Chapter 81: The Abyssal Demon Commander and the Hunt for the Swordsman

"Exactly, any one of us could crush him like a bug underfoot."

"Let me do it. I'll twist his head off and use it as a ball," snarled a burly brute with a face full of scars, rolling up his sleeves as he strode toward Han Chong.

Before he could strike, Leng Yue transformed into a shadow, leaping from the swift boat with silent grace. In a flash, her sword pierced the man's throat, and he collapsed lifeless to the ground.

"Hss!"

"What a stunning woman! So ruthless and clean—just the way I like it!"

Instead of frightening the river bandits, Leng Yue’s arrival drew every eye to her. Meanwhile, Han Chong opened his mouth and spat out a jade-green orb of light. The moment it appeared, it hovered above the crowd and spun, sending forth endless streams of azure sword energy that unfurled like the petals of an inverted lotus.

The sword aura, at first the length of a finger, grew in an instant to three feet and shot out toward the surrounding bandits. Wails and screams filled the air. In just three heartbeats, over a hundred were cut down where they stood. As the sword orb rose higher, the reach of the sword energy expanded, leaving corpses strewn in every direction and the ground riddled with craters.

From within the dockyard buildings, more than a dozen figures burst forth, three at their head. Seeing the havoc wrought by the orb above, their faces blanched in terror.

"Who are you, and why do you slaughter the brothers of the Iron Shark Gang?"

"Hmph. Your Iron Shark Gang plunders and murders without conscience. You deserve to be wiped out."

Han Chong raised his hand, and the Clearbright Sword Orb spun even faster, launching sword energy toward the bandits.

The three leaders drew their blades and leaped forward, blade-qi swirling about them. All were innate-level experts, yet the sword energy rained down in torrents. They could only defend, unable to muster any will to counterattack.

At that moment, a fat man with a shark-like head appeared at the entrance of the dockyard building. Startled by Han Chong’s sword energy, he gaped his blood-red maw, spitting forth orbs of blue ice-water at Han Chong.

So, a true demon then—and one that matched the emblem on that token. Han Chong spat out a lick of blazing green spiritual fire that swept toward the water orbs, forming a wall of flame that vaporized the water into steam and pressed back toward the beast.

At the same time, Han Chong leapt forward, grasped the sword orb in his palm, and lunged at the three bandit leaders.

Clang, clang, clang—the Clearbright Sword, though narrow, clashed against the steel sabers of the three leaders, splintering them with every blow. In just one exchange, one was grievously wounded, and the other two fell back in disarray.

The shark-faced brute turned to flee, not retreating deeper into the dockyard but sprinting toward the river.

Han Chong frowned. After such effort to find a demon, he could not let it escape—who knew how long it would take to track down another? He leapt backward, activating the Azure Dragon Sword Art, and in moments conjured a half-zhang-long sword-qi serpent that slithered after the two remaining innate experts.

Such a mystical sword technique, where energy assumes form—none of the river bandits had ever even heard of such a thing. Their blade-qi hacked at it, but under Han Chong’s control, the sword serpent twisted and dodged, utterly unaffected.

Suddenly, it shot forward, piercing one bandit leader through the chest and then biting into the throat of another. All three innate experts fell in succession, the entire exchange taking less than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.

Han Chong was already in pursuit of the shark-faced brute, who reached the riverbank and, with a leap, transformed into a massive, dark blue-black shark over two zhang long, plunging with a splash into the river.

Without hesitation, Han Chong vaulted into the water in hot pursuit.

Back in its element, the shark demon ceased fleeing. It turned, maw agape, rows of saw-like teeth aiming to tear Han Chong apart.

Han Chong darted backward, then hurled his Clearbright Sword, which shot straight into the demon’s gaping maw. Inside, it transformed back into a sword orb, crashing about. Han Chong refrained from releasing sword energy, not wishing to kill it outright.

