Chapter 168: A Glimmer of Light

Chapter 168: A Glimmer of Light

"We're short on manpower, so we'll split up to search for the Strawfiends."

The woman spoke as she watched Lu Ran land steadily.

Lu Ran nodded silently, no wonder the Divine Bureau had come looking for him.

The Moonlit People had even disbanded their teams, putting their lives on the line.

It seemed that the threat of the Strawfiend Clan to the city was far greater than he had imagined.

"Be careful," Lu Ran said in a low voice, and mist sprayed from under his feet as he dashed forward along the street.

The woman watched Lu Ran's rapidly departing figure, and couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

She had finally met this legendary Celestial Sheep Follower.

Indeed, there was no false reputation under his renowned name!

He was truly fearless in battle and even dared to venture alone on this fifteenth night.

"Huff"

Lu Ran moved from east to west, reaching the crossroads, and suddenly turned north.

On the right side of the street, in front of Wang's Big Bone Shop, there were three Strawfiends scattered about.

Lu Ran unsheathed his blade and charged forward.

Further down the street, two Moonlit People who were rushing towards him looked on in astonishment, "Who is that?"

"Swish~"

The Radiance Blade flashed with its sword aura, slicing a Strawfiend in half at the waist! Lu Ran stomped his foot, changed direction, and suddenly surged forward to the right by 7 meters.

"Tsk!"

The Jie Ye Sword thrust forward, gutting a Strawfiend, and then viciously slashed upwards, tearing apart the demon's skull.

Lu Ran didn't stop for a moment, his movements were like flowing water, and he suddenly charged towards the left by over ten meters!

"Crack!"

The Radiance Blade was incredibly sharp, slicing through the straw shield and the Strawfiend's head in one go.

In just a few seconds, three Strawfiends had been connected by a Celestial Mist Path and all met their demise.

The two Moonlit People halted in their tracks.

They gazed at the mist path that connected the points, and at the dual-wielding boy who had suddenly stopped.

Lu Ran nodded at the two, but then suddenly tilted his head as if he had heard something.

"Tsk—"

In an instant, Lu Ran dashed to the right, rushing into the small alley next to the restaurant, his figure disappearing without a trace.

"Who is this kid?"

"It should be Lu Ran, right? The student from Rain Alley First Middle School!"

"Oh, yes! It's Lu Ran, it must be him."

At the same time, Lu Ran rushed through the small alley next to the restaurant and directly entered the backyard.

Behind the restaurant was a row of old residential buildings, and in front of them was a row of garages.

And between the buildings and the garages, several Malicehounds were gathered.

"Heh." Lu Ran breathed a sigh of relief.

The barking of the Malicehounds was similar to that of the Blood Plague Hounds, which was why Lu Ran had mistaken them.

Don't blame him for being so nervous, after all, whether there were Strawfiends or not, the Blood Plague Hounds were still a significant threat.

These types of demons were especially common on the fifteenth night! In the past few hours, Lu Ran had killed over a dozen Blood Plague Hounds on the school field.

"Woof!"

"Woof!!!" Seeing the approaching humans, the four Malicehounds bared their fangs.

They unleashed the Evil Art: Evil Bark, and the attack was swift and decisive.

"Shut your mouths!"

Lu Ran's voice was cold as he rushed towards them.

He didn't use his sword to slash, but instead stomped his foot towards the dog's head.

"Bang!"

The lead Malicehound's head was crushed under Lu Ran's foot, and blood and flesh splattered.

The scene was a bit too gory.

The surrounding Malicehounds were blown away by the intense blast of energy.

Soulshatter Magic - Soulshatter Hoof!

Lu Ran decisively chose the War Stomp, and it was highly effective.

The three Malicehounds howled in agony, their bodies battered by the energy, and in their pain, they couldn't even use their Evil Bark.

Once again, the dual-wielding boy weaved through them!

He flew towards the left, right, and front, and the Malicehounds were turned into 'points' connected by a white mist path.

The figure flashed by, and the blades fell.

