Chapter Twenty-Four: Kill, Kill, Kill—Transforming into a Demonic Beast

[Classic of the Great Wilderness, Words of the Ancient Sage: Either one erupts in silence, or one perishes in silence. Either one despairs in destruction, or one goes mad in destruction.]

...

September 30th, 515th year of the Qian Calendar.

Dawn.

Liu Yuanying led a group of people toward the west side of the town. Among the followers behind him, seven or eight stood out—they were exceptionally tall and burly, each shouldering a massive hammer.

The town mayor, Yang Chun, hurried to catch up, bringing along the local toughs who usually followed his lead.

"Young Master Liu, must you really go this far? If I tell them to leave, isn't that enough?" Yang Chun bent over, his face twisted with worry.

"My uncle died because he hesitated," Liu Yuanying replied with a faint smile. "So much time wasted, so much silver spent, and in the end? Their whole family refused to move, and my uncle was split in two. Yang Chun, my father spared your life only because you're a dog who knows how to obey, selfish and ruthless. But what happens when a dog stops listening to its master?"

"Slaughter it, cook it, and eat dog meat!"

Liu Yuanying walked on with his hands clasped behind his back. The dog beside him barked twice, showing its vicious fangs.

Yang Chun shivered.

Soon, they arrived in front of the small tavern.

"Start smashing from here. Smash it to pieces. If anyone tries to stop you, beat them. If they die, it's on me."

Liu Yuanying waved his hand.

The morning sunlight offered little warmth.

To the north of town, in the fields, Yang Fan's shadow stretched long.

He hadn’t yet entered the town when he saw clouds of dust rising in the west.

"This is bad!"

Yang Fan narrowed his eyes, tossed his bundle aside, and accelerated. In a flash, he leapt onto a rooftop, bounding swiftly from house to house.

From a distance, he could see the thick dust where his home was. Many houses had already collapsed.

Screams of agony rang out.

As Yang Fan arrived, he saw Yang Dazui hurled through the air, blood spraying from his mouth as he crashed to the ground, unmoving. Aunt Chen lay in a pool of blood, with Erni sobbing over her. His seventh uncle was desperately clawing at the ruins, his hands bloody and raw, yet his son and grandson were nowhere to be seen. Granny Wang lay on the ground, her chest caved in. Lin Dashan crawled on the earth, struggling in vain to stand, blood trickling from his lips. Aunt Lin, with a broken leg, was shouting for help.

He saw Lin Xiaoyu being dragged toward Liu Yuanying by a young man.

Yang Fan’s mind went blank for a moment, his whole being ignited.

He never considered himself a good person, and had always been a bit indifferent. Yet over these past days, he had truly become "Yang Fan," seeking both cultivation and a decent life.

He had come to regard Uncle Dashan’s family and Big Tiger’s family as his own.

But now—what was he witnessing?

Rage boiled in his chest like a volcano.

A murderous intent surged into his mind.

His eyes turned red.

Clang...

The Black Cloud Blade was drawn.

"Die!"

Yang Fan shouted, leaping from the rooftop. In the crimson dawn, the blade flickered with a cold, ghostly light.

Slice...

With a single stroke, the young man dragging Lin Xiaoyu was split in two.

"Brother Fan!" Lin Xiaoyu was stunned at first, but when she saw it was Yang Fan, her fear and grief burst into tears. Her expression changed, and in a hoarse voice she pleaded, "Brother Fan, run! Run! They’re demons—real demons!"

"We’re not afraid. Leave it to me." Yang Fan pulled Xiaoyu behind him, giving her a reassuring smile before gently pushing her toward Uncle Dashan.

He then turned his gaze to Liu Yuanying, who had recoiled in shock.

The big dog that always stayed by Liu’s side now stood upright, baring its long fangs.

"Taifeng Tavern is already yours. There’s plenty of land in the south, east, west, and north of town—you can seize as much as you like. Why target our homes?"

Yang Fan advanced, the Black Cloud Blade trailing blood as it pointed to the ground.

Hide? Consequences?

To hell with them!

Liu Yuanying laughed. "Who would have thought that a small town would have someone like you? Truly unexpected. Fine, I’ll give you a reason—this spot’s in a prime location, connects east and west, lots of foot traffic, plenty of space for development. Ha! But honestly? That’s all nonsense. I want it—because I like it!"

"You dare kill my men?"

"You’re quite something!"

"Take him down!"

With a wave of his hand, Liu Yuanying gave the order.

But Yang Fan had already moved first. With a stomp, the ground cracked as he lunged forward.

Yet his opponents were on guard, swiftly retreating.

Several of Liu's men moved to intercept, but they were no match for the Black Cloud Blade.

Slice...

One blow, and a man was cleaved in half.

