9: Chapter 9: Shi Hao, the brat, appears again! Are you trying to be a hero and save Huo Ling'er?

Wang Teng's mouth twitched, and he slowly turned his head.

He saw the Bear Kid, Shi Hao, carrying a pot on his back and holding a roasted chicken leg in his hand.

He was stuffing meat into his mouth as he ran, rushing over with a face full of indignation.

"It's you again, kid..."

Wang Teng's ferocious, giant frame stood atop the ruins, his Ten Heavenly Passages as black as a series of dark suns.

They shed wisps of deathly energy that seemed heavy enough to crush mountain ranges.

In his three blood-red pupils, the figure of the boy running toward him was reflected.

"Oh my, Big Black Dog, how did you get even uglier?"

Although Shi Hao's mouth was relentless, his eyes became incredibly solemn.

He stopped in front of Princess Huo Linger, tossed the last piece of roasted meat into his mouth with a flick of his small hand, and said indistinctly:

"And this aura of yours... could it be you really opened the Ten Heavenly Passages?

That's not right. What kind of miraculous elixir did you eat? Did you swallow that giant snake from earlier whole?"

Shi Hao's gaze swept across the ten perfect Heavenly Passages behind Wang Teng, and he was secretly startled.

He himself had gone through countless life-and-death trials to reach the extreme realm; how could this monster reach this level in such a short time?

"Bad Seed, run! It's a Nine-Nether Ao!"

Princess Huo Linger hid behind Shi Hao, clutching his hem tightly, her voice carrying a hint of a sob.

"Don't worry, Fat Girl. With me here, this Big Black Dog won't be turning the world upside down!"

Shi Hao's small face turned stern, and his right hand suddenly grabbed at the void.

Buzz!

A shrill sword cry rang out, and an aura of decaying ages spread.

In Shi Hao's hand appeared a broken sword, pitch-black and covered in rust.

The sword looked dilapidated, but the moment it appeared, even Wang Teng's system panel felt a prickling shudder.

Not only that, but amidst Shi Hao's hair, a bone tower as white as jade faintly descended.

The small tower had only two levels and looked delicate and small, yet it seemed to carry the weight of the eternal heavens.

It shed ten thousand strands of chaotic energy, shielding Shi Hao and Princess Huo Linger in the center.

"A broken sword? A small tower?"

Wang Teng roared, cold light shooting from his pupils.

"Even if you bring down the gods and buddhas of the heavens, today I will let you know what a true Primeval Forbidden is!"

Boom—!

Wang Teng struck first. His massive body transformed into a bolt of black lightning.

The nine tails behind him were like nine True Dragons emerging from the sea, each carrying destructive divine light from precious techniques.

Some tail tips spewed poisonous mist, some fired death rays, and others transformed into bone halberds, hacking down!

"Good timing! Watch me cut off your dog tails!"

Shi Hao shouted, the blood in his body boiling like lava.

The nine Heavenly Passages behind him vibrated violently, and the broken sword in his hand swung out a sword qi like the Milky Way.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

A series of dense collision sounds rang out.

Wang Teng's claws and Shi Hao's broken sword clashed hundreds of times in the air.

Every collision turned the surrounding rocks into powder.

Wang Teng discovered that the broken sword in Shi Hao's hand was extremely bizarre; it could actually slice through his dark gold scales, which were as hard as immortal gold.

Shi Hao was also secretly surprised. With the support of the Ten Heavenly Passages, this Nine-Nether Ao's physical body...

...had actually reached such a powerful level that even the broken sword could only leave shallow blood marks.

"Ten Heavenly Passages, suppress him!"

Wang Teng went berserk, deciding to use absolute level suppression.

The ten pitch-black Heavenly Passages instantly aligned, forming a massive Domain of Annihilation, trapping Shi Hao dead in the center.

In this domain, gravity increased a hundredfold, and even the air was filled with corrosive deathly energy.

"Ow, so heavy! You Big Black Dog, you have no martial ethics, actually using your cultivation level to crush people!"

Shi Hao felt his bones creaking throughout his body.

He found that his runes were actually dissolving upon contact with that black mist.

The innate precious technique of this evolved Nine-Nether Ao had already faintly touched the edge of laws.

Shi Hao tried several charges, but the extreme speed evolved from the Kunpeng Technique was hindered in the Domain of Annihilation.

And his Suanni Lightning was mostly swallowed by those Ten Heavenly Passages.

"Bad Seed, can you do it or not?"

Princess Huo Linger shouted anxiously from behind.

"A man can never say he can't!"

Shi Hao gritted his teeth, the broken sword in his hand erupting with blazing light.

But under Wang Teng's storm-like nine-tail offensive, he could only barely defend.

Wang Teng grew braver as he fought; after opening the Ten Heavenly Passages, his stamina was practically infinite.

He caught an opening, and the newly grown tail behind him thrust out like a spear, the beast head at its tip snapping toward Shi Hao's shoulder.

Clang!

The small tower in Shi Hao's hair vibrated slightly, and a strand of chaotic energy descended, blocking this strike head-on.

Although it was blocked, Shi Hao was sent flying by the massive force, crashing right into Princess Huo Linger's arms, and the two rolled together like a ground gourd.

Pah, pah, pah!

Shi Hao spat out the grass bits in his mouth, his expression becoming a bit strange.

He looked at Wang Teng's energetic and almost unscathed appearance, then at his own still-aching wrist.

"Something's wrong... did this Big Black Dog take drugs? How is he so much stronger than before?

This physical strength is simply more ridiculous than a pure-blooded creature!"

Wang Teng approached with heavy steps, each one landing on the rhythm of their heartbeats.

His blood-colored pupils were full of mockery: "What's wrong? Bear Kid, where's that energy you had when you bit my nose earlier?

This broken sword and small tower won't save your life!"

Shi Hao's eyes darted around.

He was a clever person and never took a loss if he could help it.

Right now, Wang Teng was at his peak state just after breaking through, his temper was high, and his body was hard.

He was simply a titanium alloy bone that couldn't be chewed.

Most importantly, in order to save Princess Huo Linger just now...

...he had already consumed a lot of essence energy. Now his stomach was empty, and his combat power was greatly reduced.

"Ahem, Big Black Dog, don't get cocky."

Shi Hao suddenly stood up, patted the dust off his buttocks, and said with a righteous face:

"Actually, I was just testing your strength. Since you've improved to this level, there's no need for me to hide anymore."

Wang Teng frowned, his nine tails retracting slightly.

He watched Shi Hao warily, thinking he was about to launch some earth-shattering ultimate move.

Unexpectedly, Shi Hao suddenly turned around and grabbed Princess Huo Linger's small hand.

"Junior Sister, I see this Big Black Dog hasn't bathed today; he smells too bad. Let's avoid his edge for now and deal with him somewhere else!"

Princess Huo Linger was stunned: "Huh?"

"Huh what? Run!"

Shi Hao shouted, runes exploding under his feet, and his whole being turned into a golden stream of light.

Dragging the still-dazed Princess Huo Linger, he bolted toward the depths of the mountain forest like his butt was on fire.

"Also... Big Black Dog! You just wait for me!

When I come back full, I'll definitely roast your other half of tails too! Remember to sunbathe more; the meat is only tasty when it's tender!"

Good grief, running away again?

And he even took Princess Huo Linger with him?