Seeing Li Qingshan rush into the World Gate, he seemed to be swallowed whole by the blood-colored vortex.
Kong Hao and the other two froze for a moment, looking at one another.
They were no strangers to the eager look on Li Qingshan's face.
Whenever class ended and they rushed toward the cafeteria, they wore the exact same expressions.
But...
Beyond the World Gate was not a cafeteria!
Hadn't they seen all those investigators fail to hold their ground just now, forced out alive?
"Let's go!" Kong Hao sighed, tightening his grip on his Long Spear.
"Li Qingshan must already be surrounded by Wolf Venom. If we get there too late, it'll be too late."
"That's right. Every high-tier Wolf Venom has a body stronger than the Tempered Body Tenth Layer. They aren't easy to deal with, so be careful."
Jin Yi and Yang Bo drew their blades and followed behind Kong Hao.
Their faces full of vigilance, the three carefully stepped into the World Gate.
The blood-colored vortex was like a mirror. As the three passed through, ripples spread across its surface.
Roar! Roar! Roar!
Earth-shaking howls rang out, and the stench of blood rushed into their noses.
Kong Hao and the other two's brows jumped. They swiftly unleashed their movement techniques and assumed battle stances.
Yet the countless attacks they had expected never came.
Their weapon-wielding hands paused as the three turned toward a point a hundred meters away.
That was where the roars were coming from.
A figure was weaving through seven or eight Wolf Venoms.
Li Qingshan was indeed surrounded, yet those high-tier Wolf Venoms could not even touch the corner of his clothes.
"Li Qingshan moved that fast?" Jin Yi swallowed and pointed at the ground beneath their feet.
The earth had already been soaked in blood. More than a dozen Wolf Venom corpses lay split in two across the ground.
Though they were all ordinary Wolf Venoms, Li Qingshan had only been inside for a little over ten seconds.
More than a dozen Wolf Venoms killed in ten seconds, all while seven or eight high-tier Wolf Venoms watched like tigers from the sidelines?
And having just entered the Star Realm and been surrounded by a beast pack, he had not the slightest difficulty adjusting?
Kong Hao and Yang Bo did not question it, much less suspect that the corpses had been left behind by the earlier investigators.
Because judging from the wounds, they had clearly been cleaved open by the same person with a blade—and the cuts had come from below upward!
Crotch-Reaping Saber!
At the thought of Li Qingshan's nickname, the three unconsciously clamped their legs together.
Roar!
The thunderous howls came one after another, growing ever more frantic.
Several dozen seconds passed. Not only had the few high-tier Wolf Venoms failed to harm Li Qingshan in the slightest, but they had instead been cut with numerous wounds.
"Hahaha, the Essence of Square Inch truly lives up to its reputation!"
Kong Hao burst into laughter. Heroic spirit surged within him as he raised his spear and charged forward.
"Li Qingshan, I'll help you!"
Yang Bo raised his long blade high and followed close behind.
But after only two steps, Jin Yi forcefully grabbed him.
Yang Bo turned back in confusion. Jin Yi raised a hand and pointed toward the battlefield, saying with glee at their misfortune:
"Don't forget the 'plan' Li Qingshan laid out at the end!"
Though they did not know why Li Qingshan killed ferocious beasts as if he were snatching food at the cafeteria, if it was food-snatching, then he definitely would not want anyone else interfering.
Besides, in less than half a minute, two high-tier Wolf Venoms had already fallen. Where was there any need for their help?
Yang Bo followed the direction of his finger.
He saw that Kong Hao had already plunged into the battlefield, his spearhead stabbing into a Wolf Venom's chest.
And Li Qingshan...
Like a ghostly specter, he silently appeared behind Kong Hao.
Hmm?
Jin Yi and Yang Bo's eyes widened.
A chill ran through Kong Hao's legs. He hurriedly turned around, only to meet Li Qingshan's gaze as it swept from below upward.
"You're here to steal my monsters?"
Li Qingshan's gaze was deep and unfathomable.
"No, I'm helping! I came to help!"
Kong Hao shuddered and hurriedly answered, terrified that a crotch-reaping slash would come his way.
"Helping?"
Li Qingshan's right foot suddenly slid forward. Turning sideways, he thrust out with his blade.
Before Kong Hao could react, the blade had already passed by his shoulder and stabbed toward his back.
Its chest covered in blood, the high-tier Wolf Venom stood upright on its hind legs and swung down its claws.
Squelch!
Following the wound Kong Hao had just made, the blade tip pierced the Wolf Venom's heart first.
