Boom...
He Li landed heavily, the immense force causing him to slide backward until he braced himself with his halberd.
Lu Xiangnan tore his shirt and slowly walked towards He Li.
"He Li, I know you. A natural Spirit Awakener. You will advance to the Spirit Infusion Realm, the Consciousness Realm, or even higher, the Qi Sea Realm. Your body will become increasingly robust, possessing a youthful form, free from illness and death.
And you are a dual-ability user.
The genetic lock will continuously strengthen your spirit and will.
A powerful body and a strong will – what a perfect combination."
He Li straightened his body, swung his arm, and shifted his stance. A hint of doubt brewed within him. It wasn't strange that Lu Xiangnan knew him, but how did he know he was a Spirit Awakener? He himself wasn't entirely sure.
Thump... thump... thump...
Heavy thuds emanated from beneath He Li's feet. He drew a circle with his halberd behind him, transferring it from his right hand to his left.
"Lu Xiangnan, who turned you into a demon?"
A normal human, without the infiltration and alteration of demonic energy, could not directly transform into a demon.
Moreover,
When he was at the Zhaoye Building, he hadn't sensed any demonic energy from Lu Xiangnan. Before that, when Lu Xiangnan appeared before Susan at the Spirit Management Association, he was still a normal person.
How could he suddenly become a demon, and a Level Four Corpse Demon at that?
"Who turned me into a demon?"
Lu Xiangnan stopped. He spread his arms, lowered his head, as if admiring his new body.
"He Li, and who turned you into a Spirit Awakener?"
"Oh... I forgot. You weren't bestowed with it; you were born with it. It's legitimate, while I could only beg for it, and then become a rat in a gutter."
"It truly makes one jealous, He Li."
"Those mediocre people, they live like walking corpses anyway. Instead of that, why not let their lives become mine?
Their life force absorbed, turning them into dried husks. When they die, there's no pain, no sensation. How wonderful that is.
What do you think, He Li!"
Lu Xiangnan's eyes began to gleam with madness. His skin started to crack, and his eyes, which were once the normal human color, turned grayish-white.
Then,
The grayish-white eyes cracked like dry walls, peeling off and falling, leaving behind dark, empty sockets.
Even though there were no eyeballs, only hollow darkness,
He Li could still feel it watching him.
Now, He Li had three doubts.
First, did Lu Xiangnan become a demon before or after his death?
If it was after death, then it was terrifying. To be turned into a demon even after being reduced to ashes – what kind of ability was that?
If he had become a demon while alive, it was even more terrifying. He managed to evade the detection of demonic energy scanners, even visited the Spirit Management Association and sat face-to-face with Susan without being discovered.
If such demons were lurking in Binhai, how many people like Lu Xiangnan were there in Binhai?
Second, were Lu Xiangnan and the demon that went berserk in the bank the same kind?
Third, and most importantly in He Li's opinion, why did they know him?
He Li's expression grew increasingly grim, and an indescribable sense of crisis and anger welled up within him.
Had the mental probe that He Jun had severed, the one monitoring him, returned?
Or had it returned without He Jun even noticing?
Hum...
Suddenly,
A vast pressure erupted from He Li.
Boom... Boom... Boom...
The surrounding pine and cypress trees couldn't withstand the immense gravity and began to crack and collapse. The ground slowly caved in.
The communication earpiece on his ear was crushed by the gravity and fell off.
"Lu Xiangnan, I'll ask you again, who! Turned you into a demon!"
He Li asked in a deep voice.
Lu Xiangnan's body hunched forward, his claw-like hands extending, like ten sharp swords. With a bang, he lunged at He Li at extreme speed.
"Let me see the power of you, a Spirit Awakener!"
Thump!
Lu Xiangnan seemed to collide with a wall, emitting a dull thud.
He stopped in mid-air.
A figure emerged from behind He Li. It was Xiao Yue.
Following him,
Jin Fang also slowly walked out from behind He Li. Several iron chains appeared out of thin air, binding Lu Xiangnan and pulling him to face He Li.
"Lu Xiangnan, tell me, who is it!"
He Li asked calmly once more.
"He will come to find you, He Li. You cannot kill me. I am immortal..."
Swoosh!
A figure flashed, accompanied by a bright blade light.
Chen Sui stood behind Lu Xiangnan, lightly flicking the Yanling saber.
In the void before He Li, water ripples appeared. He Jun slowly emerged from the ripples. Without any unnecessary movements, he directly raised his hand and grabbed Lu Xiangnan's head.
Then,
Lu Xiangnan's head instantly decayed, and the flying ash disappeared as it fell.
He Jun expressionlessly put his hands back into his pockets and glanced at Chen Sui.
Chen Sui's figure immediately vanished.
Following that,
A massive explosion echoed from the distant hillside, kicking up dust. Dozens of large trees collapsed simultaneously, clearing a vast area.
Chen Sui returned, shaking his head at He Jun.
He Jun turned to He Li and said softly, "He ran very fast, but you don't need to worry. We have you covered."
"Let's go back. Little Li is tired."
After He Jun spoke, he walked back into the watery ripples.
He Li looked at Xiao Yue, Jin Fang, and Chen Sui.
Chen Sui left directly. Jin Fang shrugged and left. Xiao Yue spread his hands, indicating helplessness, and then disappeared.
"Uncle Li, do you know who that was?"
Li Qin appeared beside He Li and shook his head. "I don't know. In fact, even He Jun doesn't know. When Chen Sui went, although that saber wounded the guy, it didn't leave him."
He Li grunted, smacked his lips, and scratched his head, saying dejectedly, "Uncle Li, I'm getting a bit agitated."
"Even Chen Sui showed up. You're more than just a little agitated."
Li Qin rolled his eyes and added, "Please, try to restrain yourself in the future. When Chen Sui goes mad, he's extremely difficult to control."
"Is that so?"
He Li puffed out his chest and said, "Am I not restraining myself?"
Li Qin waved his hand and sat on a fallen pine tree, unwilling to engage with He Li.
Not far away,
Bai Fei ran over, exclaiming in surprise.
"Wow wow, our He Li buddy, you look very angry."
He Li retracted his gravity halberd, took out a cigarette, and tossed one to Bai Fei.
"This was an accident. You know, gravity isn't easy to control, and I've also said that I'm not suited for precision strikes. I prefer firepower saturation."
"So you didn't just saturate this area, but also the hillside over there?" Bai Fei pointed to the hillside cleared by Chen Sui's saber.
"That has nothing to do with me. Actually, I suspect you did it. After all, you're a skilled swordsman."
Bai Fei lit his cigarette. "I'm happy you praised me like that, but I regret that I haven't reached the ability to level an entire hillside forest with a single saber strike."
"What do we do now?" He Li asked.
"We wait for the logistics department to arrive. Lu Xiangnan's demonization is full of questions. As the primary handlers of demons, we need to stay put."
...