Three days later, the morning light barely pierced the thick clouds and mist of the Earth Extremity Mountain Range, falling onto a mountain path strewn with loose stones.
Li LInfeng leaned on his dimmed holy sword as he trudged forward on unsteady feet.
His black brocade robe was covered in dust, its embroidered silver scales now dull and lusterless. Even the Merit Divine Light around him had weakened until it was almost invisible.
Dark circles shadowed his eyes, and half an inch of stubble covered his jaw. His once stern, upright bearing had given way to utter dejection.
Nearly a month of searching had become an exercise in hopeless futility.
The Sky Demon had vanished as though evaporating from the world. The Tracking Talisman's trace had disappeared completely back at the Three-River Estuary.
The High God's wrath had grown harsher with every decree. First, he had stripped Li LInfeng of his position as enforcement commissioner, then docked him a hundred years of merit. The final decree had been colder still, chilling him to the bone—if he failed to find any trace of the Sky Demon within ten days, he would be expelled from the Divine Court immediately and thrown into the Demon Suppression Tower to suffer punishment.
"Lord Li, where are you headed now?"
A mocking question came from behind him. The speaker was Zhao Kun, the Divine Punishment Department's newly promoted deputy commissioner.
He wore a brand-new suit of gilded armor, with a long saber shimmering with spiritual light at his waist—a stark contrast to Li LInfeng's bedraggled appearance.
"That fluctuation from the day before yesterday came from somewhere nearby." Li LInfeng's voice was hoarse as he surveyed the rolling mountains ahead. "It looked like a Saint Tier phenomenon, but the Sky Demon is full of strange tricks. He