5: Fight your way out of the abyss!

Two hours later.

North of the city.

Jiang Lan looked up, gazing at the small courtyard at the end of the street, sealed with a Demon Suppression Division notice.

This courtyard was the home of Scholar Qian, whose family of seven had been slaughtered by the Black Wolf Demon that afternoon.

Jiang Lan's hand, resting on the saber at his waist, tightened.

While drinking earlier, he hadn't told Chen Heguang his suspicions, deciding instead to seek out the Black Wolf Demon himself.

If, according to the coroner, the Black Wolf Demon was at Skin Refinement triple to quadruple Realm, then with his current strength, he could fully handle it.

Even if the coroner's estimate was wrong, the Black Wolf Demon's strength would at most be Skin Refinement quintuple Realm.

In the Martial Dao Realm, each advancement meant a world of difference in strength.

Unless the Black Wolf Demon intentionally concealed its strength when killing.

But now his Lifespan was down to just one year; even if he wasn't killed by this Black Wolf Demon, he didn't have much time left to live.

Jiang Lan also wanted to proceed steadily, step by step, but in this chaotic era of Yao Beasts and demons, where it was either you die or I perish, taking it slow was clearly not an option.

There was only one path before him.

Kill!

Kill until the sky and earth darken!

Kill until rivers of blood flow!

Kill for a bright and clear world!

Kill for a transcendent Dao!

Taking a deep breath, Jiang Lan stepped towards the small courtyard with the sealed door.

The street was utterly silent.

After such a major incident that afternoon, the residents nearby had already been evacuated by the Demon Suppression Division and resettled in an Inn.

Reaching the courtyard gate, Jiang Lan raised his leg.

"Clang!"

The large gate, plastered with the seal, was instantly kicked open.

After reaching a certain rank, Jiang Lan's five senses had all significantly improved, becoming several times sharper than an ordinary person's.

The moment the courtyard gate opened, he heard a flurry of footsteps from the main house ahead.

Jiang Lan narrowed his eyes slightly.

It seemed his guess was correct.

Chen Heguang had said that the Demon Suppression Division had deployed many people to catch the Black Wolf Demon, almost turning the entire Yan Capital City upside down.

Yet, after two days, not only had they failed to find any trace of the Black Wolf Demon, but Scholar Qian's family of seven had been murdered right under the Demon Suppression Division's nose.

Assuming the Demon Suppression Division wasn't a bunch of useless eaters, then the Black Wolf Demon must be hiding in a place the Demon Suppression Division members wouldn't expect.

For example... the crime scene.

His right hand pressed tightly on his saber, Jiang Lan took a deep breath and walked step by step towards the main house.

Just as he reached the door.

"Boom!"

The wooden door suddenly exploded, sending splinters flying.

Along with the splinters, a dark shadow, roughly two meters tall, flew towards Jiang Lan.

In Jiang Lan's vision, a palm-sized claw rapidly grew larger, about to strike his head.

If he were hit by that, even if he didn't die, he would be severely injured.

Fortunately, Jiang Lan was prepared; the moment the door exploded, he immediately pulled back and retreated rapidly.

Jiang Lan's figure was as light as a wild goose, retreating several steps.

Looking up, he finally saw the full appearance of the black shadow.

The black shadow was about 2.2 to 2.3 meters tall, covered in black fur, with bulging muscles, standing like a human.

But perched on its shoulders was a massive wolf's head!

On the wolf's head, a pair of glowing green beast eyes stared intently at him.

"Ho... I thought the Demon Suppression Division were all fools, but I didn't expect there to be a clever one."

"Zheng—"

Jiang Lan did not reply, merely silently drawing the saber from his waist.

The Black Wolf Demon's voice was like gravel grinding against glass:

"But a brain alone... isn't enough."

As its voice faded, a rustling sound came from the main house behind the Black Wolf Demon.

Jiang Lan looked towards the doorway.

At the entrance, seven indistinct figures appeared.

Leading them was an old man, over fifty, with white hair.

Behind the old man were a woman of similar age, three middle-aged individuals (two men and one woman), and two children.

