Upon hearing this voice, Lu Dingtai burst into hearty laughter.
"Old Shang, rest assured, even if you die, I won’t."
After hearing Lu Dingtai’s confident voice, the other party evidently felt relieved.
"That mouth of yours!"
With those words, a team swiftly charged into the forest, led prominently by the head of Ren Yong Martial Arts Hall, Shang Tiefeng, along with a burly man.
Upon seeing this man, Lu Dingtai couldn’t help but straighten his expression, then gently clasped his fists.
"I never expected Brother Jin to come as well."
This burly man was none other than the head of Guangrui Martial Arts Hall, the master of Jiao Yousong, Jin Zhenming.
Hearing Lu Dingtai’s words, Jin Zhenming grinned.
"How could I miss such an exciting event?"
As he said this, he looked towards the Mountain Demon and the Ghost Child it carried on its back.
"Is this the mastermind behind the Exotic Beasts that attacked our Commandery?"
Lu Dingtai nodded, "It should be it."
"Alright, let me test your skills first!"
As he spoke, Jin Zhenming stomped the ground fiercely, creating a deep pit underfoot, and then launched himself into the air like a cannonball, heading straight for the Mountain Demon.
Zhao Ya watched helplessly.
This group of old Jianghu always preached about laying low and self-cultivation, yet their tempers were all fiery, quick to resort to action at the slightest disagreement.
Traditionally, Jin Zhenming and his Guangrui Martial Arts Hall were considered the most low-key among the four Grand Martial Arts Halls in the Commandery, yet his temperament was so volatile, the contrast striking.
Just as Jin Zhenming charged towards the Mountain Demon, several lynxes leapt down from the trees, attacking Jin Zhenming in mid-air at lightning speed.
The lynxes’ body techniques were extremely quick, like streaks of black light, and they closed in instantly, raising their claws to strike.
But Jin Zhenming didn’t even glance at them, merely waved his hand.
"Get lost!"
With this explosive shout, the lynxes in the air let out cries of anguish, then were sent flying backwards.
Upon landing, it could be seen that the claws of two of them had broken.
Looking at Jin Zhenming again, although his shirt was torn in several places by the lynxes’ sharp claws, the skin beneath was unscathed, not even a red mark.
Meanwhile, Jin Zhenming had already reached the Mountain Demon, not wasting any words, raising his fist to strike.
A loud bang resounded.
Jin Zhenming grunted, retreating several steps, but a trace of excitement appeared on his face.
"Thrilling, let’s go again!"
With that, he simply ripped his shirt apart, revealing the body beneath that looked as if it were forged from steel, before pouncing forward once more.
Boom boom boom!
Man and beast exchanged blows repeatedly, the massive impacts causing the leaves to rustle.
At this moment, Shang Tiefeng was already leading his men to disperse the beast horde, coming to stand before Lu Dingtai.
The two watched the scene of Jin Zhenming in a one-on-one duel with the Mountain Demon while casually chatting.
"Why didn’t you hold the city gates, and suddenly came here?" Lu Dingtai asked.
"We were initially engaged in a fierce battle with the beast horde outside the city. But who would have thought these Exotic Beasts would suddenly retreat? After regrouping with Old Jin, we found all other gates temporarily relieved of crisis, except for yours from which there was no word, so we hurried over."
It turned out Shang Tiefeng and Jin Zhenming had both been dispatched, with Shang Tiefeng going to the East Gate, and Jin Zhenming to the South Gate.
At the time, battles at the two gates were extremely intense, fortunately, they arrived in time to stabilize the situation.
However, these Exotic Beasts retreated suddenly, which Shang Tiefeng and Jin Zhenming sensed was amiss, and they hadn’t seen Lu Dingtai, thus, they rushed over.
After listening, Lu Dingtai couldn’t help but nod.
"It seems these Exotic Beasts are commanded by this Mountain Demon and the creature behind it. Once it feels threatened, it orders the other Exotic Beasts to come."
"So, to resolve this Beast Tide, the main thing is to eliminate this creature." Shang Tiefeng summarized.
"Exactly."
At this moment, Jin Zhenming was once again repelled, and he began to shout.
"Stop watching the show, you two! This thing is outrageously tough. Hurry and join me in dealing with it."
Lu Dingtai burst into laughter upon hearing this, "Who knew you couldn’t handle it either? I thought you intended to deal with it single-handedly!"
Despite the words, Lu Dingtai and Shang Tiefeng rushed up immediately, fanning out with Jin Zhenming into a triangular formation, surrounding the Mountain Demon.
The strength of the three was roughly the same, all were half-step to the Fifth Realm, although just a sliver away from perfecting the Blood Exchange, not quite true Fifth Realm Martial Artists.
But after years of honing, their strength had all reached the peak possible within their current Realm.
Therefore, when the three joined forces, they surprisingly managed to suppress the Mountain Demon’s offensive, closing in ever tighter to gradually shrink the encirclement.
The three on the distant mountain peak were somewhat astonished to see this.
"These martial artists, though they haven’t broken through to the Fifth Realm, with their current strength, would be considered top-notch even in the Capital City." The young scholar remarked in surprise.
"Indeed, I never imagined this remote place would hide such dragons and tigers." The honest man nodded in agreement.
The woman, however, remained silent, closely observing the battle’s progression.
The three of them had traveled from afar to Yunxiao County for reasons beyond merely observing the fight.
Each had their own ulterior motives.
For instance, this woman had come to see if there were any spoils to be had.