After leaving through the backyard, Han Shuo immediately focused his concentration. Despite holding Lisa in his arms, his speed was still lightning fast as he raced along the path.
It was noon, but there were no pedestrians on the road in such a frosty winter. Add to that the fact that the soldiers had turned Valen City inside out over the past two days, and the civilians were all hiding in their houses, afraid to go out. As a result, Han Shuo's dashing figure stood out on the street.
Two Gryphon Knights patrolling in the air spurred their gryphons on and spotted Han Shuo's figure. The griffins screamed as the knights raised their three metre long spears and flew towards Han Shuo.
"There are griffins in the air!" Lisa's face turned red from the cold bite of the wintry air. She raised her head from her position in Han Shuo's grasp and noticed the pursuit of the two gryphon knights, hastily calling out a warning to Han Shuo.
"I know, don't worry!" Han Shuo had long since noticed the pursuit and replied to Lisa in a low voice, his expression unchanged. His body continued to speed through the scattered streets while his mind raced, searching for ways to react.
Han Shuo had memorized all the places they'd passed on their way to Lawrence's. Now that they had been spotted by the Gryphon Knights, Han Shuo was quickly thinking of ways out.
He couldn't expose the Dark Mantle's stronghold, so he couldn't return there for the time being. Now that there were members of the Gryphon Legion patrolling Valen City and two airborne knights had targeted them, he had to quickly shake them off or find a place to kill them. Otherwise, more trouble would quickly descend upon them.
As his mind raced, Han Shuo suddenly changed direction and didn't dart in and out of alleyways. He ran towards a patch of trees, circulating his magical yuan so that he seemed to have a limitless source of energy. The speed of his run was faster than the two knights had expected.
The two knights had planned to land as soon as Han Shuo left the cover of the houses and kill him. Who would have thought that as soon as Han Shuo left the area, he would charge forward as if he were riding a fierce and dark horse, catching them off guard.
Of course, the knights had the advantage of being in the air. As they regained their composure, they spurred their gryphons on to catch up with Han Shuo, circling above the trees and keeping Han Shuo in their sights.
They were already a few meters away from where Lawrence lived. Han Shuo had watched for a while and noticed that only these two knights were following him, so he wasn't overly worried. His body stopped as soon as he entered the cover of the trees and suddenly came to a complete stop, swinging Lisa up and around him so that she was on his back.
"Hold on tight and don't let go no matter what!" Han Shuo ordered modestly.
She nodded her head obediently and said resolutely, "I understand. I won't let go even if I die."
"Don't worry, we won't be the ones to die." Han Shuo confidently comforted Lisa and took a strong, supple rope from his space ring. He tied Lisa firmly to his back to prevent her from slipping off halfway through. After all this, Han Shuo took the Demonslayer Edge in his right hand and looked coldly at the two Gryphon Knights hovering above him, preparing to kill two men and two beasts.
"Let's see where you run to now!" A Gryphon Knight laughed scornfully overhead, shaking the sharp spear in his hand and digging his heels into the Gryphon below him in an odd way.
The gryphon, circling in the air, suddenly let out a bizarre scream and dove towards Han Shuo. The metal claws of the griffin could tear a buffalo apart. As it swooped down on Han Shuo, the aura formed by its huge body and the knight's coldly shining spear was enough to stun an enemy.
The other Gryphon Knight moved his steed closer to Han Shuo, but didn't make an immediate move. The arrogance and contempt on his face seemed to indicate that one of them was more than enough to take care of Han Shuo, and that his attention wasn't needed at all.
Han Shuo's demeanour was aloof and distant as he held his ground without moving, staring intently at the diving knight and the griffin. A white bone staff suddenly appeared in his other hand as the griffin's metal claws skimmed the tops of the trees and Han Shuo quickly unleashed a 'Dark Mist' spell.
With the amplifying effects of this bone staff, the area covered by Han Shuo's Dark Mist spell had increased by a third, completely enveloping an area ten metres in diameter.
"Damn, I can't see anything!" The Gryphon Knight roared angrily, a certain panic in his tone.
He'd been chasing after Han Shuo the whole time and had seen Han Shuo's speed with his own eyes. That agility was something a strong swordsman should possess, and a sword-shaped Demonslayer Edge had appeared in his hand when he'd reached the treetops. His stance completely resembled that of a swordsman.
However, when it came to the actual battle, a white bone staff had suddenly appeared in Han Shuo's hands, and he'd unleashed a 'Dark Mist' spell just in time. This astonished the Gryphon Knight, who had also fallen into Han Shuo's trap.
The diving Gryphon Knight exclaimed in astonishment, alerting his companion that something was wrong. His companion moved quickly, intent on coming over to rescue his comrade.
It was too late.
A streak of bizarre, fiery red fire blazed conspicuously through the thick black fog. It was as if it hadn't been affected by the Dark Mist spell at all, forming a heart-stopping arc and tracing a long, bloody path.
The griffin screamed bizarrely in pain as the knight screamed hoarsely, the screams rising almost simultaneously with the fey red fire. Cries that would strike fear into the hearts of men as the long, bloody line drew itself through the patch of dark mist.
Only when the bizarre red fire itself was extinguished did the desperate cries of agony finally cease.
The other Gryphon Knight who had arrived in the area listened to the screams, his scalp tingling with numbness. Unable to see what was happening, he could only repeat his desperate questions, "Camper, what's wrong? What's going on?"
