He leaped up and swung his staff down. A fierce wind preceded the blow, slamming into his target's face.
Xu Xian remained motionless, slowly lifting his gaze. His eyes narrowed slightly as a flash of purple light flickered through them. His divine sense, like a bolt of lightning, instantly pierced through the man's defenses.
The green-haired man’s sea of consciousness shuddered, and his head felt as if it were exploding.
Xu Xian took a small step forward, his hand thrusting the long spear in a fluid, upward motion.
"Zeng!"
The spear thrust out like a dragon, carrying a faint, echoing roar. The mournful wind swirled, knocking the bamboo hat away and sending his white hair dancing wildly.
"Ugh..."
The wind settled. In the dilapidated alley, one could hear a pin drop. Time seemed to have frozen.
The white-haired youth held the spear with one hand, its tip piercing through the green-clad man’s chest, hoisting him high into the air.
He looked like a scarecrow hanging from a bamboo pole.
The scene was frozen in that single moment.
Hot green blood slid down the shaft of the spear, warming Xu Xian's palm before dripping from the crook of his thumb onto the ground.
Drip. Drip. Drip...
A loud clang disturbed the silence. The scene resumed as the black staff fell, rolling into the corner of the alley.
The seventh-rank lesser demon king’s body went limp. Using the last of his strength, he lifted his eyes to look at Xu Xian.
A look of helpless bitterness squeezed through his pained expression as he croaked out, "Such... a... fast... spear!"
With those words, he deflated like a punctured balloon, his entire body going soft.
His head lolled, his hair hung down, and his limbs dangled naturally.
He was dead!
His glory didn't even last three seconds!
He never imagined until the moment of his death that what was supposed to be a "test" of skill would cost him his life.
It was an end, not a trial.
The youth’s eyebrows arched slightly as he clicked his tongue in regret. "What a good person. Such a pity..."
Underestimating the enemy was a cardinal sin for any combatant.
The reason he died so decisively was because he was overconfident and reckless. His death was well-deserved.
Xu Xian pulled the spear out, and the corpse hit the ground with a heavy thud.
With a flick of his right hand, he hoisted the spear onto his shoulder. He turned back, walked a few steps, stopped, leaned over, and picked up the bamboo hat that had been blown away.
Holding it in his hand, he vigorously shook off the dust. Facing the empty, long street, he spoke:
"You two, whichever family this man belongs to, you can come out and collect the body."
The empty alley remained silent. Only a cold wind swept through, adding a layer of desolation to the corpse on the ground.
"None of you are coming out?"
"Are you afraid of me?"
Xu Xian knit his brows, his tone laced with mockery and provocation.
"An eighth-rank greater demon king doesn't even have the courage of a seventh-rank lesser demon king. Hiding in the shadows like a shrinking turtle... I wonder if your masters know about this?"
There was still no response.
Xu Xian chuckled. He put his bamboo hat back on, shouldered his spear, and walked arrogantly toward the end of the alley.
As he left, he didn't forget to use telekinesis to snatch up everything worth taking.
He said lazily, "Fine if you don't come out. I'm in a decent mood today, so I'll spare your lives. Go back and tell your masters."
"I have a very powerful background. Don't provoke me, or I'll finish you all off."
The youth spoke with grand posturing and absolute conviction.
It was as if he really was telling the truth, and his backing truly was terrifyingly formidable.
Walking away with such composed elegance, combined with that spear strike from earlier, it was truly hard for anyone to refute him.
In the shadows.
One figure had a grave expression. He retreated silently, heading straight for the Crimson Demon Palace.
Another figure, at some point, had already appeared before the corpse.
The deep furrows between his brows were clear, and a dark complexity swirled in his eyes.
A six-rank initial stage killing a seven-rank initial stage.
Three breaths.
One spear strike!
Fast! Precise! Ruthless! Swift! Powerful!
If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, who would believe it?
And he was just a third-class mortal demon.
The one who died was an ordinary heavenly demon race member.
A loyal and brave warrior of the Nether Hall.
