CHAPTER 105 (3): NIGHT DEMON STRIKES AGAIN

It was the almighty deity of death that had dominated the Parasite Ascension Project and taken over thirty thousand lives in the process, the dreaded Night Demon!

Night Demon took a glance at Cheng Yunfeng's group with a hint of annoyance in his eyes, then asked in a cold and menacing voice, "Where's Starlight?"

"Our helmsmaster isn't here right now," Zheng Yunqi replied in a shaky voice. "May I ask if you're Master Night Demon?"

Night Demon gave a cold harrumph, neither confirming nor denying his identity as he scoffed, "What kind of branch helm is Starlight running here? It looks like no one respects his authority at all!"

Everyone in the entire branch helm instantly fell to their knees in a gesture of veneration and submission to Night Demon.

They were all struck by the impression that Night Demon and Starlight seemed to have been polar opposites. The latter had a very unpredictable and fiery temper and was always erupting into loud tantrums, while the former seemed very serene and quiet, giving off a sense of confident composure.

Despite the lack of outward aggression displayed by Night Demon, his presence exerted far more pressure than that of Starlight.

Even though Starlight was prone to lashing out, Cheng Yunfeng was correct in saying that he seemed reluctant to kill members of his branch helm. In contrast, Night Demon struck everyone with the feeling that their lives were completely insignificant in his eyes, and that the only reason he hadn't killed them yet was because they hadn't given him a reason to.

"There's no need for any of you to kneel to me," Night Demon said in a cold voice. "I only came here to ask Starlight why he's trying to find out my whereabouts. Does he have a death wish?"

A wave of formidable killing intent erupted out of his body as he spoke, and everyone in the branch helm instantly felt as if they had been plunged into a glacial pit.

Even Zhou Mei'er, who was several hundred feet away, had a layer of goosebumps rise up over her skin, and everyone was wondering what their helmsmaster had done to irk Night Demon.

The branch helm members from clans that had suffered casualties at Night Demon's hands during the Parasite Ascension Project were feeling particularly fearful and pathetic.

They had come here with the lofty ambition of killing Night Demon, yet they were now kneeling before him like spineless cowards.

They could only thank their lucky stars that they didn't manage to find Night Demon. Otherwise, they would've all been long dead by now.

"Helmsmaster Starlight visits the branch helm very rarely, so we don't really know what he's up to," Zheng Yunqi said in a tentative manner.

Night Demon took an indifferent glance at him, then said, "Tell Night Demon that if he continues to provoke me, this will be the outcome."

A streak of swordlight flashed through the air, and a group of ten branch helm members toppled limply to the ground.

It was none other than Cheng Yunfeng's group.

They all had their hands clasped around their throats as the light gradually faded from their eyes, and as they fell dead to the ground, it was revealed that each of them had a small red dot on their throats.

Sure enough, it was Night Demon's signature killing method.

Everyone continued kneeling on the ground as they lowered their heads, sweating profusely from intense fear.

"Tell Starlight to stop looking into me," Night Demon said in a very amicable voice.

"We'll be sure to pass on the message, Master Night Demon!"

No one dared to raise their heads for fear that Night Demon would find them distasteful to look at for some reason and decide to put an end to their lives.

Out of his peripheral vision, Zheng Yunqi watched as Night Demon split Cheng Yunfeng's body into two down the middle, and his internal organs instantly spilled all over the ground.

Night Demon then began poking through Cheng Yunfeng's remains with the tip of his sword, seemingly examining the damage that his sword qi had inflicted upon Cheng Yunfeng's dantian and brain.

Shortly thereafter, he said, "Pardon my intrusion. Tell Starlight that he doesn't have to thank me for getting rid of these insubordinate rats for him."

Immediately thereafter, he vanished from the spot without a trace.

***

Only after Night Demon was long gone did someone dare to raise their head.

"Is he gone?"

Everyone rose unsteadily to their feet, feeling as if they had truly brushed shoulders with death.

Only after several minutes had passed did some of the branch helm members work up the courage to examine the bodies.

"The Crimson Quick Draw... It really is Master Night Demon's signature killing blow..."

"Why did Master Night Demon split Cheng Yunfeng's head open just now? It seemed like he was looking for something."

"I can answer that. Master Night Demon's Crimson Quick Draw strikes the throat, but from there, the sword qi splits up into two, with one part descending into the dantian, while the other rises up into the head. Master Night Demon was most likely examining Cheng Yunfeng's brain and dantian to evaluate his own swordsmanship."

"So he used these people as his lab rats? That's way too cruel!"

"This is where you draw the line? Don't forget that Master Night Demon killed over thirty thousand people during the Parasite Ascension Project!"

