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Kui Lin's fury burned away at his heart.

A dark cloud filled the air above the city lord's manor, the clouds easily ten thousand miles across, perhaps more. They enshrouded the entire city, and dense spiritual pressure bore down on the citizens like a mountain. They shivered as they looked at the city lord's manor, and many of them knelt.

If things went on like this, they'd have to way to get by. Many of the other citizens' turbid eyes were full of bitterness.

Although Baina City was barren and down on its luck, the city lord had cared deeply about his people.

The city was remote and impoverished, but the people lived peaceful, happy lives. There weren't many opportunities for advancement here, but it was a top choice for a place to grow old in.

But then Kui Lin showed up!

The citizens still remembered that day's bloodstained skies. Kui Lin's subordinates cut the kindly city lord's head from his shoulders and hung it from the walls. Even if death, the city lord's eyes were open; he knew no peace. Kui Lin's forces didn't even spare the man's wife and son.

Outraged, the brave citizens fought back, but the rebels struggled to escape death.

That day….

Blood formed rivers, and the pungent smell of bloodshed was clearly discernable even a hundred miles away from Baina City.

Kui Lin struck with unstoppable momentum, acting as an effective deterrent. The citizens fortunate enough to survive had no choice but to submit to him.

Little did they know, within half a day of Kui Lin occupying the city, the city sent out a conscription notice.

Both young adults and healthy older adults had to join Kui Lin's forces, no exceptions! If anyone dared resist, they'd die….

This was a tyrant!

His tyrannical ways made the citizens boil over with complaints, but their abilities were limited. They had no choice but to submit to Kui Lin's abuses of power.

But from that day on, all of them knew in their hearts….

Baina City was no longer the Baina City they'd once known!

"Ye Zichen! Ye Zichen!"

In a fit of rage, Kui Lin destroyed over half of the city lord's manor. His eyes were red and bloodshot, like a madly flailing devil, and his demonic power surged out of him without restraint. He was truly overcome with regret. Why hadn't he killed Ye Zichen when they'd first met, crushing him before he had time to grow up?

He'd failed to obtain the mausoleum's transcendent fortune, and in the end, he'd been pushed to the point of using Blood Explosion to escape.

When he returned to the Demon Realm, everything had changed. His predecessor now called himself emperor, and Kui Lin, a Demon Emperor still in his prime, had been ousted from power without warning. After using Blood Explosion, he side-affects had reduced his cultivation, and he'd had no choice but to lead his people and turtle up somewhere remote.

Now, just as he thought he could rally his forces and try again, he got sucker-punched.

Hatred!

Kui Lin truly hated Ye Zichen now. He'd had several attempts to kill him of late, but he'd been too tentative. Each time, he'd spared Ye Zichen's life!

"Your Excellency!"

"Xiao Ning, is my era truly over?" After his rage ended, Kui Lin suddenly seemed to age several decades. He slumped dejectedly on the floor and leaned against a snapped pullar, his scattered, unkempt hair containing new streaks of grey. His eyes stared blankly ahead at the ruins of the city lord's manor, as if he were watching the sun set on him and his ambitions.

Kui Lin had warred for tens of thousands of years. He knew he'd experienced far too many waves already.

Ups and downs were already normal to him!

But this time, he truly felt a little exhausted. Half a month ago, he'd been as lofty as the sun, the countless clans of the Demon Realm all bowing their heads before him. He'd controlled the entire demon race, and they honored him as their emperor.

Even though a portion of his predecessors' followers remained, they couldn't shake Kui Lin's foundations. Over time, he'd inevitably clean them up.

His base of power was stable, but transcendence beckoned him. But after he left in search of it….

Was that a step down the wrong path?

"Your Excellency, you haven't lost yet!" Xiao Ning roared, eyes wide, at the slumped, listless Kui Lin. Losing wasn't scary, but losing your will to fight was!

Even though Kui Lin had let his subordinates and fled in defeat, his most loyal followers showed no signs of giving up.

They had faith. So long as their sovereign remained, they could rise again.

But…..

It seemed Kui Lin had lost his thirst for power.

"I haven't lost yet?" Kui Lin just sat there, as if paralyzed, then thought back to his past.

The past seemed like it were only yesterday. With the wave of his hand, he could decide the lives and deaths of the passes. All of the Demon Realm trembled before him and followed him blindly.

He had dreams and harbored grand ambitions.

He even wanted to one day rally all three races under his banner and unify the world.

But in the blink of an eye, all of this ambitions had become empty dreams. It had all been for naught.

All he could do now was hide somewhere remote and eke out a meager exist. In this state, who was he to talk about achieving dominion? What good was talk of grand ambitions?

Tai Tan and Jiao Hai were his only hope of turning this around. He'd persisted this long because he was waiting for a miracle.

His hopes had been extinguished.

Ye Zichen had snuffed out his final hope.

He'd used his last remaining forces, less than a million scattered troops and defeated generals, to take up residence in a peaceful corner of the Demon Realm. But so what?

This was still demon race territory, and his predecessor's hunting dogs would sniff him out sooner or later. When they did, what could he possibly do? Even if his million troops fortified the city and prepared to defend, how long could they last?

Kui Lin grimaced and looked at the handsome Xiao Ning. Kui Lin had no children; he'd lived his entire life immersed in martial arts.

