8: Fight out of Pengcheng, blood sacrifice begins

"Master! Head for the North Gate first!" Xiao Zhuo's pupils contracted, his gaze fixed on the crimson beam of light tearing through the night sky.

The demons had already revealed their killing plot; whether or not it was related to him slaying the Nether Demon, being trapped in Peng City was a dead end.

"Go!" Xiao Ningzhi's beard trembled slightly as he suppressed his panic and ordered the entire Family to evacuate.

A crowd of over a hundred people surged out of the manor gate, running against the wind towards the north amidst the heavy scent of blood.

Xiao Zhuo did not get into the carriage, instead, he went ahead alone, saber in hand, to clear the path.

Blood pillars surged, and the intermittent bellows of oxen pierced through the streets and alleys, turning the entire city into a purgatory.

Mortals ran like headless flies through the streets; Ox Demons killing people were everywhere, severed limbs and broken bodies littered the ground, and the smell of char and blood assaulted their nostrils.

The guards surrounded the two carriages in the center, like a giant green-scaled python swimming against a bloody torrent, pushing forward with difficulty amidst the desperate wails.

The meteoric iron blade tore through the thick fog, and Xiao Zhuo moved through the front lines, harvesting demons.

Mortal-rank Ox Demons were like wheat stalks under his saber; a casual strike was fatal.

"Killed a Mortal-rank Ox Demon, gained 3 Attribute Points."

"Killed a Mortal-rank Ox Demon, gained 4 Attribute Points."

"Killed a Fierce-rank Ox Demon, gained 11 Attribute Points."

His figure constantly flickered through the streets, and one after another, rampaging Ox Demons were killed.

Attribute Points accumulated rapidly.

By the time the Xiao Family's team reached the vicinity of the North Gate, the Attribute Points on Xiao Zhuo's panel had reached 67 points—he had killed more than twenty Ox Demons along the way, but unfortunately, most were Mortal-rank, so the points were not many.

Looking at the jam-packed crowd at the gate, Xiao Zhuo's brows furrowed.

Although the city gate was open, too many residents were trying to leave, causing a severe blockage.

Even worse, a dozen Ox Demons were frantically hunting civilians trying to escape.

Xiao Zhuo tapped his toes on the ground, his figure darting out like lightning, stirring up a gust of wind.

At the city gate, an Ox Demon over two meters tall grabbed a crying girl and was about to stuff her into its mouth.

A blood-stained woman shrieked and lunged, but was swatted away by the Ox Demon's palm, crashing against the city wall, spitting blood, and collapsing.

Even severely injured, the woman still struggled to reach out, letting out heart-wrenching wails, blood and tears flowing from her eyes.

Just as the Ox Demon's fangs were about to touch the girl's neck, a gust of wind swept past!

The ox's head flew off! The girl was cradled by a single arm of an indigo figure and returned to the blood-stained embrace of her mother.

The mother's throat let out a hoarse, bellows-like sound, her withered fingers clutching desperately at his clothes.

"If you want to live, follow the Xiao Family's team!" Xiao Zhuo had no time for more words; his figure had already lunged at another Ox Demon.

Ox Demons continuously gathered inside and outside the city gate; though most were Mortal-rank, their strength was enough to rival a Martial Artist.

At the position of the Xiao Family team's deputy general, seven or eight Ox Demons had already surrounded him.

Seeing this, Xiao Zhuo had no choice but to abandon the idea of clearing the city gate and turned back to kill.

Li Zhen's shoulder wound had split open, and blood soaked through the gauze.

To save a guard, he had taken a direct punch from an Ox Demon, which greatly reduced his combat power.

Having to protect everyone while also being internally injured, he found it difficult to quickly deal with the Mortal-rank Ox Demons in front of him.

"Brother Zhen, urge everyone to move quickly! I'll clear the path, follow the crowd and charge!" Xiao Zhuo's figure darted, his meteoric iron long saber drawing a graceful arc, severing the Ox Demon in front of Li Zhen, arm and head flying off together!

He did not stop, circling the Xiao Family team, and eight ox heads instantly rolled to the ground.