He kept calling out, but didn't dare approach the black fog. He just watched from a distance.
The Dark Mist was a spell that worked quickly and dissipated quickly. As the cold wind blew, the black mist that had quickly coalesced disappeared in a short time.
Han Shuo still stood where he was, a cruel, cold stare on his face. Lisa on his back had her eyes shut tightly and buried her head in Han Shuo's neck as she couldn't bear to look at the scene.
A bloody mess of severed limbs and hacked flesh lay scattered around Han Shuo. Some belonged to the Gryphon Knight and some belonged to the Gryphon. A thick smell of blood assaulted the nose as Han Shuo stepped on a head that was slowly leaking brain fluid. It was as if he had just been baptised in blood as he was covered in gore, making his gaze even more terrifying.
The Gryphon Knight suddenly let out a dry gurgle. He immediately turned his gryphon and tried to flee.
"Do you think you're the only one who can fly?" Han Shuo's eyes split into laughter. He activated the 'Demonic Ninth Heaven Art and took to the air, shooting towards the Gryphon Knight like lightning with Lisa on his back. He arrived behind the Gryphon Knight before it had gone too far.
Two bone spears shot out and pierced the Gryphon's back, causing it to scream. It even turned and shot at Han Shuo with the knight on its back. After the experience of his initial panic and the fact that his steed was now charging at Han Shuo of its own volition, he quickly understood that Han Shuo could also fly through the air and that there was no way for him to escape. So he raised his spear and aimed at Han Shuo.
Every Gryphon Knight was at least a senior knight. Therefore, when he raised his spear, it flared up with a dark green combat aura, as if silver lightning was travelling through the air after using the griffon's momentum to fly towards Han Shuo.
Han Shuo had just used the sharp Demonslayer Edge to slaughter a Gryphon Knight along with his gryphon. An uncontrollable bloodlust rose in his heart, . It was as if a voice in his heart urged him on, telling him to continue killing in such a bloody manner. It happened to be the perfect outlet for his emotions as he saw the Gryphon Knight charging towards him.
Han Shuo threw his head back in a long howl and flew over with a glare. The Demonslayer's Edge hadn't seemed very long before, but with the circulation of the Glacial Mystic Spellfire, a two-metre long purple and red light spat out from the tip. The purple light was at the front, and the red light connected to the Demonslayer's Edge at the back. The weapon looked quite magical.
Even with Lisa on his back, Han Shuo's speed wasn't much slower than the Gryphon Knight's as he flew with the art. His magical yuan circulated at top speed. Han Shuo emitted a dense killing intent that seemed to materialise as a black aura around his body. Seen from afar, Han Shuo's figure holding the Demonslayer's Edge was like a shooting star falling towards the ground.
A ball of dazzling splendour exploded from where the two of them intersected, a deafening metallic clang echoing in the surrounding area. The spellfire-infused Demonslayer Edge shot out a metre of cold, purple light, crashing into the combat aura emanating from the long spear. The spear was instantly reduced to dust as it was ravaged by the violent magical yuan.
A bone-chilling cold immediately crawled over the knight's body. He reacted, but he didn't have time to move before Han Shuo gathered a red fire a metre high. The blood veins in the knight's right arm gripping the silver spear suddenly exploded under the piercing cold and searing heat. His muscles began to slip from his bones, as if they'd been doused in acid, as drops of blood spilled from his arm.
"You shouldn't have come after me!" Han Shuo glared at the horrified Gryphon Knight. The Demonslayer Edge then began to fly at his will, hacking off the metal claws of the gryphon. The Demonslayer's Edge then slashed down, splitting the body of the knight and the griffin in two, as if it were splitting a mountain. Fresh blood splashed down like rain towards the trees.
The two Gryphon Knights had now died horribly at Han Shuo's hands, but Han Shuo actually had an unsatisfied feeling. His heart trembled as he suddenly came to his senses and finally understood why he had such a fervent desire to kill and slaughter.
Ever since his demonic magic had reached the true demon realm, Han Shuo had become a demon through and through. For the first time, he had overwhelming power and would find it difficult to control the urges deep within his heart, especially as the next realm was the most dangerous, the Bloodlust Realm. As one began to enter the Bloodlust Realm the practitioner would begin to feel the desire to erupt into full-blown carnage in every battle.
It was a good thing that since he hadn't entered the bloodlust realm yet, Han Shuo could still control his thoughts and desires. It would be harder to control his bloodthirsty desires once he reached the next realm. Once he started fighting, he wouldn't be able to stop if he didn't see blood, he would become an extreme, bloodthirsty, violent demon.
He exhaled lightly, thinking privately that practicing demonic magic was truly a perverted path. However, the exhilaration of fighting and killing today made him feel damn good, and his whole being seemed to strut around like a new person.
"Over there, after him!" The battle cries of horses came from the distance. Han Shuo hovered in the air and turned his head to see a troop of Gryphon Legion cavalry approaching him quickly. This troop consisted only of earthbound knights. Han Shuo wasn't afraid that he wouldn't be able to shake them off.
Snorting coldly, Han Shuo flew downwards, picking up speed to take off when he was level with the trees.
"You can fly!" Lisa suddenly put her lips close to Han Shuo's ears and exclaimed in amazement.