“Ah…” Xun Ye screamed as he fell face-first onto the desert, the sand and stones scraping bloody streaks across his face. He then rolled weakly on the ground.
Everyone was taken aback. Before they could get a clear look, Xun Ye’s figure disappeared into the sandstorm due to the swift speed of the sand centipede.
“Sigh…”
Sighs kept echoing from the back of the sand centipede, but no one pleaded for Xun Ye. His actions in the Holy Land, obstructing Fang Yun and indirectly killing others, were no different from murder. Especially when Fang Yun was poisoned, Xun Ye insulted him as worthless and refused to lend a hand. Therefore, no one was willing to save him now.
Fang Yun’s eyebrows furrowed slightly, then relaxed. He seemed to have understood something and quietly watched the sandstorm ahead, remaining silent.
A large rabbit hopped to the front of the sand centipede, squeaking, and the sand centipede occasionally responded with a few calls. The rabbit and the centipede seemed to be having a great conversation.
The sand centipede sped forward, the sandstorm becoming thinner. Soon, the sand centipede left the range of the sandstorm and exited the desert.
Outside the sandstorm was incredibly bright. A plain covered with green grass appeared before their eyes, and in the far distance, there was an enormous mountain. The mountain was covered with paths and caves where the Demon Clan lived, along with a few buildings in the style of the human race.
Everyone felt as if a huge stone had been lifted from their hearts. Looking at the vibrant plain, they let out a long sigh of relief.
However, everyone was stunned next. They slowly looked up at the starry sky, utterly astounded.
Huge stars hung in the night sky, each one several times larger than the stars visible from the Holy Origin Mainland. They seemed as if they could fall at any moment, and hundreds of them were as big as small moons.
Fang Yun observed carefully and found that the sky seemed to be divided by countless transparent glass, as if the stars at different distances were all pulled up by a tremendous force. It gave people a sense of spatial disorientation, but Fang Yun knew in his heart that the positions of these stars had not changed. It was just that the distance of the starlight had been altered by a terrifying power, projecting onto the Demon Clan’s ancestral courtyard and increasing the star power by dozens of times.
The stars were like lamps, illuminating the sky and making the Demon Clan’s ancestral courtyard as bright as day.
“That must be the legendary Chaotic Star Chessboard. In some special ancient places, you can see this phenomenon. It is said that Sage Confucius and the Demon Saints used the sky as a chessboard and the stars as chess pieces to compete. In the end, Sage Confucius suppressed the Chaotic Star Chessboard with the God of Literature, expelled the myriad stars, and narrowly won.” Li Fanming murmured to himself.
The Tiger Demon Marquis snorted lightly.
Fang Yun was stunned because he had never heard of this legend. Imagining the scene where Sage Confucius sat on one side of the void, the Demon Saints on the other, and both sides used the stars in the sky as chess pieces, the spectacle was indescribable.
Fang Yun suddenly remembered that he seemed to have seen something as shocking as this Chaotic Star Chessboard in the Holy Land, but he couldn’t recall what it was. He subconsciously entered the world of the strange book and saw the hastily drawn picture of the giant claw and chains. The memory in his mind unfolded from nothing, recalling the scene of that day.
“The power of that giant claw is indeed terrifying. It completely erased my memory.”
The more he saw, the more Fang Yun realized the mystery and strangeness of this world. As a Presented Scholar, he probably hadn’t even seen a corner of this world.
“It seems that there is no God of Literature.” someone said.
“Yes, there isn’t. These star powers are useless to our human race, but they are a source of cultivation for the Demon Clan. The demons in the Demon Ancestor’s courtyard are probably stronger than those in the Demon Realm.”
“They are stronger than the ordinary places in the Demon Realm, but they should be slightly inferior to the area around the Moon Tree.”
“That’s natural.”
“It’s worth the trip to see the Chaotic Star Chessboard! Even if we gain nothing, it’s worth it!”
