Chapter 138: Siege of the Malignant Spirits

Indeed, Lu Yan intended to move to a new place. In his heart, he feared that Zhao Yi might resort to underhanded tactics; he was not afraid for himself, but he worried about implicating Tofu’s family.

"Uncle Lu, are you leaving already? Tofu will miss you. Could you teach me martial arts? Or perhaps cooking would be fine too. I’ve heard that some martial artist masters are also brilliant cooks, capable of preparing martial food that tastes incredibly delicious."

Tofu tugged at Lu Yan’s sleeve, reluctant to let him go.

"Tofu, don't be rude. Master Lu is a person who accomplishes great things; how could he stay here indefinitely?" Tofu’s mother scolded.

"You have an interest in martial food?" A thought stirred in Lu Yan’s mind. Tofu was bright and talented; if the child was truly interested, it might not be a bad idea to take him back to Hundred Herbs City for training. He had originally intended to cultivate a group of his own martial chefs.

Tofu nodded his head like a chicken pecking at rice.

"Uncle Lu will still be in Lingwang City for a while. When I leave, I will come to find you. Think it over carefully. If you still hold the same wish by then, Uncle Lu will teach you martial arts and the methods of cooking martial food—but your family must be prepared to leave Lingwang City." Lu Yan patted Tofu’s small head, smiled faintly, and turned to leave.

Zhou Xiang’s injuries were no longer a concern; he had already purchased deer bone soup for him, and as long as he took it on schedule, he would recover quickly.

After leaving Tofu’s house, Lu Yan went to the eastern district and found a commoner’s home. He offered a high price to have the owner’s family move to a relative’s home for a while. Meanwhile, whenever Lu Yan went out, he would use the Shape-Shifting Technique to alter his appearance, only using his "Lu Ren" guise when meeting Zhao Sirong. It was better to be cautious; one never knew what kind of methods the other side might employ.

He went out to purchase several dozen catties of Tier 2 martial food to consume and cultivate with upon his return. He did not use them to improve his Bone Strength. Having only recently broken through to the third level of the Martial Marquis realm, it would be difficult to reach the fourth level in a short time, so he poured all the energy from the martial food into improving his Cloud-Step. As long as he elevated the Cloud-Step to the realm of "Unity of Man and Martial," his strength would see a significant boost in the short term, especially his ability to survive.

With twenty catties of Tier 2 martial food consumed daily, his progress in Cloud-Step was rapid. In the blink of an eye, a month passed, and Cloud-Step reached 70% of the pinnacle level.

*Dong, dong, dong...*

That night, while Lu Yan was cultivating, he suddenly heard a deafening sound of vibration. It was the sound of war drums.

The demons had arrived.

Lu Yan was not alarmed but overjoyed. After several months in Lingwang City, the demons had finally attacked. The opportunity to earn battle merits had finally arrived. Lu Yan strapped on his Red Blood Blade—the blade itself now painted pitch black—and stepped out.

"The sound of the war drums is coming from the north." Lu Yan headed rapidly toward the northern district. By now, in buildings all across Lingwang City, large numbers of figures were rushing out, converging into a massive stream of people heading toward the north. Some figures moved with extreme speed, swift as a gale. These were Martial Marquis-level existences.

Currently, Lingwang City was teeming with experts. The two Great Grandmaster-level clans, the Tu and the Zhao, had their entire families within the city. The Zhao clan alone had over a hundred Martial Marquises. With reinforcements from a dozen other Grandmaster-level clans and hundreds of Martial Marquis-level clans, the number of Martial Marquises in Lingwang City now exceeded four hundred.

When Lu Yan reached the northern city wall, he found it already lined with Zhao clan martial troops in heavy armor, holding bows or armor-piercing crossbows, standing in strict formation.

*ROAR!*

A heaven-shaking roar erupted from the night sky in the north, as if to tear the darkness asunder.

"The Demon King." Someone whispered, their expression grave.

Lu Yan’s vision was excellent; even in the dead of night and from a great distance, he could vaguely see a giant beast standing on the northern plains. The beast was shaped like a fierce tiger but covered in scales, standing five meters tall and likely over ten meters long, like a prehistoric predator staring down Lingwang City. Even from such a distance, just looking at it gave Lu Yan immense pressure.

Was this the Demon King? The terrifying existence that had fought the five great human Grandmasters, leaving one dead and four wounded, forcing them to flee in disgrace?

The Demon King did not attack immediately but stood in place, roaring at the sky. Following its long howl, streaks of shadows, ghost-like and moving at astonishing speeds, charged toward Lingwang City. These figures varied in form, but most were shaped like beasts—tigers, leopards, wolves, wild boars, and so on. But they shared one trait: these beasts were abnormally large, far exceeding their natural counterparts, their bodies shrouded in gray mist, their eyes blood-red and filled with bloodlust.

