Chapter 300: Henchman cow

"Ahaha ha ha ha ha ha… Satisfying! So satisfying! Die, you foul witch…!"

The bull's hooves crashed down from the sky at a rapid pace. They weren't stomping haphazardly but were strategically aimed, accounting for every blind spot where the woman below might try to escape and landing directly on points where demonic energy emanated.

"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Continuous loud rumbles echoed, filling the air with dust. The large trees at the forest's edge had already been shattered, and waves of air billowed outwards.

Yan Fei had finished regulating his breath, or rather, the spiritual energy that Ji Yuan had channeled into him had dispelled the demonic influence. Yet, he remained completely stunned, unable to suppress the profound shock on his face.

Ji Yuan clearly perceived the bull demon's magical demonic light, but Yan Fei could only see rings of light descending from the sky. Yet, the immense power was staggeringly evident. The ground before them, almost within arm's reach, was shaking violently. Air currents howled, dust swirled through the air, and the arrogant laughter from above was unmistakable.

All of this delivered an indescribable impact to Yan Fei. His left hand, gripping his sword, trembled slightly, while his right hand was tightly pinching his own thigh.

‘Martial arts… what use are they against such demons?’

Looking up again, Yan Fei saw the Golden-Armored Warrior, an imposing figure enveloped in a faint glow. By day, this light might be imperceptible to those with poor eyesight or distracted, but in the night, it perfectly outlined the warrior's complete form.

"Mr. Ji, are you… an immortal?"

Ji Yuan turned to look at Yan Fei, as if sensing the complexity of his thoughts.

"From an ordinary person's perspective, I suppose so."

"Moooooooo!"

In the sky, a furious bellow erupted. Yan Fei's ears were filled with a deafening buzz, and he instinctively covered them, using his internal energy to resist the sound.

"Whoosh!"

Amidst a mighty rush of air, a massive shadow, visible by moonlight, tore through the swirling dust clouds, parting the smoke as if it were churning waves.

The bull demon, who resembled a simple farmer, now had eyes glowing with red light and a grotesque face contorted with bulging muscles. Clutching a massive stone pillar, over ten meters long, he hurled it down from the sky.

The earth spirits in the surrounding ground surged, converging on the impact point as the stone pillar plummeted.

"Bang!"

The instant the stone pillar struck, the ground layers surprisingly emitted a crisp sound, as if a solid slab of rock had been hit. The next moment, the "slab" buckled at both ends before utterly shattering.

"Rumble!"

Huge, hard chunks of earth flew in all directions, several of them hurtling towards Ji Yuan and Yan Fei.

Their position wasn't far from the bull demon's impact point; the swirling dust was almost upon them. As the massive stone fragments shot outwards, Yan Fei had no time to react, but Ji Yuan remained perfectly still, for he had no need to move.

The Golden-Armored Warrior merely stepped forward and to the left, sweeping his arms a few times.

"Thud! Thud! Thud!"

Earth dust exploded where his left and right arms blocked, as well as on the Golden-Armored Warrior's chest. Yet, the warrior didn't budge an inch, his expression unchanging.

"She's dead, right? She must be dead now, isn't she? Her demonic energy is gone…"

The bull demon stood on the pulverized impact point of the stone pillar, his gaze anxiously sweeping the ground beneath his feet and the surrounding area.

"No need to look, you've already shattered it."

Ji Yuan's voice reached him, making the bull demon pause, then a look of wild joy spread across his face.

"Shattered? Dead? Really dead!? Hahaha… ha ha ha ha ha… That foul witch is finally dead! Hahaha… ugh…"

As the bull demon laughed wildly, he reached for the back of his neck. His laughter abruptly ceased as he still felt that tuft of hair. He then stared wide-eyed at Ji Yuan.

"Why is the hair still there…"

Ji Yuan glanced at him but said nothing. He swept his sleeves left and right, clearing away the lingering dust, and walked towards the collapsed, cracked ground. The Golden-Armored Warrior and Yan Fei followed closely behind.

Ji Yuan pointed at the large broken stones in the collapsed area, and the Golden-Armored Warrior stepped forward, moving them aside one by one to reveal a large clump of brown hair beneath.

Faintly, amidst the tangled hair, lay a life-sized wooden puppet, now shattered into pieces. Even more unsettlingly, blood continuously seeped from it.

When the bull demon got closer and saw this, his eyes widened in disbelief.

"She got away!?"

"That demoness escaped using a strange art, but her escape wasn't clean; she must have been severely injured by you."

Ji Yuan frowned as he looked at the puppet on the ground, recalling that it had clearly been a real demonic body just moments before.

This method felt somewhat familiar to Ji Yuan, yet it also differed greatly from what he remembered. And seeing the grotesque puppet seeping blood, it appeared the other party had paid a considerable price...

Ji Yuan turned to look at the bull demon.

"Don't you know who this woman is?"

"Uh, Mr., do you mean the one dead on the ground, or that foul witch?"

"What do you think?"

