The waterfall gurgled endlessly in the gloomy depths. The underground river plunged off the edge, falling into an underground lake in the large cavern. A tiny island protruded from the lake.
Zhuo Zhibo and the seven Black Wolf guards surrounded Li Qingshan. Every single one of them sneered. Ge Jian said, “Kid, don’t tell me you’ve lost your mind from fear!”
“Don’t waste any words on him. Just kill him!” said a Black Wolf guard impatiently.
Xie Nande added, “Yeah, commander. We still need to chase down those disciples of mohism.”
“I have my plans!”
Zhuo Zhibo seemed to enjoy the current feeling very much. He raised his hand to silence the Black Wolf guards and said to Li Qingshan, “Do you regret becoming enemies with me now? If you knew how to conduct yourself and showed a little respect when you first arrived in Jiaping, I wouldn’t have wanted to kill you so much. If you kneel and beg me right now, I might spare you.” The feeling of absolute power over the weak would always bring him great pleasure.
Li Qingshan lowered his head to look at the embroidery on his Black Wolf uniform. “The uniform depicts a wolf, not a dog!” Seeing how he pissed off the seven Black Wolf guards, he raised his head. “Don’t get mad. There’s nothing wrong with being the powerful’s dog, but I just happen to dislike that.”
Cold light flashed through Zhuo Zhibo’s eyes. With a wave of his hand, a small, shining blade appeared in his grasps. “Before I kill you, there are some things I want to ask you about. If you answer them honestly, I’ll give you a quicker death…”
“Don’t worry. No matter what you say, I’ll give you all a quick death.” Li Qingshan interrupted him with a sneer as the canines in his mouth seemed longer than usual.
Suddenly, Zhuo Zhibo felt a terrifyingly powerful daemon qi erupt from Li Qingshan’s body, kicking up a violent gust of wind in the cavern. The Black Wolf guards all raised their hands in fright as they stared at Li Qingshan in disbelief.
Li Qingshan pulled off the Black Wolf uniform on him, revealing his sturdy chest. His bronze skin gradually darkened, gaining the lustre of steel. Two specks of light lit up in his eyes as his black hair turned scarlet, draping down. He rapidly grew taller—three feet, five feet, seven feet… However, he was unable to reach the ceiling. His aura rapidly rose as well, until it reached the very peak.
Li Qingshan looked down and muttered to himself, “I seem to have grown taller again!” The pills he had eaten in the past few days had not gone to waste. He was around twenty-seven feet now, close to thirty feet. Just by standing there, he was taller than a double-storeyed building. His body that seemed to be forged from black iron seemed immovable like a mountain.
Zhuo Zhibo’s eyes widened as he said in disbelief, “You’re a daemon! That’s impossible!” Li Qingshan had met Wang Pushi and Gu Yanying before, which was why he had joined the Hawkwolf Guard in the first place. With their cultivation, it was impossible for them to have failed to notice Li Qingshan’s true form.
Suddenly, he recalled that the major pillar of the Ruyi commandery possessed the bloodline of daemons as well. However, as her bloodline was just too sacred within Great Xia, even more noble than many members of royalty, many people would often forget about that. Was this a scheme of hers?
From a certain perspective, he was not wrong. However, this was not a scheme. It was just a misunderstanding. All of this resulted from a moment of interest and a sigh from her. If Gu Yanying was truly trying to set up some kind of scheme, even the current Li Qingshan would have no right to partake in it.
“Commander, what do we do!?” Ge Jian cried out frantically. He could clearly feel that Li Qingshan only needed to reach over, and he would be crushed. When he realised he had been constantly provoking such a terrifying thing in the past, he became shaken up.
“I understand now. You killed Zhao Liangqing and Qian Yannian like this,” said Zhuo Zhibo. He had already calmed himself down. Li Qingshan was not the Daemon General that he originally believed him to be. Although he could assume a human form, he only possessed the strength of the sixth or seventh layer. He was not undefeatable.
At this moment, Li Qingshan suddenly understood why those villains in those stories would always ramble a little, like Zhuo Zhibo had done earlier. This was because the feeling of being in complete control was delightful. He could understand it now.
However, with all the examples he had seen in the past, he had to hold back his emotions. He said with his deep, metallic voice, “You’re right…” He seemed to lift his left foot carelessly, or should you say his left hoof, before stamping down violently.
Innate ability, the Ox Demon Tramples!
“Jump!” Zhuo Zhibo noticed that something was off first and leapt into the air. Most of the other Black Wolf guards had been experienced members of the jianghu as well in the past, so their reactions were not slow either. With a spurt of true qi from the balls of their feet, they rushed into the air like rockets.
Only a third layer Qi Practitioner reacted a little slow. Just when he wanted to jump, the shockwave reached his foot and spread through his body. All of his bones shattered in a single instant, and even his skin cracked open. He exploded with a bang.
Zhuo Zhibo and the Black Wolf guards with him gazed down in fright. They did not look at the dead Black Wolf guard, but at the entire island. With a rumble, the tiny island shattered, becoming riddled with cracks and reduced to pieces. At the centre of it all was Li Qingshan’s left foot.
The lake water churned violently, swallowing the pieces of rock and soil. The island in the centre of the land had shattered and sunk from Li Qingshan’s stomp, forming several hundred vortices of various sizes. Li Qingshan stood above the shockwave, standing among the whirlpools as he gazed up with his fiery eyes.