Li Qingshan twisted his wrist and shredded its heart.
Monster killed. Martial Dao Space experience +3. Available time increased by 3 years.
The panel notification flashed past. Only then did Li Qingshan's expression return to normal as he frowned at the stunned Kong Hao.
"There's no need for help here. Proceed according to the original plan!"
With that, his long blade danced and his body shifted, drawing the remaining five high-tier Wolf Venoms forward.
As the battlefield moved ahead, Kong Hao naturally left the encirclement.
Coming back to his senses in a daze, he looked at the Wolf Venom corpses on the ground, and cold sweat broke out across his back.
In terms of sheer strength, killing a high-tier Wolf Venom was indeed not difficult for him.
But in the chaos of battle, one moment of carelessness could see him buried beneath their claws.
Kong Hao no longer hesitated. He immediately moved away from the battlefield and, together with Jin Yi and Yang Bo, followed the direction marked on the map to search for Zhu Ping's trail.
One minute later,
Monster killed. Martial Dao Space experience +3. Available time increased by 3 years.
The last Wolf Venom fell to the ground.
Li Qingshan stepped on the ferocious beast's head, drawing his long blade along its fur to wipe away the blood.
At the same time, he looked around.
Only now did he have time to observe the legendary Star Realm.
The sky was dusky yellow, with neither sun nor moon in sight.
The only source of light was the scattered points of radiance flickering behind that dim yellow veil, spread across the entire sky like a canopy of stars.
But the dusky yellow was like a thin veil draped over everything, making it impossible to see clearly.
The terrain around him was flat and devoid of any vegetation, like a desolate Gobi.
Of course, not all Star Realms were like this.
Star Realms differed from the real-world dimension. Their number was unknown, and their sizes were unknown.
Even beyond two adjacent World Gates lay two entirely different Star Realms.
Li Qingshan withdrew his gaze and looked toward the World Gate a hundred meters away.
The blood-colored vortex stood amid a field of Wolf Venom corpses, utterly out of place with its surroundings.
If not for its appearance, this land might never have seen the tread of human feet.
The soil had been soaked through with blood, dyed a swath of crimson.
The Wolf Venom corpses were mangled and strewn everywhere, too numerous to count clearly.
But Li Qingshan knew their number very well.
Fifteen!
As his gaze swept over the rows of kill notifications on the panel, the corners of Li Qingshan's mouth could not stop rising.
Although the experience provided by ferocious beasts was far inferior to that of Evil God Cultists of the same level, there were simply too many of them!
Fifteen ordinary Wolf Venoms, each providing one year of available time.
Eight high-tier Wolf Venoms, each providing three years.
Less than five minutes after crossing the World Gate, he had gained thirty-nine years of available time.
Adding the thirteen years he had gained earlier after killing Liang Mingyu and the clone at the entrance to the residential complex...
The available time in his Martial Dao Space had already broken through the fifty-year mark!
Li Qingshan Realm: Tempered Body 96/100 Cultivation Technique: "Blazing Sun Nine Revolutions" 1/3000 (Second Revolution) Thirty-Sixth Set of Radio Calisthenics—"Starry Sky Beckons" (Mastered) Martial Skills: "Celestial Net Steps" 2831/3000 (Proficient), "Thunderclap Saber" 2786/3000 (Proficient) "Mystic Steps" (Mastered), "Wind Shadow Saber" (Mastered) Function: Martial Dao Space Lv1 (61/100) Available Time: 55 years, 336 days Time Flow Rate: 1:10
"A windfall! A massive windfall!"
Li Qingshan's eyes flickered as he glanced at the Martial Dao Space experience line.
Function: Martial Dao Space Lv1 (61/100)
Before this, upgrading the Martial Dao Space had been a long and arduous road, so difficult that he had once forgotten the function even existed.
But now...
"Perhaps... it isn't entirely beyond reach anymore?"
Li Qingshan pulled out the crumpled map and looked at several arrows marked on it.
These were all suspected directions the investigators had deduced from the traces on the ground.
Beside one of the arrows, a red dot stood out conspicuously, with a small line of text written beneath it.
"Wolf Venom Nest"
"The Wolf Venom pack should have its old, weak, sick, and crippled too. They couldn't have all poured out in full force, could they?"
Li Qingshan muttered to himself, tucked the map back into his clothes, and raised his head to look around.
After confirming the direction, he stomped down heavily with his right foot. Like wind and lightning, he streaked across the desolate Gobi, leaving behind afterimages.
Since it was on the way anyway, he might as well send the Wolf Venom tribe underground to reunite!
Before you continue