Li Mu did not respond. He leaned forward and raised aloft his weapon. With all his weight and strength, he brought down his saber hard like a god trying to cut a path through the sea of blood.
Such was the power of a Class-XII.
The blow parted both air and liquid.
Li Mu dove into the parted sea of blood and lunged at the Celestial Demon for their second round.
With every clash of saber and trident, the impacts of their collisions sent ripples that blew out in waves of forces that kept the sea at bay.
But the longer they fought, the more Li Mu felt apprehensive.
There was something familiar in his enemy’s style. For one moment, he thought that he was back in that abandoned parade square, fighting against the Extraterritorial Demons. This entity and his trident might not be the same, but the way he fought and his powers appeared starkly similar.
No one else in Molderad could ever best this creature in brute strength and raw endurance. Even with Li Mu, it would not have been possible without all eighteen techniques of the Zhenwu Boxing discipline mastered, or he would not stand even one chance at all. The entity’s skill with the trident, on the other hand, was not just the display of proficiency with the weapon, but rather, a display of ungodly pride.
“How!? How did a dweller of the demonic universe like you enter this world?!”
The being with the trident roared.
Li Mu did not bother to answer.
He could almost guess what was happening. The “demonic universe” that the being referred to must be the Ziwei Star Zone. But more importantly, he was eager to find out if the term “universe” that the being used is the same as what he knew.
If so, then Molderad was not only a world different from the Ziwei Star Zone, but also one in a much different position.
“You’re lucky that my armor is not yet complete, or you’ll never get away with such a sacrilege!”
The being wasn’t happy at all that despite his powers, he was still unable to control the initiative of this battle. He had even tried to make use of the advantage of having the sea of blood, but to no avail. For years he had been plotting his escape and Li Mu’s appearance had foiled everything.
The battle was growing too long.
Li Mu’s powers have grown well beyond the comprehension of usual mortal men. Yet even with his powers and strength, wresting over the advantage of this battle was all he could do. He knew he could never slay this being. Not here, at least, where the being’s wounds could heal on their own because of the sea of blood.
In the meantime, Li Mu’s body and physical endurance in this world remained young. After all, Li Zhiyuan was still a very young person. With better defense and endurance, his former body would have given him the edge to defeat this being. Hence Li Mu knew that so long as he could be injured easily, his victory would never be certain.
In the end, Li Mu chose to step out of the blood and withdraw back to the ground.
The weakened being and Li Mu stared at each other from afar.
“Anyone has a right to lay waste to you, demon. Let me live, and you’ll regret this folly one day,” smirked the being.
“Says the one who’s been stuck here, condemned to an eternity of living off the blood of others to keep himself sustained. Look at that monster you created to serve your purpose out there. It can’t even survive one single blow from me.”
Li Mu returned the gesture.
“The Abomination was just something I created out of a whim. I can just easily create another one. But if and when I’m out of here, I’ll spread the word about your presence in this world. Then, the real demons will arrive. They could ensnare you with just a snap of their fingers and torture you for answers. Once we have your secret, we’ll invade your world to bring light into that accursed universe of yours!”
“If and when you get out of here,” Li Mu smirked this time. “Let’s see if you get to do that first.”
Li Mu spun on his heels brusquely and walked away.
There was no point in staying since he couldn’t defeat this being. He should just retreat and plan something else.
They were being watched as Li Mu left. At times, he wished he could do something. Mount a surprise attack or something. But ultimately, he restrained himself and decided not to.
He knew how powerful Li Mu was. A deadly “demon” that would have long defeated and slain him if not for this sea of blood that has been providing him sustenance.
“There is still time… Just you wait… Once I’ve completed my craft and forged my armor, I will break out of here and kill you. Even if I can’t, I’d send word about your presence here. I’d be richly rewarded. Perhaps, we might find a way that leads straight into your world. I might even carve my name in the annals of both worlds, hahahaha!”
He broke into a peal of triumphant laughter while he slowly sank back into the sea of blood.
Li Mu made it back.
Shen Jia exhaled with relief to see his mentor making it back here safely, the suffocating feeling of trepidation that felt as if it got stuck in his throat was finally gone.
“Did you kill the real monster inside, Teacher?” he asked curiously.
“Failed to,” said Li Mu, shaking his head, “It was a draw. But I’ll think of something.”
That left Shen Jia puzzled and confused. He had not seen nor heard anyone who could resist his mentor’s might and he could not believe that the monster further inside the cave could. Li Mu had been gone for the better parts of two hours and that meant that the battle must have been quite long.
“Let’s go.”
Li Mu rammed a way out of the underground, taking Shen Jia and the still-unconscious Shen Xiaoyue with them, and came back to the dungeons.
They went back to the gaunt and frail Nie Renlong. Only this time, he looked completely different. His hair had turned grey by now and he looked stronger.