Demons!

Looking out, there were no fewer than a thousand of them, with even more surging from the rear, endless and inexhaustible.

*Dong, dong, dong...*

Just then, war drums sounded from the east and west as well.

"Demons have bypassed the mountains to attack from the east and west! Send some troops to defend those sides!"

"Go to the east and west to defend!"

The voice, like a muffled thunder, resonated along the city walls, reaching everyone’s ears. Many martial artists and Martial Marquises rushed toward the eastern and western flanks. Lu Yan thought for a moment and headed toward the east. The northern wall was too crowded; it would be difficult to maneuver and hunt demons effectively there.

Soon, Lu Yan arrived at the eastern wall. By the time he reached it, the fighting had already begun.

*Bang, bang, bang!*

The sound of bowstrings vibrating was incessant. A dark, heavy rain of arrows shot out beyond the wall, and some of the weaker demons fell to the ground, struck by arrows. But most demons twisted and dodged with agility, rapidly closing in on the wall. Lu Yan saw a leopard-shaped demon push off with its limbs, its body vaulting up and clearing the five-zhang-high wall, knocking aside three soldiers before engaging a Martial Marquis-level expert in combat.

This was a Martial Marquis-level demon. Soon after, more Martial Marquis-level demons leaped onto the wall.

*CLANG!*

Lu Yan’s blade left its sheath. The pitch-black blade seemed invisible in the night as it severed the head of a demon equivalent to a second-level Martial Marquis. The demon was incredibly strange; even after its head was severed, it did not die. Its body continued to lunge at Lu Yan, its sharp claws raking at him, intent on tearing him to shreds.

*SPLAT!*

Lu Yan swung his blade again, this time carving open the demon's torso and splitting it in two. Simultaneously, his left hand reached into its chest and snatched out a thumb-sized crystal.

A Demon Crystal.

Demons practiced by absorbing filthy energy, which condensed into a Demon Crystal in their hearts. It was their source of power and also their weakness. As long as the Demon Crystal was extracted, the demon would die; otherwise, even if decapitated or dismembered, they would continue to struggle. Whether demons, specters, or martial spirits, their vitality far exceeded that of human martial artists. However, demons and specters were still a tier below martial spirits in that regard.

Storing the Demon Crystal in his pocket, he had earned twenty battle merits. He continued to kill the next demon. A flash of blade light passed, and another demon was split in two; its crystal also fell into Lu Yan’s hand. This one was only a first-level Martial Marquis, worth ten battle merits—better than nothing.

Lu Yan fought with wide, sweeping motions, his blade light as lightning. No demon in his vicinity could withstand him, and he killed five in quick succession. Suddenly, a foul wind rushed at him, and an exceptionally burly demon, resembling a tiger, lunged at him.

A fifth-level Martial Marquis.

Lu Yan was not alarmed but delighted. Killing a fifth-level Martial Marquis demon was worth one hundred battle merits.

*CLANG!*

Lu Yan struck with his blade, but the blow was blocked by the demon’s claws, creating a loud boom. As the force rippled outward, Lu Yan’s figure swayed slightly, while the tiger demon retreated three steps.

"Such immense strength; it’s stronger than a human martial artist of the same level." Lu Yan felt a chill and dared not be careless.

After the tiger demon stabilized, it let out a low roar and lunged again. Lu Yan swung his blade, engaging it. After several moves, Lu Yan grasped the demon's weaknesses. Demons, despite their great strength, had singular attack patterns, relying purely on beastly instinct; their intelligence was far lower than that of specters.

This made things easier. Lu Yan utilized his movement technique, avoiding direct clashes and instead circling the beast, looking for opportunities to strike. After a few exchanges, Lu Yan slashed the tiger demon across the neck, nearly decapitating it. But the demon acted as if nothing had happened, continuing to lunge and using its tail like a steel whip to strike at Lu Yan’s throat.

Lu Yan leaped up, dodged the tail, and seized the chance to close the distance, slashing at the tiger demon’s chest.

*SPLAT!*

A gruesome wound appeared, reaching the heart; through the gap, one could even see the gray, pulsating heart.

*ROAR!*

The tiger demon went wild, attacking ferociously. Lu Yan used his Red Blood Blade to parry its claws while his left hand reached out, grabbing the demon’s heart. He pulled back, forcibly ripping the organ out. With a squeeze, the gray heart burst, and a crystal the size of a longan fruit fell into Lu Yan’s hand.

One hundred battle merits, secured.

Those around him looked at Lu Yan with awe. To finish off a fifth-level Martial Marquis demon so cleanly and decisively was proof of his immense combat power. Could he be a top expert from the Martial Marquis Rankings?

