Chapter Eighty-Five: The Old Demon Emerges from the Mountain

On the previous page, it was said that Tuolibao had failed to invite his master to come down the mountain. On the way down, he ran into Li Xiong and the others.

After overhearing their conversation, he ground his teeth in hatred and came up with a vicious scheme: he would use his master’s hand to have Li Xiong killed.

Secretly turning back into the mountain, he took out a fire starter halfway up the slope and set a blaze.

In no time, the wind fed the flames and the flames borrowed the wind’s might, until the whole forested mountain was roaring in fire.

He himself then rushed up the mountain in panic and reported to his master, “Master, disaster! Murong Yan and Ye Feng, hearing that you are this disciple’s master, have sent a foolish boy to set the mountain on fire. They say they will burn you to ashes and remove future trouble at the root!”

The Purple-Robed Demon Lord was still wondering what was going on.

Where had this thick smoke come from on the mountain? It was so choking that one could hardly keep one’s eyes open.

At those words, he flew into a towering rage at once.

Rising to his feet, he shouted, “Murong Yan, Ye Feng, you little brats, you truly do not know the height of heaven or the depth of earth! You are too far! I, this demon lord, have yielded at every turn, yet you press harder and harder. Do you really think I fear you?! Disciple, lead the way. Even if I must stake five thousand years of cultivation, I will go down and wipe out the arsonist!”

Tuolibao was so delighted he nearly jumped for joy.

But he kept his expression unchanged, putting on a fully justified and righteous air as he said, “Master, come! This disciple will take you there. I’d like to ask them: if they have a grievance, it is with me, Tuolibao. Why make things difficult for my master?!”

The master and disciple descended the mountain and saw that foolish Li Xiong was still at the foot of the mountain, grinning happily at the fire.

The book explains in passing that Li Xiong had originally been taken away by that small cavalry unit, but when he learned a fire had broken out in the mountain, his curiosity was instantly piqued.

Ah, his playfulness rose up, and he would not leave.

He insisted on staying to see things through.

The cavalry squad leader saw that the blaze was strangely formed and felt that this was no place to linger. He hurriedly urged Li Xiong to leave.

But Li Xiong refused; even if they tried to drag him, he would not go.

Besides, how could these few cavalrymen possibly drag him away?

They could only stand beside him and watch.

When the Purple-Robed Demon Lord saw this, his rage surged even higher. He shouted, “Hey, you wild boy, did you set this fire?!”

If it was not you, Li Xiong, then just say so! Wouldn’t that clear things up?

But Li Xiong looked the newcomer up and down and felt that he looked odd and did not seem like a good man.

Then he saw Tuolibao standing nearby.

At once his temper flared. Pointing at the Purple-Robed Demon Lord, he said contemptuously, “Y-yes... yes... yes, I set the fire, so w-what?! T-this old monster there is your... your... your what? You... you dare protect him? Do you... do you want to die?!”

At this, the Purple-Robed Demon Lord let out a cold snort and cursed, “Wild boy, you are far too ungrateful! You dare swagger before me without knowing your place. Just how many heads do you have?!”

Li Xiong laughed and touched his own head. “H-heads? O-one... one head, of course!”

Only then did he suddenly realize the other man was insulting him.

His face changed in an instant, and he lunged forward viciously. “Old... old... old man, I’ll... I’ll rip off your head!”

Who would have thought that by the time he lunged, the Purple-Robed Demon Lord was already nowhere to be seen?

Li Xiong pounced on empty air and nearly stumbled to the ground.

He looked up and searched all around, only to see that the Purple-Robed Demon Lord had moved behind him.

“Old... old... old man, if... if you’ve got guts, don’t run!”

Li Xiong was even more furious. Cursing loudly, he swung his chain hammer and smashed it toward the Purple-Robed Demon Lord!

That strike was as swift as a meteor; how could an ordinary man evade it?!

Yet when the hammer came down, the Purple-Robed Demon Lord’s figure vanished once again.

“Wild boy, stop looking. This lord is behind you. Come, come! Strike me again with that hammer and see whether you can harm me even a little!”

Li Xiong was dumbstruck. This old fellow was far too fast, even more elusive than a ghost.

It looked as though he would gain no advantage today.

“Old... old... old man, I... I... I won’t fight today. Y-you... you can go!”

Li Xiong put away his hammer and said carelessly.

“No, no! Come, come! Strike this lord with one more hammer. When you have made it three strikes, then this lord will make a move. That way people will not say I bullied a junior!”

At once the Purple-Robed Demon Lord grew anxious and said hurriedly.

He was unwilling to let Li Xiong off so easily, but because of appearances he could not simply strike directly.

What he did not know was that Li Xiong, though foolish in appearance, was sly at heart.

While saying, “You go, you go!”, he suddenly lunged in a bear hug and clamped the Purple-Robed Demon Lord tightly in his arms.

“Y-you... y-you... fall... fall down for me!”

With both hands he strained, trying to slam the Purple-Robed Demon Lord to the ground.

Who would have imagined that the Purple-Robed Demon Lord stood like a great mountain, utterly unmoved?

“Old... old... old monster! Wha... what kind of demon trick are you using?!”

Li Xiong erupted in rage. Since he could remember, it seemed there had never been anything he could not lift; yet today he had met his match.

So he strained even harder, pushing and kicking, every ounce of strength in his body brought to bear.

But he still could not budge the Purple-Robed Demon Lord even the slightest bit.

Instead, sweat poured over Li Xiong from head to toe.

“Wild boy, have you had enough?! It is this lord’s turn now, is it not?!”

The Purple-Robed Demon Lord looked at Li Xiong before him and said coldly.

As the words fell, the purple robe swiftly swelled outward.

