The crimson mist released by the Crimson Fox carried scorching heat and inherited the traits of Miasma Spiritual Power, making the walls crackle and pop.
"Roar..."
It let out a threatening growl, then drew in its aura. Its legs tensed, and it pounced at the Human-Faced Deer, twisting and battling with it nimbly.
The Crimson Fox was extremely aggressive. So long as its prey revealed the slightest opening, it would bite for the Human-Faced Deer's throat even at the cost of mutual destruction.
Li Mo could not help sucking in a cold breath. Seeing the Human-Faced Deer pierce the Crimson Fox with its great antlers, he hurriedly split off his consciousness to control the Crimson Fox's movements.
The Crimson Fox was half-illusory and half-solid, but it was ultimately formed from Li Mo's flesh and blood and spiritual power. Every injury it suffered indirectly caused his own flesh and blood to vanish.
"Eat, eat, eat..."
The Human-Faced Deer turned its head. The Nectar Spiritual Energy it emitted warped its body into a grotesque shape, while its gaze locked onto Li Mo in the distance.
Li Mo would not give them a chance to strike back. At once, the Crimson Fox's eyes glowed red.
Boom!!!
Amid the searing heat, a deafening explosion rang through the corridor.
The apprentices and servants in the side rooms did not dare move at all. The Crimson Fox's shrieks and the Human-Faced Deer's wailing rang in their ears, sending chills crawling down their spines.
The Pawnshop had already become a battlefield where cultivators fought the Human-Faced Deer.
Even elsewhere in Smelting Town, Human-Faced Deer had appeared due to the Elk Monster.
Jin Li was broad and towering, with crisscrossing veins exposed across his back. They writhed like living creatures, further enhancing his strength.
The Protective Mystical Method he cultivated required a Qianqiu Seed to be implanted into the spine.
The so-called Qianqiu Seed was actually an unformed loach egg. Once it hatched inside the body, it replaced the muscles and exerted force throughout the entire body.
Jin Li panted heavily as he beat a Human-Faced Deer to death with his bare fists.
Even when wounds appeared on his body, they healed at a visible rate. Not even a scar remained on the surface of his skin.
It was not because the Protective Mystical Method possessed extraordinary regenerative power, but because of the Nectar Spiritual Energy from the Elk Monster.
Dense Nectar Spiritual Energy filled the air. Whether cultivator or Human-Faced Deer, whenever one was injured, the spiritual energy would automatically surge toward the wound, healing every living thing within range without distinction.
But one thing had to be noted.
The bones absolutely could not be damaged. Once they were, the Nectar Spiritual Energy would cause the healing bones to become twisted and malformed, while proliferating bone matter gradually filled the flesh and blood.
It formed a Bone Prison, forcibly solidifying the body and imprisoning the consciousness within.
After Jin Li dealt with the Human-Faced Deer, he looked toward the Calligraphy and Painting Hall.
He vaguely remembered that three Human-Faced Deer had rushed inside. No cultivator had been seen taking action yet, so perhaps he could pick up some Mid-grade Spirit Stones for free.
Just as Jin Li moved, he felt a heatwave rushing toward him, accompanied by a resounding explosion.
He quickly stopped. Realizing that a cultivator was stationed in the Calligraphy and Painting Hall, he concluded that the other party was at least at Childhood Stage Layer 3. Otherwise, the spell's displayed power could not possibly have been so terrifying.
The Crimson Fox grew increasingly at ease, turning the battle entirely into a one-sided slaughter.
Li Mo, however, felt somewhat helpless. The first time he summoned the Crimson Fox, he had failed to control the force properly and had poured too much spiritual energy into the Beast Head Tattoo.
The resulting Crimson Fox was indeed powerful, but it temporarily occupied half of his flesh and blood.
If not for the Leakless Body maintaining his dwindling Essence, Qi, and Spirit, Li Mo would already have passed out the instant he released the spell.
The proper way to use Paint Green Clothes was to ensure that the summoned Crimson Fox did not affect the main body.
Afterward, Li Mo also had to find a way to raise the limit of his vitality. Perhaps branding his heart would be a good choice?
Fortunately, he was facing the Human-Faced Deer.
The Human-Faced Deer remained fixated on Zeng Xiaoyi and the other man. Even with the Crimson Fox posing an enormous threat, they continued trying to kill their targets.
