Many children, many blessings; the twelve ancestral witches forced marriages throughout the primordi

The Heavenly Court of the Demon Clan, the Lingxiao Palace.

The atmosphere here is even more oppressive than that of a funeral home where people have died.

This place used to be magnificent, filled with singing and dancing, and where all demons paid homage. Now? The ground is a mess, littered with shattered glass lamps and jade fragments.

Di Jun sat on the throne of the Heavenly Emperor with disheveled hair and bloodshot eyes. He looked nothing like the majestic Heavenly Emperor he once was; he was more like a gambler who had lost everything.

"Useless! All of you are useless!"

Di Jun suddenly grabbed a wine pot from the side and smashed it hard on the head of a demon god kneeling below.

"Bang!"

The demon god didn't even dare to dodge; his head was instantly split open, blood gushing out, yet he still kowtowed and begged for mercy: "Your Majesty, please calm your anger! Your Majesty, please calm your anger!"

"Calm down? How can you expect me to calm down?!"

Emperor Jun roared as he stood up, pointing at the assembled officials below.

"My nine sons! Nine! They're now hanging from the top of the Pangu Temple as light bulbs! As radiators! Do you know what people down below are talking about?! Huh?!"

"They say my son, Di Jun, is the 'Number One Heater in the Primordial World'! They say my fire, as the Crown Prince of the Demon Clan, is specifically used to dry the underwear of those barbarians from the Witch Clan!"

Taiyi sat beside him, his face as pale as paper. He had been hit by Nuwa's red embroidered ball earlier, and his injury hadn't fully healed yet. Hearing this, his fists clenched so tightly they cracked.

"Brother, stop talking." Taiyi gritted his teeth. "We'll get our revenge sooner or later."

"Report? What are we going to use to report this?" Di Jun slumped back down. "That bitch Nuwa! She's a saint of the demon race! She eats the offerings from my demon race, and at this crucial moment, she actually helps that pretty boy beat me up! Doesn't she have any shame?!"

The demon master Kunpeng, standing below, hunched over and hid behind a pillar, trying to minimize his presence.

He's incredibly panicked right now.

The Heavenly Court is on the verge of collapse.

Even the emperor has turned against us, and the crown prince has been arrested. How can we fight this war?

"Kunpeng!"

Di Jun suddenly called out names.

Kunpeng shuddered and quickly ran out to kneel down: "Your subject is here."

"Tell me! What should we do now? Aren't you known as a demon master? Aren't you the one with the most tricks up your sleeve? Give me a suggestion!" Di Jun stared intently at him, his eyes filled with murderous intent.

Kunpeng's forehead was covered in cold sweat.

This is a death trap! If we fight, we can't win; if we don't fight, Dijun is furious right now and will definitely use him as a sacrifice.

"This...this..." Kunpeng's eyes darted around. "Your Majesty, I believe it is not advisable to fight the Wu Clan head-on now. The Wu Clan has a primordial spirit and is aided by Nuwa. We must...we must outsmart them."

"How will you outsmart them?"

"We can...we can try to win over other sages!" Kunpeng had a sudden inspiration. "The Three Pure Ones! Yes, the Three Pure Ones! Yuanshi Tianzun despises the Wu Clan the most. We can offer him great benefits and ask him to help us."

"Hmph! That old codger Yuanshi is the kind of person who won't act until he sees a benefit." Di Jun snorted coldly, but his expression softened slightly. "However, this is also a solution. Take half of the spiritual treasures from the treasury and make a trip to Kunlun Mountain."

"Yes, yes, yes! Your subject will go immediately!" Kunpeng felt as if he had been granted a pardon and quickly kowtowed to take his leave.

After Kunpeng left, Dijun looked at the empty hall and felt an unprecedented sense of powerlessness.

Meanwhile, the lower levels of the Heavenly Court were already in chaos.

Outside the South Heavenly Gate, several gatekeeper demons were huddled together whispering amongst themselves.

"Hey, did you hear? The underworld is hiring again."

"Really? Didn't they fill all their positions last time?"

"Those were the first batch. The Underworld is expanding now, they're building eighteen levels of hell, and there's a huge shortage. I heard the benefits are great—food and lodging included, plus spirit stones every month, and most importantly…it's safe!"

A little demon lowered his voice: "Yes, look at our Heavenly Court, it's war every day. The Crown Prince has been captured, and His Majesty kills people to vent his anger at the drop of a hat. The wolf demon next door was beheaded by His Majesty yesterday just because he stepped into the palace with his left foot first. It's terrifying."

"Shall we... slip away?"

"Shh! Keep your voice down! When it's time to change shifts, let's sneak down to the mortal realm and go to the underworld to seek refuge with Lord Lin Xuan. I heard that Lord Lin Xuan is really good to his people; he never beats or scolds them and even gives them holiday bonuses."

"Get out of here! I can't stand this damned Heavenly Court for even a day longer!"

This sentiment spread like a plague within the demon race.

In just a few days, the Heavenly Court's military strength was reduced by 10%.

Under the cover of night, countless lesser demons threw down their weapons, took off their armor, and ran off in droves toward the underworld.

Lin Xuan, in the underworld, looked at the long line of job applicants and his mouth was practically twisted with a grin.

"Come on, come on! Don't rush! As long as you have a skill, the underworld will take you!"

Lin Xuan used a megaphone to shout.

"Those who can breathe fire, go to hell and cook in oil cauldrons! Those who can spit water, go wash dishes on the Bridge of Helplessness! Those with great strength, go carry bricks! Those who can't do anything, go brew soup for Meng Po!"

While registering the information, the Styx Ancestor wiped his sweat and said, "Holy Father, there are just too many demons. Our Underworld can hardly contain them all."

"What's there to be afraid of?" Lin Xuan waved his hand. "If we can't fit everything, we'll expand! Anyway, those demons bring their own food, so we don't have to spend any money. What do you call this? You call using the enemy's resources to build our home! If Di Jun knew this, he'd probably be so angry he'd vomit three liters of blood again."

Just as Lin Xuan had predicted.

When Di Jun learned that a large number of his subordinates had deserted, and some had even gone to work for the Wu Clan, he smashed another batch of antiques in the Lingxiao Palace.

"They've rebelled! They've all rebelled!"

Di Jun looked up at the sky and roared, his voice filled with desolation.

"Lin Xuan! You've undermined me, destroyed my foundation! I, Di Jun, swear that I will not become a demon unless I kill you in this lifetime!"