Four grotesque bone monsters crawled out of the green vortex, about five meters tall and over ten meters long.
However,
He Li did not look at the four monsters. Instead, he looked up at the black, fluffy cat perched above the black gate directly in front of him. It was very cute, palm-sized, with its paws clasped together, just right to be held in one's hand. It was entirely black, and if one didn't look closely, it would be impossible to spot.
The fluffy cat was also looking at He Li, its sapphire-like eyes meeting the green flames, making for a striking sight.
"Roar... Roar..."
The four skeletal monsters roared in unison. Simultaneously, the flames on the ground twisted like ropes and rapidly climbed onto the four monsters, intertwining and coiling together to form "muscle fibers."
He Li slowly drew his saber.
As the long saber was unsheathed, cyan spiritual energy poured down from He Li's palm, enveloping the blade. The slightly curved blade resembled a crescent moon, captivating the soul.
Immense spiritual energy erupted from He Li's body, instantly permeating and covering the entire battlefield. His mental power spread out accordingly.
The next moment,
He Li's figure vanished from his original position and reappeared above the head of one of the monsters. He unleashed a horizontal slash, like drawing a cyan crescent moon.
Wait until you've finished transforming before fighting?
Don't be ridiculous,
This isn't a turn-based martial arts competition.
Of course, I must strike suddenly during your transformation, with the right timing, accuracy, and ferocity.
Clang!
The sound of steel slicing through metal echoed. He Li decapitated the monster with one strike. Immediately after, He Li stepped on the monster's back for leverage and leaped towards the little black cat, slashing down without hesitation.
Boom!
The black gate was split in half by He Li's strike, and the little black cat was also bisected.
But strangely, the little black cat, now in two halves, transformed into two small black cats, front and back, like the mythical splitting beasts that increased in number with each cut.
The cleaved gate healed itself, the bisected little black cat became two, and the monster decapitated by He Li picked up its head, reattached it to its body, and roared at He Li, lunging to bite.
He Li once again swung his saber, knocking the monster away. Meanwhile, Xiao Yue used his telekinesis to restrain the other three undead monsters. Even though their bodies were crushed, they could reassemble themselves under the burning ghost fire.
"What's going on?" He Li asked.
Xiao Yue shook his head and said, "It must be this ghost fire that gives these monsters their immortality."
He Li looked at the flames on the monsters. Just as he was about to speak, a man's voice reached his ears.
"It's not the flames; they are inherently immortal."
Amidst the lingering sound, the voice's owner appeared, standing on the ghost gate that He Li had half-split. He held the little black cat, which had reunited.
The four monsters were pinned down by Xiao Yue's telekinesis.
He Li followed the sound and saw a middle-aged man, not tall, very thin, with long black hair tied back. His eye sockets were deep-set, his cheekbones prominent, and his cheeks gaunt. Just looking at his face, one could clearly feel an uncomfortable aura of killing intent.
He Li stared intently at the gaunt man, remaining silent.
The surrounding flames did not diminish, and roars continued.
The two men stared at each other in silence.
After a moment,
The man seemed to realize something. He floated down gracefully, standing before the gate, opposite He Li, and said, "My apologies, I forgot. You dislike looking up."
He Li remained silent.
The man looked at He Li, pondering. Why wasn't he speaking? Did he want to fight directly? Fine, let's fight first. The little black cat in his arms raised its head, looking at the man's increasingly solemn face.
The man's body began to emit an imposing aura, instantly pushing back the surrounding flames.
At this moment,
He Li spoke, asking the man before him, "Can you speak Chinese or English? French is also acceptable."
What was this man babbling about? It sounded like a minor language, Portuguese? Spanish? Arabic? He just couldn't understand.
The man froze, then retracted his aura and replied, "I can speak Chinese."
"Damn it, you should have said so earlier! Didn't you see I'm from Huaxia? This is so troublesome," He Li rolled his eyes.
Then,
He asked again, "What were you saying just now?"
"Oh, I was saying that they are not immortal because of the flames; they are inherently immortal," the man repeated.
"Inherently immortal?" He Li looked again at the four monsters being suppressed by Xiao Yue's telekinesis.
He Li nodded, then thought it wasn't right. With this kind of entrance, these four monsters, weren't they his pets?
"Are these your pets?"
The man shook his head and also looked at the four monsters, saying, "No, they came to attack me. After I skinned and disemboweled them, they became like this. But even in this state, they did not die and retained their bloodthirsty combat instincts."
"Later, according to my investigation, they are killing weapons developed by the Spiritual Management Council."
Holy cow!
He Li was shocked. He looked at the four monsters. Did Ricardo's divinity take effect? Were the Hunter Group's actions this fast?
However,
He Li turned to look at the man, his gaze shifting slightly. Being attacked by killing weapons researched by the Hunter Group using Ricardo's methods meant this guy was also one of the Thirteen Gods.
"You were attacked by something like this?"
Facing He Li's inquiry, the man leaned forward slightly, smiling politely.
"My apologies, I forgot you don't recognize me. Allow me to introduce myself, I am Xosotu, a Middle God. Nine thousand years ago, the divine position of Upper God that you claimed was snatched from me."
He Li smacked his lips, clicked his tongue. This was a bit awkward. A grudge from over nine thousand years ago. But it was Xia Peishu who stole your divine position, what does that have to do with me, He Li?
Should I just fight?
No,
He is a Middle God, just like Death God Esgfen. Last time, I barely managed to defeat him. And this Xosotu, who knows how long he's been awake, his divine power must be stronger than Esgfen's.
Cannot fight.
If I lose, I don't care about face, but my life is on the line.
He Li thought to himself, but his expression remained stern. His spiritual energy surged, and the saber in his hand became even sharper. His mental power instantly enveloped Xosotu, remaining calm and composed.
At the same time,
He shouted internally,
"He Jun! Come out quickly! He Jun! Come out quickly! You're offline!"
"Holy hell! Chen Sui, don't be rash! Put your saber away!"
"Yan Ping! I'm talking about him, not you! Put your saber away!"
He Jun didn't come out, but Chen Sui and Yan Ping, two unlucky souls, did. They both drew their sabers, looking as if they were about to hack Xosotu to death.
Water ripples appeared in front of He Li, and He Jun emerged. Without even glancing at Xosotu, he smiled at He Li and said softly,
"It's alright, we'll just kill him again."
...