"An innate demonic beast?"
Before the dozen or so men even approached, they heard one of them voice a puzzled voice.
The newcomers quickly approached, and from their attire, it was clear they were all high-ranking members of the Lihuo Sect.
The Lihuo Sect's intentions this time were clear. Under the Bai Mansion's instructions, they were attempting to force Mingqi to reveal himself by threatening Yanzhuang. After all, the Bai Mansion had more important matters to attend to, leaving them with limited manpower and time. Therefore, the Lihuo Sect became their best pawn.
After abandoning their great fire abilities, the Lihuo Sect's innate masters entrusted a group of acquired cultivators to guard and monitor nearby, waiting for Mingqi to appear and report. However, Mingqi hadn't yet appeared, yet an innate demonic beast had appeared, leaving them somewhat puzzled.
Monster beasts have always had a distant relationship with humans. Unless they are controlled and tamed by powerful cultivators, it's difficult to get them to fight for humans. As far as we know, only the Yaoshan Qingfu possesses unique research in this area. As for others, those who can effectively control innate monster beasts are likely rare.
But the Lihuo Sect's masters don't have time to dwell on this, as more than a dozen disciples have already perished at the hands of this monster.
"Master, this monster is capable of wielding magical weapons. Its power should not be underestimated."
The group moved with incredible speed, quickly reaching the open space in front of Yan Manor. They were now less than a hundred meters away from Dabai, and could clearly see the spiritual weapon, the Overlord Axe, hovering beside him.
The axe shimmered with a faint light, exuding a menacing murderous aura.
The Lihuo Sect's master, known as the Flying Fire Taoist, may only be at the fifth level of the Innate Heavenly Manor, but he was able to control so many of the sect's masters, demonstrating his extraordinary abilities.
Because of the direct instructions from the Bai Mansion, Taoist Feihuo personally dispatched, accompanied by a group of elite masters from the sect, laying a net and awaiting the appearance of the ancient demon.
Furthermore, Taoist Feihuo had devised a foolproof plan. If he were defeated, the sect's supreme elders would rush to his aid, and even the masters from the Bai Mansion would join in.
This operation was determined to succeed. If Ming Qi and the Human Blood Demon Harp appeared, there would be no escape.
"How dare you, a mere demon beast?"
Taoist Feihuo approached, his eyes piercing Dabai's alert.
Immediately, a young man appeared from behind Taoist Feihuo, bowed before him, and said, "Master, I will handle this little demon beast."
This man was young, perhaps only in his twenties, with a slender build and piercing eyes. He was none other than Longji, the Lihuo Sect disciple who had previously appeared in the trading area outside the Blue Sky Mountains and had once encountered Mingqi.
Seeing Longji's self-promotion, Taoist Feihuo raised an eyebrow and chuckled, saying, "Alright, you should first test this demon's methods. I can also see how much you've improved."
Longji was considered a rising star with exceptional talent within the Lihuo Sect, earning him the attention of the sect's senior leaders. He capitalized on this and always appeared at crucial moments.
After receiving Taoist Feihuo's permission, Longji stepped forward and began to approach Dabai.
Dabai was now completely consumed by a desperate, selfless mentality. The enemy facing him was clearly far more formidable. Although only a single, fledgling Xiantian appeared, the group behind him was no pushover.
However, Dabai showed no sign of retreat. Seeing Longji about to attack, he let out a steady, tiger-like roar, his four claws soaring into the air. A rich aura of Yuanli erupted from his body. With a thunderous roar, the Great Axe King tore through the air before him and charged directly towards Longji.
Although Longji's absolute strength had not yet been fully revealed, the aura emanating from him suggested he was at least a powerhouse of the Xiantian Third Level Five Elements Realm. The Yuanli emanating from him had already taken on a vibrant emerald green, a manifestation of the convergence of the Xiantian Third Level Yuanli.
Emerald green symbolizes the power of the wood element.
However, it is somewhat puzzling that within the Lihuo Sect, a sect founded on fire, there would be cultivators specializing in the wood element.
Longji remained calm and composed. Seeing Dabai's massive axe flying towards him, he showed no sign of panic. He raised his hand, a ripple of emerald energy emanating from it, unleashing a pale azure dagger.
The dagger was only two feet long and lacked a hilt, giving it a strange appearance.
As Longji's dagger spun through the air, it flew towards Dabai, leaving a trail of emerald light. Simultaneously, Longji's form shifted rapidly, his footwork intertwining as if to evade the axe's attack.
Despite their formidable physical strength, demonic beasts inevitably reveal their weaknesses when facing innate cultivators.
Demonic beasts, even those at the fourth level of innate, are extremely limited in their use of magical powers. Consequently, their single-minded combat tactics can easily be evaded by powerful innate cultivators, allowing them to exploit their weaknesses and defeat them.