Xiao Ning was the infant he'd picked up by the riverside while out traveling, a child abandoned in a bamboo basket. At the time, all he'd done was casually pick the boy up and hand him to his subordinates to care for. Who would have thought that this random infant's talent would be so dazzling?

He'd become a ruler in just ten years, and an imperial king in a hundred….

Now, he was already an imperial lord!

Kui Lin would never have guessed that his casual choice to rescue an infant would win him such a general. To repay Kui Lin for saving his life, and because he saw Kui Lin as a father figure, he was as loyal as could be.

As for his other subordinates….

Who hadn't accompanied him as they waged war across the world? Even after Kui Lin's predecessor ousted him from the throne, they risked their lives, cutting open a path of blood so he could escape to Baina City and rebuild his forces.

Kui Lin wasn't the compassionate sort, but he did have a heart.

Whenever he closed his eyes, he remembered that day. His long-time followers had, in order to help him escape, using their own body to shield him from his predecessors' subordinates' attacks.

How many of his beloved followers had died to get him here?

It was then that he truly understood what it meant for one's heart to ache.

It really hurt, to the point that he instinctively curled up on himself, to the point that he could only gnash his teeth and weep, unable to speak. In his heart, he called out, "My brothers! When I've risen again, I'll be sure to offer that dog Han Tan's head as a sacrifice to you!"

But he hadn't acquired Han Tan's dog head, and bad news had come, one after the other.

Kui Lin felt nothing but shame, shame that he couldn't avenge his fallen comrades.

"Reporting in!" Suddenly, an urgent cry came from outside the manor. Someone streaked by, and soon, a copper-skinned man covered in hair knelt before them.

"Emperor, Han Tan's people are coming! They're about three hundred miles away."

"Han Tan's men? How could they get here so quickly? Are you sure of what you saw? It's really Han Tan's men?" Xiao Ning grabbed the hairy man by the collar and roared.

"General Ning, I'm sure of what I saw. They're really Han Tan's men. The third demon god is leading them. I saw it clearly with my own eyes," said the hair-covred man.

"Only the third demon god? Han Tan isn't with them?" asked Xiao Ning.

"We haven't seen Han Tan himself!"

When he heard that, Xiao Ning's eyes flashed with delight. He relaxed his grip on the hairy man's color, then turned to Kui Lin and said with solemn ferocity, "Your Excellency, they've only brought three demon gods. I'll lead our people to meet the enemy. Please relax, sir. I'll be sure to return victorious!"

With that, he turned and, face taut, marched outside.

The messenger watched General Ning leave, then cupped his fist at Kui Lin and followed his general out. However, Kui Lin, who was still leaning against the broken stone pillar, stretched out his hand.

"Xiao Ning."

Xiao Ning had been just about to leave, but he came to an abrupt stop. He looked at Kui Lin, then turned to the scout and said, "Pass on my orders. Have our brothers in arms ready themselves and wait for me outside the city lord's manor!"

"Sir yes sir!" The scout leaped off.

Xiao Ning, meanwhile, walked quickly back to Kui Lin. "Your Excellency, do you have any other orders?" His eyes were filled with determination. He held his armor and unwittingly emanated a chilling, murderous air.

Little did he know, the sight stung Kui Lin's eyes. He reached out and patted Xiao Ning on the shoulder. When he saw the armor his general wore, his heart stung.

He'd given Xiao Ning this armor in honor of his breakthrough to the ruler level. It was an ordinary set of divine armor. For a ruler, it was relatively high quality, but for an imperial lord, it was rather shoddy.

"You've suffered on my account." Then, a black light flashed around Kui Lin, and a set of pitch-black armor appeared in his hands.

"Sir, you…"

"This armor is for you!" Kui Lin passed it to him.

"How could I possibly accept this?" Xiao Ning tried to push it back. "This is your personal armor. How could your subordinate dare accept it? Besides, without it, how can you ensure your own safety? You are my emperor, and your safety matters more than my life. Please, hold onto it. You don't have to worry about me. My battle armor is more than enough for the task at hand."

"I've always loved that wild spirit of yours!" Kui Lin grinned. Only Xiao Ning would look down on the third demon god like this. "But I don't want you to wear my armor into battle."

"Your Excellency, I'm afraid I don't quite understand…."

At a time like this, he was giving away his armor instead of going out to meet the enemy. Why?

Xiao Ning was the clever sort; had he been dense, he couldn't possibly have become an imperial lord at his age. He could think of a possible explanation for Kui Lin's behavior, but he wasn't willing to believe it.

"You've fought alongside me all these years. Consider his a token of my gratitude." Kui Lin's hands caressed the armor. It had been by his side for far, far too long.

He was giving it away so suddenly. Naturally, he was reluctant to part with it. But then, there was no use in keeping it with him.

Kui Lin thought well of Xiao Ning. Given time, Xiao Ning's achievements wouldn't necessarily be inferior to his own. Giving his armor to Xiao Ning would in no way lower its prestige.

HIs hands exerting a little force, he pressed the armor into Xiao Ning's hands. Then, Kui Lin looked up at the pitch-black sky without a star in sight and sighed. A hint of bitterness flashed across his face. "Let's surrender. Let's gather up our brothers in arms and surrender!"