At this time, 300 miles away in Qingshan City. The city had become unrecognizable. The once bustling streets were now littered with corpses, and blood flowed like a river.
In the center of the city’s ruins, there stood a giant golden ape that was ten meters tall. The ape’s entire body shone like gold in the sunlight, giving it a metallic appearance.
In front of this giant ape, there were a dozen or so Condensation Realm martial artists, all from the Zhang and Li families. They were all battered and bruised but bravely stood in front of the giant ape, buying time for the civilians to escape.
“This Golden Steel Demon Ape is a mid-level great demon! We can’t handle it with our strength alone!” said Li Si whose arm was wrapped in bandages.
“Have the top-ranked experts from Zhongzhou not arrived yet? I can’t hold on much longer!” added Zhang San covered in blood.
After being injured by Zhao Zhan the day before, they had given up on the assessment and returned to Qingshan City to recuperate. However, they didn’t expect that shortly after returning, Qingshan City would be under attack by a great demon.
“Regardless, we must hold on, at least until the civilians are safely evacuated!” A muscular middle-aged man said with determination, looking at the civilians retreating behind them.
This middle-aged man was none other than Zhang San’s father, Zhang Tieshan; the head of the Zhang family and the lord of Qingshan City.
As the lord of Qingshan City and one of the top-ranked martial artists in the Human Ranking, Zhang Tieshan had a duty to protect the civilians.
“Hold on a bit longer. As long as we last until the top-ranked experts arrive, our mission will be completed!” A refined middle-aged man said. He was Li Si’s father, Li Baoyu; the deputy lord of Qingshan City and also one of the top-ranked martial artists in the Human Ranking. He was like Zhang Tieshan who had a duty to lead by example.
“No matter who comes, it’s useless! I am destined to rule over humans and become the king of all demons!” The Golden Steel Demon Ape pounded its chest which caused the ground to tremble.
“Rule over humans? You won’t succeed!” Zhang San leaped into the air and landed a kick on the Golden Steel Demon Ape’s nose.
Crack!
With a crisp sound of bone breaking, Zhang San’s leg bone shattered while the Golden Steel Demon Ape’s nose remained unharmed.
“Are you trying to scratch an itch for me?” The Golden Steel Demon Ape looked at Zhang San mockingly and then flicked its right hand at him.
Puff!
Zhang San spewed a large cloud of blood and was sent flying like a kite with a broken string.
“San!” Zhang Tieshan jumped to catch Zhang San but was sent flying by the force of the impact.
With just a residual force, the two of them were sent flying over ten meters and finally crashed into the wall of a building.
With a loud crash, the wall instantly collapsed.
The other martial artists were in shock. Merely flicking its finger had such tremendous power! Was this the strength of a great demon?
“Attack together!” The group didn’t back down and under Li Baoyu’s leadership, they launched a combined assault on the Golden Steel Demon Ape.
The Golden Steel Demon Ape casually lifted its foot and stomped the ground.
Boom!
The force of that stomp was like a meteor crashing into the ground, causing the surrounding earth to instantly sink. The shockwave that carried a gust of air and flying rocks swept out like a landslide.
Wherever it passed, the ground shattered inch by inch.
The martial artists who had approached the Golden Steel Demon Ape on the ground were sent flying and spewed blood in mid-air.
The martial artists who had leaped into the air were fortunate enough to escape unscathed.
“Li Family Sword Art!”
“Zhang Family Fist!”
“Whirlwind Thunder Strike!”
“Spiral Return Horse Spear!”
“Death Meteor Hammer!”
The martial artists each used their most powerful techniques.
For a moment, a variety of dazzling attacks were launched simultaneously at the Golden Steel Demon Ape.
However, these attacks landed on the Golden Steel Demon Ape’s body without causing any harm.
“This didn’t even scratch it…”
“Such a terrifying level of defense!”
The crowd was in awe, and a sense of despair began to creep in.
“Is there a stronger attack?” The Golden Steel Demon Ape sighed in disappointment.
The crowd clenched their fists, feeling both frustrated and helpless. At this point, even Li Baoyu had no solution. Although his Li Family Sword Art was sharp, it lacked explosive power.
“It seems like I have to use that move!” said Zhang Tieshan who was covered in blood, and emerged from the rubble.
