Chapter 42: Desperate Situation

The mountain was not far.

So, Ning Xuan was very close to the mountain.

He stood silently under an old tree for a few breaths.

In these few breaths, he changed with each breath.

He was casting aside all his hopes, all his emotions, all his hesitation, all his fears, all his thoughts, until only the most cruel and ruthless luster remained in his eyes. Only then did he begin to walk towards the mountain.

At this moment, he was extremely unfamiliar with himself.

Only indifference remained in his eyes, indifference to the lives of others, and also indifference to his own.

Just when he was still a long, long way from the mountain, or rather, just when he had only walked a few hundred zhang, something unexpected happened…

He took the next step, and he suddenly passed through a boundary and returned to the original place.

Above his head was the canopy of the old tree, lush and green, casting a shadow. A few leaves pointing downwards were swaying precariously.

‘I’ve only walked such a short distance, and I’ve already reached the boundary?’

Ning Xuan quickly walked to the side again.

After a few hundred zhang, he returned to the original place again.

He continued to try…

Soon, he confirmed one thing.

This nightmare was very, very small, so small that it was only a circle with a radius of a few hundred zhang.

And besides some sparse trees, there was no cover in this circular area. The terrain was flat, and the distant mountains and even the iceberg were like a background picture.

The moonlight was bright, illuminating the towering mountains.

But, he couldn’t go.

Ning Xuan searched carefully again.

Then, he was completely sure: not only was the area very small and there was no cover, but there were not even any extra weapons or treasures.

All he had was the Beast-Slaying Saber in his hand and the faint blue flying knife in his bosom.

After confirming these things, Ning Xuan no longer wasted his energy. He sat down cross-legged, closed his eyes, and rested, so as to meet the next demon in the best state.

Not long after, the sky lit up.

A pale, scorching sun cast a pale light.

A buzzing sound with an anxious tone came from not far away.

“Where’s my weapon? Where did my weapon go?”

Ning Xuan quickly jumped up and looked in the direction of the sound.

He saw a bear demon of about ten zhang standing on the open ground in the distance.

What a good bear demon. Its shape was like a white jade high pavilion, its momentum was like a mountain rushing and a sea standing, its fur was like a snow willow, its pupils were clear, its fangs were retracted, and upon closer inspection, it even had a bit of a kind and benevolent appearance.

When Ning Xuan looked at the white bear demon, the white bear demon also saw him.

The white bear demon suddenly asked, “Have you seen my weapon?”

Ning Xuan’s five fingers moved slightly, and the faint blue flying knife slowly flew out of his bosom.

“Is it this?” he asked.

The white bear demon said, “No.”

Ning Xuan said, “I can’t see clearly from a distance. I’ll let you have a look when you get closer.”

As he spoke, with a thought, the flying knife slowly swept towards the white bear demon.

When it was close, the power of his flesh and blood suddenly erupted, and the power of “Swallow’s Union” was attached to the flying knife. It suddenly accelerated at a very close distance, and the air exploded with a rumble.

Although he could not use Swallow’s Tide now, with such a close distance and such a strong burst, even the Bodhisattva golden body of the Incense-Stealing Mouse could not resist.

A faint blue light flashed and entered the white bear demon’s brow.

The next moment, a piercing and sharp sound came from the point where the flying knife and the brow touched.

Ning Xuan’s pupils shrank slightly.

His flying knife had not been able to shoot into the white bear demon’s head, but had been blocked.

The white bear demon frowned, and two scales suddenly appeared between its eyes. The scales clamped the flying knife.

But with just a frown, Ning Xuan’s full-strength attack at close range was blocked!!

Then, the white bear demon raised its claw and grabbed the flying knife.

Its claws were also covered with a layer of scales.

Such claws, after grabbing the magic treasure flying knife, exerted force and kneaded it. A piercing sound that made one’s teeth ache came.

The white bear demon frowned slightly, and its arms were also covered with scales.

It kneaded it again.

The sharp sound of a blade scraping against iron came.

A few breaths…

The claw loosened again and threw it away casually.

Thud thud thud thud…

The flying knife was completely shattered, and it broke into countless pieces and fell to the ground.

After doing this, the white bear demon looked at Ning Xuan again, twisted its neck, and clenched its fists. The scale-like things on its body began to appear again, and the speed of their appearance became faster and faster.

Ning Xuan should have been afraid, and he was indeed very afraid. But compared to being afraid, he had learned to observe in this most desperate and unsolvable situation, to collect as much information as possible, and then, when there was no escape, to fight the strong enemy with all his might.

