Gongsun Lu was a Blood Corpse; as Liang Xiaoke’s realm advanced, hers would too. The only thing lacking was energy. Now, Liang Xiaoke had directly transferred the blood energy that could have manifested her potential Three Corpses to Gongsun Lu, instantly boosting her inherent strength to the level of a ninth-rank Demon Lord.

It was at this precise moment that a host of Blue Feather Tribe members broke through the encirclement and charged in. These turned out to be high-ranking Demon Lords of the seventh and eighth ranks, and leading them was Yingkong Shi, whose actual strength was only seventh-rank.

Yingkong Shi’s gaze naturally fell upon Liang Xiaoke and the others who were currently absorbing the blood energy. He knew this was the optimal moment to strike them down, but Ye Jingyu’s body already stood before Liang Xiaoke. Though he didn't fully grasp why the Drought Demon had chosen this time to transmit blood energy to Liang Xiaoke, Ye Jingyu understood that this was not the time for them to be disturbed. The Chiyou Banner was not at his side; while he could move freely within the great formation, he could not control it any further.

Fortunately, those charging now were merely seventh and eighth-rank Demon Lords. With his current strength, handling them should not prove too strenuous.

Seeing Ye Jingyu block the path before Liang Xiaoke and the others, streaks of blue light flashed in Yingkong Shi’s eyes. He swept a cold glance over Ye Jingyu and spoke indifferently, “I didn’t expect us to meet again!”

Ye Jingyu remained silent; before a fight, he had little habit of wasting words.

“You got lucky last time, but this time, you are finished!” Seeing that Ye Jingyu seemed intent on ignoring him entirely, a look of disdainful coldness crossed Yingkong Shi’s face.

The strength Ye Jingyu currently displayed was that of a ninth-rank Demon Lord, and it seemed somewhat unstable. This level was certainly enough to deal with ordinary Demon Lords, but was he an ordinary Demon Lord?

As Yingkong Shi’s words faded, Ye Jingyu saw him suddenly point a finger at his own forehead. Immediately, a beam of blue light shot straight toward the heavens, and a vast aura exploded forth instantaneously.

His realm began escalating at a speed visible to the naked eye: eighth-rank, ninth-rank, peak ninth-rank, Demon King...

The tyrannical aura shattered the nearby demons who dared to approach him, and even the Blue Feather Tribesmen behind him were forced to retreat repeatedly by the sheer pressure.

Seeing that Yingkong Shi was actually releasing the aura of a Demon King, horror flashed across Ye Jingyu’s face. How could he be a Demon King? How could he have possibly reached the Demon King realm?

“Heh heh, surprised, aren't you? The world assumed that it would be my father in our Yingkong family to ascend to the Demon King realm, but how could you know that I was the one truly destined for it? Capturing the Pure Spirit Body was merely a diversion, a play to shift attention onto my father. I secretly passed the Heavenly Tribulation three months ago and attained the rank of Demon King. You never expected that, did you, Ye Jingyu?” Seeing Ye Jingyu’s stunned expression, a triumphant smile spread across Yingkong Shi’s face.

Geniuses were not limited to just Yan Senxu; he was the true prodigy of the younger generation of the Demon Race, having forcefully reached this realm that so many demons dreamed of through his own power.

Yingkong Zhan had always been a mere smokescreen; his own strength had long since reached the peak of the ninth rank. However, to conceal his true power, he had placed seal after seal upon himself, making his power display only at the level of an average young prodigy—even less than that of his elder brother. Even after successive defeats by Ye Jingyu, he hadn't lifted his seals because he didn't want the secrets he had hidden for so many years to be exposed.

After the failure to capture Luo Ling’er the previous time, everyone assumed Yingkong Zhan had lost his best chance to become a Demon King. Yet, many people still kept their focus on Yingkong Zhan, paying no attention whatsoever to Yingkong Shi.

Thus, even when he secretly passed the Heavenly Tribulation outside, no one knew.

Originally, after he entered the Demon King realm, the Yingkong family could have established themselves as a Royal Clan in their own right, but he did not immediately reveal his strength, for he harbored greater ambitions. He didn't just want the Yingkong family to become a Royal Clan; he intended to unify the entire Demon Realm.

This current upheaval provided Yingkong Shi with the perfect opportunity. As long as the elites of the major Royal Clans were wiped out in this battle, the Yingkong family would possess sufficient strength to dominate the Demon Realm. But who could have foreseen that the Blazing Demon Clan would also produce a Demon King, and with a troublesome figure like Ye Jingyu thrown into the mix?

The appearance of these two completely shattered Yingkong Shi’s plans. He was forced to release his aura prematurely to slay Ye Jingyu first.

A Demon King holds an overwhelming advantage over any number of Demon Lords, a fact evidenced by Yan Senxu being besieged by his father and others above.

Currently, Ye Jingyu and even those around him possessed power at best equal to a ninth-rank Demon Lord. How could they possibly be a match for him?

Ye Jingyu truly had not anticipated that Yingkong Shi had already achieved the Demon King rank; in fact, perhaps no one could have guessed it. He merely stared blankly at Yingkong Shi, his face etched with shock.

“Actually, I think you are quite talented. Why don’t you swear fealty to me? I can spare your life!” Yingkong Shi looked down at Ye Jingyu with a rather smug air, speaking casually. In his eyes now, experts at the ninth rank were no different from ants—at most, slightly larger ants that might cause a little sting if one were careless enough to be bitten, but nothing more than a minor annoyance.

“Do you think that’s possible?” Ye Jingyu hadn’t expected Yingkong Shi to utter such words and instinctively shot back a reply.

“Since it’s impossible, then die!” Hearing Ye Jingyu’s response, Yingkong Shi roared, his body transforming into a streak of light, rushing directly toward Ye Jingyu.

Barely any time elapsed before he appeared before Ye Jingyu, throwing a punch directly at him. In his estimation, why would he need a weapon to deal with a ninth-rank expert?

Seeing Yingkong Shi’s lightning-fast punch hurtling toward him, a fierce, burning desire for battle flared up once more in Ye Jingyu’s eyes. The Tyrant’s Primal Force stirred within his body, and he strode forward one step, throwing out a punch in return. Even if you are a Demon King, I will still crush you underfoot…

Seeing Ye Jingyu make no move to dodge, but instead meet his attack with a counter-punch, a smile of disdain broke out on Yingkong Shi’s face, as if mocking Ye Jingyu’s overestimation of his own capabilities.

But the moment their fists collided, the smile on his face instantly froze…