A frenzied breakthrough, middle third grade

"Chu He..."

The Demon Suppression Guards raced madly toward the cliff's edge, gazing into the ten-thousand-zhang abyss as they roared in grief and fury.

At that moment.

Grief covered the faces of the Demon Suppression Guards.

Because.

They knew that Chu He had already burned through the last of his oil. Killing the tiger-headed demon with his final, all-out strike had exceeded what he should have been capable of. Now, there was absolutely no way he could survive.

That much.

Even the many residents in the distance could see!

Chu He's desperate battle, his willingness to sacrifice himself for his country, had touched them deeply. Even now, they could not calm themselves.

Bang!

Qian Hao swiftly darted to the cliff's edge.

He was just about to leap down when he felt his blood surge wildly inside him. He could no longer hold it back:

Pfft-

He spat out a mouthful of black blood!

As it turned out.

He, too, had been holding on by a single breath during his fight with Tian Liu. Now that breath had escaped him, and he lacked even the strength to stand, let alone fly down the cliff to save Chu He.

"Sir, it's already too late to go down now." A hundred-household officer stepped forward to support Qian Hao and comforted him.

He was telling the truth. Given the cliff's height, Chu He had probably already fallen to the bottom. Moreover, in the state Chu He had been in, he would likely have died halfway down.

Whoosh!

Zhou Cang's figure stepped into the air above the battlefield.

"Hmph!"

He snorted coldly and stamped his large foot downward.

Boom...

An immense pressure enveloped the surviving demons!

Bang! Bang! Bang...!

The demons exploded where they stood, dying one after another. Even the third rank demons were no exception, showing just how powerful Zhou Cang was.

The Demon Suppression Guards stopped fighting, raised their heads toward the figure in the sky, and called out in unison:

"Greetings, Commander."

"Mm!"

Zhou Cang nodded.

His gaze swept swiftly over the battlefield. Of the six hundred Demon Suppression Guards, only four hundred remained. Squad leaders, chief squad leaders, and even hundred-household officers had fallen. The losses could only be called devastating.

"Sir."

Dragging his severely injured body, Qian Hao came before Zhou Cang. Even the hand holding his Demon-Suppressing Sword was trembling, yet his face showed no pain, only grief. He said, "Your subordinate was incompetent and failed to stop the demons. Please punish me, sir."

"It's not your fault. There was indeed a flaw in the plan."

Zhou Cang took out a pill and handed it to Qian Hao, saying with some anger, "Originally, we all thought the White Lotus Cult intended to strike at the Yunzhou Demon Suppression Bureau while finding some blood food for the demons to increase their strength."

"But now, that doesn't seem to be the case at all. Their objective is much greater. They don't care whether the demons they sent live or die. If my guess is correct, they're initiating a sacrificial ritual."

A sacrificial ritual?

Qian Hao's pupils trembled.

Such dark arts were among the White Lotus Cult's most closely guarded secret arts and had rarely been used. The last time had been decades ago.

There were many reasons for such rituals, too. Some made sacrifices to the god they worshipped to obtain immense power, while others sought to open something...

"We still don't know the specific purpose of this ritual. We must search all of Nine Nether Town."

Zhou Cang spoke again.

At the same time, looking at the sparse bloodstains on the ground, he became even more certain that the ritual site was inside Nine Nether Town.

"Yes!"

Qian Hao nodded, then said:

"Sir, we only managed to hold out until your arrival thanks to Chu He. He used a secret art, burning his potential to slay the tiger-headed demon..."

Qian Hao quickly recounted what had happened to Chu He. As Zhou Cang listened, deep regret appeared on his face as well.

But.

This was the fate of the Demon Suppression Guards.

No one knew whether they would fall tomorrow. Even Zhou Cang was prepared to die at any moment.

"Someone!"

"Here!"

"Pass down my command: Chu He rendered great service during this joint mission. Posthumously grant him the honor of wearing the brocade red robe and entering the hall without bowing."

"Also, mobilize all nearby personnel to search below the cliff. Alive, I want to see him; dead, I want to see his body."

Zhou Cang gave his orders heavily.

"Yes!"

The Demon Suppression Guards answered in unison.

Although.

They all knew that Chu He had probably long since fallen, receiving such a posthumous honor from above meant that he had at least died a worthy death.

Wearing the brocade red robe was one of the Demon Suppression Guards' highest honors. (Similar to first-class merit in the military.)

It could be said that almost everyone who received this honor was already lying underground. Among the living, scarcely a handful could be found in an entire province.

"Let's go."

The imposing man rose amid the crowd and took the frail man's arm, saying, "Returning wrapped in horsehide-his was a worthy death."

The frail man nodded. "What a pity. I'll never see him again. Such a detestable man, yet he died so heroically."

Finally.

The frail man cast a long look toward the cliff.

He sighed.

Then he followed the imposing man away with long strides.

At that moment!

Chu He was plummeting at tremendous speed.

Cracks covered his body, his blood had dried up, and his face was as pale as paper, without a trace of color. Even his bones had been twisted and deformed by the crushing pressure of the powerful soul force.

His mind was muddled, and his vision gradually blurred, as though he had returned to the moment when he first transmigrated.

Clearly.

He had burned through the last of his oil and could hold on no longer.

"Ding! Congratulations to the host for slaying a fourth rank late stage demon. A head-on kill, very nice! Demon points obtained: 5,000."

"Ding! Congratulations to the host for slaying a fourth rank demon for the first time. Reward: 1,000 demon points."

"System, add... power..."

"Host, what did you say?"

"Fuck your uncle, add points."

"Right away! Ding! Points added successfully. Current Dragon Elephant Prison Suppression Art level: second rank peak stage. Demon points consumed: 800."

"Again."

"Ding! Points added successfully. Current Dragon Elephant Prison Suppression Art level: third rank early stage. Demon points consumed: 1,600."

"Keep going."

"Ding! Points added successfully. Current Dragon Elephant Prison Suppression Art level: middle third grade. Demon points consumed: 3,200."

"Add..."

"You can't afford it..."

As the system's voice faded.

Boom...

Streams of energy visible to the naked eye surged into Chu He's body, making his heart, which had stopped beating, pound fiercely once more. At the same time, vast quantities of fresh blood were forged, continuously filling his desiccated body.

Meanwhile.

The split skin on the outside began to knit together bit by bit, and the bones inside him rapidly returned to their proper positions.

In less than a single breath!

He revived at full health!

Clang-!

His eyes opened, flashing with dazzling light.

Swish!

Chu He looked down. He was still several hundred meters above the bottom of the cliff. Not daring to hesitate, he drew his Demon-Suppressing Saber!

Crack!

He drove it straight into the cliff face!

Screech... screech... screech...

As the saying went:

Chopping power lines with a kitchen knife, sparks and lightning all the way!

Only after falling another hundred meters or more did Chu He's body finally stop. He hung in midair, one hand gripping the Demon-Suppressing Saber.

Phew...

Chu He exhaled a breath of stale air.

Although he had now broken through to middle third grade, if he really fell all the way down a ten-thousand-zhang cliff, he would certainly end up crippled.

Swish!

Chu He turned his gaze toward the system.

At that moment.

The status panel refreshed once again!