WHOOSH—BOOM!

A tornado howled, its terrifying shearing force sweeping across the battlefield. It kicked up a sky-full of dust, gravel, and fallen leaves, pulling them all into the air to be ripped apart and churned into nothing.

Bao Guqianluo stood suspended in the air. Within its pitch-black eye sockets, its Soul Fire leaped joyfully as it gazed down at the humans. They were frozen in place by its oppressive aura, unable to flee, their faces etched with despair.

"Gakakaka~"

The grating laugh, like scraping metal, echoed from its wide-open maw of wind blades.

With a swipe of its clawed hand, Bao Guqianluo unleashed another gale, which transformed into a tornado.

WHOOSH~~

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The tremendous roar howled between sky and earth, reverberating through the mountains.

The tornado rampaged across the land, shredding trees and stones.

SWISH!

A flash of blade light suddenly shot out in a line, streaking through the air to appear right before Bao Guqianluo.

An aura of faint threat erupted at almost the same instant.

"CHKT-SSSHH!"

Bao Guqianluo’s five-meter-tall body swayed backward as the Sword Gang grazed its skeletal cheek, leaving a shallow mark.

"You’re courting death!"

Bao Guqianluo was both shocked and enraged. The aura around it exploded, and its terrifying pressure once again swept over a radius of hundreds of yards, crushing the Demon Suppression Guards to the ground. Their bodies stiffened, their very hearts threatening to stop.

SWOOSH!

An afterimage flashed by.

TCH!

Another shallow mark was left on Bao Guqianluo’s skeletal cheek.

"Damned human!"

Bao Guqianluo roared as the wind blades around its body danced wildly, forming a hurricane that expanded outward.

PFFT!

SWOOSH~

Gu Zheng tore through the hurricane. The Divine Wondrous power in his Celestial Frost Blade surged as he unleashed the strongest combination attack of the Nine Luminaries Golden Saber, pouring it all onto the skeletal cheek of the Third-Rank Silver Bone Storm Bone Demon Fiend.

At this moment, he was empowered by the Wandering God Falcon Wings, his Reversed Soul Scale was ready to move at a moment’s notice, and his Sealing Sword Talisman was prepared.

’There is only one chance!’

Gu Zheng didn’t know if the full-power attack from Xie Bisheng, sealed within the Sealing Sword Talisman, could kill a Third-Rank Silver Bone.

Therefore, when he released the Sealing Sword Talisman, it had to be a guaranteed hit, a one-shot kill!

Even if it couldn’t kill it, it had to inflict a grievous wound.

This required perfect timing and knowledge of the Third-Rank Silver Bone’s weakness.

Gu Zheng ignored the oppressive pressure. Empowered by the Wandering God Falcon Wings, his speed was so immense that even afterimages appeared only intermittently.

At such extreme speeds, a mere storm tornado naturally couldn’t hinder him.

He attacked relentlessly, probing for the Third-Rank Silver Bone’s weakness. He had unleashed the strongest attack of the Nine Luminaries Golden Saber, yet to his surprise, it only left a series of shallow marks on the creature’s skeletal cheek.

This was an attack comparable to a peerless True Skill.

’The defense of a Third-Rank Silver Bone is this formidable.’

Gu Zheng decisively gave up on probing the Third-Rank Silver Bone Storm Bone Demon Fiend and turned to slaughter the other Storm Bone Demon Fiends instead.

First-Rank Iron Bones, Second-Rank Steel Bones, and the Unranked White Bones.

SWISH!

TCH-TCH-TCH~

Blade light shot out in lines, slicing apart one Storm Bone Demon Fiend after another.

Spirit Capturing!

[Demon Points +10]

[Demon Points +8]

...

SWOOSH~

He flew at extreme speed, his blade striking just as fast.

SWISH!

TCH-TCH-TCH~

For a moment, lines of light formed by the Sword Gang weaved through the ranks of the Storm Bone Demon Fiends, reaping the Soul Fire of one Bone Demon after another.

"Die!!"

As Bao Guqianluo watched this, unleashing a furious gale, its towering body began to move.

Meanwhile, after harvesting a few waves of Demon Points, Gu Zheng turned and charged toward the tunnel entrance.

WHOOSH-BOOM~

A hurricane howled behind him.

SWOOSH!

Gu Zheng plunged headfirst into the tunnel, swinging his blade to cut down the Storm Bone Demon Fiends that were pouring out endlessly from the other side.

SWISH~

TCH-TCH-TCH!

