Jiang Chen didn't like this kind of forthrightness, but he did enjoy the demons’ internal conflict. He smiled coolly. “Bloodreed, are you seeking my protection?”

Bloodreed chuckled. “It’s easier to converse with smart people. To avoid any more questions, I’ll get straight to the point. If you offer me protection, I’ll help you fight the celestial demons. For example, there’s a chance for that right now!”

“Very honest of you.” Jiang Chen nodded. “Your pursuers are coming this way already.”

Bloodreed grinned. “Get ready to hunt them down then.”

Jiang Chen glanced at the demon forefather thoughtfully and smiled. “Act the best you can. It’s more convincing that way.”

Bloodreed chuckled as well, nodding.

Returning to Winterdraw, Jiang Chen gave his orders to the four sacred beasts. “Get ready. Celestial demons are coming. If there’s only a few, we’ll make sure their trip is one-way only.”

“Young master Chen, is the old blood demon trying to trick us?” asked Xia Tianze.

Jiang Chen laughed. “His deceit wouldn't have escaped my eyes. Still, a bit of caution never hurt anyone.”

He prepared the ambush while Winterdraw’s defensive operations continued. He and the four sacred beasts hid in the outskirts. The Immaculate Robe concealed them wholly, rendering them virtually undetectable.

Even if Bloodreed wanted to pull any tricks, there would be no opportunity for him to.

The blood demon forefather was utterly pale as he leaned upon a clandestine bush. Two celestial demon forefathers were on his tail in hot pursuit.

It was the fourth and fifth forefathers.

As their titles reflected, they were about the middle of the pack among their peers.

Now that they had consumed the bloodlines of the other demons, it was only a matter of time until their strengths grew rapidly. In fact, they had a very good chance of breaking through to advanced divine realm.

Celestial demons didn't tolerate traitors like Bloodreed.

The two forefathers slowed down as they neared their quarry. “That Bloodreed is a wily one,” remarked the fifth forefather softly. “Did he flee in this direction to daunt us? He has no way out of this himself. Are the humans going to let him pass?”

The fourth forefather was more serious. “If they do, Ole Fifth, we’ll have a lot more trouble on our hands.”

“What trouble? Are you scared of retribution from the likes of Bloodreed? He’s pretty pathetic, and will be even more so once we break through,” replied the fifth forefather with gross disdain.

His companion was speechless. His comrade was too dull for his own good.

“Ole Fifth, did you think about the possibility that Bloodreed would tell the humans about our kind’s secret? If the humans learn about our internal conflict, they’ll hound us to no end. We don’t have many troops available right now, and we haven’t grown stronger yet. This is the most dangerous time for us.”

His words silenced the other at the throat. This would indeed be a disastrous development for the celestial demons, should it come to pass.

“Look over there, Ole Fifth.” Fourth’s tone became rather peculiar all of a sudden. He patted Fifth on the shoulder, then pointed forward.

An apparently unconscious Bloodreed lay in a bed of grass before them. There was less breath going into him than coming out.

“Is that him?” Fifth asked in a low voice.

“Certainly. I wonder if he’s pretending to be dead?” 

“Let’s go see. He’s seriously injured. Why should the two of us be scared of him? We can kill him from this range ten times over,” asserted Fifth without being too concerned.

“But did he end up meeting the humans?” Fourth interjected. “If he has, this might be a trap.”

Fourth’s worries were far from unfounded.

A faint smile sounded in the distance as soon as he voiced his concern. “You’re pretty smart. This is indeed a trap.”

Space froze for a moment, then rushed to reconfigure itself to accommodate a newcomer.

“Who is it?” Both celestial demon forefathers sprang to alertness, placing their backs upon one another’s in readiness for a fight.

Laughing freely, Jiang Chen walked out from nothingness. “How naïve of you to be so relaxed when you’ve been in my territory for quite a while. What kind of host would I be if I didn’t come out to greet my guests?”

The two celestial demons colored when they saw him.

“Jiang Chen!”

“In the flesh.”

Fifth glanced at Bloodreed. “Bloodreed,” he spat viciously, “you’ve stooped so low as to betray demonkind for 

humans

?”

Bloodreed sat up lazily. “Me, betray our race?” he sneered back in kind. “You’re the real traitors of our race. Your ruthlessness has forced my hand! Daoist Jiang Chen, this is your best chance to get rid of these two fools. Don’t tell me you can’t do something so trivial!”

“You prattle on too much,” Jiang Chen shot back coldly. 

He had more than sufficient strength to slay one of the forefathers. The four sacred beasts united could hunt down the other. Moreover, their two targets had been taken by surprise. The sacred beasts’ domain was just as strong as the celestial demons’ now.

“Get them!” he commanded without further ado.

The sacred beasts pounced forth into the air. As their cultivation grew, they understood a multiplicity of the intrinsic truths of heaven and earth, including various bits of knowledge about formations. As such, they became much more formidable over time.

Their attacks evoked the furor of thunder and lightning, of the heavens and the natural elements. They commanded power beyond the two celestial demon forefathers’ imagination.

Long Xiaoxuan’s draconic fang and claw roiled the clouds and rent the earth asunder. A storm began to brew thanks to his presence.

The Astral White Tiger was an all-destroying blade that sliced in twain anything it touched.

The Vermilion Bird’s wings blotted out the sun. Its fires were hot enough to burn the air itself, to outshine the radiance of the sun and moon. Its inner flames conjured marvellously spectacular weather all on its own.

Not to be outdone, the Black Tortoise brought tremendous gravity and its festering gas to the table. Its noxious mists were penetrating to the soul.

The four sacred beasts struck with a variety of abilities, yet their moves formed an astoundingly harmonious whole.

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