Most people had guessed that the Demon Lord possessed a puppet, as the secrets the Tianji Sect secretly sold to the Yin Sha Sect could not be maintained otherwise. But they never expected that Fan Quqing also had a puppet, and she was the first to deploy it. To know that this was a Nascent Soul-level puppet; there were fewer than five in all of Kangzhou.

The Yin Sha Demon Lord’s face also looked rather grim. As expected of the Grand Supreme Sect; their foundations were profoundly deep. The price the Yin Sha Sect paid to acquire that one puppet was terrifyingly high. Because, purely in terms of manufacturing costs, a Nascent Soul-level puppet was no less than a top-grade Spirit Ghost.

Facing the aggressively posturing Nascent Soul puppet, the Demon Lord remained composed and calmly summoned a puppet of her own. This puppet was humanoid, its body slowly flowing like liquid mercury, exuding a formidable aura. Under the Demon Lord's command, the humanoid puppet directly engaged the beast-shaped puppet.

Bang, bang, bang—the continuous clashes erupted with powerful explosions and ripples, demonstrating the might of these two Nascent Soul-level puppets, fully justifying their exorbitant price. For each Nascent Soul puppet contained either a sealed Nascent Soul or a Nascent Soul-level beast soul. Thus, these puppets were instruments of war imbued with potent combat experience, rather than mere wooden dolls.

“As expected.” Fan Quqing, who had already mentally prepared, let out a cold, disdainful sneer. So what if you have a puppet? Today, let’s see what other tricks you, Demon Lord, have up your sleeve! With a strange smile, she formed a hand seal: “Hurry as the law commands, summon the Heavenly General.”

As she spoke, the space around her warped, and a General, several feet tall and clad entirely in gleaming silver armor, manifested before everyone’s eyes. His gaze was majestic and sharp; even through the Water Curtain Heavenly Splendor, countless spectators felt a suffocating pressure.

“Your subordinate, Meng Chao, awaits the Venerable’s command.” The voice, like a booming bell, made people’s ears tingle.

“What? This is impossible.” In a lavish private box, the Yin Sha Demon Lord suddenly shot up, his eyes blazing fiercely: “A Heavenly General projection with high-tier Nascent Soul combat power! Impossible. With Fan Quqing’s cultivation, she simply cannot summon a Heavenly General of this caliber. Xuan Zhenzi, you cheated.”

“Old Demon Yin Sha.” Xuan Zhenzi, the dignified middle-aged Daoist, let out a calm, light laugh: “My Grand Supreme Sect has existed since the ancient era as a supreme sect; our foundations run deep, far beyond what your petty Yin Sha Sect can fathom. We possess many secret methods for ascending-level summoning. You accuse me of cheating? Please provide evidence. The residual divine soul on that Heavenly General clearly belongs to my Junior Sister Fan.”

“You…” The Yin Sha Demon Lord certainly knew there was foul play, but no matter how he scrutinized the scene, he couldn't discern how they had cheated. Based on his investigation and knowledge of Fan Quqing, she clearly wasn't adept at spells like the Grand Supreme Battle Art.

Xuan Zhenzi inwardly sneered. Let the frustration consume you. Indeed, summoning a Heavenly General above one’s rank was fundamentally impossible. Unfortunately, he, Xuan Zhenzi, possessed a few little tricks that allowed him to temporarily place the summoned Heavenly General Meng Chao under his Junior Sister’s command. The supposed summoning just now was merely an act of pretense.

Regardless, in Xuan Zhenzi’s eyes, the Demon Lord was doomed. Without his Junior Sister needing to lift a finger, Meng Chao could easily dispatch both the Demon Lord and that puppet. Because he possessed this trump card and was certain of victory, Xuan Zhenzi had pooled all the spirit stones from his fellow disciples to bet on Fan Quqing winning. Annoyingly, those Kangzhou locals were astute; they set the odds for Fan Quqing so low that they could only earn back half their wager.

But even so, with a guaranteed win, they stood to earn about eight hundred million spirit stones. Recall that they had wagered a combined one point six billion spirit stones—all the net worth of his fellow disciples had been thrown into the pot.

As for the opposing side refusing to pay out, that was something Xuan Zhenzi never even considered. In the presence of the Grand Supreme Sect, hardly anyone in the Great Qian Continent would dare attempt such a thing. Personally, he stood to profit at least three hundred million spirit stones. The thought of a large influx of spirit stones put Xuan Zhenzi in an excellent mood.

However, the Nascent Soul cultivators of the Yin Sha Sect were not faring so well; everyone knew the might of a high-tier Nascent Soul. Those with slightly weaker cultivation wouldn't even have the chance to fight back against that Heavenly General.

“Demon Lord, commit suicide and you might retain your corpse intact.” Fan Quqing laughed triumphantly. That brief exchange was merely her playing around; Heavenly General Meng Chao was her ultimate trump card. She refused to believe that such a backward place could produce any auxiliary combat power equivalent to a high-tier Nascent Soul. Even if the Demon Lord had a high-tier Nascent Soul puppet, she doubted the Demon Lord could control it.

In fact, within the private box, Lei Dong had felt a shock run down his spine after the Blood Demon cried out about a high-tier Nascent Soul. He thought to himself, thank goodness. He had originally assumed that two early-stage Ghost Kings and one early-stage puppet would be enough for the Demon Lord to sweep away all peers. But he hadn't expected the Grand Supreme Sect to actually summon a puppet with the combat strength of a high-tier Nascent Soul. However, Lei Dong was unaware that this was fraud on the opponent's part.

