Exterminating the Demon (Part 3)

Under the flickering firelight, the group finally saw the true form of the Dog Demon Leader.

It stood nearly two people tall, its entire body covered in coarse, grey-black fur like steel needles, with knotted muscles brimming with explosive power.

Its head was canine-like yet distorted, with a protruding snout, exposed fangs, and saliva constantly dripping, hissing as it corroded the ground.

A pair of emerald demon eyes, as large as copper bells, stared fixedly at the Patrol Bureau party and their leader, Yang Ning.

The eyes were filled with cruelty, greed, and a trace of... cunning intelligence belonging to a beast evolving into a demon.

A suffocating, fishy, and malevolent aura permeated its entire body.

Its blood energy fluctuations and the force surging through its body were not concealed in the slightest, appearing vast and tyrannical.

Yang Ning secretly sized it up, using his Secret Artifact to peer into its strength.

This beast was inferior to Wang Han, and even less comparable to Gong Tian. Yet, it had clearly reached the threshold of Bone Forging, at the level of having just broken into Hidden Force! It was far more formidable than an ordinary Tendon Changing martial artist!

Behind it, two or three slightly smaller but more lean and vicious-looking dog demons slowly emerged, baring their teeth and emitting threatening low growls.

"So you were here after all, you pack of beasts."

Yang Ning's gaze sharpened, his hand slowly pressing onto the hilt of his Storm Blade.

Tiger Demon Force surged quietly within his body, emitting a low, rumbling sound.

"It has truly been a long time since I encountered so many martial artists with mutated blood energy.

The blood energy of human martial artists is as fragrant and mouth-watering as ever..."

The voice was hoarse and distorted, like the sound of grinding sand, emanating from the mouth of the Dog Demon Leader.

It was actually capable of speaking human language! Its intelligence was indeed not low.

"Are you the 'Leader of the Dog Demons' who eats people and takes lives?"

Yang Ning stepped forward, his voice cold and emotionless through his White Jade Mask.

"And what if I am? I didn't go looking for you, yet you delivered yourselves to my doorstep.

Good, very good.

This does not violate the agreement with them; since the meat has delivered itself, I cannot be blamed for striking.

With Gong Tian absent, you are all just food!"

The Dog Demon Leader's emerald eyes flared with fierce light, and as the last word left its mouth, its massive body suddenly moved!

Without warning, it was as fast as black lightning!

It locked onto Yang Ning, who possessed the strongest aura, and with a low growl, it pushed off the ground with its hind legs and lunged, moving with astonishing speed, its sharp claws aiming straight for Yang Ning's heart!

The speed was so great that it left a blurred afterimage in its wake!

At the same time, the elite dog demons behind it also roared and pounced toward Qian Zhong, Liu Qian, and the others to pin them down.

"Well come!"

"Fire!"

A clear, resonant shout erupted from Yang Ning.

Almost at the same moment as Yang Ning's shout, several "twang" sounds of bowstrings vibrating echoed from the darkness on both sides!

Seven or eight specially crafted armor-piercing crossbow bolts tore through the air, whistling toward the heads, chests, and abdomens of the monsters!

The monsters clearly had not expected an ambush; they roared and swiped their claws to swat away two of the bolts, but four or five still slammed fiercely into their flesh!

In particular, the arrow shot by Wang Biao struck its shoulder blade, sinking in several inches!

Yet, its ferocity remained undiminished, and its target—Yang Ning—did not change.

Yang Ning did not retreat but advanced instead, his left foot stomping heavily onto the ground, causing the bricks to crack slightly. His waist and hips twisted, his spine popped like a dragon's joints, and his accumulated power erupted in a roar.

He did not draw his blade; instead, he pulled his right fist to his side, dark red Tiger Demon Force instantly wrapping around his knuckles, faintly forming the phantom of a ferocious tiger head as he punched out!

Tiger Soul Fist killing move—Tiger Demon Mountain Crushing!

Fist and claws collided!

"BOOM!!!"

A thunderous explosion detonated within the narrow alley!

A violent shockwave swept outward from the two, causing the torches to flicker unsteadily and dust to fly into the air.

Yang Ning's figure swayed slightly, and fine cracks appeared on the bluestone slab beneath his feet.

The Dog Demon Leader, however, was forced back two steps by the punch, intense pain radiating from its claws.

A flash of shock crossed its emerald eyes; it clearly had not expected this human martial artist's strength and force to be so tyrannical and vicious!

