The Demon Suppression Bureau, in a brightly sunlit study.
Li Daoxuan furrowed his brow as he inspected the contents of a secret letter in his hands.
In front of him stood the equally grave and muscular Wang Xindong, who spoke in a deep voice, "Recently, we have been tracking a group of demons under the White Deer Demon King. Unexpectedly, we stumbled upon something. It seems quite possible that the White Deer Demon King has been in contact with the upper echelons of the great families; we do not know what they are scheming."
"The great families..."
Li Daoxuan grabbed the secret letter, and it turned to ash in his hand.
He rubbed his temples, "At this juncture, any collaboration between demons and the great families is highly sensitive. In the past, collaborations involved only individual families. But now, the Six-Family Alliance has formed. If their cooperation restarts, this won't be a minor issue."
"That's precisely what I'm worried about," said Wang Xindong. He gestured across his neck, speaking ominously, "When the enemy is strong and we are weak, the longer it drags on, the less favorable the situation will become for us."
"Should we... strike first?"
"Hmm," Li Daoxuan nodded, "It's something to consider, but we must be fatal in one blow. Let me think, this matter should..."
Thud thud thud!
Knocking noises interrupted their conversation.
"Please come in," Li Daoxuan lifted his head and said from a distance.
Click!
The door was pushed open.
In the bright sunlight, a pair of wheat-colored long legs stepped through.
The newcomer was a robust and tall beautiful woman, around thirty years of age, with a darker complexion, dressed quite boldly. She wore a black leather outfit consisting of shorts that just covered her chest and the most sensitive parts below. A black cloak draped over her shoulders and in her left hand, she held a blood-colored ax.
Her name was Luo Shuang.
Among the Demon Suppression Bureau, she was one of the three Deputy Governors responsible for slaying demons, with exceptionally strong practical combat abilities.
Her experiences could be considered legendary even within the entire Jiangzhou branch of the Demon Suppression Bureau.
When Luo Shuang was fourteen,
Her village was attacked by demons.
By the time the people from the Demon Suppression Bureau received the news and arrived, the attack had already happened three full days prior.
During those three days, Luo Shuang, who was just an ordinary girl, engaged in a hide and seek with the demon that attacked her village. She hid while seeking its weaknesses, ultimately killing the demon. Of the hundred-plus people in the village, only she survived.
Such fighting talent was simply incredible.
Thus, among the Deputy Governors of the Demon Suppression Bureau, even though Luo Shuang's realm wasn't the highest, her practical combat ability was undeniably the strongest.
Luo Shuang was also the initial candidate Li Daoxuan had chosen as his successor.
But now, in his heart, he faintly felt he had a better option.
"In such a rush, what's the matter?" Li Daoxuan looked up and asked with a smile.
"I've received a secret letter from Elder Jin Mingxi," Luo Shuang said, placing the ax casually on the table. Despite her name containing the character for frost, she wasn't a cold person.
"The new Tower Master has just left the Demon Suppression Tower," Luo Shuang reported, "Elder Jin Mingxi speculates that Su Heng may be seeking revenge on a demon."
"Seeking revenge?" Li Daoxuan said, surprised, "Which demon has offended him?"
"The White Deer Demon King," Luo Shuang summarized the events that had unfolded at the Demon Suppression Tower.
Unexpectedly.
No sooner had she finished speaking, the previously lively atmosphere fell into silence.
Li Daoxuan and Wang Xindong looked at each other, the former gripping his beard tightly, frowning, "This is bad!"
"What's so terrible?" Luo Shuang asked, puzzled, "Isn't the new guy pretty fierce? I heard that he gave the Wolf King a beatdown. I just got back from a mission and was looking for an opportunity to spar with him."
"It's acceptable to face a Demon King alone, but the current situation is very complex." Li Daoxuan shared the content of the secret letter.
He lowered his head, pacing back and forth on the ground.
