Bait

"I originally intended to wait another year or two, until the second Annihilation Sword I am forging was complete, before making a move against those demon lords of the Shadow Moon Sect. But plans can't keep up with changes. True Monarch Jinghong arriving with True Monarch Buzhou as such a perfect excuse has forced me to move up my timetable." Yaoguang followed behind True Monarch Buzhou, pursuing him at an unhurried pace. Although True Monarch Buzhou possessed a Dao artifact-grade flying treasure, for Yaoguang, who had Void Flicker as his natal Dao art, there was no target below the Dao Lord realm that he could not catch up to or shake off. Especially when he activated the Wuji Sword, a single Void Flicker could cross hundreds of thousands of li. Traveling from the Heavenly Dao Sect headquarters to the Southern Domain took barely any time at all. Under these circumstances, True Monarch Buzhou did not stand the slightest chance of escape. However... To give True Monarch Buzhou a glimmer of hope, and likewise to lure out enough Void Shattering demon lords from the Shadow Moon Sect, Yaoguang had even paused slightly upon reaching the border between the Southern Domain and the Shadow Moon Sect, deliberately letting True Monarch Buzhou pull ahead by several breaths. Only when the distance widened to a hundred thousand li did he resume the chase, restraining his aura along the way and adopting a posture of cautious wariness. True Monarch Buzhou was a truly staunch supporter of Zong Wenxian. Whether it was Gu Li or Jing Yuntian, their support for Zong Wenxian could not compare to his. If he didn't die, he would definitely continue stirring up trouble once he returned to the extraterrestrial starry sky. Of course, with his limited abilities, even if he stirred up trouble in the extraterrestrial sky, it would be difficult to cause Yaoguang any real harm. But... Like a mosquito, a single bite might not inflict serious harm, but buzzing endlessly around one's ears was still irritating and repulsive. The best way to deal with such a creature was naturally to swat it dead with a single slap. *Hmm!?* As Yaoguang pondered, the light of his true spirit soon sensed something. *A Void Shattering cultivator is approaching?* He looked up slightly. Now that a Void Shattering demonic cultivator from the Shadow Moon Sect had arrived, the timing was just about right. With that, he executed several Void Flickers, appearing directly a few thousand li from True Monarch Buzhou. At that moment, True Monarch Buzhou found his path blocked by two Void Shattering demonic cultivators, one in front and one behind. Demonic cultivators were skilled at self-preservation rather than direct combat. When dealing with Void Shattering experts of other factions, they often traveled in pairs to ensure nothing went wrong. Just like these two Void Shattering cultivators: one blocked True Monarch Buzhou, while the other kept his distance to provide support. The one currently obstructing True Monarch Buzhou was Demon Lord Chihun, who was issuing verbal threats: "Buzhou, you dare step into the territory of our Shadow Moon Sect as a Void Shattering cultivator of the Heavenly Dao Sect? Do you truly believe we fear you!? Scram from our territory at once, and I might spare your life! Otherwise, don't blame my blade for showing no mercy and taking your head!" "Demon Lord Chihun, I come with no ill intent whatsoever. I am here to seek cooperation with the Shadow Moon Sect..." True Monarch Buzhou said at once. Yet at the mention of the word "cooperation," Demon Lord Chihun erupted in fury. "Cooperation? The kind of cooperation where Eight Desolations Demon Lord and Dark Demon Lord were lured to Nandu in the name of alliance and slaughtered in the Heavenly Capital Dragon-Slashing Formation? Do you think we will fall for your tricks a second time?" True Monarch Buzhou froze, then hastily explained, "That was not our fault! At the time, Supreme Elder Jing Yuntian sincerely wished to join hands with your sect to deal with that Lord of the Southern Domain. Alas... we all underestimated the Lord of the Southern Domain's strength! His combat prowess was already on par with a Void Shattering expert back then, and combined with the might of the Heavenly Capital Dragon-Slashing Formation, it led to the deaths of the two Demon Lords, Eight Desolations and Dark. But this time, I come with one hundred percent sincerity..." "Silence! We will not make the same mistake twice! Get off Shadow Moon Sect territory this instant, or else... today will be the day you die!" Demon Lord Chihun shouted harshly. "Every word I say is the absolute truth! You must have heard by now—Yaoguang is arrogant and domineering. After advancing to Void Shattering, he relied on his strength to run rampant within the Heavenly Dao Sect, and even Supreme Elder Jing Yuntian met his end at his hands! This alone proves I speak the truth. It was never that we were unwilling to cooperate with you in good faith, but that Yaoguang was too strong, defusing crisis after crisis..." "Hahaha!" Before True Monarch Buzhou could finish, Demon Lord Chihun burst into mocking laughter. "Buzhou, do you truly take us all for fools? Putting aside whether Yaoguang, having advanced to Void Shattering at barely a century old, would have time to master his Dao arts—even if he did, how could your Heavenly Dao Sect bear to stand idly by and watch him murder your own Supreme Elder right inside the sect? This is clearly a melodrama staged by yourselves! Did you think we'd fall for it again?" "It wasn't that we didn't want to stop him, but that no one present could stop him at all..." True Monarch Buzhou pleaded earnestly. "Bah! Couldn't stop him? It's clearly a charade you staged so Jing Yuntian could temporarily vanish! When we received word of this a short while ago, we were already guessing that such a thing was impossible. It had to be a plot by your Heavenly Dao Sect, likely prepared specifically against our Shadow Moon Sect! And sure enough, barely any time has passed before you couldn't wait to lure us into a trap under the guise of 'cooperation' again! Does your Heavenly Dao Sect truly think everyone under heaven is an idiot?" With that, Demon Lord Chihun produced a Dao artifact spear in his hand. "Since you stubbornly seek death, I'll grant your wish!" As his words fell, the demon lord thrust his spear forward. A vast, majestic aura of clashing arms and thundering hooves surged forth as the spear swept across the air. The metallic war aura coalesced into a single whole, forming an army akin to ten thousand stampeding steeds that charged straight at True Monarch Buzhou, instantly engulfing him. This was the Grand Dao of War. "Are you mad!?" True Monarch Buzhou shouted. "Believe me! I sincerely came to seek cooperation..." "Die!" Demon Lord Chihun let out a low roar. The thousands of troops and horses manifested by his Grand Dao of War crashed violently into True Monarch Buzhou. Even though Buzhou invoked a Dao art to protect himself at the first moment, he was still battered backward step by step. *Whoosh!