Chapter 824: Wu Zhong Sage

Though the soft, pleasant sound of 'Ding' was beautiful, it was a terrifying death knell. At that moment, the horse demon felt its entire body, both physical and spiritual, instantly stiffen. It couldn't even move its eyeballs, and its consciousness was plunged into boundless terror.

What terrified the horse demon was not merely being unable to move in the midst of battling the three warriors. Rather, it was the chilling realization that a master of unfathomable power, undoubtedly a righteous figure, was present within this very land of humans and beasts.

The horse demon was, after all, a formidable fiend. It often boasted to Old Niu about being highly esteemed by the Tattoo-Eyed Demon King, yet after a single 'Ding,' even its own demonic power refused to obey its will.

‘Where? Among these mortals…’

However, the horse demon quickly lost the ability to ponder the master's identity. It was immobilized, but Zuo Wuji, Yan Fei, and Lu Chengfeng were not. The three warriors were unaware of the demon's plight; even if they had known, why would they show martial courtesy to a demon attempting to devour them?

Zuo Wuji advanced with his staff, anticipating the demon's landing spot. Even though the demonic aura obscured his vision, he shifted his feet at the moment of impact, shattering a half-slab of bluestone. This allowed him to instantly move three steps sideways, successfully evading the demon's charge.

Dodged it? An opportunity!

“Haa—”

Amidst his roar, Zuo Wuji's internal energy surged like a rainbow. He powerfully swept his flat staff, striking the demon's left cheek and ear. At the same instant, Yan Fei's wooden sword arrived from the other side, poking the horse demon's right ear. Simultaneously, Lu Chengfeng's palm strike descended, hitting the horse demon on the top of its head, precisely where Zuo Wuji's staff had struck before.

“Bang…” “Pffft…” “Boom…”

The first two sounds occurred almost simultaneously, while the last one sent the horse demon crashing headfirst into the ground once more.

“Boom…”

Bluestone slabs shattered continuously. The horse demon felt its head throb with pain and dizziness, but after hitting the ground, the terrible restraint on its body miraculously vanished.

“Roar—”

No matter where that master is, I'll kill these three warriors first!

A roar unleashed a furious gust of wind, forcing Zuo Wuji and the other two, who had just landed their blows and were preparing to change tactics, to retreat. They slid backward for three or four steps before regaining their balance. At that moment, the horse demon charged at Zuo Wuji again.

In terms of threat, Zuo Wuji was the greatest, followed by the one with the wooden sword, and then Lu Chengfeng. The horse demon's terrifying demonic power directly coalesced into a dark light, slashing towards Zuo Wuji. But at that very moment, the same female voice echoed in the horse demon's ears again.

“Ding.”

Its body and spirit stiffened once more, naturally preventing it from stabilizing its demonic power. Though it still exuded a formidable, intimidating pressure, the dark light lost its intended power and its absolute precision.

To Zuo Wuji, however, the dark light still seemed terrifying. He twisted his body, narrowly dodging it. Then, using his staff to push off the ground, he bounced up, evading the charging demon again. He then brought his elbow down fiercely, striking the demon at the back of its neck.

“Bang…”

Having landed his blow, Zuo Wuji immediately pushed off the demon's body and retreated. The demon, in turn, staggered for a few steps before regaining its balance.

At this point, blood streamed from the horse demon's eyes, and its ears bled profusely. Its face was contorted with terror, and it looked around wildly, like a madman. Even its demonic aura weakened, presenting a pathetic and wretched sight to everyone present.

“Master, he’s badly wounded! Finish him! Die—”

Zuo Wuji's thunderous roar snapped the horse demon back to its senses. Seeing the three warriors attack, the horse demon's face twisted into a snarl once more, and it engaged them in battle.

The ground trembled, carts splintered, and nearby houses continuously collapsed due to the battle's destructive force.

Everyone, both humans and demons, could see that the three warriors were growing stronger with each passing moment, the whistling sound of their attacks growing increasingly terrifying. And the demon, which had previously intimidated everyone to the point of holding their breath, seemed… to be losing!

Pain! Anguish! Fury! Madness! Palpitation! Fear…

During the first half of the battle, the horse demon couldn't utter a single complete sentence. In the latter half, even though the strange restraining force on its body appeared less frequently, it still couldn't speak. It had been hit too many times by the three warriors, and their attacks were increasingly agonizing. Severely wounded, it had to concentrate all its might to cope, unable to easily block any move, and even lacked the chance to revert to its true form.

Logically, given its physique, the three warriors shouldn't have been able to pierce its hide. Logically, they had also been struck by it several times; as mere mortals, they should have died from a mere graze. And logically, true qi shouldn't have been able to withstand the erosion of demonic aura…

Yet, all of this was developing contrary to common sense. A terrifying layer of formidable qi seemed to subtly emanate from the three warriors. Even when struck by the demon, they could endure the pain amidst flashes of blood and continue fighting.

‘We can win!’

“We can win!”

The pride of being human, the dignity of being warriors, the hope of survival, and, even more significantly—the intense sensation of martial arts breakthrough—all spurred Zuo Wuji, Yan Fei, and Lu Chengfeng to fight with all their might.

Knowing their injuries were too severe to inflict fatal damage on the demon, Yan Fei and Lu Chengfeng spared no effort to create opportunities for Zuo Wuji, even if it meant risking their lives. The brutal struggle continued for a hundred moves…

“Aargh—Die—”

The flat staff, whistling dreadfully, gathered the peak of Zuo Wuji's lifelong cultivation. Infused with a nearly brilliant, blood-red vital energy, it transformed into a terrifying blow that made all the surrounding demons tremble, sweeping fiercely sideways across the horse demon's head.

