Abandoned Weapon-Forging Valley

The commotion above Longwind City gradually subsided.

The strange phenomena that had enveloped the area within a radius of six or seven miles around the City Lord's Residence then subsided.

The air currents that had been drawn to one place dispersed again, and the vortex at the top of the palace dissipated into a thin mist, slowly melting into the warm sunlight.

The door to the quiet room opened from the inside, and Yan Tieyi walked out.

After half a month of arduous seclusion, he finally condensed a Mystic Core within his body.

He really wants to find a place to test his strength now that he has entered the Mysterious Core Realm, and see what his strength has grown after the Core Condensation.

I held back in the end.

This is the Demon Suppression General's Residence, not his training room. Besides, General Lu is waiting right next door.

Yan Tieyi twisted his body from side to side, his bones cracking and popping as he adjusted to his current strength before pushing open the door and going out.

After walking around a distance of about a hundred meters, they found Lu Changgeng sitting alone at a stone table in the courtyard, drinking tea.

He strode forward and solemnly clasped his hands in greeting.

"General Lu, I have successfully Core Condensation!"

"Congratulations."

Lu Changgeng had already heard the footsteps. He put down his teacup and glanced at Yan Tieyi.

The energy flowed around Yan Tieyi's dantian. The newly formed Mystic Core was calm and restrained, its Mystic Light neither scattered nor floating, like a foundation that had been forged step by step, solid and stable, which was quite good.

"Acceptable."

Upon hearing those two words, even Yan Tieyi's face lit up with joy.

General Lu is a swordsman who is most skilled in killing, so it is rare to hear him say "acceptable".

Doesn't this mean I'll amount to something in the future?

He grinned, but his smugness was quickly extinguished by Lu Changgeng.

"Longwind Commandery, you'll guard it for me for a few days. I'm going on a long trip."

Yan Tieyi was taken aback.

"I'm going to chase after a demon Demon King at the Core Illumination Realm," Lu Changgeng said casually, blowing on the floating tea leaves in his cup.

Core Illumination Realm!?

Yan Tieyi's heart skipped a beat.

He was certainly familiar with this term, as the power behind it belonged to Xiang Ping, the Demon Suppression General of the same prefecture.

General Pei usually keeps the Demon King of the Core Illumination Realm General Pei at bay on the edge of Qingzhou, so why is he looking for them now?

"What happened?"

Yan Tieyi paused, then asked curiously:

With General Pei here, they shouldn't dare to invade Qingzhou, right?

Lu Changgeng slowly closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, a complex expression appeared in his eyes.

"General Pei has been locked in a stalemate with that Old Flood Dragon on the Canglan River for a long time and is unable to break free. I am worried that the Demon King on the border may have intentions of aggression."

There has always been a delicate balance between the Demon on the border and the Qingzhou Demon Suppression Division, and the key figure in maintaining this balance is currently trapped in one place.

If the Demon King were to notice this first, they would inevitably take action and shatter this fragile balance.

Furthermore, the aura of the Core Illumination he was watching over had been growing stronger and stronger recently, pulsating continuously, which meant that the other party had already begun to probe somewhere.

If we don't respond promptly, it might become even more rampant and cause a major disaster!

General Lu.

Yan Tieyi cupped his hands, his voice tense. "I am willing to go with you. Now that I have Core Condensation, I can be of some help."

"You should just forget about it."

"You've just achieved the Core Formation stage. You're not coming with me to help; you should stabilize your cultivation level first."

Lu Changgeng refused without hesitation.

If Yang Xiao were standing here, he might consider it.

If an opponent at the Aperture-Opening Realm can kill Core Condensation, Core Condensation can kill Pill Pattern, and if they are even bolder, a Pill Pattern Core Illumination.

Yan Tieyi is the kind of person who, from the moment he enters the Demon-Slaying Battalion, dares to fight as soon as a knife is handed to him. The more you tell him it's dangerous, the more he thinks you're underestimating him.

But this time it's not about showing off.

A single attack from the Core Illumination Realm was enough to overwhelm a martial artist who had just Core Condensation essence.

Yan Tieyi opened his mouth.

