"I think we should have a good talk." Zu An didn't want to fight her. There were too many doubts in his mind that he wanted to thrash out.

But the Heavenly Devil Empress wasn't interested in communicating. "I'll know what I want to know once I devour your soul."

She transformed into a surge of black aura that enveloped Zu An. Her intangible form made it hard for Zu An to attack her.

However, he summoned his seven-colored light, and the black aura immediately vanished. He had transported it away into his space.

The black aura converged back into the Heavenly Devil Empress. She examined the seven-colored world and remarked, "This is a decent skill. You were even able to transport me here. But do you think you can subdue me just like that?"

Zu An smiled. "It's easier for me to deal with you now that you're in my domain."

The Heavenly Devil Empress frowned. "Why does it seem like you have gotten stronger?"

There was no way Zu An would explain his power spike to her. He had just killed the Asura Progenitor Demon God and devoured the latter's energy using his Heaven-Devouring Sutra, thus raising his level to 95.

The Heavenly Devil Empress harrumphed. "You can't defeat me even if you have gotten stronger."

Devils were special beings. Even the powerful Celestials had struggled to hurt her main body in the past. As long as desires existed in this world, she was indestructible. Since even the Celestials were filled with desire, it was impossible to kill her. The moment Zu An revealed a crack in his mind, she would swoop in and devour his soul.

She had to concede that Zu An had an exceptionally strong mind. There was practically no opening for her to exploit. Unfortunately, he was a living being. He couldn't possibly keep his guard up all the time.

"I've finally caught you." The Heavenly Devil Empress sensed a brief fluctuation in Zu An's soul. She didn't hesitate to rush into his mind to devour him.

Moments later, however, she reappeared in midair. She stared at Zu An in disbelief. "Impossible! Why can't I devour your soul?"

That had been an opening for her to strike. Had it been the Celestial Court's Emperor Jun, Donghuang Taiyi, or even the old Asura Progenitor Demon God, she was confident she could have devoured their souls if they had shown such an opening.

Yet she had failed. She had dealt some damage to Zu An's soul, but the latter was strong enough to recover in an instant.

"You can't hurt me." Zu An's confidence stemmed from his Love Sage title.

Love Sage: You can more easily earn a woman's goodwill. Damage inflicted on women is reduced by 50%. Damage received from women is reduced by 70%.

Zu An had become so strong that it was hard for the Heavenly Devil Empress to inflict damage on him under normal circumstances; a further 70% reduction was crippling. It felt almost like an ant biting an elephant.

"Impossible!" the Heavenly Devil Empress exclaimed. All of a sudden, she smiled coyly at him and suggested, "If you are that confident in yourself, why don't you let me do whatever I want to you?"

"Sure."

Zu An wouldn't have made such a decision under normal circumstances, but his skills couldn't hurt the Heavenly Devil Empress, either. He could deal with ordinary devils, but the Heavenly Devil Empress was simply too powerful. He needed to convince her to work together with him.

Another coy laugh shook the world. The Heavenly Devil Empress dropped her bloodthirst and flitted up to him. "My darling, you are the most formidable man I have seen in many years." 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

"I have never seen a woman as formidable as you, either," Zu An replied with a sigh.

The Heavenly Devil Empress was a temptress. All the bewitching and seduction arts Zu An had faced in the past were nothing compared to her, as she targeted the soul directly.

The Heavenly Devil Empress sat down on him and nuzzled against his chest. Then, she suddenly laughed. "I thought you had an unwavering heart. You kept saying no, but your body is surprisingly honest."

Black streaks covered Zu An's face. He was speechless. Did we get the wrong scripts?

Starting to feel impatient, he asked, "What do I have to do for you to give up? I want to talk to you."

"You want to talk? Sure, let's talk." The Heavenly Devil Empress's lips brushed across his cheeks and lips.

As her hands reached into his clothes, Zu An frowned. "What are you trying to do?"

"I'm trying to talk," the Heavenly Devil Empress replied. Her gaze could make any man in the world succumb to her.

Zu An was speechless. This wasn't what I meant.

"Darling, are you going back on your words now? You agreed to let me do whatever I wanted to you." It was just moments ago that the Heavenly Devil Empress seemed like a demonic monster, but now, she exuded an ethereal air that felt even more heavenly than fairies in the Celestial World.

Zu An took a deep breath and asked, "Is this how the Heavenly Devil Empress seduces men?"

"Are you jealous, darling?" The Heavenly Devil Empress chuckled. "You don't need to worry. I rarely have to resort to this when dealing with others. A mere flick of my finger can plunge them into the torture of eternal pleasure. You're the only one I need to use my real body on."

Zu An's eyebrows shot up. "Your real body? Doesn't that mean I have a chance to kill you?"

"How cruel, darling. You don't have to kill me when you can... ravage me," the Heavenly Devil Empress whispered into his ear. Her gestures were so bewitching that no man could resist her allure... unless that person wasn't into women.

As the Heavenly Devil Empress's voice grew mellower, a field of pink flowers blossomed. At the center of the field, Zu An sat firmly like an unwavering sage, while the Heavenly Devil Empress moved so bewitchingly that it felt like she could bend even the sturdiest metal with her tenderness.

...

Some time later, a voice resembling a purr scratched Zu An's ears. "Darling, you have finally succumbed. I'll let you die in extreme bliss. I don't know why, but I can't bear to kill you... Huh? How are you able to devour me as well?!"

Zu An sighed. "I wouldn't completely lower my guard against a devil."

It felt like there was a black hole in the Heavenly Devil Empress's body, but Zu An's Heaven-Devouring Sutra was also a black hole. The two suction forces neutralized each other, forming a tense balance.

"How sly, darling. You were scheming against me," the Heavenly Devil Empress grumbled.

Zu An smiled. "Aren't you the same, too?"

"Let's see who can last longer. I don't believe you can outlast me," the Heavenly Devil Empress said. This was the Devils' field of specialty. As their leader, there was no way she would lose to anyone in this.

But Zu An had no intention to fight her on even ground. To ensure that everything went his way, he used the Golden Phoenix's power. He had initially resolved to never use this power again, but after everything he had been through, he had matured enough to understand that morality didn't exist inherently within skills; it was about how one used them.

Since the Heavenly Devil Empress wasn't playing fair, there was no reason for him to hold back.

Confusion flickered across the Heavenly Devil Empress's eyes for a brief instant. "What did you do to me?"