* Yet right as Demon Lord Chihun struck with all his fury and unleashed his full power, a figure abruptly materialized beside him. Without the slightest delay, a Void Sword cleaved downward. Although the demonic cultivator had a defensive Dao artifact, it was instantly obliterated in the face of the all-destroying Void Sword, shattering into streaks of flowing light. The Void Sword broke through his defensive Dao artifact and cleaved into Demon Lord Chihun's demon body without losing momentum, slicing him in two in an instant. "Despicable bastards!" The sudden ambush drew an enraged roar from the demon lord. His severed demon body immediately turned into demonic mist, attempting to reconstitute itself. Yet almost the moment his demon body was cleaved in half, the Torrent of Time surged, and four beams of Great Annihilation Sword Qi hammered down like a torrential downpour upon the demon lord's scattering form. "No! Zhanpo, save me!" Demon Lord Chihun howled in despair, his demonic flames thrashing as he tried to break free from this patch of void. However, the pure Grand Dao of Destruction not only devastated his demon body, but also shredded the surrounding Dao rhythms, rendering it impossible to cast various Dao arts in that moment. Seizing this opportunity, Yaoguang's grotto-heaven suddenly unfurled, sweeping over the demon lord's body... Having had most of his demon body destroyed, the demon lord was swiftly suppressed into the depths of the grotto-heaven. "Well done, True Monarch Buzhou. Successfully drawing this Void Shattering demon's attention and enraging him forced him to go all out, giving me the opportunity for an instant kill." Having suppressed Demon Lord Chihun, Yaoguang gave True Monarch Buzhou a thumbs-up with a smile. "Nicely done!" In the distance! Demon Lord Zhanpo, who had initially been standing by to provide support for Chihun, watched Chihun get ambushed and eliminated in an instant under the combined assault of True Monarch Buzhou and Yaoguang. His soul nearly leaped out of his skin in sheer terror. Without a second thought, he retreated frantically, fleeing at full speed. Rescue him? He didn't have the slightest intention of saving anyone. His only desire was to preserve his own life as quickly as possible. As he retreated at maximum speed, he took out a distress transmission talisman and sent a message: "The Heavenly Dao Sect is launching a massive invasion in full retaliation for our earlier raid on Nandu! Demon Lord Chihun was ambushed and killed by the combined efforts of Yaoguang and Buzhou! The enemy is ferocious! Gather all demon lords immediately for reinforcement!" *Whoosh!* Even as the demonic cultivator transmitted his message, Yaoguang had already intercepted him via Void Flicker. Amplified by the Torrent of Time, the Void Sword and Great Annihilation Sword Qi descended once more. "How could this be..." Looking at the figure that had already appeared on the battlefield ten thousand li away, True Monarch Buzhou felt a chilling cold seep through his entire body. He clearly should have taken advantage of Yaoguang being entangled by the Void Shattering demon to flee at top speed, yet his mind seemed frozen, failing for the longest time to issue the command for his body to run. The scene of Demon Lord Chihun—who had been fighting him at point-blank range only moments ago—being crushed with overwhelming force and suppressed into the grotto-heaven by Yaoguang's sudden strike violently battered his nerves. For the first time, it made him realize that Yaoguang's strength had genuinely reached such a terrifying realm. It had reached... A level where he could effortlessly extinguish experts of the same cultivation realm as himself. Even though he already knew that Yaoguang had slain Jing Yuntian, and had witnessed Yaoguang trade blows with True Monarch Jinghong—a powerhouse ranked among the top ten on the Dao Lord Candidate List—hearing about it and watching from afar could never compare to the psychic shock of the battle unfolding right before his eyes. It was precisely because of this shock that he had stood frozen on the spot, unable to come to his senses for a full breath. Only now did he dazedly realize how close death truly was to him. Yaoguang... Possessed the ability to kill him at any time. And he... Without a single shred of backing or leverage, had recklessly and blindly provoked a powerhouse who could claim his life whenever he wished. "Does your Heavenly Dao Sect truly intend to wage all-out war against our Shadow Moon Sect!?" Suddenly, Demon Lord Zhanpo's divine sense ripples, laden with terror, drifted across the expanse. Stirred by these divine sense ripples, True Monarch Buzhou shuddered and violently snapped back to his senses. Immediately, he dared not hesitate a moment longer and fled for his life at maximum speed! Flee! At this moment, he pushed his flight speed to the absolute limit! He only wanted to get far away from this region, far away from Yaoguang—the farther, the better. Under the pressure of imminent death, this Void Shattering cultivator's speed was astonishingly swift. In just over a dozen breaths, he had already crossed nearly a million li. However... Such a vast distance brought him not the slightest sense of safety. Especially when a wave of divine sense rippled across immediately after, plunging his heart straight into an abyss. "True Monarch Buzhou, don't you see I'm in the middle of a fierce battle with a demonic cultivator? Leaving without helping is one thing, but where are you heading in such a hurry?"