Chapter 794: Martial Way

Although seemingly numerous, a large portion of the monsters entering the city quickly became entangled with the local deities, like the Yellow Earth God, and other spirits. The remaining monsters, compared to the number of human martial artists and soldiers, were few. However, monsters were terrifying, and ordinary people found it hard to muster the courage to fight them.

Moreover, this small city lacked top martial arts masters. Previously, when human martial artists and soldiers encountered more monsters than they could mentally cope with, they found it difficult to summon the resolve to confront them directly.

However, the appearance of Yan Fei and his two companions had a butterfly effect, instilling courage in other martial artists and galvanizing a collective spirit of resistance. More and more martial artists and soldiers began to follow them.

Some of the more skilled martial artists and those with superior lightness skills followed closely, their eyes filled with admiration for the three experts leading the way. These three strangers—one wielding a sword, one using fists and palms, and another surprisingly using a flat staff—faced the demons without a trace of fear, relying purely on their martial arts to defeat them. Their prowess naturally inspired awe.

"Hahahaha, what exhilaration! Fighting fellow martial artists is nothing compared to battling monsters. Does anyone have wine?"

Lu Chengfeng was in high spirits. He reached for the wine gourd at his waist, shook it, and found it completely empty. Seeing the numerous martial artists following behind him, he couldn't help but ask loudly.

By this point, the martial artists had followed the trio in slaying at least six or seven terrifying monsters. Despite some casualties, their morale was soaring. Hearing the leading hero's question, several immediately responded.

"Hero, I have wine!" "Hero, I do too!"

"Mine is a fine vintage from Huitian Tower!"

"Hahahaha, throw it over!"

Lu Chengfeng, who in Zuo Wuji's eyes was usually a man of few words, was exceptionally high-spirited. As his voice faded, several wine gourds were thrown his way. With hands as nimble as a spirit snake, he spun in mid-air while performing his lightness skill, catching three gourds in one swift motion and gently redirecting the fourth back to its owner.

"Hahaha, just smelling it tells me it's good wine!"

Lu Chengfeng uncorked the three gourds. Without stopping his lightness skill, he tasted a bit from each, kept his favorite, tossed the one with a subtle taste towards Yan Fei, and threw the strongest one to Zuo Wuji.

"Brother Yan, Wuji, catch!"

Even Yan Fei, who rarely drank, was swept up by Lu Chengfeng's bold spirit and reached out to catch the gourd. Zuo Wuji did the same.

Yan Fei glanced at Lu Chengfeng. Although several Lu Chengfengs combined would still not be a match for his martial arts, Yan Fei had to admit that Lu Chengfeng possessed a greater spirit at this moment.

"Drink up! Let's drink together, brave warriors!"

Holding his gourd, Lu Chengfeng not only hailed Yan Fei and Zuo Wuji but also turned back to gesture to the martial artists and officers following them. They responded enthusiastically, some even waving excitedly, despite not being skilled enough to speak while performing lightness skills.

Those with wine passed it among themselves. Even those who didn't get a drink were intoxicated by the heroic cheers and the aroma of wine.

Even Yan Fei, who rarely drank, now drank with everyone. The young Zuo Wuji was already incredibly excited, gulping down the wine.

"Tonight, we'll fight to our hearts' content!"

Underneath these heroic declarations, even the many government officers were infected by the carefree martial spirit, growing more excited. The entire group seemed to move with greater ease, their lightness skills effortless, as if they could land exactly where they wished with just a glance, without needing full concentration. Their collective fighting spirit blazed fiercely, merging into one powerful force.

While the city was of a certain size, the power of its resident deities was not particularly strong. The most potent among them was the local Earth God, as the City God had fallen long ago. Unaware of this, the people continued to worship, but no new deity had yet coalesced.

At that moment, in Temple Street, the Earth God and some surviving underworld spirits were collectively resisting numerous monsters. Although there were no exceptionally powerful beings among them, the deities felt immense pressure. The city's array guardians, the alchemists, remained silent, suggesting something had already befallen them.

Just then, a fiery glow spread from the other end of the city. It wasn't a real fire, but a concentrated light of vital energy and killing intent, spreading like a scorching blaze.

"There are still monsters! Today, we'll ensure none of them return alive!"

"None shall return!"

A few government officers, armed with special crossbows, took positions on either side, nocking their scarce enchanted arrows but not firing them. The martial artists, along with Yan Fei and his two companions, surged forward, leaping over rooftops. Their momentum was a stark contrast to the earlier panic caused by the monster invasion.

"Kill!" "Slay the demons!"

"Earth God, we're here to help you!"

The martial artists roared and charged forward, led, of course, by Yan Fei, Lu Chengfeng, and Zuo Wuji. They wore no talismans or special items, relying purely on their own skill.

"With ease, I tread on clouds like a white crane, drunkenly wielding my sword, singing a dance of white rainbows!"

Yan Fei, sword in hand, was the first to leap from a rooftop, his face flushed as he recited poetry, like an immortal swordsman. Lu Chengfeng and the others simply roared with laughter, then burst forth from rooftops and walls with the unbridled spirit of martial artists, as if confronting mere bandits rather than terrifying demons.

Some monsters were inherently more afraid of disciplined, battle-hardened armies. However, the combined aura of vital energy and killing intent emanating from these martial artists and government officials was utterly terrifying, causing some monsters to recoil repeatedly.

"This mortal realm is ours!"

