Rumbling!!!
A violent roar accompanied by a wave of shockwaves spread out.
"Are you okay? Are you okay?"
"Kull, are you alright?"
"I'm fine."
"Xiao Lan, are you... You're a dog, how did you get up the tree?!"
Xiao Lan was perched on a branch, looking towards the direction of the explosion.
"Awooooo..." kuAiδugg
Xiao Lan let out a low growl, raised its paw, and pointed towards the explosion.
He Li and the other two looked up and gasped.
They saw that although the Poplar King had been half-blown apart, it had crawled out of the ground. Moreover, from the gaping hole, a person was inside the heartwood. This person was now bloody and mangled, with half of their body blown to pieces.
He Li and the other two exchanged glances. Before they could say anything, the Poplar King moved again.
Crack... crackle... crackle...
The withered branches of the Poplar King began to fall off, and the person whose body was half blown away began to writhe. The missing half of their body also started to grow wood, gradually forming a wooden body.
Then,
The person's eyes suddenly snapped open, their sea-blue eyes as beautiful as sapphires. They reached out, grabbed the wood, and tore it apart bit by bit, seemingly trying to emerge from the heartwood.
"Be careful, he's coming out!" Kull shouted a warning.
He Li sneered and said, "Coming out? If it can walk out alive, then I've come here for nothing."
Saying that,
He Li took out two spirit energy grenades from his bag, pulled the pins, and without hesitation, threw them directly.
At this very moment,
The Poplar King extended two branches, like whips, and swiftly swatted the grenades away.
Boom! Boom!
He Li calmly brushed the dust off his head, spat out the crushed grass leaves from his mouth, and whispered, "Xiao Xi."
Kull was stunned for a moment, instinctively looking left and right. Who was he talking to?
"Yes, Brother."
He Xi, smiling sweetly, sat on He Li's shoulder.
He Li licked his lips. Spirit energy grenades are not effective, huh? Then what about this grenade that turns into a brick?
A exquisite deep blue ring appeared on He Li's right index finger. Immediately, the ring transformed into a deep blue glove. This was He Xi's ability, the Rule Glove, which could decompose and reshape.
He took out two more grenades, tossed them lightly, threw one first, and then threw another.
The Poplar King still tried to swat them away with its branches, but the moment the branches touched the grenades, the grenades exploded. There was no sound of explosion, no shockwave, no blast, they just exploded, and then, the branches instantly disappeared.
This situation not only stunned the demon inside the Poplar King's heartwood but also stunned Kull beside He Li. What kind of weapon was this? It just... vanished?
But He Li clearly wouldn't give them a chance to think. The other grenade had already reached above the heartwood, directly over the demon's forehead.
He Li grinned and said, "Thank you for coming out specially. You've made your appearance, you can wrap up and collect your box lunch."
Hum~~~
The entire trunk of the Poplar King, along with the demon within its heartwood, vanished as the grenade detonated.
He Li pulled his bag back, clapped his hands, but he was a little puzzled, "Why didn't it turn into a brick?"
He Xi giggled, "Because I only decomposed it, I didn't reshape it."
He Li turned to look. Huh? He Xi wasn't on his shoulder. Where did she go? He looked up and hurriedly shouted, "Xiao Xi, get down quickly, riding a dog is... Damn it! Get down quickly!"
Kull watched He Li shout at the dog on the tree and couldn't help but take two steps back, gripping his dual blades tightly.
Who... was he talking to?
On the tree,
He Xi, riding Xiao Lan, was laughing heartily. She was holding the dog's ears like reins, shouting "Giddy up, giddy up!"
Xiao Lan looked back at its own back, sniffed its nose, and found nothing. Its eyes were filled with confusion.
However,
He Xi was displeased and pouted, "Stupid dog, how dare you disobey!"
Then,
He Xi raised her hand and slapped Xiao Lan across the face.
"Woof?"
Xiao Lan, having been slapped, was momentarily stunned. He Li, below the tree, also watched with a pounding heart. One was a divine envoy, the other could decompose and reshape.
Of course, He Li wasn't worried about He Xi, but about Xiao Lan. He was afraid He Xi might kill it. Not only would he be left with only one divine envoy, but a dog that could wash clothes, mop floors, wash dishes, and explore with demonic energy was rare.
"Woof!"
After a bark, Xiao Lan leaped down from the branch, pounced into the grass, ran wildly, and disappeared in a flash.
He Xi, sitting on Xiao Lan's back, was laughing heartily. It seemed she had experienced the joy of riding a dog. She just hoped it wouldn't be... never mind.
He Li smacked his lips and turned back.
"Kull, why are you standing so far away? It's okay, the dog just went crazy."
Kull furrowed his brows slightly. Is the dog crazy, or are you crazy, or are you both crazy?
He Li ignored Kull, walked forward, picked up a piece of poplar branch, scanned it with his watch, and sent it back to Binjiang.
"It's getting dark, let's go. The results in Binjiang will be out soon."
Kull carefully looked at He Li, found that he had returned to normal, and put away his dual blades.
"Okay, let's go back first and wait for tomorrow's results."
The two walked back for more than ten minutes. When they returned to the car, Xiao Lan was already lying on the ground, panting with its tongue hanging out. He Xi seemed to have had enough and had left.
He Li squatted down, patted Xiao Lan's head, and comforted it, "You've suffered. Get in the car, get a good night's sleep tonight, everything will pass."
Kull didn't take He Li back to the Spirit Management Association because it was too far. He drove dozens of kilometers directly back to his home in Taza County.
Kull said happily, "I've already informed my family to slaughter a sheep. Tonight, we'll have roast whole lamb and stewed yak meat."
He Li said sincerely, "Thank you for inviting me to your home."
"He Li, you are not only my friend but also a comrade who fights alongside me. Don't be polite."
He Li nodded, "Xiao Lan, bring me my backpack."
Xiao Lan carried the backpack from the back seat and handed it to He Li.
He Li opened the backpack and took out a long saber with a black hilt and scabbard. He Li pushed out the blade with his thumb, and a cold glint flashed.
"Kull, this saber is a spirit energy weapon. Its total length is three feet two inches, the blade is two feet four inches, the hilt is seven inches, the blade is one inch wide, the tip is upturned with a reverse edge. The whole saber weighs two pounds and two ounces, forged using the three-layer steel forging method. The exterior is thousand-layer Damascus, and the core is spirit energy conductive material. It's very suitable for chopping, slashing, and stabbing. It's a saber I... a saber I really like. I'm giving it to you."
"No, no, no, this is your weapon, I can't take it. My saber is very good, very handy."
"No, no, no, you must accept it, otherwise I'll be too embarrassed to visit your home."
"No, no, no, inviting friends to my home makes me very happy."
"No, no, no, I won't feel comfortable visiting without a gift. If you don't want the saber, I also have three grenades and five rocket launchers..."
...
"No, no, no! Damn it, He Li! Where's my saber! Why is there only one left!"
...