“Impossible, impossible! With Fan Quqing’s cultivation, only just reaching the middle stage of Nascent Soul, it’s impossible for her to summon such a powerful Heavenly General! Could she have used some secret technique?” the Blood Demon murmured worriedly, “The Demon Lord is in trouble now.” The Blood Demon had done many reckless things, but his one redeeming quality was his unwavering loyalty to the sect, especially since he was aware of the unique connection between the Demon Lord and Lei Dong, even if it was never explicitly stated.

Dongfang Fu’s face had also turned pale. The Demon Lord was her Master. She wasn't some naive young girl; she had met and fought Ghost Emperors before. Naturally, she understood the power level of a high-tier Nascent Soul.

“Everyone, do not worry.” Lei Dong’s expression eased slightly. “I believe Lord Demon Lord has her own means of coping.” But his eyes remained fixed on the Demon Lord in the arena, thinking privately, Demon Lord, oh Demon Lord, please don't even think about testing the might of a high-tier Nascent Soul. A high-tier Nascent Soul’s strength is not something to trifle with lightly.

These words caused Dongfang Fu to glance at Lei Dong with a slight curiosity and thoughtfulness.

Under normal circumstances, the Demon Lord might have followed her nature and challenged that projection of a high-tier Nascent Soul Heavenly General. But at this moment, she too knew this was not the time to show off. Facing Fan Quqing’s arrogance, she didn't utter a word and instead formed her Ghost Control Art hand seals.

Two Ghost Kings, emitting immense and chilling auras, materialized. The moment they appeared, they loyally guarded the Demon Lord. Each was clad in armor as black as pitch, their forms majestic and ferocious. Simultaneously, a series of ancient, ink-black banners unfurled and fluttered in the wind before her.

“Early-stage Ghost Kings?” The observing Nascent Soul cultivators couldn't help but erupt in craving once more. This battle was destined to shock everyone today. Ghost Kings were extraordinary entities, each comparable in strength to a Nascent Soul cultivator. But most Ghost Kings were upgraded from top-grade Spirit Ghosts, which were themselves rare items, no less valuable than an early-stage Nascent Soul puppet. In all of Kangzhou, there were only a handful of named top-grade Spirit Ghosts, three of which were held by the Yin Sha Sect.

But those top-grade Spirit Ghosts had long since been refined into formidable fighting strength. So the question arose: where did the Demon Lord acquire these two? Even for a Nascent Soul cultivator, obtaining a single top-grade Spirit Ghost was incredibly difficult, let alone acquiring two at once. It wasn't that people hadn't attempted to advance mid-grade Spirit Ghosts into Ghost Kings, but the difficulty seemed too immense; the resources consumed were far beyond what a Nascent Soul cultivator could bear, potentially sinking hundreds of millions of spirit stones without even a ripple showing for it.

The members of the Yin Sha Sect also widened their eyes. The Demon Lord actually possessed two early-stage Ghost Kings? With these two early-stage Ghost Kings, coupled with the Demon Lord’s own strength, she might even have a chance to fight against a weaker high-tier Nascent Soul. Everyone desired a top-grade Spirit Ghost, but they were ultimately hard to come by. Most were acquired through luck, just like that fellow Wan Gui, who had the luck of a dog to obtain a top-grade Spirit Ghost at the fifth layer of Qi Refining.

Jealousy, sheer jealousy. No one envied the Heavenly General projection, as that was clearly a secret art of the Grand Supreme Sect—unlearnable and, if learned, punishable by death from the sect. But everyone could fantasize about how much stronger they would become if they possessed two top-grade Spirit Ghosts.

Sadly, regrettably, some clearer-headed individuals began to sigh. If the opponent had been a common foe, the Demon Lord, relying on these two early-stage Ghost Kings, would have swept the field clean. But Fan Quqing of the Grand Supreme Sect possessed combat power equivalent to a high-tier Nascent Soul in hand. Even more regrettable was that once the Demon Lord fell in this battle, those two Ghost Kings would also vanish into smoke.

Even Fan Quqing in the arena was stunned, staring wide-eyed at the pair of Ghost Kings. A wave of envy, jealousy, and hatred immediately surged in her heart. Two top-grade Spirit Ghosts! This country girl had actually refined them. At the same time, she felt a pang of lingering fear; thank goodness her senior brother lent her Heavenly General Meng Chao through a secret art. Otherwise, facing these two early-stage Ghost Kings today would have been her own day of reckoning.

“General, strike down the Ghost Kings first.” When a woman’s jealousy arises, it is truly terrifying. She wanted to annihilate those precious Ghost Kings one by one before the Demon Lord, and then slowly torture the Demon Lord to death.

“Your subordinate obeys the order.” Meng Chao responded with a gruff voice, his towering figure transforming into a streak of fierce light, crushing down toward the Demon Lord with terrifying speed.

The Demon Lord remained motionless, but a sharp glint appeared in her eyes. She then activated her hand seals. The Netherflame Ethereal Ghost Banner, which no one had paid attention to, suddenly expanded, reaching several feet wide in the blink of an eye, its aura chillingly fierce and malevolent.

The Netherflame Ethereal Ghosts, wreathed in wisps of blue ghost flame, poured forth from the Ethereal Ghost Banner. Almost instantaneously, they formed a surging torrent, slaying toward such a powerful entity as Meng Chao with formidable momentum.

“Hmph, shrimp soldiers and crab generals.” Meng Chao, unaware of the Netherflame Ethereal Ghosts' might, lashed out with a palm strike, sending a wave of air pressure to sweep them away.