Zuo Wuji roared in anger, his flat staff arcing like a drawn bow in his hand. Infused with his martial prowess, it struck the nearest mountain spirit with fierce force, the staff's impact almost simultaneous with the rushing sound of air.

"Thud..."

The heavy staff landed squarely on the mountain spirit's temple. The power of the martial arts energy was beyond the mountain spirit's comprehension. In its agony, it felt as if its head had been trapped in a bronze bell and struck hard; its colossal body stiffened and went numb from head to toe.

At that moment, Zuo Wuji's martial energy briefly flowed through the mountain spirit, as if allowing him to perceive everything about it. Using the force of the flat staff, he flipped over the mountain spirit as the staff snapped from bent to straight, then wielded it like a spear, thrusting it violently into the base of the mountain spirit's skull, near its neck.

"Hup!"

"Thud... crackle..."

After the strike, Zuo Wuji leaped over the mountain spirit's shoulder. The martial artists behind him rushed forward to attack it with their weapons. The massive mountain spirit merely thrashed its arms wildly, swayed, and then crashed to the ground, blood continuously oozing from both its ears.

Zuo Wuji's performance was mirrored by Yan Fei and Lu Chengfeng, the other two "spearheads," who were equally formidable with the assistance of the other martial artists. Some archers, wielding special crossbows, could even easily retrieve their arrows from the monsters' corpses after firing.

"Kill!" "Slaughter these monsters!"

Unlike most nature spirits who become Earth Gods, this local Earth God was quite robust, wielding an old vine staff to single-handedly fend off four or five monsters. Upon seeing the group of martial artists approaching from behind, especially the three leaders, he inwardly praised their might.

"You all, go sweep through the city and clear out the invading demons. Do not let them harm the common folk. I, along with the underworld gods, will hold them off here!"

The Earth God's primary concern remained the common people; before monsters, ordinary folk were utterly defenseless.

However, the Earth God's worries were clearly unnecessary, as an officer from the martial artist group laughed loudly.

"Hahahaha, please rest assured, Earth God! We've already eliminated all the outer monsters. Only these ones remain!"

"Clang..."

Yan Fei's sword hummed past the Earth God. The elegant, bearded swordsman, like a sword immortal, wielded his lightly humming longsword, now imbued with a layer of faint green, killing aura. He thrust it directly into a mountain ghost's mouth, and the burst of powerful energy from the blade instantly shattered the ghost's essence.

'What powerful martial artists!'

The Earth God could clearly see that the swordsman's strike was purely based on his own martial skill, without any external aid. The man possessed an innate vital energy, and while martial artists of such innate realm could fight some monsters, this particular one was the strongest he had ever encountered.

The Earth God then noticed that the other two martial artists were equally outstanding. He even later felt that the entire group of martial artists was in a state far beyond the ordinary.

With this new assistance, the Earth God strategically withdrew to cast spells, continuously aiding with techniques like ground traps and earthen walls. The remaining monsters were all slain through the combined efforts of the martial artists and underworld spirits, with very few managing to escape.

As the last monster, a tiger-headed humanoid, fell, the officers and martial artists erupted in cheers. This cheer was more fervent than any previous celebration of repelling monsters, for this time, they had been the main force.

"Whoosh... hiss... whoosh..."

A wisp of white smoke rose from Zuo Wuji's head, indicating an overexertion of internal energy. After regulating his breathing, his meridians felt much better. He then looked at his two masters, Yan Fei and Lu Chengfeng, who both smiled and nodded at him, a rare look of satisfaction in their eyes. Even though four people shared this disciple, to have nurtured Zuo Wuji into such a talent was enough to pass on the spirit of martial arts.

"Three great heroes! Thank you for your assistance!"

"Thank you, three heroes, for your help!" "Hero, I am Ma Yuanfeng, and I admire your martial prowess!"

"I am Li Hong..." "I am Liu Xun..."

"No need for formalities!" "No need to be so polite."

The nearby martial artists came forward to pay their respects to Yan Fei, Lu Chengfeng, and Zuo Wuji. Even the Earth God and other deities were incredibly curious about the trio.

"Youngsters, what splendid martial arts! And you don't seem to be from this city, do you?"

The Earth God approached and scrutinized the three. He became even more certain that they possessed no special enchantments. Lu Chengfeng fought with bare hands, Zuo Wuji used a simple flat staff, and while Yan Fei's longsword was somewhat unique, it was at most an ordinary weapon imbued with a faint killing aura.

"Greetings, Earth God!"

The three greeted him, and Lu Chengfeng said with a laugh:

"We are travelers who journeyed far, honing our martial way against demons. Indeed, we are not from this city. However, it is a great fortune in our lives to have slain demons alongside all of you today!"

"It is our good fortune too!" "Hero, you are too kind!"

The surrounding martial artists and government officials enthusiastically returned the pleasantries, while Yan Fei chuckled and whispered something into Zuo Wuji's ear.

"Your Fourth Master's social skills haven't diminished from his younger days, it seems."

After inquiring about their origins and confirming them with a quick calculation, the Earth God smiled and withdrew from the excited crowd. He didn't interfere with the enthusiasm of the mortal martial artists but watched the three distant warriors thoughtfully.

The term "Martial Way" that these individuals used, particularly the word "Way" within it, was ordinarily just a mundane expression for martial artists. To cultivators, it had no connection to the true "Dao," a word of immense significance. Yet, at this moment, the Earth God inexplicably felt a powerful spiritual resonance with that term.

'These martial artists are truly extraordinary!'