Ox Demon Suppresses the City

Deep within the General of the Middle Army's manor, in a secret underground chamber filled with the pungent scent of medicine and the coppery tang of blood.

Mr. Yin, hunched over like a phantom, appeared silently beside the ruins that had become a chaotic mess. He didn't even glance at the two twisted, inhuman corpses on the ground, his clouded gaze locking directly onto the center of the wreckage, onto the figure of Li Chongshan, lying in a pool of blood, his life fading.

At this moment, Li Chongshan had shed his terrifying Spider Scorpion form and returned to human shape. But this human form was also battered beyond recognition. A gash, deep enough to expose bone, ran diagonally from his left shoulder to his right abdomen. Flesh was peeled back, revealing damaged internal organs and the edges of broken bones. Little blood flowed from the wound, as if the blood vessels had been frozen by an extreme cold, leaving only a faint, eerie dark luster that prevented the wound from healing. His face was ashen, like gilded paper, his breathing so faint it was almost imperceptible. Only occasional twitches, caused by extreme pain, proved he still clung to life.

"Tsk tsk... that was quite a beating," Mr. Yin squatted down, his withered fingers, like bird claws, carefully probing Li Chongshan's wound. A strange glint flickered in his clouded eyes. "Scarface Chen's Nirvana Blade Intent... truly formidable. Fortunately, fortunately, there's still a trace of vitality in his heart's pulse, and his soul hasn't completely scattered. This vessel... can still be saved."

He muttered to himself, pulling out several bottles and jars from his robes. He mixed some pungent powders and viscous liquids together and roughly smeared them onto Li Chongshan's horrific wound. The powder hissed upon contact with the wound, emitting wisps of white smoke. Even in his unconscious state, Li Chongshan's body convulsed violently from the intense stimulus.

Mr. Yin paid no mind, nimbly lifting Li Chongshan's broken body and slinging it over his shoulder. Though he appeared gaunt, his strength was astonishing; he walked steadily, carrying an adult man. He passed through the ruins and reached a wall at the very back of the secret chamber, pressing a few spots on an inconspicuous brick.

"Click, click, click..." With a sound of mechanical rotation, the wall slid open, revealing a more hidden secret room behind it. In the center of the dark room stood a bronze vat, half as tall as a person, filled with a dark green, bubbling, viscous medicinal liquid. It emitted a strange, nauseating odor, a mixture of countless herbs and some kind of decaying life.

Mr. Yin carefully placed Li Chongshan into the medicinal vat. The liquid instantly submerged his body, leaving only his nose and mouth exposed. The dark green liquid seemed alive, quickly enveloping Li Chongshan's wounds and slowly seeping into his orifices. A faint trace of vitality seemed to appear on Li Chongshan's ashen face, but more prominent was a non-human, eerie greenish hue.

"Take your time soaking, my lord," Mr. Yin said, looking at Li Chongshan in the medicinal liquid, a cryptic, unsettling smile on his face. "When you wake up... you might not even recognize yourself... Hehehe..."

Almost simultaneously, a thousand miles away in the valley of Black Wind Cave, the sky-piercing flames gradually dimmed, leaving only billowing smoke and a pungent smell of burning.

Wang Quan stood at the valley pass, expressionlessly stuffing the last few valuable demon plants into his leather pouch. He had several new wounds on his body, but his aura was more condensed and sharp than when he arrived, his eyes filled with a keenness like a newly sharpened blade.

[Realm Comprehension Improved.]

[Proficiency in "Extreme Break · Demon Slaying Blade" greatly increased.]

Cold prompts flashed through his consciousness. Feeling the surging power within him, he cast one last look at the smoking ruins of the valley, turned, and without hesitation, sped off towards the direction of the Ten Thousand Snakes Den.

Just then, within Anping County...

"Dong!!!"

A muffled, thunderous roar, as if from a great distance, yet it clearly penetrated layers of walls, shaking dust from the ceiling of the secret room. Then came a second, a third... each one heavier than the last, each one closer, as if some colossal entity was using brute force to batter the walls of Anping County!

At the same time, a roar like rolling thunder, filled with ferocity and killing intent, boomed across more than half of Anping County:

"Captain Chen! Li Chongshan! Get out here for me!"

This voice, imbued with terrifying demonic power, churned people's blood and qi. Ordinary citizens trembled in fear, slamming their doors shut. The city instantly fell into a deathly silence of panic.

Outside the Garrison's duty room, a city guard scrambled in, his face deathly pale, gasping for breath: "N-no good! Outside the city... outside the city... there are so many monsters! The leader... so terrifying! He's asking for Commander Chen and... and General of the Middle Army!"

Shi Zhu, who had been anxiously pacing by the door, felt his heart lurch at the sound! He grabbed the guard, who was about to barge in, and hissed, "What's the panic?! Commander Chen is heavily injured and just resting! I'll report it!"

Shi Zhu took a deep breath, forcing down the storm in his heart, and gently pushed open the duty room door. The room was filled with the heavy scent of Trauma Medicine and blood. Commander Chen, hunched over, sat on a straw mat in the corner, his face pale as paper. The bandages around his chest were already soaked through with dark red blood. He closed his eyes, seemingly asleep, but Shi Zhu could feel that within that seemingly weak body, a volcanic injury and exhaustion were being suppressed with all his might.

"Commander Chen..." Shi Zhu's voice was dry, with barely concealed anxiety. "Outside the city... a large number of monsters have gathered. The leader's demonic aura pierces the sky, and he's asking for you and Lord Li... it looks like they mean trouble..."

Commander Chen's eyelids twitched slightly, but he didn't open them. He merely let out a very low, phlegmy response from his throat: "Mm..."

