Chapter Six: The Third Demon King, Panwu

My name is Pan Wu, the Third Demon King of the Undying City. I have already reached a secret agreement with a high-ranking member of the Spark Republic's leadership. With his assistance, I abandoned my physical body, my soul broke through the barriers, and I descended upon Clearwind Mountain as a pure spirit. I am in the process of reconstructing my demonic form. I intend to integrate myself into this society, to covertly assimilate the targets on my list, to steal that secret from the Spark Republic, to... I’ve been dug up!

I’ve been stuffed into a bag by a despicable brat. What kind of bag is this? Time and space are completely sealed. I can think, I can sense the existence of my countless fragmented selves, but I can’t mobilize or merge them.

I’m out now. The brat poured me out of the bag. I saw a... pot?! I went in. Am I in a pot? Fine, this brat is dead. I care nothing for my demonic body now—I want him dead!

Soul, return!

...

Soul, return! Return!

...

Wonderful! How humiliating—my own soul fragments refuse to obey me!

No, something is wrong! I feel myself being purified, as though... being scrubbed clean! What kind of accursed pot is this? All my heart’s blood is being evaporated and stripped away!

Good! My soul is whole once more! Though my soul’s strength is now less than a ten-thousandth of its peak, brat, you are doomed! Witness my Demonic Voice Technique!

Excellent! Now I’m in a petri dish! I’ve ended up in a petri dish! What infernal dish is this, that can actually imprison a soul?!

Brat! If you have any guts, let me out! I’ll show you what it means to be skewered by a Demon King...

Lu Huan observed the petri dish through a microscope. This was something extracted and purified from a demonic crystal... a tiny black tadpole!

Black, so it probably isn’t one of my own tenacious descendants—mischievous!

Descendants, your sister! To think you would mistake my noble soul for filthy protein? Where is my demon blade?!

Lu Huan scratched his chin, then moved over a device resembling a balance scale. On closer inspection, it wasn’t a scale at all: one end housed a star-energy-infused miniature culture chamber, the other a display screen, with a touch control panel in between.

Lu Huan transferred the tadpole from the petri dish into the miniature culture chamber and strengthened the chamber’s imprisoning star array.

“Who are you, really?” Lu Huan stared at the black tadpole in the chamber, his gloved hand stroking his chin—finding it uncomfortable, he set his hand down and chuckled, “A soul body, and one with a conscious core at that. Quite a heavyweight!”

The Third Demon King, Pan Wu, heard Lu Huan’s words and realized this brat had seen through his nature. He thus roused his soul to stir the chamber’s star energy, causing ripples that, through a translation device, relayed his intended speech onto the display screen.

“My title is the Fire King. I made my name in Star Year 1000 and arranged a fair duel with the Water Demon King at Fallen Phoenix Mountain. Who would have thought that turtle’s grandson would bring allies? Enraged, I self-destructed, perishing together with the other two demon kings. By sheer luck, I preserved a sliver of soul and escaped. But my soul was so weak, I could not survive under the sun, so I found a place at Fallen Phoenix Mountain to recover.”

Lu Huan removed his gloves and stroked his chin, his eyes flickering with thought.

The Fire King’s exploits were indeed recorded on the Star Net. He did duel the Water Demon King at Fallen Phoenix Mountain, and he truly was betrayed—his fiery temper led him to self-detonate, gravely injuring the two demon kings. Both were then finished off by a group of powerful reinforcements. When Lu Huan first read this history, he had scoffed—eternal enemies to the death, yet still arranging a fair duel? Truly endearing.

Lu Huan pulled up archival footage of the Fire King: “My title is Fire King, my fists can fend off ten thousand demons! Turtle spawn of the Demon Clan, dare you face me?”

Comparing it to the display screen, the speech style was indeed similar.

“Then why is your soul inside a demonic crystal? And why is your soul black?” Lu Huan asked, puzzled.

The Third Demon King grew delighted—there was an opening! Still so young and naïve!

“Alas, I did not wish it so. My soul, weakened in flight, needed immense energy to recover. With no choice, I slaughtered the demonic beasts of Fallen Phoenix Mountain and used their crystals to restore myself. But my soul was so feeble, I could not even purify the demonic resonance from a mere thirty thousand first-tier beasts, and my soul’s core was contaminated.”

“Fearing I might succumb to corruption, I used the last of my strength to inscribe a Tortoise Slumber Array upon myself, sending my soul into deep sleep, hoping that the ages would cleanse the demonic crystal’s taint. Until, young friend, you excavated the crystal and—with that cauldron-like star-energy treasure—stripped the crystal and awakened me.”

Pan Wu gloated inwardly—nine truths to one lie, how could you not believe me?

“May I ask, young friend, what year is it in the Star Calendar?”

“Ah?” Lu Huan had been so distracted by the tadpole’s bluffing that he didn’t process the question. “What did you say?”