"I'm looking at Cheng Yunfeng's brain right now, but I can't tell what's different about it. Having said that, it's pretty easy to tell that his dantian has been completely shredded."

"Why don't you split your own head open and compare your brain to his?"

"Piss off!"

With the crisis behind them, everyone gradually began to relax, and they hurriedly cleared away the bodies.

"That's ten more dead. Looks like we'll have to keep writing letters," Zheng Yunqi sighed.

"These letters will be much easier to write than the previous ones. They were killed by Master Night Demon! There's nothing we could've done!"

"That's true."

"Man, that was terrifying! Master Night Demon sounds so calm and friendly, yet he just killed ten people without even batting an eyelid!"

"His voice almost sounded a little gentle."

"That's strange. I heard that during the Parasite Ascension Project, Master Night Demon was really violent, and he started killing even before the project began!"

"You don't know shit! Master Night Demon killed that guy because he provoked him! After that, he issued a challenge to all 150,000 Generals to come after him if they dared!" Wu Lianlian said with a look of glowing admiration in her eyes. "Even now, many of the girls back home are still talking about him, and we all wish we could've been there to see him in person!"

"Hey, didn't Master Night Demon kill some people from your clans? Why didn't you try to seek vengeance against him just now?" Zhao Wushang jeered.

One of the people that he was speaking to almost fell to his knees again upon hearing this, and a sullen look appeared on his face as he implored, "Please don't bring that up again, Brother Zhao. I almost pissed myself just now!"

The others were also deathly pale with lingering fear.

"If someone wants to go after Master Night Demon for vengeance, they can be my guest, but I'm not even gonna consider it ever again!"

"I reckon Master Night Demon has to be a high-ranking Warlord by now. That's way above our helmsmaster's cultivation base!"

"Why're you even comparing the two? This is Master Night Demon we're talking about, for heaven's sake!"

While everyone was still discussing Night Demon's feats, Starlight finally arrived.

"What're you all standing around here for? Shit! What happened here?"

He approached the ten bodies on the ground for a close examination, then immediately took a step back as he asked with a fearful expression, "Did Night Demon come here?"

"He did."

A hint of panic instantly appeared on Starlight's face, and his eyes began darting around as he asked, "Why did he come here? I didn't do anything to offend him!"

Despite his fearful display, no one looked down on him for it because it was only natural to be afraid of Night Demon.

Zheng Yunqi provided a detailed recount of events, and after hearing the story of Night Demon's visit, Starlight was furious.

"When did I ever try to find out his whereabouts? I only asked that one time if Night Demon was still in the White Cloud Prefecture! Has he gone insane?! He came to my branch helm to test out his sword techniques? Why didn't he go kill some Guardians instead?!"

At this point, it had become clear to everyone that Night Demon and Starlight seemed to have no interaction with each other at all.

Even though they both served the One Heart Church, Night Demon appeared to have been far superior in both status and combat prowess to Starlight.

Some of the girls instantly began feeling a little sorry for their helmsmaster.

"That's ten more people dead! What are we going to tell their clans?" Starlight sighed with his brows furrowed tightly in vexation.

"There's no need for you to be concerned, Helmsmaster. This has nothing to do with you at all. These people were killed by Master Night Demon, and everyone knows that Night Demon kills whoever he wants without requiring any reasons."

Starlight's eyes instantly lit up.

"Really? Is that what they think of Night Demon in the main church?"

"Of course! He killed all those people from the main church during the Parasite Ascension Project!"

"Alright, in that case, I'll get all of you to report this matter to your clans. Their families have to be notified of their deaths."

"Leave it to us, Helmsmaster."

After some cleaning, the putrid smell of blood and innards gradually faded away, and Starlight led everyone into the main hall before sitting down on his throne with a thoughtful expression.

Zheng Yunqi and the others were happy to keep him company. After their discussion of Night Demon's feats, everyone had become extremely excited. They were too worked up to fall asleep anyway, so they were in no hurry to return to their residential quarters.

Ever since Zhao Wushang told everyone about Starlight's cowardly display while organizing the business license at the Hall of Protectionists, they had all felt much closer to Starlight.

He was a flawed and multi-faceted person just like them, one that was not unsusceptible to bouts of fear and cowardice, and that made him feel more real and genuine.

Over time, their fear of Starlight had gradually faded away, and in the wake of the Night Demon Church incident, he was even beginning to feel like a stern and protective father figure to them.

He was prone to violent outbursts and could be very unreasonable and ruthless at times, but everyone was willing to lay down their lives for their perfectly imperfect helmsmaster.