Jun was a character and also a surname, but more often than not, it was a form of address.
It was the one in the very center of the Heaven, Earth, Jun, Jun, and Jun.
The young man in the bamboo hat was a demon and called himself 'Jun', so his identity was obvious.
He was the Demon Lord.
The stone hall was quiet, not a single sound coming from it.
In truth, a thunderclap had exploded in everyone's hearts.
The power of that thunderclap was so terrifying that it silenced the entire Imperial City, so much so that not even the pear blossoms dared to fall.
Other than the rather lonely figure of the young demon, the observation platform was still deserted, but other places were already in an uproar.
Everywhere in the Imperial City, one could see the swiftly moving figures of Beast Guards.
Outside the Imperial City, one could see banners signaling the mobilization of cavalry.
The Imperial City was quickly surrounded.
The seals on the two shores of the Red River were silently activated.
Even experts of the Divine Domain would find it very difficult to leave.
Why was the young Demon Lord still so calm?
… …
… …
The mood in the stone hall was abnormally oppressive, but many sparks were madly dancing in the minds of the demi-human personages.
Their gazes rested on the highest point in front of the hall.
Even now, Madam Mu still maintained her silence.
The Shi clan leader slowly narrowed his eyes, like the Golden Thread Willows that could occasionally be seen in the upper reaches of the Red River, or the famed Xiu Dao of the southern demi-human domain.
The true identity of the young demon had truly shocked him, but what he was most concerned about was the activity within the hall.
Madam Mu's silence was within his expectations, but why was the Xiang clan leader also so silent?
Was there really such a possibility? This was even worse than the worst situation he and Xiaode had imagined!
At this moment, a demi-human Great General stood up and harshly yelled, "Empress, please allow this general to kill this enemy!"
With these words, the silence in the stone hall was shattered, the oppressive atmosphere torn apart. Those dancing sparks gradually began to transform into true wildfire.
More ministers, generals, and tribal leaders stood up and angrily roared at the Empress seated at the highest point.
"Kill him!"
"Empress, kill him!"
The angry voice echoed in the spacious stone hall, then spread to the observation deck, and then to even further places.
The entire Imperial City had probably heard these words.
The nine Celestial Trees in the depths of the mountains released an even more scorching aura of Heavenly Fire. Perhaps this represented the wrath of the ancestral spirits of the demi-humans.
Madam Mu continued to quietly sit on the highest seat, giving no reply.
The one to answer these questions was the Demon Lord himself.
His expression remained calm and his voice did not fluctuate as he listened to the wave after wave of battle cries coming from the hall.
"Why do you want to kill me? Is it because of Benjun's identity? Or was it because of the enmity between the two races a thousand years ago? The hatred from a thousand years ago originated from the abuse and so-called humiliation of the Demon Race by the God Race, but what did that have to do with me? I was still very young and hadn't been born yet, so these debts wouldn't fall on me. "
The battle cries in the stone hall gradually disappeared, and then came the angry rebuke of a certain demi-human general.
A complex smile appeared on the Demon Lord's pale face. It was hard to say whether it was a smile of ridicule or self-mockery.
"Yes, the one who abused you, humiliated you, and slaughtered you was my father. It's not wrong to say that a son pays his father's debts, but you seem to have forgotten one thing. My father, whom you hated the most, was killed by my own hands. In this sense, shouldn't you be grateful to me?"
…
… …
The mood in the stone hall once more became oppressive, just like the gloomy light.
Other than Xiaode, Jin Yulu, and a few others who had not appeared for various reasons, all the important figures of the Demi-human race were present.
They could decide everything for the Demi-human race.
But today, they were about to make one of the most important decisions in the history of the Demi-human race.
So they were very nervous and uneasy. Some tribal leaders and ministers even felt endless frustration and fear.
In the quiet stone hall, no one spoke for a very long time. All that could be heard was breathing, silent and enigmatic, breathing as heavy as a mountain.
The fragrance of fruits and scholar tree candles was completely replaced by the stench of sweat and fur.
The scholar tree candles were gradually extinguished, but the lanterns on the stone walls were not lit. Only the Night Pearls emitted a faint luster, illuminating countless cloudy faces.
Madam Mu was faintly discernible in the gloomy light, as dark as the night.
The Xiang clan leader was still silent, as indistinct as a mountain in the night.
In the air of the stone hall floated a piece of paper several zhang wide, looking like a belt.
This was the thin book that the Demon Lord had sent.
Countless gazes fell upon it, and then one could hear the breathing grow even heavier.
It signified nervousness, excitement, ambition, and even greed.
… …
… …
The Demon Lord was very young, and his words and actions could not be described as shrewd or ruthless, but he had a very peculiar persuasiveness.
Whether or not the demi-human personages believed him, they had to admit that the Demon Lord had been rather candid at the start of this conversation.
The demi-human race and the Demon race could be said to have a hatred as deep as the sea, but that tragic past of humiliation and slaughter was a story from one thousand years ago.
In the present Imperial City, there was no one who had personally experienced that period. Although the hatred had continued, it did not mean that it could never be eliminated.
Even if it could not be eliminated, it truly did not have much to do with the young Demon Lord.
In that case, could he put aside his hatred for the time being and consider something more important?
Like benefits and safety?
The conditions offered by the demons were too good.
The benefits that the demi-humans could obtain were too great.
This already surpassed everyone's imagination.
Even the most irascible clan leaders and demon generals who hated the Devil Race the most had no choice but to remain silent in the face of the conditions offered by the Devil Race.
This did not mean that they were willing to agree to the demons' conditions, but that they were still searching for a better way to respond.
The demons' sincerity was also very difficult to question.
Because the Demon Lord had personally come to White Emperor City, and he was alone.
This meant that he could die here at any moment.
In these circumstances, no one could say anything.
More importantly, it was now very obvious that the Empress had known about the whole thing in advance, and it was even possible that she had arranged it herself.
More and more gazes left the map of the snowy plains of the land of demons and once more fell upon Madam Mu.
It was only now that the Heavenly Selection ceremony revealed its true face, its goal.
The rumor that Madam Mu was prepared to marry Princess Luoluo off to the Second Prince of the Great Western Continent had turned out to be a smokescreen.
From the very start, Madam Mu had been prepared to marry Princess Luoluo off to the young Demon Lord outside the hall.
The purpose of the marriage between the two Imperial clans was naturally to form an alliance.
Such a grand undertaking naturally had to be concealed from the Human race before it succeeded, leading to so many events.
But … did His Majesty also think this way?
But … this was the Demon race!
Did they really have to forget the hatred of the past and the blood shed by the tribal warriors over the years?
Did they really have to turn their backs on the human allies that had fought side by side for one thousand years?
Many tribal leaders and generals found it impossible to accept this.
Their gazes fell upon the mountainous figure in front of the hall.
This was the Chief Elder of the Council of Elders.
In their view, only the Xiang clan leader with the most seniority and prestige could lead them in stopping this matter.
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