Above the Qinling Mountains, a figure soared into the sky, standing proudly in mid-air. The boundless fist intent emanating from him belonged to a middle-aged man. Clad in a grey short shirt, he had a face like a leopard's head with piercing eyes, exuding an air of defiance. His gaze was filled with killing intent and ferocity. Just a glance made Lin Zhao's heart pound wildly; this was definitely not someone he could handle.
This middle-aged man was imbued with a surge of demonic energy, a demon race warrior, and one at the Tianyuan realm no less!
Such a person was absolutely not someone Lin Zhao could afford to provoke at this moment.
However, he still wanted to save the sword cultivator who had fallen into the sea of snow. After all, even if he failed, he would only lose one level at most. If he could save him, humanity would gain another sword cultivator of exceptional talent. Someone who dared to confront a Tianyuan realm demon warrior head-on, and so young, surely couldn't be ordinary.
...
"Tok, tok, tok~~~"
The snow-rock warhorse, its hooves kicking up snow, circled around to the rear before quietly charging into the snow-laden forest. Lin Zhao dismounted and examined the young human sword cultivator's injuries. Several ribs on his chest had been broken by the opponent's punch, but his vital organs seemed unharmed, as faint wisps of sword qi were still protecting his flesh.
Above his head, a line of descriptive text floated:
【Qin Ran】(Nascent Soul Realm)
Level: ???
Introduction: A sword cultivator raised in the desolate land of the Great Wall of Fusu. Qin Ran is the son of the sword immortal Qin Yu. At a young age, he has already become a ninth-realm Nascent Soul sword cultivator, hailed as a leader among the younger generation of the Great Wall of Fusu, a born sword seed.
...
"Buzz~~~"
Lin Zhao's mind went blank for an instant, utterly speechless. Another born sword seed. The Great Wall of Fusu was truly a peculiar place, fond of all sorts of "seeds"—born sword seeds and born general seeds. Yet, they didn't seem particularly impressive. Looking at the young sword cultivator before him, Lin Zhao truly wanted to tell him, "Kid, I've beaten up your dad! The kind who took him down in three punches!"
However, Qin Ran's brows were tightly furrowed, and he was on the verge of unconsciousness. He struggled to open his eyes and saw a young human sword cultivator dismounting and approaching him. His last flicker of survival instinct made Qin Ran weakly extend his hand: "Save me... save me..."
"I know, don't talk!"
Lin Zhao beckoned, lifted Qin Ran from the ground, and placed him across his horse. Then, he tugged on the reins and galloped towards the snow forest to the right with the snow-rock horse. That direction led to Shanhaiguan. Once inside Shanhaiguan, they would be safe. It was, after all, one of humanity's six great passes; a mere Tianyuan realm demon attacking the pass would surely be repelled.
"Hmm? Still trying to escape?"
In the sky, the Tianyuan realm demon warrior sneered. His voice boomed like thunder across the heavens as he said, "Qin Ran, aren't you proud of being the most exceptional ninth realm in the world? Since you dared to provoke me, an eleventh realm, why are you fleeing now?"
Qin Ran's body struggled, seeming to want to fight back again.
Lin Zhao frowned and said, "A wise warrior knows when to retreat. Dying should have value. If you foolishly go and fight him, even if you die, it will be worthless. Not a single person in humanity will remember any good of you!"
"You..."
Qin Ran gritted his teeth, wanting to refute Lin Zhao's words, but he found no good rebuttal. He sighed and said haltingly, "Young hero... as long as you can save my life, the Great Wall of Fusu... my aunt will surely reward you handsomely!"
"Understood."
Lin Zhao frowned, "Who is your aunt?"
"The Grand Sword Immortal of the Great Wall of Fusu, Lin Wanhua."
"..."
Lin Zhao's heart violently trembled. This was not good; perhaps the reward was not worth it. His life was more important!
Just then, a chime sounded. A quest had arrived, and it was an SS-rank main quest!
"Ding!"
System prompt: You have obtained the main quest [Rescue Qin Ran] (SS-rank)!
Quest content: Evade the pursuit of the Tianyuan realm great demon Evil Omen, and escort Qin Ran safely to Shanhaiguan. Quest completion condition one: Qin Ran must not die. Quest condition two: You yourself must not die. Quest condition three: Successfully reach Shanhaiguan. Upon completing all of this, you will receive incredibly generous rewards.
...
"You brat!"
In the sky, the Tianyuan realm great demon roared. He flew with the wind, his figure like lightning. Seeing Lin Zhao galloping away on his horse, he sneered, "Do you truly believe you can protect that sword cultivator from the Great Wall of Fusu? Or perhaps, all sword cultivators are one family, and you wish to be buried with him? Fine, I can grant your wish. No problem."
Lin Zhao frowned, galloping forward while glancing back. The great demon's description indeed appeared before his eyes:
【Evil Omen】(Ghost God Tier Boss)
Level: ???
Attack: ???
Defense: ???
Health: ???
Skills: ???
Introduction: A Tianyuan realm demon warrior. His true form is a leopard that roams the mountains. After achieving sentience, he served as an instructor for 800,000 demon soldiers in the four demon armies. He was injured in a battle at the Snow Domain Celestial Lake and later returned to the demon realm mountains to travel and cultivate. After reaching the Tianyuan realm, he crossed the Great Wall of Fusu and came alone into human territory to temper himself, attempting to make even the swordsmen and spirit cultivators of the human race bow their heads with his eleventh realm mortal body.
...
So arrogant!
