Chapter One Hundred: Rescue

After taking off the Tianxing Sect robes and changing into ordinary clothes, Ge Qian activated the concealment technique of the Earth Spirit Pearl, suppressing his aura so that any observer would take him for nothing more than a cultivator at the fifth level of Qi Absorption. Then he descended the mountain.

As the ancient demon Li Jia fled, he cursed Xing Chenfeng, wishing him a thousand deaths. In his fury he thought: just you wait. Once I return to the Myriad Demon Mountain, recover my strength, and build up my forces, the first thing I'll do is slaughter every low-ranked disciple of your Tianxing Sect, leaving you a general without an army. And that beautiful little junior sister of yours, Qin Chuchu—

At that thought, a filthy gleam entered Li Jia's eyes. He would cripple her cultivation, amuse himself with her to his heart's content, then strip her bare and let his disciples and descendants enjoy this beauty of the mortal world to their fill.

While Li Jia was still absorbed in those lewd images, a figure suddenly appeared in the air ahead of him, standing calmly in the void. He was tall and powerfully built, clad in a black robe, his face obscured by swirling demonic energy. The pressure he radiated was overwhelming—suffocating in its intensity—suggesting he had reached the peak of the Nascent Transformation stage.

Li Jia's heart clenched and cold sweat broke out on his body. When it rains, it pours. If he hadn't already used the Blood Light Escape twice, he might have had a chance to fight with the Demon Dragon Blade in hand—but now he didn't dare entertain the thought.

Still, on the surface he put on a commanding demeanor and said coldly, "Fellow Daoist, I am Gu Mo Li Jia, Envoy of Ten Thousand Demons under the Lich King, and I am on my way back to report. What business do you have stopping me?"

Li Jia hurriedly invoked the Lich King's name, borrowing his authority to bolster his own courage. Perhaps, if the other man feared the Lich King, he wouldn't dare make a move. Even so, thinking about it kindled fresh rage—it was that damned brat who'd tricked him! If he hadn't been wary of Death God Yueying Qianqing, he'd have captured the boy long ago and never suffered that injury. Now he'd see if this trick worked.

The newcomer was unimpressed. He snorted coldly. "The Lich King is certainly powerful, but he's far away across the world. Stop bluffing. If you're smart, you'll hand over the Demon Dragon Blade, and I might let you live. Otherwise, you'll taste the agony of having your soul ripped out and your spirit shredded."

Hearing this, Li Jia's heart nearly stopped. Few people knew he possessed the Demon Dragon Blade, yet this man had named it outright—it was clear he knew Li Jia well. Even if Li Jia handed over the blade, the man wouldn't spare him. To keep this secret, he would kill him anyway.

His mind hardened. A broken blade, half its original length, appeared in his hand, black as ink, demonic energy crystallizing along its edge. A look of grim determination crossed his eyes as he brandished the broken blade. "Fellow Daoist, you are far too self-assured. With the Demon Dragon Blade in hand, my strength is doubled. Worst come to worst, we die together. If you think you can take advantage of me, you're dreaming. If you've got the guts, come and try."

The black-robed man shook his head with a sigh. "What a fine broken blade, wasted on a fool like you. A divine treasure sullied in unworthy hands. Fortunately, I met you today—from now on, I am its master. I will restore your former glory. As for this wretch who has profaned your dignity, I will wash away your shame with his blood."

With that, he raised a hand, and a pitch-black demonic blade appeared out of thin air—three feet in the handle, seven feet in the blade. Overwhelming demonic might surged skyward. The keen edge gleamed scarlet, and as he gave it a slight swing, draconic roars rang out in waves.

Li Jia's hand trembled unconsciously. His heart felt as if it were shattering. In a voice of terror, he said, "The other two-thirds of the Demon Dragon Blade—they're in your hands? Who are you?!"

"Who am I? The dead have no right to know. Die—Demon Dragon Soul Slash!" As he spoke, the broken blade in the black-robed man's hand let out a dragon's roar, and a crescent ring of light in the shape of a dragon appeared above Li Jia's head in an instant, pressing down with crushing force.

Li Jia gripped his broken blade in both hands, pouring every bit of his magical power into it. He shouted, "Break for me!"

