Chapter 45: Don't Treat Deep-Fried Dough Sticks as No Weapon

Lu Yang parried with a sword in one hand while seizing Qi Wu by the scruff of his neck with the other, flinging him backward. "There's a door behind you, run now!"

In the blink of an eye, Qi Wu was thrown three or four meters through the air. Just as he was about to crash to the floor, an invisible force surged beneath him, cradling his body and allowing him to land steadily.

"My deepest thanks for saving us, Immortal Master!"

With that, he immediately led A-Yue and the others running outside without the slightest hesitation.

They could not tell the cultivation levels of Lu Yang and the tiger demon, but they knew that when cultivators fought, whether they won or lost, the surrounding area would inevitably be devastated. With their mortal bodies, a single brush against such a clash would mean spending the rest of their lives either lying in bed or lying in the dirt.

The tiger demon's fur stood on end, and the character for "King" on its forehead glowed faintly. Bent on tearing Lu Yang to shreds, its assault grew increasingly ferocious.

"Let me assist you!"

The other two mountain god statues let out a resounding clamor. One held a scroll of scriptures, looking refined and scholarly, while the other radiated a brilliant light, resembling an enlightened high monk who had forged an immeasurable golden body!

Man Gu hefted the scriptures in his hand, finding them far too light. Putting them away, he drew two massive Great Xia Dictionaries from his robes.

"The grip feels just right."

From his youth, Man Gu had been taught that the Barbarian race was a race born for combat; weapons were not restricted to any fixed form, and anything could become a weapon as long as it felt handy.

Right now, the handiest things were books.

"Knowledge is power!"

Holding the two dictionaries like a pair of bricks, he slammed them toward the tiger demon's crown. The tiger demon was utterly dazed for a moment, having never witnessed such a weapon before.

Meng Jingzhou required no weapon at all, for his body was his ultimate weapon. He transformed into a golden figure and charged at the tiger demon. The ghost subservient to the tiger, standing right behind it, let out a wretched shriek as its body began to sizzle and smoke.

The Pure Yang Spiritual Root possessed miraculous efficacy against ghosts and phantoms!

Terrified out of its wits, the ghost stopped obeying the tiger demon's commands and fled the temple at top speed, vanishing into the curtain of rain.

Never before had the tiger demon been as furious as it was today.

That it preferred to avoid conflict with cultivators did not mean it feared them. It could well tear these arrogant brats to pieces and flee to another territory, and then see who could possibly hunt it down.

What a pity to lose this auspicious, blessed land of Mount Matsu.

Having reached this thought, the tiger demon no longer held back. Its tail swept toward Lu Yang with a howling screech. Should Lu Yang continue his offensive, he would inevitably suffer a grievous wound!

Lu Yang made a swift decision, drawing back his sword and retreating. The tiger's tail smashed into the ground, causing the entire temple to shudder.

The expressions of the three turned solemn. "It has already condensed the phantom of a Golden Core!"

For a cultivator to form a core, they first needed to condense a Golden Core phantom. Only when the core transitioned from illusion to reality would they officially step into the Golden Core stage.

The tiger demon before them was clearly in the process of forming its core; its strength was extraordinary!

"This sovereign is a half-step Golden Core powerhouse! How dare a flock of Foundation Establishment brats injure me!"

"Half-step Golden Core?" Lu Yang looked toward Meng Jingzhou, never having heard Eldest Senior Sister mention such a term.

The well-informed Meng Jingzhou explained, "It just means he hasn't formed a core yet, but he thinks highly of himself and refuses to be compared to the Foundation Establishment stage. So he stubbornly links himself to the Golden Core stage, though actual Golden Core cultivators wouldn't even give him a second glance. Quite pathetic, really."

The kind-hearted Man Gu added, "It's only natural that Brother Lu doesn't know. The senior brothers and sisters in the sect utterly despise this terminology. Why would forming a core require shifting from illusion to reality? Only mediocre fools resort to that; they all form their cores directly."

The honest Lu Yang looked at the tiger demon with pity. "He truly is pathetic."

The tiger demon grew more enraged, its eyes bloodshot. The cultivation it took pride in was being devalued to absolute worthlessness by these three youngsters.

The most crucial part was that these were their genuine thoughts!

If only they were just acting!

The tiger demon unleashed its spiritual pressure, seeking to suppress the three first.

To its surprise, all three remained completely unaffected. Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou even sneered, "We have endured the pressure of a Nascent Soul grand demon possessing ancient dragon blood. How could we possibly be affected by yours?"

