Hi-hi-hi…
Among the cawing like laughter, Li Jingtian’s eyes darted to the afterimages popping around him with all the seriousness he could muster.
Hu~
Then, a sudden wind spelled the arrival of Sly Demon giving him a resounding slap from the front before vanishing into thin air.
Li Jingtian couldn’t quite make out what just happened, but the reddening cheek bore testament.
“So fast!” Zhuo Fan cried out.
But it was far from over. It was now Violent Demon’s turn. He gave Li Jingtian a slap from the front again before completing his attack with the same vanishing act. What was even more astonishing was that he hit the same spot.
It followed with Scrooge Demon and Wimp Demon, slapping him in the same place.
Li Jingtian’s anger got the better of him as he roared, “You damn little shits, what you think you’re doing hitting the same cheek? Come on, here’s the other!”
“Hi-hi-hi, what’s our entertainment got to do with you?” A cackle came from all around in waves.
While Zhuo Fan squinted with a thoughtful gaze, “Curious, Violent Demon was never that fast. How is it that his speed increased even when he is still injured? Yet, his attack got weaker. I wonder…”
“Elder Li, let them hit you!” Zhuo Fan shouted.
Li Jingtian was stumped, [Haven’t I been hit enough already as it is?] But thinking about it again, he soon realized Zhuo’s aim and grinned.
[You little shits, I will pay those slaps back a hundred fold!]
Taking a deep breath, Li Jingtian roared, “You bunch of mongrels, let’s see if you have the guts to hit my other cheek!”
“Hi-hi-hi, no we won’t. We’ll only hit just that one!”
The four’s creepy laughter echoed again, followed by another slap on Li Jingtian’s cheek.
Pff!
But before the hand could even tickle Li Jingtian’s face, a large hand clutched it. Li Jingtian snickered at Sly Demon, his eyes sparkling, “Damn bastard, didn’t I tell you to hit me on the other cheek? Now, you’re mine!”
“Curses, we’ve been had!”
Gasping, Sly Demon found that Li Jingtian’s words were all to goad him into slapping again. Now that Li Jingtian knew Sly Demon’s target, regardless of the speed employed, it was easy to catch him when Li Jingtian’s guard was up.
This was also Zhuo Fan’s plan when he spoke out before.
Li Jingtian’s grip tightened. There was no way Sly Demon could get out of Li Jingtian’s grip, not when he was three layers weaker. The other demons shifted around at high speed as they panicked, “Damn, we’ve been had…”
“He-he-he, time to meet your maker! Your unity tactic is done for!” Snickering, Li Jingtian slapped Sly Demon’s head.
With such power behind it, especially when it came from the 6th layer of Radiant Stage Li Jingtian, it was really a one way ticket to the afterlife!
Any one of the demons was clear on that.
The Sly Demon started struggling and crying out, “I’m dead, so dead! For real this time…”
“Oh god, oh gods, I’m gonna die…” But the oddest thing happened. In this critical moment the other three demons didn’t rush to save him, but were crying out in fear.
Zhuo Fan’s eyes flashed, his mind making the right adjustments to his train of thoughts.
Hu~
Yet, this mighty palm hit nothing but air in the end. Li Jingtian was shocked, watching Sly Demon’s head sinking into his shoulders to dodge the bullet.
When the demon’s head popped back out, he sighed relieved.
“God darn it! You’re in my hand already, so why won’t you just die!”
Li Jingtian was consumed by rage as he launched a flurry of punches. But with incredible shock, Sly Demon, despite having his arm in a vise, twisted around in this limited space he was in, dodging every one of those deadly attacks.
Li Jingtian was slackjawed. [What the hell is this? What kind of movement is that?]
But what truly took the cake was the three demons around still crying around in fear, but were not lending Sly Demon any helping hand. Were they abandoning him or confident in their brother’s power?
In a blink, Li Jingtian was at a complete loss. These Four Scheming Demons were freaks in the truest sense of the word.
“Elder Li, watch out?” Zhuo Fan warned and Li Jingtian saw the other three demons flying at him.
But their speed was far from fast as before, giving Li Jingtian time to react. As his hand still held onto Sly Demon, his leg swept.
But what happened next was downright bizarre.
The three demons actually closed their eyes in fear, then leaned back to dastardly avoid the kick while still going straight for Li Jingtian.
[What. The. Hell? What just happened? Not only can I not make sense of anything they’re doing, I can’t even anticipate their moves.] One minute they were charging in with all bravado, the next they were flitting all over the place in fear.
But one thing was certain, they were on the advantage.
“Ah!”