“Did you really defeat that monster?”
Nie Renlong uttered with disbelief when Li Mu appeared.
Li Mu fired a bolt that severed the thin capillaries on his back. The blood-like fluids spilled on the ground.
The dungeon had functioned like a machine where the champions of Arcusstone were its ingredients. Their life and powers were sapped by the strange blood-like fluid that the being with the trident below would absorb as sustenance. Those who were still alive after their ordeal were no different from milk cows who were allowed to live if only to continue surrendering their vigor.
Most if not all of them had gone mad that they turned into veritable triples.
As for Nie Renlong, he only survived by virtue of his Class X powers. Now that Li Mu has separated him from the contraption that sapped his powers, his aura and presence slowly grew. Three to four years of rest and recuperation should see him returning back to peak form.
“Thank you so much, young one.”
Nie Renlong respectfully bowed to Li Mu.
“It was just a piece of cake, sir,” said Li Mu straightforwardly, “What would you do from now on?”
“Rebuilding. I need to rebuild Arcusstone lest my forebears’ legacy crumbles to ruins in my hands.”
Li Mu could almost sympathize with what he went through, but he warned, “That being still lives. You need to be careful.”
“And I’ll be prepared this time. I’ll never fall for another trick of that monster again,” said Nie Renlong.
That was good enough for Li Mu, who decided to say no more.
But there was one other surprise. Li Mu met another face he recognized in one of the three rooms on the highest level — Yan Nanfei. It appeared that Yan Nanfei was abducted here almost after their parting where he was brought here and rendered incapacitated before they could put on the same contraption used on Nie Renlong.
It was lucky that Li Mu stumbled into him.
“You saved me again, Li,” said Yan Nanfei apologetically. “Thank you so much. I’ll take my leave for now.”
He thanked Li Mu and left immediately.
He had managed to reach Class X after his loss against Li Mu. He thought that he would be strong enough to wander the lands on his own until he met the son of the Lion, who easily defeated him and dragged him back here.
“Hmph,” muttered Shen Jia unhappily, “You saved him, Teacher, and he just left after a simple word of thanks.”
“Men like him demonstrate their gratitude through gestures, not through words, boy. You’ll need to learn more about that.”
“Yes, Teacher,” Shen Jia responded reverently.
Nie Renlong had not left them. “You’re extraordinarily gifted, and it’s clear that you’re the strongest warrior in the Northern Steppes,” he said suddenly, “Join me. Join Arcusstone and together, we can rule these parts and thwart any more plans of that accursed being below.”
Li Mu shook his head. “I still have work to do.”
But Li Mu was impressed by Nie Renlong’s fervor and drive. For a man who had been imprisoned for so long, he was still filled with the sense of inspiration and duty to salvage what remains of Arcusstone. Only, Li Mu had other plans.
He took Shen Jia and Shen Xiaoyue with him and left the Arcusstone stronghold.
…
A year passed by swiftly.
The entire Northern Steppe knew that Li Zhiyuan had taken on the Priory of the Four Seas and Arcusstone all in one day. In the end, the Priory was annihilated and Nie Renlong, the Dragon of Arcusstone appeared to provide his version of events: that he and Li Mu had fought together and the duel ended up in a draw.
Li Mu made no attempt to correct the narrative.
He brought Shen Jia and his sister back to the Creed of Divinity.
Just like that, the Creed of Divinity became the second strongest militant order behind Arcusstone.
Lu Chuan and everyone else at the Creed could not believe that anything like this could happen. Every day, they could not believe just how many people had come banging on their doors, demanding the chance to become a student to learn from the great and powerful Li Zhiyuan. But the Creed held on to the belief of quality over quantity and assessed the behavior and temperament of the applicants before gauging their gifts.
Meanwhile, the Northern Steppes underwent a huge transformation.
But few had seen the Aspect of Vengeance himself up close. Li Zhiyuan retreated from public notice, preferring to stay in the shadows. Slowly, he faded into the obscurity that no one had ever seen him after that.
“I really don’t get it. Teacher was the one who single-handedly saved Arcusstone. Yet look at Nie Renlong. The man has the cheek to tell the entire world that he fight with Teacher and the fight ended with a draw. How is that even the truth?! But what’s more mindboggling was the fact that Teacher did not even bother to refute that statement!”
He had hoped that due credit was given to his teacher for his abilities and what he did for Arcusstone.
“I’m sure Teacher knows best,” Fang Mei muttered as she trained, “You gotta catch up, Shen Jia, or Teacher would give you a lashing if he catches you slacking.”
Li Mu now has three protégés: Fang Mei, Fang Yuan, and Shen Jia.
Shen Xiaoyue might be accepted as an acolyte of the Creed, but she was by no means a student of Li Mu’s.
Time passed by swiftly.
Another five years had gone by in the blink of an eye.
