Chapter Eighty-Four: A Second Invitation to the Purple-Robed Demon

After fleeing the encirclement, he spurred his horse and charged straight ahead.

Under the glittering canopy of stars, the road before him seemed utterly empty, not a single human shadow in sight, so still it might have been the grave itself.

The horse beneath him was not the peerless mount that the Unicorn Horse was, but it was still one of the finest steeds in all the world; it ran as though it could fly, the wind howling in both ears.

The cold blast that struck his body was icy to the bone, bleak as if it had come from the underworld.

The more afraid he became, the more he wondered whether an ambush lay ahead. To have escaped so easily could not, he felt, be as simple as it seemed.

Sure enough, before long he heard the sharp clack of wooden rattles from the road ahead.

He immediately reined in his warhorse.

Shading his eyes, he looked hard.

One glance was enough to make every hair on his body stand on end, and he was frozen stupid with terror.

Countless arrows were flying toward him from the front.

A black, dense sheet of them, like a swarm of locusts.

It turned out that Leaf Wind had already laid an arrow formation to seize him alive.

By then, he had nowhere to advance or retreat. He could only harden his heart and force his way forward.

He squeezed his horse with both legs and urged it on.

But the beast would not respond.

Even the horse had been frightened senseless; with stamping, retreating hooves, it refused to go forward.

There was no time left for thought, for the countless arrows were already upon him like lightning.

With a fierce resolve, he raised the single saber in his hand high and hacked hard at the horse's hindquarters.

The horse screamed.

That blow was merciless, carving a gaping wound more than an inch deep and over a foot long into the hindquarters, blood streaming down.

In pain, the horse gave a long neigh, all four hooves snapping upward as if wound by a powerful spring, and it bolted madly forward.

He whirled the two long spears and four sabers in his hands like six spinning windmills, shielding both himself and his mount as he charged on.

Though the arrows came thick and fast, they struck only his weapons with a clatter of ringing blows and were knocked aside.

For a moment they could do nothing to him at all, and not a hair on his body was harmed.

"Bring up the great-bow repeating crossbows!"

At the officers' command, the soldiers wheeled out more than a dozen monstrous killing machines, as if pushing handcarts: great-bow repeating crossbows.

What enormous contraptions they were.

The sight of them made him suck in a cold breath.

He had long heard that these things were used to deal with the demon soldiers in his own nation who flew through the sky. Each bolt was five feet long, as thick as a teacup, and could be fired upward to a range of more than two thousand feet.

What speed, what force they must have had.

He had never imagined they would be turned against him.

Before he could finish the thought, he heard a cry:

"Fire!"

One huge bolt after another shot out like a string of thunderclaps.

Even from far away he could feel a fierce blast of murderous energy rushing at him.

With three heads and six eyes, he fixed his gaze on the incoming shafts.

The instant they reached him, he smashed and blocked them with all his strength.

Then came a deafening crash.

In the still night it sounded like a bolt of thunder exploding, so loud it hurt the eardrums, and the force sent the bolt rolling far away.

At the same time, amidst the flying sparks, his ferocious face was briefly illuminated.

Even the horse beneath him could not withstand that force.

It staggered back several steps.

Then came more bolts, one after another, all of which he knocked aside in turn.

He could block them, yes, but those few shots in an instant left him exhausted, his sinews limp and his bones weak.

Even his horse could bear it no longer.

With a crack, its two hind legs gave way and it sank to the ground.

"My death has come!"

He was instantly stunned, staring blankly, no longer knowing how to resist.

At that very moment, a furious roar came from behind him: "You old... old... old fiend, don't... don't... don't run! Stop where you are for General Lion, or General Lion will tear your head off!"

It was the savage Lion God chasing after him.

"Stop! Stop! Don't shoot any more! Be careful not to harm General Lion!"

The righteous army officers on the opposite side were afraid they might accidentally wound him, so they hurriedly ordered the great-bow repeating crossbows to cease fire.

