A Formidable Enemy

Li Qi was Shaman.

The Shaman had their own understanding of Heavenly Phenomenon.

Li Qi used the method of circulation to gather the various mixed energies into a ball, transforming it into Martial Dao Inner Qi, which blasted open the Demon Prince's severed leg. Then, these energies condensed into a new Technique Method, using the ultimate yang to drive the ultimate yang!

The Demon Prince's body was already incomplete, lacking his right leg, so his inner world naturally lacked the winter energy. Without the balance of the winter energy, the yin and yang were out of order, and the seasons were disordered!

In this way, the Demon Prince's inner world is just like the 'Ten Suns in the sky' of the past. The extreme Yang Energy will not bring benefits, but will bring about terrible disasters, and may even destroy the entire inner world!

The Qi stored within the inner world is the direct source of cultivation for most Dao Path. All your Qi needs to be stored somewhere; you can't just conjure it up out of thin air.

In addition to storing Qi, the inner world is also the place where the so-called 'foundation' is located.

If Qi is simply left to circulate, it is meaningless impurity. It must operate according to certain rules in order to produce many wonders, and these rules are the 'Tao'.

The path you cultivate inevitably needs a place to manifest. For example, if you cultivate, understand, and adopt Newtonian mechanics, you definitely need a place to perform cycles that conform to Newtonian mechanics, so that the energy you accumulate can operate according to Newtonian mechanics and not become chaotic.

That way you can pull it out and use it when you encounter a problem. If you have to build it on-site, it will take too long, like trying to assemble a Gundam on-site with a bunch of parts.

Everyone else arrives in fully-built Gundams, while you're carrying a bunch of parts. How are you going to fight?

Therefore, the human body's microcosm, as an almost perfect space for storing qi, can also excellently fulfill the function of 'manifesting the Dao,' naturally becoming the foundation of all cultivation. Only a few Dao Path would choose to abandon such a good thing and find their own way.

Clearly, the demonic path is not one of those few.

Therefore, this is the extent of the insidiousness of Li Qi's move. This is the real attack on the weakness. The imbalance of the timing will directly cause the energy in the Demon Prince's body to become disordered!

Moreover, almost simultaneously, Li Qi rushed over!

Your inner world is out of balance, so using Technique Method will be slow, and your body may even become stiff. Take this opportunity to kill him!

This is Li Qi's plan.

With the help of the Law Treasure exoskeleton, Li Qi's speed suddenly increased, Carp Flowing Intent erupted again, making him look like a carp swimming against the current, doubling the power of his body!

Taking advantage of the Demon Prince's inability to resist, a pair of fists struck his vital points: eyes, ears, temples, Adam's apple—leaving no vulnerable spot untouched.

In this respect, Li Qi definitely has the same qualities as Zhu Fengdan.

If you deserve to be beaten to death, then beat him to death. The means don't matter at all. Li Qi is no gentleman.

However, the Demon Prince remained calm.

Panicking won't help; you'll still get beaten if you panic.

Although they did misjudge the situation and gave Li Qi a chance to retaliate by repeatedly letting Li Qi win, they were not without their own methods.

Yes, an imbalance in the timing of the inner world can lead to sluggish Technique Method, physical stiffness, and even sudden death.

The Demon Prince won't die suddenly; he's gotten used to this feeling since he was a child.

He is physically and mentally deficient, and his inner world has been out of balance countless times during his cultivation. He has been through countless battles, and almost anyone with common sense would attack this weakness of his.

However, after reaching the seventh rank, very few people were able to find his weakness.

Indeed, it's been a long time since I've felt this pain.

With his Technique Method sluggish and his body stiff, it was indeed difficult to defend against the aggressive Li Qi. Although his fist techniques were crude, they were still legitimate martial arts styles, and in close combat, they were not so easy to deal with.

However, some things are very convenient, requiring neither Technique Method nor a physical body.

But then Li Qi rushed forward and punched the Demon Prince squarely in the temple.

The Demon Prince's black jade mask has cracked!

He was sent flying.

He then revealed his true appearance, a handsome face that looked effeminate, but... it was terrifying.

Because the Demon Prince only has one eye! Not the kind of hole that someone dug out, but he doesn't have an eye socket at all; where his right eye used to be, it was a flat surface!

He is physically and mentally disabled, and it's not just his right leg that's missing.

He's also missing his right eye!

The eyes are where the sun and moon reside, and the right side is Yin. The right eye, located in the microcosm of the human body, symbolizes the moon.

The Demon Prince's inner world has no moon! Only the sun!

In addition, his right leg lacks the winter energy, which means that his microcosm within his body is closer to the yang polarity than Li Qi imagined!

