Chapter 108 - 104: Demon_1

Deep into the night, in an inn.

Lu Yan was soundly asleep when he suddenly felt a burning sensation in his arms.

He quickly sat up, tearing open his clothes, only to find that the token had turned into a chunk of pitch-black charcoal, which was rapidly melting.

Not only that, a large part of his clothes had also melted away, some sort of special transparent liquid had fallen onto his skin, akin to molten iron dropping onto it.

If it hadn’t been for his robust flesh and blood, perhaps his very tissue would be corroded away.

With a surge of his Qi-blood, the transparent liquid and the charred token flew out and landed on the floor.

Lu Yan’s face was extremely somber.

Without the token, he would lose the qualification to purchase the Jade Bone Tiger.

Gao Xuhai had stated that he only recognized tokens, not people.

"Gao Family, Gao Xuhai."

Lu Yan’s eyes were frosty.

Even a fool would know that the token had been tampered with beforehand.

It was just unclear whether it was Gao Xuhai’s doing.

Lu Yan immediately summoned Li Quan and Wang Lin.

"Master, has something happened?"

Seeing Lu Yan’s gloomy face and the constant murderous intent emanating from him, Li Quan hardly dared to breathe, so it was Wang Lin who voiced the inquiry.

"That was the token for purchasing the Jade Bone Tiger."

Lu Yan pointed to the clump of black charcoal on the ground.

The faces of Wang Lin and Li Quan changed massively.

"The token was tampered with."

Both of them blurted out at the same time.

"Has Gao Xuhai shown any anomalies during these two days?"

Lu Yan asked.

After obtaining the token, just to be on the safe side, Lu Yan had Li Quan send spies to keep an eye on the Gao Family’s Martial Cuisine Manor and Gao Xuhai’s residence, lest any accidents occur.

"The spies didn’t report back, I’ll go and check."

Li Quan hurriedly left the inn and returned a little over an hour later.

"Master, there is information. Last night, after nightfall, Gao Xuhai did leave his residence, he was taken away by two individuals."

Li Quan reported.

"Could you identify those two?"

Lu Yan asked.

"No, they concealed their faces with black robes, so their features couldn’t be clearly seen, but the direction they took when they left seems to have been towards the Li Family’s other residence, and they didn’t return until late into the night."

Li Quan said.

"Li Family, returned late into the night."

The eyes of Lu Yan were icy; this matter had become quite clear.

He visited the Li Family’s other residence, didn’t return until late into the night, and not soon after, his token got corroded away.

What a coincidence, isn’t it?

"Gao Xuhai, you old dumpling, I will kill you."

Lu Yan voiced it in a murderous tone.

Then asked: "Do you know his cultivation level?"

"I heard that he is at Martial Marquis Level Five, Yuen Layer."

Li Quan reported.

"...you old dumpling, I will definitely kill you in the future."

Lu Yan said through gritted teeth.

After contemplating for a moment, he waved dismissively: "Leave, keep monitoring, report to me if there are any developments."

Li Quan and Wang Lin left.

Lu Yan sat down, poured himself a cup of tea. His rage gradually subsided and he regained his calm, thinking about his countermeasures.

The next morning.

The Gao family announced this time’s weigh-in and rankings of the various Feudal Lords.

Unexpectedly, the one ranked first was the Li Family, with four hundred and ten pounds.

The one who ranked second was the Ouyang Family, with two hundred and sixty pounds.

And Lu Yan, or the name Wei Tao, had fallen to third place, with two hundred and twenty pounds.

Obviously, they directly transferred Lu Yan’s two hundred pounds to the Li Family.

Lu Yan had anticipated this and wasn’t as angry as he might have been, merely instructing Li Quan and Wang Lin to return to Baicao City first.

"Master, be careful."

Before departing, Wang Lin said in a soft tone.

"Don’t worry, if the situation becomes untenable, I will immediately retreat and not take unnecessary risks."

