Demon

No.

No...

I clearly hadn't taken this road.

Jiang Ran suddenly stopped in his tracks.

He had walked this route home from Pingjiang No. 1 High School countless times. There was no way he could have gotten it wrong.

Although the government resettlement housing was not in the city center, it was still located in a bustling area.

The streetscape along the way looked no different.

But in reality...

There could not possibly be not a single person on the road!

"Something happened..." Jiang Ran's heart sank.

He could clearly smell danger in the air.

Though it was unlike the life-and-death peril of when he had been kidnapped by demonic cultivators, since someone had set their sights on him, they would never let go easily. The situation was just as urgent.

Jiang Ran instantly recalled Officer Su Xue's instructions and quietly clasped something in his palm.

"No, the enemy hasn't appeared yet. It's not time to use it..."

His nerves were drawn taut and his entire body was on guard, yet his mind was instead perfectly clear.

He could not panic. There was still a chance.

The current Jiang Ran was no longer that foolish kid from the past who knew nothing.

Qi Refinement Level Two, Qi Nourishment on the verge of completion, coupled with proficient spells and Vajra Fist at great mastery...

He might not have had much combat strength, but he could absolutely fight to the death.

The item in his hand could save his life, but its duration was extremely limited.

Jiang Ran knew that he had to seize the opportunity.

He stood rooted to the spot without continuing forward, carefully observing his surroundings in hopes of finding a way out.

Unfortunately, Qi Refinement Level Two was far from enough for him to see through the illusion around him.

"Damn it, why has this brat stopped moving..."

"A low-level Qi Refining cultivator doesn't even have spiritual sense. How did he notice something was wrong? That's impossible!"

"Forget it, attack!"

Ripples suddenly surfaced beside the road, and two figures—one tall, one short—quickly appeared.

Damn...

They really were demonic cultivators!

Jiang Ran was startled, and he could not help cursing inwardly.

That chilling aura rushing straight at him, along with the undisguised malice, was practically the calling card of demonic cultivators.

What was going on? Was the Pingjiang Police Bureau just collecting paychecks for nothing?

It was one thing that they had failed to catch every demonic cultivator the first time they appeared, but they had let them show up a second time?

If he survived today, the only thing Jiang Ran wanted to do was file a complaint against the Pingjiang Police Bureau at the government service hall!

Almost the instant the demonic cultivators appeared...

Jiang Ran tore apart the slip of paper in his palm...

—A spirit talisman!

The special spirit talisman Su Xue had left him!

Ordinarily, activating a spirit talisman required spiritual power to guide it. Qi Refining cultivators could scarcely trigger Foundation Establishment talismans above level ten.

The most special thing about this talisman was that it could ignore that restriction.

The talisman paper shattered, and countless tiny yellow lights burst forth.

Jiang Ran was instantly protected by a pale yellow barrier.

[Unrestricted Spirit Talisman—Golden Bell Talisman]

—Bang...

—Clang!

One red and one black attack smashed viciously into the yellow barrier, producing two dull booms.

"Damn it..."

"How does this brat have a spirit talisman?!" the short demonic cultivator cursed under his breath.

"Hehe, this brat really is unusual. The thing might be on him."

"Big Brother, put some force into it and smash his turtle shell!"

The tall demonic cultivator casually launched another spell.

Seeing that two attacks had failed to work, a trace of alarm appeared on his face.

"Something's wrong..."

Though the two brothers had not yet formed cores, they were veteran cultivators who had entered Foundation Establishment many years ago.

Demonic cultivators were far stronger in combat than ordinary people to begin with.

Yet even working together, they had failed to break a single spirit talisman of their opponent's right away.

That could only mean one thing...

There had to be an expert standing behind this weakling at Qi Refinement Level Two!

Jiang Ran stood in the very center of the yellow barrier, his expression unchanged. He looked as if victory were already in his grasp, calm as drifting clouds and gentle breezes, without the slightest embarrassment of someone caught in an ambush.

In truth, he was panicking like crazy inside...

Jiang Ran could be considered someone who had seen the world.

Those Qi Assimilation bigshots in the Grand Ruins Realm had displayed far more intimidating pressure than Foundation Establishment cultivators.

But these two were demonic cultivators. To say he was not nervous when facing such notorious demonic cultivators would definitely be a lie.