In no time at all, he had broken free of Li Xiong’s embrace.

“Old... old... old monster, y-you... you’re asking for a beating!”

Li Xiong still refused to服 and stepped back two paces, then swung his chain hammer and struck again.

The great iron hammer shot forward like a meteor chasing the moon, slamming straight toward the old purple-robed demon.

Then came a dull boom.

The hammer struck squarely against the purple robe.

A huge hollow caved in, then instantly rebounded, hurling the hammer back like lightning to Li Xiong’s chest.

With a clang, sparks flew as the blow drove Li Xiong back two steps.

“Old... old... old monster. Y-you... you’re ruthless!”

Having taken his own hammer back, Li Xiong suffered no real injury, but humiliation turned to fury. Instead of retreating, he surged forward, brandishing the chain hammer and lunging again with ferocity.

“Wild boy, you’re courting death!”

The Purple-Robed Demon Lord’s face turned ashen. As he spoke, the chain hammer had already been evaded.

At the same time, a fly-whisk had flashed out and struck Li Xiong in the waist.

With a slap, it landed squarely.

At first Li Xiong treated it as he always did, as though the blow were nothing, and still wanted to rush in.

But who would have thought that this fly-whisk was made of some unknown material? Though his skin showed no wound and not a single hair was harmed, the flesh beneath burned with searing pain, as if scraped by a steel brush.

Li Xiong let out a long howl, unable to endure the pain.

Slap!

Slap!

Slap!

And then several more lashes followed, each strike from the fly-whisk landing on Li Xiong’s body and burning through him from within.

He howled again and again, his whole body spinning helplessly like a top.

“Not good, everyone attack together!”

Seeing the situation turn dire, the cavalry squad leader ordered his men forward.

“Old monster, release our General Li!”

The soldiers rushed in en masse.

Before they could even get close, Tuolibao met them with his steel-point spear.

There were only the sounds of clanging metal, flesh pierced through, and screams.

In the blink of an eye, blood splattered across the scene, and more than a dozen soldiers fell.

“Fall back!”

The cavalry squad leader knew they had met a formidable enemy this time. Preserving their strength was paramount, so he hurriedly called for retreat.

The remaining soldiers withdrew at once.

But Tuolibao’s spear was as fast as lightning.

Before they had even stepped back two paces, Tuolibao had already stabbed each of them dead one by one.

The corpses toppled from their horses.

With no one to direct them, the horses scattered and fled.

Seeing that things were going badly, the cavalry squad leader turned his horse and fled as well.

How could Tuolibao allow him to escape and return to deliver the news?

At once he took a long bow from the saddle and drew a long arrow from the quiver, bent the bow, and loosed.

With a whoosh, the arrow flew out so fast it was almost impossible to see.

Only a cry of misery was heard.

It lodged squarely in the cavalry squad leader’s shoulder and back, the fletching still trembling violently.

With a clatter, his blade fell to the ground, and he collapsed across his horse’s back, already unconscious as the horse fled in terror.

Tuolibao let out a cold, satisfied laugh, then looked again at Li Xiong, who had already collapsed unconscious on the ground.

“Master, your skill is indeed extraordinary! This fellow has killed many of my generals; he truly deserves his punishment!”

Tuolibao was shocked and delighted, speaking flattering words to curry favor with his master.

“Bao’er, come with me. I will help you guard Fallen Goose Ridge and make them pay back this grievance!”

Tuolibao was overjoyed and nodded repeatedly. Only then did he glance at his master and see that he had no mount, so he hurriedly said, “Master, if you do not mind, your disciple can buy another fast horse, and we can return together!”

The Purple-Robed Demon Lord laughed and said, “Disciple, when have you ever seen your master ride a horse? Close your eyes, grasp the corner of your master’s robe, and when I tell you to open them, then open them. As for your warhorse, let it be.”

Tuolibao was delighted beyond measure. He bowed with clasped fists and said, “Master’s divine powers are vast. If this disciple can borrow even a trace of your radiance, that would be the best of all! It would also spare me from having to storm the camp and fight my way through. Only this wild boy...”

He looked down at Li Xiong on the ground and saw that he was still twitching faintly, and immediately grew uneasy.

“Rest assured. This boy’s internal organs are all ruined. He will not live two days. Let him fend for himself.”

The Purple-Robed Demon Lord comforted Tuolibao and did not think at all of Li Xiong.

“Oh, Master is indeed masterful. This disciple admires you beyond measure!”

Hearing this, Tuolibao was overjoyed and bowed once more with clasped fists.

“Haha...”

The Purple-Robed Demon Lord was exceedingly pleased with himself. Throwing back his head, he laughed heartily and said, “Disciple, what is this worth? Your master will certainly help you vent this anger properly. Let Murong Yan, Ye Feng, and their ilk have a good taste of my power and learn that there is always a higher heaven above the heavens and another demon beyond the demons, so they will never dare look down on us again!”

At once Tuolibao took hold of the Purple-Robed Demon Lord’s robe corner, closed his eyes, and was borne upward into the sky.

He only felt his feet suddenly leave the ground.

Then the wind roared past his ears, and his clothes seemed to be torn away by the air. After a while, he heard his master say, “Open your eyes.”

Tuolibao opened them and saw that he was already at the summit of Fallen Goose Ridge.

“Many thanks, Master!”

Overjoyed, Tuolibao immediately dropped to his knees.

“Rise, rise. What need do master and disciple have for such formalities?”

The Purple-Robed Demon Lord quickly helped him up with both hands.

Thus, as the Purple-Robed Demon Lord launched into a slaughter, it set the stage for Xu Yaozu to invite the founding master out of seclusion, and for the two great experts to clash in battle at Fallen Goose Ridge.