The sand centipede continued to move forward, and Fang Yun and the others kept looking up at the Chaotic Star Chessboard. Everyone was immersed in it, as if they understood something, but they didn’t have a clear comprehension.
Soon, the sand centipede slowed down.
“We’re about to reach the First Star City.”
Only then did everyone reluctantly stop looking at the starry sky. They rubbed their sore necks and looked towards the mountain city.
It was an incredibly large mountain. The inverted peak of the Holy Academy was just an ordinary thousand-foot mountain, but this mountain was tens of thousands of feet high, completely beyond common sense.
The mountain city stretched for hundreds of miles, with winding mountain roads everywhere. Countless members of the Demon Clan lived on the mountain, and there were countless caves in the mountain walls.
There were many large flat areas on the mountain, where many demons were either cultivating, sparring, fighting to the death, or trading in the market.
Ninety-nine percent of the mountain city was occupied by the Demon Clan, with very few barbarians, and not a single human could be seen.
There were waterfalls and rivers everywhere on the mountain, flowing down the mountain and finally converging on the east side, forming a lake as vast as the sea, stretching as far as the eye could see.
Soon, the sand centipede arrived at the foot of the mountain city.
The foot of the mountain was accessible from all directions, with no walls or gates, and one could go up the mountain from anywhere.
“The Star City is complicated. Since you are a human, to avoid unnecessary trouble, we will take a giant eagle up the mountain.” The Tiger Demon Marquis said, taking out a conch for communication from the Swallowed Lake Pearl.
Soon, a giant eagle swooped down, its claws holding a large basket.As the giant eagle landed, everyone saw that its wingspan was even longer than that of a sand centipede, over thirty feet, ridiculously large. The huge basket it carried was actually a large wooden house with a door. Everyone entered one after another, while the Tiger Demon Marquis jumped in from the top, everyone huddled together.
“Caw caw…” The giant eagle cried twice, then flapped its wings, lifted the basket handle with its claws, and slowly ascended.
The eagle flew higher and higher, and the basket swayed continuously. Everyone felt extremely uncomfortable, but they could only endure it.
However, everyone’s attention was soon distracted by the scenery outside the basket. From high above, the courtyard of the Demon Ancestor had a different view. They could even see the outline of the entire lake. To the east of the lake was an endless ocean, where occasionally, huge sea beasts could be seen emerging from the water.
Everyone was curious. Many of them had ridden the Grand Academician’s Cloud Stepping or the Great Scholar’s Flying Page Boat, but it was their first time sitting in a large basket.
The giant eagle flew towards the mountaintop, where the buildings were filled with human-style architecture, only several times larger than ordinary human houses.
The eagle placed the basket in a spacious square. Many members of the Demon Clan were standing not far away, slowly approaching. A Monkey Demon King and a Bear Demon King were at the forefront, followed by many Demon Barbarians.
The Demon Kings were equivalent to the Grand Academicians of the human race. Before they could approach, Fang Yun and the others felt a surging blood energy coming from the front. The sound of drumming echoed in their ears, which was the heartbeat of the Demon Kings.
“Is it Lord Moon Guard?” The Monkey Demon King asked with a look of joy.
The Tiger Demon Marquis was the first to leave, but everyone else stayed in the basket, not daring to move, all looking at Fang Yun.
Fang Yun smiled, straightened his body, and slowly walked out. Niu Shan hurriedly followed.
As soon as he stepped out of the basket, Fang Yun immediately felt numerous gazes falling on him. Especially the gazes of the two Demon Kings, they were so intense that his skin even felt a slight sting.
“I am.” Fang Yun calmly looked at the two towering Demon Kings. The Monkey Demon King was as tall as a two-story building, and the Bear Demon King was as tall as a three-story building, both of them bowing their heads.
The Monkey Demon King nodded, “Indeed, you are Lord Moon Guard.”
However, a barbarian in black armor from the crowd suddenly shouted, “This man is not the Moon Guard, but the human genius Fang Yun! Guards, behead him on the spot!”