Even so, the shark demon writhed in agony, its innards torn and battered.

"Hold still! Struggle again and I'll gut you on the spot!" Han Chong’s voice thundered, finally cowing the demon into submission.

"Spare me! I am the nephew of the Iron Shark Demon Marshal himself. If you kill me, you’ll never escape alive," the shark demon spoke, its voice echoing from its belly.

"Hmph, this Iron Shark Demon Marshal—how formidable is he? Where is he now?"

"Of course he’s formidable! He is the king of the Northern Trench, commanding tens of thousands of demons and a thousand Iron Shark generals. His influence stretches throughout Qiong Prefecture!"

"Oh? So according to you, all four great sea trenches each have their own demon marshal?"

"That’s right. There’s also the Dragon Fish King, the Water Ape King, and the Sea Wolf Demon Marshal. Each is unimaginably powerful," the demon replied, eyes ablaze with fanatic fervor.

With a flick of his sword finger, Han Chong had the Clearbright Sword pierce out from the demon’s belly. He vaulted onto the shark’s back.

"Assume your human form, or die."

"Yes, yes!"

Han Chong hauled the shark-faced brute ashore and tossed him to the ground. The remaining bandits, who had been besieging Leng Yue, were struck with terror and fell to their knees, begging for mercy.

"Who was it screaming inside the dockyard just now?"

"Immortal, it was swordsmen from Heavenly Sword Manor. The envoy ordered us to torture them for information," one of the more cunning bandits hastily replied.

"Oh?" Han Chong signaled Leng Yue with a glance, then dragged the shark-faced brute into the dockyard.

With a few swift strokes, Leng Yue dispatched the rest of the bandits.

Inside the dockyard, five men in blood-soaked white robes were suspended by their wrists, their bodies battered and broken.

With a snap of his fingers, Han Chong sent out several streams of sword energy, precisely shattering the iron chains and dropping the men to the floor.

"Shark demon, why were you torturing these men? How did they fall into your hands?"

"Immortal, I was only following the marshal’s orders—to hunt down all from Heavenly Sword Manor and force them to reveal the manor’s defenses and secret mechanisms."

"Oh? Tell me in detail." Han Chong’s brows arched; from the demon’s words, it seemed Heavenly Sword Manor had not yet fallen.

"Yes. Heavenly Sword Manor called upon all swordsmen under heaven to oppose our Iron Shark Gang. The marshal was enraged and led his forces to besiege the manor. But the manor lord is powerful, and the manor itself is riddled with secret passages and traps. Even the marshal cannot breach it, so he ordered us to slaughter any swordsmen found outside. I myself was not at the siege and know no further details."

"Monster, I’ll kill you!"

The five swordsmen struggled to rise. One of them, barely twenty but brimming with youthful fire, glared at the shark demon with murderous hatred and tried to lunge at him, but his injuries were too severe. He collapsed, gasping for breath.

With a single stroke, Han Chong severed the shark demon’s head from its body. It reverted to its true form, spraying blue blood and twitching on the ground. Then Han Chong's hands glowed white as he pressed them to the swordsmen.

To their astonishment, their wounds visibly began to heal.

"Could you truly be an immortal, senior? I am Mi Ling, leading disciples of Heavenly Sword Manor. We are eternally grateful for your timely rescue!"

The young man bowed respectfully.

"No need for courtesy. May I ask your relation to Heavenly Sword Manor?"

"Senior, I am the grandson of the manor lord. I led swordsmen to hunt bandits in the southern border county, but we were ambushed by the shark demon. All my men were slain but us five, who were then tortured without end. Yet from what this creature said, my grandfather has been wounded by the Iron Shark Demon Marshal. My heart burns with hatred—I would eat its flesh and wear its skin if I could. Thanks to your rescue, we are forever in your debt! With your profound power, I beg you to come to the manor. Should you save my grandfather, it would be a blessing for all Qiong Prefecture and its people!"