The beauty holding his arm giggled, her voice as sweet as melted honey. “Those who disobey imperial decrees will be torn apart by five horses~”
As she spoke, her sharp fingernails lightly tapped his chest, then slid across Song Yao's clothes. “You, and her, both~”
Jingyu's eyes darkened. He stared at the figure on the main throne, weighing his options for a moment, but under the crushing pressure, he ultimately did not dare to gamble.
He could only carefully place Song Yao onto the empty seat beside him, letting her face rest sideways on the table. He then smoothed the shark-silk cloth covering her before sitting down on her other side to watch over her.
The Twelfth Elder and Ninth Elder looked over, their faces filled with deep worry.
The two Nine Saints Hall cultivators who had fainted earlier had already woken up after being fed medicinal pills. Although they were injured, they could at least run a few steps if they encountered danger.
Song Yao had also been fed medicinal pills just now.
Both the Nine Saints Hall and the mermen race had given her their highest-grade pills, but it was like throwing a stone into the ocean—they had absolutely no effect. In fact, her breath seemed to have grown even weaker.
They could not figure out what the real problem with Song Yao was. At the moment, they had no choice but to keep a close eye on her.
Once everyone was seated, the person on the high throne lazily clapped his hands.
The music of string and wind instruments in the hall suddenly swelled, the resonant tones of metal and jade striking the vermilion pillars and buzzing painfully in everyone's ears.
Dozens of figures fluttered down from the ceiling of the hall. Both men and women wore robes as thin as cicada wings, their faces covered by silver-patterned masks. Their hips swayed as their sleeves fluttered, performing an extravagant dance that nevertheless oozed a chilling, ghostly aura.
The music grew increasingly lively and erratic.
The melody made their hearts tremble, causing even the spiritual energy in their dantians to stall and drift. With a constant ringing in their ears, their consciousness gradually began to blur.
“Focus your minds, don't listen.”
The Twelfth Elder tapped her cold jade cup, keeping her voice extremely low as she used her spiritual energy to transmit her words into the ears of every cultivator. “Act according to plan. Form the array.”
Jingyu secretly began to channel the Heart-Clearing Spell. Just as his spiritual energy was about to spread, the beauty beside him leaned in, her body seemingly boneless.
She lightly stroked his jaw with her fingertips, her breath smelling of orchids. “Is the young master dissatisfied with our Emperor's birthday banquet?”
Jingyu stiffened. He had no choice but to slowly withdraw his spiritual energy, lowering his eyes to avoid her touch, and remained still.
The music and dance in the center of the hall grew increasingly wild and boisterous, and the posture of the man on the high throne became even more unrestrained.
His black-and-gold dragon robe hung loosely open, revealing most of his pale chest. A hideous, long scar ran diagonally from his collarbone to his waist, gleaming with a cold, white luster under the warm light.
He wrapped his arm around the waist of the beauty beside him, holding a mutton-fat jade cup between his fingers. His gaze lazily swept across the seats below before he suddenly pointed at a cultivator. In a casual, raspy voice, he said, “Our birthday banquet cannot consist of only this. You, come up and perform a dance for Us.”
Before the cultivator could even react, the man casually swept his wide sleeve, and a majestic force swept out of thin air.
Having absolutely no power to resist, the cultivator was instantly blown away, slamming heavily onto the white jade circular platform in the center of the hall.
The other cultivators cried out in alarm and immediately prepared to stand up and help, but the Twelfth Elder suppressed them with a burst of spiritual energy. “The array is more important.”
Before entering, considering that the demons in this demon realm were extraordinary, they had decided to pool their strength to set up a Seven Stars Array. However, no one had expected that they would be surrounded the moment they entered, and then “invited” here to attend this absurd birthday banquet.
Under the current circumstances, they could only secretly link the array in private. Only when the array was complete would they have a chance to slay the demons.
Unfortunately, the beauties serving beside them were watching too closely, making the progress of forming the array agonizingly slow.
Weighing their priorities, everyone sat back down with frustration, resuming their secret work on the array.
