The group walked quickly and in unison, which clearly showed that they were an organized and disciplined group.
As they passed David and Jiang Xuelan, the leader glanced at David, his gaze momentarily falling on the Dragon Slayer Sword at his waist, before averting his gaze without saying a word and leading his men to continue their rapid march north.
The group quickly disappeared into the distant hills, leaving behind only deep footprints and a cloud of dust.
Jiang Xuelan frowned slightly while looking in the direction the group disappeared in: “These people don’t seem to be cultivators.”
“It doesn’t seem so.”
David nodded. “Their steps were too synchronized. Although their magical artifacts and robes were not uniform, the short swords at their waists were standard, indicating that they were from the same organization. And”
He paused, then added, “They carry the aura of the gods.”
“The gods?” Jiang Xuelan was a bit surprised. “People from the Fire God lineage?”
“Don’t know at all.”
David shook his head. “Let’s go, ignore them.”
David averted his gaze and continued walking north.
The two walked for about an hour, and the hills gradually became steeper and the dirt road became narrower until it finally disappeared at the rocky shore.
The map shows that there is no road from here onwards, and you can only rely on your sense of direction to continue heading northeast.
Just as David was about to take out the map jade scroll to confirm his direction, he suddenly heard a strange sound coming from ahead.
The sounds were chaotic, including screams, the clanking of weapons, and the roars of wild animals.
The roars were deep and mighty, like the roars of huge, raging beasts, and each roar made the ground tremble slightly.
Jiang Xuelan heard it too; His hand was already on the hilt of his sword, and he stared warily in the direction where the voice had come from.
David closed his eyes and extended his divine sense forward. After a while, he opened his eyes, a glimmer of surprise flashing across his purple eyes.
There are people ahead.
He said, “More than twenty people surrounded a demonic beast. The beast was no ordinary creature; its entire body was engulfed in flames. Twenty-plus cultivators had attacked it long ago without success, and many of them had been injured.”
“Over twenty people ganging up on one monster and still not being able to defeat it?” Jiang Xuelan asked in surprise. “What kind of monster is so powerful?”
David didn’t answer, because he felt a powerful and primitive fire aura radiating from those cultivators.
But they are not gods.
They are devils.
Moreover, they belonged to the Fire Demon bloodline within the Demon race.
“Let’s take a look.” Without hesitation, David led Jiang Xuelan towards the direction the voice came from.
Instead of walking arrogantly, the two approached the battlefield quietly under the cover of rocks and bushes.
After passing a small hill, the sight before her left Jiang Xuelan breathless.
The valley was relatively flat, surrounded by steep cliffs. The valley floor was covered in gravel and withered grass, and the ground was pitted and uneven from trampling.
In the middle of the valley, a giant monster roared.
The monster was around three zhang tall and more than five zhang long. Its shape resembled a lion magnified many times over, but its body was hairless and covered in a layer of dark red scales.
Crimson flames burned on the scales, flowing across their surface like magma flowing over cracked ground.
Its head was enormous, with a single curved horn growing from the center of its forehead. The horn was covered in even more fierce flames, the color of which had changed from dark red to dark gold. The temperature was so high that even the air was distorted and deformed by the heat.
Its four claws were deeply embedded in the ground, and every time it swung its claws, it left grooves several feet deep in the rocks. The rocks in the groove melt due to high temperatures to become red magma, which flows slowly.
Its tail was about two zhang long, and at the tip was a bone hammer covered in thorns, which was also burning with flames.
Every time it swung, the bone hammer hit the ground, creating a crater more than ten feet deep, with debris and flames flying everywhere.
“This” Jiang Xuelan stared at the demonic creature, a glimmer of surprise flashing across her eyes, “Lava Lion King?”
“You know him?” David asked in a low voice.
“I’ve seen it in ancient books.” Jiang Xuelan’s voice was very low. “The Lava Lion King is an ancient monster, and it is said that it has the bloodline of an ancient fire beast flowing within its veins.”
A fully grown Lava Lion King had combat power equivalent to a rank three or four Gold Immortal, and its scales had extremely strong resistance to holy light and divine fire, making it extremely difficult to deal with. These creatures were nearly extinct in ancient times; I never thought he would still be in Eighteenth Heaven.
The Golden Immortal Realm ranked third to fourth.
David’s gaze swept across the Lava Lion King, estimating its combat power.
It was clear that this Lava Lion King had not yet grown up and did not yet have the combat strength equivalent to a rank four Gold Immortal.
Otherwise, these farmers would have died long ago.
However, with his current strength, eliminating this monster would not be difficult.
However, the cultivators currently surrounding the Lava Lion King clearly did not have such strength.
FAQ Novel
Q: Why does David choose to travel on foot rather than flying?
A: David decides against flying to maintain a lower profile and better observe the numerous hidden dangers of the Eighteenth Heaven, such as ancient souls, spatial rifts, and lurking creatures, prioritizing safety over speed.
Q: What specific dangers are revealed on David’s path north of Fire Crow City?
A: David’s journey north will lead him through the treacherous Qingyun Mountains and an area explicitly marked as ‘infested with monsters’ before reaching the Northern Dark Abyss, underscoring the severe challenges ahead.
What strategic insights do you think David will uncover by choosing this more perilous, yet cautious, travel method?