A huge demonic dragon claw reached out against the ring of light.

Boom! A cataclysmic, earth-shattering explosion. Li Jia was hurled a hundred zhang away in an instant, his whole body bathed in blood, his aura in chaos, slamming heavily into the ground—dust and rocks flying everywhere.

The black-robed man gave his hand a flick. "Overestimating yourself. Take another move from me—Doom Dragon Flame!"

A stream of black demonic flame erupted from the blade, reducing everything in its path to nothing. With heat capable of burning all things, it came straight for the fallen Li Jia.

Gripping the half-broken blade for support, Li Jia stared in despair at the incoming demon flame. "Then let us descend to hell together! Ancient Demon, Annihilate All!"

Li Jia's body instantly swelled to ten zhang, writhing and churning, then condensed into an enormous black sphere that exploded with a resounding boom. Destructive, heaven-shaking might swept out in all directions.

The self-detonation of an ancient demonic body at the Nascent Transformation stage had the power to level a giant mountain. Facing such force, the black-robed man's pupils visibly contracted. But he planted the Demon Dragon Blade before him, and countless demonic dragon scales formed a shield that blocked the shockwave. Even so, his body was forced back a hundred zhang. At last, the shield shattered, and the remnant force was swept aside with a flick of his sleeve.

The broken blade was flung a thousand zhang away and was about to fall, when a three-inch-tall Nascent Soul blinked out of existence and reappeared elsewhere—in a few flickers it had vanished without a trace.

There was nothing the black-robed man could do about the Nascent Soul's teleportation. Anyone who reached the Nascent Transformation stage formed a Nascent Soul in their dantian. As long as the Nascent Soul was not destroyed, they would not die. Moreover, the Nascent Soul possessed the power of spatial teleportation, allowing it to briefly cross distances at an inconceivable speed. No one could catch it except cultivators at the Spirit Refining stage. Still, losing the body was extremely dangerous—cultivation could advance no further, and one would have to reforge a body in order to pursue the Great Dao once more.

The black-robed man snorted coldly. "Clever of you—self-detonating your body to let your Nascent Soul escape. But since you dared to covet my daughter, I will kill you sooner or later."

With that, he conjured a great hand formed of demonic energy, reached out, and snatched the broken blade from the distance, pulling it back.

Looking at the broken blade in his hand, he laughed maniacally. "I, Xie Jiu, have finally gathered all the pieces of the Demon Dragon Blade! In another ten years, Xue'er will wake. Once she helps restore the blade, I will use it to refine my spirit. When I break through to the Spirit Refining stage, I'll be able to summon the spirit of the ancient demonic dragon to fight for me. The Lich King, the Great Demon King, He Changqi—all of them will be crushed beneath my feet. Then I'll bring my daughter home. With the Death Scythe and the Demon Dragon Blade combined into one, who on this plane could stand against me? I will be the true, unrivaled master of this world!"

And so, wreathed in rolling demonic energy, he stepped through the air and vanished into the distance.

Meanwhile, Ge Qian arrived at a cultivation city called Tian Ding City. Though the city had been established for less than a hundred years, it had already earned a formidable reputation. It was said that the hidden power behind Tian Ding City was the Beast Taming Sect—a clear sign that the sect harbored great ambition, well on its way to superseding the other four sects.

The city sprawled across ten thousand mu of land, packed with countless shops. Cultivators dressed in wild, rugged attire came and went, buying and selling. The prosperity was comparable to Wu Yue City.

Ge Qian walked through the city, purchasing talisman paper and cinnabar. Suddenly he caught sight of a familiar back—a cultivator at the early Foundation Establishment stage walking past. Ge Qian sent out a thread of his spiritual sense, smiled, and walked over, tapping the man's shoulder.

The man turned and saw Ge Qian. Delight immediately lit up his face. "Benefactor, it's you! What brings you to Tian Ding City?"

"Oh, just out to gain experience and broaden my horizons," Ge Qian said. "I didn't expect to run into you here, Liu Jie."

The person Ge Qian had met was none other than Liu Jie, the one he had rescued at the small cultivation ground.