Lu Yan smiled, patting Wang Lin’s shoulder.

After the two left, Lu Yan changed his appearance and got himself a room in an inn not far from the Li Family’s other residence, monitoring their every move.

Soon, the day to purchase the Jade Bone Tiger arrived.

Li Wenlong and his group left and returned after a few hours, carrying a bamboo basket on their backs.

"Could it be the Jade Bone Tiger in that bamboo basket?"

Lu Yan speculated in his heart.

The bamboo basket wasn’t big, if it really was, then the Jade Bone Tiger was much smaller than he had imagined.

Not long after the return of Li Wenlong’s group, the tens of martial artists who came here from the Li Family began their journey, leaving NanYi City and heading north.

While the group from the Li Family rode along the main road, Lu Yan was tailing them using his footwork and the cover of the woodland to the side of the road.

With his current strength, his running speed could easily surpass that of a fast horse, and with considerable stamina and endurance.

He took advantage of the trees and stones in the forest to avoid the people from the Li Family and followed from afar.

That night, the people of the Li Family rested in a forest. Three Martial Marquises were stationed beside the Jade Bone Tiger at all times, leaving Lu Yan no opportunity to make a move.

Lu Yan concealed in the dark, not moving at all.

Being a hunter by origin, he knew the importance of maintaining patience.

The distance between NanYi City and Baicao City was a thousand miles. He, Li Quan, and Wang Lin had traveled for four days to get there last time, each person with two horses.

For the people of the Li Family, each person with a horse, it might take five or six days at the very least.

There were still plenty of opportunities.

In fact, a Martial Marquis’s speed is far superior to that of a running horse and they have greater endurance.

"But why wouldn’t I save energy when I can?"

The second night passed, and Lu Yan still didn’t find the opportunity to make a move.

On the third day, as nightfall came, the Li Family had arrived at a small town.

At the entrance of the town, there were several townsfolk, wearing tattered clothes, their backs turned towards them, swaying slightly from side to side.

"Folks, is there a place to spend the night here?"

A member of the Li Family’s guards rode a horse up to the townsfolk and asked them.

But the townsfolk did not answer, simply continuing to sway a little from side to side.

The guard’s brow furrowed.

They were just poor townsfolk. He had asked politely, yet they totally ignored him, making him grow angry.

He dismounted his horse, walked up, and patted a man on the shoulder, saying, "I’m talking to you, turn around and answer me."

The townspeople turned at his command, making the guard gasp in shock and hastily step back.

Their skin was pitch black, half their faces had rotted away, revealing clean white bone. They stared blankly at the guard, then as if realizing something, roared menacingly and lunged at him like beasts.

The guard, with three cycles of Limit Breaking cultivation and battle-hardened as he was, reacted quickly, drawing his sword and slashing.

With a squelch, the head of one of the townsfolk went flying through the air.

But even with his head sent flying, the townsfolk continued to rush forward, grabbing hold of the guard, his withered black fingers reaching for the guard.

"Get off."

The guard erupted in Qi-blood, trying to send the headless man flying, but the headless man’s fingers broke through his Qi-blood, and plunged into his body.

And another one of the townsfolk tackled him, sinking his teeth into the guard’s neck.

"He..."

The guard tried to call for help, but with a snap, the townsfolk twisted his neck and killed him.

This incident happened so quickly and unexpectedly that by the time the others could react to provide assistance, it was already too late.

The townsfolk who had transformed into monsters killed the guard and roared as they pounced toward the other members of the Li Family.

Including the headless fantastical creature, their attack did not subside even when their heads were chopped off.

"Kill."

Several Limit Breaking warriors of the fifth level rushed out with their swords slashing, cutting the monstrosities into pieces.

But the previous roar had startled the whole town.

A large number of figures came rushing out, at speeds that made them seem inhuman, like Limit Breaking Warriors.

Once the people from the Li Family saw these figures clearly, their faces drained of color.