"Brothers, follow Brother Zhuo, and charge out!" Li Zhen's spirits greatly lifted, and he roared hoarsely.

The guards responded in unison, their morale boosted.

Just as Xiao Zhuo cleared the surrounding Ox Demons, a strong sense of danger suddenly struck him!

He looked at the blood pillar in the sky, and an alarm bell rang in his heart.

Without daring to delay, his figure shot up onto the city wall like lightning.

Looking down, he saw dozens of wealthy household guards outside the city gate fiercely fighting twenty or thirty Ox Demons blocking the entrance; it was they who were blocking the escape route for thousands of people.

Xiao Zhuo stepped on a stone pier and leaped down!

In mid-air, the meteoric iron long saber was wreathed in black Qi, with faint ice shards appearing.

"Eight Directions Demon Slaying Saber — Kan Water · Layered Wave Style!"

The saber light swept out, transforming into layers of black and blue Qi waves, instantly knocking down five Ox Demons directly in front, countless saber marks cracking their dark hides.

"Roar—!"

A three-meter-tall Fierce-rank Ox Demon noticed the anomaly and let out an earth-shattering roar, stomping the ground and charging furiously, trampling several Mortals into a bloody pulp along the way!

Amidst the heavy scent of blood, Xiao Zhuo's anger erupted!

As soon as he landed, he stomped the ground, exploding it, and turned into an afterimage, charging directly at the giant demon!

The Ox Demon's giant fist slammed towards his head, but Xiao Zhuo's eyes were cold, a hint of disdain on his lips.

The long saber slashed upwards, and his figure leaped, the True Qi-infused blade effortlessly splitting the thick arm, then smoothly cutting across the neck!

The massive ox head rolled off, black blood spurted like a fountain, raining down.

With Xiao Zhuo's addition, the Ox Demons outside the city were rapidly cut down, and the crowd finally broke through the blockade.

The Xiao Family guards, all bathed in blood, followed closely, rushing out of the city gate—evidently, while Xiao Zhuo was fighting outside the city, more Ox Demons had surged in from inside the gate.

Just as the Xiao Family rushed out of the city gate, the blood pillars around Peng City exploded with a roar! Countless blood-colored lights, carrying strange runes, poured down like a giant bowl!

"Run!" Xiao Zhuo's eyelids twitched wildly, and he roared hoarsely.

Li Zhen heard the sound and, disregarding potential harm, pushed forcefully through the crowd in front. "Old Zeng! Clear the way with the carriages, there's no time to spare!" Inside the carriage, Xiao Ningzhi glanced at the trembling Xiao Shaoyou, and sharply ordered.

"Yes, Master!"

The whip cracked! The two strong horses reared and charged forward!

The Xiao Family members had already moved to both sides, and the carriages crashed through the road, instantly sending pedestrians who couldn't dodge flying and severely injuring them.

At the brink of life and death, no one cared.

The blood-colored light was already behind them; no one believed it was anything good, only a desperate dash for their lives!

The Xiao Family members followed the bloody path cleared by the carriages, fleeing.

Some people tripped over corpses, and no one could save them.

Xiao Zhuo slashed away the last Ox Demon outside the city, and seeing that the Family's team had completely escaped danger, his mind relaxed slightly.

Just then, the blood-colored light curtain descended with a roar, covering everything within ten meters outside the city gate!

The entire Peng City was like a giant blood-bowl inverted over it.

The light curtain trembled! The people still within its range screamed and fell to the ground!

Blood was forcibly drawn from their seven orifices and pores by an invisible force, turning into wisps of blood threads that converged towards the sky!

A few lucky ones struggled to rush out of the light curtain, falling to the ground; though covered in blood, they were not further drained, their faces a mix of terror and the wild joy of surviving a catastrophe, as they rolled and crawled away from that terrifying place.

Those who had escaped looked back, all turning pale with horror!

In just a few breaths, the people swallowed by the light curtain at the city gate had become gaunt.

Any further delay, and they would surely turn into mummified corpses!

Even with Xiao Zhuo's resolute will, he couldn't help but feel a chill in his heart at this moment, cold sweat seeping from his palms—if he had been trapped within it, could he have resisted this sinister and bizarre array?