Chapter 63: Massacre
Upon hearing Li Hao's words, the assembled demons froze for a moment before bursting into laughter.
Though they sensed something peculiar about Li Hao, as he did not resemble an ordinary Demon Subduing Officer, they dismissed him because of his age. Even if he was an exceptional prodigy, how strong could he really be?
They had over twenty fully transformed Great Demons here. In the demon race, only those at the Spiritual Wandering Realm could transform, and those at the Fifteen Li Stage could achieve complete transformation, hiding their demon bodies entirely.
"Kid, are you out of your mind with fear? Even that old geezer Yue Shuhong wouldn't dare disrespect us if he were here!" sneered the enchanting snake-bodied woman.
"So, who among you is the Tiger-robed Immortal?" Li Hao asked again.
Seeing her words ignored, the snake-bodied woman’s eyes flashed with irritation as she flicked her forked tongue, preparing to advance.
"Why are you looking for Tiger Robe?" a giant bear suddenly spoke in a calm tone.
"Oh, it's nothing significant," Li Hao replied, swinging the Demon-Slaying Blade in his hand. "I just need his head to honor my uncle’s heroic soul."
The giant bear realized its caution was unnecessary. He had thought Li Hao might be there to deliver a message. Now bored, he dismissed Li Hao with a wave. "Eat him," he murmured to the other demons.
The snake-bodied woman grinned and slid toward Li Hao, her voice turning soft and alluring. "Come now, little one. Crawl right into my mouth."
With demonic energy radiating from her, she opened her gaping maw wide enough to stretch her beautiful face grotesquely. Her enchanting arts would be enough to ensnare even those at the Soul Fusion Realm, making them lose their senses and willingly walk into her jaws.
But suddenly, a black flash swept past.
Half of her open mouth seemed to be lifted by the wind and fell backward, sliced cleanly through.
Blood sprayed out in a torrential spurt, drenching the ground.
The mocking expressions on the other demons' faces froze. The shriveled gnome elder who had been skipping forward stopped dead in his tracks, staring at the young man in shock.
The Demon-Slaying Blade in Li Hao’s hand had vanished.
Its obsidian blade hung suspended in mid-air, then shot out like a shadowy streak, arcing across in a semicircle.
In an instant, the blade’s arc sliced through the necks of several Great Demons before they could react.
The sudden change was too swift, surpassing their reflexes and expectations.
"Since you won’t talk, I’ll just kill you all and use you as a sacrificial altar," Li Hao murmured to himself.
As he spoke, the obsidian blade in the air did not pause. It shot out once more, moving swiftly…
"Fifteen Li Stage!"
"What...what kind of monster is he?!"
The demons awoke to the realization, staring at Li Hao in terror, and immediately began fleeing in all directions, attempting to avoid the Demon-Slaying Blade. But none of them were as fast as the blade.
To manipulate an object at a range of forty li was not merely 2.5 times the strength and speed of fifteen li; it was an overwhelming display of power and speed!
It was like the difference between throwing a stone twenty meters and throwing it a hundred meters—the disparity in arm strength was obvious.
What’s more, they hadn’t even reached the Fifteen Li Stage yet, let alone achieved the ability to control objects. Some Great Demons began to abandon their physical bodies, attempting to escape as pure divine souls, hoping to possess other bodies to survive.
The giant bear, who had been sitting calmly, finally changed his expression, springing to his feet. His massive frame was like a small building. He stared fixedly at Li Hao, seemingly trying to see through the young man’s true nature.
Fifteen Li Stage? How old was this boy?!
No longer allowing his subordinates to be slaughtered, he opened his jaws wide, and a black flame shot forth, transforming mid-air into a dragon of black fire that lunged toward Li Hao with fangs bared and claws extended. This giant bear, too, was at the Fifteen Li Stage.
Li Hao’s gaze flickered, having already sensed the powerful aura from the bear demon. Yet, to him, it was no different than the Spiritual Wandering Realm.
Not much difference at all.
With a whoosh, divine soul energy enveloped his blade, slicing through the black fire dragon in an instant and striking the giant bear’s head directly.
However, the bear’s skull was extraordinarily tough; the blade only embedded itself half a foot deep before getting stuck.
Li Hao took a single step forward, his figure appearing as though he’d teleported in front of the bear, whose eyes now widened with sudden terror. Li Hao raised his fist and punched.
With strength exceeding millions of pounds, the impact alone magnified its force to more than millions of pounds, aided by object manipulation power. The giant bear’s entire body was sent crashing into the boulders behind it, smashing the rocks to pieces and hurtling backward over ten meters until it slammed against its own cave wall.
Blood spurted from its throat as horror overtook the giant bear. Blessed with divine strength from birth, it prided itself on being the True God of Great Strength.
Yet the power unleashed by this young man filled it with terror.
