Nine Star Hegemon Body Art

This voice was powerful yet grating, like a rough stone scraping against itself.

“Enemies truly are destined to meet,” Long Chen mused, his eyes narrowing.

The owner of this grating voice was none other than Xue Yingfeng of the Blood Crystal Demon Lizard race.

Xue Yingfeng stood with eight core veins glowing behind him, exuding an immense force field. His oppressive energy was leagues beyond what it had been during their last encounter.

“Boss, let me handle him!” exclaimed Xia Chen, his battle intent surging instantly.

Seeing such a powerful opponent, Xia Chen wanted to test his strength. This was the perfect trial for him.

“No. This ugly lizard is mine,” replied Long Chen.

"What? Boss, are you afraid I’ll lose? I’m at least eighty percent confident I can take him!" Xia Chen argued, unwilling to back down.

“Even if you won, it would be meaningless,” Long Chen replied, shaking his head.

Before he could ask further, a terrifying scene unfolded—countless Blood Crystal Demon Lizards emerged from the horizon, their numbers stretching into the tens of millions.

They charged over like a crimson flood, surrounding the Ten Thousand Dragon Nest. Behind them loomed even more demon race warriors, forming an endless sea of bodies.

The Blood Crystal Demon Lizard race had come prepared. They had secretly rallied allies for some time, aiming to overthrow the Heavenly Demon Golden Monkey race and seize control of the Heaven Demon Alliance.

Xue Yingfeng’s battle against Long Chen at the spatial channel had been a turning point. While he had not defeated Long Chen, the power he displayed had rivaled, if not surpassed, Hou Tianwu’s. This had caused internal strife within the Heaven Demon Alliance.

As a result of that, the Heaven Demon Alliance’s experts started to sway toward the side of the Blood Crystal Demon Lizard race.

The demon race might possess huge bodies and heads, but the intelligence inside those heads wasn’t worth shit.

Their line of thought was very simple—might makes right. Many factions were weary of the Heavenly Demon Golden Monkey race’s arrogant rule and now sought a new leader.

The battle at the spatial channel had accelerated this shift. After the Heaven Demon Alliance suffered a crushing defeat at Wilde’s hands, Xue Yingfeng seized the moment, raising the Blood Crystal Demon Lizard race’s banner and promising immense benefits to those who joined him. Many factions within the Heaven Demon Alliance quickly defected.

He wasn’t the only one. Xiang Tu had done the same. Between them, they had poached nearly a third of the Heaven Demon Alliance’s forces, enraging Hou Tianwu.

With these defectors merged into his forces—including those already loyal to the Blood Crystal Demon Lizard race—Xue Yingfeng now commanded a terrifyingly vast army.

Xue Yingfeng had led his followers to fight against an army of the devil race and seize another spatial channel. The battle raged fiercely, but neither side could claim victory. Realizing the futility of an endless struggle, they called a temporary truce, drawing a line between them and sharing the energy coming from the channel.

However, as more factions arrived, chaos erupted anew. With no clear victor, the battlefield turned into a fragmented mess, with over ten factions ultimately staking claims on the Emperor reverse scale’s energy.

These prolonged battles drained both sides considerably. Xue Yingfeng had barely condensed his eighth core vein when the spatial channel exploded, sending everyone sprawling.

Yet the Blood Crystal Demon Lizard race possessed incredible defensive capabilities. To protect their new followers, they erected their strongest barrier, shielding them from the explosion at great cost. Many suffered injuries in the process.

The demon race’s experts were all extremely moved by this protection and swore undying loyalty to the Blood Crystal Demon Lizard race. This unity swelled Xue Yingfeng’s confidence. He directly saw himself as the rightful leader of the Heaven Demon Alliance.

After recovering, they set off toward the Emperor reverse scale. Along the way, they crushed opposing factions one after another, which fueled Xue Yingfeng’s growing arrogance.

Just as Xue Yingfeng basked in his sense of invincibility, the Ten Thousand Dragon Nest came into view. Recognizing it as Long Chen’s vessel, he immediately mobilized his forces to intercept it.

When the Ten Thousand Dragon Nest halted, Xue Yingfeng stood before it, flanked by hundreds of elite warriors. The weakest among them had seven core veins, while over thirty possessed eight core veins.

This was a shocking lineup. As the ground shook because of Xue Yingfeng’s immense pressure, countless crystals sprouted from underground. Endless power was flowing out of the earth and into Xue Yingfeng. At this moment, he felt like the king of the world, as if he were the master of everything.

“Long Chen, come out and die!” shouted Xue Yingfeng.

Long Chen stepped forward from the Ten Thousand Dragon Nest. Compared to the towering demon race warriors, his figure seemed almost frail. Yet his eyes remained calm.

Xue Yingfeng’s pupils contracted. Something was different. Long Chen no longer emanated dragon qi or Heavenly Doyen aura. Even his Blood Qi was strangely subdued. The once wild and raging astral energy had vanished, as if Long Chen had transformed from a roaring storm into a tranquil pool.

However, what lay behind that quiet pool made Xue Yingfeng’s soul quiver. Long Chen had become even more frightening.

The last time they fought, Xue Yingfeng had seven core veins, while Long Chen had barely formed four and a half. Now, Xue Yingfeng had eight core veins, multiplying his power tenfold. With his small brain, he estimated that Long Chen couldn’t possibly have more than six veins.

After all, the higher the number of core veins, the exponentially greater the energy and time required to condense them.

By all reasoning, Xue Yingfeng had the upper hand in both realm and power. The moment he saw Long Chen, he had been ready to attack. No matter how much Long Chen had grown, he should still be beneath him.

Yet, when Long Chen appeared, intense fear gripped Xue Yingfeng’s soul. His excitement to fight was doused by a bucket of ice water, and his confidence faltered.

“Is he Long Chen?” a falcon-eyed man beside Xue Yingfeng muttered, his brow furrowed.

This man was a new addition to Xue Yingfeng’s faction. He had expected Xue Yingfeng’s opponent to be some towering, monstrous expert. Instead, it was a mere frail human.

“Why does Lord Yingfeng need to personally deal with an ant? Let junior brother capture him,” sneered the falcon-eyed man.

His eyes gleamed coldly as he vanished into thin air.

The moment he vanished, Long Chen’s hand moved. A ripple tore through space as his fingers shot forward. Somehow, Long Chen was holding the falcon-eyed man’s throat as if he were a mere chick.

“What?!”

Xue Yingfeng’s pupils shrank to pinpoints.

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