The fallen cultivator's blood was boiling from the impact. Pushing himself up, he glared upward, about to strike, when the Twelfth Elder's voice rang in his ears: “Buy time.”
He suddenly calmed down. He clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white, then slowly stood up. His hands, hanging at his sides, tightened and relaxed as he said in a deep voice, “Since Your Majesty has commanded, this junior shall make a fool of himself.”
Taking a deep breath, the cultivator drew the sword from his waist, the sword light reflecting the shadows of the countless glass palace lanterns in the hall.
Every move and stance followed the traditional sword dance of his sect. He advanced and retreated properly, though he appeared somewhat stiff and tense.
The cultivators below had to hide their movements from their attendants while racing against time to channel their energy and form the array. Each of them looked incredibly unnatural.
As the man on the high throne watched, he quickly lost interest and casually waved his sleeve.
“This dance is dull, dry, and unsightly!”
A majestic gale swept down the jade steps. The cultivator had no time to defend himself. He was sent flying backward like a broken kite, crashing heavily against a white marble pillar in the hall. With a dull thud, he slid down the pillar and spat out a mouthful of fresh blood.
“!!!”
The cultivator seated closest to him gasped in shock and instinctively stood up to go and help him.
However, another invisible gale crashed straight into him.
Before he could even cry out, he was also sent flying, crashing violently into the very same pillar. As he hit the ground, he clutched his chest, blood seeping through his fingers.
The beauty serving beside him covered her mouth and giggled, her voice cloyingly sweet. “His Majesty hasn't spoken yet. You mustn't stand up as you please~”
Everyone's expressions instantly turned grim.
This demon was simply too temperamental!
Moreover, his cultivation was truly unfathomable.
They couldn't even detect the exact moment he made his move before the attack already hit them.
Under the circumstances, no one dared to offer any more help. They could only quickly form hand seals beneath the tables, weaving invisible threads between their seats.
The man on the high throne raised his eyes slightly. His gaze behind the mask swept over the seats, a cold glint flashing within.
After a moment, he slowly tapped the edge of his table. “We have heard that the Nine Saints Hall was founded on its swordplay, enjoying thousands of years of prestige. Since that is the case, let someone from the Nine Saints Hall come up and dance instead.”
“Do not disappoint Us again.”
Everyone's hearts skipped a beat.
What was bound to come had finally arrived.
The Ninth Elder's expression remained unchanged. A segment of the array quickly took shape in his hands. He then slowly stood up from his seat, his voice calm and steady. “I shall show you my humble skills.”
He stepped onto the white jade circular platform, the longsword at his waist ringing as it unsheathed.
The clear, resonant ring of the sword suddenly erupted, actually overpowering the decadent music filling the hall.
His footwork was steady and heavy, the sword light resembling the moon reflected in a cold pond. Every move and stance was unpredictable, his sword qi condensed and unyielding. Wherever his blade swept, the gauze curtains and tassels billowed outward.
The Immortal Venerable on the high throne leaned forward slightly, the jade cup he held pausing in midair as he actually showed a rare hint of interest.
The attendants serving in the hall were also left dazed by the sight.
The cultivators at the banquet seized the opportunity to speed up their hand seals. The invisible threads rapidly interlaced, their outlines drawing tighter and tighter.
With a final sheathing move, the Ninth Elder flipped his wrist and returned his longsword to its scabbard. The clear ring of the sword echoed around the rafters of the hall before finally fading away.
The Immortal Venerable immediately sat up straight and clapped his hands, laughing heartily. “Splendid! Excellent swordplay! You truly live up to your reputation as a sword cultivator of the Nine Saints Hall! A reward! Bring out Our treasured fine wine, and We shall drink with everyone today!”
The Ninth Elder did not respond, walking slowly back to his seat to sit down.
Once seated, he swallowed the copper taste of blood rising in his throat. Under the guise of adjusting his robes, he let out a soft cough, the voice of the Twelfth Elder transmitting into his ears: “The array core is still a little short. Delay them a bit longer.”
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