Chapter 682: Counterattack

Li Yi trusted the line's commander, Xiao Jianguo, enough to believe that no great yao had been stationed on the Demon God Line; since he guaranteed it, Li Yi had no objection to making the trip—after all, with his strength, killing a heavenly yao was no great feat.

Moreover, since intelligence about the Earth Line was so vital, he wanted to give his utmost before leaving.

Just half an hour after he accepted the mission.

At a gathering point along the line.

Soon, several familiar figures began arriving one after another.

He hadn't expected to see Wang Hu again so soon—yet Wang Hu remained as defiant as ever, the loss of the coin seemingly having no effect on him.

"Li Yi, we meet again," Wu Fu Ji Wu said with a smile, his tone toward Li Yi friendly.

Not only because Li Yi was powerful, but because both were warriors at heart, sharing a kindred spirit.

Li Yi gave a slight nod.

"For this reconnaissance mission into the Demon God Line, how do you plan to proceed?" said Ai Si, the woman in her robe, her voice calm.

Wang Hu crossed his arms, standing like a statue, and grunted: "Of course we capture a heavenly yao and interrogate him—that's the simplest, most effective method. If that fails, we smash the entire Demon God Line and see what the hell they're up to."

"That's awfully crude," said Ai Si.

"I'm already being civilized by not making the heavenly yao kneel and lick my boots."

Li Yi said: "Capturing a heavenly yao for interrogation is indeed the most effective method. We know nothing of the Demon God Line's situation, and this mission is dangerous—we can't stay long there, or even if no great yao remain on the line, others will come to reinforce them."

"Capture a heavenly yao? I've never tried it, but it sounds interesting," Ji Wu said with a light smile.

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go."

Wang Hu clenched his fists, raised his arm, then strode toward the Demon God Line—and within a few steps, his body shattered the air like a cannonball, shooting skyward.

He then surged forward at incredible speed toward the Demon God Line.

Li Yi, Ji Wu, and Ai Si had no choice but to follow, lest Wang Hu act recklessly alone.

"What technique is that?" Ai Si, flying like a swallow on the wind, glanced at Li Yi, who stood calmly atop a cloud, resembling a celestial immortal, and asked curiously.

"It's the Cloud Riding and Mist Driving Art," Li Yi replied.

Ai Si nodded slightly: "Excellent technique. If you have time, we can exchange insights on cultivation arts."

"No problem," Li Yi replied casually.

He knew far more than just Cloud Riding and Mist Driving—his hand held a Daoist Manual, and he had mastered countless Daoist arts, though he'd had no time to cultivate them; if he could trade for a few new, practical techniques, it might well be worthwhile.

After all, the Daoist Manual was worth only one spirit stone in the End-Dao Era—cheap as dirt.

As they flew, they soon left the Earth Line's range and saw ahead, dozens of kilometers away, a mountain range stretching across the horizon.

The range was towering, like a massive wall—moved there by great yao to serve as a defensive barrier.

As the Demon God Line drew nearer, they noticed something odd.

"It's too quiet. No patrols at all," Li Yi's expression shifted: "Before the great battle, if I'd come here, a heavenly yao would've spotted me immediately—but now, none have. Xiao Jianguo was right—the Demon God Line has problems."

"The heavenly yao and earthly yao of the Demon God Line have fierce tempers. If our aura appears here, they'd swarm and kill us instantly," Ji Wu added.

"In any case, watch out for hidden great yao. The rest isn't worth worrying about—even if we meet a heavenly yao, we can fight our way out," Li Yi said.

Soon.

The distance of dozens of kilometers closed.

They could now clearly see the state of the Demon God Line.

Only a few scattered half-yao stood guard—weak, fit only for sentry duty, unfit even for battle. Beyond them, earthly yao were rare, and heavenly yao nonexistent.

The entire line appeared abandoned, many sections left empty.

"No one left? Could something have happened to Tianyue Yao Wang?" Li Yi frowned.

He knew Earth was not fighting the entire Demon God Line, but merely the faction of one Tianyue Yao Wang.

Since he was a yao king, his power could not be vast.

Repeated losses of great yao—even a yao king couldn't sustain them. Seeing Earth now had a top-tier strength like Xuan Yue Zi, abandoning the assault on Earth altogether was entirely possible.

"Boom!"

At that moment, a deafening explosion shook the earth—the Demon God Line had been struck, a section of the mountain range collapsing in ruins.

"Wang Hu, what are you doing?" Li Yi asked.

Wang Hu replied: "Of course I'm making noise to draw out the heavenly yao. You expect me to search this entire mountain range by myself?"

Fair enough.

It wasn't a bad plan.

And as the commotion erupted,

the Demon God Line finally reacted.

The half-yao immediately sounded the alarm, and waves of demonic energy surged skyward from nearby locations.

"Earth's evolved ones have breached our line."

"Kill them. Four humans dare invade the Demon God Line? They're asking for death."

"Enemies approaching."

As voices echoed, five or six earthly yao arrived together. Seeing Wang Hu, Li Yi, and the others, they were furious—though they'd lost the last battle and suffered heavy losses, they still looked down on the evolved ones, believing Earth's strength was nothing.

"Only earthly yao? Not worth my time," Wang Hu snorted.

Beside him, Ji Wu said calmly: "I don't pick my meals. Five or six earthly yao are fine for a little sparring."

With that, he charged forward.

His terrifying blood qi erupted like a roaring dragon, illuminating half the sky, while his crushing fist intent and killing aura manifested visibly.

Under such pressure, the charging earthly yao froze in place.

"Worse—they're as strong as heavenly yao! We're outmatched. Retreat!"

They reacted quickly.

These weren't fools coming to die—they'd crossed the border to attack.

Now, they were the defenders; Earth's forces were the attackers.

Against overwhelming strength, stubborn resistance was foolish.

The earthly yao had flexible tactics: flee instantly when outmatched, swarm and kill when evenly matched.

(End of Chapter)