Underground Demons

Through the distant firelight, everyone saw clearly that they were Underground Demons, each holding a torch in one hand and a steel fork in the other, with their backs slightly bulging like two large meat buns.

Shen Hao's pupils contracted, and he exclaimed in surprise, "Yaksha?"

The Underground Demon race starts with Demons, then Yakshas, and one level higher are Flying Yakshas. The Great Commanders at an even higher level are called Asuras.

Demons are equivalent to experts in the Divine Strength Realm, while Yakshas are equivalent to experts in the Divine Courage Realm. Flying Yakshas are equivalent to experts in the Tenth Level of Body Refinement, Divine Transformation Realm.

As for Asuras, they are equivalent to experts in the Mystic Divine Realm.

The four of them never expected to encounter Yakshas in the outer reaches of this underground world, and in such large numbers.

"Let's get out of here," Shen Hao whispered, suppressing the fear in his heart.

The four of them didn't dare to make the slightest sound and slowly moved backward. They didn't stop until they had run dozens of miles.

"What's going on? Why are there so many Yakshas?" Shen Hao gasped for breath.

Yakshas are equivalent to experts in the Divine Courage Realm, and among the four of them, only Fang Qingxue had just entered the Divine Courage Realm.

Shen Ruolan was still lingering in the Divine Strength Realm and would only be slaughtered if she encountered these Yakshas.

"Third Brother, what should we do now?" Shen Ruolan asked softly.

"Let's go back to the sect. Our previous gains are already good enough for us to cultivate for a while. Qing Xue, Fang Xuan, what do you think?"

Fang Xuan was silent for a moment, then said, "Don't you think it's strange?"

"Hmm?"

"This is the outer area of the underground world. Logically, there shouldn't be so many Underground Demons here, let alone Yaksha-level demons. Something must have happened ahead."

"No matter what happened, it's not something we can handle. It's better to report it to the sect," Shen Hao said solemnly.

"Reporting to the sect is indeed the simplest way to handle it, but I still want to go back and take a look," Fang Xuan said.

Fang Qingxue frowned and said, "You think there's treasure?"

"It's not like this group of Yakshas are here for a vacation with nothing better to do, right?"

"No, it's too dangerous," Shen Hao still shook his head.

Fang Xuan thought for a moment and said, "How about this, I'll go back and take a look myself, check out the situation, and if it's not feasible, I'll come back."

"I'll go with you."

Fang Xuan glanced at Fang Qingxue, nodded, and said, "Okay."

Shen Hao shook his head with a wry smile and said, "You two are strong, but Ruo Lan and I are not. Even one Yaksha is not something we can handle. How about this, we'll go back to the surface and wait. Don't take too many risks."

"Alright."

After making arrangements, Fang Xuan and Fang Qingxue stealthily moved forward.

Behind a black rock, the two of them hid in the shadows.

"Ten, eleven, twelve, twelve Yakshas, which means there are twelve experts in the Divine Courage Realm," Fang Xuan said in a deep voice.

"Fang Xuan, look, they are hunting demonic beasts."

"Let's go, get a little closer and see."

Fortunately, the underground world was extremely dark, with only the faint light from the luminous mushrooms. Their stealth was not discovered.

A Demon Bear that had been dead for a long time was casually thrown to the side. The Demon Bear had been disemboweled, and its heart was long gone.

"The heart is gone."

"That Blood Wolf next to it is the same, only the heart is missing," Fang Qingxue also darted over from the side and said.

"That's not right! Underground Demons eat raw meat and blood and like blood food. It's impossible for them to only take the heart, unless..."

"Unless they have something more important to do, and they must use the hearts of these demonic beasts."

The two looked at each other.

"Let's go, get a little closer."

The two of them approached the group of Underground Demons again. After a moment, they finally saw it from a sunken rock crevice about a hundred meters away.

A small altar was in the valley. Unidentified strange symbols were drawn on the black rock, and around the rock were placed various demonic beast hearts of different sizes. Not far away, some discarded corpses of demonic beasts that had long been dead were scattered.

"Look."

Fang Qingxue looked in the direction Fang Xuan was pointing and saw a blood-red crystal suspended in mid-air in the center of the altar. The crystal was entirely blood-red, filled with a bloody, eerie feeling.

The hearts placed on the altar visibly shriveled at a speed visible to the naked eye, and as these hearts shriveled, the blood-red crystal emitted a more dazzling red light.

Sniff, sniff, sniff!

"Fang Xuan, do you smell a fragrant scent?"

"It's that blood-colored crystal. I know what it is. 'All Worlds' said that Underground Demons can improve their strength by devouring the hearts of living beings to obtain essence blood, in addition to cultivating. That crystal is a treasure called Essence Bloodstone, refined through an altar. It can strengthen blood energy and enhance mental power. Yakshas can be promoted to Flying Yakshas by consuming it, and it's also effective for us."

The last sentence was the key point. Fang Qingxue's eyes lit up, and she turned to look at Fang Xuan, saying, "Twelve Yakshas, half for each of us."

Fang Xuan also grinned lightly, revealing his neat teeth.

"Okay."

Seizing the opportunity, the Demon Slaying Sword flashed with a cold light. The two closest Yakshas instantly had their heads severed, a look of confusion still on their faces in the moment of death.

How am I seeing my body? Huh, where's my head?

"Damn it, there are humans! Kill them!"

"Haha, we actually ran into two humans, and one's a woman! They must have come to the underground world to hunt demonic beasts and get rich. We'll eat the man, and take the woman back to offer to the Great Commander."

With that, the group of Yakshas let out sharp whistles, holding steel forks. With a few leaps, they were like giant grasshoppers, rapidly closing in on the two, as if they had spotted the most delicious food.

These Yakshas had astonishing leaping ability. A single leap could cover a height of three to four people and a distance of thirty to forty steps, enough to clear an ordinary house.

Although they couldn't glide through the air like Flying Yakshas, they still displayed demonic abilities. Even ordinary Divine Courage Realm experts couldn't leap this high or this far.

"Kill!"

Fang Xuan stood tall, the Demon Slaying Sword raised, and his steps surged forward.

These Underground Demons had one characteristic: immense strength. However, their martial arts were relatively crude, lacking the refined subtlety honed by humans over countless trials. In terms of intelligence, they were only slightly inferior to humans. After all, their ability to use torches was enough to show that they were completely unrelated to the term "beast."

A Yaksha leaped forward first, like a fierce tiger, its steel fork stabbing fiercely towards Fang Xuan. A cold light gleamed, and the force was so great it could skewer a bull for barbecue.

Clang!

The Dragon Slaying Sword and the steel fork clashed, emitting a harsh sound. Immediately after, the Yaksha's steel fork was directly sent flying, and the scales on its arm also cracked.

This scene stunned the Yaksha. It was actually suppressed by a human in terms of strength? How was this possible?