Chapter 33: The King of Jiao Demons
In the Northern Jambu Continent, adhering to the natural law of survival of the fittest, killing and looting treasures was commonplace.
Therefore, in that continent, no matter how powerful the demons were, Heaven's Court would never compromise.
Because over there, the concept was, the strong possessed everything.
This did not align with Heaven's Court's conduct!
However, such matters were only known within Heaven's Court's system. Ordinary Demon Kings, even if they had great Divine Skills and boundless mana, did not know, and even if they had good relationships with certain realms' deities, those deities would not share these secrets; at most they would say something like "Do more good deeds, accumulate merits."
Regrettably, the vast majority of Demon Kings didn't take this to heart.
"If we must resolve this issue ourselves, then let me be the one to confront the Jiao Demon King!"
Ao Yun volunteered with enthusiasm.
Ever since he had used his Dragon kin body to defeat his cousin Ao Moang last time, Ao Yun had been very confident.
But a mere Jiao Demon King, he could capture him with ease!
Ao Guang hastily said, "Last time when you competed with your cousin Ao Moang, he let you win. Your martial arts are far inferior. Even if your Dragon kin body is mightier than ours, the Jiao Demon King's Jiao demon true form is also extraordinary."
Ao Shun said, "That Jiao demon, not knowing where he learned a sorcery that can devour the world's creation to enhance his own mana, has the power to overturn rivers and seas and the skill to consume clouds and spit fog. Even we true dragons are helpless against him."
After reflecting a moment, Ao Yun said, "Father, Uncles, your words are reasonable. We must think this through carefully."
Bang!
Just then, several shrimp soldiers and a few crab generals were tossed into the grand hall, reverted to their true forms, lifeless.
"Haha, I wondered where Ao Shun had gone, so he was in the Dragon Palace of the Eastern Sea!"
A burly man with an ugly face and a single horn on his brow walked in, carrying a cold iron spear in his hand, and hanging from it was a yaksha that had been pierced through, clearly beyond saving.
Ao Yun's face turned cold.
This demon truly had gall, daring to strut around in her home!
The Dragon Kings of the Four Seas were even more furious and shouted, "Impudence!"
Outside the hall, shrimp soldiers and crab generals, armed with halberds and carrying long spears, rushed into the palace and, together with the Dragon Kings of the Four Seas, encircled the Jiao Demon King.
With a flick of his right arm, the Jiao Demon King holding the cold iron spear tossed the yaksha aside, causing the shrimp soldiers and crab generals to quickly catch it.
He chuckled wickedly and said, "The Eastern Sea truly lives up to its reputation as the richest of the Four Seas, its shrimp soldiers and crab generals are bigger and more numerous than those in the North Sea."
"Unfortunately—"
"They are just as frail, not even enough to get stuck between my teeth."
Ao Guang said with a sneer, "Jiao Demon King, what business brings you here? Leave quickly, lest we report you to Heaven's Court and have you dealt with by the law."
"Go report it, then. I'm not stopping you," the Jiao Demon King laughed, "If you dared to report, you would have done so long ago, why wait until today?"
Although he did not know Heaven's Court's specific rules, he too had spent some time in the Dragon Palace in his youth, and he wasn't just a rash Demon King.
The Four Dragon Kings had yet to report his deeds to Heaven's Court so far, probably because of his identity here, which at the time might involve the whole dragon clan of the Four Seas.
Thus, he became bolder.
"You!"
Ao Shun was livid and wanted to take action, but Ao Qin and Ao Run held him back.
No choice.
They couldn't beat him.
The Jiao Demon King was extraordinarily powerful in battle. If they were to fight, they feared they might be seriously injured, or even worse, lose their soldiers along with losing their leader.
It was better to endure him for a while and plan for the long term.
"You wicked wretch, how dare you spout such insolence here!" Ao Yun snapped, drawing the treasured sword from her waist, "Kneel down at once and apologize to your king!"