“Bang—”

The horse demon's head visibly and significantly deformed the instant it was struck, then exploded like a bursting watermelon. Innumerable pieces of foul-smelling flesh and blood sprayed in all directions, and a terrifying demonic aura formed a hurricane-like shockwave that swept through the surroundings.

“Whoosh… whoosh… whoosh…”

The howling wind gradually subsided, the demonic aura began to dissipate, and everyone's vision became increasingly clear.

Yan Fei and Lu Chengfeng lay sprawled on the ground some distance away, clutching their newly inflicted wounds, which continuously seeped blood. They seemed to be breathing out more than they were breathing in. Zuo Wuji stood at the center of the battlefield, which had sunk nearly three feet, gripping a broken flat staff and panting heavily. His almost bare body was covered in blood, both his own and the demon's.

“Hoo… hoo… hoo…”

Three steps from Zuo Wuji stood a 'person' without a head.

At that moment, the entire scene was so quiet that a pin drop could be heard. The next moment, the headless 'person' slowly toppled over.

“Thud…”

The body hit the ground, kicking up dust, then continuously shifted and expanded, finally transforming into a large, headless horse.

“Hehe, hehehe… Hahaha, hahahahaha…”

Though extremely weak, Zuo Wuji's laughter grew from intermittent to continuous, from low to booming, becoming increasingly frenzied. His abnormally bright eyes, streaked with crimson blood, swept around, lingering on each of those who were clearly demons.

“Who else? Who else wants to come forward and die?”

The formidable qi around Zuo Wuji actually rose like the demonic aura of the fiends, consolidating without dissipating, bringing a terrifying pressure and sense of dread to the demons.

“Wuji, well, well done!” “A beautiful move…”

‘In the end, I've been surpassed by my disciple…’

Aside from the wildly spirited Zuo Wuji, the first to speak were Yan Fei and Lu Chengfeng, the masters. While filled with emotion, their eyes were also brimming with relief, feeling that dying at this moment would truly be worth it.

“Masters!”

Zuo Wuji, gripping his flat staff, rushed towards Yan Fei and Lu Chengfeng. But at that moment, the horse demon's subordinates finally snapped back to their senses.

“He killed Commander Ma!” “That warrior is at the end of his strength, quickly kill him!”

“This warrior is too terrifying! Attack together! We absolutely cannot let him live!”

One by one, the fiends charged at Zuo Wuji, filling him with helpless rage. In the end, today still seemed to be his last day…

However, at this moment, some people who had remained silent suddenly erupted with long-suppressed excitement, and shouts rose from various parts of the crowd.

“Hero Zuo, I’m here to help you!” “Demons, prepare to die—”

“Hero Zuo, I’ll help you!”

“Demons, you’ll have to get past me first!”

“What is there to fear in death—” “I, too, want to fight alongside Hero Zuo!”

One by one, warriors, regardless of their skill level, surged forward. Their movements and internal energy surged to their peak as they charged at the demons with a suicidal resolve, some bare-handed, others grabbing a piece of bluestone rubble. Soon after, even many ordinary citizens picked up stones and rushed forward.

Even the normally apathetic indigenous residents who delivered grain felt a fire burning within their hearts.

The combined surge of human fate and fiercely burning human spirit exploded upward, startling the demons. However, the demons knew very well that this was just a disorganized rabble. Their demonic auras tilted, and their demonic arts erupted. Some shapeshifting demons even reverted to their true forms directly in front of this group of 'humans and beasts' they normally wouldn't even glance at.

“These warriors will be remembered in history!”

The old beggar beside Ji Yuan sighed. His tone was the same as before, but this time it was a soft, gentle female voice, which Ji Yuan found a little unaccustomed to.

“It's more than just being remembered in history!”

Ji Yuan chuckled. Behind him, a sword light flowed out like water, resembling a ribbon dancing in the wind. With an almost imperceptible hum, it swept over the demons present and across the entire city, both inside and out.

The next moment, all demonic energy dissipated, and wherever the sword light passed, demons turned into blood mist.

The crowd's excitement hadn't yet faded, but they were stunned speechless by this sight. Yet, looking around, they saw nothing unusual. Meanwhile, Ji Yuan and his two companions had already moved away, concealing their forms and flying into the air.

“Uh, Mister Ji, now that this horse demon is dead and a bunch of its subordinates are gone, how are we supposed to blend in with the other demons?”

Old Niu scratched his head as he asked, while Ji Yuan, his gaze on the crowd below, casually replied.

“This land of humans and beasts within the cave-heaven isn't a heavily guarded place; we can still bluff our way in. Besides, there's the Myriad Demon Banquet, so a little chaos might even be beneficial.”

As they spoke, Ji Yuan and the old beggar had already cast spells to conceal the changes in the city. While not enough to truly disrupt the heavenly mechanisms, it effectively hid their presence there.

In the area before the city gate, Zuo Wuji sensed that all demonic aura had vanished. He finally could no longer stand, collapsing amidst the anxious cries of 'Hero Zuo' from those around him.

What had happened at the city gate quickly spread among the mortals throughout the city and was carried back to their homes by the indigenous residents. Zuo Wuji's words, 'With the power of martial arts, I shall enlighten these demons and beasts in place of the sages'—uttered in that desperate struggle—also became a famous saying, known to all.

Three days later, on a bed in a dilapidated mansion in the city, Zuo Wuji slowly opened his eyes. Immediately, a series of ecstatic shouts, growing from faint to loud, erupted around him.

“The Martial Saint is awake! Martial Saint has awakened!”

“The Martial Saint has awakened—”