Chapter 27: In a Bind

"Damn it!" Xiao Ling'er felt a chill in her heart. She had already deeply grasped the truth in the other's words.

The stabbing pain at the wound even prevented her internal spirit energy from functioning properly, turning it chaotic and disordered.

It was clear that the Fish‑Head General had not used his full strength, but was toying with her. Had he gone all out, his first strike would likely have felled her.

"Don't even count on your clan; they can't escape either, and they'll soon be here to join you," he said, as the Fish‑Head General continued to wield his Cloud‑tooth Spear in attack.

Xiao Ling'er tried to summon internal flame toward the wound to disperse the toxin, but the closer the flame got, the deeper the toxin seeped. What had been a swollen arm now swelled along the entire limb, making movement even harder.

Seeing this, the Fish‑Head General laughed even wider.

"Useless. If it weren't for giving your clan a chance to flee, I could have kept playing longer, but now, you may as well die."

The words barely left his mouth when the Cloud‑tooth Spear in his hand gathered force again and shot toward Xiao Ling'er's chest. And

At the same time, on the other side, Shan saw his clan members safely retreat a certain distance, then resolutely turned and ran back, with only one thought in his mind: rescue Xiao Ling'er.

"Hurry back. If you encounter other members of the Human Race, have them report quickly, so we can be safer," he shouted to the hunting party, stopping them from halting and urging everyone to keep running forward.

However, Shan had not run far before he met the Demon soldiers pursuing them head‑on. Neither side exchanged words, and the fierce battle erupted immediately.

A earth‑shaking tiger roar thundered across the sky as Shan lunged at the demons. Two Demon Generals who had reached the Human Immortal Realm met his charge without mercy.

In an instant, flames sprayed everywhere, scorching the surrounding ground to ash. After the three clashed, Shan soon fell into disadvantage, retreating step by step under the two Demon Generals' relentless attacks, new wounds constantly appearing on his body, his clothes dyed red with blood.

"If we let you escape, how will we answer our superiors?" the two Demon Generals roared while attacking.

They held Shan back, while the other Demon soldiers continued to pursue the Human Race.

Although these members of the Human Race had reached the Golden Core realm, their speed still lagged behind the Demon Race, especially the Demon soldiers capable of flight.

Very quickly, the Human Race was surrounded.

The Demon Race gripped blades that glimmered with cold light.

"Don't be afraid, fight them; even if we die, we must make them pay," someone shouted.

"Indeed, Demon beast meat is exquisitely delicious; even a bite before death would be worth it," another echoed.

Yet the members of the Human Race showed no fear in their eyes, only fierce resolve, staring straight at the Demon Race.

Even when facing a strong enemy, not a hint of retreat appeared in their gaze.

The Demon Race felt a pang of insecurity under that gaze. Then the sky was split by a flash of lightning, followed by a Boom—, and the demons fell like harvested wheat.

Zhou Yi slowly descended from the sky; he had been scouting nearby for other Demon Race outposts, but unexpectedly

seeing the emergency, he acted at once.

"Human Ancestor, please quickly save our commander; they are trapped by the Demon Race," the group pleaded urgently.

Zhou Yi nodded, then turned into a beam of light that flew to the designated spot, instantly eliminating the threat; the two great demons vanished before they could even scream.

"Human Ancestor, please save Sister Ling'er," Shan begged anxiously, his face full of worry.

Zhou Yi swiftly carried Shan toward the destination. At that moment, Xiao Ling'er was swollen all over, only her face unchanged; she had exhausted all her spirit energy and could not move.

The Fish‑Head General brandished his Cloud‑tooth Spear, a smug smile on his face, preparing to deliver the final blow to Xiao Ling'er.

"The game is over; you may now die," he said, raising his weapon.

Xiao Ling'er remained calm, hoping only that Shan had already led the others to safety.

"Sister Ling'er, Sister Ling'er," a familiar voice called.

She could hardly believe it, but indeed Shan had arrived. Before she could react, the arrogant Fish‑Head General was already trampled beneath Zhou Yi.

"Sister Ling'er, are you alright?" Shan asked with concern, his heart aching at the sight of Xiao Ling'er.

He wanted to reach out to help her up, but feared hurting her, hesitating. At that moment, Zhou Yi gently raised his hand, and golden light fell on Xiao Ling'er like warm sunshine.

The next instant, the water toxin in her body was completely expelled. Xiao Ling'er felt a warm current, causing her to tremble lightly.

Combat fatigue vanished instantly, yet she was so weak she could barely stay on her feet; her body went limp.

Fortunately, Shan's eyes were sharp and his hands quick; he stepped forward and supported her.

"Sorry, Human Ancestor, it was our negligence," Xiao Ling'er's voice was faint but full of self‑blame.

Had Zhou Yi not arrived in time, they might already have been dead.

"As long as you are safe, that's all that matters," Zhou Yi whispered, comforting the two.

Then, with iron‑clamp strength, he lifted the Fish‑Head General; as his magical energy flowed, the creature let out a wail, reverting from a half‑human, half‑fish form to a massive black fish over three meters long.

Immediately, Zhou Yi's spirit energy surged, the huge fish turning bright red, thrashing violently in his grasp, and finally everything returned to calm.

Zhou Yi skillfully used his spirit energy to roast the great demon, a sight that left Xiao Ling'er and Shan dumbfounded, thinking that if they possessed such power, they wouldn't have been so helpless in battle.

"Alright, this creature is two realms above you, so lasting this long is already impressive," Zhou Yi said, lifting the two with his magical force and bringing them back to the base.

Seeing the two follow Zhou Yi back, the hunting squad members who had returned earlier erupted in enthusiastic cheers.

"Don't forget to deal with the corpses; we'll eat them tomorrow morning."

Zhou Yi reminded, "Got it!" the group replied in unison.

After speaking, Zhou Yi walked toward the stone cave on the mountain. Inside were only Sui Huang and two others; the rest had gone out to hunt Demon beasts.

"Brother Zhou Yi, nearly half the clan has now reached the Golden Core realm, increasing the demand for demon blood; our reserves are dwindling," Sui Huang said with a worried face.

Recently he has been both pleased by the Human Race's rapid strength increase and worried about resource shortages, checking and calculating meticulously every day.

"I killed some Demon beasts just after returning; that should be enough," Zhou Yi reassured him.

Hearing this, a glimmer of hope flashed in Sui Huang's eyes.

Not long after, Shi Hao and his group also returned one after another.

Unlike Zhou Yi, the others had gained nothing.

"I've almost cleared all the Demon beasts in this area; I can't find any more traces," one person said helplessly.

"Then let's storm the Demon Beast camp directly and wipe them out," Shi Hao said flamboyantly, sitting on the cave edge, eating meat while excitedly planning.

"I've also scouted the north; since Taiyi's retreat, the surrounding Demon Race outposts have shrunk considerably," Yao Yan shook his head with a sigh.