Chapter 185: The Great Dao Miraculous Pill
Chapter 185: The Great Dao Miraculous Pill
Swoosh! Whoosh!
Suddenly, swords as dazzling as falling stars filled the sky, plunging down towards the Demon Hound.
The disciples of Shoushan Sect, upon arriving over Crow Mountain, had already spread out and encircled the Demon Hound. Upon hearing Fang Cun’s command, they immediately unleashed their flying swords. For a moment, it looked like a meteor shower was crashing down.
If it had just been one flying sword, it wouldn’t have mattered much. But now, a full forty-eight swords rained down.
These disciples had no idea why the Five Great Sects had suddenly ceased their attack, nor did they understand why Old Master Fan had abruptly appeared to intervene. Because they didn’t know, they were bold. Plus, before leaving the mountain, they’d been told that following this mission and performing meritorious deeds would earn them rich rewards back at the sect. Naturally, no one wanted to be left behind or return empty-handed!
Amid all this weaving of magical power, Young Sect Master Xu and the two Elders remained still.
Clearly, they understood the problem. They knew exactly who this Demon Hound was.
No one, knowing the identity of this Demon Hound, could still recklessly strike it down!
“How dare you?!”
Meanwhile, the Demon Hound, upon learning Fang Cun’s identity, had been frantically pondering how to handle this member of the Fang Family – whether to threaten him verbally or pretend ignorance and try to get chummy. It hadn’t expected the other party to immediately go for the kill! Startled and furious, it urgently channeled the magic power it had regained after swallowing the Human Head Pill. Layers of demonic Qi instantly billowed up around its monstrous body…
Crackle! Clang!
The glimmering flying swords unleashed by the Shoushan Sect disciples were flashy but not substantial. Now, bathed in the Demon Hound’s rising demonic power, they were knocked off course, skidding harmlessly off its hide. Still, a few swords struck vulnerable points, causing sharp bursts of pain… Although these swords couldn’t pierce its thick hide, its body was crisscrossed with countless open wounds.
Some particularly annoying disciple seemed to be deliberately targeting the fresh wounds!
“You actually dare wound me?!”
The Demon Hound, shock mingling with rage, fixed Fang Cun with a murderous glare that screamed it wanted to rip him apart.
“I’m not here to wound you,” Fang Cun replied calmly, one hand held loosely behind his back while facing the demon. “I’m here to kill you.”
High above, the first wave of the Shoushan Sect disciples’ attacks hadn’t worked. Now, their second wave fell like scattered petals through the air. Among them rang out Yu Qingli’s loud shout: “Don’t hack randomly! Target the wounds!”
… … …
“They actually intend to slay that Demon Hound?”
Seeing this scene, the Elders of the Five Sects were astounded.
The world knew that the late Immortal Master Fang Chi had been the Mentor of the Seven Kings Hall, essentially sharing a lineage with the Seventh Prince whom this Demon Hound served. In fact, Fang Chi was arguably the Great Xia Dynasty person with the closest ties to that imperial house. How could anyone imagine that this Second Young Master Fang was truly determined to kill the demon?
They struggled to comprehend it, feeling a deep, jarring shock in their hearts.
… … …
“ROARRR…”
“Seeking death! You’re ALL seeking death!!”
Seeing that the Shoushan Sect disciples were genuinely trying to kill him, especially that chillingly indifferent young man in white standing before him, the Demon Hound knew this Fang youth had come specifically to end him. Deep down, the demon understood the true nature of its own power. While it feared no one else, encountering someone from the Fang Family always filled it with dread… with terror.
Finally, it could contain itself no longer. It decided to fight for its life!
With a ferocious roar, its massive body trembled violently. Clumps of deep red blood energy steamed out of its body.
This blood energy, carrying a heavy, metallic scent, diffused into the air like a bloody mist.
And as this happened, its body began to shrink rapidly.
Pop! Snap! Crackle!
As it became smaller, many of the magical artifacts and energy attacks thrown its way missed, striking only the empty ground. Attacks aimed squarely at its pre-existing wounds went off course. Some wounds even vanished entirely, seams closing as the body compressed.
“Is this the wondrous benefit gained from chewing that pill?” Fang Cun coldly watched its actions, his brow furrowing deeply.
He had learned from the Divine Queen that the Immortal Palace, perhaps to save face or to soothe grief, had gifted his family a pill after Fang Chi died in service to the Great Xia Dynasty. Named the Nine Qi Nine Revolutions Great Dao Miraculous Pill, it represented, in a way, the life exchanged for his elder brother. And this very pill had been fed to this dog by his brother’s former student, the Seventh Prince.
Fang Cun didn’t know all the pill’s intricacies, but observing the dog provided clues…
Its actual cultivation wasn’t sky-high; after all, it hadn’t been a demon long after ingesting the pill. But by recklessly devouring blood offerings, accumulating vital Qi, its power had swelled unnaturally, reaching levels comparable to Great Qi Refiners in the middle or even late Golden Core stage.
