any female slaves around.
Ximu had scanned the room before making his command.
"Master,"
Xue'er shivered at Ximu's fierce gaze, then looked at Shendu and whispered.
"Ximu, she's my human follower. She has important business to attend to soon, so there's no need for her to dance or sing."
Shendu glanced at the humble Xue'er, quietly muttering, "Go to the dragon egg."
Hearing this, Xue'er hurried off toward the depths of the palace.
Since it looked like Xue'er really had something to do, Ximu didn't press further.
"Ximu, sorry about the poor hospitality here!"
"My demon dragon followers are all off conquering this continent, so they don't have time to serve me."
Shendu explained this, and for a moment, a thoughtful look flashed in Ximu's eyes.
Clearly, Ximu wanted to be like Shendu — sending demons out to conquer lands instead of doing the dirty work himself.
Before, Ximu thought it was beneath him to personally go out and claim territory, but after doing it so many times, it had gotten boring.
"Ximu, the reason I invited you here today is about something important," Shendu said calmly as Ximu continued to feast on raw flesh.
Ximu stopped and asked, "What is it?!"
Shendu's eyes lit up. He threw a huge book in front of Ximu.
"This is the magic spell I've been working on recently. You know, besides the divine power we demon lords have, there are other forces in this world."
"The energy of heaven and earth — most demons use it to train their power, but we eight demon lords don't."
"But if you and I could also train using this heavenly energy, who knows? We might become even stronger. Like that mirror magic you created to communicate using other people's items — that's part of it."
"And inside this book, I've written the spells I've created recently. I want to invite you to join me in expanding this infinite magic, so it can become the foundation for all eight of us demon lords."
Ximu didn't say anything right away. Instead, his eyes dropped to the book.
Seeing Shendu didn't seem impatient, he began reading.
"Flame Burning Technique, Petrification Spell, Demon-Seizing Array, Bloodline Conversion Array, Flame of Distant Communication Array?!"
Ximu's eyes flicked over the various magic arrays and their descriptions in the book, a wicked idea stirring inside him.
"Brother Six, is this really an introduction to the Demon-Seizing Array?!" Ximu's interest was piqued.
Shendu was slightly surprised but replied, "Of course it's real. I created this magic array myself and wrote the introduction by hand. No mistake."
"This array can steal magical energy from the world or from demons to use for yourself."
"If they have no magic energy, it can even absorb life energy to serve the main caster."
Shendu said this so casually, as if creating such magic arrays was no big deal.
He'd seen plenty of similar power-draining arrays in his past life.
But this kind of array can't absorb the power of demon lords themselves. Any demon below lord level who steps into the array without matching power would be trapped and drained dry — turning into a withered corpse.
"Never thought Brother Six would be so cruel, making such a magic array," Ximu said in awe.
Shendu twitched his mouth at that. Who's cruel here? Ximu has slaughtered countless humans and demons who refused to bow to him.
Shendu just created one extremely evil magic array and he's being called cruel? What a joke!
"Right. This magic array is perfect for raising some demons and dealing with those stubborn ones who won't serve me, Ximu — and the human slaves who try to run away."
Before Shendu could finish thinking, Ximu's low whisper came into his ear.
After some thought, Ximu said decisively, "Brother Six, I really like your idea. This magic array is impressive — I've already figured it out!"
"But to create other types of magic, I'll need some time to work it out myself. Once I do, I'll add them to the book."
Shendu nodded calmly but inside he was secretly happy.
"Good! I'll be waiting for your good news. Feel free to learn this magic, just make sure to create more magic to add in there — as the foundation for the eight demon lords."
Ximu nodded slightly, but when his eyes landed on the last array recorded in the book, he looked puzzled.
"Brother Six, this 'Array of Departing Fire'— why does it only have the name and no description?"
"....."