52. Rampage
Li Miao was seasoned in battle and had anticipated a counterattack. Before the icy blue arrow was fully unleashed, he sidestepped with a deft slide, sweeping out a wave of scorching blade energy toward the giant crab’s thorn-covered hind leg.
The arrow missed its mark and struck the waterfall, freezing the cascading curtain into a wall of ice, which slowly collapsed.
His blade energy landed just a moment later, slicing off over a dozen barbed spines from the crab’s leg with a crisp snap.
Though he hadn’t severed the crab demon’s limb outright, the blow left the Lord of the River in pain and humiliation. The heat within the blade’s force was particularly intolerable for one adapted to aquatic life. Enraged, he bellowed, “Damn you! You’ve angered your king!”
A chill surged from the Lord of the River, spreading as an icy blue mist that quickly enveloped his entire form.
A layer of hard ice armor condensed over the giant crab’s body, bristling with deadly spikes, giving him a fearsome appearance.
Clearly, he meant to fight in earnest now.
So be it; let’s see whose strength prevails.
Li Miao retreated several yards, igniting the power of crimson flame within his Sunblade, preparing his finishing move.
“Prepare to die, human!” the Lord of the River shouted, his ice-armored form rising dozens of feet off the ground. Eight legs and two pincers tucked in, his body forming a spiked circle that began to spin rapidly.
A storm of icy wind gathered overhead.
Li Miao wasted no time, channeling more than a tenth of his primal energy into the Sunblade. Flames surged forth from the blade, spreading until they engulfed him entirely.
With fire enveloping him, Li Miao remained unharmed, as if transformed into a deity of flame. His aura soared to its peak!
The Lord of the River spun faster and faster, and his demonic arts grew ever more intimidating.
Nearby, the Lord of Overturned Waters and the Lord of Cloudswirl watched in awe. The lesser demons cowered in the corners, frightened by the escalating ferocity.
At last, both Li Miao and the Lord of the River reached the height of their power.
Man and demon, both ready, uttered their battle cries.
“Strike of the Frozen Hell!”
“Scorch... the Heavens!”
The battle blade scraped the ground.
One step.
Two steps.
Three steps!
Li Miao leapt skyward, while the Lord of the River plummeted from above!
A roar.
A hiss!
The flame dragon roared, the icy winds howled.
Fire and ice, red and blue—like twin comets colliding with thunderous force!
Boom!!!
A dazzling sphere of light exploded above the pool.
Half icy blue, half crimson, it swallowed the vision of all present demons.
Then, two figures were flung from the light.
Li Miao crashed to the ground, his knees sinking into the earth. The flames around him extinguished, frost crusted his chest, and a blood-red shard of ice hung from his lips—clearly wounded.
But before the demons could celebrate, they saw the Lord of the River was also thrown aside, his ice armor shattered, black smoke rising from his scorched body as he tumbled toward the rocks.
“The king is wounded!”
“Our big brother was actually hurt by a cultivator in the Condensing Truth realm!”
The demons cried out in shock.
Yet, in the next moment, something even more terrifying happened!
Li Miao spat out the frozen blood, transferred the Sunblade to his left hand, and stretched his right toward the fallen Lord of the River, declaring in a deep voice, “Sky... Vault... Finger!”
A ripple of invisible force spread outward.
In the air, a phantom finger formed from mysterious power, pointing directly at the falling Lord of the River.
“No!”
“Big brother, look out!”
The might of the divine art struck terror in their hearts; the Lord of Overturned Waters and the Lord of Cloudswirl sensed the destructive power of the Sky Vault Finger and rushed after their brother.
But they could not hope to match the speed of a divine art!
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The Sky Vault Finger descended silently.
The Lord of the River, wounded by the Scorching Heaven blade, was still falling, unable to react—almost as if he were willingly meeting the devastating strike head-on.
Crack.
The phantom finger touched the crab’s shell with a crisp snap.
In a moment of crisis, the Lord of the River forcibly condensed three layers of ice armor to block the divine art.
He underestimated its power; the ice armor shattered in succession, and even his exceptionally tough shell could not withstand it. With a pop, the finger pierced through, its phantom passing straight through his body.