Lu Ran let out a breath, holding the Jie Ye Sword in his right hand and shaking off the blood droplets from the blade.

"Buzz~"

Suddenly, the Radiance Blade in his left hand trembled slightly.

"Hmm?" Lu Ran reacted for a moment, then smiled and shook his head.

Was it jealous? Surely not!

Hmm. Good.

The more the Radiance Blade reacted and the more frequently it did so, the closer it was to manifesting a weapon spirit!

Lu Ran immediately shook the Radiance Blade, also helping it shed the blood from its blade.

As he did so, Lu Ran seemed to sense something and suddenly turned to look at the staircase next to him.

He frowned slightly, took a big step forward, and thrust his sword into the gap of the apartment door, prying it open with a loud crack!

The old apartment door was forced open.

In an instant, Lu Ran and the Strawfiend in the staircase locked eyes.

"Rustle~"

The Strawfiend reached out, and straws flew towards Lu Ran.

"Whoosh!"

Lu Ran, protected by the Water Flow Armor, stepped into the dark staircase.

He suddenly swung his hand, and a Night Demon Blade flew out.

The first floor was unoccupied, only a staircase, which was why Lu Ran dared to be so bold.

The Night Demon Blade instantly pierced through the Strawfiend's skull, pinning it to the wall!

Puff~

After a moment, the Strawfiend's figure shattered into mist and disappeared.

Lu Ran casually waved his hand, and the Night Demon Blade stuck in the wall quietly shattered into wind.

It was proven that in a place without people, Lu Ran was the strongest!

Just now, outside the building by the garage, Lu Ran had only dared to use the unconventional Immortal Hoof (Soulshatter Hoof) to blast the area, and then defeat the Malicehounds one by one.

If it were an empty environment, Lu Ran might have directly thrown out a bunch of Night Demon Blades.

"Thud!"

Lu Ran stepped out of the staircase, and the apartment door slammed shut.

He reached out and touched the spot where the apartment door had been pried open, as if comforting it, and then turned and left.

Lu Ran didn't have time to absorb the dog corpses, but quickly extracted the demon crystals from the four Malicehounds and returned to the brightly lit street.

"Crack~"

"Crack!" The demon crystals in his palm shattered, and Lu Ran absorbed all the energy within them.

"Hmm," Lu Ran let out a satisfied nasal sound.

He searched around and once again rushed towards the north.

For the next two hours, with the Fifth Elementary School at its center, the streets in all four directions were filled with Lu Ran's presence.

At street corners and alleys, Celestial Mist often drifted by.

Inside and outside the residential community, sword lights occasionally flashed.

The Moonlit People stationed in this area, along with the residents living there, had witnessed Lu Ran's valiant figure fighting against the enemies more than once.

Every time the Celestial Mist enveloped the area, it meant that the little lamb had returned to slay!

The thoughts of the people kept changing.

From the initial "Who the hell is this?", to the end, they were filled with gratitude and admiration.

Lu Ran did not disappoint the Divine Bureau, nor did he disappoint this city.

On this night of the "Night of the Wandering Ghosts," Lu Ran single-handedly held up an entire patrol team!

For a full two hours, within these streets, there were no more towering flames.

Of course, this wasn't solely Lu Ran's achievement.

The scattered Moonlit People, disregarding their lives and tirelessly expanding their control, aimed to prevent the demons from seizing any opportunity!

"Hehe."

Once again, in front of the East Water Bay Community, Lu Ran slashed a Strawfiend.

He panted heavily, and as the Strawfiend shattered into mist, he quickly absorbed its energy.

This was the first time Lu Ran felt that his energy was insufficient!

Fortunately, earlier that morning, Lu Ran had obtained a River-grade Divine Energy Orb, which was full of energy.

Otherwise, he might not have been able to hold on.

"Why isn't it over yet?" Lu Ran muttered to himself.

The intense and continuous combat had left him physically and mentally exhausted.

The duration of the Night of the Wandering Ghosts was indeed not fixed, and it could last for an unpredictable amount of time.

