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Chapter 156: Demon King Blood
Chapter 156: Demon King Blood
As Cangya City was being rebuilt, Li Muxiu quietly bid farewell to Li Hao.
He understood Li Hao’s nature—unwilling to return to Qingzhou and unwilling to bow his head. Fortunately, the three Demon Kings had been driven away, and Heavenly Gate Pass was temporarily safe, which gave him peace of mind.
Moreover, learning that the Black Bird Demon King had actually been slain by Li Hao left him both astonished and aware that Li Hao no longer needed the Li Family’s protection.
If it hadn’t been for the attack by four Demon Kings, in other circumstances, Li Hao would have been capable of protecting himself.
After all, even a Fourth Establishment Realm expert would be at risk of falling during an assault by four Demon Kings, let alone Li Hao, who was merely at the Tianren Realm.
Li Muxiu felt both relieved and a bit sad and regretful about Li Hao’s rapid growth.
However, seeing the numerous martial artists from various provinces surrounding Li Hao, he realized that this might be the best outcome for Li Hao.
Not long after Li Muxiu left, the Demon Suppression Bureau sent someone.
The person who arrived was a Commander and three Demon Suppression Generals.
The Commander was at the Fourth Establishment Realm, while the three Demon Suppression Generals were all powerful Three Eternities Realm experts.
Notably, Li Hao had actually met this Commander before. At the True Dragon Feast, he had supported Li Qianfeng, and his name was Xiang Yuguang.
As one of the seven Commanders in the Demon Suppression Bureau, Xiang Yuguang had made a mistake in his previous alignment. Upon hearing the news from Heavenly Gate Pass, he hurried over to meet the young man who had briefly crossed paths with him at the True Dragon Feast half a year ago.
When Xiang Yuguang arrived, Li Hao’s body, under the effect of Hiding One's Light, had already healed on the surface, and he had changed into new clothes, looking clean and composed.
In the rebuilt Wattle Yard, Li Hao sat on a bamboo mat on the veranda, his feet gently swinging over the edge.
A pot of tea and a few pastries were set on a small table beside him, giving the scene a sense of leisure.
“Sir, I heard that a Demon King invaded. I’m here to register and investigate the incident.”
Xiang Yuguang stood in the courtyard, his tone gentle, though he felt a bit awkward.
Last time, he had misjudged the situation and aligned with the wrong side. He wondered how deep an impression this young man had of him.
This time, he didn’t hope to form a close relationship with Li Hao, only to mend the previous misunderstanding and close the distance a bit.
After all, time was on their side, and things could be worked out gradually.
“Mm.”
Li Hao’s attitude was casual, and he didn’t take the opportunity to mock or challenge Xiang Yuguang, as if he had forgotten the previous incident. He asked, “What do you need me to do?”
“I will show you the investigation results, and you just need to confirm them,” Xiang Yuguang said with a smile, though he was internally grumbling. As a Commander of the Demon Suppression Bureau, he was not even invited to sit down, indicating that this young man still held a grudge.
“Alright.”
Li Hao agreed, then lifted his teacup and took a gentle sip.
Offering tea was a sign of sending a guest off.
Xiang Yuguang felt a bit helpless but could only smile and bid farewell to Li Hao.
The three Demon Suppression Generals at the courtyard gate quietly observed this young prodigy, their eyes filled with curiosity and surprise.
This Young Master didn’t even give a Commander any face, truly embodying youthful arrogance.
However, they had all heard about Li Hao’s public slaying of a Lesser Demon King. His strength was comparable to theirs, and given time, he would be on par with the Fourth Establishment Realm. There was no need for excessive humility.
“Only fourteen years old, that’s ridiculous.”
“Yeah, what were we doing at fourteen?”
“As for me, I was still battling Divine Wanderer Realm Demons with my wits and courage…”
The three Demon Suppression Generals whispered to each other, only stopping when Xiang Yuguang approached, and they stood at attention.
