65. The Assault on the City
Chapter 65: The Assault on the City
Song Yueyao stood in shock, realizing that the person responsible for this scene wasn't a passing powerhouse or a general from the Xia family, but rather someone from the Demon Suppression Division. And, he was just an ordinary demon slayer?
Suddenly, she recognized the young man's face—it seemed incredibly familiar. Where had she seen him before?
...That morning?
Song Yueyao was usually indifferent to the faces of others, treating them as part of the scenery. But her memory wasn't bad, and she quickly remembered that this youth was one of the five newcomers who reported to the Demon Suppression Division that morning. He was also a disciple of the Tan Palace.
Recalling his identity, Song Yueyao remembered seeing this young man carrying a wild rabbit earlier when she went to identify newcomers at the A-Courtyard. She was surprised that just a change into the demon slayer's uniform made him seem unfamiliar.
Meanwhile, Li Hao noticed the woman who had followed him. He turned slightly, and their eyes met.
Li Hao wasn't too concerned, nodding briefly before continuing forward with his demon-slaying blade in hand.
Song Yueyao, however, was struck as if by lightning, stunned atop the tree. That side profile…so familiar!
A flashback of the face she had glimpsed in the cave surged into her mind.
"It's him?!"
Song Yueyao was incredulous. The disciple who had secretly crossed the River of Death was this young man before her?!
She found it hard to believe, but seeing the monkey demon corpses around her, she was suddenly convinced that she hadn't been mistaken this time. Among the outer disciples, who else but this young man could have crossed the River of Death?
Her figure blurred as she leapt from the treetops and quickly caught up with Li Hao, calling out, "Wait."
Li Hao paused, turning slightly to look at her. "Senior Sister?"
Hearing "Senior Sister" gave Song Yueyao a strange sense of security, slightly relaxing her tense heart. She quickly asked, "Did you kill all these monkey demons?"
Though she had the answer in her heart, she couldn't help but ask.
Li Hao was silent for a moment. Did this Senior Sister have poor eyesight? Was there anyone else here? Even Detective Conan wouldn't need to investigate this obvious crime scene.
Seeing Li Hao's strange look, Song Yueyao blushed, realizing her question might have been unnecessary. She glanced at the demon-slaying blade in Li Hao's hand, its edge battered and blood-stained, hinting at countless battles.
"Did you also kill the great demons on the mountain top?" she asked, fixing her gaze on him.
Li Hao nodded slightly. It was merely a group of Spirit Traveling Realm demons and a single Fifteen Li, not a big deal.
Seeing him nod, Song Yueyao's heart trembled. She couldn't help but ask, "How old are you this year?"
"...It's quite impolite to ask a boy his age," Li Hao replied.
Song Yueyao nearly choked. In this mountain of corpses and sea of blood, he still had the humor to joke.
Even if Li Hao didn't say, she could guess he was no more than fourteen or fifteen. The maximum age for new recruits at the Tan Palace was sixteen.
A fourteen or fifteen-year-old at the Fifteen Li Realm?
She felt a tremendous blow, a sense of shock she found hard to believe. She herself was still several steps away from that realm, despite being one of the Tan Palace's top talents, possessing a nine-tier battle body!
Before reaching the Grandmaster Realm, a nine-tier battle body significantly aided cultivation. Yet, she found herself so far behind this boy? The last time she heard of such a monstrous talent was from her grandfather, who spoke of the Li family's ninth son. But she was young then, and it sounded like a fairy tale. Now, the boy stood before her, a legend come to life, feeling unreal.
"Are you alone? How did you get here?" Song Yueyao asked, looking at the neatness of his demon-slaying attire, scarcely blood-stained, though the blade showed signs of heavy use. It seemed as though slaying demons was easy for him.
"Senior Sister, are you interrogating me?" Li Hao asked helplessly.
Song Yueyao was speechless, rarely so curious about someone, only to be dismissed.
"There were demons, and I had free time, so I came over," Li Hao explained after seeing her awkward expression. He then turned and continued walking, his blade in hand. Chatting was fine, but the work had to continue.
With a light leap, he stood on a treetop, sending out his spirit and the demon-slaying blade to patrol ahead.
Seeing this, Song Yueyao's pupils shrank slightly. Nothing compared to seeing it firsthand.
Her face turned pale. The things her grandfather had said, she once thought exaggerated, overly praised by the world. Now she realized such a monster did exist in reality!
But how was this possible? A nine-tier battle body was already top-tier. As a prodigy, could she only glimpse this boy's shadow?
Soon, the black blade flew back into Li Hao's hand. After shaking off the blood, he saw that the tail end of this mountain range was clear. He turned, ready to wipe out the remaining demons along the way.
"Wait for me," Song Yueyao called out, realizing and hurriedly chasing after Li Hao.
Catching up, she looked at his profile and asked, "Were you the one who crossed the River of Death at the Tan Palace?"
Li Hao glanced at her, though the Tan Palace promised a reward for passing, he felt inexplicably guilty. It was, after all, a test for new students.
"It was me."
"How did you pass? The palace master issued a reward; why didn't you claim it?" Song Yueyao asked curiously.
How did he pass?
Li Hao wasn't sure. It seemed he just painted his way through. Thinking back, maybe the black-robed scholar felt ashamed and left, outmatched.
Seeing Li Hao silent, Song Yueyao prompted, "Hmm?"
Li Hao snapped out of it, saying, "Is the prize the Chi Xiao Sword?"
"Yes."
"As you can see, I'm at the Fifteen Li Realm," Li Hao said.
Song Yueyao felt like she was hit in the face with a heavy hammer, a mix of breathlessness and heat.
Fifteen Li—did he think the Chi Xiao Sword was beneath him?
Outrageous!
She gritted her teeth, feeling both intrigued and irritated by this boy.
Suddenly, a distant smoke signal rose, blooming in the sky.
Song Yueyao saw it and her pupils shrank sharply. She exclaimed, "Purple smoke? How is that possible? That's a critical signal for a demon attack on the city!"
Li Hao was momentarily stunned. As a descendant of a military family, he understood these signals well.
Purple smoke was only released in extremely dire situations.
Once released, the city gates would be closed, and the city put on high alert!
A demon assault on the city?
He suddenly recalled what the bear demon said about demons in the north.
"I'm heading back," Li Hao immediately said, his figure blurring as he leapt into the air, transforming into a black silhouette that vanished from Song Yueyao's sight.
Flight!
Song Yueyao watched, stunned. Li Hao's flight speed seemed faster than other Fifteen Li Realm practitioners she had seen.
But.
Why didn't he take me along?!
Frustrated, Song Yueyao stomped her foot, biting her lip as she quickly leapt through the forest, rushing towards the city.