How could a mere mortal body possess such brutal strength?
Li Hao cast a single glance at the bear demon, then raised his hand, pulling the Demon-Slaying Blade out of the bear’s skull and scanning the surroundings. The blade transformed into a black light and shot out.
The divine souls of those attempting to escape were only a few li away, disappearing into the distance, but they were quickly overtaken by the Demon-Slaying Blade.
The blade alone would not harm these souls, but Li Hao’s divine soul energy infused within it was enough to cleave them apart!
Screams erupted from every direction, though some were cut off abruptly, bodies dropping lifeless to the ground.
The fearsome mountain peak where over twenty Great Demons had gathered was now left with only the giant bear.
The other demons lay slain, either dismembered or lying with their souls obliterated a few li away.
A faint breeze stirred through the forest, bringing the thick scent of blood drifting toward the bear’s nostrils, making it feel stifled.
For the first time, the bear felt its own mountain peak reeking with a foul stench so repulsive that it felt a wave of nausea rising in its gut.
It was so frightened that it wanted to vomit.
“Are you...a Grandmaster of the Heaven and Man Realm?!”
Watching the young man approach slowly, the fear in the bear demon’s eyes was undeniable. With a single punch, he had already realized that even at the Fifteen Li Stage, he was no match for this young man.
The gap was insurmountably vast!
He now suspected this youth was a revered master who had reverted to a youthful appearance.
"The demons I just killed—was the Tiger-robed Immortal among them?"
Li Hao stopped in front of the bear demon, looking up slightly at the towering figure slumped on the ground.
The bear demon understood immediately. It was clear that Tiger Robe had provoked this terrifying youth, who was here for vengeance.
"Tiger Robe..."
An intense hatred flared within it as its mind raced, and it replied through gritted teeth, "Tiger Robe isn’t here. He’s up north."
"North?"
Li Hao raised a brow, giving the bear demon a skeptical look. "There are still many demons around here. You’d best not lie."
The bear’s expression shifted slightly. "I wouldn’t dare lie to you. Although Tiger Robe is one of us from Blackwind Mountains, he’s cunning and capable. We sent him north."
"Why did he go north?"
"We plan to join forces with the north to attack Cangyu City, so we sent him to assist them," the bear panted, hiding the presence of the Red-browed Daoist.
There were demons to the north as well?
Li Hao froze. The Demon Subduing Division’s intel had no mention of such activity in the north, which was supposedly calm.
"How many demons are there in the north?" Li Hao asked immediately.
"About as many as here."
"Do you know the consequences of invading Great Yu and attacking Cangyu City?" Li Hao demanded.
The bear felt an inward sigh. Why do you demon slayers kill us? Isn’t it the same as humans hunting livestock? How could he have known Cangyu City had a freak like this youth?
Of course, it couldn’t say that outright, so it put on a helpless expression. "We may be demons, but we only act to survive. It’s no different than humans hunting animals..."
Li Hao’s eyes darkened.
The mention of "eating" stirred a surge of murderous intent within him.
"So, you’re doing this just to eat?" Li Hao fought back his anger, probing for more information.
Feeling Li Hao’s intent to kill, the bear trembled, trying to invoke human logic by pleading from a weaker position.
"All creatures struggle to survive. That’s true for us, and for humanity too, isn’t it? We did nothing wrong in that regard, did we?"
"I didn’t ask for a moral debate. Answer me this: is attacking Cangyu City truly just for food?" Li Hao demanded, his voice barely restrained.
The Red-browed Daoist was leading the attack, and while the bear demon had heard other motives, it naturally wouldn’t reveal those to Li Hao, preferring to reason with him instead.
"If it weren’t for survival, we wouldn’t be doing this or taking such risks."
The bear demon now spoke like a Confucian scholar, continuing to debate principles with Li Hao. "Heaven and Earth nurture all beings, and every creature has a right to survive, isn’t that true?"
Li Hao took a deep breath, then asked again, "What does Tiger Robe look like? Is he a tiger demon?"
The bear demon hesitated, realizing that Li Hao hadn’t paid any attention to its arguments, causing panic to surge within it. "Yes, Tiger Robe is indeed a tiger demon. He has been cultivating for nearly a thousand years."
"Good."
Having obtained the information he wanted, Li Hao nodded slightly.
Before the bear demon could react, Li Hao leapt up and struck a fist to its brow, shattering its brain.
The bear demon’s mouth opened slightly, shock and disbelief in its gaze, but its eyes dimmed as it toppled sideways, collapsing to the ground like a falling boulder.
Debate morality with demons?
Li Hao had no interest in such discussions.
Moreover, personal stance meant far more to him than right or wrong!
Faced with the countless skeletal remains around him, how could he possibly say to the bear demon:
“Yes, you weren’t wrong.”
To hell with whether it’s right or wrong; I am human!