While Xiang Yuguang and the others went to investigate the details, Song Qiumo arrived in the courtyard. Li Hao immediately invited her to sit down and poured her a cup of tea.
Song Qiumo picked up the cup and sipped it lightly. "Clear and sweet, very good."
Li Hao smiled.
"I'm preparing to return to Qingzhou", Song Qiumo said, glancing at Li Hao.
Li Hao had anticipated this. With the three Demon Kings driven back, there was no immediate danger, and the Demon Suppression Bureau's presence would deter the remaining Demons. After all, Xiang Yuguang was still a Fourth Establishment Realm cultivator.
These Demons might dare to challenge the Divine General Manor on the border, but they were more wary of the Demon Suppression Bureau. The Divine General Manor defended the frontier and faced numerous Demons, but the Demon Suppression Bureau was different. If you provoked them, they would focus on you, tracking you down relentlessly.
Their duty was to hunt and suppress Demons, and they had nothing else to do all day but keep an eye on you, which was a nuisance for the Demons.
"You don't need to worry about me. However, you've been away for so long because of my affairs. You'll likely need to handle the paperwork and command tokens again."
Li Hao said.
Even if the Tan Palace intervened, it would still require some effort. After all, they were dealing with the government, and a Fourth Establishment Realm Demon King's review was stringent.
"It's a minor issue."
Song Qiumo smiled, then glanced at Li Hao and said softly, "For now, it seems there won't be any more trouble here. In three years, I'll be waiting for you in Qingzhou."
"Hmm."
Li Hao nodded slightly.
Although he was reluctant to return to Qingzhou, the city was vast, and with this old friend there, he didn't mind making the trip.
Song Qiumo smiled faintly, her lips curving as if drawing a thousand springs. She handed him an empty teacup and said, "Another one, please."
"Sure."
Li Hao refilled her cup.
One cup, then another.
After finishing, Song Qiumo stood up, looked at Li Hao once more, and then left without looking back, her figure vanishing from the courtyard.
Not long after Song Qiumo's departure, the Wattle Yard welcomed another group of visitors, making it quite lively.
This time, it was the Celestial Observatory. They were experts in array formation, and most of the arrays in the cities were created and arranged by the Celestial Observatory.
The leader of this group was a Star Official, a Three Eternities Realm cultivator, who held a very high position.
In terms of rank, he was half a grade higher than Xiang Yuguang, as array formation was extremely complex. It required not only martial talent but also high insight and lifelong dedication, equivalent to excelling in two disciplines.
A thousand years ago, some Demons had secretly infiltrated the Celestial Observatory and stolen a few scrolls on array formation. However, the Demons outside the border had only grasped the basics, as learning these skills required a level of intelligence that most lacked.
Array formation involved the heavenly stems and earthly branches, celestial phenomena, and the principles of change. Even after centuries of study, one might not dare to claim full understanding.
The Star Official had thinning, graying hair and a somewhat stern and wooden expression. Li Hao stood to greet him and offered tea, but the old man waved it off, saying they were here to work, not to eat or drink. After a brief acknowledgment and receiving the City Lord's command token from Li Hao, he turned to get to work.
He had the air of an old scholar, completely disinterested in social niceties and focused solely on array research.
The other Scholars accompanying him were mostly expressionless, but their eyes occasionally flickered with the light of deep thought.
Only one young girl seemed more lively. After the others left, she lingered at the back and said to Li Hao with a bright smile, "Please don't be upset, my master is like that."
Li Hao noticed the official embroidery on her chest, indicating she was the lowest-ranked Junior Inspector. He smiled and said, "You should learn from your master and delve more into array formation."
The girl's radiant smile immediately wilted, and she pouted, "Why do you sound just like my master, saying such old-fashioned things?"
Li Hao chuckled but didn't say more.
The girl glanced at him, initially thinking this talented young master, who was around her age, would be lively and outgoing. Instead, he seemed quite mature. She pouted and, with her hands behind her back, ran out of the courtyard to catch up with her master.