“Aaaargh!”
The giant crab howled in agony.
The force of the divine art was unstoppable.
Yet... a great demon was still a great demon. Even with extraordinary divine arts, the difference in cultivation meant Li Miao’s Sky Vault Finger could not deliver a fatal blow—merely piercing his shell and grievously wounding him.
The Lord of the River’s toughest shell was breached, and even his life essence was destroyed by forty percent, nearly costing him his life. Stunned and terrified, he gasped, “No, I cannot die yet. I haven’t gained the Night Queen’s favor—I cannot die!”
“Big brother!”
“Don’t panic, we’re here!”
The two great demons reached his side, helping to stem the crab’s injuries.
The Lord of Cloudswirl, the egret spirit, stared at the massive wound—a foot wide and over two feet deep—on her brother’s body, along with the charred marks, her amber eyes filled with disbelief as she looked at Li Miao.
With their assistance, the Lord of the River’s injuries were stabilized, avoiding further deterioration.
But with nearly half his life essence destroyed by the Sky Vault Finger, he was utterly spent, unable to fight on, left sprawled helplessly by the water.
The Lord of Overturned Waters turned to face Li Miao, who was also badly hurt. A fierce glint flashed in his fish eyes. “Little sister, heal our brother; I’ll deal with this damned human!”
He conjured a steel trident with a sweep of his arm, flicked his fish tail, and floated into the air.
Water power surged; the pool, waterfall, and stream all lent their force, sending streams of energy toward him.
A curtain of water rose to the sky, as impressive as the Lord of the River’s display.
Li Miao, far from intimidated, laughed.
He was wounded, his upper body stiff with frost, but his fighting power remained.
If the Lord of Overturned Waters and the Lord of Cloudswirl teamed up, he would most likely fall here.
But seeing him injured, they foolishly opted for a one-on-one—granting him a golden opportunity!
The Sunblade returned to his right hand, and Li Miao used primal energy to steady his breath.
The Lord of Overturned Waters gathered power from the streams, preparing a grand attack.
But Li Miao would not give him such a chance. He moved swiftly, launching himself at his foe.
“Hmph!”
With a sweep of his left arm, the Lord of Overturned Waters sent several streams shooting forth.
These were not ordinary water; infused with demon energy at his level, they were sharper than iron arrows.
Li Miao slashed twice, employing a special technique of the Devouring Blade. His blade energy shredded and absorbed the demon energy within the streams, leaving only droplets to rain down.
“Take my blade and see how it feels.”
Li Miao laughed quietly.
Dragging the broken blade along the ground, he took three steps, shattering the water beneath his feet, and unleashed a fiery blaze.
“Scorch the Heavens!”
A roar.
The broken blade transformed into a flaming dragon three yards long, surging toward the airborne fish demon.
Having witnessed this move before, the Lord of Overturned Waters knew its danger. He immediately abandoned his half-gathered power, dodging aside.
Whoosh!
The flame dragon shot forth, its intense heat vaporizing huge swathes of water into mist.
The Lord of Overturned Waters shuddered with dread.
Had he not dodged, the heat of that flame dragon would have roasted him alive.
Realizing his disadvantage in the air, he flicked his tail, abandoned the water curtain, and darted toward the pool, seeking to leverage the water and waterfall for an equal contest.
Within the pool, the aquatic abilities of the fish demon made Li Miao’s task difficult.
But Li Miao, battle-hardened, would not make such a rookie mistake.
He had no intention of pursuing.
Seeing the Lord of Overturned Waters dive into the pool, Li Miao’s lips curled. He abandoned that target, darting toward the Lord of the River and the Lord of Cloudswirl!
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“Demons yet to take human form truly have pitiable intelligence.”
Li Miao sneered inwardly, gathering surging power in the Sunblade and slashing at the egret demon’s slender neck.
His reaction was swift; he moved with lightning speed.
No sooner had the Lord of Overturned Waters returned to the pool than Li Miao was beside the two other demons at the streamside rocks.
All three great demons and the lesser spirits were stunned by his move, unable to grasp why he suddenly switched targets.
