Say Thank You!

"A standard-issue Hundred-Refined Embroidered Spring Blade. Just some lowly Brocade Guard lackey."

"Official boots of a ninth-rank county yamen officer. You're the new Ninth-Rank Black-Robed Constable at the county office?"

"An interesting combination."

"Come, sit!"

White Ape pointed at the chairs lining both sides of the hall. He himself sat grandly upon the arhat couch at the head, casually tossing the courtesan who had died miserably on the bed aside as though she were rubbish.

"Die, demon!"

The instant Lu Xuening saw this, rage surged to her head. With her longsword in hand, she unleashed an exquisitely subtle sword art and charged straight at White Ape.

"You refuse a toast only to drink a forfeit!"

A vicious gleam flashed in White Ape's eyes. He threw a punch, using his bare hand to meet Lu Xuening's sword head-on.

Boom!

The razor-sharp sword left a long gash across his hand, but White Ape's terrifyingly violent fist also smashed fiercely against Lu Xuening's blade. With another explosive burst of force, he sent both woman and sword flying!

Lu Xuening was blasted several yards away by White Ape's punch, crashing hard into the wall and leaving a human-shaped dent before falling to the ground.

"He has already reached the fifth stage of the Divine Treasury Realm—the Marrow Asura level!"

"I'll hold him back. Run!"

Lu Xuening struggled to rise from the ground, loosened her limbs, and spat out a mouthful of clotted blood. Some color returned to her pale face as she immediately shouted at Chen Fan.

As she spoke, she ignored the danger and once again flicked her sword into a flourish, charging at White Ape.

Chen Fan did not choose to flee upon seeing this. With a thought, he summoned the Attribute Panel:

Name: Chen Fan

Realm: Divine Treasury Realm (Fourth Stage: Blood Martial Saint)

Techniques: "Body Tempering Fist" (Perfected), "Blade Draw Slash" (Perfected)

Remaining Lifespan: Fifty years

Demonkin Lifespan: Fifty-six years

He directly poured all fifty-six years of Demonkin Lifespan into the "Body Tempering Fist." He intended to seize this chance to break through to the fifth stage of the Divine Treasury Realm, the Marrow Asura level.

Originally, he had thought that with himself, a fourth-stage Divine Treasury Realm martial artist, and Lu Xuening, a peak Divine Treasury Realm martial artist, killing a fourth-stage Divine Treasury Realm demon would be as easy as turning over one's hand. But the moment White Ape attacked, he knew they had both underestimated this fellow.

After entering the fourth stage of the Divine Treasury Realm, the Blood Martial Saint level, you continued to painstakingly cultivate the perfected "Body Tempering Fist." In the fifteenth year, you broke through to the realm of blood refined like mercury and entered the fifth stage of the Divine Treasury Realm, the Marrow Asura level. During this time, your understanding of the "Body Tempering Fist" deepened continuously!

You continued practicing the "Body Tempering Fist." In the thirtieth year, you used the "Body Tempering Fist" to reach the realm of marrow refined like frost. You crossed five gates and became a peak Divine Treasury Realm martial artist. You sensed a trace of heaven-and-earth impetus and saw the hope of the "Body Tempering Fist" breaking past its limits!

You continued to comprehend the "Body Tempering Fist." Ten years passed in the flick of a finger, but your aptitude was limited, and you failed to comprehend a higher-level method!

In the fiftieth year, you finally grasped a thread of heaven-and-earth impetus and perceived the path forward for the "Body Tempering Fist." You began tirelessly perfecting the "Body Tempering Fist," taking endless delight in it.

In the fifty-sixth year, after exhausting the lifeblood of your entire life, you finally altered the "Body Tempering Fist" into a stronger, more formidable boxing art. You named it the "Heaven and Earth Millstone Fist." Cultivating this fist art allowed one to break through five gates, communicate with heaven-and-earth origin energy, use that energy as a millstone to temper and strengthen one's body, and ultimately condense an Innate Body!