Man Gu needed no explanation; his ancient Barbarian blood ensured he feared no pressure whatsoever. The Barbarians had run rampant in ancient times precisely because they feared neither heaven nor earth.

A pure display of savagery.

The tiger demon abandoned its attempt to mimic the human stance of standing on two legs. It dropped its forelimbs, crouching low to the earth with its chin nearly touching the ground, its tiger eyes glaring fixedly at the three.

Boom—

The tiger demon kicked off forcefully with its hind legs, launching itself like a cannonball straight at the trio. Holding the Cyan Peak Sword across his chest, Lu Yang barely managed to block the tiger's sharp claws.

Lu Yang spun backward, only then deflecting the tiger demon's momentum.

Unlike the painted-skin ghost before, the ghost's advantage lay in its bizarre nature rather than direct assault; once its identity was exposed, defeating it was not difficult. But the tiger demon was different.

The demon race was renowned for their physical bodies, not to mention that the tiger demon's cultivation surpassed theirs by nearly an entire major realm. For Lu Yang to block this strike with his sword without sustaining injury was an extraordinary feat.

Meng Jingzhou and Man Gu launched a pincer attack from the left and right. Runes flashed within the tiger demon's blood, transforming it into a gust of swift wind that flew above the two, delivering a fierce claw strike down upon them.

Clouds follow the dragon, wind follows the tiger; the tiger demon was naturally born with mastery over wind-attribute spells, an instinctive magic originating from its very lineage!

Unable to find leverage in midair, Meng Jingzhou clashed palms with the tiger demon. Man Gu used a dictionary to shield his chest, and half the dictionary was shredded by the tiger's claws.

Lu Yang seized the opportunity to thrust his sword forward with unyielding momentum. The long sword resembled a flash of lightning, reaching the tiger demon in the blink of an eye. He executed several stabs, but unfortunately, the tiger's hide was too thick, and Lu Yang's sword simply could not pierce through.

The tiger demon was just about to roar with laughter, mocking Lu Yang's ignorance in failing to break its defense, when several bursts of sword qi suddenly erupted within its body, causing fresh blood to stream out.

The eruptions occurred precisely where Lu Yang had struck!

Hidden force sword qi!

Lu Yang had no need to pierce his opponent; what he needed to do was inject the sword qi into the enemy's body!

This was where the demon race fell short compared to body cultivators. The ruggedness of a demon's body was merely external; their internal organs and blood vessels were incredibly fragile!

The tiger demon retreated, unwilling to clash directly with Lu Yang's sword again.

Yet Lu Yang was relentless. The tiger demon dodged the sword raised by his right hand, but his left hand whipped out a deep-fried dough stick, bringing it down squarely onto the tiger's head!

Originally, the tiger demon could have dodged it, but seeing that the opponent had brought out a dough stick, it let down its guard, inwardly mocking the youth for truly being a child who would pull out any random object to fight when desperate.

Then it was struck senseless.

What kind of dough stick was this!

Meng Jingzhou transformed his body into a massive mountain, taking advantage of the few seconds the tiger demon's head was dazed to ram straight into its waist. The tiger demon appeared calculating and experienced, but in truth, it was riddled with openings.

It adhered to a principle of non-combat, choosing flight over fight whenever possible, and had barely ever traded blows with anyone throughout its cultivation journey.

The tiger demon stumbled from the impact. Man Gu struck out, aiming right for its eyeballs. The tiger demon hastily turned its head to dodge, taking the hit on its cheek, which tore away a patch of fur.

Instinctively, the tiger demon lashed out with its tail, striking Man Gu. Man Gu kicked off in the direction of the sweep, sustaining very little damage.

In an instant, Lu Yang delivered several sword thrusts and followed up with a few more strikes from the dough stick, forcing the tiger demon to retreat repeatedly.

After this bout of exchange, it was actually the trio who held the upper hand.

The tiger demon realized that despite their youth and lower cultivation, these opponents possessed incredibly deep foundations, meaning a colossal power must stand behind them. The desire to retreat sprouted in its mind.

How could the three allow the tiger demon to escape? Releasing the tiger back to the mountain today would mean countless more people falling victim to it tomorrow.

It could not be allowed to escape!

"Do not push me too far!"

The tiger demon roared in fury. Sensing that the tiger demon intended to fight to the death, the three secretly put up their guard.

The tiger demon's eyes widened fully as it roared toward the outside of the temple, unleashing its final resort: "Wife, someone is trying to kill me!"