Blood Demon

"Captain, save me..."

Niu Zhenye struggled violently, crying out for help in panic. He wanted to break free from the restraints, but to his horror, he found his body seemed to be paralyzed by something, completely unresponsive. No matter how much he roared in his heart, he couldn't muster any strength.

He could only call for help while watching himself being dragged into the thick fog.

"Outrageous!"

Li Da roared, leaping forward like a tiger or leopard. He raised his battle saber and slashed at the thick fog in front of him. The saber cut through the air, actually creating a dull sonic boom before fiercely cleaving into the fog and a blurry figure within.

The expected impact didn't occur. The saber seemed to slice through the figure effortlessly, as if it had cut through air.

"Gagaga..."

A strange, sharp laugh echoed. The next moment, the figure suddenly transformed into a stream of air and merged into Niu Zhenye's body.

"No... Ah..."

A piercing scream resounded through the night sky. Everyone's expression changed drastically as they watched Niu Zhenye tremble violently. His body then began to shrink at a terrifying speed, instantly turning into a desiccated corpse, all its blood drained.

"Damn it, this is a Blood Demon... not a specter. How can there be a Blood Demon in Yunshan County..."

Qin Qing's face turned extremely grim, fine beads of sweat appearing on her forehead.

Li Da, watching Niu Zhenye instantly turn into a dried corpse, trembled all over. He immediately retreated more than ten zhang, rejoining Qin Qing and the others. Gritting his teeth, he growled, "Aren't Blood Demons supposed to be in the Underground Abyss? How did it appear on the surface and come to Yunshan County?"

"The only possibility is that someone is raising a Blood Demon."

Qin Qing gritted her teeth and said in a deep voice, "All passages to the Underground Abyss are sealed and guarded by a large army. Blood Demons cannot escape. But if a martial artist went into the Underground Abyss, captured, and enslaved a Blood Demon, they could find a way to bring it out."

"Then what do we do now?"

Wu Xiaoqi and Luo Kang were terrified, their faces pale and filled with panic. They looked at Li Da and Qin Qing. The two of them were only at the Eighth Rank Bone Tempering Realm, even weaker than Niu Zhenye.

Now that even Niu Zhenye had no power to resist the Blood Demon, wouldn't they both be doomed? The thought of their own blood being devoured by the Blood Demon, turning them into dried corpses, filled them with even greater fear, and they couldn't help but tremble.

In contrast, Lin Baichuan's brow was furrowed. He was quietly contemplating how to kill the Blood Demon.

Because just moments ago, he suddenly realized that his perception of the Blood Demon was far superior to ordinary people. At the very least, he could pinpoint the Blood Demon's location. Although the monster was hiding its form using the thick fog, Lin Baichuan could lock onto its aura.

Therefore, no matter how the Blood Demon tried to hide, as long as its aura remained unchanged, it couldn't escape Lin Baichuan's senses.

This kind of perception was incredibly mysterious; Lin Baichuan couldn't even describe it in words.

He remained impassive, quietly observing Qin Qing, Li Da, and the others. He was certain they didn't have such a sense, otherwise, they wouldn't be so solemn and flustered.

Could it be because of Saber Intent?

Lin Baichuan thought to himself, My comprehension of Saber Intent has caused my perception to transform...

The more he thought about it, the more likely Lin Baichuan felt this possibility was.

Roar...

Whoosh!

Just then, a beast-like roar erupted from within the thick fog. Simultaneously, a chilling wind swept across the ground, and the surrounding fog and malevolent qi churned like boiling water.

Everyone's vision was severely impaired. Beyond ten feet, it was pitch black.

Everyone's nerves were stretched to the absolute limit. Luo Kang and Wu Xiaoqi's bodies trembled uncontrollably.

They were terrified. Niu Zhenye's gruesome fate had shattered their courage.

Swoosh! Swoosh!

Suddenly, accompanied by faint whistling sounds, the Blood Demon hidden within the fog moved. Like a phantom, it charged directly at Lin Baichuan and the others at terrifying speed, like a gust of wind.

Due to the fog, Lin Baichuan couldn't see its form, but he could clearly sense the Blood Demon's exact location. If he attacked now, using his Saber Intent, Lin Baichuan was confident he could kill the Blood Demon with a single blow.

After all, from his perception, the Blood Demon's strength was actually inferior to that Mountain Fiend. Its power lay in its ability to conceal its movements using the fog.

However, Lin Baichuan didn't rush to attack.

He planned to return the favor.

Since Li Da and the others had used the Mountain Fiend to try and kill him, then he could use this Blood Demon to kill Li Da and the others. This was called an eye for an eye.

Lin Baichuan sneered inwardly, placing his right hand on his saber's hilt, his eyes narrowing as he constantly locked onto the Blood Demon's aura.

"Ah..."

Just then, a scream rang out again.

It was Wu Xiaoqi!

Behind him, a faint blood-red light flashed and instantly burrowed into his body. The next moment, his body began to shrink at a terrifying speed, just like Niu Zhenye before him. All his blood drained away, and he instantly turned into a desiccated corpse.

"Damn it, damn it... beast, get out, get out, ah..."

Luo Kang, standing beside Wu Xiaoqi, completely lost it. He swung his saber wildly, appearing frenzied. At that moment, the faint blood-red light flashed again, piercing through his body without any warning.

Luo Kang's angry curses abruptly stopped, and with a scream, he followed in Wu Xiaoqi's footsteps.

In an instant, three people were dead.

Li Da and Qin Qing's faces had turned so dark they could have dripped water. Li Da gritted his teeth and asked Qin Qing, "Qin Qing, do you have any ideas?"

He could only place his hope on Qin Qing now. Since she came from the prefectural city, perhaps she had a way to deal with Blood Demons.

"No!"

Qin Qing shook her head slightly. "This Blood Demon is using the Profound Yin Malevolent Qi to conceal itself. Unless we can force it out, there's nothing we can do."

She truly had no solution. Blood Demons were inherently good at hiding, and with the Profound Yin Malevolent Qi assisting them, it was like adding wings to a tiger. She would only be able to do something if her cultivation reached the Sixth Rank Blood Refining Realm, allowing her to project her Blood Essence outwards and use it to disrupt the dense fog formed by the Profound Yin Malevolent Qi, forcing the Blood Demon out.

But the problem was, she was only at the Seventh Rank Organ Forging Realm. Even though she had hidden her strength and reached the limit of the Organ Forging Realm, even being at the half-step Blood Refining stage, she wasn't truly in the Blood Refining Realm.

Furthermore, even if she stepped into the Blood Refining Realm, she wouldn't immediately be able to project her Blood Essence outwards. That was a feat only achievable by the strong within the Blood Refining Realm.

Li Da's expression grew uglier. Gritting his teeth, he growled, "If that's the case, then we'll charge out! We'll charge out of this dense fog!"

With that, Li Da gritted his teeth and immediately prepared to break through.

"No, the Profound Yin Malevolent Qi is a natural maze. If we charge around blindly, it will be difficult to get out," Qin Qing immediately stopped him.

"That's still better than dying in here."

Li Da growled, his foot speed increasing as he charged straight ahead.

This dense fog was too bizarre. Within it, his full strength couldn't be exerted. Only by charging out was there a sliver of hope for survival.

Seeing this, Qin Qing gritted her teeth and said to Lin Baichuan, "Follow me!"

With that, she immediately chased after Li Da.