The Devastating Force

Before Lu Guang could finish speaking, the axe had already swung out.

There was no probing, nor any politeness.

With a slam of the black axe forward, the stone platform sank half an inch, and cracks began to spread outwards in concentric circles.

Shi Qijiang's expression changed, and he raised his palm to meet the attack.

He was, after all, a city-destroying realm expert. He usually sat in the government office reviewing documents, but when it came to actually fighting, he was no pushover.

The vital energy in his palm condensed into a green seal, which collided head-on with the axe blade.

With a loud bang.

The table shattered, and a toad underneath was thrown out, but it suddenly disappeared halfway through its flight.

No one paid attention to this trivial incident; everyone was either focused on escaping or on the two people on stage.

The two on stage separated as soon as they touched. Shi Qijiang's sleeve was torn, and Lu Guang's blue cloth robe was also ripped in half by the official ruler.

The next moment, the two collided again.

Fist, ruler, axe, knee, shoulder.

No one can see it clearly.

White steam burst from the stone platform, and stone slabs were lifted up one by one and then crushed into powder.

Ordinary people would be able to boast for half their lives just to see Guan Chen make a move, and if they were to see Wang Yue at full strength one day, they could talk about it until they die. But today, these people in front of the mountain gate truly understand what the concept of a top-tier prefecture really means.

Even the most determined person would be unable to lift their head at this moment and could only obediently lie on the ground.

The air currents pushed outwards in layers, and even just a little bit of the aftershocks made it hard for people to breathe.

Hu Zhaoying was pressed so hard that its tail was pressed against the ground, and its face turned pale.

Hu Yanshan reached out and pressed down on his shoulder, trying to pull him back, but as soon as he took a step, it felt like he had been hit in the chest. He gritted his teeth and knelt down, using his demonic energy to cover Hu Zhaoying, the taste of blood lingering in his throat.

"Uncle..."

"Don't look up."

After Hu Yanshan finished speaking, he raised his head.

There was no one left on the platform. Two figures rose from the stone platform, hovering in the air on the air currents, and then collided with each other in mid-air.

Shi Qijiang drew a blue line with his ruler, and Lu Guang's axe cleaved into the blue line, causing a muffled thunderclap to resound above the entire mountain gate.

The flock of birds in the direction of the city was startled and flew over the city wall in a dark mass. Many people in the city looked up and heard a series of booming sounds outside the west gate. They thought the mountain had collapsed.

Lu Guang played more and more steadily.

He hadn't felt this good in many years; the path that his senior had pointed out was flowing smoothly through his body.

Lu Guang laughed: "Shi Qijiang, is that all you've got?"

Shi Qijiang's face was extremely grim; he hadn't expected things to develop to this point.

"Clang—"

A bladed axe came flying at him. Shi Qijiang used the force to move sideways for three zhang (approximately 10 meters). Just as his toes touched the ground, Lu Guang had already caught up to him.

too fast.

Shi Qijiang was struck in the chest by the back of the axe, and he slid backward. The sole of his boot plowed two deep furrows into the stone platform. He swallowed the blood in his throat, and his vital energy exploded from his feet, finally pulling away a distance.

Lu Guang pressed on relentlessly, giving his opponent no chance to catch his breath.

It was during the chase that he saw a figure in gray below the stage.

There was no way around it; he was too conspicuous. Everyone else was lying on the ground, but that person was still standing, quietly standing at the edge of the crowd. The residual energy waves automatically parted in front of him.

Lu Guang's heart skipped a beat. There was no need to ask or guess anymore; this must be the person who had just transmitted the message.

The word "senior" almost slipped out of his mouth, but he forced it back down.

Now is not the time; being able to be distracted for even a moment during a major battle is already a huge advantage.

For example, Shi Qijiang didn't have time to observe his surroundings at all; all his attention was on Lu Guang. He counterattacked and went straight for Lu Guang's ribs.

Lu Guang responded by raising his axe.

The two bumped into each other again.

This time, Shi Qijiang couldn't hold on.

His body sank, his left knee almost touching the ground, and the wind from the axe tore open his official robe, revealing the soft armor underneath. There was an axe mark on the armor, so deep that it was almost broken off.