Then, with a fierce slap on the table and cold light flashing in his eyes, he said, "Didn't we just talk about finding an opportunity to take action? Now is the best chance!"
"Colluding with demons, the crime is unpardonable, we'll strike them all down at once!" Li Daoxuan exclaimed angrily.
"Good!" Wang Xindong laughed heartily, "I'll go with you."
"There's no time to delay, we must set off now!" Luo Shuang was also a person of decisive action.
Li Daoxuan led the team himself with the two Deputy Governors following; they were few in number but each was among the elite of the Demon Suppression Bureau.
The three were furious.
However, after just a few steps, Li Daoxuan stopped.
"What's the matter, old man?" Luo Shuang asked irritably. Sёarch* The Nôvel(F)ire.ηet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.
Li Daoxuan didn't respond, but just looked up with a grave expression. In the distance, on the grayish-green city wall tower, stood a tall figure wearing a hat, his back to the sun.
The great sun hung high in the sky.
Because of the intense sunlight, all that could be seen was a black silhouette, the face indiscernible.
But that was enough.
The two had been enemies for nearly a hundred years, each fully familiar with the other.
Li Daoxuan recognized the figure on the tower as his archenemy, the leader of the great families, Hong Jiuxiang.
Moreover, if things were as usual, there would likely be many powerful family martial artists hidden in the surrounding buildings, and it was very possible that demons were mixed among them as well.
Yet, Li Daoxuan was not afraid.
He even patted Luo Shuang and Wang Xindong on the shoulders, signaling them to leave first and provide support, while he remained alone.
"Old man, is it not a bit of a stretch for you to be here alone?" Luo Shuang said, frowning worriedly.
"The old man is very stubborn, just leave him be," said Wang Xindong. As the eldest disciple, he naturally knew his master's temperament.
He pulled Luo Shuang away.
It was early summer in the afternoon, and the sun was fierce.
Yet the atmosphere around turned icy, and the two had no obstacles as they crossed the city wall and disappeared from the city.
Li Daoxuan slowly rolled up his sleeves and looked at the figure on the tower, laughing boldly, "Hong Wendao, after all these years. From those early days as the unsurpassed son of the great families to now the leader of the Six-Family Alliance. You still fear me so much, haha!"
His body expanded inch by inch, transforming into a massive, pitch-black Ape Demon.
The robust laughter grew increasingly terrifying as it echoed throughout the city, causing the surrounding buildings to buzz and tremble. Hiding in the shadows, an assassin spat out blood from his mouth, his face showing horror. It was unimaginable that just the sound of laughter could shake one's organs so violently, causing him to fall straight down from mid-air.
...
...
...
"Beyond this huge oak tree lies the White Deer Demon King's chamber," Ye Tong said with a dull look in her eyes.
By now, she had realized.
It was the curse on her that had attracted the comet-like Su Heng.
One blow after another, and Ye Tong's spirit finally collapsed.
At this moment, she was almost as good as a wooden puppet. No matter what command Su Heng issued, even if he ordered her to take her own life on the spot,
Ye Tong would do it without hesitation.
Among all the emotions of sentient beings, fear is the most intense.
The utmost fear could easily dominate one's spirit, which was the situation with Ye Tong now. When facing Su Heng, she would numbly obey, unable to even think.
Crack!
Following Ye Tong's words, Su Heng stopped in his tracks.
His black boots splashed through a stream, the once crystal-clear water gradually tinged with a shade of red.
Su Heng lifted his head, examining the oak tree before him.
Previously, from above the canyon and through the mist, he had already had a clear view of it.
But now standing nearby, he realized just how extraordinarily large the oak truly was. Over a hundred meters tall with a diameter of more than ten meters. Dense roots protruding from the ground in a radius of tens of meters, making the earth rise up as if numerous giant pythons were writhing beneath the soil.
The afternoon sunlight was completely blocked by the lush leaves, while thick branches twined with vines, moss, and even various flowers.
