A reeking wind burst apart.
The ground shuddered violently.
A three-meter-tall black shadow crashed into the clearing, sending rubble spraying like bullets.
Before the dust cleared, a nauseating stench of rot and sulfur had already wormed into his nostrils.
Mortal realm fifth layer. A dog demon leader.
The brute needed no bark. Its granite-like muscles and the corrosive saliva still dripping from its claw tips announced who ruled this place.
Su Yu glanced at the three small-fry corpses on the ground, his heart sinking slightly.
Trouble.
Mortal realm fifth layer. Thick hide, tough flesh, and outrageously fast.
A few minutes ago, my hundred-odd pounds of flesh would probably have been nothing more than an appetizer.
But now?
Su Yu tightened his grip on the chipped long saber he had just looted from Zhao Lei's corpse and turned his wrist halfway around.
"Roar!"
The dog demon leader clearly had a foul temper and no intention of negotiating. The blood staining Su Yu already said everything.
Its hind legs kicked off, blasting two great pits into the dirt.
Too fast!
Its massive body streaked into a black line. A mere afterimage had just entered Su Yu's vision when the explosive crack of claws tearing through air erupted beside his ears.
Su Yu did not retreat.
"System, add points!"
His intent moved faster than his brain.
[Consumed 100 Slaughter Points. Gale Saber Technique extrapolated to perfection!]
Boom!
It felt as though a ball of raging fire had been stuffed into his brain. Countless fragments of memories-saber swings, cleaves, and blocks-were forcibly poured into him.
It was as though he had immersed himself in the saber for decades. His muscles developed instincts, and fine, rapid cracks sounded from his bones.
The ordinary steel in his hand came alive.
Facing the lethal claws descending toward his head, Su Yu shifted his feet in a strange step, sliding his body half a foot sideways at an exceptionally tricky angle.
A hair's breadth.
The claws brushed past his nose and struck the rocky ground with a clang, scattering sparks and stone chips.
Now!
Su Yu flipped his wrist. Without a single flourish, the blade slipped through the opening beneath the rising claws like a sinister gust of cutting wind.
The perfected Gale Saber Technique cared about nothing else. Just one word: speed!
Speed that slipped through every gap!
Squelch!
The blade sliced through the soft flesh beneath the dog demon's armpit, sending black blood gushing.
But the brute's hide was too thick. The slash barely broke its skin and only enraged it completely.
The dog demon leader roared, opening its foul-smelling maw. Red light gathered deep in its throat, a precursor to an eruption of demonic power.
Trying to use your ultimate?
Dream on!
Su Yu's gaze hardened. Instead of retreating, he advanced.
His leg muscles tightened to their limit, and he shot like a cannonball straight into the dog demon's reeking embrace.
Close-quarters combat!
The long saber was too long to maneuver?
Then use it like a dagger!
Holding the saber in a reverse grip, Su Yu poured his mortal realm fourth layer blood and Qi strength into its tip like mad. Using his forward momentum, he drove it viciously toward the softest part of the dog demon's throat beneath its jaw.
"Fucking die!"
Squelch!
It was the dull sound of a sharp blade slicing through ligaments and cartilage, enough to make one's scalp crawl.
The long saber pierced its throat all the way to the hilt.
Su Yu released his grip and formed a fist.
Perfected Vajra Fist!
Boom!
His fist slammed into the end of the hilt.
One-inch power erupted!
Driven deeper by the blow, the saber's tip burst straight out of the back of the dog demon's head, bringing a spray of red-and-white mush with it.
"Whine..."
The dog demon leader's massive body stiffened for an instant. The vicious light in its eyes swiftly scattered, turning to dead ash.
Like a golden mountain toppling, like a jade pillar falling.
It crashed to the ground.
[Killed a mortal realm fifth layer dog demon leader. Slaughter Points gained: 50]
Su Yu panted heavily and shook the blood from his hands.
A moment later, he turned toward the corpses of Zhao Lei and the other two.
Killing them was only the first step. The delicate work came next.
Su Yu bent down and picked up a severed dog demon claw.
Squelch! Squelch! Squelch!
He wielded the claw, mercilessly stabbing it into the already fatal wound in Zhao Lei's chest. He tore the fist imprint to shreds, making it look as though demonic claws had pierced him.
The other two unlucky bastards received the same treatment.
Once that was done, Su Yu drove Zhao Lei's chipped long saber forcefully into the dog demon leader's corpse.
The scene looked utterly gruesome.
The three had "died heroically in battle," perishing together with the dog demon.
The dead could not testify otherwise.
A perfect closed loop.
Just as he was about to leave, Su Yu paused and took the token engraved with the character "Liu" from inside his clothes.
The token was slightly warm. When he brought it close to sniff, it actually gave off an exceedingly peculiar sweet fragrance.
Mixed with the stench of blood, the scent was difficult to detect. Yet inhaling even a little made the blood and Qi within his body grow inexplicably restless.
Su Yu narrowed his eyes.
Bait.
These three, even the original Su Yu, were nothing but living bait sent out by the Liu Family.
Using living human flesh and blood to lure this mortal realm fifth layer demon?
What were they after?
Su Yu tore a strip from the hem of his clothes and wrapped the token in layer after layer, sealing off its scent before tucking it into his clothes.
Whatever the Liu Family is plotting, if they want to use me as bait, they had better be ready for the fishhook to rip their mouths apart.
Fish-belly white spread across the horizon.
Su Yu picked up the broken saber and vanished into the morning mist, leaving only a ground littered with wreckage.
Nanhe County, north gate.
The fog was thick. Two guards huddled with their necks drawn in, their eyes bleary with sleep.
"Quite a commotion outside the city last night."
"The Harvest Festival's almost here. The demons are all restless. Anyone who goes out dies."
Clop.
Clop.
Heavy footsteps came from the mist, each one seeming to land squarely on their hearts.
Both guards snapped awake and tightened their grips on their spears, the spearheads trembling wildly.
"Who goes there?!"
The mist churned.
A figure slowly emerged.
His clothes were ragged, his body drenched in blood. Every step left a distinct bloody footprint on the ground.
Yet his steps were steady.
His back was straight, and he carried a broken saber that still dripped blood. The dense, clinging stench of blood around him made both guards instinctively hold their breath, their stomachs churning.
This was a savage beast that had just eaten its fill.
"Su... Su Yu?"
The guard on the left recognized his face, his voice breaking outright. "You... where are Squad Leader Zhao Lei and the others?"
Su Yu stopped.
He raised his head. His bloodshot eyes held no emotion, only deathly stillness.
"Dead."
Just that one word.
No explanation. No sorrow.
"The whole squad encountered a mortal realm fifth layer demon."
Su Yu stepped over the broken saber and headed straight for the gate, his voice hoarse and cold, like sandpaper scraping the ground:
"Only I crawled back."
The two guards froze, their throats dry. Never mind stopping him-they did not even dare breathe heavily. Instinctively, they backed away to either side, clearing a path.
Just as Su Yu stepped into the shadow of the gateway.
High atop the city wall.
A pitch-black crow tilted its head. Its tiny blood-red eyes stared fixedly at Su Yu's retreating back, carrying a chill that did not belong to a bird.
"Caw-"
A shrill, mournful cry.
The crow spread its wings and shot toward the Liu Residence inside the city.
Su Yu's steps paused briefly.
He had sensed that gaze.
A cruel curve lifted the corner of his mouth.
The bait has returned to harbor.
Liu Family, are you ready?