"Xiang Lan, stop running around. It’s time to get to work."
A Scholar senior brother said to the young girl. Though they were fellow disciples, their ages seemed vastly different. The Scholar senior brother looked to be in his fifties.
"Got it, got it~"
The girl’s head swayed like a pendulum as she dragged out each word in response.
After saying that, her gaze roamed around the new city, taking in the busy Martial Artists. She had seen similar scenes before when she accompanied her master to other cities to set up Arrays, so it wasn’t particularly strange to her.
Soon, under Li Hongzhuang’s guidance, they arrived at a City Wall.
As they climbed up the City Wall, a cold wind blew, and Xia Xianglan shivered, pulling her neck in. Then, her gaze naturally drifted forward, and she immediately saw an endless expanse of graves.
She froze for a moment, instinctively asking, "These, these are..."
Li Hongzhuang, after discussing the Array matters with the Star Official elder at the front, turned to look at the little girl and softly said, "These are the sons of our Dayu."
Xia Xianglan’s heart trembled, her pupils contracting slightly, and her breath seemed to catch.
This was her first time at the Border Pass, her first time witnessing such a scene.
So, the solitary graves stretching for miles described in books were real?
The young girl’s mind suddenly flashed back to the serene smile on the young man’s face she had seen in the courtyard. The maturity and calmness he displayed now seemed to hide countless scars beneath the surface.
Her fingers unconsciously clenched, and her eyes grew more solemn.
...
In the small courtyard, Li Hao called Ren Qianqian and Little White Fox, preparing to deal with the Demon King’s corpse.
Ren Qianqian had returned on horseback the day after the battle. Though she didn’t say much, Li Hao guessed that she hadn’t returned to Qizhou but had only stayed in a nearby city. Otherwise, it would have been impossible for her to arrive here so quickly from Qizhou.
Li Hao didn’t comment on this; everything felt natural between them.
Now, they arrived at a fenced-off area within the city where the Black Bird Demon King’s corpse lay, like a small hill, surrounded by a perimeter.
"This Demon King is a treasure trove. How do you plan to handle it?"
Feng Boping’s figure quietly appeared beside Li Hao, examining the Demon King before him, still feeling a sense of awe.
Only he and Song Qiumo knew the details of the battle here. They hadn’t publicized it much, as few people knew that Li Hao had slain this Fourth Establishment Realm Demon King.
After all, a Tianren Realm practitioner killing a Fourth Establishment Realm Demon King was a bit too shocking to be widely known.
Such news was best kept secret.
Feng Boping didn’t ask much about Li Hao’s peculiar Martial Dao state. He had watched Li Hao grow up, but there were many things he couldn’t understand, such as the innate abilities of these Monsters.
But that didn’t matter. What mattered was that Li Hao was still the familiar Little Rat he knew.
"Let’s cook everyone a good meal."
Li Hao replied.
Feng Boping was taken aback, staring at Li Hao in surprise. When he saw the young man’s serious expression, he couldn’t help but laugh, then burst out laughing.
"You, you’re something else."
Li Hao said, "The taste of Demon King meat should be pretty good, and it would be a fitting way to thank everyone for their help."
"That’s true", Feng Boping nodded with a smile. It wasn’t just fitting; if they had known there would be Demon King meat to eat, many more Martial Artists would have wanted to come.
"However, besides the flesh, the Demon King’s Dao Heart is a treasure. You can use it to understand the foundation of its path, which will help you when you eventually reach the Fourth Establishment Realm."
Feng Boping continued, "The Gilded Bird Feathers on its back are the essence of ancient Demon King blood. They are excellent materials for forging Divine Weapons. You can collect them and send them to the Myriad Treasures Tower along with your Dragon Dawn Sword for a second refinement."
Li Hao nodded; he had thought of these things too.
These were the most precious treasures on a Demon King, sought after by many.
"Prepare a container. I have use for the Demon King’s precious blood", Li Hao said.
(End of Chapter)
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