To be looked down on by a Devil Beast... this was absolutely intolerable!

Fury surged in Lin Hao’s eyes.

However, before Lin Hao could make a move, the Demon Bear had already raised the giant club in its paw and brought it smashing down.

The attack was swift and sudden.

RUMBLE!

Lin Hao dodged. The massive club slammed into the ground, and with a deafening rumble, a long trench appeared, stretching out for at least several hundred meters.

That attack was at least equivalent to a strike from a Martial Artist at the Sixth Layer of Soul Gathering Realm!

The Demon Bear’s combat prowess was terrifying!

What was most frightening was that the giant club, made from a tree trunk, was completely undamaged. Seeing Lin Hao dodge, the Demon Bear unhesitatingly swung its club toward his landing spot once more.

When Lin Hao dodged again, another trench was carved into the earth.

"Hmph!"

Amid the deafening noise and clouds of dust, Lin Hao’s cold snort was completely drowned out. A brilliant light flared in his hand, shooting straight toward the sky.

He had drawn the Evil-Slaying Sword!

Lin Hao possessed powerful imperial techniques. He had already used the brief respite to regulate his breathing and tend to his injuries. Now, he had no intention of retreating further.

Even though the Demon Bear possessed combat prowess comparable to the Sixth Layer of Soul Gathering Realm, the word ’retreat’ did not exist in Lin Hao’s vocabulary.

The Demon Bear’s massive club came crashing down once more.

But this time, Lin Hao’s eyes narrowed. He chose not to dodge.

Lin Hao suddenly gripped his sword with both hands and took a step forward.

With just that one step, the Demon Bear’s movements faltered. A hint of solemnity appeared in its eyes.

The next moment, the club in its paw smashed down again, and Lin Hao’s Evil-Slaying Sword shot up to meet it.

The anticipated collision never happened. Instead, the scent of blood filled the air.

Lin Hao stood with his sword, completely unharmed. The Demon Bear, however, had retreated several dozen meters, its paw now dripping with fresh blood.

ROAR!

Enraged at being injured by such a puny human, the Demon Bear clutched its paw and let out a furious roar in Lin Hao’s direction.

BOOM!

Although Lin Hao had sealed his Sixth Sense, the power of the Demon Bear’s roar was still astounding. As his body slid backward, he watched everything around him explode from the force of the bellow.

Lin Hao’s expression was grim.

’I thought that last strike would at least sever one of its paws,’ he thought. ’That was the most powerful sword move I can currently execute.’

’But all it did was injure its paw. The situation is not in my favor.’

Even with a weapon as sharp as the Evil-Slaying Sword, his cultivation at the Soul Gathering Realm First Layer left a massive gap between him and the Demon Bear.

As he retreated, Lin Hao suddenly flipped his wrist and plunged the Evil-Slaying Sword into the ground.

THUD! THUD! THUD!

The moment the Evil-Slaying Sword pierced the earth, Lin Hao’s retreat halted, and Sword Qi erupted from beneath the ground.

Countless strands of Sword Qi, each as fine as a hair, sliced through the ground and shot toward the Demon Bear.

What a Demon Bear!

Its massive body retreated with surprising agility.

PFFT! PFFT!

The Sword Qi Lin Hao released was incredibly fine, but its power was undeniable. Boulders and Ancient Trees couldn’t block it, and were split clean in two.

After retreating several dozen meters, the Demon Bear suddenly stopped and stomped its foot.

Lin Hao’s Sword Qi collided with the shockwave from the Demon Bear’s stomp.

BOOM!

A massive explosion rocked the area.

Lin Hao was thrown back again.

The next moment, Lin Hao flung the Evil-Slaying Sword forward.

The Evil-Slaying Sword transformed into a streak of light, hurtling toward the Demon Bear.

A strange light flickered in the Demon Bear’s eyes. Without retreating a single step, it extended a paw and tried to grab the Evil-Slaying Sword.

It must have realized the Evil-Slaying Sword was no ordinary weapon and wanted to claim it as its own.

Just as it reached for the Evil-Slaying Sword, a sheet of Yellow paper appeared, hovering in front of Lin Hao. His right index finger began to rapidly trace something upon it.

While Lin Hao was tracing runes onto the Yellow paper, the Evil-Slaying Sword stopped about three inches from the Demon Bear’s chest, its hilt now firmly in the beast’s grasp.

The next moment, the bear’s paw suddenly shrank, and with a flick of its wrist, it executed a perfect sword flourish with the Evil-Slaying Sword.

CLANG!

The Demon Bear flicked the blade with its other paw, and the Evil-Slaying Sword let out a clear, ringing tone.

The Evil-Slaying Sword now in its grasp, the Demon Bear shot Lin Hao a sideways glance, its eyes once again filled with contempt. It was in no hurry to attack.

It looked as if it was waiting to watch Lin Hao make a fool of himself.

Clearly, it didn’t think much of what Lin Hao was currently doing.

Leaning on the sword, the Demon Bear adopted a surprisingly human-like posture as it watched Lin Hao, its expression seeming to say, ’Go on, little one. I’m waiting.’

This time, however, its posturing and actions failed to provoke Lin Hao, whose entire focus was on tracing the runes.

Lin Hao’s movements were incredibly fast, the speed of his finger a blur to the naked eye.

The Yellow paper was now covered in a dense, seemingly chaotic web of runes, yet a mysterious aura flowed from it.

At this moment, Lin Hao’s essence, qi, and spirit became one. His concentration was absolute. Gradually, he closed his eyes.

Within Lin Hao’s body, in his lower Dantian, the single drop of True Blood inside his Tai Chi Array Map began to shine brightly. The Tai Chi Array Map started to spin, and a mysterious True Essence surged out, flowing through his extraordinary meridians. After circulating through his body, the mysterious True Essence finally converged in his Upper Dantian.

The True Self Divine Soul seated within his Upper Dantian began to breathe, and with each exhalation, a faint, intangible aura spread outwards.

This was a perfect fusion of essence, qi, and spirit!

Reaching this state was exceptionally difficult. The runes Lin Hao was now tracing defied all logic.

The Demon Bear opposite him finally noticed something was amiss. In the next instant, the Evil-Slaying Sword in its paw began to grow.

Two meters, three meters, four meters...

The Demon Bear gripped the hilt of the Evil-Slaying Sword with both paws and brought it slashing down.

Just then, Lin Hao’s eyes snapped open. He flicked his hand.

The Yellow paper hovering in mid-air shot toward the Demon Bear.

Seeing this, a hint of amusement surfaced in the Demon Bear’s eyes. If it could speak, it would surely be mocking Lin Hao.

Trying to fight it with a single sheet of paper was like a mantis trying to stop a chariot—utterly overestimating its own strength.

In the next instant, the Evil-Slaying Sword and the Yellow paper collided...

As expected, the Yellow paper was instantly sliced in two by the Evil-Slaying Sword.

The Evil-Slaying Sword’s momentum didn’t lessen as it continued its path toward Lin Hao.

But Lin Hao remained motionless, staring blankly at the torn paper, as if he were in a daze.

No, he was completely stunned.

His body was swaying slightly, as if he might collapse at any moment. At the same time, his face had turned deathly pale.

The two halves of the Yellow paper fluttered in the air. Lin Hao’s gaze followed them, completely ignoring the Evil-Slaying Sword about to strike his head.

The amusement in the Demon Bear’s eyes grew, as if it were laughing at the irony of Lin Hao dying by his own sword.

But just then, Lin Hao smiled as well—a brilliant, dazzling smile.