After enduring a full combo of attacks, Li Qi's hands were covered in the Demon Prince's blood. He was about to launch another attack and accelerate, but the sudden acceleration caused him to fall to the ground!

It's unbelievable that a seventh-rank official could fall down!

Li Qi himself was also taken aback, but this fall gave the Demon Prince a chance to retaliate.

Completely disregarding the imbalance within his inner world, he saw countless demons surge over, and black energy bit into Li Qi!

The most primal fire ignited within his soul. Li Qi's consciousness, memories, and even his personality were all forced to burn. The demonic energy and the yang energy mixed together, scorching his body. This pain was like a poisonous viper gnawing at his flesh, a hungry eagle pecking at his marrow, until his bones and flesh were completely rotten!

At this moment, Li Qi realized why he had fallen: he saw his exoskeleton ignite.

That was the extreme yang energy seeping from the Demon Prince's body, a symbol that his inner world was completely devoid of any yin attribute.

The Demon Prince actually used the imbalance caused by Li Qi to transform his body towards the yang direction, completely abandoning the Yin Qi.

What yin-yang balance? Absolutely not needed!

Such intense Yang Energy, even activated by Li Qi himself using Technique Method, was something Li Qi never expected the Demon Prince's physical defects to be so terrifying. There wasn't a trace of Yin Qi on his entire body, not even the moon!

Therefore, this activation imbued the Demon Prince's blood with extreme Yang Energy. The blood burned, and when Li Qi came into contact with it, his hastily assembled exoskeleton was burned away.

Without the exoskeleton, when he tried to activate his martial arts techniques, his physical body couldn't keep up, and he fell to the ground, overwhelmed by the endless demons, scorched by demonic fire, and his soul was completely burned!

Li Qi's eyes widened; it wasn't just from the pain, but also from the shock.

That's impossible!

The balance of Yin and Yang is the benchmark of the world and the key to its formation. How could a human being, small as the universe, grow in a purely Yang environment? This is like a magnet having only one pole, which is completely contrary to common sense.

However, before Li Qi could think further, the surrounding demonic fire continued to burn, bringing not only endless pain but also beginning to impair Li Qi's thinking ability.

The demonic fire brought endless demonic thoughts. Li Qi felt that there were many sounds floating around his ears, like a noisy marketplace, or like a million ducks getting up and quacking.

The more one tries to control one's mind, the more one feels helpless and lost, as if adrift in the mortal world, feeling lost and adrift.

When the demonic thoughts attacked, Li Qi was unable to escape for a moment. He felt countless voices and thoughts constantly entangled and eroded his normal thoughts, making it impossible for him to think clearly.

This kind of pain is even more agonizing than being burned by demonic fire!

But on the other side, the Demon Prince did not give chase.

Compared to Li Qi's insidious, ruthless, and unscrupulous fighting style, the Demon Prince was the epitome of gentlemanly conduct. Every move he made was a direct confrontation; there were no sneak attacks or pursuits. He countered each move with a clear and righteous force, overwhelming his opponent with sheer power and crushing them with overwhelming strength.

He looked at Li Qi.

While trying to escape, Li Qi was simultaneously activating an illusion array to conceal his figure and suppressing demonic thoughts, desperately attempting to withdraw from the battle and prepare to regroup.

That's the posture of the weak, the posture of the weak racking their brains and having to use any means necessary to survive.

There's nothing special about it; the weak have to do this to survive.

He used to be like this, struggling to survive as a weakling, using every means at his disposal.

Therefore, at this point, this attitude no longer belongs to him.

He is a strongman, an absolute strongman, destined for a high position in the future.

The strong must maintain their dignity.

He remained standing in place, leaning on his cane, waiting for Li Qi's next attack, if Li Qi could continue to attack.

The Demon Prince didn't have to wait long.

The surrounding microcosms suddenly collapsed, along with the demonic thoughts and demonic fire on Li Qi's body.

Li Qi was panting heavily. The collapse of his small world meant that all his pre-battle preparations were gone, Perfected Person microcosm had suffered a backlash.

However, I have finally gotten rid of the persistent and lingering demonic thoughts.

"Oh? So this is the Shaman's Life-Substitution Method? Interesting." The Demon Prince leaned on his bamboo staff, looking at Li Qi was shrouded in an illusion array not far away, and said, "It's really amazing. As long as there is something that can establish a connection with it, it can transfer the damage to that thing. What a convenient thing."

"However, this kind of Technique Method won't help you defeat me," the Demon Prince said.

Then, he stood quietly in place, waiting for Li Qi's surprise attack.

This is the gentleness of the strong.

If the strong were as ruthless as the weak, then the weak would have no right to survive.