With a cry, Violent Demon grabbed Li Jingtian’s hand that held Sly Demon and chomped.
Li Jingtian let go from the pain and Sly Demon rejoiced in his newfound freedom.
The four demons then returned into circling Li Jingtian at high speeds and letting out eerie laughter.
He may be a martial fanatic, and fearless in face of adversity, but fighting these four demons had him at his wits’ end. He couldn’t make heads or tails when they were weak or strong. It was like hitting frickin’ cotton.
The four noticed his predicament and laughed as they charged, “Brothers, let’s fleece this guy and shame him thoroughly!”
Oh!
The other cheered and Li Jingtian turned serious, eyeing the afterimages around him. But then, they up and vanished, appearing instead as hazy images, as if ghosts from the Underworld.
Li Jingtian punched.
He hit nothing, of course, while the ghosts wrapped around his body. In a blink, his jacket and storage ring left him soundlessly. As if swallowed by those gray ghosts.
When the ghosts drew away, they once again let out creepy laughter. Li Jingtian was left in flimsy undergarments, watching his surroundings in shock.
“I see. So this is their Unity Tactic. As expected from a demonic skill, striking at the heart of things!” Zhuo Fan took a deep breath and shouted, “Elder Li, we are not their match. Retreat at once!”
Zhuo Fan was the first to fly away. Li Jingtian gnashed his teeth and snorted in anger before following suit.
The four figures reappeared as they watched the pair leave with smiles.
“Humph, that old geezer thinks he can get away after humiliating us? Hi-hi-hi, brothers, charge!”
Oh!
Under Violent Demon’s order, they all cried in unison and gave chase. They were not in the least bit slower than Li Jingtian, perhaps even faster.
Li Jingtian threw a look back and paled as he arrived next to Zhuo Fan, “They are clearly in the 3rd layer of Radiant Stage so how are they surpassing my speed? They’ll soon be upon us!”
“No worries, that’s only the third brother’s cultivation method, which focused on speed alone. Even if he does catch up to us, he can’t do jack squat!” Snickering Zhuo put on an ambiguous smile.
Li Jingtian was startled, but clueless nonetheless.
“Elder Li, once they get close, we’ll finish them off in a blink!”
“What?” Li Jingtian cried, “How?”
He had tangled with the four at full power to no avail. He couldn’t find any real way of dealing with these weird quadruplets.
Zhuo Fan said, “They use a unity tactic, so getting rid of one is of course impossible. You need to defeat all four of them at the same time. Going after just one is pointless!”
“Then how…” Li Jingtian muttered.
Smiling, Zhuo Fan raised an eyebrow, “Elder Li, do you recall Wraith Style’s third move?”
Li Jingtian’s eyes lit up and nodded, as both of them broke out in laughter.
“Then… shall we do this together?” Li Jingtian asked.
“Of course. Rather be safe than sorry!”
Zhuo Fan smiled and his hand made a sign, with Li Jingtian copying him.
The four demons were right behind the two when Violent Demon screamed, “You two better give up and I may be inclined to spare your miserable lives!”
“And, and, pay us for the broken bone staff…” Scrooge Demon added.
With a snicker, Zhuo Fan and Li Jingtian shared a look and nodded. They grounded to a halt and shot straight for the oblivious four, shouting in unison, “Wraith Style’s third move, Necro Dragon’s Screech!”
Roar!
With two draconic roars, two soul ripples shot straight for Four Scheming Demons.
They cried in shock, having not expected them to know a sound martial art, the bane of their unity tactic.
A pity realizing wasn’t the same as escaping it.
In a blink, the mighty sound waves crashed into the four. They couldn’t even wail their pain as they spat blood and toppled over like logs.
Even the forest beneath them was affected, turning into a place of death as animal corpses littered the earth. After all, this was the combined attack of two souls! How could the average man handle it?
These four 3rd layer Radiant Stage experts were no different!
Peace soon instilled once again, though carrying with it an eerie tune. Zhuo Fan and Elder Li watched the dead eyed four demons on the ground and gave a smug smile.
Li Jingtian in particular. He snatched back his jacket and storage ring from Scrooge Demon and cursed, “Goddamn it, what are you doing still holding them when you’re out like a light? No wonder he’s Scrooge Demon. Well let me return the favor and make you demons in the truest sense by sending you all to hell!”
“Elder Li, wait!”
Zhuo Fan rushed to stop him, “I still have use for the four. Seal their cultivation for now!”
Li Jingtian nodded after a pause, catching Zhuo Fan’s drift.
[He-he-he, the four’s hell has only just begun…]