How many more Straw Mage Clan members were there? In Lu Ran's sculpture garden, the Evil Demon Strawfiend sculpture could have been activated long ago.

He was worried that if they continued to kill like this, the Strawfiend itself might realize that the situation was abnormal.

"Be careful!"

"Kill the dog! Kill the dog first, don't let it..." Suddenly, a series of faint voices reached his ears.

Lu Ran turned his head sharply and looked towards the interior of the community.

This community was not small, and the Moonlit People stationed there must have been shouting loudly, which was why Lu Ran could vaguely hear them.

Without saying a word, Lu Ran charged into the residential community.

Without any guidance, Lu Ran saw the raging flames!

"Damn!" Lu Ran's expression darkened, and he swore, a rare occurrence.

After all the efforts he and the Moonlit People had put in to guard this area, was it all going to be in vain?

Such flames could only mean that a huge Straw Mage had been set on fire!

The critical thing was that it had appeared in this relatively large residential community!

Once it went berserk, no one knew how many Flame Strawfiends would break through the windows and set fire to the houses.

"Tsk!"

Lu Ran's speed suddenly increased, and as he passed by a building, he witnessed a shocking scene.

A ten-meter-tall Strawfiend had indeed been set on fire and was in a state of frenzy.

But this Flame Strawfiend was enveloped by a red dome!

Crimson Bandana Magic - Crimson Bandana Domain?!

A shallow red dome with a radius of 20 meters, in the shape of a hemisphere, trapped the massive Strawfiend within.

The Crimson Bandana believer, a true man!

The man with a crimson bandana wrapped around his head was naturally trapped inside the dome, enduring the frenzied attacks of the River Realm Strawfiend.

How terrifying was the output of a River Realm Demon, burning in flames and desperately struggling for survival?

"Crack!"

"Crack! Crack!" Countless Flame Strawfiend needles pierced the dome, and cracks began to form on its surface.

It seemed like it could shatter at any moment!

Lu Ran's eyes narrowed, and he rushed forward without hesitation.

He saw the Flame Strawfiend shrinking but still towering at three stories high.

Similarly, he also saw an elderly aunt standing by the window of a third-floor apartment, her hand covering her mouth, staring dumbfounded at the terrifying scene outside.

The old aunt seemed to be scared stiff, frozen in place, not moving a muscle.

"Get out of here!"

Lu Ran shouted, leaping towards the window of the third-floor apartment.

A dull thud reverberated.

Lu Ran landed on the wall outside the building, waking up the aunt inside.

He crouched on the wall, without a moment's delay, and leaped again.

As a surge of Celestial Mist erupted, Lu Ran turned back and charged towards the shallow red dome covered in cracks!

Soulshatter Magic - Soulshatter Power, activate!

Soulshatter Magic - Soulshatter Hoof, activate!

"Crack!!!"

Even before Lu Ran could shatter the dome, the Crimson Bandana Domain had already collapsed.

Lu Ran, covered in Water Flow Armor, plunged into the raging flames, and his feet stomped heavily on the Flame Strawfiend.

"Boom!!!"

Under the Soulshatter Hoof, the Strawfiend's fluffy head exploded with a loud bang! The Flame Strawfiend immediately stopped its erratic attacks.

Amidst the intense energy turbulence, Lu Ran was blasted back two meters.

The massive corpse of the Strawfiend crashed heavily towards a flower bed covered in ice and snow, in the opposite direction of the residential building.

"Puff!"

The enormous Strawfiend shattered into countless pieces!

Countless sparks burst forth, like fireflies dancing in the dark night, creating a beautiful sight.

Lu Ran stumbled and landed, covering his face with one hand.

The sparks filled the sky, covering his Water Flow Armor and the Radiance Blade.

"Buzz!!!"

Lu Ran's heart trembled slightly, as if sensing something.

He raised his eyes abruptly and looked at the Radiance Blade in his hand.

"Radiance," Lu Ran whispered.

The ice-cold, translucent black blade was covered in countless red stars.

In the dim night, it radiated a dazzling brilliance.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end