Pfft—

Pan Wu was so incensed his soul trembled. After all he’d said, the boy hadn’t listened? Wasting his effort—no, his soul’s strength! And his words were all on the screen—couldn’t the brat read?!

Pan Wu vowed silently: brat, just you wait. If I don’t tear you limb from limb, I’ll take your surname!

“Oh!” Lu Huan glanced at the screen, surprise flashing in his eyes, followed by delight, and finally a trace of grief and pain. “You’re asking about that—”

He sighed, turning away, “Elder, you may not know, but the Star Calendar is no longer used. Five centuries ago, the Demon Clan broke through the Ten Cities of Demon Defense. Even the three great factions united could not withstand the invasion. Now... the world belongs to the demons!”

As he spoke, real tears welled up in his eyes.

The Third Demon King, Pan Wu: “???”

“Truly?”

“Why would I lie to you, elder?” Lu Huan wiped his tears, his voice choked.

Pan Wu was stunned. The grief and pain on Lu Huan’s face made him half believe it. Had his soul, drifting through dimensional layers, encountered a temporal storm and crossed the river of time? Was this truly a world ruled by demons?

“Then how are you still allowed to conduct experiments here... Are humans not enslaved?” Pan Wu probed.

“Ah! That’s just the Demon Emperor for you!” Lu Huan wore a conflicted expression—resentful, moved, even a little admiring. “After uniting the world, the Demon Emperor established the sole dynasty on Earth. Yet he did not favor his kin, nor enslave humans or starbeasts. He treats all races equally, appointing based on merit. Even the prime minister’s post, such an important civil office, is entrusted to us humans.”

“The Demon Emperor is worthy of being called a genius of the ages!” Lu Huan sighed sincerely.

!!!

Pan Wu believed it even more. Such magnanimity, disregarding race and appointing solely on merit—only the Demon Emperor could do this!

But he asked cautiously, “Would the Demon Emperor’s demon kings accept this? Like my adversary, the turtle’s grandson Water Demon King—he’s the Demon Emperor’s uncle. Would he permit such chaos? And as I recall, the Third Demon King was a staunch believer in demon supremacy. Could he tolerate all races, even humans, starbeasts, and those base creatures, being treated as equals to his beloved demons?”

Lu Huan smiled. This tadpole monster had finally exposed a flaw. The Fire King had died before the Third Demon King even arrived—how could he be a “staunch demon believer,” except perhaps in his dreams?

Lu Huan’s expression grew stern. “Who would dare defy the Demon Emperor’s might?”

He paused, as if feeling his sycophancy before an elder was unseemly, and explained, “Elder, you may not know: when you self-detonated and gravely wounded the Water Demon King, our human reinforcements beat him to death!”

“Oh? Is that so? Good, serves him right! That turtle’s grandson, daring to betray me—he deserved it!”

Still putting on an act! Lu Huan found it deeply amusing.

“Elder, be careful with your words! The world now belongs to the demons. Many of them resent that we humans are their equals. If they heard you slandering the Demon Clan, and especially the Demon Emperor’s uncle, they’d find an excuse to further exploit our people!” Lu Huan played along, hurriedly trying to hush him, even nervously opening the lab door to check for eavesdroppers.

I’ll play my part and pretend not to notice your performance!

Pan Wu now believed it entirely. He began pondering how he might convince the boy he was not this so-called Fire King, but the illustrious, zealous Third Demon King, Pan Wu!

Lu Huan had no idea what the tadpole was thinking. He wondered at the silence, reviewed everything, and felt there were no flaws—his bag sealed time and space, so a soul would have no sense of time passing. This tadpole’s concept of time must be very vague.

Lu Huan rubbed his chin, mulling, “The Third Demon King... Let’s try raising the stakes!” He weighed the risks and benefits, ensuring that even if his lie was exposed, there was no danger.

“Elder, as for the Third Demon King...” Lu Huan deliberately looked hesitant.

“What about the Third Demon King?” Pan Wu asked eagerly.

“It’s just...” Lu Huan looked troubled, as if making a hard decision. “Never mind, it’s not much of a secret, but the subject of the Third Demon King is rather sensitive...”

Pan Wu grew anxious—hurry up and say it! What’s so sensitive about me!

“Oh? You seem rather conflicted. No need to say more on my account. I’m merely curious, it’s no trouble at all,” Pan Wu feigned indifference, retreating to advance.

“Alas, to wake and find that a thousand years have passed, and the world has changed... It’s overwhelming.”

“Elder, don’t be like this!” Lu Huan’s face reddened, as if ashamed of his own behavior, though inside he was now almost certain—this foolish tadpole was the Third Demon King himself. He continued, “I understand your feelings, but the wheels of history are merciless...”

“Since you have doubts, let me clarify a few things for you...”