"Before this, I was still wondering who was stronger, Luo Cheng or Lord Gu..."

"Is there even a need to wonder? Isn’t the truth right in front of us?"

"I said *before*. Who would’ve thought the gap between them was so huge? It seems even geniuses have different levels."

"Of course! You and I are both Commanders, and you can’t even beat me. What more for a genius like Lord Gu?"

"Alright, that’s enough. Lord Gu is just a guest. He’ll be leaving sooner or later."

"Sigh!"

...

Hushed discussions echoed from every corner of the camp.

Outside the camp, several hundred meters into the mountain forest.

Luo Cheng stood on a mountain ridge, his face cold and indifferent as he faced the wind.

Suddenly, his figure flickered and vanished.

When he reappeared, it was inside the passageway.

"Hm?"

Huang Hongyuan, who was guarding the entrance to the passage, sensed the movement. He turned to see Luo Cheng and frowned. "What are you doing here?"

Luo Cheng ignored him and walked past.

Under Huang Hongyuan’s furious gaze, he dashed forward, stepped out of the passage, and entered the territory of the Demon Realm.

"This..."

Huang Hongyuan watched in astonishment.

’Luo Cheng is also heading into the Demon Realm?’

’Is he also trying to kill the Electric Giant Python?’

...

SWISH!

WHOOSH~

A cold wind gusted, assailing him head-on.

Gu Zheng moved against the wind, skimming rapidly over the vast surface of the sea.

The island just outside the passage was mainly occupied by Electric Spirit Monsters.

The tracks the Electric Giant Python left on the beach disappeared into the water after less than a kilometer.

In other words, the Electric Giant Python had dived into the sea, its whereabouts unknown.

In the distance, Gu Zheng could see three islands.

He couldn’t be sure which one was the Electric Giant Python’s lair.

In this situation, the only thing to do was to check each island, one by one.

He released his Heroic Body Realm aura. The low-level Demon Fiends in the water sensed it from afar and steered clear in advance.

And the third-tier Great Demons of the Water Race stayed in the depths.

As a result, Gu Zheng flew the entire way without being attacked by a single Demon Fiend.

Reaching the first island, he continued to travel by air.

"CAW~"

"HROO~!" "HWAH!"

"ROAR! ROAR!"

The first island was occupied by avian Demon Fiends. Sensing Gu Zheng’s intrusion, a chorus of shrieks and roars instantly erupted.

WHIRRRR~

The next moment, the air thrummed with the beating of wings.

A massive flock of avian Demon Fiends took flight, circling and screeching as they charged toward Gu Zheng.

SHING!

Gu Zheng drew his blade and slashed with ease.

CH-CH-CH!

With a single slash, his attack split into hundreds of blades that swept outwards.

A frontal assault!

A series of strange sounds immediately echoed through the sky as the bodies of avian Demon Fiends, sliced into two or three pieces, fell from above one after another.

Spirit Capturing!

[Demon Points +2]

[Demon Points +3]

...

The rewards were decent.

These newly tiered avian Demon Fiends provided few Demon Points individually, but their sheer numbers made up for it.

He unleashed Golden Thousand Blades to its full potential. A sky full of blades danced about, raining down like fire and reaping swathes of avian Demon Fiends.

But the good times didn’t last. After the first wave of avian Demon Fiends was completely annihilated...

...the remaining ones scattered in all directions, diving back into the island’s dense jungle without making a sound.

As Gu Zheng flew over, he could sense wave after wave of Demon Fiend auras spread across nearly the entire island.

He thought for a moment and decided not to press the attack.

Golden Thousand Blades was an area-of-effect Ultimate Skill, but it came with a considerable cost.

He didn’t fully understand how to use the Power of Heaven and Earth yet, so his control was limited.

Gu Zheng’s purpose for coming here was to kill the escaped Electric Giant Python!

And so, he flew a lap around the island. After confirming the Electric Giant Python wasn’t there, he swiftly departed for the second island.

Crossing the sea and arriving above the island, he saw numerous swift and agile Demon Fiend figures moving rapidly below.

’Thunder Swift Demons?’

Gu Zheng flew through the air, sensing waves of sharp Demon Fiend auras.