That boy was a ruthless person and a demonic talent.
Moreover, the observer could assert that the youth definitely possessed an extraordinary opportunity.
If the orders from above hadn't been to only test him and not act recklessly, he would have certainly stepped out to kill the boy and seize his fortune for himself.
What a shame...
As for the background the boy spoke of?
He remained non-committal. In the Demon Abyss, who could have a more powerful background than the Nether Religion?
Was it a bluff?
Or was there really a hidden deity standing behind him?
He couldn't be sure either and could only report back to the High Priest to let her decide.
However, it was undeniable that this youth not only had methods but also a good temperament.
Though his "etiquette" after the kill was quite unsightly.
He had stripped the body of everything except the clothes. The observer hadn't even noticed when he had made his move.
He gave a bitter smile. "Heh."
He helplessly rolled up the corpse, stored it in his ring, and in the blink of an eye, he had vanished!
The street remained as empty as ever...
Only after both auras had vanished did Xu Xian, who was hiding in the darkness, let out a long sigh of relief. He patted his chest, still feeling the lingering fear.
Whew—
The Little Book Spirit analyzed, "Master, we really can't stay in this damn place anymore. Even a dog's nose isn't this sharp. Their masters must be even more terrifying."
Xu Xian's face darkened.
Wasn't that the truth?
He had already set up two formations and deliberately caused a commotion to slip away under the cover of chaos.
He even had the Pupil of Insight and an Immortal King's Cloak for camouflage.
Logically, those two only had eighth-stage cultivations, yet they had still tracked his scent here.
From beginning to end, it felt as if he had never left their sight.
It was like seeing a ghost.
How did they know?
Had his methods failed?
Or did the demon race have some special tracking technique, or perhaps there was a pair of eyes in the sky?
He couldn't figure it out.
No matter how he racked his brain, he couldn't understand.
It couldn't be that his items exposed him, right? The broken identity jade, the Crimson Flame Gilded Spear, or the secret manual Chi Ji gave him?
Little Book dismissed these possibilities.
Those items weren't in a storage bag; they were inside the Divine Sword Pool.
Back in the Wendao Sword Sect, hundreds of thousands of miles away, even if the Sword Mound couldn't isolate the aura, they would only be able to track it to the sect itself.
Obviously, that explanation was too ridiculous.
"This is tricky!" Xu Xian said.
Little Book added, "I saw the guy who collected the body. He's even tougher than that guy Chi Yan."
Xu Xian hummed in agreement. He admitted there was an element of gambling in his actions, but he had also kept a trump card ready, prepared to fight if necessary.
First of all, the two watchers weren't from the same group. If they really fought, even if he couldn't kill them, he was confident he could escape. His real fear was drawing out the powerhouses behind them.
That would be true trouble.
Fortunately, it was just as he thought—as long as he didn't leave the Nether Capital, they wouldn't kill him for the time being.
The reason was simple: if they wanted to move, they would have done it already instead of watching him for so many days.
As for why they were doing this, that was their business.
Xu Xian could guess a few reasons.
They were wary of something they feared, or they wanted to use him to uncover some truth.
The truth of that one sword strike.
The person behind him.
Or perhaps this was a game between two different factions?
None of that was important—at least not to Xu Xian.
All he knew was that he was being watched, and the enemy had methods he couldn't counter yet.
What he needed to do now wasn't to leave; that would be even more risky.
It was better to follow their lead and stay in the city. He would secretly condense the nether fire and forge the item he wanted before going underwater to dig for stones.
When the time came and the three-story Sword Tower was built, his goal would be achieved.
Even if the people behind them wanted to keep him then, it would be extremely difficult.
Besides...
He was the Little Grand-Uncle of the Wendao Sword Sect and the Little Junior Brother of Lei Yunche.
He couldn't say for sure about other places, but in this Demon Abyss, he felt mentioning his Senior Brother's name should carry some weight.
If nothing else, keeping his life shouldn't be much of a problem.
"Let's go."
"Are we running?"
"Not yet."
"Oh!"
Rate on N.U.
