Superpowered Individual vs. Fallen Demon Hunter 4

The commotion from the earlier fight within the residential area was incredibly loud, with my fire shockwaves and the demon pulling out and throwing streetlights. In terms of single noise decibels, ordinary construction work doesn't disturb residents to this extent.

As a result, it wasn't long before residents appeared on balconies and by windows in the surrounding apartment buildings, peeking out.

To avoid being stopped, I quickly left the residential area.

At the same time, I was closely monitoring the demon's movements about a kilometer away.

After the demon submerged itself in the river, it quickly noticed the abnormality on its body. Just like the underwater combustion phenomenon demonstrated in middle school chemistry class, the flames wrapped around its body never extinguished.

That terrifying goat face instantly contorted into an expression of extreme fear and despair, and under the hellish burning pain, it spat out a string of panicked bubbles. Then, it struggled to climb out of the river onto the deserted bank, letting out another heart-wrenching howl.

It was clear that it wanted to do something but didn't know how. Escaping my sight and diving into the water hadn't extinguished the flames. It couldn't even calm down to think; the burning pain was probably boiling its brains.

Its only retreat now was the cave on the Fifteenth Floor. If it could get under the cave, it could sever my connection with the flames. But it seemed like it hadn't thought of this, or perhaps it didn't know how the cave opened or its special properties?

After howling for a moment, it finally regained a sliver of its senses and frantically sped away from the residential area once more.

What a resilient body, and what a resilient will to survive. A normal person burned to this extent would have been completely drained of all their mental energy. Although, I haven't actually tried it myself.

To be honest, I was a little disappointed by the actual level of power this demon displayed.

From the start of the fight until now, it had only shown me physical attacks. Even that shadow attack earlier, despite the visual impression of mysterious shadow power, ultimately transformed into physical blades to attack me. Isn't this kind of usage a bit boring? Doesn't it have any other more bizarre skills?

Could it be that the other world only has combat methods like that? Or perhaps, it's just a very low-level minion?

Judging by its current decision, it probably suspects it's not far enough from me, which is why it's still being burned. Although it wouldn't make a difference even if it fled to the other side of the ocean, I still need to retrieve it later, so I can't let it get too far.

I stopped for a moment, raised my right palm towards the distant point a kilometer away, and then clenched it forcefully.

The flames wrapped around its entire body, and the flames on the outside of its legs, under my control, suddenly seemed to come alive and burrowed into the muscles one after another.

With a loud boom, its legs exploded on the spot. Its body, unable to brake in time, was thrown by inertia into the roadside woods, rolling a long distance before finally stopping.

It propped itself up with its hands on the leaf-covered, muddy ground. Since I had no intention of damaging the surrounding environment, even though it was covered in fire and fell in a place full of flammable materials, the flames didn't spread at all. It looked back at its own severed, exploded legs and suddenly let out a hysterical laugh.

"Zhuang Cheng, you're watching me, right!?" It lifted its head towards the empty night sky and let out a mad howl, "If you have the guts... if you have the guts, just give me a quick death! Kill me!"

"That won't do." Although I knew it couldn't hear me, I still replied from a kilometer away, "You're still useful."

A moment later, I arrived in the woods where the demon was.

It lay on the ground, motionless, its charred body resembling embers of a dying fire. It looked dead, but I knew it was still alive. After all, apart from its legs, I had only let the flames damage its skin and muscles, deliberately avoiding its internal organs. I could even feel its consciously suppressed breathing through the flames.

Perhaps its pain receptors had already mostly died from the burning. I had looked it up online out of curiosity before (never mind why I would look up such information). Because human pain receptors are mainly distributed in the epidermis and dermis, the depth of a burn isn't necessarily proportional to the pain. Some severe burn patients might not feel much pain at all. I just don't know if this demon's physiological structure is similar to humans in this regard.

"You're still conscious," I said aloud, initiating conversation. "I have a few things I want to ask you. If you're willing to answer, I won't burn you for now."

The demon didn't respond. I took a few more steps forward. When the distance between us shortened to only four or five meters, it suddenly pushed off the ground with its arms, lunged up, and flew towards me.

"Zhuang Cheng--!!" From its severely burned throat, it let out a hoarse, hate-filled roar that I could barely decipher.

It seemed this was its last desperate struggle. As it was within my expectations, I wasn't surprised at all. However, what happened next greatly exceeded my expectations.

