Chapter 76: Demon-Luring Potion
Chapter 76: Chapter 76: Demon-Luring Potion
Fang Chen’s figure blurred, instantly appearing diagonally in front of the Cyan-faced Fox. Avoiding its rock-hard skull, he aimed straight for the relatively vulnerable juncture where its neck met its chest and abdomen!
[Profound Tiger Wind-Breaking Sword]—Perfection level, erupting with full force!
[Sword Qi]
"BUZZ—!"
The blade trembled. Sword Qi, condensed to the absolute limit, took on a near-physical form as it viciously slashed toward the frozen cyan fur!
The blade bit into the fur but met immense resistance, as though carving through thick cowhide soaked in glue.
The density of its muscles and bones far exceeded his imagination.
"Break!"
Fang Chen roared inwardly. True Qi surged wildly within his Dantian, his arm muscles bulging as he pushed his strength to the absolute limit!
"RIIIIP..."
Accompanied by a slow, tearing sensation, the sword’s edge finally forced its way through the muscle and struck bone!
However, that was as far as it went.
The expected scene of the beast being cleanly cleaved in two did not occur.
The longsword wedged into bone tougher than refined steel, unable to advance another inch!
Fang Chen’s pupils contracted slightly as he immediately withdrew his longsword and retreated.
A hideous, bone-deep wound had been cleaved into the Cyan-faced Fox’s neck. Blood poured freely, but the beast had definitively not been decapitated!
"Just as I thought, it’s not enough..." Fang Chen looked at the wound, then down at the longsword in his hand, his expression grave.
"A Rank Two Demon Beast’s defenses, especially its bone strength, far exceed my estimates. Even during a Time Stop, my current attack power isn’t enough for a one-hit kill.
"Unless... I target absolute weak points like the eyes or mouth. But in actual combat, it’s never that easy to strike those spots.
"I’ll try the [Armor-Piercing Drill] and [Thousand Waves Mountain-Shattering Sound]!"
Fang Chen followed up with a kick and a punch. Although the blows sent the Cyan-faced Fox flying a great distance, he knew he hadn’t dealt any severe damage. He tracked down where the Cyan-faced Fox had landed and inspected the impact zones on its body.
"It’s effective! Its internal organs and bones even show signs of damage, but... it’s not fatal. It doesn’t even count as a severe injury," Fang Chen evaluated.
Given a Rank Two Demon Beast’s Life Force and Recovery Power, wounds like this wouldn’t even impair its combat capabilities, let alone decide its life or death.
"Furthermore, the attack range of Fists and Feet is still a bit short compared to swords. In real combat, even if I land a hit, I’ll likely suffer a heavy blow from its counterattack."
The risk-to-reward ratio was entirely disproportionate.
"Makes sense. Even my [Profound Tiger Wind-Breaking Sword], backed by Sword Qi and a sharp blade, failed to deliver a fatal blow. Naturally, these unarmed strikes won’t cut any deeper."
"Forget it," Fang Chen muttered, dropping his stance. He glanced at the blood-soaked Cyan-faced Fox. "Blame it on my good heart. I’ll spare your life today."
After the assault, Fang Chen was in no rush to leave. He quickly scouted the surrounding area.
"Confirmed. There are no other evolved Demon Beasts around.
"Everything is normal around the Mind-Bending Demon Wood, too. The Demon Beasts are gathered there, but there’s no unusual activity."
After completing all this to ensure there were no other variables, A Thought Flashes.
The Time Stop ended.
Without a shred of hesitation, Fang Chen moved like lightning, sprinting at full speed toward the Mind-Bending Demon Wood!
Taking advantage of the gap before the Cyan-faced Fox could catch up, Fang Chen nourished his Spiritual Crystal Stone with True Qi as he ran. He hoped to recharge it above the safety threshold, ensuring it could withstand at least one more blow.
Along the way, he encountered a few Rank One Demon Beasts blocking his path. Fang Chen’s sword flashed, taking them down with almost one strike each, barely losing any speed. The closer he got to the target area, the more Demon Beasts swarmed his way.
Fang Chen no longer aimed for guaranteed kills. If a strike missed, he immediately changed direction and dodged, refusing to get bogged down in a protracted fight.
He could sense the Rank Two Cyan-faced Fox closing in on him from behind!
The distance between them shrank continuously. Fang Chen could even smell the foul, bloody wind blowing from behind him.