Sensing the destructive power in the crimson blade, the Lord of Cloudswirl shrieked, flapping her wings in terror, trying to escape.
If her brothers couldn’t withstand this power, she, the weakest of the three, stood no chance.
Just as the devastating blow was about to strike the fragile egret, the weakened Lord of the River suddenly summoned hidden strength, raising himself and throwing his body in front of her!
Splat!
The blazing Sunblade descended with immense force, cleaving straight down from the Lord of the River’s head.
Without demon energy to shield him, the blue crab demon’s shell lost its defensive power, utterly unable to withstand the blow. The blade’s force tore from head to the rear.
The blade nearly split the Lord of the River in two, splattering greenish fluids and a foul stench.
As the blade passed, Li Miao clearly saw a scar beneath the crab’s belly—identical to the one depicted in the general’s tomb mural, where the giant crab was slain.
This Lord of the River was indeed the resurrected demon from the tomb!
“Big... brother!”
The enormous crab body split, several drops of green liquid splashing onto the Lord of Cloudswirl’s pristine feathers. She screamed in terror.
From the pool, the fish demon Lord of Overturned Waters roared in rage, “Scoundrel! You dared kill my brother! I’ll fight you to the death!” He raised his trident, causing the entire pool to boil.
Seeing his brother slain, the Lord of Overturned Waters went berserk.
Demon energy poured out recklessly, merging with the pool, turning the clear water a vivid green.
“Rise!”
The fish demon’s half-human form raised his trident high.
The water exploded into a massive wave. A giant beast over five yards tall burst forth, howling to the sky, its roar vibrating the air.
The beast resembled a qilin: majestic and powerful, its limbs like pillars, its body like an ancient mountain.
Though formed only from demon energy and water, lacking eyes, scales, or whiskers, its ferocity rivaled a true beast. Its aura was almost on par with a demon of the Returning Origin realm, and its colossal form was as imposing as a guardian deity.
The water qilin stomped, mountains shifting, and in the blink of an eye charged at Li Miao, raising its massive paw to strike.
Before the five-yard-tall beast, Li Miao seemed as insignificant as a bubble.
But his fighting spirit matched, even surpassed, the beast’s!
As the water qilin’s paw descended, Li Miao stood firm, drew a breath, heart and mind united, and met it with a heavy punch.
His blade and Sky Vault Finger were powerful, but consumed great primal energy—best reserved as trump cards.
Yet even without them, his fists, weighing over ten tons and boosted by primal energy, were enough to challenge a Returning Origin cultivator.
Bang!
The punch landed with the force of a cannon.
His iron fist struck the qilin’s water paw, their sizes unmatched—but the smaller was fiercer, as if the beast were the bubble and Li Miao the true monster.
A massive splash erupted, the qilin’s forelimb shattered, and it howled in pain.
Li Miao pressed his advantage, planting the Sunblade in a rock and unleashing fists and feet.
Bang bang bang...
Each punch echoed like thunder, each stomp broke apart the qilin’s body.
He was a humanoid beast, his strength exceeding many great demons, and his agility left the water qilin unable to react, forced to stand and take the blows.
Li Miao battered away, fists like thunderbolts, delivering a hundred strikes in moments.
After the relentless barrage, the five-yard-tall water qilin shattered like tofu, collapsing with a splash and returning to clear water, flowing into the stream and onward to the distant Cangyun River.
“Any more tricks? Bring them on!”
Li Miao, like a celestial being, stood atop the rocks, mercilessly taunting the Lord of Overturned Waters.
He still had half his primal energy left; even against two great demons, he could fight on.
Moreover, for some reason, the Lord of Cloudswirl gave him a strange impression—she seemed to lack any combat ability, never once using demonic arts to aid her brothers. She kept her distance, like a timid young girl.
The Lord of Overturned Waters hadn’t expected that, beyond fierce blade and formidable divine arts, Li Miao’s physical strength was so overwhelming. The rage that had just flared faded with the qilin’s destruction. Staring at the awe-inspiring Li Miao, he felt a twinge of fear.
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