At that moment.
A shadow gradually appeared within the purple Gloom Moon. The shadow resembled a starving wolf, lifting its head and letting out howls. In an instant, a sky-blotting, earth-covering demonic might swept in from all directions, terrifying the thousands present, their faces turning pale with panic.
"The greedy wolf howls at the purple moon, demonic might overawes the heavens, the Emperor ascends to the sky..." An old man, his face ashen as if realizing something, cried out hoarsely: "It's a Demon Emperor! It's Demon Emperor Weiyang Ren Tianxing! Everyone, run! Run now!"
Upon hearing the name Demon Emperor Weiyang Ren Tianxing, everyone was thrown into panic and terror, not daring to hesitate in the slightest. Every single person in the area, without exception, began fleeing frantically, regardless of the cost.
Throughout the myriad heavens and worlds, since ancient times, all living beings have turned pale at the mention of demons.
In the minds of many, demons have always been synonymous with cruelty, brutality, terror, and dread.
And the facts were indeed so.
Although demons were few in number—far fewer than Immortals, Buddhas, and Humans, and even fewer than monsters, ghosts, and spirits—no one dared to look down upon their existence because of it.
For the existence of demons differed from other living beings. Other beings, whether Immortal, Buddha, Human, monster, ghost, or spirit, were born weak and needed to cultivate slowly to grow stronger.
However.
Demons were different.
Demons were born with terrifyingly formidable power. Most importantly, demons held no concepts of good, evil, or morality. To them, devouring people and drinking blood was as ordinary as eating and drinking was to common folk.
Of course.
Although demons were born with fearsome power, they were not invincible. If it were just an ordinary demon, the thousands present would not have given it a second thought. But the one who had appeared was none other than Demon Emperor Weiyang Ren Tianxing.
Anyone who had heard this name knew that Ren Tianxing was an immensely legendary Demon Emperor of the demonic path, hailed as a representative figure of the demonic path in the Ancient Era. His legendary deeds were widely recounted.
He had once cowed a hundred thousand Immortals with a single roar of authority.
He had once erased an entire world with a single divine ability.
He had once slain a Primordial Desolate Beast with the might of a single blade.
He had once, alone and enraged, stormed the Nine Heavens and battled nine Immortal Emperors.
He had once shouldered the judgment of the Heavenly Dao and beheaded a Heavenly King with his blade!
He had once, single-handedly and in fury, charged into Fengdu and bathed the City of Ghosts in blood.
And so on and so forth.
The legends left behind by Demon Emperor Weiyang Ren Tianxing were far too many, and his prestige in the Great Desolate was immense.
Precisely because of this, upon hearing the name Demon Emperor Weiyang Ren Tianxing, the thousands fled without a moment's hesitation, disappearing without a trace in less than a moment.
Huode looked around, his heart tightening. He shrunk his neck and retreated to Gu Qingfeng's side, swallowing hard before asking, "Is it really Demon Emperor Weiyang Ren Tianxing?"
Clearly.
Huode had also heard of Demon Emperor Weiyang's fame and was extremely wary of his existence. After all, Demon Emperor Weiyang was a representative figure of the demonic path in the Ancient Era—in other words, one of the top figures among demons. No matter how bold Huode was, he wouldn't dare act recklessly before such a personage. Fortunately, Gu Qingfeng was here; otherwise, Huode wouldn't have dared to stay either.
"Judging by the spectacle, it's most likely him."
Gu Qingfeng gazed at the purple Gloom Moon in the sky and the lone wolf within it, chuckling with some surprise. "Never thought I'd run into this fellow again after so many years. I really didn't expect that."
"Young Gu, you know Demon Emperor Weiyang?"
"You could say that. We've met a few times, fought a few rounds."
"Fought? So you're enemies?"
"Not exactly. There's no deep-seated hatred between us. If I had to name a grievance... back then, I just snatched something from his grasp, that's all."
"What thing?"
"The Nine Nethers Imperial Seal."
Hearing this.
Huode nearly choked on his breath, exclaiming in shock, "You mean the Nine Nethers Imperial Seal you had back then... you snatched it from Demon Emperor Weiyang?"
"Can't really say I snatched it from him. There were many vying for the Nine Nethers Imperial Seal back then; that fellow Ren Tianxing and I were just two among them. In the end, I just had better luck and got my hands on it."
Recalling the scramble for the Nine Nethers Imperial Seal back then, Gu Qingfeng couldn't help but smile, shaking his head with a sigh. "It's been so many years. I wonder how this fellow is doing now."
In the sky.
When the purple Gloom Moon appeared and that lone wolf howled at the moon, the three-eyed, six-tailed Purple-Blue Ghost Fox from earlier charged forward desperately.
Faintly.
A figure seemed to be walking out from within the purple Gloom Moon.
It was a man.
A man clad in black robes.
The man's figure was tall and straight, imposing and extraordinary. With his cold, aloof temperament and icy expression, as he stepped out from the purple Gloom Moon, the overwhelming demonic aura emanating from him caused even this desolate secret realm to tremble slightly.
This demonic aura was truly terrifying to the extreme.
Having roamed the Great Desolate for nearly ten thousand years, this was the first time Huode had encountered such a powerful demonic aura. Even standing beside Gu Qingfeng now, he couldn't help but shiver inwardly.
When the Purple-Blue Ghost Fox saw the man, it leaped into his embrace. The man raised a hand and gently stroked it a couple of times, as if comforting the fox. Then, without uttering a single word, he turned to leave.
But just as he turned, he immediately spun back around, his dark, profound eyes looking over.
With just one glance.
Huode felt unbearable discomfort all over, as if being crushed by an invisible space. Even breathing became difficult. At this moment, his spirit began to tremble, the power within his body grew chaotic, and his blood surged wildly through his meridians. He could barely stand steady.
Gu Qingfeng patted Huode's shoulder. Huode immediately felt as if a great burden had been lifted, collapsing to sit on the ground, drenched in sweat, his face deathly pale.
"Well, well?"
Gu Qingfeng looked with a smile at Demon Emperor Weiyang Ren Tianxing standing within the purple Gloom Moon. "Don't recognize me anymore?"
Ren Tianxing did not respond, only gazing deeply at Gu Qingfeng, his eyes rather complex—seeming shocked, yet also doubtful, and even more so, pleasantly surprised.
"Little one, do you still remember who I am?"
Gu Qingfeng then looked at the demonic wolf beside Ren Tianxing.
As was widely known, the illustrious Demon Emperor Weiyang Ren Tianxing was always accompanied by a demonic wolf named the Howling Moon Wolf. Legends said this Howling Moon Wolf was savage and brutal, possessing immense strength. Back in the Ancient Era, even seasoned seniors who had cultivated for many years, including famed figures of the Great Dao who had ascended the Heavenly Ladder, dared not even breathe heavily in its presence.
Now, this very Howling Moon Wolf, which struck fear into the hearts of Great Dao luminaries, stared at Gu Qingfeng, arching its back, craning its neck, baring its fangs. Its eyes, like Ren Tianxing's, held shock and doubt. The difference was, there was no pleasant surprise—only terror.