How could they know that Lion had cultivated a body impervious to blade and spear?

Even if they had known, these great-bow repeating crossbows were no ordinary weapons. If Lion could not withstand them, how could they answer to Leaf Wind?

Thus the barrage was halted, and that only benefited him.

The moment he heard it, he was overjoyed. He quickly tugged the reins and forced his horse forward, thinking: If I do not charge now, when will I ever?

He clamped the iron saddle beam with both legs and sent the horse crashing ahead.

In the blink of an eye, he had reached the archers. With another pull, the horse leapt up, all four hooves leaving the ground, flying over their heads and vanishing into the wasteland.

Having escaped, he fled in panic like a dog driven from home, like a fish that had slipped through the net, heading straight for Rooster-Crow Mountain.

Along the way he bought another swift horse, changing mounts as he went, and hurried forward without pause.

In less than three days he reached the foot of Rooster-Crow Mountain.

He tied up the newly bought horse and led his warhorse alone up the mountain to Purple Light Cave.

Before he could even speak to the child guarding the entrance, the boy had already darkened his face and said coldly, "Senior brother, Master has been waiting in the cave for a long time. He wants you to enter on your knees."

At that, he knew trouble was brewing. His master was truly angry, and once he went in, he had no idea what punishment awaited him.

There was no turning back now. He could only grit his teeth and go in.

So he dropped to both knees and advanced one step at a time, bowing at every step as he said, "Master, your disciple To Li Bao has come to pay respects."

Shortly after, he entered the cave and saw that his master, the Demon Venerable in the Purple Robe, had a face stretched longer than ever, his eyes blazing with anger. The moment he saw him, he snapped, "Bao'er, you secretly abducted your junior brother Xi down the mountain. Why have you not brought him back to your master at once?!"

At those words, tears burst from him. He kowtowed furiously and cried, "Master, you have wronged your disciple! Junior brother Wolfwood Xi was not abducted by me. He insisted on going down the mountain with me. I refused, and he ran off on his own."

The Demon Venerable in the Purple Robe heard this and his expression eased at once. In a gentler voice he said, "If that is so, Bao'er, do not grieve over this injustice. Your master will not blame you."

Yet instead, he sobbed all the harder.

The Demon Venerable frowned, growing impatient.

Still, he did not dare lash out.

After a long silence, he suddenly remembered something and asked, "Oh, right. Bao'er, where is your junior brother Xi? Why has he not returned with you?"

At this question, he broke into loud wailing and cried, "Master, Junior Brother Wolfwood Xi was killed by Murong Yan and Leaf Wind and the others! You must avenge him, revered elder!"

When the Demon Venerable in the Purple Robe heard this, he cried out in shock, clutching his chest and swaying so hard he nearly collapsed to the ground.

A moment later, tears poured down as he wept bitterly. "Xi'er, my Xi'er! I told you not to go down the mountain, but you would not listen, and now such a calamity has come to pass. How am I to bear this!"

After crying for some time, he wiped his tears and pressed on, "Bao'er, tell me how your junior brother died. How could people like Murong Yan and Leaf Wind strike so cruelly?!"

He too wiped away his tears and said through clenched teeth, "Junior Brother Wolfwood Xi wanted to go down the mountain with me, but I dared not agree and told him to come back and serve Master. Who knew he would go alone? In order to earn merit and use it as proof of allegiance, he transformed himself into Leaf Wind's likeness in the darkness of night, slipped into the enemy camp, and attempted to assassinate Murong Yan! But the scheme was discovered, and Murong Yan's general Mu Shijin hacked him in two with a single stroke!"

Before he had finished speaking, tears and mucus were already streaming down his face as he choked out, "Master, Junior Brother died so miserably! It was all my fault. If I had persuaded him to return, or reported it to you sooner, none of this would have happened! I am willing to accept punishment, but Murong Yan, Leaf Wind, and their ilk must not be spared. You must avenge him!"