"Lu Guang!"

Shi Qijiang finally lost his temper.

Lu Guang didn't reply to him. He raised his hand and threw a punch. The punch wasn't as loud as the axe, but it was closer and heavier.

Shi Qijiang raised his hand to block, but the force of the punch still passed through and hit him in the chest.

"Bang!"

Shi Qijiang was sent flying backwards, spitting out a mouthful of blood in mid-air, and landed on the other side of the platform.

Shi Qijiang struggled to stay upright, but his stance was rather awkward.

His scarlet official robe was torn into several pieces, his belt was broken in half, his crown was askew, and blood slowly seeped from his seven orifices.

Lu Guang landed back on the platform, his axe tip touching the ground. He didn't pursue; killing the Prefect was no small matter.

Even if Shi Qijiang were just an ordinary prefect, his death in front of Zhaoyezong's mountain gate today would be enough for the court to remove Zhaoyezong from the list of conferred titles.

That's enough to vent my anger.

Going any further, we would drag the entire mountain gate into the fire.

The collision of vital energies thus paused briefly.

The area in front of the mountain gate was eerily quiet; only a few brave individuals managed to stand up shakily, while the majority remained prostrate on the ground.

Lu Guang looked at Shi Qijiang and said, "Aren't you going to get lost?"

Shi Qijiang's eyelid twitched.

He knew Lu Guang wouldn't dare kill him, but knowing that didn't stop him from losing face and substance.

Shi Qijiang licked his mouthful of blood with the tip of his tongue, his gaze sweeping over the people below the mountain gate.

The guards dared not look at him.

The clerk dared not speak.

The disciples of the Zhaoye Sect got up, their eyes shining with a light they had never seen before.

This is the most critical issue.

If we retreat today, the momentum that Beiyang Prefecture has been suppressing Zhaoyezong for ten years will immediately come to an end.

Lu Guanghui will escape unscathed, but Shi Qijiang will still be judged as incompetent.

Not to mention what would happen if this matter reached Chengtian Prefecture, or even the teacher's desk...

Shi Qijiang felt a chill run down his spine when he thought of those all-seeing eyes.

He couldn't just walk away; at the very least, he couldn't let people think that Shi Qijiang had lost completely.

Thinking of this, Shi Qijiang raised his sleeve to wipe the blood from his lips.

"Sect Leader Lu is quite impressive." His voice was hoarse, but he managed to maintain his official tone. "Even if you defeat this prefecture, today's investigation into the demon register and the questioning of the guarantor are all solid, irrefutable evidence. Your Zhaoye Sect will not escape unscathed."

He enunciated each word clearly, and with a wave of his hand, he attracted a guard who was pulling Bao Xin away.

Shi Qijiang held the paper in his hand: "Just a single word can vouch for a nameless demon?"

An elder stepped forward and said in a low voice, "Sect Master, I'm here to make a supplementary record, specifying that this letter was reviewed by the Zhaoye Sect. Now that your strength has been restored, are you afraid of him?"

Lu Guang shook his head and raised his hand, saying, "Bring me a pen."

The steward reacted the fastest, immediately pulling a pen from beside the broken desk.

Lu Guang took the pen.

He didn't look at Shi Qijiang, but instead glanced at the gray-clad figure at the edge of the crowd.

Shen Gui remained standing there, without saying a word.

Lu Guang withdrew his gaze, lowered his head and began to write. The tip of the pen pressed heavily on the paper, and the first stroke was very heavy, causing the ink to bleed a little.

Everyone in front of the mountain gate was looking at that pen.

Lai Ge Bao was standing at Shen Gui's feet, not even knowing how it had flown to Shen Gui's side.

Hearing the topic being brought up to him again on stage, he subconsciously wanted to distance himself from Senior Shen to avoid exposing him.

"No need," Shen Gui said.

Before Lai Ge Bao could even ask a question, a new commotion broke out on stage.

Lu Guang began to write, adding a few new characters below the character [沈], each stroke falling steadily.

[Teruno Munechika, who acted as guarantor for this demon.]

After finishing writing, he looked at Shi Qijiang.

"Now, is it enough for me, Lu, to act as guarantor?"