The Jiao Demon King looked at the dragon princess in surprise, somewhat incredulously.
Since when did Dragon Palace allow a lady to step forward and speak out?
Strange!
Yet her fiery temper piqued his desire to conquer.
"You dragon girl, not bad. Would you like to come with me and be a lady of a bandit fortress, living a carefree and joyful life?"
"Hmph!"
Ao Yun harrumphed and her treasured sword glinted coldly as she thrust forward, unleashing sword Qi that exploded with the might to topple forests and mountains, sweeping up the spiritual energy of the surroundings, turning into a long dragon of sword intent that attacked the Jiao Demon King.
"Eh?"
The Jiao Demon King waved his long spear like a dark whirlwind, whirling the sword Qi apart, injuring many aquatic beings, but he himself stood correct and unscathed.
"Nice play, sister, your swordsmanship is fierce," the Jiao Demon King licked his lips, murmuring with dark joy, "It's just that you're not too clever, must be because you practiced by the book without fighting others."
"Sss—"
"Such a tender young lady is simply delicious."
Displeased, Ao Yun brandished her long sword, shining with myriad lights, like a peacock spreading its feathers, full of colors dazzling the Jiao Demon King for a moment.
But he, after all, was a great Demon King from the Northern Jambu Continent, a creature who had fought his way out of mountains of corpses and seas of blood; with a flick of his spear, he stirred the spiritual energy, shattering Ao Yun's sword light in a flash.
Thousands of sword lights dissipated into specks of starlight, vanishing into nothingness.
The Jiao Demon King called out, "Feisty little lady! Four Dragon Kings, as long as you agree to let me take this young lady away, I will then no longer invade the Four Seas. What do you think of this deal?"
Ao Guang immediately retorted, "How could we, the Dragon Kings of the Four Seas, be the sort of people who sell their daughters for safety? Besides, my daughter is the Second King of Huaguo Mountain. If you dare to force her, you're risking your life!"
Huaguo Mountain!
The Jiao Demon King became cautious.
Before coming to the Dragon Palace of the Eastern Sea, he stood in the clouds from a distance and had observed Huaguo Mountain. It was indeed a beautiful place with picturesque scenery and prosperity within its cities.
But he did not rashly go to investigate.
After all, the rumors told of the Monkey King who wielded the great Divine Power known as the Law of Heaven and Earth, presumably a skillful great Demon King who was also kind to humans.
Such a Demon King, the Monkey King probably wouldn't like.
Moreover, he came to cause trouble for Ao Shun, not to visit the Monkey King; there was no need to go.
However, what he hadn't expected was that the dragon princess before him was actually the second ruler of Huaguo Mountain.
This matter was rather strange.
As the son of the East Sea Dragon King, the Demon King knew not much about the heavenly rules, but he knew some.
For example: the sons and daughters born of dragon matrons and consorts all have their names recorded in the heavenly register; upon reaching adulthood, the dragon princes mostly take office in rivers and seas to guard the region, while the dragon princesses generally marry into various dragon palaces or deities on land, accompanying their husbands in the balance of yin and yang.
The second ruler of Huaguo Mountain?
If it were like him, forcibly taken away, then there would be some justification.
But under these circumstances, it seemed like the East Sea Dragon King willingly let his dragon daughter become the second ruler of Huaguo Mountain.
A fine dragon princess no longer, abandoning her future prospects to become a second ruler?
If the East Sea Dragon King wasn't crazy, then this dragon king must understand that following the Monkey King would yield a far greater future.
Would Ao Guang go mad?
No.
Therefore, that Monkey King of Huaguo Mountain must be able to join the ranks of immortals, and his status must assuredly be higher than that of the dragons of the four seas.
Only under such circumstances would Ao Guang act this way.
At least, the capabilities demonstrated by the Monkey King to Ao Guang must possess the potential he theorized.
Nevertheless, this made him even more eager to obtain the dragon princess.
Having seen countless women in his time, he naturally could tell that the dragon princess before him exuded a pure fragrance unique to those who were untouched.