Zhuo Zhibo tightened his grasp around his tiny blade. What terrifying power was that? That was not something a regular daemon possessed!
If Li Qingshan were no different from a regular daemon, what would be the point of practising the Ox Demon’s Fist of Great Strength? With his recent cultivation, he was close to breaking through to the second layer of the Ox Demon’s Fist of Great Strength. He felt that his strength had grown significantly once again. Although it would become more difficult with progress, requiring even more resources than before, the power it would bring would be even greater as well.
Xiao An hid within the water as her lips curled into a smile. She was in no hurry to interfere, as she could feel that Li Qingshan was in high spirits. He wanted to vent.
Li Qingshan said with some pity, “This move seems rather difficult to use, so let’s try this instead!” He took in a deep breath and roared at the ceiling.
The Tiger Demon’s Killing Roar!
The sound wave shook the surroundings as the wind swept out like blades and swords. It was countless times more powerful than the wind blades from the Wind-entwining blade.
Zhuo Zhibo’s expression changed. “Oh no!”
The sound wave arrived before the gust of wind. The two Black Wolf guards who were struck first clutched their heads in pain as their true qi had basically been scattered away completely. Just when they were about to fall from the air, the following gust of wind reduced them to a bloody powder, blowing it everywhere.
The roar resounded through the cavern, echoing about for quite a while. The other Black Wolf guards barely managed to recover from the tremor of the sound wave. Their hearts completely sank with this sight.
The enemy before them could not be compared to anyone they had ever fought before. If just a single strike landed, even if it were a careless one, they would be crushed to pieces. They would be dead. Fleeing after they were injured was no longer possible.
Li Qingshan said, “That’s not a bad move!” He should have said that it was not a bad following move. Having been forced into the air by the Ox Demon Tramples, even Qi Practitioners would struggle to maneuver themselves. They could not avoid the Tiger Demon’s Killing Roar.
Li Qingshan basically massacred Zhuo Zhibo’s subordinates like he was experimenting with them right in front of the latter, which both startled and angered Zhuo Zhibo. He even developed a sliver of fear. He had never thought that the prey that would definitely fall to him this time would actually manage to reverse their identities, turning himself into the predator instead. It descended into a one-sided slaughter for Li Qingshan.
This kid is even more dangerous than the Zombie Daoist. If I don’t find a way to turn the situation around, even I will be in danger today.
Zhuo Zhibo chanted rapidly and parted his hands, producing a ball of fire. The fire surged into a scorching fire dragon, illuminating the entire cavern. It let out a great roar before charging towards Li Qingshan, swinging its claws and baring its fangs. He had channelled his full strength into this attack. It was no longer the same as the time at the Hawkwolf Guard. Even if he could not heavily injure Li Qingshan, he wanted to turn the situation around and gain the upper hand.
Li Qingshan completely ignored the incoming, scorching flames. He extended his sharp claws and grabbed the dragon by its neck.
The dragon’s roar halted!
However, Zhuo Zhibo was delighted. He practised the Bing Fire Method of Burning Qi out of the methods of the five elements. He could ignite his true qi, turning it into scorching flames and amplifying all techniques that involved fire. It was a form of true qi that was extremely suited for battle, only paling in comparison to the Geng Metal Method of Sharpening Qi in terms of killing power. It even surpassed it in terms of large scale destruction.
The heat from the flames were even enough to melt steel in a single instant. Since he was bold enough to use his bare hands against it, he better leave a hand behind then! However, his smile immediately stiffened.
Under Zhuo Zhibo’s control, the fire dragon struggled desperately in Li Qingshan’s hand. Its flames burned more and more violently, almost to a point where they were golden. However, it remained firmly trapped in Li Qingshan’s hand.
There was a flash of red light through Li Qingshan’s eyes. He crushed down with his great strength; the fire dragon shattered into countless sparks, drifting through the air. “The same move is useless against me.” There were not even signs of charring on his hand.
The five elements reinforced and neutralised one another. His daemon qi had always been of the water element, so it was perfect for neutralising fire. The daemon qi on daemons completely surpassed the true qi on humans of the same level, so extinguishing Zhuo Zhibo’s flames posed no difficulty at all.
The four remaining Black Wolf guards used this opportunity to launch their strongest attacks. They knew that this was a matter of life or death, so they used everything that they had. Low grade or even mid grade talismans turned into fire, wind blades, and lightning as they darted towards Li Qingshan.
Li Qingshan said, “The Spirit Turtle’s Profound Shell!” A faint, blue screen of light encapsulated him. Not a single attack could pass through the shield and reach him.
The Black Wolf guards all sank into despair. How were they supposed to defeat an opponent they could not even touch?
Zhuo Zhibo was filled with regret. It was not like the grievances between him and Li Qingshan had reached the point of no return. If he had known earlier, he would have never antagonised this fellow over the slightest prejudice.
Ge Jian called out, “Let’s retreat, commander!”
“This turtle shell is pretty good. I just wonder if it can block the attacks of mid grade spiritual artifacts,” Li Qingshan mumbled to himself. He raised his head and looked at Zhuo Zhibo, waiting for him to continue. However, Zhuo Zhibo gave a decisive order, “Retreat!”
As if they had been spared, the remaining Black Wolf guards used everything that they had, sticking several acceleration talismans on themselves and fleeing in all directions.
