The final few hours of this month are upon us; please cast your votes for next month! Unlike the Beria Demons, the Ma Demons have always viewed guarding the city as a significant channel for profit.

"You lot! Dismount!"

A Ma Demon warrior, clad in black metal armor bearing the crest of a Demon King on his breastplate, brandished his blade slightly toward Gan Jing and the others. "I suspect you few…"

Thump!

Before the Ma Demon warrior could finish his sentence, his vision abruptly darkened, a piercing wind shrieked past his ears, and his lower abdomen was struck by a kick. The black armor, strong enough to deflect sword strikes, instantly buckled inward. The sheer force of the impact bypassed the armor, tore through his abdomen, and shattered the armor on his back, sending his entire body flying backward.

And fly he did. The Ma Demon warrior slammed violently against the city wall. Chunks of stone flew from the solid masonry as he slowly slid down to the ground, opening his mouth to spew out the food he had recently extorted from a tavern.

The resulting expulsion thoroughly soiled his once gleaming black armor, releasing a stench so foul it made observers instinctively hold their noses and step back.

The attack had been too sudden. The kicked Ma Demon hadn't reacted. Passing demons hadn't reacted. The other Ma Demons standing nearby, who had been waiting for a chance to extort their victims, froze. Even the Beria Demons who were just about to depart stood dumbfounded.

Every demon present was, for the most part, stunned into silence, frozen, or utterly baffled.

In broad daylight, someone had just assaulted the city guards? What in the Abyss was going on? Was this an open rebellion?

According to the Demon Codex, attacking the city guard was tantamount to treason, punishable by immediate execution or by being tied to an iron pillar, where the attacker would be flayed alive, bit by agonizing bit.

Gan Jing sent the squad captain flying with a single kick. He then lifted his foot slightly higher, plucked a piece of white silk cloth from his pocket, and delicately wiped the foot he had used to kick the captain, murmuring without even glancing up, "Kicking trash like you has soiled my shoes. Arrogance! Such staggering arrogance!"

The Ma Demon warriors began to regain their senses. This demon who dared strike their own kind was unbelievably insolent, not only attacking their captain but displaying such an insulting manner afterward.

The habitually lethargic Beria Demons now shed their laziness, showing a flicker of interest in the unfolding spectacle. With theatrical laziness, they simply sat down on the ground, eager to see what happened next.

"Damn it! How dare he attack the city guard? He must not want to live! Brothers, surround him! Don't let him escape…"

A Ma Demon violently gripped his battle saber and roared. The other Ma Demons started to mobilize. However, before his call could fully finish, his vision blurred suddenly. The Blood Demon, who had just been wiping his shoe, appeared instantly before him as if using teleportation magic, his hand raised high… And… and somehow, his raised palm was now encased in a clean, white glove. The white palm-shadow struck the Ma Demon’s face before he could even react… Slap… Slap-slap… Slap-slap-slap… Slap-slap-slap-slap…

The white palm-shadow danced across the Ma Demon warrior’s face like butterflies flitting through a flower garden. Almost no one could track Gan Jing's movements; they could only see the blur of white palms flying, punctuated by sickening flashes of bright blood that served as vivid accents in the abstract composition—a scene as purely abstract as any painting.

Soon, Gan Jing’s hand, which had been delivering the slaps, stopped. The Ma Demon who had been shouting moments before now had a face so distorted it looked more abstract than any painting. He mumbled something unintelligible, his teeth gone and his face so swollen that no one could decipher his words.

Those Ma Demons who had started to move to surround Gan Jing were paralyzed. Having served as city guards for so long, they had never witnessed such brazen behavior.

Who was this Blood Demon? Such audacity suggested he must have powerful backing, a significant force behind him, surely?

Gan Jing paid no attention to the stunned demons around him. He deliberately removed the white glove from his hand and tossed it onto the ground, his eyelids still not lifting as he continued coolly, "Striking trash like you soils my hands. Hmph."

Arrogance… pride… The surrounding demons were once again shaken by Gan Jing's actions. The Luciferean lineage was inherently proud, and their actions tended to be rather brazen, yet this demon, who appeared to possess only half the bloodline of Lucifere, seemed even more proud than many pure Luciferean demons!

He wore gloves to strike demons, and he cleaned his shoe after kicking one?

"Are your demon eyes blind!" Gan Jing finally lifted his eyelids, sweeping a cold gaze over the assembled demons. "You dare obstruct the entourage of Princess Liushui of the Lucifere line? And you still attempt extortion? Are you tired of living!"

Lucifere Liushui? The Tenth Princess of the Lucifere Royal Family, rumored to demand a new male consort every night? And the male consort who accompanied her the longest was said to die? That vicious reputation preceded her.

