"Who goes there?! Such audacity!"
The common bandits in the mountain stronghold were startled, immediately raising their guard. Several of them even nocked their crossbows and fired straight at Li Chang'an!
But Li Chang'an didn't so much as glance at the incoming bolts. Crossbows? Against the Donghuang Bell? What a joke.
With a casual sweep of his Pangu Axe, he struck in a wide arc—instantly knocking all the attackers to the ground. Only two Spirit Masters remained standing.
Both wore two spirit rings—one white, one yellow. Utter trash.
But Li Chang'an had no intention of wasting time here. He had just caught the look in Zhang Mazi's eyes when he stared at Hu Liena. He needed to get there fast.
"These two are yours—I'm heading in!" he called to Xie Yue and Yan as they rushed over. Without pausing, he exploded forward again, charging into the heart of the stronghold.
"Shoot him!"
A shout rang out from within. As soon as Li Chang'an stepped inside, he saw a large wooden cart stationed ahead, mounted with three massive bolts nearly a meter long.
"Hah! So what if you're a Spirit Master? Not even rank thirty—you're still no match for a bed crossbow!" a burly bandit sneered, waving his hand to signal the attack.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
With three sharp bursts of sound, the giant bolts flew toward him at tricky angles. Even with Li Chang'an's agility, it seemed impossible to dodge them all.
"Hmph!"
His long black hair streamed behind him as his toes tapped the ground. In a flash, he leapt into the air, raising the Pangu Axe with one hand and cleaving downward—completely ignoring any notion of defense.
"What the…?!"
Buzz… Buzz… Buzz…
As the three giant bolts neared, they suddenly collided with an invisible wall of energy. The arrowheads shattered instantly, turning to dust and vanishing into smoke.
[Zhang San. Points +1…]
Before Zhang San and the others could even react, Li Chang'an's next strike arrived. The massive axe, which seemed light as a feather in his hands, danced through the air in a flourish. Moments later, several bandits staggered back, blood blooming like red flowers on their shoulders.
But then—Li Chang'an suddenly sensed spirit power fluctuations nearby. One three-ring Spirit Elder, and two two-ring Spirit Masters came charging at him!
"Come on, then!"
He quickly retreated a few steps. His purple spirit ring lit up, and a horizontal slash of violet energy burst forth!
"You're too full of yourself!"
The three Spirit Masters summoned their martial spirits—a rhinoceros, a broadsword, and a metal staff.
All three martial spirits surged with power as white soul light enveloped them. They clashed head-on with Li Chang'an's attack.
His purple energy was sharp and overwhelming, but their defense held—barely. Each of the three took a step back, arms trembling from the impact.
"What kind of martial soul is that?'
'What kind of spirit ring?'
'How can it be this terrifying?!'
"He's low on spirit power! All together!" The Spirit Elder's third ring flared as he charged. The other two followed close behind.
But Li Chang'an had the Donghuang Bell—his defense was solid. All he needed to do was attack—relentlessly.
"What the hell?! What kind of defense is that?" The Spirit Elder was stunned. His broadsword couldn't even scratch a one-ring Spirit Master?
Though Li Chang'an held out for now, he couldn't keep this up forever. With three enemies working together, even he found it hard to break free.
"You brought this on yourselves."
Without hesitation, Li Chang'an exchanged points for nine Spirit Power Fruits, stuffing them into his mouth between gaps in the fight. Then he redeemed a Spirit Ring Fruit and swallowed that too!
Spirit Power: Rank 16!
First Spirit Ring Year Level: 1,193 years!
"First Spirit Skill—Heavenly Cleave!"
After breaking through, his spirit power returned to peak state. With the ring level upgraded as well, the power of Heavenly Cleave had surged dramatically!
The same purple light—only now, heavier, longer-lasting, and far more terrifying.
"Ahhh!"
The three enemies had been weaving around him, but this time the blow struck hard. The two Spirit Masters collapsed, blood pouring from their bodies. Only the Spirit Elder remained standing, albeit severely wounded.
"Again—Heavenly Cleave!"
Li Chang'an now unleashed his attacks without restraint. Another slash fell, and the Spirit Elder was sent flying, seriously injured.
They had assumed Li Chang'an was running out of strength. But just as he seemed spent, his aura surged once more—he was breaking through again!
He was desperate now. With no allies around, he didn't care about hiding his power.
With a renewed burst of energy, Li Chang'an looked like a god of vengeance. Axe in hand, he charged deeper into the stronghold.
—
In the main chamber, Zhang Mazi had already heard the commotion and his subordinates' reports. Learning that only three young Spirit Masters had come to attack, he calmed down considerably.
"Just three brats? And they dare stir up trouble in my stronghold? They must have a death wish." What mattered now was enjoying the beautiful girl before him.
To make Hu Liena more compliant, Zhang Mazi had just drugged her with an aphrodisiac—ready for a night of indulgence.
Young, pure, and defenseless—just the way he liked them.
But just as he finished drugging her and before he could do anything else, a voice bellowed from outside:
"Zhang Mazi—get your ass out here!"
Li Chang'an's voice rang like thunder, startling Zhang Mazi.
'How did he get here so fast?!'
Still, he didn't panic. With a sneer, he activated his Devouring Martial Spirit and leapt through the window to face his challenger.
"You little runt—come all this way just to die?"
Li Chang'an met his eyes coldly, curling a finger.
"You touched my woman. Better hold your neck steady—I'm about to take your head."
Zhang Mazi burst into laughter. A one-ring Spirit Master threatening him? Ridiculous.
"Fine! I'll give you a chance. I won't even devour you right away. Go ahead—attack me."
Li Chang'an raised an eyebrow. "You said it."
Buzz!
In a flash, violet light streaked across the air—a narrow, fierce beam of axe energy slicing toward Zhang Mazi.
Boom!
Zhang Mazi's expression froze forever—his head exploded on the spot, reduced to a fine red mist. Nothing was left.
"Hmph. Always devouring others' spirits, and you don't even guard your own mind? You were begging to die." Li Chang'an shook his head. This strike had been planned in advance—imbued with a mental attack.
Due to his chaotic and bloated mental strength from all the devouring, Zhang Mazi's spirit was fragile. Li Chang'an's strike merely lit the fuse.
He didn't waste time. Li Chang'an rushed into the room—
—and what he saw made his blood boil.
___
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