Volume 2 - Chapter 71: Shocking All Directions - Part 1
"Quick, surround him and kill him!"
In midair, Lu Yuan sped forward, roaring furiously as his body twisted and turned. His rapid movements showed his urgency.
He bellowed orders, calling for the demon kings outside the city to assist him, though it was more to provoke Li Hao into revealing a weakness, giving him a chance to strike.
Hearing the angry shout of this Dragon Gate Grand Elder, Bai Shenjun and the other demon kings were visibly shaken and doubtful.
...
This was Lu Yuan!
Renowned among demon kings, a figure in the Absolute Technique Stage—did even he need assistance?
"Even Lu Yuan can’t handle that brat?!"
Bai Shenjun’s face was full of disbelief.
The killer moves of someone in the Absolute Technique Stage were overwhelmingly powerful, capable of easily destroying one life of someone in the Reverse Fate Realm.
Yet here he was, being hunted by Li Hao?
He recalled how this Dragon Gate Grand Elder had set off earlier, declaring his intent to eliminate that thorn in the eye at Tianmen Pass.
Could it be that he had been chased all the way from Tianmen Pass to here?
His heart throbbed painfully as he was filled with indignation and shock.
...
What kind of son did Li Tiangang raise?
Back in the day, he had repeatedly sent assassins to kill him, each time with methods guaranteed to succeed, yet every attempt had failed.
The first assassination had involved someone in the Zhoutian Realm.
The hardest part of that mission was infiltrating the Divine General Mansion.
Yet the assassin managed to sneak in without a hitch.
At that time, the child was only six years old. What seemed like a sure kill ended in failure, with the Zhoutian Realm assassin defeated.
Later, he sent two Tongli Realm flood dragon generals to ambush and kill him. Two elite generals targeting a fourteen-year-old boy—after all, not even Li Junye of the Li family had reached the Tongli Realm at the age of fourteen.
Such an assassination, as long as they seized the opportunity, should have been certain death!
But again, it failed, and the assassins were even killed in retaliation.
Relying on information from Tianji Hall, he finally learned that the boy had been concealing his true strength. This was the Li family’s most monstrous genius in cultivation in centuries.
Not long after that, during the conclusion of the Yanbei Battlefield, when the demon clans were clamoring to disperse, he was reprimanded by the Sacred Palace Grand Elder for his failures.
While nursing his hatred, he heard more news about Qingzhou and the Li family.
And now...
The very infant he had tried to assassinate multiple times back then, who was still in swaddling clothes, was now, under his very nose, chasing down the Dragon Gate Grand Elder?!
Bai Shenjun felt as though his world had turned upside down, struggling to believe what was happening.
Yet Lu Yuan’s earth-shaking roar was undeniable, as was the palpably chilling dragon aura that accompanied it.
Even so, he didn’t act.
Having cultivated for thousands of years, he was one of the most talented among demon kings and could clearly see that Lu Yuan was not rallying them to besiege Li Hao but rather... calling for help!
If even Lu Yuan couldn’t defeat him, wouldn’t they die even faster if they stepped in?
Bai Shenjun, who no longer had any Reverse Fate opportunities, recalled the terrifying sword formation Li Hao had unleashed earlier. He stood frozen as if nailed to the ground, pretending not to hear the call for assistance.
The demon kings in the Void Realm also realized something was amiss. They had heard of the young major general who had emerged from Tianmen Pass, and Tianji Hall had sent them extensive intelligence on this rising hero. That was why they had avoided Tianmen Pass and let Lu Yuan handle the task alone.
Now, however, even Lu Yuan had failed.
"Grand Elder!"
While the Void Realm demon kings hesitated, several demon kings from the Dragon Gate were the first to act. They rushed toward Lu Yuan, shouting angrily at the others:
"What are you all standing around for? Are you going to let a mere human brat scare our Demon Alliance into collapse?!"
These words caused the Void Realm demon kings to flush with shame.
It was true.
Were they truly letting the fame of a single youth stop them in their tracks?
"Kill!"
"Assist Brother Lu Yuan! Kill that human brat!"
The Void Realm demon kings also began to take action. One of them quickly released a Void Realm distress signal.
Originally, they hadn’t planned to call for reinforcements, only sending signals through Tianji Hall for Lu Yuan to come and break the formation.
But now that Lu Yuan had failed, they had no choice but to call for aid.
This distress signal would inevitably affect Lady Yin, who was battling the Desert Sword Saint, but there was no other option.
As the demon kings surged forth, the overwhelming demonic energy surrounding the defensive formation dissipated, rushing toward the youth speeding through the air.
...
On the city walls, within the formation—
Li Xuanli, Li Tiangang, and the others finally reacted, their faces filled with shock.
Li Hao was actually chasing down a demon king!
How was this possible?!
Li Xuanli and Li Tiangang were bewildered, caught between disbelief and confusion.
This scene defied their imagination and understanding.
That was a demon king!
How old was Li Hao?
He was only fifteen this year. When he had suppressed the world’s grandmasters earlier, he had been in the Heaven and Man Realm. How could he have reached the Three Immortals Realm within less than a year? And even if he had, how could he possibly contend with a demon king?
Yet the truth lay before them.
Watching the demon kings charging en masse to encircle Li Hao, Li Xuanli urgently commanded:
"Quick, form a formation! Let’s slaughter the demon horde and draw the demon kings over here!"
They wanted to help Li Hao, but they couldn’t. Not only was there no time, but they also had no way to intervene in a demon king-level battle.
Li Tiangang suddenly turned to Li Hongzhuang and said, "Give me five battle flags!"
"What are you going to do?" Li Hongzhuang asked in shock.
Li Tiangang shouted angrily, "Of course, I’m going to save that reckless brat! Does he even know what this place is? How dare he come here! Give me the flags now!"
"I’m coming with you," Li Hongzhuang replied.
"You go with Fifth Brother to kill the demon horde and lure the other demon kings back. Once they’re drawn back, retreat into the formation immediately!"
Li Tiangang turned to the Daoist Ganji nearby. "Senior, I’ll have to trouble you to oversee the battle and provide support."
Since yesterday, when the battle flags had subdued the demon kings and the demon horde camped outside the defensive line, neither side had been able to gain the upper hand.
The demons were waiting for reinforcements, and so were they.
However, the Great Yu Dynasty was hundreds of thousands of miles away, far beyond reach in a short time.
Among the Divine General Mansions, the nearest were the Li and Xia families.
But Li Tiangang had sent a letter back to his Second Uncle Li Muxiu, instructing him to stay put in Qingzhou under no circumstances.
This was because Liang Province was under the Li family’s protection. If Liang Province was attacked, it might be a diversion to target Qingzhou!
After all, the Sacred Palace, Dragon Gate, and even the Void Realm had already turned against the Great Yu Divine Dynasty. Yet the Dragon Gate Leader had not shown up, suggesting another plot elsewhere.
For this reason, he could only rely on the Xia family...