Not the Electric Giant Python. None of them were the Electric Giant Python!

Clearly, the second island was the territory of Thunder Swift Demons.

In terms of distance, the second island was indeed the closest to the passage entrance.

SWOOSH~

Turning around, Gu Zheng faced the cold wind and headed for the third island.

He was still halfway there...

"SPLASH~!"

The surface of the sea below suddenly exploded. A long, thick black shadow burst from the water and lunged ferociously at Gu Zheng.

"CRACKLE~"

Arcs of electricity bloomed, transforming into electric serpents that disturbed the air and distorted space.

The Electric Giant Python!

It was the uninjured Electric Giant Python, launching a surprise attack from its hiding spot in the water.

Its monstrous maw, accompanied by electric serpents and poisonous gas, shot up from below to ensnare Gu Zheng.

It was so fast that by the time Gu Zheng "noticed" it, it was already too late.

"WHOOSH~!"

A foul wind swept over him, and Gu Zheng was swallowed whole, falling through the Electric Giant Python’s mouth and into its stomach.

A terrifying corrosive force immediately surged from all sides within the serpent’s body, seeking to dissolve Gu Zheng.

SHIING!

Unhurried, Gu Zheng released the Half-sized Divine Weapon.

Divine Wondrous power surged, enveloping the fragment. While stabilizing his body, he controlled the Half-sized Divine Weapon and sent it charging toward the serpent’s head.

"PFFT~!"

In an instant, the Divine Weapon broke through the inner wall’s defense and pierced into the flesh.

"HISS~!"

The Electric Giant Python shrieked in anger and alarm. It roared, unleashing terrifying bolts of electricity from within its body that surged from the depths to strike Gu Zheng.

CRACKLE-CRACKLE~

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Gu Zheng was completely enveloped in lightning.

He didn’t dodge, however. He simply took off his clothes and stored them in his Storage Leaf.

He allowed the terrifying ball of lightning to bathe his entire body, rapidly absorbing it.

The Half-sized Divine Weapon, controlled by his Divine Wondrous power, continued to drill forward and outward.

PFFT~

PFFT!!

Shredded flesh and blood splattered into the air.

The Electric Giant Python had swallowed Gu Zheng, but before its massive body could even fall back into the sea, the Divine Weapon Fragment had already drilled out of its head.

It forcefully tore open a bloody hole!

The Electric Giant Python’s body immediately began to writhe madly in the air, letting out a pained, piercing shriek.

However, it only had time to let out a single muffled groan.

SHIING!

PFFT~!

The Divine Weapon Fragment that had burst through its brain turned around in mid-air and shot back, piercing through the Electric Giant Python’s head again and opening another bloody hole.

SHIING!

"PFFT~"

SHIING!

"PFFT~ PFFT~"

SHIING!

Without pause, Gu Zheng bathed in lightning, enduring the formless pressure. He used his will to control the Half-sized Divine Weapon, repeatedly piercing through the Electric Giant Python’s head in just a few moments, creating one bloody hole after another.

By the time the Electric Giant Python’s massive body crashed into the sea with a "BOOM," splashing up countless waves, it was already as dead as could be.

The blood and shredded flesh flowing from the holes attracted countless Demon Fiends from the sea.

Gu Zheng controlled the Divine Weapon Fragment.

He guided it through the latter half of the Electric Giant Python’s body, quickly piercing deep and tearing a path to locate the Demon Pill.

Then, he retrieved it.

Spirit Capturing!

[Demon Points +38]

[Demon Points +39]

...

PFFT~!

Controlling the Divine Weapon Fragment, he forcefully tore an exit from within the Electric Giant Python’s body. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

Gu Zheng emerged from the serpent’s belly, activated his Underwater Walking Demon Techniques, and swam quickly toward the surface.

SWOOSH!

SPLASH~

He broke through the surface of the water and shot high into the sky.

Gu Zheng, still naked, quickly took out his clothes and put them on.

They had only been in the Storage Leaf for a short time, so the few Exotic Insects hadn’t caused much of a problem.

By letting himself be swallowed, he had successfully killed the Electric Giant Python!