"Furthermore," Lu Changgeng added slowly, "Longwind Commandery also needs someone to look after it."

"Now that you've broken through to the Mysterious Core Realm, you can at least keep watch over this area."

Before leaving, Lu Changgeng gave one more instruction.

There are no more powerful demons within Longwind Commandery. Do not leave the city unless there is an emergency.

Yan Tieyi his hands in a fist and bowed again, solemnly accepting the offer.

"Yes."

Lu Changgeng has been away from Longwind City for several days.

They pursued the enemy from the border of Liangzhou all the way into the heart of Qingzhou, traversing only desolate wilderness.

He chased the demon for a long time.

Fortunately, he was able to stay afloat using the Qi-Reading Art Gate, but he was still unable to escape, and the distance between them was getting closer and closer.

On this day, he stopped in the mountains.

From a distant valley came the sound of metal clashing, accompanied by dull thuds and cracking sounds, as if some ferocious beast was devouring metal.

At the same time, the Yao Qi fluctuations he had been chasing for so long suddenly intensified, becoming so strong that they shook violently and were almost within reach.

Lu Changgeng slowly gripped the sword hilt, and a layer of golden light immediately rose from the blade.

"Found you."

Yang Xiao left Pinewind Town and headed south.

He now held a newly acquired Heaven-Burning Fire Pattern in his hand, but he hadn't yet become familiar with it.

So he deliberately chose to walk on deserted mountain paths to avoid burning the forest or frightening people; the open mountains provided just enough space to test his abilities.

After testing, the Fire Pattern's abilities are similar to the Water Pattern's. It can be used in various transformations of Fire Essence, as well as Fire Rope, Fire Python, and Fire Dragon. Moreover, it will inflict a layer of burning damage during use.

Alternatively, it can also attach itself to oneself, turning oneself into a fire person, with all attacks having a fire effect.

However, it's a bit flashy, and its actual lethality is just average; it's mainly used for area-of-effect attacks.

That day, he walked along a mountain road that passed through the old mining area.

Along the roadside were abandoned furnaces, broken wooden mine carts, and a few stone houses worn bare by wind and rain, with rusted iron filings scattered on the ground.

Just as the Demon Horse reached the bend in the mountain path, the ground suddenly began to shake continuously.

Suddenly, a muffled sound of rocks collapsing came from an abandoned valley ahead, followed by a sharp whistling sound.

Yang Xiao immediately reined in his horse and looked into the distance.

Just then, several people carrying wooden rattan baskets fled hastily from the valley.

One of the elderly men tripped and fell heavily to the side of the road, his charcoal basket overturned, scattering gravel and scrap metal all over the ground.

"Get out of here!"

Accompanied by a shriek from within the valley, a beam of golden light shot straight toward the old man's location.

Before Yang Xiao could think any further, the Sky-Rending Wind Pattern exploded beneath his feet, and he leaped to the side of the old man.

He grabbed the old man by the back of his collar and forcefully pulled him away from where he stood.

Golden light grazed past the two of them as it fell.

Laugh--!

A deep cut was left on the ground, its edges as smooth as if it had been sliced by a giant blade.

Strangely, what remained in the cut was not golden light, but a piece of dark golden insect carapace.

In less than a breath, the huge rocks piled up at the mouth of the valley were smashed open with a roar.

A Giant Centipede crawled out from inside.

Its body is segmented, each segment of its carapace gleaming with a cold, hard metallic sheen. Hundreds of segmented legs rise simultaneously, landing on the rocks and easily piercing them with holes.

It looked not like rocks, but like piles of tofu.

Immediately afterwards, several pieces of carapace fell off its back. While still in mid-air, those carapaces transformed into sharp Golden Blade, hanging silently with their blades pointing downwards, radiating an aura of unparalleled sharpness.

Yang Xiao's heart jumped.

The aura emanating from this Giant Centipede was incredibly powerful, even surpassing that of any Demon King he had previously encountered.

Even the Mountain Ridge Demon King, a peak-level Pill-Pattern Realm expert, seemed to be separated from it by something.

Therefore, the Giant Centipede in front of us is at the Core Illumination Realm!!