Just as I was about to counterattack, a white light shot out from behind me, whizzed past me, and directly struck the demon's torso. The demon was sent flying backward like a soccer ball kicked forcefully by an athlete, then crashed into a tree not far away, bending it.

This time, the demon seemed to be genuinely unconscious, not acting.

Who did that?

I immediately turned my head to look.

On the other side of the woods, a figure holding a sword slowly walked over.

Dark clouds drifted across the night sky, finally revealing the moon. The moonlight then poured into the bamboo forest, illuminating the figure's face.

It was someone dressed like an ancient swordsman. They wore a dark brown straw cape and a matching conical hat, carrying a black and red sword sheath. The sword was held in their hand, its tip angled towards the ground, maintaining a tense posture as if ready to strike at any moment.

Judging by their intervention, they were likely not an enemy. Honestly, it seemed like an unnecessary act to me, but this feeling of a mysterious person stepping in to help the weak was also novel, and I couldn't develop any negative feelings. However, even if I judged them not to be an enemy, they might not think the same. Perhaps I should introduce myself and show I have no hostile intentions.

"Hello," I spoke first. "I am Zhuang..."

Suddenly, the other party seemed to have clearly seen my face and exclaimed, "Zhuang Cheng?"

It was a young woman's voice, and it sounded familiar.

"You recognize me?" I asked, surprised. "Who are you?"

The other party hesitated for a moment, then raised their hand and removed their conical hat, revealing their true face.

Seeing this, I was even more surprised, even shocked. The emotional turmoil I felt when I first saw the demon wasn't as intense as this. The face revealed was that of an acquaintance.

In my memory, that face always appeared docile and gentle, evoking images of a small stream, a clear spring, or a misty lake surface, delicate like an ink wash painting. Most of the time, she would try to avoid any potential conflicts in interpersonal relationships.

Now, her face was unchanged, but her demeanor was completely different, like a majestic swordswoman who always faced any dispute with a straightforward and gallant attitude.

"...Zhu Shi?" I uttered her name.

She was Zhu Shi, Chang'an's sister.

"You...?" She looked at me hesitantly, then at the demon lying not far away, her voice filled with disbelief. "...Did you defeat him?"

"No, you just defeated him."

I knew what she meant, though. She wanted to buy a little time for me to calm my inner turmoil.

"I mean, all these burns accumulated on him..." At first, her tone was somewhat incredulous.

But gradually, she regained her composure, her tone becoming much steadier. "--Did you do all of this?"

Her way of speaking was very different from the Zhu Shi I remembered, even her tone had changed. Comparing them, her previous tone seemed a bit like she was putting on an act. Perhaps what she was displaying now was her true personality.

I had also calmed down quite a bit. While analyzing her current state, I confirmed, "It's me."

She observed me for a moment, then sheathed the sword on her back and tentatively asked, "Are you also a Demon Hunter?"

"Also?... I'm not in that profession," I replied. "If I had to say, I'd probably be a superpowered individual."

"That counts as a Demon Hunter too," she surprisingly said.

Counts as? This wasn't the first time I'd heard the term "Demon Hunter." It should be a profession, right? Just possessing extraordinary power, without being in that profession, could also earn one the title of "Demon Hunter"? I felt a sense of dissonance about this, and the three words "Demon Hunter" sparked an association.

No wonder Zhu Shi's voice sounded somewhat familiar. This voice was exactly the same as the Demon Hunter woman who spoke with Agent Kong on the phone earlier today.

Zhu Shi was that Demon Hunter woman!

Beyond the shock, I immediately realized a problem—

The Demon Hunter woman, Zhu Shi, was affiliated with Luoshan. And Luoshan was likely an official supernatural organization. Wouldn't that mean it would be difficult for me to monopolize that Demon now?

Was there a way to snatch that Demon back... No, that was short-sighted. An official supernatural organization had truly revealed itself to me now, and I was still thinking about some unknown Demon. If I wanted to know anything about this strange world, wouldn't it be better to just go ask them directly?

Coincidentally, Zhu Shi was also my friend's sister. With that connection, it could only be said that heaven was helping me!

I immediately focused all my attention on Zhu Shi.

"I forgot to reintroduce myself. I am a Demon Hunter from Luoshan, responsible for security in this area," Zhu Shi said in a very formal tone. "Regarding your defeat of the Fallen Demon Hunter, I have many questions for you. Are you available now?"