Lines of light sliced through the air, flooding the over 300-meter-long Tunnel Between Two Realms and annihilating the hundred-plus Storm Bone Demon Fiends moving within it.

Spirit Capturing!

[Demon Points +9]

[Demon Points +7]

...

"Damned human! Don’t run if you have any guts!"

In Bao Guqianluo’s pitch-black eye sockets, its Soul Fire burned furiously.

Its towering body charged violently into the tunnel, sweeping toward Gu Zheng.

SWOOSH!

Gu Zheng shot out of the tunnel in the blink of an eye, entering the Demon Realm and appearing in the sky above a canyon.

Violent winds howled through the canyon, and swirling gusts were visible to the naked eye everywhere.

A terrifying shearing force would occasionally shred falling rocks, carving marks into the hard cliff faces.

Judging by the signs, it was impossible to tell how long this had been going on.

The moment Gu Zheng emerged, a fierce wind caught him, sweeping him away into the distance.

Bao Guqianluo followed him out, tearing through the gales with a roar as it rode the winds in pursuit.

BOOM!

BOOM~

It burst forward, repeatedly breaking the sound barrier.

Just as Bao Guqianluo was about to catch up, Gu Zheng’s speed suddenly skyrocketed, and he pulled away again.

"ROAR~!"

Bao Guqianluo was seething. A Third-Rank, and it couldn’t even catch a Second-Rank human?

’Damn it, damn it all!’

’This damned human not only isn’t afraid of my pressure but can also fly so fast. He must die, he must die!!’

"SWOOSH~"

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The air cracked with dull, explosive sounds.

As Gu Zheng flew at top speed, he scanned his surroundings, searching for a Storm Bone Demon Fiend stronghold.

’The defense of a Third-Rank Silver Bone is too strong. I can’t break through it with my current power. I need to break through to a higher realm and master even greater strength.’

’And for a breakthrough, I need 400 Divine Wondrous points.’

’Divine Wondrous points require Demon Points, which are used to enhance my attributes and generate the points as a byproduct.’

’Demon Points come from Demon Fiends—preferably a whole group, a whole swath, a whole nest of them!’

The greatest threat in the Grand Canyon Mountain tunnel was the Storm Bone Demon Fiends.

’If I can just find their nest...’

’Found it!’

Suddenly, Gu Zheng sensed a massive concentration of demonic aura—the aura of Storm Bone Demon Fiends.

Following this aura, he veered and flew toward it at top speed.

Sure enough, he saw a gathering area—a settlement of Storm Bone Demon Fiends!

It was in a mountain hollow where the wind was weaker, and the ground was littered with bones.

Arriving at the hollow, he saw the true number of Storm Bone Demon Fiends. If there weren’t ten thousand, there were at least eight thousand.

Because deeper inside the hollow, in every area where wind currents converged, Storm Bone Demon Fiends were actively moving about.

SWISH!

His figure flickered, moving like lightning as he slashed out rays of light.

"TCH-TCH-TCH~"

Lines of Sword Gang swept across the hollow. In a crisscrossing pattern, they sliced open the skulls of the Storm Bone Demon Fiends, extinguishing their Soul Fires.

Spirit Capturing!

[Demon Points +8]

[Demon Points +6]

...

’Keep going!’

Gu Zheng flew over and charged through the second gathering area.

SWISH!

TCH-TCH-TCH~

Another field of Storm Bone Demon Fiends had their skulls split open, their Soul Fires extinguished.

Spirit Capturing!

Spirit Capturing!

"WHOOSH—BOOM!"

A gale howled, transforming into a roaring tornado.

Bao Guqianluo roared again and again from behind. It watched as Gu Zheng slaughtered swath after swath of Storm Bone Demon Fiends, unable to catch up or land an attack, spiraling into a furious frenzy.

"Damned human, stop if you have any guts and fight Bao Guqianluo in a fair battle!"

"Despicable human, you don’t dare, do you? You’re a coward, aren’t you?"

"AAAAAH! Stop! Bao Guqianluo commands you to stop!"

Bao Guqianluo raged impotently as it gave chase.

Gu Zheng heard it, but instead of slowing down, he accelerated again.

In the midst of his flight, he allocated points to increase his strength.

Demon Points increased his strength by 1, and the Divine Wondrous points it generated steadily increased.

Total Divine Wondrous: 350

Total Divine Wondrous: 360

Total: 370

Total: 380

"BOOM~~!"

A sudden clap of thunder seemed to shake the clear sky, and the winds and clouds stirred as an explosion ripped through the air.