After slaying the tiger demon, Lu Yan did not stop, immediately moving toward the next target. But the number of demons grew as he killed them. Not only were Martial Marquis-level demons leaping onto the wall, but there were also a vast number of demons equivalent to the "Break-the-Limit" stage.

*SCREECH!*

A sharp bird cry pierced the air. A demon resembling a goshawk dived down, snatched a soldier, flew high into the air, and then released its claws. The soldier screamed as he plummeted from the heights, hitting the ground and turning into a pulp of flesh. Many soldiers fired armor-piercing crossbows or bows, but the goshawk demon dodged them all.

"Give me that bow." Lu Yan snatched a bow from a soldier, drew it until it was a full moon.

*WHOOSH!*

The arrow soared, carving a perfect arc and striking the goshawk demon in the chest. The meter-long arrow buried itself completely into the beast. The goshawk demon plummeted toward the ground, but twenty meters from impact, it recovered, frantically flapping its wings to fly back up.

*THUMP!*

Lu Yan pushed off the ground, vaulting dozens of meters into the air, and slashed downward, splitting the goshawk demon in two. He grabbed a gray heart as it fell. Upon landing, he squeezed it, obtaining another Demon Crystal. A third-level Martial Marquis crystal.

Huh?

Lu Yan saw a few demons leap off the wall and charge into the streets behind, clashing with a group of martial experts. Lu Yan jumped down, striking from above and cleaving a demon in two. Then, with a kick, he surged forward like a hurricane, his blade flashing as he sliced another demon in half.

*HISSS!*

A sharp, piercing sound echoed, as if several blades were striking the back of his head simultaneously, with astonishing speed. Lu Yan swung his blade backward, *clang-clang*, blocking the lethal attack. He rotated his body, his leg sweeping out like a steel whip.

He saw that the one ambushing him was a leopard-shaped demon. It stood over 1.5 meters tall, its limbs thick and powerful, with 50-centimeter-long claws shimmering with a gray luster. The leopard demon retreated slightly, dodging Lu Yan’s kick, then vaulted to his side, its claws swiping with a whistling sound.

It was a fifth-level Martial Marquis demon. Furthermore, it excelled in speed and was agile and unpredictable, making it far more troublesome than the tiger demon from earlier. Lu Yan blocked the leopard demon’s claws and launched a counterattack, but the demon dodged easily, leaping to another position to launch a fresh assault.

Lu Yan’s subsequent moves were all evaded by the leopard demon, which even managed to tear a "five-times limit" martial artist into five pieces in the process. Lu Yan realized that even with his Cloud-Step pushed to the limit, he could not keep up with the leopard demon’s speed. His mastery of Cloud-Step was still a bit low; if he could reach the "Supernatural" realm, keeping up with or even surpassing the leopard demon would not be difficult.

Lu Yan simply sheathed his Red Blood Blade and stood bare-handed, staring at the leopard demon. The demon circled him, searching for an opening. Lu Yan simply closed his eyes.

*SWISH!*

Seeing Lu Yan close his eyes, the leopard demon let out a low roar and lunged.

"As expected, its intelligence is low; it took the bait so easily."

Lu Yan suddenly opened his eyes, reached out, and grabbed one of the leopard demon’s front paws. The demon was shocked and tried to swipe with its other claw, but Lu Yan’s left hand caught that too. The demon opened its blood-stained maw, biting toward Lu Yan’s head.

Lu Yan’s entire body glowed with a golden hue, and he delivered a headbutt, slamming into the demon’s chin.

*CRACK!*

The leopard demon’s jawbone shattered, and it grew dizzy. Lu Yan exerted force with both hands and swung it backward.

*BOOM!*

The leopard demon’s body slammed heavily into the ground, causing the area to tremble and leaving a massive crater. Even with its thick hide and incredible toughness, the impact broke five or six of its bones.

*BOOM! BOOM!*

Lu Yan swung the leopard demon around, slamming it five or six more times until it was reduced to a pulp, every bone in its body shattered. Only then did he draw his Red Blood Blade, cut open its chest, and retrieve the Demon Crystal.

*Hiss, hiss...*

Just then, Lu Yan heard an extremely faint sound of something cutting through the air. It was so subtle, like an adult holding a thin needle passing it through the air. Had his five senses not been so sharp, he would never have caught it.

The sound came from behind him. Lu Yan felt his skin crawl. Without hesitation, he drew his blade and spun, creating a screen of light before him.

*DING-DING-DING...*

Sparks flew. Lu Yan saw clearly that dozens of black needles, as thin as ox hair, had been blocked by his blade and were flying off in all directions. Most embedded themselves in the ground or the surrounding walls, but a "Limit-Break" martial artist nearby had been too slow to react and was pierced by two of the needles.

"I..." The martial artist tried to speak, but a mouthful of black blood surged out.