Chapter 1922 — 1922: The Sudden Appearance of a Demon Emperor

After sensing the overwhelming malicious presence, Sun Ling Cai had to force herself to turn around. Every instinct in her body warned her to run, yet she stood her ground.

At first, she saw nothing—just the empty, distorted air ahead, heavy with oppressive energy. But then, a silhouette began to take shape, emerging slowly from the shadows as if reality itself were bending to make way for it.

Each step it took was deliberate, and with every step, the pressure grew heavier, colder—like a noose tightening around her soul.

'A second demon? How is that possible?! My divine sense has been active and surrounding this place ever since we entered, yet I only just sensed it! Did it teleport in here just now?' Sun Ling Cai couldn't fathom how she could've missed this demon, who was emitting a ridiculous amount of demonic energy.

"To think I'd return to intruders… I only left for a couple of minutes, too."

The silhouette spoke as it emerged from the shadow, revealing its appearance.

Just like the Demon General, this demon did not appear to have a crystal outside its body. However, its demonic energy and presence was several times stronger than the Demon General, which could only mean one thing.

"A Demon Emperor…" Sun Ling Cai muttered under her breath, her voice barely audible, laced with tension.

She clenched her fists tightly, her jaw locking as pure fear crawled down her spine.

After spending just a few moments in its presence, she began to recognize the undeniable familiarity in the aura. It was nearly identical to the one she had felt during the Supreme Demon Sealer Examination a few years ago.

The Demon Emperor before Sun Ling Cai was not the same one at the examination. It was a new one that she'd never heard of or seen before.

'Fuck, what should I do?' Sun Ling Cai could only stand there and ponder her limited options as the Demon Emperor slowly approached.

Although both she and the Demon Emperor had their cultivation sealed to the peak of Immortal Ascension, Sun Ling Cai wasn't confident she'd be able to face this Demon Emperor even if she had her full cultivation and the demon didn't.

She could try running away, but that would bring shame to her status as a Master Demon Sealer, not to mention Yuan and the captives were not far away from her. If she ran, they would most certainly die.

The Demon Emperor suddenly stopped before the sealed Demon General. After a brief pause, it placed its palm on the sealed demon and began infusing demonic energy into it. A moment later, cracks began appearing on the sealed demon.

'It's unsealing the other demon?!'

Seeing this, Sun Ling Cai instinctively attacked the Demon Emperor.

Without even glancing in Sun Ling Cai's direction, the Demon Emperor casually flicked its hand, a motion so effortless it almost seemed dismissive.

In that instant, a massive wave of demonic energy surged forth—thick, black, and seething with malice.

It struck Sun Ling Cai like a collapsing mountain, the sheer force of it leaving no room to resist. Her body was violently repelled, sent flying through the air as if she were nothing more than a leaf caught in a storm.

By the time Sun Ling Cai stabilized herself, which only took a second, the sealed demon was released from its stone prison.

"I apologize for my incompetence, Emperor." The Demon General kneeled before the Demon Emperor.

The Demon Emperor calmly gazed upon the demon and spoke, "Take care of the other invader. I'll deal with this livestock myself."

"As you command."

The Demon General left without any delay, ignoring Sun Ling Cai, who could only watch as it disappeared.

'He should be fine…' Sun Ling Cai wasn't too worried for Yuan, who she was sure was hiding his true cultivation.

'I won't be able to defeat this Demon Emperor by myself, so I can only try to hold it off until he defeats that Demon General…'

Sun Ling Cai could only rely on Yuan's assistance to defeat this Demon Emperor, but even that seemed unlikely.

According to what she heard from others in the Demon Sealing Clan, it took their Clan Leader, as well as two Supreme Demon Sealers, to capture the other Demon Emperor, and they were all at full strength.

Meanwhile, she was only a Master Demon Sealer. It'd take a miracle for her to hold off the Demon Emperor for a few minutes, let alone seal it.

'Let's just focus on defense until Xiao Yang arrives…' Sun Ling Cai thought to herself as she prepared to fight the Demon Emperor, who merely stood there in silence.

At the same time, the Demon General appeared before Yuan and the captives, who were trembling in fear due to the Demon Emperor's presence that filled the entire space there. The pressure was so terrifying and suffocating that the captives couldn't even stand up despite their cultivation returning, let alone escape.

"Spirit Enlightenment? How did a weakling like you seal those two idiots?" The Demon General narrowed its eyes at Yuan after accessing the situation, its gaze filled with confusion.

"Don't worry, you'll experience it for yourself in just a moment," Yuan calmly said.

"Hmph! Ridiculous!" The Demon General sneered.

Yuan turned to face the captives and said, "Close your eyes. All of you. It'll be over in just a moment."

Hearing his soothing voice, calm and steady like a gentle breeze, the captives felt an unexpected sense of comfort wash over them. Without realizing it, they all began to close their eyes tightly.

"Normally, I'd use you to entertain me before I kill you. Unfortunately, I don't have the time today since I need to help that girl as soon as possible, so if you don't mind—"

The Demon General interrupted with a cold laugh, "Using me as entertainment? I should be saying that to you!"

In a fit of rage, the Demon General lunged toward Yuan—or at least, it tried to.

But the moment it moved, its body suddenly froze, locked in place by an unseen force.

Confusion flashed across its face as it looked down to find several sword-shaped lights piercing through its body, glowing with pure, radiant energy that sizzled against its flesh.

"W-What? Where did this come from?" it muttered in a daze, eyes wide with disbelief as it sensed an unfamiliar sensation—pain.

[Swords of Eternal Torment]

When the Demon General lifted its head up again, Yuan was already standing right before it with a humble-looking red sword in his grasp.

The Demon General's eyes widened some more after sensing the terrifying Demon Sealing Aura being emitted by the sword, and its body trembled in fear as it recalled this forgotten feeling called fear.

"T-That sword! Why do you—"

Yuan flicked his arm, and with a surreal grace, he swung the blade in a perfect horizontal arc, its path tracing cleanly across the demon's neck.

The movement was strange. Slow and fast all at once. There was no wasted motion, no dramatic flourish, and the demon's head came cleanly off, its body completely sealed in an instant, long before its head could even reach the ground.

Thud.

The demon's head hit the sand with a muffled thud, sinking slightly into the soft grains, and its face was locked in a terrified expression, wide eyes filled with the dawning horror of realization.