These figures were ostensively just ordinary people, but their bulging, black and dry muscles demonstrated an extraordinary power. They sprinted and covered a distance of three meters in a single step.

They roared and charged at the people from the Li Family, their eyes filled with bloodlust.

"Be careful, these are Demon Servants. Retreat quickly!"

Li Wenlong seemed to have realized something; his face turned very pale.

"Demon Servants, why are there Demon Servants here?"

Li Wenjie’s face also turned pale when he heard this.

Where Demon Servants exist, demons must be there too.

In the end, Demon servants are nothing but ordinary people who have been contaminated by demons.

But for many years, no demons have appeared in Lingdong’s six states.

In general, a demon is the result of a Martial Spirit’s mutation.

A Martial Spirit that experiences a bad mutation, loses control of itself, and falls into madness will undergo the Demonizing Ceremony.

If successful for three times, it is considered a true demon.

It is inhuman and turns the place where it resides into Demon’s Domain. Any creatures within this domain will be contaminated and turned into Demon Servants.

Li Wenlong, Li Wenjie, and Li Wenyan, the three Martial Marquises, along with Li Cangxin and the Jade Bone Tiger, dismounted their horses and spurred their bone strength, running madly into the distance.

Seeing that even the Martial Marquises had fled, how could any of the others dare to linger behind? They too ran after the Marquises.

However, because these Demon Servants were fast, with some even running on all fours like cheetahs, those whose cultivation levels were low were quickly caught up.

Those people could only stop and fight the Demon Servants.

Even more Demon Servants continued to pursue the other people from the Li Family.

Roar!

Suddenly, a terrifying roar echoed from within the town.

Then, a huge figure, cloaked in black mist came rushing out of the town at an astonishing speed. Within a few breaths, it arrived near the entrance of the town.

This creature, shrouded in black mist, has six spider-like limbs, each more than two meters long. Each of its strides covered a distance of fifty meters, catching up with several of the Li Family’s guards,

Swoosh! Swoosh!

It swung its claws and two of the Limit Breaking guards were sliced in two.

It’s a demon!

Even someone as strong as Li Wenlong shivered in fear.

The demon didn’t stop, its six long legs thundered upon the ground as it chased after Li Wenlong and the others. Its speed was visibly faster than theirs, the gap between them rapidly closing.

"You lead Li Cangxin away. We’ll hold off this demon."

Li Wenlong hollered, suddenly stopping on his tracks. Bracing his spear, he flared his bone strength, charging at the demon.

Li Wenjie and Li Wenyan also paused, utilizing their full strength. Along with Li Wenlong, they joined forces and engaged in a fierce battle with the monster.

The battle between the two sides was strongly contested and yet remained unresolved.

While a group of elite warriors continued to protect Li Cangxin, they kept running.

A large number of Demon Servants were relentlessly chasing them from the rear.

Watching all this from the shadows, Lu Yan was left terrified.

The small town had such a terrifying entity in it.

Observing this creature, Lu Yan could tell it was a heavily mutated Martial Spirit.

He didn’t dare to linger around and concealed himself in the woods while quietly following in the direction Li Cangxin fled.

The emergence of these terrifying entities might be somewhat of an opportunity for him.

As Li Cangxin and the others continued to flee, there were some who were not able to keep up and were quickly caught by the Demon Servants. They had no choice but to stop and fight the Demon Servants.

Although the fifth level Limit Breaking or even the fourth level Limit Breaking can effectively kill these Demon Servants, they are overwhelmingly outnumbered.

There were probably at least a thousand people living in the town, all had been transformed into Demon Servants.

Several dozens or even hundreds of fearless Demon Servants would swarm in, and even the fifth level Limit Breaking belonged to the quicksand soon. Once their Qi-blood was depleted, they had no other choice but to die.

However, once Li Cangxin and the others ran five miles away from the town, those Demon Servants came to a sudden halt and did not continue their chase.

"It seems these creatures have a range limitation."

An idea struck Lu Yan.