Zeng Xiaoyi came back to his senses and looked complicatedly at Li Mo, who was already an Immortal Master. He understood that the gap between them was like a vast chasm.
There was not the slightest trace of jealousy in his heart, only amazement at Li Mo's talent.
After all, Zeng Xiaoyi had witnessed Li Mo's metamorphosis in just a few short months, from a painter's apprentice to an Immortal Master of the Pawnshop.
"Li Mo, watch out!!!"
Zeng Xiaoyi noticed that the commotion caused by the Human-Faced Deer had left the walls covered in cracks, and one of them was collapsing toward Li Mo.
Li Mo remained where he stood.
He bent his magic finger and used what little Miasma Spiritual Power remained to condense a speck of dust.
The instant the dust shot toward the Human-Faced Deer, Li Mo recalled the Crimson Fox Tattoo.
The Human-Faced Deer let out a mournful cry. The speck of dust burrowed into its head, then dispersed into Miasma Spiritual Power once more, twisting its expression.
Its deer head swelled several times over. A muffled bang sounded, and meat paste rained down from above like droplets of rain.
The fox head Tattoo reappeared on Li Mo's upper left arm, and his body rapidly filled out again.
After nimbly dodging the collapsing wall, he flung out Miasma Silk Thread to cut off the Human-Faced Deer's life. At the same time, he shook his hands slightly in discomfort.
Even though he could divide his attention for two tasks, Li Mo still needed to improve his control over the Crimson Fox.
After the tattoo returned, he felt that a full tenth of his flesh and blood was missing. An ill-timed hunger gnawed at his stomach.
Under Zeng Xiaoyi and the other man's gazes, Li Mo stood in the corridor strewn with meat paste, stuffing dry rations into his mouth bite after bite.
They had the illusion that Li Mo was the man-eating demon.
More and more cultivators outside chose to join the encirclement and extermination of the Human-Faced Deer.
Li Mo did not intend to keep interfering. As a cultivator at Childhood Stage Layer 1, killing three Human-Faced Deer was already shocking enough.
Besides, he had expended a great deal of Miasma Spiritual Power, and his body needed recuperation as well.
The situation gradually stabilized. Li Mo looked toward the storeroom, where the Elk Monster was shrouded by the thick fog created by the formation. From the occasional earth-shaking tremors, it was clear that the Great Fish had already been caught.
Concealed gazes watched the silent Calligraphy and Painting Hall.
Li Mo's heart sank. After tossing the Human-Faced Deer's corpses into a corner of the Painting Studio, he signaled for Zeng Xiaoyi and the other man to leave immediately.
From the corner of his eye, he spotted several figures approaching the Calligraphy and Painting Hall with ill intent, apparently hoping to claim a share of Li Mo's spoils.
Li Mo faced a formidable enemy, dividing his consciousness to absorb Spiritual Qi and restore his cultivation.
A middle-aged man was the first to reveal himself. A bulge rose from his back, and his spell controlled the hundreds of Poison Bees raised within it.
"Little brother."
"A Sinister Beast I severely wounded seems to have fled into the Calligraphy and Painting Hall. If you do not mind, let me search for it?"
"Call it and see whether it answers."
Li Mo had no intention of backing down. The Crimson Fox Tattoo on his left arm turned fiery red once more, and the stiff fox head became incomparably ferocious.
A Human-Faced Deer was worth one Mid-grade Spirit Stone, equivalent to twenty Low-grade Spirit Stones.
At his current rate of condensing Spirit Stones, even with the Leakless Body, he would have to mine for several years, and the Spirit Stones he obtained would all be defective.
"Hehehe, harmony brings wealth. I can help you ward off disaster..."
Li Mo's thoughts raced as he searched for an opening. Even if he could not kill the man openly, he would still make him shut his dog mouth.
The stalemate could ignite at a touch.
Jin Li stepped out from the shadows and directly interrupted the middle-aged man. "Old Poisonous Insect, he is my friend. Let this matter end here."
Old Poisonous Insect's expression turned ugly, his eyes darting about.
Just then, the mountain peak where Smelting Town stood began to quake. The Elk Monster's shadow pressed down upon the storeroom, causing the surrounding buildings to collapse.
The Nectar Spiritual Energy grew thin.
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