The Seven Star Sword Sect Leader, after selecting his troops, immediately headed towards the Misty Cloud Sect.
However, he did not rush to deploy all his forces at once, fearing that the demon beast army would be annihilated too quickly, and the reinforcements would not arrive.
Therefore, some of the troops under the Sect Leader's command were lying in wait, ready to strike when the demon beast army's reinforcements appeared, catching them off guard.
As a result, it was still Lin Xuan and his team who were assisting the Misty Cloud Sect.
As for Su Luo, he was not present, as this was not part of his storyline.
Su Luo hadn't yet been strengthened and was not yet worthy of being a stepping stone for Lin Xuan.
More importantly, Su Luo was currently involved in a storyline with the Heavenly Demon Sect.
While the Seven Star Sword Sect and the Misty Cloud Sect were busy dealing with the demon beast army, the Heavenly Demon Sect also began to get busy.
At the heart of the Zongheng Valley, the Heavenly Demon Ceremony was fully prepared and about to commence.
If it weren't for the impending Heavenly Demon Ceremony, the Heavenly Demon Sect would have meddled in the battle at the Misty Cloud Sect.
Of course, they wouldn't be helping the Misty Cloud Sect; instead, they would stir the waters further, even taking advantage of their predicament, to reap benefits for themselves.
One should not talk about the greater good of humanity with the Heavenly Demon Sect; they care not for such ideals, only for their own well-being and living in the moment.
The entire venue was shaped like a semi-circle, large enough to accommodate all the members of the Heavenly Demon Sect.
The semi-circle faced a small mountain, atop which stood the Heavenly Demon Palace, the residence of the Demon Lord.
From the semi-circle, one could only look up to the palace.
Soon, the Demon Lord would emerge from the Heavenly Demon Palace, a rare sight indeed.
Some people might join the sect and die without ever having the chance to see the Demon Lord.
Su Luo was naturally attending this Heavenly Demon Ceremony, striding forward to take his seat.
As one of the Heavenly Demon Seven, he enjoyed a favorable position with his own unique seat, not having to squeeze with others.
Of course, this was also based on strength.
Behind the Seven, were the ordinary members of the Heavenly Demon Sect, who did not stand in any orderly fashion even during the ceremony. The Heavenly Demon Sect did not impose many rules.
In front of the Seven were the titled Heavenly Demons.
Zhou Pangpang, the human meat bun.
Hu Yirong, the eyebrows and eyes that bewitch the heart.
Han Diankuang, the mad one with a dominant blade.
Liu Buwei, the empty-headed gentleman.
...
Though scattered, there were quite a few, indicating that the Heavenly Demon Sect was not weak.
Next to Su Luo, Situ Ye was already seated, his face filled with anticipation.
"The Demon Lord, I can finally see the Demon Lord."
He was incredibly excited.
Because he had truly never seen him before, having only heard about how powerful the Demon Lord was, constantly hearing the legends of the Demon Lord.
Even after becoming one of the Seven, he had yet to witness the Demon Lord.
This time, he would fulfill his wish.
Unlike Situ Ye's excitement, Su Luo sat quietly, having long lost his sense of novelty.
Yun stood behind him like a guard.
Xiao Pa perched on Yun's shoulder, looking around, spotting many strong individuals.
But sensing they were not as powerful as his master, he wasn't particularly impressed.
Situ Ye glanced at Su Luo sideways: "That slap you dealt earlier, I admit you're strong, but I just don't accept it."
"So?"
"I hear the Demon Lord's aura pressure will be intense. Do you dare to bet on who can endure it the longest?"
"You really are overconfident."
"Because I've made extensive preparations."
Then, Situ Ye began popping pills, various buffing elixirs.
These were short-term strength enhancers, with minor side effects, and Situ Ye wasn't about to harm himself.
"Don't you think you've already lost the moment you started taking those pills?"
"These pills are hard-earned, part of my strength. I won't feel defeated or inadequate because of them."
"Then let's bet on your pills."
"Fine." Situ Ye decisively took out a vial of pills, "This will suffice."
Su Luo wasn't particularly interested in the bet, but considering it wasn't really a gamble but Situ Ye practically giving away the pills, he obliged.
After glancing at the pills, they seemed quite good - Situ Ye wasn't trying to deceive him.
Situ Ye asked, "What are you betting with?"
"This sword."
Su Luo tossed out a rusty sword.
"That?"
"I say it's a divine sword, do you believe me?"
"Nonsense."
"It's a divine sword."
When on the road, one not only had to give oneself an identity but could also bestow identities upon objects.
"Are you still messing with me?"
"You need to understand, when you bet with me, it's not about what you want, but what I have."
Su Luo's carefree, take-it-or-leave-it attitude almost made Situ Ye explode with frustration.
"Fine."
Situ Ye grit his teeth and said, not for any other reason than to save face, and since he had already taken the pills, not betting would just be losing out.
The other members of the Seven were also paying attention to the contest between Su Luo and Situ Ye.
As for Su Luo, they didn't know him very well, despite having done some basic background checks. But the information they got was mostly unreliable.
And it wasn't like a thorough investigation would immediately yield useful details.
This time, they would see how Su Luo would perform, his strength, naturally, must be there, the only question was how much.
Even after witnessing Su Luo's few fights, the other Seven were not particularly fearful. Everyone had a few trump cards.
Not until the brink of death, not until all the cards were played, did they feel they could not be inferior to Su Luo.
Same realm, same foundation realm, how much stronger could you be?
...
In the main hall of the Heavenly Demon Palace, there were five extraordinarily powerful members of the Heavenly Demon Sect.
Left Envoy was displeased: "The ceremony is about to begin, and the East Extreme Demon Lord isn't back?"
Right Envoy replied, "I don't know, perhaps he's enjoying himself somewhere. You know how he is, always playing around."
"Not just him, Smiling Ghost, Evil Laugh Deep... none of them are here. What's going on? Do they not take the ceremony seriously?"
Left Envoy glanced outside the palace, not seeing these figures. They had all said they would come earlier, now they were missing?
What they didn't know was that these individuals had all fallen to the hands of Nangong Xiyun.
West Extreme Demon Lord: "Enough, those below might not know, but we do. Whether the ceremony is important is up to us."
Left Envoy: "That's true."
South End Demon Lord: "Like father, like son. The East Extreme Demon Lord is not here, so it's no surprise the others aren't. Inform the Demon Lord, the ceremony should begin."
North End Demon Lord: "Exactly, let's put an end to this boring ceremony quickly."
Right Envoy: "Can't be too blunt, we need to follow the proper procedures, it's crucial."
Left Envoy: "Indeed, not only should we, but we must flawlessly execute the ceremony."
Saying that, Left Envoy employed a spell, creating a doppelganger of the East Extreme Demon Lord.
The doppelganger could move and speak, though its strength was considerably lower, enough to pose as a lookalike.
"We'll settle with this then."
Having the East Extreme Demon Lord present was sufficient, everything else didn't matter.
Given that the four great Demon Lords and the left and right envoys, as the sect's paramount experts, weren't present, it wouldn't make sense.
Wouldn't this make the Heavenly Demon Ceremony lose credibility?
With this, the Heavenly Demon Ceremony commenced.