Firmament Sword

The gray mutt was lazing about. It merely retracted its lolling tongue but did not open its eyes. If one looked closely, however, its two ears were pricked up high.

The White Fox lying beside the mutt seemed to have felt nothing at all. It didn’t stir, looking as if it were sound asleep.

The chimpanzee squatting under the large tree casually glanced toward the source of the sound. A cold glint flashed through its brown eyes. Its wide, grinning mouth seemed to reveal a cruel smile.

The small child sitting by the pool slowly turned its head around. Its appearance gave Xu Luo a fright.

It had the fair, tender body of a small child but the wizened face of an old man, covered in wrinkles. Its eyes were turbid, like those of a senior at death’s door. It stared at Xu Luo and let out a baby’s laugh.

”Hee hee hee...”

”A monster!” Xu Luo cried out in alarm and turned to run.

This cry of ”monster” instantly made the child’s expression turn incredibly foul. A venomous light shot from its turbid eyes as a piercing wail erupted from its throat.

”Waaah... How dare you call me a monster! I want you to die... want you to die!” The voice was incomparably venomous, echoing endlessly in the quiet place.

SWOOSH!

The child’s speed was unbelievable. It caught up to Xu Luo in the blink of an eye. A small, sharp sword suddenly appeared in its chubby little hand, and it stabbed viciously at the nape of Xu Luo’s neck.

Xu Luo stumbled, nearly tripping over himself. He coincidentally dodged the child’s strike and shouted, ”I have no grudge against you! Why are you... you demon... trying to kill me?”

As he spoke, Xu Luo spun around and backed up against a towering tree, glaring angrily at the child hovering in mid-air.

”A human... Heh heh... a human...” The child’s voice suddenly changed, becoming ancient and raspy. Its turbid eyes instantly turned crimson as it stared intently at Xu Luo. ”These mountains... It’s been a long, long time... since there’s been any trace of a human. Ever since the Lord Saint Emperor wiped out that human tribe... Ah... It’s been far too long since I’ve tasted a human. That fresh flesh and blood... Ugh... I’m drooling... I’m drooling!”

”I want a piece too!”

THUD!

Following the voice, a black blur shot over, tracing a graceful arc through the air before landing heavily on the ground. The earth beneath its feet trembled slightly.

It was the muscular chimpanzee. Its eyes greedily roved up and down Xu Luo’s body. It ran its tongue over its lips, glanced at the child, and said, ”You can suck his vital essence and blood. I’ll take his flesh and bones! Human meat is the most delicious!”

The child nodded and said in its aged voice, ”Fine. We’re all brothers here. I’ll give you a share.”

”WOOF! You can’t just keep this for yourselves, can you?” The gray mutt staggered to its feet, still looking lazy all over. It spoke in a human tongue as it slowly ambled over.

As the gray mutt moved, the White Fox also stood up, following closely by its side. She said in a soft, gentle voice, ”I don’t like eating people, but... I do enjoy watching a good show.”

The chimpanzee seemed to dislike the gray mutt. It shot the dog a cold glare and snorted but didn’t say no.

From beginning to end, the large black and red snakes and the small jade-green bird showed no intention of attacking. The pool of water also remained perfectly calm, without a single ripple.

”You... you’re going to eat a person?” Xu Luo looked terrified, yet his eyes burned with intense anger. ”You fiends!”

”HAHAHAHA!” The chimpanzee, the gray mutt, and the Mountain Spirit Child all burst into wild laughter.

The chimpanzee said coldly, ”Fiend? Well said! I am a fiend! And my favorite food in this life is you humans!”

The gray mutt licked its lips and said, ”Human flesh... the most delicious thing there is!”

Xu Luo looked at the gray mutt and muttered, ”Don’t all dogs like to eat shit?”

”HAHAHAHAHA...” The chimpanzee erupted in hysterical laughter, frantically beating its chest with its claws.

Even the Mountain Spirit Child couldn’t help but laugh out loud. ”I’ve never seen a human with such a death wish! HAHAHAHA!”

Only the White Fox shrieked, ”How dare you insult Brother Gou! You’re courting death!”

The gray mutt was beyond furious. Without a word, it transformed into a streak of gray light and charged at Xu Luo.

Xu Luo scrambled frantically up the ancient, gnarled tree.

But the towering ancient tree, which was over a hundred feet thick, was snapped in two by the gray mutt’s charge!

The great tree came crashing down!

From atop the tree, Xu Luo let out a panicked cry. He then suddenly drew a dazzlingly bright sword from his back and roared, ”You fiends! I’ll fight you to the death!”

SHING!

A swath of starlight!

Incomparably brilliant!

The light shining from the Beidou Sword was so bright it was almost impossible to keep one’s eyes open!

The black and red snakes by the pool instantly shot cold, bright glints from their eyes. The small jade-green bird simply transformed into a streak of green light and shot toward Xu Luo.

From the seemingly shallow pool, a golden figure suddenly leaped out like a bolt of lightning, shooting straight for Xu Luo!

