Chapter 4: Fox Demon’s Mutation, Ferocious Sword Qi

The corpse’s chest cavity had been completely hollowed out, its internal organs long gone.

The fox’s fur was snow-white, making it seem quite agile, but its eyes held an unsettling green glow.

A bizarre, cold, and terrifying aura emanated from the fox, naturally repelling the living.

Where aberrations tread, the living flee.

Seeing this from his hiding spot in the shadows, Shen Bai frowned.

’An aberration, a Fox Demon... it appeared this easily?’

A strange thought crossed his mind.

’The people of the Upper Evil Sect are meticulous thinkers. They even know to muddy the waters to profit from the chaos. So why would they let the Fox Demon get cornered so easily?’

That was his line of thinking, but things were different for Zhou Qing and his group.

Their very purpose on this trip was to find an aberration. Now that they had, it was time to act.

Chief Zheng was the first to draw his long saber, shouting, "Surround it! Exterminate it!"

More than ten corpses meant more than ten lives lost. This was already a major case.

At Chief Zheng’s command, the other constables drew their Weapons and surrounded the Fox Demon.

The Fox Demon exuded a strange aura, pawing lightly at the ground and digging a small hole in the dirt.

The next moment, the battle began.

The Fox Demon blurred into an afterimage and lunged toward the nearest constable.

Its Speed was so great that it closed the distance in the blink of an eye.

The constables of Shengyun County had all entered the Daoist Scripture Realm. As the Fox Demon closed in, the man reacted with extreme speed, raising his long saber to block.

CLANG!

With a sharp ringing sound, cracks appeared on the constable’s long saber, and he stumbled back several steps.

The other constables surged forward, seizing the opportunity to slash at the Fox Demon with their long sabers.

But the Fox Demon, relying on its unnatural instincts, dodged every single attack with a simple movement, weaving past several long sabers to strike at another constable.

Its claws were sharp and its eyes glowed green, filled with a ferocious, malevolent aura.

"Joint strike!"

Just then, Chief Zheng shouted.

At his command, more than a dozen constables crossed their long sabers, forming a dense net of blades.

The sharp net of blades blocked the Fox Demon’s path.

Caught in mid-air and unable to dodge, the Fox Demon was instantly carved with gruesome wounds by the long sabers.

A sickly green blood oozed from its wounds, and the malice in the Fox Demon’s eyes grew even stronger.

’This Fox Demon isn’t all that impressive.’

Shen Bai observed carefully from the shadows.

The situation was quite simple.

If there were only two or three constables, they might have truly fallen to the Fox Demon.

But with more than twenty constables working together, especially with that net of blades, the Fox Demon was utterly powerless to resist.

Qin Shuang also frowned, feeling that this was all too easy.

After all, by the looks of it, the Fox Demon was about to meet its end right here.

The two exchanged a look and decided to keep watching to see how things would unfold.

Back in the fray, the injured Fox Demon did not retreat.

The instinct of an aberration is to slaughter the living. Driven by this instinct, it would not flee even when outmatched.

"ROAR!"

A low roar escaped the Fox Demon’s mouth.

Suddenly, the Fox Demon’s flesh and blood began to swell rapidly.

Its body, originally just over a meter long, abruptly swelled to around three meters.

Not only that, but its fur began to recede at a visible rate.

A smooth, naked female form appeared before everyone’s eyes.

A fox’s head with sharp fangs atop a human body of boundless temptation.

’Such an extreme contrast,’ Shen Bai thought. ’A certain group of people known as "furries" would probably be exceptionally excited by this.’

’Of course, it would be more perfect if one could ignore its three-meter-tall frame.’

The three-meter-tall Fox Demon rose to its feet, exuding a terrifying sense of pressure.

The Recovery of the wounds on its body was complete. In a flash, it vanished from sight.

When it reappeared, a constable spat blood as he was sent flying, collapsing unconscious on the ground.

A scratch mark deep enough to reveal bone was gouged into the constable’s chest.

"What’s going on?!"

Chief Zheng’s eyes widened at the sight.

Fox Demon aberrations had combat strength, but never this powerful. They typically relied on their peculiar methods to harm people.

But its sudden transformation into this form left even Chief Zheng feeling uncertain.

The middle-aged swordsman held his Longsword, his expression grave. "This Fox Demon’s abilities are stronger than before. This is how I suffered at its hands last time."

The two were talking, but the Fox Demon wasn’t about to give them the chance.

A blur of motion flashed past. The Fox Demon appeared before another constable, the nails on its pale fingers shooting out as it clawed at the man’s head.

If that strike landed, it would leave five bloody holes in his skull.

CLANG!

With a sharp ring, Chief Zheng blocked the Fox Demon’s claws.

"Fall back!"

Chief Zheng ordered in a low voice.

The constable immediately retreated without the slightest hesitation.

Chief Zheng began to brandish the long saber in his hand.

His swings weren’t fast, but each strike was immensely powerful.

Gruesome wounds began to appear on the Fox Demon’s pale, smooth body under Chief Zheng’s assault.

Not far away, Shen Bai narrowed his eyes as he watched.

’Three Treasures Realm... Chief Zheng is an expert, too.’

’His Qi Body is perfected, moving as an extension of his will. These are all hallmarks of the Three Treasures Realm. I can see it clearly.’

’Looks like this battle is about to end.’

With a Three Treasures Realm expert like Chief Zheng in the fight, the Fox Demon was already losing ground. Death was only a matter of time.

On the battlefield, Chief Zheng’s Sword Skill grew fiercer, each slash kicking up a terrifying gale.

You don’t become a Chief Constable without real talent. And with his age, Chief Zheng’s Sword Skill was all the more masterful and cunning.

The other constables weren’t idle, either. They supported Chief Zheng’s attack from the flanks.

The number of wounds on the Fox Demon began to multiply. It seemed it would soon fall to Chief Zheng’s blade.

But at that very moment, a sudden whistling sound cut through the air.

Following the sharp whistle, everyone saw a white shadow flash past.

The next moment, a second Fox Demon erupted from the riverbed, charging straight for the constables.

It happened so fast that no one had time to react.

The constable closest to the river was the first to be attacked. In a moment of crisis, he could only throw his long saber up defensively in front of his chest.

CLANG!

The long saber shattered on impact, but the Fox Demon’s claws continued their advance.

"Zhou Qing!"

Chief Zheng’s eyes widened in fury.

The constable under attack was none other than Zhou Qing.

The other constables wanted to help, but they were too far away to intervene in time.

Zhou Qing watched the sharp claws close in, a chill running through his entire body.

The sensation of death spread through him.

This claw would surely shatter his heart, killing him instantly.

’I can’t believe I’m going to die today.’

In this moment between life and death, Zhou Qing felt everything slow down.

A flood of thoughts echoed in his mind.

’I haven’t even passed the exam for the Observatory and achieved my lifelong dream... I can’t accept this!’

’And... if I die, how will Lao Shen, an ordinary man, live a peaceful life?’

’I was even planning to take Lao Shen to Fenglin State for a better life after I got into the Observatory...’

As these thoughts flashed through his mind, Zhou Qing closed his eyes.

It was hopeless. He was beyond saving.

A sense of powerlessness washed over the other constables.

With two Fox Demons, if Zhou Qing died, the pressure on Chief Zheng would increase dramatically. They might all die here.

As they thought this, despair quickly set in.

Just then, a sudden sound of something tearing through the air rang out.

Everyone looked over instinctively.

A beam of blood-red sword light cleaved through the void, its magnificent, righteous aura as brilliant as the midday sun, forcing everyone to shield their eyes.