"Fuck, we fell into a trap..." the tall demonic cultivator cursed inwardly.

"Stop attacking. Let's go!"

"Go?" The short demonic cultivator hesitated for a moment.

"Get out of here, now! This brat can see through my illusion, and he has a high-grade spirit talisman. There's definitely something wrong with him."

"If we don't leave now, it'll be too late!"

Before his words had even faded...

Several rifts suddenly split open in the sky around them.

Three frost-white blades descended from the dark purple fissures.

"If it's too late, then don't leave."

The frost-white blades stirred lightly, and the surroundings shattered into pieces.

"Not good..." The tall demonic cultivator's expression changed drastically as he swiftly threw out a flying disc.

The flying-disc artifact could not withstand the lightning-like slashes of the frost-white flying swords at all.

In a single instant, it was cleaved apart by the frost-white flying swords.

"Scatter!"

The two demonic cultivators simultaneously raised their index fingers and violently spat out blood.

"Grudge-Blood Poison Curse!"

Countless fragments of the shattered flying-disc artifact floated into the air, then exploded at once, transforming into wave after wave of sinister ghostly shadows.

They swarmed toward the frost-white flying swords.

Demonic arts possessed the ability to defile magical artifacts. The flying swords were immediately impeded and began trembling violently.

"A petty trick."

A graceful figure appeared and gripped the sword hilt.

With a gentle exertion of force, blue light erupted, and the frost-white flying swords instantly broke free.

The flying swords transformed into a waterfall of frost, pouring forth.

"I..." Jiang Ran, standing behind her, was somewhat dumbfounded.

The one controlling the flying swords was none other than Officer Su Xue!

He knew Su Xue was powerful. After all, not a single official police officer who could enter the police bureau's ranks was weak.

But he had never expected that Officer Su, such a gentle-looking policewoman, could strike with such terrifying force!

She was suppressing two demonic cultivators by herself, beating them until they had no ability to fight back.

So dashing, so cool!

"Let's risk it..." The two demonic cultivator brothers exchanged a glance. They knew they had fallen into an ambush today and feared it would be difficult to escape this calamity.

The two simultaneously slit their wrists, blood gushing out wildly.

The blood seemed endless as countless formation patterns rapidly formed across the ground, resembling a single sinister and horrifying face.

Su Xue turned back and gave Jiang Ran a light glance. After confirming that he was unharmed, she nodded to signal him.

Then she looked toward the demonic cultivators, and her face instantly turned icy. "Still planning to put up a last-ditch struggle?"

"Su Xue, First-Class Officer of the Pingjiang Third Bureau, hereby formally places you under arrest..."

Before Su Xue could finish speaking, the bloody face condensed into shape. Countless clouds of blood mist appeared in an instant, completely binding Su Xue and wrapping her into a blood cocoon.

"Officer Su, what are you..." Jiang Ran rubbed his forehead.

Su Xue's image as a valiant, invincible heroine lasted only a moment before crumbling somewhat in his heart.

"They're demonic cultivators! What are you doing with all this ceremony? Just kill them!"

Jiang Ran felt that perhaps he was more suited to being a police officer than Su Xue!

But the very next moment...

—Boom...

The blood cocoon exploded, and a silver flash sliced through the blood mist.

Sword Qi stretched for hundreds of meters, almost instantly slashing its way before the two demonic cultivators.

Sword Qi entered flesh, and one sword beheaded him.

The tall demonic cultivator of the pair died instantly.

"Sword-Controlling Art..." Jiang Ran's eyes lit up.

"This move is so cool!"

The demonic qi fluctuations gradually faded, leaving one demonic cultivator dead and the other injured.

The battle seemed to be over.

Yet neither Jiang Ran nor Su Xue, nor even the demonic cultivator, noticed.

The bloody formation patterns on the ground had long since changed.

The formation patterns seemed to have absorbed enough power, and the blood-red color actually separated from the formation.

At some unknown moment, a blood-red phantom had appeared directly ahead.

That was... an existence beyond comprehension!

With just one glance, Jiang Ran and Su Xue both froze, losing control of their entire bodies.

"Hmph..."

"Ji Feng, you still couldn't hold back, could you!"

A pair of large hands shielded Jiang Ran and Su Xue behind them.

The humanoid figure amid flickering violet lightning was like a god.