The bull demon scratched his head and replied,

"This foul witch's origins are completely unknown; I only know she's extremely sinister. Old Bull here was careless for a moment and fell into her trap, which shattered my self-realized demonic body and severely damaged my cultivation. I nearly perished!"

The bull demon spoke with lingering trepidation, clearly indicating how perilous the situation had been.

"Careless for a moment? You fell for her charms, didn't you!"

Ji Yuan teased him, having already discerned the bull demon's particular weakness despite their brief acquaintance.

"Uh... I, I mean, one has to have some hobbies, right?"

Meanwhile, in a small cave several mountains away, lines of formation light suddenly glowed on the ground. A pale-faced woman abruptly materialized from within, her aura appearing very unstable.

"Hoo... hoo... hoo..."

‘It's a good thing I had a backup plan, and I actually have to thank that old bull. If he hadn't interfered, Ji Yuan might have seen through some of my tricks later, and I wouldn't have been able to escape…’

As far as she knew, Ji Yuan’s words held power, allowing him to freely cast soul-binding spells. If he had seen through her "Spirit-Lodging Substitution" technique, with his unfathomable cultivation, he might have been able to extract her spirit and forcibly confine it within the wooden puppet. In that scenario, her physical body, even if it escaped, would be nothing more than a walking corpse.

Moreover, Ji Yuan likely possessed an even more extraordinary and divine art that could immobilize a person, including their spirit and form, without using restrictions, barriers, curses, or even physically touching them with magic. That kind of ability would be far more perilous.

"Phew... that was a close call. I never expected to run into Ji Yuan. I can't stay in this place any longer!"

After recovering slightly, the woman immediately conjured a faint demonic wind, flew out of the cave, and then fled far to the east.

Back at the original battlefield, Yan Fei stood beside Ji Yuan, cautiously observing the man who resembled a simple farmer. He wondered if the man was human or demon, but at least he appeared to be well acquainted with Mr. Ji.

"Mr. Ji," the bull demon, getting quite chummy, inquired, "that foul witch didn't even dare to move when she saw you. Do you know her origin?"

"She seems to be somewhat connected to a certain fox spirit. Neither of them is simple!"

After saying this, Ji Yuan collected a strand of hair from the ground, then exhaled a puff of red-gray qi. It swirled over the body, causing the brown hairs to spark and, moments later, turn to ash along with the wooden puppet.

Having done this, Ji Yuan looked at the bull demon again and said,

"Do you know me as well?"

The bull demon, like a simpleton, shook his head with a goofy grin.

"Hehe, Old Bull here hadn't heard your esteemed name before, Mr., but since that foul witch is so terrified of you, you must be an incredibly powerful immortal cultivator. Right? I just shouted for you, Mr., to help me, and that foul witch didn't even dare to fight back. How satisfying!"

This reply made Ji Yuan pause. It seemed the bull demon, despite his simple appearance, was quite cunning.

"By the way, Immortal Master, can you help me remove this hair from the back of my neck? As long as it's there, even if my dharma body recovers, I'll still be at a disadvantage against that foul witch."

The bull demon rubbed his hands, pleading in a bargaining tone.

"Just call me Mr. Ji, like before. I can try, but I can't guarantee it will work."

"Then what are we waiting for? What should I do?"

Old Bull seemed impatient. This evil hair magic had rooted itself in his neck and could never be completely removed. If not for his considerable cultivation, it would have long since invaded his divine essence. Even now, it continuously siphoned his magical power and vital essence, hindering his recovery. It was truly insidious.

Ji Yuan looked at him and said,

"Disperse your protective demonic energy, then lower your head and expose the back of your neck."

Old Bull hesitated, not daring to agree. It sounded exactly like offering his neck for slaughter, especially since he had clearly seen Ji Yuan's sword, which that foul witch had called the "Green Vine Immortal Sword."

Ji Yuan smiled and said,

"You are a demon, and I am an immortal cultivator. Naturally, it's difficult for you to be completely unguarded around me. I can also tell you that the method I intend to try is that very breath from just now."

The red-gray qi from moments ago had reduced the brown hair and the female corpse to ashes. The bull demon had naturally witnessed it, and before he could ask, Ji Yuan explained,

"I possess a true fire technique called Samadhi True Fire. That breath was merely a wisp of its heat. If I were to give you a direct blast of true fire when you're unprepared…"

At this point, Ji Yuan opened his mouth and exhaled a puff of red-gray qi, which, like a gentle breeze, swept past the stones a little further away. Beneath them lay two intact corpse puppets, pinned down and unable to move by the scattered boulders.

Wherever the qi passed, the corpse puppets instantly turned to ash. The qi then swept over two other headless corpses nearby, similarly reducing them to dust.

"Uh-oh… never mind, forget it. This hair has been here for so long, I've grown quite attached to it, heh heh heh…"

The bull demon was a bit scared. Although he hadn't seen Mr. Ji actively intervene much, the foul witch's previous reaction alone showed that he was not to be trifled with.