Escape

He opened his eyes. Only the time of a blink had passed.

This time, he no longer relied on brute force.

With a Half-Step Inch Punch, his chest cavity trembled, producing the sound of a Tiger-Leopard Thunder Roar.

A Rat Demon nearly four feet tall was struck in the abdomen. Its skin rippled and sank slightly as it staggered back two steps.

Then it fell stiffly to the ground.

System prompt: Killed a Bone Tempering Realm Rat Demon. Merit Points +23

After that strike, Gao Fei felt even his heartbeat slow for a moment before recovering.

His other organs trembled slightly as well. It seemed he was still forcing it somewhat; at Organ Tempering Realm, Perfected, he should be able to sustain Dark Force attacks.

Judging from how he had used it just now, he could probably use it five times in succession. Any more, and he would injure himself before injuring others.

Though he had developed a killing move this time, it was not particularly effective against his current predicament.

For now, he could only hold on with difficulty. Every time he killed several Rat Demons, several more would fill in from the outer perimeter.

When Gao Fei unleashed Dark Force, County Magistrate Xue, who had just reached the outer edge of the Rat Demons and was preparing to blow the four men apart, changed his mind.

Save them.

It was not that he was cold-hearted enough to want to blow them apart. He merely wanted to leave the three demons with less human blood food and vital essence.

The Rat Demons were Yellow Great Immortal's subordinates. Even if he let them feed, resentment would arise between them, and only then would he have an opportunity.

The county magistrate revealed himself from the tree branch and charged swiftly toward the Weasel that had just entered the Spirit-Absorption Realm.

In just a few steps, he reached its back. White light flashed from his sword, and the Weasel's head landed in his hand.

A demon that had just entered the Spirit-Absorption Realm was vastly weaker than one at Spirit-Absorption Realm, Perfected. Coupled with a sneak attack that caught it completely off guard, it was killed in an instant.

Spirit-Absorption Realm demons were on his kill list. What he wanted was the Demon Core inside their heads.

Though it could not be consumed directly—the core contained a demon's primal savage blood and will—

it could be carried on one's person and slowly absorb the spiritual energy that seeped out.

He used his sword to pick out a Demon Core the size of a fingertip, wiped it clean on the Weasel's head, and put it away.

Taking another step, he appeared directly beside Gao Fei. He grabbed Lu Xiaoliu and Zhang Constable and threw them toward the outside of the Rat Demons' encirclement.

"County Magistrate..."

"Run for your lives first. Protect the people. Do not keep offering yourselves as blood food."

The two men were thrown more than a dozen yards away. They landed still on their feet, ran forward a few steps to steady themselves,

and exited the outer ring of Rat Demons with remarkable stability.

They exchanged a look without saying a word, then sprinted toward the county town.

Seeing that something was wrong, several Rat Demons from the perimeter turned and chased after Lu Xiaoliu and Zhang Constable.

The moment County Magistrate Xue arrived, he killed the leading Weasel. Faced with such strength, the Rat Demons no longer attacked and merely surrounded them.

When he carried Chief Constable Liu over to Gao Fei, Gao Fei pointed at the two yamen runners whose corpses were all that remained on the ground and spoke directly.

"Constable Liu has defected to the Demon Race. Those two and I were this time's blood food."

County Magistrate Xue did not answer. He glanced at the two corpses on the ground, seized Gao Fei by the arm, and lifted him up.

With one step, he crossed five yards and stepped on a Rat Demon's skull.

When he landed again, he appeared ten yards away and set Gao Fei down.

"Find a way to reach the Spirit-Absorption Realm as soon as possible. Protect the people in the city. Do not let the government lose the people's hearts."

"Give me the Beast Core. My cultivation will grow much faster..."

Before Gao Fei could finish, County Magistrate Xue carried Chief Constable Liu and vanished from Gao Fei's sight after a few flashes.

"Running that fast..."

Glancing at the Rat Demons chasing from behind, Gao Fei hurried after Lu Xiaoliu in the direction he had fled.

What a huge loss. Next time he wanted something, he had to say it faster.

The time it took to drink a cup of tea passed.

Three demons at Spirit-Absorption Realm, Perfected arrived at this small mountain valley.

At this point, only a dozen or so Rat Demons remained in the valley, clearing up the corpses on the ground.