Meanwhile, Li Qi on the other side began to take a series of deep breaths.

Tricky!

This is really tricky!

The opponent hasn't even used their full strength yet; they still have reserves to wait for him to launch an attack!

Throughout his cultivation journey, the Demon Prince has undoubtedly been the most formidable enemy he has ever encountered!

In the past, he could hardly have imagined that there would be such an insurmountable enemy among those of the same rank, one who clearly had obvious flaws and weaknesses, yet was simply unbeatable.

Li Qi realized something.

Li Qi's greatest strength lies in learning. He has mastered a vast number of Technique Method, accumulated knowledge, read extensively, and broadened his horizons. He possesses a library-like knowledge base, which is his greatest asset. In contrast, Li Qi's combat talent is practically nonexistent. Without an exoskeleton, he might even fall while using martial arts techniques, requiring him to plan ahead. His only reaction in battle is to dodge and run away.

Although he is quick-witted and can make plans in just a few seconds, in this kind of battle, making plans a few seconds in advance is basically equivalent to giving up the initiative. The plan he just made was forcibly obtained by using the illusion array.

This is Li Qi's characteristic: he is not good at fighting, but he is good at collecting knowledge and processing information.

But the Demon Prince is clearly not like that.

It should be noted that in the previous battle with Li Qi, who was four ranks above him in cultivation, he had fought to a standstill in terms of wisdom and resources. That is why he personally appeared to fight Li Qi.

But now, he has also shown that he is very good at fighting. His use of Technique Method, Movement Method, and even control over the battle itself are quite impressive.

He just broke through Li Qi's trap, used the Yang Blood to kill Li Qi, and broke through the small world in the process, which was truly spectacular.

These weren't plans, but rather impromptu responses.

In other words, the Demon Prince is more skilled in combat than in wisdom and knowledge.

He had just been evenly matched with Li Qi, but in reality, he was using his own weaknesses to attack Li Qi's strengths, and using his own lack of intelligence to compete with Li Qi, yet he still managed to draw with Li Qi.

Now he is using his superior fighting skills to counter Li Qi's weaknesses, bringing Li Qi to the brink of collapse.

Countless pieces of information flashed through Li Qi's mind. True Knowledge Dao Charm was going all out, and with the various information he had previously gathered, he analyzed and arranged them in his mind.

However, no matter what they did or how they thought about it, they couldn't find a way to win.

Back when Li Qi was a low-ranking official, he could still find a way to survive when facing the Chanzhi Zhi. But now, he couldn't think of a solution no matter how hard he tried.

I can't beat them...

I really can't beat him. The Demon Prince is just too strong. Even his weaknesses can match Li Qi's strengths without being at a disadvantage. Who knows if fighting is his real forte?

The two remained silent for almost a minute.

The Demon Prince seemed to think that too much time had passed, so he said, "If you don't make a move now, just admit defeat. I won't annihilate your true spirit; you can still be reincarnated."

"However, this is a life-or-death battle after all. Under normal circumstances, I would probably let you go, but unfortunately, I can't now."

"I'll give you twelve more breaths, you'd better hurry," the Demon Prince said, then closed his only remaining eye.

Li Qi broke out in a cold sweat and quickly concealed himself while observing his opponent.

Upon this observation, Li Qi also discovered that the Demon Prince's intensely fiery microcosm within his body had actually... subsided.

Without the balance of Yin and Yang

How? How did they do it?

Li Qi frowned, seemingly unaware that cold sweat was trickling down his forehead and into his eyes.

Unfortunately, there was no last-minute solution that came up.

Twelve breaths passed in the blink of an eye.

The Demon Prince paused with his cane and said in a low voice, "Time's up. It seems you're still hesitating. Let me help you choose then."

After speaking, he stared in Li Qi's direction with his only remaining eye.

Li Qi was horrified!

The illusion array has been seen through?!

Are you kidding me? He hadn't even seen through it yet!

But there was no time for Li Qi to think further. The Demon Prince reached out to him directly, and at the same time, grabbed his cane with his other hand to support his body.

At that very moment, as the Demon Prince unleashed his power, Li Qi suddenly sensed something within the Demon Prince's body.

That is... the Daoist spirit!

Moreover, it is the Daoist aura of Yin energy.

Could it be this?!

(I'm going to the mountains tomorrow to pay respects to the deceased, so there's a possibility I won't be updating. Whether I will update or not depends on how quickly I finish writing after I get back. I don't know for sure. After that, I wish everyone a Happy New Year, and I hope to continue writing for you all next year and finish this book properly.)

(PS2: Is it Chinese New Year? Why is the subscription rate halved? I'm afraid I won't be able to have a good New Year.)