Chapter 144: Bind and Kill

The Ox-Horned Red-Eyed Demon walked straight into the pre-set array zone; lights flared up in every corner. It exhaled heavily, watching the rising array, its eyes showing not a trace of panic.

Zhao Qingzhu formed a hand seal and shouted: "Bind and Kill."

Swoosh… swoosh… swoosh…

Strands of light twisted into hemp ropes, like pythons, coiled around the Ox-Horned Red-Eyed Demon's limbs and body. The ropes multiplied rapidly; within ten breaths, it was wrapped into a mummy-like shape.

"Muuu~" The Ox-Horned Red-Eyed Demon roared, clenching its fists tightly as its muscles bulged and swelled.

Pop! Pop! Pop!

The light-hemp ropes were torn apart by brute force, but before it could break free, more ropes wrapped around it.

Its body swelled again; under Zhao Qingzhu's control, the ropes stretched like elastic bands, refusing to snap as they had before—instead, after expanding, they tightened with suffocating force.

From normal size, it shrank to one-fifth, then to one-third.

The Ox-Horned Red-Eyed Demon had no means to resist. Lu Fang's eyes brightened—he had expected some difficulty in slaying it, but now he saw it was entirely unnecessary.

Though it was true the Ox-Horned Red-Eyed Demon had been overconfident, entering the array without any caution.

But Zhao Qingzhu's array techniques were undeniably stronger than he had imagined.

Seeing an opening, Lu Fang no longer held back—he summoned petals of pink peach blossoms, forming a circular ring that locked onto the Ox-Horned Red-Eyed Demon.

"Keep it contained."

Lu Fang shouted, beginning to gather power for his Soul-Strengthened Green Dragon Crescent Blade. He was confident that with ten soul-strength units gathered, even a being as powerful as the Ox-Horned Red-Eyed Demon would fear it deeply.

As he gathered soul-strength, the spectral shadow of Guan Yun Chang materialized behind him.

Since entering the Confucian Scholar realm, Lu Fang's momentum had increased vastly beyond before; the extraordinary power of the Green Dragon Crescent Blade grew stronger precisely as his momentum did.

Thus, his strongest strike remained the Soul-Strengthened Green Dragon Crescent Blade.

Zhao Qingzhu did not turn to look at Lu Fang; she focused entirely on using her array to bind and kill the Ox-Horned Red-Eyed Demon—but it was harder than she'd expected.

When she heard Lu Fang's words, she paid them no mind.

In her view, a sixth-rank, second-tier Confucian Scholar had limited potential; inflicting meaningful damage on the Ox-Horned Red-Eyed Demon was nearly impossible.

But the next moment, she changed her mind—she clearly sensed that as time passed, Lu Fang's accumulated momentum grew stronger and stronger. She eagerly awaited the damage his strike would inflict on the Ox-Horned Red-Eyed Demon.

"Green Dragon Crescent Blade!"

Lu Fang slashed downward with both hands; the blade of power, gathered with ten soul-strength units, struck the mummy-wrapped Ox-Horned Red-Eyed Demon at a speed invisible to the naked eye.

Hiss! The array's light-ropes shattered.

A deep wound, cutting to the bone, appeared from the demon's neck down to its waist; its ribcage, pale and bony, made the viewer's scalp crawl.

It looked down at the wound; its dull pupils turned wild with rage. Still bound by the "hemp ropes," it yanked hard—Pop! Pop! Pop! The ropes snapped effortlessly.

Boom!

The Ox-Horned Red-Eyed Demon threw a punch with full force; the space before it twisted violently, as if a mirror had been shattered by its blow.

Puff! Zhao Qingzhu spat blood, murmuring: "When it's wounded, it seems to grow stronger. My array was shattered by a single punch—I can't hold it anymore."

"Fall back."

Lu Fang warned; both retreated several zhang at once.

The Ox-Horned Red-Eyed Demon's furious crimson eyes fixed on them; the deep wound healed visibly before their eyes, and within moments, it was as good as new.

Had they not seen the gruesome wound moments ago, they might have doubted it was an illusion—this healing was too extreme.

Lu Fang swallowed hard and smiled bitterly: "We underestimated it."

Zhao Qingzhu's expression turned grave. Though she was fourth-rank, she had no offensive technique stronger than Lu Fang's Green Dragon Crescent Blade.

Her strength lay in array techniques—but they seemed incapable of inflicting meaningful damage on the Ox-Horned Red-Eyed Demon.

"We truly underestimated it. I thought I could kill it with an array. Its healing is too strong—I don't believe any attack stronger than yours exists."

Zhao Qingzhu spoke honestly.

Lu Fang said seriously: "Don't worry. If it keeps advancing, use the array to restrain it—I still have stronger attacks."

"Understood." Zhao Qingzhu replied. As the Ox-Horned Red-Eyed Demon advanced again, she focused intently—and activated another array the moment it entered.

Bing! Bing! Bing!

Within the array, mirrored surfaces like water appeared, layered and stacked in every direction.

Boom! Crack!

The Ox-Horned Red-Eyed Demon marched forward steadily, not pausing despite the mirrors surrounding it. Every mirror in its path, it shattered with a single punch.

Seeing this, Zhao Qingzhu's lips curled slightly.

This array was not so easily broken—it seemed the demon was advancing, but in truth, it was circling. The more mirrors it shattered, the more layers of space the array accumulated.

The only drawback: this array lacked the offensive power of the previous one—but for containment, it was unmatched.

Zhao Qingzhu had designed this array as a last resort: if they couldn't defeat the Ox-Horned Red-Eyed Demon, she could trap it long enough for them to retreat to Gubao.

Now, to buy Lu Fang time, she activated it early.

While controlling the array, Zhao Qingzhu turned to look at Lu Fang and affirmed:

"This array can delay it for a long time. Use your strongest attack now—if it still fails to harm it, I suggest retreating to Gubao and finding another plan."

Lu Fang nodded, took a deep breath, and finally activated the Extraordinary Power: Deceive Heaven and Steal Earth—because this transformation carried severe side effects.

He had never intended to use it, but now there was no choice.

To kill the Ox-Horned Red-Eyed Demon, only in this transformed state, with his Soul-Strengthened strike, did he stand a chance.

Under Zhao Qingzhu's gaze, Lu Fang's body rapidly swelled; within ten breaths, he had grown into a giant over ten zhang tall—even taller than the Ox-Horned Red-Eyed Demon.

His momentum surged to a terrifying level.

Zhao Qingzhu's eyes brightened; a flicker of hope stirred within her. Perhaps Lu Fang truly could slay the Ox-Horned Red-Eyed Demon. This Marquis of Literature from Da Zhou had given her far more surprises than she'd expected.