”Holy shit!”

Xu Luo couldn’t help but curse.

’According to my original plan, the appearance of the Beidou Sword should have drawn the attention of three or four of the Quasi-Kings. I would then lure them away, while Monkey would deal with the rest.’

’I didn’t expect all these fiends to come after me.’

’But... this is good too!’ Xu Luo thought. He immediately turned and ran without the slightest hesitation.

”Where do you think you’re going! WOOF WOOF!” the gray mutt roared. A terrifying aura erupted from its body as it opened its maw, revealing sharp fangs. It looked like a ferocious demon as it chased after Xu Luo.

The small child, the White Fox, and the chimpanzee also gave chase relentlessly.

Before, they wanted to eat this human’s flesh. Now, they were even more desperate to get the sword in his hand, which was clearly no ordinary item!

”That sword is mine!” the small, bare-bottomed child yelled in its aged voice as it ran with incredible speed.

”Hmph! We’ll each use our own Divine Techniques! Whoever gets it, gets to keep it!” the chimpanzee roared.

”I’m a King... Which one of you can compete with me?” the child sneered, looking down on the other creatures.

”You’ve only just reached the King level. In terms of strength... you might not be that much stronger than us. If I team up with Brother Gou, we might just be a match for you!” the White Fox said softly, sneering from the side.

These creatures were not on friendly terms. They started bickering before they had even gotten the sword. What they failed to notice was that after all this time, they hadn’t closed the distance with the human at all!

In fact... he was getting even farther away!

The first to notice this anomaly was the Mountain Spirit Child. It shouted coldly, ”Stop arguing! This human is strange! He’s too fast, and we can’t get too far from that place!”

”The red and black snakes are watching it. Nothing will happen. If you don’t want the sword, then you can go back!” the chimpanzee said coldly, glancing back at the pursuing creatures.

”If the Master punishes us, none of us can bear the consequences!” The Mountain Spirit seemed hesitant to continue the chase, especially when it thought of the Infinite Saint Emperor’s might, which filled its heart with dread.

At the mention of their Master, the other creatures fell silent for a moment. But then, the White Fox said, ”If we get that sword, the Master will surely reward us handsomely!”

”That’s right!” The Mountain Spirit instantly felt that made sense. Plus, they had guarded this place for countless years. In the entire Vast Mountains, almost no living being dared to cause trouble here.

Over time, no matter how vigilant they were, they had inevitably grown lax.

They would never have guessed that this human, who seemed to have stumbled in by accident, was actually here for the treasury!

In that moment, all the creatures, except for the red and black snakes, were chasing after Xu Luo.

As Xu Luo ran, he prayed inwardly for Monkey to succeed quickly and return to help him finish off these six.

Otherwise, he was afraid that once he made his move, some of the six creatures might escape.

’Especially this Mountain Spirit Child. It’s extremely perceptive. I’m sure that the moment it senses something is wrong, it’ll flee for its life, and I’ll probably have a hard time catching it.’

”Kid, stop running! Offer up that sword and let us eat you obediently. We might even leave your soul intact so you can be reincarnated,” the Mountain Spirit advised as it gave chase.

”WOOF! We won’t even spare his soul!” the gray mutt barked, its hatred for Xu Luo reaching a peak.

”You shit-eater! Catch this young master if you dare!” Xu Luo turned and provoked it.

”WOOF WOOF!” The gray mutt was enraged. It picked up speed, the distance between it and Xu Luo rapidly closing.

Xu Luo narrowed his eyes and glanced at the distant spot behind him. A faint smile suddenly appeared on his lips. He raised his hand and unleashed a single sword strike. A stream of Sword Qi, like a rainbow piercing the sun, slashed directly at the gray mutt.

”Not good! WOOF!” A flash of terror suddenly appeared in the gray mutt’s eyes.

Xu Luo’s strike was simply too fast and too vicious!

None of the creatures had expected this human to possess such tyrannical strength!

Catching it off guard, and with the suppression from his higher realm, Xu Luo’s sword strike directly sliced the gray mutt in half!

”Brother Gou! No!”

The White Fox let out a mournful, blood-curdling screech. At the same time, the three tails behind it instantly grew enormous and shot directly at Xu Luo!

Xu Luo swung the Beidou Sword in his hand horizontally and pressed down. Sword Qi crisscrossed through the air, severing the three massive tails in mid-flight and showering down crimson blood!

Immediately after, Xu Luo smashed a fierce punch into the streak of green light that was charging at him.

BANG!

A green shadow exploded in mid-air!

The small green bird, at the Quasi-King Realm, had actually been blown apart by Xu Luo’s punch!

At that moment, the chimpanzee’s claw raked across Xu Luo’s back, leaving a deep, bloody gash from which fresh blood flowed.

Xu Luo’s expression remained unchanged. He swung his sword back, directly lopping off the chimpanzee’s head.

SPLAT!

A torrent of hot blood shot into the sky!