Countless birds nested above, along with all sorts of nameless insects, and so forth.
This single oak tree alone formed a unique ecosystem.
The formidable surge of vital energy was palpable.
"However, this oak tree is almost blocking the way, we need to find a way around it," Su Heng slowly moved forward, reaching out to touch it.
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In the next instant, his expression suddenly changed.
He stomped his foot down hard.
His figure left an afterimage, disappearing in an instant.
The gusty wind lifted Ye Tong's long hair, and before she knew what was happening, a thunderous noise reached her ears.
Boom!
The enormous and vigorous oak tree suddenly came to life. Like the release of floodgates, angry dragon-like dark green tendrils grew outward.
The grinding noise was deafening as the canyon walls on both sides were easily torn apart.
Ye Tong had no time to react.
Her eyes widened, her mouth opened, and in the next instant, she was swallowed up by the green tide, leaving only a splash of blood within it.
While Su Heng's reaction was extremely fast, he was still a step too slow.
Masses of vine roots surged out like a waterfall, slamming heavily into the center of his chest and sending Su Heng flying.
Bang bang bang!
His body crashed against the rock wall like a cannonball.
And that wasn't the end. The mass of roots chased Su Heng along the rock wall, exploding all the way, leaving a rough trench hundreds of meters long while shattering untold numbers of giant rocks and soil slopes.
Luckily, Su Heng, with his well-honed physique unlike any ordinary person, remained intact. Had it been a slightly inferior Martial Artist, they would have been crushed to pieces by now.
Ptui!
Nonetheless, Su Heng was covered in dust and looked quite disheveled.
"What the hell was that just now!" He was disheveled, but there were no obvious injuries on his body.
He spread his large hand across his face, wiping it, then forcefully tore off the vines wrapped around him. Before the dust and smoke in front of Su Heng had cleared, a shrill whistling rang out, and a blade enshrouded in cold light came slashing at him.
Boom!
Su Heng dodged to the side, but his heavy body was still thrown by the explosion's shockwave.
Stone and dust shot out, and when Su Heng finally landed steadily on the ground, he turned back to see that the entire canyon face had been split open, permanently altering the terrain with a massive indentation.
Before Su Heng could express his surprise, the second strike followed closely behind.
This time it was like a sweeping army, a Fangtian halberd piercing through the air. Before the blade struck, invisible ripples swept across half the valley in an instant.
The air twisted slightly, and Su Heng tilted his body to dodge. His hair rose with the wind, and a few strands were cut by the blast and floated in the air.
A green figure flashed by his side, and vines and trees rapidly grew on the ground, forming a platform.
The figure stepped heavily on it, changing direction. He moved so fast that he became a blur, leaving behind afterimages, and reappeared next to Su Heng in an instant for a downward strike, with power that seemed to be able to split a mountain!
But this time, Su Heng didn't dodge.
He grabbed the handle of his Ghost-Faced Knife with a backhand and swept it horizontally.
The scarlet blade collided with the Fangtian halberd, causing a huge noise. The grass beneath his feet blew apart, the stream cut off. Blossoming water drops refracted sunlight, creating a colored arc of light.
Su Heng's legs sank deep into the soil, yet he didn't move an inch.
The White Deer Demon King's strike might have been able to shake a great mountain, but it was unlikely to budge the increasingly serious Su Heng.
The tremendous recoil force, like a black tide, made the Fangtian halberd hum. The demon king, with the appearance of a delicate girl, was sent flying. She adjusted her posture in mid-air, landing gracefully on the ground like a white deer, with the elegance of a dancer.
However, this couldn't conceal her inner astonishment.
The three strikes just now had used up all her strength, and she had chosen to launch a surprise attack.
Yet, Su Heng, looking somewhat disheveled, was entirely unscathed.
Instead, in the last clash, she had undoubtedly been at a disadvantage and had almost lost her weapon.