Xu Nian saw the three people staring at him and a slight smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.
"When have I ever deceived you?" Xu Nian asked with a light smile.
"You still claim you haven't deceived us? Just now, I asked you if there were any Demon Saint Level Demon Beasts in this valley, and you said no. Then what's the deal with this Demon Tree, could it possibly be at the Battle King Level?" Chu Hen asked coldly.
His heart was filled with anger.
This Xu Nian actually dared to deceive him.
Beside him, Shi Lan and Chu Lin were also staring at Xu Nian.
They couldn't believe that they had been tricked by Xu Nian.
Hearing this, Xu Nian began to laugh.
"I didn't deceive you. You asked me if there were any Demon Saint Level Demon Beasts here, and I told you no, which was the simple truth. Because what took action against you was not a Demon Saint, but a Demon Emperor," Xu Nian said with a smile.
Chu Hen and the others were suddenly shocked as if struck by thunder.
They all turned their gaze to the ancient tree, which at this moment was emanating an Emperor Level aura.
Little Zhu Yan, who was seated at the ancient tree, was also coldly smiling at the three of them.
Outside the valley, Zhao Qingqing's face was also full of surprise.
So this was the reason Xu Nian did not let her enter the valley?
An Emperor Level strong man?
"No... it's impossible? How could there be an Emperor Level strong man? If it were an Emperor Level Demon Beast, why are you unharmed?" Chu Hen said in disbelief.
Chu Lin and Shi Lan also nodded in agreement with Chu Hen's words.
They had been wondering all along.
Why did the Demon Tree only attack them and not Xu Nian?
Xu Nian smiled lightly and said to Chu Hen, "Because I have the qualifications to negotiate with it, and you do not."
"What do you mean?" Chu Hen was taken aback, not understanding what Xu Nian meant.
"Hmph, what do I mean? I'm aware of your calculations all along the way; you wanted me to help you capture Zhu Yan, and then use your Heavenly Thunder Talisman to kill me. But where you went wrong was underestimating my cultivation," Xu Nian said with a cold huff.
He looked at Chu Hen and the others with contempt.
Then, Xu Nian waved his sleeve, and an imperial might radiated from his body.
"Emperor... Emperor Level strong man, how... how is this possible?" Chu Hen was stunned instantly.
Not only him, but Chu Lin and Shi Lan beside him were also stunned.
Even Zhao Qingqing, who was outside the valley at that moment, was shocked with her mouth wide open.
Xu Nian was an Emperor Level strong man?
How... how could this be?
Chu Hen felt a surge of despair in his heart.
He could not believe that all this was real.
He considered himself clever, capable of scheming everything.
But he never thought that he would encounter an Emperor Level strong man.
In the face of absolute power, all schemes are null and void.
Chu Lin and the others also felt utter despair.
He had thought it would be impressive for Xu Nian to break through to the Holy Level, but Xu Nian had already reached the legendary Emperor Level.
And Shi Lan was even more pale.
She never imagined that she had ridiculed an Emperor Level strong man.
Thinking back now, she felt a chill run through her scalp.
Such a strong man could annihilate her with a mere breath.
"Now do you see how ridiculous your schemes are? And your trading company, do you still think I would take it seriously?" Xu Nian asked with a sneer.
Chu Hen's face became extremely somber.
Little did he know that from the very beginning, he had been played by Xu Nian.
"I'm going to kill you!"
Chu Hen shouted and quickly activated the Heavenly Thunder Talisman he had prepared earlier.
Terrifying bolts of lightning erupted from his body.
This terrifying lightning struck towards Xu Nian and the ancient tree.
However, his lightning did not inflict the slightest damage on the ancient tree.
As for Xu Nian, the terrifying lightning struck him and was like tickling him; it didn't cause him any harm at all.
Seeing this scene, Chu Hen was completely stunned.
His Heavenly Thunder Talisman had had no effect at all.
Just then, a terrifying fluctuation came forth.
Chu Hen, who was wrapped by the tree roots, began to age visibly.
His skin started to wrinkle, and his hair began to turn from black to white.
Xu Nian could feel the life within him draining away incessantly.
"Could it be the Profound Argumentation of life devouring?" Xu Nian muttered to himself in surprise upon seeing this.
In the end, Chu Hen was nothing but skin and bones, utterly devoid of any traces of life.
Chu Lin and Shi Lan at his side were as scared as if they had seen a ghost, their faces filled with horror.
"Lord Xu Nian, save me!" Chu Lin cried out urgently.
At this moment, his life too began to wane; he could feel himself aging continuously.
Shi Lan was experiencing the same.
"Lord, save me, I'll do anything if you save me," Shi Lan screamed in terror.
For a woman, nothing was more fearsome than witnessing her own beauty wither away.
Such a manner of death was simply the most cruel for a woman.
Yet Xu Nian, upon hearing their pleas, remained indifferent.
In the end, both their lives were devoured completely.
Three Battle Kings had perished at the hands of this ancient tree.
Xu Nian, watching these three die, knew it was now time for him to face off against the ancient tree.
A fluctuation came through.
Then, the ancient tree transformed into an old man before Xu Nian.
Little Zhu Yan stood beside the old man, looking at Xu Nian curiously.
"Human, do you not know that Emperor-level strong men are not allowed to enter the Demon Beast Forest?" the old man questioned Xu Nian harshly.
Had it not been for the threatening aura emanating from the youth before him, he would not have wasted words and would have directly slain him.
This was because there had once been an agreement between the empire and the Demon Beast Forest.
No Emperor-level strong man shall encroach upon each other's territories.
Violators would be executed without discussion.
"Elder, I had no intention of offending; it's just that my sister was kidnapped by a Demon Saint into the Demon Beast Forest, which forced me to intrude," Xu Nian responded.
Considering age, this Demon Emperor before him was certainly of an ancestral level.
So, addressing him as an elder was, in Xu Nian's view, not inappropriate.
"A Demon Saint kidnapped your sister? Do you know which Demon Saint did it?" the old man asked, a trace of surprise showing on his face.
"I don't know who exactly, but I know that the Demon Saint who took my sister is a Red Fire Zhu Yan," Xu Nian replied.
"Zhu Yan?" the old man echoed and then looked towards the small monkey beside him.
The small monkey also showed a trace of surprise and began to look at Xu Nian curiously again.
"How could that be possible, have you made a mistake?" the old man said.
"I am certain of it," Xu Nian replied, his gaze firm.
Upon hearing this, the old man furrowed his brows, a thoughtful look on his face.
"I know, I know, are you looking for Sister Yann Xi?" the small monkey suddenly spoke up.
Xu Nian was startled and quickly looked at the small monkey, "You know her?"
The small monkey hurriedly nodded.