Li Baoyu turned to look at Zhang Tieshan, “Old Zhang, are you planning to…”
Zhang Tieshan nodded, “Even though that move’s power is too much for me to bear given the circumstances, I have no other choice.”
After that, he gathered all the Qi in his body and concentrated it densely in his right fist.
A powerful energy wave emanated from his fist.
“Is that… the most powerful move of Zhang Family Fist – the Golden Gamble Fist?”
“It’s said that the lord of the city once used this punch to defeat an opponent at the Condensation Realm Ninth Stage when he was at the Condensation Realm Sixth Stage. Now, with the lord’s cultivation at the Condensation Realm Seventh Stage, this punch should pose a threat to the Golden Steel Demon Ape, right?”
“Of course! After all, this is the punch the lord is willing to gamble his life on!”
Everyone was well aware of the principle of the Golden Gamble Fist – it concentrated all the Qi and released it in a single punch. The power of this punch is hundreds of times greater than a regular punch and could nearly achieve a kill even against stronger opponents.
Because this punch’s power was so overwhelming, those who used it couldn’t withstand the damage themselves. So, if this punch didn’t kill the enemy, the one who would certainly die was the user.
“Monster, meet your doom!” After accumulating the energy to the maximum, Zhang Tieshan shouted and rushed to the foot of the Golden Steel Demon Ape, throwing a punch at its chin.
This punch carried all his Qi, and it was the last punch he was willing to bet his life on. It was also the last hope for everyone.
However, the Golden Steel Demon Ape didn’t even spare a glance and casually raised its hand.
With two fingers, it nonchalantly caught the punch as if it were capturing a fly.
The scene froze in an instant.
Zhang Tieshan’s punch was suspended mid-air. He gazed at the Golden Steel Demon Ape in despair, “My most powerful punch, and it’s just stopped like this…”
The others wore expressions of despair too, unable to believe that their highly anticipated punch had been effortlessly thwarted.
“Is that all you’ve got for your most powerful punch?” The Golden Steel Demon Ape mocked with a human-like sneer.
Zhang Tieshan struggled desperately but in the Golden Steel Demon Ape’s hand, he was as insignificant as an insect. No matter how hard he fought, he couldn’t break free from the creature’s grasp.
The Golden Steel Demon Ape lifted Zhang Tieshan with its left hand, and with its right hand, it began to flick its fingers in succession.
Each flick seemed casual as if it were flicking away a booger. However, when it landed on Zhang Tieshan’s body, each finger felt like a thousand-pound hammer which caused the air to explode around it.
Boom, boom, boom!
After enduring three terrifying flicks, Zhang Tieshan’s body was severely deformed, and spewing blood mixed with internal organs that uncontrollably from his mouth.
The Golden Steel Demon Ape loosened its grip, and Zhang Tieshan weakly dropped to the ground.
Then the Golden Steel Demon Ape raised its foot and stepped towards Zhang Tieshan.
The shadow of its huge foot engulfed the area where Zhang Tieshan lay but he remained unresponsive.
Just as the foot was about to descend, a figure suddenly flashed past and swiftly carried Zhang Tieshan away.
The Golden Steel Demon Ape’s foot hit the ground, creating a three-meter-wide crater.
Shortly after, a graceful figure landed about dozens of meters away, while the Golden Steel Demon Ape threw Zhang Tieshan on the ground.
With silky white hair and mesmerizing sparkling blue eyes, there was no doubt that this person was Shen Hanbing.
“It’s the Ice and Fire Sorceress!”
“Great! The top-ranked experts have finally arrived!”
Upon seeing Shen Hanbing, the martial artists felt as if they had caught a lifeline.
And after Shen Hanbing appeared, two more figures arrived one after the other.
One was an elderly man wearing white practice clothes, carrying two treasured swords on his back.
The other one was a three-meter-tall muscular man.
“The versatile master, ranked fifteenth on the Earth Ranking! And the giant of great strength, ranked twelfth on the Earth Ranking!”
“Three top-ranked experts have arrived! Now we have hope!”
The crowd was ecstatic. They had held on for so long, and now that the top-ranked experts had arrived, they no longer had to face certain death.
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Qi, often spelled as “chi” or “ki” in different cultures and systems. It represents the vital life force or energy that flows through all living things.