When the Demon Venerable in the Purple Robe heard this, he sprang to his feet with a whoosh, teeth grinding, and said in fury, "Murong Yan, Leaf Wind, you have gone too far! I will kill you all!"

But the moment the words left his mouth, his mind abruptly went cold, his whole body went limp, and he slumped to the ground.

"Bao'er, you... you... you go. Heaven does not favor our Ten Thousand Demon Kingdom, and this is not the time for your master to descend into the world. Let us each take good care of ourselves."

His words were heavy with helplessness and frustration, and within his heart there remained only bitter unwillingness.

"Master, what... what is wrong with you?! Where is your courage? Your pride? Is this matter to be let go just like that?! You... you... you are not the one I knew!"

He was so angry he nearly burst his lungs. He had never imagined his master would turn out to be such a man of endless excuses and caution.

"Go, go. Your master still needs quiet cultivation. I am already a demon who has severed himself from the mortal world, and I can no longer concern myself with so much. I still advise you to kill less and do more good."

The Demon Venerable in the Purple Robe ordered him out, then sat down, closed his eyes, and began circulating his breath to practice his art.

At once the cave fell deathly silent, with not a sound at all.

Seeing that his master could not be persuaded, he no longer dared disturb him. He hurriedly apologized and slowly withdrew from the cave.

Outside, he instructed the boy to take good care of his master, then descended the mountain.

This time, he returned with nothing to show for it, his heart heavy and unhappy.

When he reached the foot of the mountain, he suddenly heard a stammering, booming voice speaking nearby. The voice sounded terribly familiar, and he quickly hid himself.

It was the savage Lion God, who had caught up at last.

The person speaking with him was the captain of a cavalry detachment from the righteous army. It turned out that Leaf Wind, fearing something might happen to Lion, had sent him to bring him back.

Lion stammered, "Hey! Y-y-you brat, the old o-o-old fiend ran here. How c-c-could your General Lion not chase him?"

Another voice said, "General, Deputy Commander Leaf said not to press too hard on a defeated enemy. He specially ordered me to invite you back, and also said that the demon To Li Bao cannot escape. There will be plenty more chances to capture him later."

Before those words were even finished, another trembling voice said, "M-m-my lord, b-b-brave hero, demon-slaying champion, c-c-could you let me down, p-please? I c-can't catch my breath being pinched like this!"

Then came a few more coughs. Judging by the sound, the man was no longer young, and seemed quite miserable.

Heavy impact, and an old man's cry of pain.

Then Lion's big rough voice boomed, "Old m-m-man, go on then! But if you dare trick your General Lion, your General Lion will rip your head off!"

The old man was still protesting when he heard that and immediately dared not make another sound.

Then the voice of the man speaking to Lion rang out again: "Was the old gentleman injured in the fall? Please accept our apologies. This hero of ours is simple-minded but not bad at heart. He's only trying to scare you. We ask that you do not take offense, and do not bother quarreling with him."

It sounded as though someone were helping the old man.

The old man then said over and over, "No offense, no offense! You are the ones killing demon soldiers; you are our own family. How could I take offense?"

Another order followed: "Someone, escort the old gentleman away!"

Then came the sound of several sets of footsteps, and the old man's uneven, heavy-light steps gradually faded into the distance.

Listening to all this, his brows knit tighter and tighter.

He thought to himself: This foolish fellow is truly not easy to deal with. He has actually chased me all the way here. At this rate, it will be difficult to leave Rooster-Crow Mountain. What am I to do? Could it be that I must hide here for the rest of my life?

The more he thought about it, the angrier he became.

Then, all at once, inspiration flashed through his mind. He said inwardly: Foolish boy, foolish boy, after chasing me all the way here, you have walked straight into your own death. Do not blame me for being ruthless. Today I will use your hand to force my master out of seclusion, and you will be the first I slaughter!

Whether Lion lives or dies, and how he forces his master to descend the mountain, will be revealed in the next chapter.