Spinning on his heel, Yang Fan dodged attacks, his blade flowing with his movements, slitting another’s throat.

It was the Gale Blade Technique—a skill Yang Fan had long mastered and refined.

Amidst the fury, his speed was terrifying.

In the blink of an eye, he had slain six or seven men.

Each fell with a single strike.

Lin Dashan, barely able to sit up, was stunned in disbelief. Lin Xiaoyu, supporting him, wept with joy.

She helped her mother to join them.

"This kid is actually this strong?" Yang Dazui, slumped against a wall, was amazed.

He had sold Yang Fan the Black Cloud Blade, and though he didn't live here, he’d come to help out of a sense of justice—nearly getting himself killed in the process.

But the most shocked of all was Mayor Yang Chun.

His feelings were conflicted. He didn’t want Yang Fan to win, but he also didn’t want Liu Yuanying to run rampant.

"If he’s this strong, did he kill my son Xiang’er?"

The thought flashed through Yang Chun’s mind.

In just a short time, Yang Fan had killed nearly all of Liu Yuanying’s men. The few remaining retreated, their faces pale with fear.

"Uncle Liang, Uncle Xiong, trouble yourselves to take him down!"

Liu Yuanying frowned deeply.

Two middle-aged men stepped forward from behind him, long blades already drawn. At Liu's command, they charged, one from the left and one from the right.

"Two ninth-rank martial artists!"

Yang Fan met them head-on, unafraid.

Slice...

With one stroke, his blade tore through the air with a howl, forcing Uncle Liang to block—only to be knocked flying, his arm nearly shattered.

Swish, swish, swish...

Yang Fan spun to face Uncle Xiong. In just three exchanges, the man was slain by his blade.

"Young master, he’s not ninth-rank—he’s eighth-rank!" Uncle Liang’s voice was hoarse, tinged with despair.

Just now, he, Uncle Xiong, and Liu Yuanying had all judged Yang Fan to be ninth-rank at best. With their combined strength, plus Liu Yuanying’s timely intervention, they should have been able to take him down.

But a single clash had plunged him into hopelessness.

"Eighth rank!" Liu Yuanying’s face twisted. "He’s at most seventeen or eighteen—how could he be eighth-rank? Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"

"Uncle Dog, kill him! Eat your fill today!" Now that he knew Yang Fan’s strength, he addressed the big dog at his side, with a note of respect.

As Yang Fan was about to spring forward, his pupils contracted to pinpoints.

With his sense of the earth, he had long noticed the dog’s abnormality—its blood energy was thick and crimson, with an uncanny aura.

It was as strong as a ninth-rank martial artist.

But now, the dog’s body rapidly swelled, growing taller than a man in moments. Its blood energy surged, eclipsing even Yang Fan’s—by a wide margin. Combined with its massive size, it was even more terrifying.

Its white fur turned jet black.

It became a giant black dog, its fangs like daggers jutting from its lips, hideous and fearsome.

Most chilling of all was the baleful aura it exuded—it made the bravest shudder.

"Brother Fan, that’s a demon beast—a legendary demon beast! Be careful!" Yang Dazui, slumped against the wall, shouted in alarm. "Ferocious beasts can’t transform, but demon beasts can. They may even have special abilities—be careful!"

His warning ended in a roar.

The black dog grinned, revealing a disturbingly human mockery, saliva dripping from its mouth.

The next instant, it lunged.

Its paw, as broad as a fan, swung at Yang Fan’s head with a violent gust, faster than the eye could follow.

Bang...

Yang Fan was ready. His earth sense revealed every move. The Black Cloud Blade traced an arc, slashing the paw and leaving a gash.

But he couldn’t sever it—yet blood dripped nonetheless.

He was sent flying, stumbling seven or eight steps before regaining his footing. But then he narrowed his eyes in disbelief—the wound on the dog’s paw was already healing.

So this was a demon beast?

Terrifying regenerative power.

And monstrous defenses.

The black dog’s ferocity only grew. In an instant, Yang Fan sensed its blood energy surge to another level.

It moved—now even faster, almost beyond reaction.

The next instant, the black dog was upon him, paw crashing down with an overwhelming force.

The air itself groaned under the pressure.

Yang Fan’s breath caught, but his expression remained unchanged.

"Intimidate!"

A soul-shaking force seemed to cut through space itself, striking the black dog’s mind. It shuddered, froze, its whole body trembling.

It was afraid.

"Die!"

Yang Fan leapt, plunging his blade into the beast’s eye, driving it deep into its brain.

With a twist of his wrist and a kick to the dog’s head, he vaulted away.

The Black Cloud Blade came free, dragging out a massive eyeball. When he landed, red and white matter dripped from the tip of the blade.