The aura of Gu Zheng’s physique, who was flying at extreme speed, suddenly surged. Great billows of hot air gushed from his body through his open pores.

Spirit, Divine Wondrous, and Physique—the Tripartite Unity.

In an instant, the three powers merged, gathering together to stimulate his life force, break through its limits, and step into a brand-new realm.

A new level where he could mobilize his full power with a single gaze, a blink, a breath.

Heroic Body!

"Hoo... hoo..."

The scorching aura, the suddenly explosive presence, and the power that erupted from him pressed on the space around him, creating ripples and waves that halted Bao Guqianluo’s pursuit, freezing it in mid-air.

Within its pitch-black eye sockets, the Soul Fire leaped frantically.

"How is this possible? He actually broke through at a time like this?"

"Damned human! So what if you broke through!?"

With a roar, Bao Guqianluo’s massive body shattered the air as it lunged at Gu Zheng.

BOOM~!

A violent, tremendous roar shook the sky.

A savage and powerful shockwave burst forth, sweeping across the cliff faces on both sides as if churning mud, leaving deep gashes in its wake.

TCH-TCH-TCH~

Hot steam rose as a brilliant bronze light shone.

Having broken through to the Heroic Body Realm, Gu Zheng had fully unlocked his Bronze Elephant Body, empowering his strength.

From their earlier exchange, Gu Zheng had realized that the Bronze Elephant Body alone was likely still not enough to break the defense of a Third-Rank Silver Bone.

But after breaking through to the Heroic Body Realm and then empowering himself with the Bronze Elephant Body, his power was on a completely different level.

"CLANG~"

BOOM!

The sound of metal on metal erupted on the spot.

Gu Zheng thrust his Bronze Fist Blade forward, meeting Bao Guqianluo head-on. The blow sent Bao Guqianluo staggering back three steps.

"Damn you..."

SWOOSH!

"CLANG~ CLANG~ CLANG~"

The sound of clashing metal continued to ring out.

Gu Zheng closed the distance, unleashing the Hundred Beasts King Fist. Empowered by his Furious Fist Intent, he attacked without pause, throwing punch after punch. A dense flurry of Fist Seals, blurring into afterimages, rained down upon Bao Guqianluo.

Bao Guqianluo was momentarily stunned by the assault, its Soul Fire flickering.

When it recovered, it roared in fury despite the dents now marring its body. It formed blades out of the hurricane, enveloping Gu Zheng and slicing at him madly.

TCH-TCH-TCH~

The wind blades left a series of white marks on his bronze body.

A body in the Heroic Body Realm empowered by the Bronze Elephant Body had a terrifyingly strong defense as well.

The power of the Tripartite Unity, channeled through his fists and amplified by his Furious Fist Intent, poured onto Bao Guqianluo, mainly targeting its neck.

But after a hundred rapid punches still failed to shatter it, Gu Zheng decisively switched targets and attacked its lower jaw.

At the same time, he directed his Celestial Frost Blade as if it were an extension of his arm, launching a surprise attack straight at Bao Guqianluo’s pitch-black left eye socket.

CLANG~!

The Bronze Fist Blade slammed against Bao Guqianluo’s claw, creating the sound of metal striking metal. Bao Guqianluo had blocked the attack.

VMM!

At the same time, the tip of the Celestial Frost Blade stopped before Bao Guqianluo’s left eye socket, unable to advance another inch.

"Gakakaka, despicable human, did you think..."

VMM~

An invisible wave suddenly materialized, passing through Bao Guqianluo’s skull.

"GYAAAAH!!!"

Bao Guqianluo let out an incomparably shrill, agonizing scream.

It was a scream that came from its very soul.

Inside its pitch-black eye sockets, the Soul Fire leaped frantically.

VMM~~

Abruptly, the invisible wave materialized again, passing through Bao Guqianluo’s skull.

Instantly, Bao Guqianluo’s screams intensified, and its towering body began to shake violently.

"CHK-TSSHH!"

The Celestial Frost Blade, no longer blocked by the invisible force, immediately plunged into the left eye socket, piercing through the skull.

KRAK~

Gu Zheng controlled the Celestial Frost Blade, viciously twisting it and churning it around inside the skull.

KRAK-KRAK-KRAK~

"BOOM!!"

Accompanied by a series of bone-shattering cracks, Bao Guqianluo’s entire body exploded, and its Soul Fire was extinguished.

A sharp weapon fragment appeared among the pieces of Silver Bone, hovering in mid-air.

"This is..."