The surrounding demons looked up simultaneously, their gazes shifting to the haughty figure of Lucifere Liushui atop her warhorse. They quickly noticed the absence of one of the princess’s eyes.

The demons dared not reveal any suspicion or emotion regarding the missing eye; they immediately lowered their heads and knelt on the ground.

Everyone saw the Luciferean Royal Token held in Lucifere Liushui’s hand. No one dared to forge that item on the lands of the demons. Being caught impersonating a member of the Lucifere Royal Family meant more than just death; it meant the execution of one's entire family—parents, spouse, and children.

The demons began to understand why this Blood Demon was so supremely proud and arrogant. As a retainer to Lucifere Liushui, he naturally possessed sufficient status to act so boldly.

Let alone kicking a demon, if he had slaughtered this entire squad, no one would dare question Lucifere Liushui. Even the leader of the Ma Demons would not admonish her for killing a squad of Ma Demons; at most, they would merely file an official report, ensuring that all Ma Demons noted Princess Liushui’s appearance and knew to give her a wide berth in the future, avoiding her at all costs.

Cold sweat soon beaded on the foreheads of the kneeling Ma Demons. Rumor had it that this princess, who allegedly killed the last demon she favored each night, was even more ruthless than ordinary demons.

Rumor also held that she particularly favored robust, strong demons! Each Ma Demon lowered his head as far as possible, terrified that Lucifere Liushui might take notice of him, as that would signal impending death.

Among the Seven Great Demon Clans, only the Satan Clan—who loved battle—could rival the Ma Demons, who boasted the second strongest martial prowess. Everyone feared being noticed by this beautiful demoness, as it meant doom was imminent.

Gan Jing began to walk forward, step by measured step. The hearts of several Ma Demon warriors constricted instantly, as if hearing the footsteps of the Grim Reaper himself, as rumored.

Gan Jing approached the few kneeling Ma Demons, slowly bent down, and lowered his head. He looked at the warriors before him and spoke in a chillingly detached voice, "Your comrade soiled my shoe. He soiled my hand. Furthermore, I have kindly lectured you and saved your lives."

The faces of the Ma Demons turned ghastly. They were all too familiar with those words—they were the opening preamble to an extortion attempt.

At that moment, the Ma Demon warriors suddenly remembered: this Blood Demon still carried half of their own bloodline within him! He, too, was a Ma Demon!

Then… naturally… that innate greed would surface in this demon before them!

If a Ma Demon had an opportunity for extortion, he wouldn't even spare his own kin! The demons kneeling understood this perfectly. They dared not believe that the shared ancestral bloodline would grant them mercy. On the contrary, how they wished this demon were a pure Luciferean! Pride was fine, let him be proud! Just please, don't be greedy!

"I saved you. Shouldn't you offer me a token of gratitude?" Gan Jing smiled, his pupils flickering with the distinct avarice of the Ma Demons. "Now, surrender everything valuable you possess besides your weapons and armor. Otherwise, I will slaughter you and take it myself."

The Ma Demons shivered, remaining rooted to the ground. The Ma Demon obsession with money and possessions was as vital as their lives; asking them to surrender what they had seized was tantamount to asking them to die.

Splat! Krr-chhh… A massive battle-hammer materialized above one Ma Demon’s head. Its weight, exceeding two thousand pounds, combined with the brutal force, instantly not only shattered the demon's skull but pulverized his entire body. Crimson blood and ichor oozed out through the narrow gaps between the hammer, the shattered remains, and the ground.

The sturdy, solid armor was as fragile as tofu hitting stone against the immense war-hammer. It offered absolutely no resistance, instantly compressed into a flat iron disk, a disk now thickly layered with gore.

Boom! The hammer struck the ground, creating a sound like a war drum being struck. The earth beneath them trembled, and the knees of the nearest warriors keenly felt the terrifying power of that weapon.

Brutal! Savage!

The surrounding demons, witnessing Gan Jing's execution, began to suspect he carried the blood of yet another demon clan. Neither the Ma nor the Luciferean lineage typically exhibited such unrestrained savagery; this seemed characteristic of a different race entirely.

"Who else wishes to resist?" Gan Jing slowly moved the hammer, gazing at the trembling assembly. "I refuse to believe that every demon in this world is unafraid of death."

"You…"

The Ma Demon squad captain, who had been kicked away earlier, finally regained consciousness. He glared fiercely at Gan Jing. "You mixed-blood bastard, how dare you kill a noble Ma Demon warrior! Even with the Princess's backing, you cannot escape death! You are challenging the honor and dignity of the Ma Demons, you…"

(To be continued.)