Two Savage Cow Marquises in flesh and blood golden armor rushed over. Fang Yun noticed that the style of their armor was exactly the same as that of the ten Demon Emperor Golden Guards in front of the bronze gate. However, the armor of these Savage Cow Marquises was more blood-colored than golden, and the armor had completely penetrated into their flesh and blood.
Fang Yun vaguely guessed the identity of that barbarian.
“Stop!” The Monkey Demon King said a single word, and the two Savage Cow Marquises had to halt.
“Lord Monkey Wu, has this First Star City become a place for the human race?” The barbarian asked.
“Third Prince, this man has a strong Moonlight power, and you can see the crescent moon in his eyes. It is clear that he has been blessed by the Moon God. How can he not be the Moon Guard?” The Monkey Demon King looked at the Third Prince.
Fang Yun carefully observed the Third Prince. From his face alone, it was impossible to tell which barbarian tribe he belonged to. But he had prominent tusks, dark green pupils, dense body hair, and rhino-like skin. He also had various features of the Demon Barbarians, which were vastly different from humans.
Apart from his human-style black armor, only his upright posture and silhouette resembled a human.
Fang Yun recalled the legends about the Demon Emperor. It was said that his bloodline was mixed, but this was quite normal among the barbarians. Nearly one-tenth of the barbarians could not be classified into a specific tribe.
The Third Prince said, “As far as I know, every time the human race enters the Holy Land, they recite poems and verses, then steal the power of the Moonlight. Moreover, this year’s Moonlight power is more abundant than before. You may not know, but I have known for a long time.”
“I can testify!” A Wolf Barbarian walked out from the crowd. It was the Wolf Barbarian Saint’s son who had been scared away by Fang Yun after attacking the Star Demon Barbarian village.
“Your Highness.” The Third Prince slightly bowed, but his attitude was not very respectful.
Although the title of Saint’s Son referred to the biological son of a Demon Saint, the Demon Emperor was the first Demon Barbarian below the Semi-Saint. It was generally accepted that he could become a Saint within three years. By then, the Third Prince would also become a Saint’s Son, on par with the Wolf Barbarian Saint’s Son.
The Wolf Barbarian Saint’s Son gave the Third Prince a slight smile, showing no airs of a Saint’s Son.
The Monkey Demon King looked at the Third Prince expressionlessly and countered, “Your Highness, even if this man’s poems and verses are spread throughout the world, and he steals twice the Moonlight power, no, even if he has five times the world-spreading Moonlight power, can he have a crescent moon in his eyes?”
“This…” The Third Prince and the Wolf Barbarian Saint’s Son looked at each other, unable to answer for a moment.
The Monkey Demon King said, “Even if this man has ten times the world-spreading Moonlight power, he can only form a crescent moon illusion. But the Moonlight in his eyes is real. If it weren’t for the Moon God’s blessing, he would never be able to do this. Among the human race, at least a Grand Academician could have a crescent moon in his eyes, but their Moonlight power is never as solid and pure as his. My monkey clan and the fox clan hold the records and history of the Demon Clan. I know better than you whether he is the Moon Guard or not!”
Fang Yun observed carefully. The blood energy of this Monkey Demon King was vast and mysterious, with a very faint smell of blood, unlike the strong smell of blood from the Third Prince and the Wolf Barbarian Saint’s Son. He should be a typical Star Demon Barbarian, clearly not fond of Blood Demon Barbarians.The Bear Demon King said, “Since ancient times, no Demon Barbarian has ever dared to impersonate a Moon Guard, let alone a human like Fang Yun in my First Star City.”
The Third Prince suddenly grinned, saying, “I heard that there are relics of the Moon God in the First Star City, carvings made by the Moon God himself. We can have Fang Yun declare himself as a Moon Guard in front of these relics. If he is telling the truth, the relics of the Moon God will remain undisturbed. If he is lying, the boundless power of the Moon God will surely punish him!” (To be continued.)
PS: The third update will be late at night…