The metal sheets that had surrounded them earlier now lay collapsed on the ground.
There was no time to wonder why.
At that moment, around the edge of the crater that scarred the earth, broken stones shot out wildly like raindrops!
A terrifying, oppressive, and savage aura spread in an instant, making everyone inside the bus feel as if they were suffocating!
Then, a massive, vicious clawed arm covered in dark scales slammed onto the crater's edge with devastating force!
RUMBLE!!!
A gigantic silhouette, like a nightmare from the abyss, tore through the reinforced structure and ground around the crater and hauled itself out!
The demon beast was as huge as an armored truck. It resembled a giant lizard, but had a monstrous head like a bull and rows of bone spikes standing upright along its spine!
Its blood-red, vertical pupils, like crimson moons, swept over the surrounding buildings and crowds, cold and savage.
A low roar rang from deep in its throat, so powerful it seemed ready to burst people's hearts!
Bang!
An invisible force—the terrifying energy field known as a "Force Field"—erupted from the beast and spread out like a tangible storm!
A nearby makeshift workers' shed and several abandoned construction vehicles took the brunt of it. It was as if an invisible giant hand had smashed them, twisting, shattering, and tearing them apart in an instant!
Cries of agony barely escaped before the terrifying force crushed them! Brick fragments and mangled limbs sprayed in every direction!
Panic, like a tangible plague, exploded through the crowds at the bus stop and in the street!
"Run!!!"
"Demon beast!!!"
"Help—!"
Screaming, sobbing, pushing, trampling... despair swallowed the entire street in an instant.
Under the pressure of a Flying Star Rank demon beast's Force Field, ordinary people were as fragile as sheets of paper. Some had their innards shattered, while others were torn apart by the energy that erupted after!
Inside the bus, Li Wen felt as if he had plunged into an ice cellar!
Though he was still hundreds of meters away, the invisible "Force Field" weighed on his chest, churning his blood and making it almost impossible to breathe.
Flying Star Rank!
A level of power far beyond anything he could imagine! He couldn't hope to reach it now; even looking up at such power carried mortal danger!
Ignoring the ache throughout his body, Li Wen kicked out the bus window and leaped down.
Then, without looking back, he sprinted toward Xinhuo Hall.
According to the rules, every Xinhuo Hall branch had a Hall Master.
And these Hall Masters were all Flying Star Rank experts.
In the short time he had, that was the only powerful figure Li Wen could think of.
Fortunately, he had already been far from the demon beast. After running several dozen meters, the pressure that had made him feel so awful finally disappeared.
At the same time,
Shrill alarms rang through the sky! The Qingshi County emergency services had reacted with remarkable speed.
A few moments later, the sound of something cutting through the air came from above!
Two figures flew through the sky, radiating powerful Warrior auras, and landed boldly in front of the giant beast.
They were the Hall Master of Xinhuo Hall's Qingshi Branch and the County Leader in charge of public security and defense, two Flying Star Rank experts.
"Beast! Don't you dare run amok!" Facing a demon beast whose aura clearly surpassed his own, the Hall Master didn't back down. His hair and beard bristling, he raised a long sword gleaming with cold light and roared furiously.
"Evacuate! Hurry!" The County Leader anxiously directed the public security officers and firefighters arriving behind him.
But the gap in strength was like a chasm.
The late-phase Flying Star Stage beast didn't take the two men seriously at all. Its enormous tail swept across like a steel whip, and the air exploded under its lash!
Faced with the sweeping steel whip, a look of resolve flashed in the Hall Master's eyes. Gritting his teeth, he unleashed everything he had learned in his life and met it with a waterfall of swordlight!
BOOM!!!
A deafening clash rang out like metal striking metal! Blood sprayed from the Hall Master's mouth as his long sword trembled violently. He was hurled away and slammed into a low wall, where rubble buried half his body.
He struggled, but couldn't get up right away.
The difference in strength was simply too great!
The County Leader's face went deathly pale. Long unaccustomed to battle, he was clearly a step too slow when facing such a vicious beast.
He was struck by the gale raised by the demon beast's claws, and his protective energy shattered.
He flew backward like a broken sack, crashing into a police car before finally coming to a stop. He slumped to the ground, coughing violently, clearly no longer able to fight.
In a single exchange, the two strongest men in Qingshi County were gravely injured!
The giant beast roared, its crimson eyes fixing on the panicked crowd ahead as it began to stride forward.
The ground shook with every step, sending stones flying. It was heading for the more densely crowded area!
"Stop it!"
"Open fire! Draw its attention!"
The nearby army commander and his troops had arrived. Their faces were deathly pale, and though their bodies wouldn't stop trembling, they still rushed to the front.
They knew that small arms would have little effect on a Flying Star Rank demon beast, but at that moment, they could only hope to distract it, even briefly.
The ordinary Warriors and armed personnel who arrived later rushed forward too, using their bodies, their flesh and blood, to hold it back!
But their sacrifice was like an ant trying to stop a chariot. Every swing of the demon beast's claws and tail brought a wave of bloodshed, leaving severed limbs scattered across the ground!
The air filled with the stench of blood. It was a valiant stand, but it barely made a difference!
Inside the county safety command center, far from the battlefield, the atmosphere was unbearably oppressive.
"We can't stop it! Not at all!"
"The Hall Master and Director Wang... they've been defeated!"
"Late-phase Flying Star Stage! We don't have anyone of that caliber stationed here!"
"What about reinforcements from the city? The experts from Xinhuo Hall? If they don't get here soon..."
"The province said they've urgently mobilized support! But the fastest they can arrive is..."
Despair was spreading. Every decision-maker understood that Qingshi County's ceiling was far too low. Faced with a surprise attack of this magnitude, they were powerless! Their only hope lay in outside reinforcements.
Just as the giant beast crushed the last of the resistance and came within a hundred meters of the fleeing crowd, it raised its monstrous head slightly and opened its cavernous maw full of sharp teeth. Terrifying energy gathered in its throat, about to unleash a breath of destruction—
Hum!!!
High above, a dazzling point of cold light appeared!
It came without warning, moving faster than anyone could think!
It was as if all space and time had frozen in that instant!
There was no flashy trajectory, no earth-shaking sound—only a blade gleaming with pure, peerless sharpness, sharp enough to cleave through anything!
The blade light descended from above, condensed like a line of heavenly judgment!
Pfft!
A soft sound.
Like a hot knife cutting through congealed fat.
The late-phase Flying Star Stage beast, poised to breathe out its destructive force, had its enormous, vicious head—along with the two horns brimming with terrifying power—severed cleanly from its body without the slightest resistance!
Its movements froze in an instant.
The last thing to flicker in its crimson eyes was a frozen bewilderment.
RUMBLE!!!
The enormous headless carcass crashed to the ground, kicking up a skyful of dust!
From its severed neck, thick, blackened beast blood gushed like a miniature waterfall!
Its massive head rolled aside like a burst leather ball, the ferocity in its eyes fading completely.
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