Lin Zhao frowned. This great demon truly didn't take the human realm seriously, venturing alone into the Great Shang Dynasty to cause trouble? Did he really think humanity had no thirteen-realm experts anymore? Not to mention others, his aunt, Lin Xingchu of the Washing Sword River, was a thirteen-realm River God of humanity. Within the Washing Sword River, her strength was close to the fourteenth realm. This leopard demon must have bypassed the Washing Sword River to get here, otherwise, he would have been finished by his aunt's sword.
"Take this punch!"
Behind him, a fierce roar erupted. The Tianyuan realm great demon unleashed a punch from mid-air, its fist intent descending like a covering net, directly at Lin Zhao's back.
Evade!
Lin Zhao saw it clearly, locked onto an open space 40 yards ahead, and instantly clashed his sword qi. With a "swish," his body shot forward. The moment he moved, the ground behind him shattered, earth cracked, and trees turned into blazing dust. The opponent's fiery fist packed a world-destroying power, truly worthy of the Tianyuan realm!
At this moment, Lin Zhao felt a pang of regret. When he was Lin Baiyi of the Snow Domain Celestial Lake, he had too little time. If the demon race had started the war five to ten years later, perhaps he would no longer be just an eighth-realm warrior, but would have continuously advanced. The ninth realm of Wandering Cloud, the tenth realm of Sea Treading, the eleventh realm of Tianyuan, the twelfth realm of Rebirth—how wonderful it would be to witness the glory of these realms one by one!
"Boom~~~"
Under the impact of the fist energy's residual power, the snow-rock warhorse let out a long neigh. The frequency of its gallop became slightly erratic, almost collapsing. Fortunately, the warhorse was truly magnificent, and with a surge of its hooves, it continued to carry Lin Zhao and Qin Ran eastward.
"Cough, cough, cough... Young hero..."
Qin Ran, jolted on the horse's back, coughed up blood continuously but managed to say intermittently, "You don't need to push yourself too hard. If it's really impossible... you can abandon me and escape on your own. It's all my fault for being too overconfident and challenging this powerful eleventh realm great demon. It's my fault for not listening to my father's advice. I... I brought this upon myself, and it has nothing to do with you."
"Talk less."
Lin Zhao galloped forward, saying sternly, "Don't worry, I will definitely get you to Shanhaiguan safely, and I won't abandon you. After all... I have some ties with the Great Wall of Fusu. I have some acquaintances among the people of the Great Wall of Fusu."
But upon thinking carefully, what sort of acquaintances? The people of the Great Wall of Fusu would likely want to beat and kill him on sight. "Lin Sanguan, who plunders like a passing goose, crossing the Great Wall is like celebrating the New Year"—this saying might still be circulating in that desolate fortress. If one were to speak of ties and acquaintances, perhaps it would have to start with his senior brother Ding Muchen. After all, the true form of the Great Wall of Fusu was his senior brother's Fusu Sword. To put it bluntly, the Grand Marshal Ding Muchen was the "ancestor" of the Great Wall of Fusu, holding absolute authority there. If one were to trace it back... everyone at the Great Wall of Fusu would have to call him "Little Martial Uncle"!
Thinking of this, he couldn't help but laugh heartily, believing his mind had gone completely askew.
"Die!"
In the sky, the Tianyuan realm great demon delivered another punch. This time, it was no longer a focused strike but a dispersed barrage of fist intent. As the punch was unleashed, dozens, even hundreds, of fist energies descended from the sky onto the earth, leaving Lin Zhao with no chance!
This is difficult!
Lin Zhao galloped forward, watching the countless fist imprints descend from the sky. Gritting his teeth, he instantly activated his Sword Qi Protection skill. Then, he bent his body to shield Qin Ran, yanked the reins, and sharply changed direction. The snow-rock warhorse let out a long neigh and traced a Z-shaped path. Beside them, a fist imprint slammed into the ground, kicking up countless amounts of soil and snow. Lin Zhao continued to charge forward, successfully evading three fist imprints, but ultimately failed to dodge the fourth. A fist imprint descended from the sky and struck him heavily!
"Boom—"
"16288!"
This damage was truly maximized. Apart from himself, Lin Zhao, no one else could have endured it. The next second, he galloped out of the fist imprint's coverage area, quickly downed a level 2 health potion, and then drank ordinary health potions and recovery powders. He seized the opportunity to draw his sword and randomly hack at the monsters along the way, using his 32% lifesteal to regain health.
Fortunately, luck was on his side. In less than ten seconds, he had regained a significant amount of health, with his HP back above 20,000.
Qin Ran lay on the horse's back, his brows tightly furrowed. He could clearly sense that this human sword cultivator had narrowly escaped death from the great demon's punch just moments ago. Yet, he had no idea how he managed to recover his vitality so rapidly. At this moment, Qin Ran began to feel a sense of respect for this person.
...
"So resilient?"
The Tianyuan realm great demon flew with the wind, a sneer playing on his lips. "I remember the battle at the Snow Domain Celestial Lake years ago. The human commander Chen Wanli was also this resilient, forcing us to deploy over a dozen fifth-realm experts to finally kill him. Even someone like Chen Wanli met his end; what is a mere sword cultivator like you?!"
It was better not to mention Chen Wanli. The mention of Chen Wanli filled Lin Zhao with anger. Chen Wanli had also been one of his former instructors!
"Swish!"
A streak of silver light flashed across the sky, leaving a blood hole on the great demon's calf. Immediately, icy mist spread, and the great demon's movement speed began to significantly decrease!