At this time, his body was slightly bowed, and he assumed the stepping posture of the “Swallow’s Return Step” from before.

The air was extremely quiet.

Under the pale sunlight, a leaf from the old tree floated down leisurely.

Thud!!

The white bear demon took a step forward.

The earth was like a drum being beaten by a giant, and it was hit hard.

The white bear demon’s figure appeared in front of Ning Xuan.

Ning Xuan’s body had just managed to lean back, and the white bear demon had already reached him.

The Beast-Slaying Saber in Ning Xuan’s hand had not yet been unsheathed. His plan was to use the saber as a fulcrum, just as he had dealt with the Mountain-Crashing Bear demon for the first time, to avoid the bear-like demon’s wide-open and wide-closed impact in a spiral trajectory, to avoid the real and attack the virtual. After dodging the initial impact, he would immediately counterattack with his strongest power.

But, the white bear demon had already reached him.

He had no time to make any more movements.

The man and the bear faced each other.

Ning Xuan gritted his teeth, and with both hands, he held the Beast-Slaying Saber tightly. With the saber and the scabbard, in the midst of the high-pitched Swallow’s Cry, the saber light dragged a sharp cry, and it fiercely went from bottom to top, slashing at the white bear demon’s abdomen, and then dragged upwards.

Hiss hiss hiss hiss…

Squeak squeak squeak squeak…

Where the saber passed, a row of scales quickly appeared on the white bear demon’s body.

And after the saber had passed a little more than half, the white bear demon pressed down.

Rumble!

Ning Xuan felt his whole body shatter.

However, he still had a burst of strength. This strength was enough for him to commit suicide. After all, he had not forgotten the pain of being eaten by the bear demon bite by bite.

But just then, the white bear demon’s eyes were full of anger as it looked at him.

“Those who do evil enter the cauldron of boiling water, and those who cultivate good ascend to the cool and refreshing. You have spoken lies and killed. You should be executed!”

After speaking, the white bear demon raised its claw and slapped down fiercely.

Ning Xuan’s vision went black…

[Two of Nine]…

Under the old tree, Ning Xuan opened his eyes.

He was quite curious.

That white bear demon didn’t eat him?

He was killed by that white bear demon with one slap?

“Those who do evil enter the cauldron of boiling water, and those who cultivate good ascend to the cool and refreshing?” Ning Xuan murmured the words that the bear demon had said before it attacked, and pondered, “It means that I lied to it before and sneak-attacked it, so I did evil, so I should be executed?”

Ning Xuan saw a new path before his eyes.

At close range just now, he had seen clearly that this bear demon’s scales were not actually “scales,” but something produced by the compression of muscle power.

His full-strength attack could not even break the bear demon’s defense.

In other words, even if the bear demon stood still and let him chop, he would not be able to chop it in the slightest.

So, he felt that it was necessary to try another path.

Daytime…

Slowly descended.

An anxious buzzing sound came from the distance.

“Where’s my weapon? Where did my weapon go?”

The white bear demon looked left and right. After seeing Ning Xuan, he asked again, “Have you seen my weapon?”

Ning Xuan’s five fingers moved slightly, and the faint blue flying knife slowly flew out of his bosom.

“Is it this?” he asked.

The white bear demon shook its head.

Ning Xuan took out the Beast-Slaying Saber again and asked, “Then is it this?”

The white bear demon still shook its head.

Ning Xuan said, “I’ll help you find it.”

The white bear demon nodded and then grinned, “You’re a pretty good person.”

Ning Xuan said, “When you’re away from home, who doesn’t have trouble? If you can help, then help.”

Immediately, he and the white bear demon began to search for the “weapon.”

He asked the white bear demon what kind of weapon it was, but the white bear demon didn’t say anything, only that “if it saw it, it would recognize it.”

The man and the demon searched and searched.

This search lasted for most of the day.

When the scorching sun set again and the black moon rose again, the white bear demon suddenly asked, “Are you hungry?”

Ning Xuan nodded.

As soon as he nodded, he felt a pain in his back.

Crack…

His spine was broken.

He fell backwards, but was caught steadily in mid-air.

The white bear demon gently placed him on the ground, and then sat cross-legged by his feet, muttering some scriptures. Then it said seriously, “Those who do evil enter the cauldron of boiling water, and those who cultivate good ascend to the cool and refreshing. Since you are a good person, I will deliver you today, so that you can merge into my body, and in the future, you can recite scriptures with me, bathe in incense fire, and reach the land of ultimate bliss as soon as possible. Amitabha.”

After speaking, the white bear demon grabbed Ning Xuan’s foot and began to feast.