"Am I the demon beast, or is he? How is his strength even more formidable than mine?"

It couldn't help but wonder.

But what it did not know was that Yang Ning's physical strength grew in tandem with his realm and power, and under the Destiny System, it had become increasingly terrifying.

This was growth that could not be displayed by numerical values; Yang Ning's Martial Saint Body was becoming increasingly mature.

"Roar!"

Filled with shock and rage, the Dog Demon Leader erupted with demonic energy, Hidden Force surging.

Its twin claws danced, whipping up streaks of pitch-black Sha, the overlapping claw shadows shrouding every vital point on Yang Ning.

Yang Ning's figure moved like willow catkins in the wind, weaving and dodging through the sky-filling claw shadows with agile, uncanny footwork.

The White Jade Mask kept him in a state of absolute calm; the trajectory, change in force, and fluctuations of demonic energy for every one of the Dog Demon Leader's strikes were clearly reflected in his mind.

At the same time, his left hand quietly brushed over the unassuming wooden abacus beads on his right wrist.

The Ghost Abacus Secret Artifact!

With a flicker of light, a cooling sensation flooded his brain.

The Dog Demon Leader's seemingly violent and chaotic offensive instantly became clearer and slower in his eyes.

Those seemingly disorganized attacks were rapidly being calculated within Yang Ning's mind.

Soon, Yang Ning had grasped the patterns of the dog demon's attack methods.

Within those attacks, which appeared disordered but actually followed a traceable path, there appeared from time to time extremely subtle "nodes" and "gaps" created by the shifting of power.

That was when the Hidden Force was at its weakest, the moment for a killing blow.

Now!

A sharp glint erupted in Yang Ning's eyes, and the Storm Blade, which had remained sheathed until now, finally let out a clear, dragon-like hum!

"Clang—!"

Without any unnecessary flair, bolstered by the Wind Howling Blade Technique, the blade edge cut with pinpoint precision into a "node" where the flow of blood and energy was slightly sluggish amidst the claw shadows.

Following the weakest trajectory calculated by the Ghost Abacus, he slashed directly at the Dog Demon Leader's wrist!

Wind Howling Blade Technique—Wind Splitting Style!

Driven by his perfected blade intent, the air let out a shrill scream as the blade passed!

"Puchi!"

Black blood sprayed out!

The Dog Demon Leader let out a roar of extreme pain; one of its front paws was nearly severed at the wrist, hanging only by a thread of skin and flesh.

The strike, imbued with Tiger Demon Force and Wind Howling Blade Qi, invaded the wound, frantically ravaging its demonic body!

"Damn it, damn the Patrol Bureau!"

The excruciating pain fully ignited its ferocity, and its demonic energy surged wildly.

It opened its blood-stained maw, and a concentrated, foul-smelling, dark green viscous liquid spewed out, shooting straight at Yang Ning's face!

This was its trump card, an innate demonic art!

Before the venom even arrived, the stench was enough to make one dizzy.

Had it been an ordinary person, they would likely have been poisoned and lost their combat ability in an instant.

But Yang Ning had the White Jade Mask!

The icy aura instantly protected his nose, mouth, and spirit, preventing the poisonous Sha from encroaching even a fraction.

His figure shifted sideways like a ghost, narrowly dodging the venom. The liquid brushed past him, corroding a large hole into a mud wall behind him with a sizzling sound.

"It's time to end this."

Yang Ning whispered. Taking advantage of the brief ebb in the Dog Demon Leader's demonic energy after spewing its venom, at the moment when its old strength was spent and new strength had yet to arise, he unleashed his Tiger Demon Force without reservation, causing it to erupt with a boom!

His spine rose like a great dragon, and the power of his entire body's blood and energy twisted into a single strand, pouring entirely into the Storm Blade.

The grey-blue blade hummed and vibrated as if it had come to life. Upon the edge, the dark red Tiger Demon Force and the sharp Wind Howling Blade Qi intertwined, faintly manifesting into a roaring, ferocious tiger shadow!

With the Secret Artifact's boost and his full strength unleashed.

This strike fused all of his current cultivation and methods.

"Wind Howling Blade Technique—Wind Splitting Style!"

The blade qi descended, silent and soundless, leaving only a thin, grey-blue line streaking across the night sky.

It swept past the Dog Demon Leader's terrified, emerald pupils, and swept past the neck where it was frantically swelling its demonic energy in a desperate attempt to defend...