Seeing Commander Chen like this, Shi Zhu's heart grew heavier. He hesitated, then, steeling himself, said, "Commander Chen, your injuries... perhaps... I could go to the General of the Middle Army's manor to inform them? After all, they also..."

"No need," Commander Chen finally spoke. His voice was hoarse and weak, but carried an undeniable calm. "That guy... he won't die. You... go to the city wall... and keep watch."

Shi Zhu froze, about to say more, but saw Commander Chen laboriously raise his hand and wave, signaling him to leave. Shi Zhu gritted his teeth, clasped his fists, and said, "Yes! Commander Chen, please rest well. I'll handle the city wall!" With that, he turned and quickly left, closing the door behind him.

Darkness and silence returned to the duty room. Commander Chen slowly opened his eyes. Deep within his clouded irises was a calmness and resolve as cold as ten thousand years of ice. He tried to circulate the remaining blood and qi within his body, but a needle-like pain instantly swept through him. Especially the wound on his chest, eroded by scorpion poison, burned with a searing pain that almost made him faint again. Though he had seemingly won his battle with Li Chongshan, he was at the end of his strength, his oil spent. The backlash of the Nirvana Blade Intent and the erosion of the Netherworld Scorpion Poison were frantically consuming his already dwindling life force.

He painstakingly shifted his body, reaching for the dark black straight saber leaning against the wall. The moment his fingertips touched the cold scabbard, his body trembled slightly, as if reuniting with an old friend. Using the saber as a crutch, he slowly, painstakingly stood up. Every movement sent a jolt of pain through his injuries, and fine beads of cold sweat broke out on his forehead.

But he didn't stop. Leaning on his saber, he shuffled step by step, like a truly elderly man at the end of his days, slowly, yet incredibly firmly, walking out of the duty room and towards the city wall. The setting sun cast his hunched shadow long and slanted on the cold ground, appearing exceptionally lonely and tragic.

On the walls of Anping County, the atmosphere was as heavy as solidified lead. The soldiers guarding the city gripped their weapons, their knuckles white from exertion, their faces etched with fear and despair. Looking at the scene below the city, many had legs trembling uncontrollably.

Outside the city, a dense mass, numbering hundreds of monsters of various forms, had gathered. Jackals, wolves, leopards, various mountain spirits and wild creatures; their demonic auras mixed together, forming a towering cloud of malevolence that was suffocating. However, all these monsters, like stars surrounding the moon, clustered around the colossal figure at the very front.

It was an Ox Demon.

Its size far surpassed that of an ordinary bull. Standing upright, it was nearly three zhang tall, like a moving small mountain. Its entire body was covered in thick, felt-like black fur that shimmered with a metallic luster. Its muscles were knotted and bulging, filled with explosive power. One of its legs was thicker than an adult man's waist. Most striking were the pair of curved horns atop its head. They were not bone like ordinary bull horns, but a dark gold color, covered in spiral-like, eerie patterns. The tips of the horns glinted with a chilling light that made one's heart palpitate, as if they could easily pierce the strongest city walls.

It was not entirely in beast form, but stood in a half-human, half-demon posture. Its pair of ox-bell-sized eyes were blood-red, containing only pure ferocity, greed, and a lust for slaughter. Two streams of scorching white air puffed from its nostrils, making sizzling sounds in the air. It carried no weapon, but its massive fists, comparable to battering rams, and its terrifying dark gold horns, were the most fearsome weapons. The demonic aura emanating from its body was like tangible waves, surging and powerful. It was a terrifying Great Demon that had reached the Core Condensation Realm!

This Ox Demon was one of the capable subordinates of the Demon King residing in Black Wind Cave, north of Anping County. Its name was Earth Splitter, renowned for its terrifying brute strength and brutal temperament.

Just then, on the city wall, a hunched figure, leaning on a saber, slowly emerged from the end of the stairs, shuffling step by step to the edge of the wall. It was Commander Chen.

The Earth Splitter Ox Demon's blood-red giant eyes instantly locked onto him. The white air puffing from its nostrils grew thicker, its voice like rolling thunder, carrying undisguised killing intent: "Captain Chen! You finally decided to show yourself! Enough with the nonsense! The matter of the missing Pig Demon last time is not settled. A few days ago, the two brats I sent to inquire were ambushed on their way back! Did you treacherous two-legged sheep do it?! Today, you must give me an explanation! Otherwise, I'll flatten this broken city and kill everyone!"

Commander Chen stopped, breathing heavily. He raised his clouded eyes, calmly looking at the malevolent Ox Demon below. His voice, though hoarse, was clear and carried across the city wall: "No explanation. I don't know."

"Don't know?" The Earth Splitter Ox Demon roared as if it had heard the greatest joke, its voice deafening. "Bullshit! In the territory of Anping County, besides you cunning and treacherous humans, who else dares to touch my people?! It seems you don't know my power if I don't show you some color!"

It suddenly raised a massive foreleg and stomped it heavily on the ground!

"RUMBLE!!!"

The earth trembled violently. Centered on its hoof, the ground split open, forming a terrifying crack several feet deep and stretching over ten zhang! The people on the city wall felt their feet shake, almost losing their balance.

"Little ones!" The Earth Splitter Ox Demon waved its giant arm, pointing at the city gate of Anping County. "Blast it! Smash this broken gate! Today, I'm going to feast!"

"ROAR!" The hundreds of monsters behind it roared in unison, their demonic auras soaring into the sky. Like a bursting dam, they launched a frenzied assault towards the city gate! Various innate demonic arts, hurled stones, and ramming attacks rained down on the city gate and walls, emitting deafening roars! The city gate groaned under the intense impact, and bricks and stones rained down from the city walls.