Dabai was currently in this precarious situation.
Although Dabai could control the top-grade spiritual weapon, the Overlord Axe, it lacked magical powers and simply used its energy to drive the axe to kill. This single-minded approach was a significant flaw.
Dabai, possessing a precocious intelligence, naturally understood this, but at this point, there was no room for retreat.
Mingqi had shown it immense gratitude, having pulled it back from the brink of death and, this time, meticulously using various elixirs and spiritual herbs to help it advance.
Having promised Mingqi to protect Yan Manor, Dabai couldn't just walk away. Although Dabai was confident that the men before him wouldn't be able to stop him if he wanted to, he saw no reason to flee.
Bang!
The Overlord Axe's attack unsurprisingly missed. Longji's graceful movements effortlessly dodged it, but Dabai was already facing a grave danger.
While the short sword in Longji's hands was somewhat inferior to the Overlord's axe wielded by Dabai, Longji could unleash his innate magical powers endlessly, a fact that alone more than made up for the lack of quality in his magical weapon.
Not far away, a group of Lihuo Sect masters, including Taoist Feihuo, could not help but nod inwardly as they watched Longji continue to handle the innate demonic beast with ease.
With such a rising star, the Lihuo Sect was sure to remain strong for the next hundred years.
Taoist Feihuo and even the sect's Grand Elders had their own thoughts on such an outstanding disciple as Longji. It went without saying that they would consider him a special candidate for the sect's training, and if necessary, they could even allow him to learn more about the sect's secrets.
"Jade Bone-Chopping Knife!"
As the emerald-green broken sword flew towards Dabai, Longji shouted in a deep voice, and a flash of emerald-green energy instantly erupted from his fingertips, following the blade of the bone-chopping knife.
The Yuanli flowed swiftly, merging into the flying sword in the blink of an eye. The blade's green light intensified, and the blade flickered, creating several phantoms that blocked Dabai's path.
Chi!
Without distinguishing between real and fake, a emerald green blade sliced directly into Dabai's front paw.
Longji, standing in front, flashed a smile. With a sudden flex of his fingers, the emerald green blade, which hadn't yet inflicted damage, suddenly trembled and penetrated a foot deeper!
Roar!
Dabai raised his head and roared, his Overlord Axe swirling around him, instantly deflecting the emerald green blade.
Puff!
Dabai's massive body retreated several steps, his tiger eyes blazing with fury.
Blood dripped from the paw pierced by Longji's blade.
Wounded by the blow, Ming Qi said Dabai's current strength could handle an average Xiantian cultivator, but it was clear that Longji's strength was far superior.
Despite the damage, Dabai showed no sign of retreating, remaining standing.
"Hmph, a mere demonic beast dares to hinder the Lihuo Sect's actions. It's simply courting death!"
Having struck successfully, Longji pursued the attack. The flying emerald blade only returned halfway before it spun mid-air and attacked again.
"Wood and Fire Complement!"
Longji exhaled and shouted, and with a flick of his finger, a ball of flame suddenly erupted from the tail of the soaring emerald blade!
The Five Elements synergized. In that instant, the auras of the Wood Spirit and the Fire Spirit intertwined and shone, their momentum soaring.
In the distance, Taoist Feihuo's eyes flickered as he praised, "Longji has mastered the secrets of the Five Elements' harmony. It seems he'll make a breakthrough soon."
Gazing at the incoming blade, Dabai's pupils narrowed, his tail swirls twice behind him, and a sinister aura permeated his pores.
At the same time, the Overlord's Axe soared again, but unlike before, this time it carried the uniquely fierce aura of a demonic beast, making it far more ferocious.
Watching the axe fly, Longji shook his head and sighed as he directed his boning knife to dodge.
If he had easily dodged the same attack once, he could do so every time.
However, just as Longji had just deflected the emerald blade, a slight deviation, Dabai, who had been watching intently, suddenly jerked his head, and the ferocious Overlord's Axe swung through the air.
"Hmm?"
Longji couldn't help but feel a bit surprised to see the demon beast before him actually able to control its magic weapon. It seemed this demon beast possessed a remarkable level of comprehension, having made such a quick judgment.
But simply controlling the magic weapon's direction wasn't enough!
Longji's right hand flicked through the air, and the emerald green blade actually traced a sinuous curve through the air.
Although Dabai could briefly control the magic weapon's direction, controlling the Overlord's axe in such a strange curve was completely beyond his capabilities.
Amidst the strangeness, Longji then saw the emerald green blade circumvent the axe.
Puff!
Within his previous experience, Dabai dodged the emerald green blade as it circumvented the axe, but it was too late.
He was stabbed in the back again!
With one stab, blood gushed out!