Any ordinary demon, having gorged on so many lives so quickly, would have been driven mad or consumed by vengeful wraiths.
But not this beast. It only grew more savage.
However, this power, this blood Qi, was stolen and hoarded. Therefore, it was forced to maintain that grotesquely huge, beastly form, unable to cultivate a human guise like other refined demons. Now, by expelling that accumulated blood Qi, it was essentially self-destructing its unnaturally boosted power – like a cultivator purposely abandoning their cultivation.
“SCATTER you insects!!”
The Demon Hound’s furious roar erupted the instant the blood Qi gushed out.
The roar betrayed its agony at sacrificing this power. But with another command, the expelled blood Qi billowing around it abruptly ignited! Fire blossomed crimson, like red lotuses unfurling in the air.
Perhaps sensing Fang Cun’s unwavering intent to kill, the demon decided to go all out. Much of the bloodfire surged fiercely toward Fang Cun!
… … …
“NO!”
Countless Elders from the Five Sects shouted in alarm.
None had anticipated the gravely wounded Demon Hound possessed such a gambit. The bloodfire, summoned by burning its violently expelled vitality, radiated horrifying power. Even they would struggle to face it head-on, let alone the Shoushan Sect disciples?
Especially terrifying – Fang Cun stood terrifyingly close. If he were singed in that inferno… they couldn’t bear the thought.
Ultimately, the Demon Hound was still far too powerful.
The Shoushan Sect disciples had the courage to kill it, but with their strength, how could it be done so easily?
… … …
“HUFF! WHOOSH!”
Predictably, the exploding bloodfire forced all the Shoushan Sect disciples to lurch back.
Yet, facing the advancing crimson flames, Fang Cun did not step back.
Not only did he not retreat, he stepped forward.
Behind him were the common folks he had just rescued. If he backed away, countless innocents would be cremated.
So he took that step forward, and with a flick, snapped open the Old Umbrella in his hand.
BOOM!
The wrathful flames surged like tidal waves, seeming to blacken the sky.
The countless common people watched in terrified screams, clutching one another, resigned to a fiery death.
But the searing heat never touched them. Opening their eyes, they saw the figure in white robes, shielding them behind the opened Old Umbrella. The evil fire, seemingly hot enough to melt stone, was completely contained by that old shelter. Not the smallest spark reached them.
None of the people were touched by the malicious flames.
For a moment, they stared dumbfounded at the white-robed back shielding them, unable to grasp what happened.
From despair to hope… their emotions surged wildly.
So… there were Qi Refiners who would protect people like them…?
… … …
“Hahaha! With your pathetic skills, you expect to harm me?”
“Just wait! Once my injuries heal, I’ll storm your wretched little sect! I’ll annihilate your clans and destroy your sects!”
“Especially YOU Fang Family! I’ll feast on your whole CLAN!”
That snarling laughter rang through the bloody flames. The Demon Hound sounded unnervingly energetic! Amid the chaos, hidden by the endless sea of bloody fire, its form suddenly shot vertically upwards like lightning escaping the trap. There was no sign of grave injury now! And by then, the Shoushan Sect disciples had all been knocked back – there was no one to block it!
“This monster indeed still had tricks hidden…”
The Elders of the various sects couldn’t help but feel a fresh wave of shock.
Earlier, when the Demon Hound was massive, it looked critically wounded. Nobody expected that expelling its blood Qi, though seeming to lower its core power, would grant it blistering speed! Thinking back to its pretended “death throes” before the assembled Elders, a chill ran through them. Perhaps back then, that wicked canine had been planning a treacherous counter-attack…?
… … …
“…Annihilate my clan? Destroy my sect?”
As the Demon Hound soared away, seeming utterly beyond reach, Fang Cun slowly closed the Old Umbrella. His cold, sharp gaze locked onto the escaping shape in the sky. His voice was low.
“See the dog, know the master. That even a dog dares speak such words… proves that nephew of mine died without any injustice…”
He followed it with a cold command: “BRING IT BACK!”
“…!”
SWISH!
At Fang Cun’s command, the Shoushan Sect disciples, who had just been repelled, looking somewhat battered, quickly descended to the ground. Simultaneously, each raised their dazzling flying swords and slammed them, point down, into the earth.
Their swords might not be substantial, but they were sharp.
The instant all the swords stabbed into the earth, the Demon Hound, high in the air, suddenly choked out a stifled grunt.
Then, it plummeted earthwards like a stone!
Not only that, the wounds it had desperately “healed” by expelling its blood Qi suddenly burst open violently! Blood sprayed from countless ruptured gashes. A soul-rending roar tore from its throat, echoing like the cries of the damned.
Witnessing this, every cultivator sucked in a shocked breath. Peering carefully, they finally saw it: faint, golden threads formed a large net in the air!
This wasn’t demon hunting. This was poaching!