That is to say, the dragon princess before him was still a virgin.
It seemed that the Monkey King was cultivating the righteous path and eschewed carnal desires.
No wonder there were both humans and demons living together on Huaguo Mountain.
However, if the Monkey King had the potential to join the ranks of immortals, then he needed to foster good relations with him, and the best way to do so was to become in-laws.
As it happened, the second ruler was a dragon princess, and he could just marry into her family.
Why marry into her family?
The dragon princess was not his equal in strength, but her methods were sharp; if they truly fought, he couldn't defeat her within a hundred exchanges.
If she possessed the Skill of Voice Transmission Over a Thousand Miles and the Monkey King arrived, he feared he would not be her match.
Rather than continue the struggle, it was better to join the opposing side's power and protect himself.
As for the rules of Huaguo Mountain...
Consider it cultivation and self-improvement before joining the ranks of immortals.
As for losing face by marrying in?
Pssh.
With a chance to join the ranks of immortals, there's no loss of face!
Moreover, he had long heard that there was a dragon princess on Huaguo Mountain, whom he thought was just an ordinary, unremarkable dragon princess; he hadn't expected it to be the charming girl before him. Tosupportourwork,pleasereadonM|V|LE_MPYR.
She perfectly matched his tastes.
Not only would he join the ranks of immortals, but he would also have a beautiful wife—why not enjoy the best of both worlds?
Even if the Monkey King failed to join the ranks of immortals in the future, he wouldn't lose out; at worst, he could go back to the Northern Jambu Continent and continue to work with the other Demon Kings in hopes of gaining the Heavenly Court's favor.
"Haha, turns out we're one family!"
The Demon King laughed heartily, "I and that Monkey King of Huaguo Mountain are brothers!"
The Dragon Kings of the four seas listened with shock and uncertainty.
This scourge, he has ties with the Monkey King?
Ao Yun's face was as cold as ice: "Stop your nonsense! My elder brother is a naturally born Saint, how could he associate with a demon like you? That Great Strength Bull Demon King of the west was constrained by my brother with a nose ring, serving as a mount.
You, a sinner who has eaten countless people and committed indiscriminate slaughter—if you met my brother, you'd probably have been skinned and deboned by now, your soul condemned to the deepest hells, never able to transcend!"
The Dragon Kings of the four seas nodded repeatedly.
The Monkey King is truly a Saint, missing only an official status to join the ranks of immortals; how could he associate with such a demon?
This Jiao Demon is to the extreme in cunning!
On hearing that the Bull Demon King had become a mount for the Monkey King, the Demon King instantly became doubtful and a bit incredulous.
In recent times, he had been gathering myriads of demons with the other Demon Kings in the Northern Jambu Continent, not really paying attention to the Western Bull Continent; he hadn't anticipated that the Bull Demon King, known for his great divine power, would have been made into a mount?
If these words were true, then the Monkey King's strength was not to be underestimated.
"Miss, your words are mistaken."
His heart trembled, but the Demon King claimed, "Although I am not brothers with that Monkey King right now, as long as I go to pay him a visit and present a rich gift, indicating my willingness to practice vegetarianism and chant Buddhist scriptures, the Monkey King will surely accept me."
"Then, I can propose to the Monkey King that I wish to marry into Huaguo Mountain, and he likely won't refuse."
"At that time, aren't I and the young lady one family?"
The Dragon Kings of the four seas widened their eyes in fury.
"Despicable!"
"Shameless!"
"True to the nature of a demon, such sly thoughts!"
"Had we known this day would come, we should have thrown that egg into the depths of the undersea volcano!"
You don't slap someone who is smiling at you.
If this Demon King were really so shameless as to send gifts and wealth to the Monkey King, the Monkey King truly wouldn't have a way to deal with him.
This demon is utterly detestable!
Ao Yun's eyes flickered with a cold light: "You won't have that chance, today I'm going to turn you into a mudfish!"