The other demons had gone after the three men.

When Yellow Great Immortal saw the headless Weasel corpse, a bad feeling rose in him.

"Who was it? How did it die?"

A Rat Demon more than three feet tall stepped forward trembling.

"It was the Third Young Master. A middle-aged human cut off his head with one sword. When he dug out the Demon Core, the head was messed up..."

Before it could finish, it was slapped flying several yards away.

"You do not even recognize his father anymore." Hearing this, the Fox Demon added with a smile.

"Do not gloat here. We cannot keep chasing like this. I have already lost two sons."

The Fox Demon continued smiling, but did not speak to mock him further. It could understand; no matter how many sons one had, they could not keep dying.

Around here, the only human capable of cutting off a Spirit-Absorption Realm demon's head with one sword was County Magistrate Xue of Yueyang County.

"Where is the blood food? Once we finish feeding, we will pursue them immediately."

The Rat Demon that had been sent flying several yards crawled up and pointed to where the two yamen runners had died.

"Two, and both dead? Did I not tell you to ensure there were three alive? You could have prepared more. What, do you only feel comfortable after I treat you as blood food?"

"They were rescued by humans."

The Rat Demon did not dare say much now, using only a few words to explain the situation.

The Civet Demon remained in its original form and glanced at the Rat Demon.

"Even dead, I still prefer humans. I will choose first."

"We have an agreement. One of them is mine."

The Fox Demon quickly followed after it as well.

"My subordinates traded their lives for these. Do you no longer wish to cooperate?"

Human qi and blood could advance cultivation. Otherwise, who would go looking for trouble with humans for no reason?

Yellow Great Immortal was unwilling to yield as well. It had considerable conflict with the Cat Demon, and neither wanted the other to break through, not even by the slightest chance.

That was why County Magistrate Xue had left behind the two corpses. They had intelligence, but no sense of the greater picture. Though they were unlikely to fight, a wrangle was unavoidable.

It was just enough to give him more time to rest and buy time for Gao Fei and the other two to escape.

Gao Fei had not taken long to be carried out of the encirclement, so he was not far from the other two.

When the Rat Demons chasing Lu Xiaoliu saw someone behind them, they left three behind to block the road first, intending to work with the pursuing group behind them to capture Gao Fei.

Seeing the three Rat Demons turning back to block his way, he had no thoughts at all. He rammed directly into them.

Now was not the time to hunt. If he had to kill, he would kill the ones desperately chasing after them.

Their Merit Points would definitely be higher than those of the other Rat Demons.

Gao Fei's qi and blood, flesh, sinews, and bones were all at the True Return Realm. The short blades of the intercepting Rat Demons could not even break his skin before they were sent flying.

The Rat Demon at the very front was struck in the stomach. Gao Fei lifted it and hurled it at the Rat Demon that was about to catch up to Xiao Liu.

It smashed directly into its head, and the two rolled into a tangled heap.

Gao Fei was faster than the two men, and slightly faster than the Rat Demons as well.

Very soon, he caught up to the last two Rat Demons chasing them.

Using the same trick again, he grabbed one and smashed it into the other.

At this point, only Zhang Constable and Lu Xiaoliu remained in front of Gao Fei.

"Xiao Liu, run faster!"

At first, the Rat Demons could still catch up and harass the three men.

Gradually, the Rat Demons could no longer keep up.

Human physiology gave them excellent heat dissipation and great endurance. Many animals could be chased to death by humans. Except horses.

The Rat Demons that caught up were generally at the Bone Tempering Realm or above. After Gao Fei used Dark Force to kill them one punch at a time, they began dodging and weaving, no longer daring to come forward.

After they had run thirty li, they encountered a pack of more than thirty Dog Demons and finally shook off the remaining Rat Demons.

Though the Dog Demons were fewer in number, their advantage in size was obvious. Gao Fei took one look; for now, the two sides were evenly matched.

He just did not know whether they could win once the main Rat Demon force arrived from behind.

Even after shaking off the Rat Demons, the three did not stop.

They ran all the way to Tao Hua Village before Gao Fei finally stopped. He went outside the wooden fence and had someone notify the village chief.

The village chief soon hurried over at a jog.

"What is it, sir?"

"Rat Demons are attacking. Take everyone to the county town and hide there for a few days."