Finally, the dense woods opened up, and a relatively spacious forest clearing appeared before his eyes.
In the center of the clearing stood a bizarre tree. This was the Mind-Bending Demon Wood.
Its twisted, grayish-white trunk featured bark so smooth it looked polished. The surface was covered in dark red, spiral patterns that resembled blood vessels. The canopy wasn’t dense; its sparse branches and leaves formed grotesque shapes, looking like countless withered, ghostly hands reaching toward the sky.
And at this moment, no fewer than a dozen Rank One Demon Beasts were prowling around the base of the demon tree!
Fang Chen knew that the Mind-Bending Demon Wood didn’t emit any Aura in its dormant state. The examiners had intentionally lured the beasts here.
Arriving at the clearing, Fang Chen maintained his momentum. He unleashed a barrage of fierce Sword Qi directly into the thickest cluster of Demon Beasts!
"SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!"
The crisscrossing Sword Qi forced the beasts ahead into a panicked frenzy, scrambling to dodge the attack. However, because the attack was so widespread and direct, the majority of the Demon Beasts narrowly managed to evade it.
That brief delay was all it took.
"ROAR!"
A foul wind slammed into his face!
The Rank Two Cyan-faced Fox had finally caught up. Burning with monstrous fury, it swiped its razor-sharp claws through the air, aiming straight for Fang Chen’s back!
"Perfect timing!"
As if he had eyes in the back of his head, Fang Chen violently twisted his body. Instead of retreating, he launched a devastatingly heavy flying kick straight into the path of the lunging Cyan-faced Fox!
The Defensive Power of the Perfection-level [Iron Wall Strike] instantly coated his legs. Simultaneously, his Combat Suit’s Spiritual Crystal Stone activated, unleashing its maximum protection!
"At worst, I’ll drain another seventy percent of my energy! I can afford the cost!"
"BANG!!"
The collision of leg and claw produced a massive, muffled boom, like the striking of heavy leather!
Fang Chen felt a terrifying, colossal force transmit through the soles of his feet. The Combat Suit’s Spiritual Crystal Stone flickered violently as intense pain shot up his legs, sending his Qi and Blood churning.
A red warning light blared. The Spiritual Crystal Stone hadn’t been fully recharged to begin with. It was already at its absolute limit!
Gritting his teeth through the pain, he borrowed the massive recoil force. The muscles of his core contracted abruptly as he pushed the [Twelve-Step Leg Springing Technique] to its absolute extreme.
"THOOM!"
Like a stone launched from a slingshot, his speed spiked drastically. He rocketed along a near-perfectly straight trajectory, hurtling directly toward the Mind-Bending Demon Wood in the center of the clearing!
This maneuver was identical to how he had previously used the trees to shake off his pursuer!
Suspended in mid-air, Fang Chen forcibly adjusted his posture. His gaze locked fiercely onto the tree’s grayish-white, twisted trunk.
"Perfect. The distance is enough!"
The True Qi in his body circulated frantically, pouring entirely into his right leg.
[Armor-Piercing Drill]!
Moving like a falling meteor with a leg like a drill bit, Fang Chen combined the dual forces of his Leg Technique and his sprinting momentum, delivering a devastating kick right to the midsection of the Mind-Bending Demon Wood’s trunk!
"CRACK—!!!"
A crisp snapping sound echoed through the clearing!
The Mind-Bending Demon Wood had been cleanly snapped in half by the brutal kick!
The upper canopy fell with a whistling wail, slowly toppling over and kicking up a massive cloud of dust as it crashed to the ground.
Using the kick’s recoil, Fang Chen executed a nimble mid-air flip and firmly grabbed onto a nearby branch. He vaulted up and landed beside the shattered stump of the Mind-Bending Demon Wood. Feigning ignorance of the viscous, colorless, and odorless liquid—which looked just like ordinary tree sap—gurgling from the break, he pushed off the splintered cross-section. He positioned himself to leap again, making it appear as though he were fleeing toward the neighboring trees.
However, just as he landed on a second large tree nearby, acting as if he was about to flee, he suddenly glanced back.
An unexpected change was already occurring in the clearing below!
The colorless, odorless sap that flowed from the stump was emitting a bizarre Aura. While practically imperceptible to humans, this Aura held a fatal, intoxicating attraction for Demon Beasts.
"Is this the Demon-Luring Potion?"