Seeing these figures, Jiang Lan was startled.

These were none other than Scholar Qian's family, who had just perished at the Black Wolf Demon's hands that afternoon.

The seven figures were ethereal, their pupils devoid of black irises, leaving only the whites of their eyes. Their tiptoes barely touched the ground; if one didn't look closely, they might think they were floating in mid-air.

Tiger's Accomplice!

Based on his memory, Jiang Lan instantly identified the seven figures.

Legend has it that some Yao Beasts can turn those they kill into Tiger's Accomplice.

Tiger's Accomplice would lure relatives and friends they knew in life to the vicinity of the Yao Beast, causing their loved ones or friends to be eaten by the Yao Beast.

Not only that, Tiger's Accomplice also possessed a certain level of combat ability.

The stronger the Yao Beast that turned them into Tiger's Accomplice, the stronger the Tiger's Accomplice would be.

However, this method of turning people into Tiger's Accomplice was usually unique to tiger-type Yao Beasts.

The idiom "to act as a tiger's accomplice" ( be an accomplice to the tiger) came from this.

It was just unknown why this Black Wolf Demon also possessed such a method.

"Hehehe..." The Black Wolf Demon chuckled, "Let them keep you company; your Grandpa Black will take his leave first!"

With that, the Black Wolf Demon pushed off the ground with great force, like an arrow released from a bow, and directly shot onto the rooftop.

Jiang Lan had been staring intently at the Black Wolf Demon; seeing it trying to escape, he ignored the Tiger's Accomplice and leaped up with the Wild Goose Step.

His body directly crossed a distance of ten feet, his tiptoes landing on the thatched roof.

The enhancement brought by burning Lifespan was more than just on paper.

At this moment, Jiang Lan was indistinguishable from those true cultivators who had Cultivated for more than ten years and reached Skin Refinement quintuple Realm.

Every part of his body was completely under his control, allowing him to easily unleash all the strength of this body.

His speed was extremely fast; in two steps, he directly caught up behind the Black Wolf Demon.

The Black Wolf Demon turned its head, its face filled with terror.

It had originally thought that with the Tiger's Accomplice, it could deal with this ignorant brat.

But now it seemed, its assumption wasn't very accurate.

Its fur bristled all over, and it frantically moved its two wolf legs, about to jump onto the distant courtyard wall.

But before it could jump.

"Swish!"

A cold gleam cut through the night sky.

A large head flew into the air!

Jiang Lan's head was bowed, the long saber in his hand pointing diagonally at the ground.

On the blade, a line of blood gathered into drops, pattering onto the thatched roof.

"Thud."

The Black Wolf Demon's headless body, over two meters tall, directly rolled off the rooftop and fell to the ground.

At the same time, the Black Wolf Demon's massive head had also flown to the ground, rolling a few times on the ground before hitting the corner of the courtyard and finally stopping.

Looking expressionlessly at the Black Wolf Demon on the ground, Jiang Lan murmured softly:

"I also know that a brain alone isn't enough, but isn't there also a saber...?"

Before him, a translucent panel appeared.

[Slain a Skin Refinement quadruple Realm Black Wolf Demon, gained forty years of Lifespan.]

[Remaining Lifespan: forty-one years.]

Glancing at the panel, Jiang Lan directly jumped to the ground.

The seven Tiger's Accomplice were still standing at the doorway, as if they hadn't reacted.

The Black Wolf Demon's strength was not strong to begin with, only at Skin Refinement quadruple Realm.

The strength of the Tiger's Accomplice was also linked to the Black Wolf Demon's strength, so they were only around Skin Refinement single Realm, posing no real threat to Jiang Lan.

It was precisely because of this that Jiang Lan dared to directly bypass these Tiger's Accomplice and go straight to kill the Black Wolf Demon.

Now, with the Black Wolf Demon dead, the Tiger's Accomplice were no longer restricted and would soon dissipate.

Jiang Lan didn't move, merely watching the seven Tiger's Accomplice.

After a long moment, Scholar Qian, who was leading, was the first to show an expression of relief.

"Thank you... benefactor..."