With one killed, and the other having lost its Demon Pill and an eye, the threat the Electric Giant Pythons posed to the Dahuashan passage could be considered eliminated.

’A trip to the Demon Realm, a threat eliminated. Next up...’

Hm?

Suddenly, Gu Zheng’s heart leaped, and alarm bells screamed in his mind.

Danger!

Extreme danger!

SHIING~

The sound of something cutting through the air erupted abruptly.

A glint of cold light emerged from the void behind Gu Zheng’s right side without any warning, heading straight for his back.

It was so fast that Gu Zheng had only just sensed it when his body was struck.

"BZZZT~!"

The Reversed Soul Scale grew hot, spinning on its own and vibrating wildly.

It blocked the attack!

It was a spike.

A green, thumb-thick spike the length of a forearm, coated in poison and carrying terrifying power, had been successfully intercepted by the Reversed Soul Scale and sent flying.

The force of the aftershock struck Gu Zheng, causing ripples to spread across the Sword Gang on his skin.

"WHOOSH~!"

A cold wind blew as a cloud of black-green mist followed close behind, sweeping in to engulf Gu Zheng.

Gu Zheng, controlling the Reversed Soul Scale and the Divine Weapon Fragment, retreated.

But the cloud of black-green mist actually stuck to his Sword Gang, following him as he moved back.

SHIING~

At the critical moment, the Great Sun Golden Silkworm awoke, leaped out, opened its mouthparts, and began gulping down the black-green mist.

The Silkworm was incredibly effective, swallowing most of it in just a few bites.

WHOOSH-BOOM!

The void boomed.

A flash of sword light appeared at just the right moment, piercing through the air and emerging from behind Gu Zheng to stab at his brain.

SWOOSH!

Gu Zheng controlled the Divine Weapon Fragment, which whistled as it changed direction to meet the sword light head-on.

"CLANG~"

BANG!

An explosion and the sound of shattering rang out simultaneously.

The sword light vanished, and shattered pieces of a blade shot through the air.

SHIING! SHIING! SHIING!

In the instant the sword light disappeared, three streams of black Powerful Qi, carrying hidden weapons, shot straight for Gu Zheng’s face.

"BOOM!!"

Gu Zheng’s Divine Wondrous power surged. He unleashed his Barbaric Force and threw a punch.

A corporeal Fist Seal intercepted and shattered the black Powerful Qi, and both dissipated into nothing.

SWISH!

A dazzling flash of blade light followed the hidden weapons, tearing through the air to descend upon Gu Zheng’s head.

Gu Zheng also drew his blade and slashed.

"BOOM~!!"

A deafening, earth-shattering boom resounded.

The terrifying shockwave, enhanced by Powerful Qi, swept out for several thousand meters.

The sea below Gu Zheng was pressed down by the immense force, forming a massive sunken hemisphere.

"I see you!"

Gu Zheng shouted coldly. He blocked with the Celestial Frost Blade in his left hand and slashed with the Red Abyss Blade in his right.

SWISH! SWISH! SWISH~

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Slash after slash, each one splitting into thousands of blades, swept out to annihilate their target.

The target was Luo Cheng!

His ambusher was none other than Luo Cheng, clad in an Invisibility Cloak, his eyes devoid of warmth!

The Invisibility Cloak concealed everything.

His breath, his heartbeat, his aura, the flow of air...

But under the Eyes of Golden Flame, Luo Cheng, beneath his cloak, was clearly visible to Gu Zheng.

At that moment, Luo Cheng was fending off the blades while simultaneously releasing his Divine Wondrous power to snatch the Divine Weapon Fragment!

This indifferent, almost cold-blooded member of the Seven Demon Slayers had ambushed Gu Zheng for the Half-sized Divine Weapon!

’Perhaps there are other factors, too?’

’No matter what, anyone who dares to try and kill me will die!’

BZZZ~~

Spear of the Soul!

An invisible mental and spiritual attack was suddenly launched.

They were already close, and Luo Cheng was hit on the spot. His face paled, his body trembled, and he could no longer spare any thought for the Divine Weapon Fragment.

An afterimage of wings flashed around his body, and he vanished completely...

"Trying to run!?"