Peak Divine Treasury Realm

"Heaven and Earth Millstone Fist"

Chen Fan lightly clenched his fists, sensing the explosive power flooding his body. Bronze Skin, Iron Bones, Steel Tendons, blood refined like mercury, marrow refined like frost—his body could now be called bronze skin and iron bones, steel tendons and jade marrow. His blood and qi roared like a dragon, and his fighting power surged without end!

Boom!

After tangling with White Ape for a long time, Lu Xuening was sent flying once more. She slammed heavily down before Chen Fan. White Ape was also covered in wounds, several deep enough to reveal bone, yet they only stirred his ferocity further!

"Cough, cough, cough!"

"Didn't I tell you to run?"

"Why are you still here?"

Lu Xuening coughed violently several times and spoke with a helpless expression.

With her current strength, she could not kill this ape demon. But if she wanted to flee, the ape demon might not necessarily be able to stop her.

But she could not run, because Chen Fan was still here.

She had originally planned to hold the ape demon off for a while and let Chen Fan escape first. Once Chen Fan was out of danger, she could withdraw as well. Yet she had not expected that while she risked her life to hold the ape demon back, Chen Fan would stand there with his eyes closed, meditating in thought.

Big brother, what in the world are you doing?

"Leave the rest to me!"

Chen Fan helped Lu Xuening up, shielded her behind him, and faced the massive White Ape directly.

"Boy, kneel and kowtow to me three times, then call me Grandfather. For the sake of the Brocade Guard, I can forgive your insolence today."

"Say thank you!"

White Ape stared at Chen Fan, his face twisted in ferocity as he spoke.

Lu Xuening was a Ninth-Rank Black-Robed Constable. White Ape was somewhat surprised that she possessed peak Divine Treasury Realm strength, but it was still within the bounds of acceptance. After all, she had been sent down from Dragon Abyss Prefecture. It would be strange if she did not have some real skills.

But Chen Fan carried a Hundred-Refined Embroidered Spring Blade and wore the ordinary boots of a Brocade Guard. At a glance, he was an utterly ordinary Brocade Guard member.

For a Brocade Guard lackey like that, White Ape could hammer one to death with a single punch without even breaking a sweat.

"Thank you!"

Chen Fan replied calmly.

He took two steps as one, swinging his fist viciously at the ape demon. Yet the ape demon did not move in the slightest, and a trace of disdain still hung on his face.

Boom!

Chen Fan leaped into the air and threw a punch. His terrifying fist brought up a gale of force as it smashed brutally into the ape demon's face. Several crisp cracks rang out, and the ape demon spat out a mouthful of blood along with several teeth.

Chen Fan's fist drove him headfirst into the ground. The immense impact shattered the thick wooden planks beneath his massive body, and his head plunged straight through the floorboards, emerging through the ceiling of the sixth floor.

At that moment.

On the sixth floor.

A wealthy merchant was spending money like water while enjoying himself with a Wangchun Pavilion courtesan. Suddenly, he heard an enormous crash, and a huge ape head burst through the ceiling, frightening him into a scream:

"There's a demon here!"

The courtesan was likewise startled by the sudden turn of events. But after seeing that terrifying face clearly, she softly said:

"Lord Ape."

However, White Ape quickly pulled his head free from the planks. Before he could steady himself, Chen Fan threw another punch.

Boom!

This punch swept out and smashed viciously into White Ape's left ribs, breaking several of them at once. It sent him flying sideways, dragging across the ground for several yards before crashing into a hall pillar and finally coming to a stop.

White Ape was utterly dazed by Chen Fan's two punches. Chen Fan seemed like a humanoid tyrannosaur, his lean body filled with explosive power.

Yet White Ape had not sensed any trace of heaven-and-earth origin energy from Chen Fan. That proved Chen Fan had not opened his own apertures, communicated with heaven-and-earth origin energy, and entered the Divine Aperture Realm!

Without entering the Divine Aperture Realm, a human Divine Treasury Realm cultivator had actually gone head-to-head with a great demon of the same realm and ground him into the dirt. What kind of monster was this?!

"So he was actually this strong?"

Seeing the scene before her, Lu Xuening felt her heart pounding wildly.

She had never imagined that Chen Fan had hidden himself so deeply. He was actually a peak Divine Treasury Realm martial artist as well!