The rushing sound of the air broke out, accompanied by a fierce demon qi, which abruptly halted Long Hao's laughter.
In an instant, the shadow arrived before his eyes.
It was a humanoid monster with stout limbs, covered in black scales, twisted and sinister, resembling a ghastly ghost.
"What in the world is this creature?"
Long Hao, a man from the civilized world, was shocked at the terrifying image of the Abyss Demon Race, something he had only seen in movies. The rich demon qi suppressed his spirit, sending shudders through him.
"Jie jié, stupid Human Race, go to hell!"
To Long Hao's surprise, the monster spoke in a strange, guttural language while laughing malevolently. Simultaneously, it extended sharp demon claws, aiming for Long Hao's head.
Chi chi chi...
The demon claws emitted a chilly glow, sharp enough to cut through the air, comparable to a sword.
For a cultivator at the Fleshy Body Realm without true qi body protection, being caught would mean instant decapitation.
At the critical moment, Long Hao composed himself, focused on the incoming demon claws, and then stepped forward, delivering a powerful punch with his right hand.
With a loud bang, the force of the punch was so formidable that the air in front of it exploded. It precisely collided with the demon claws, creating a burst of sparks.
Deng deng...
Stepping back two paces, Long Hao instinctively licked his fist, realizing that he had just struck something as tough as iron.
"It's Abyss Demon Race, and their fleshy bodies are as strong as metal."
After a momentary shock, Long Hao grinned.
On the other hand, the Demon Race monster, its body reversed five or six meters away, evidently inferior in strength to Long Hao. However, it wasn't sent flying like Huang Chong and Jiang Cheng.
"Oh, it's actually a high-level demon. Lucky me."
In Long Hao's understanding, Abyss Demon Race was divided into three levels: Heaven, Earth, and Mortal, each further divided into low, middle, high, and superior stages.
The demon before him was equivalent to the cultivation base of Fleshy Body Realm 8th Layer, with not just thick skin but also strength surpassing that of Huang Chong at Fleshy Body Realm 9th Layer.
"Don't forget to offer your Demon Bead, or you'll become my prey too."
Grinning, Long Hao rubbed his fingers together, treating the dreaded demon as nothing more than prey.
"Courting death!"
Long Hao's greedy gaze on the demon, treating it as spoils of war, infuriated the monster.
With a roar, the demon leaped more than ten meters into the air, its robust body descending like a descending Iron Pagoda, aiming for Long Hao.
The swiftness of its descent, coupled with explosive strength, indicated a Fleshy Body Realm 9th Layer powerhouse.
"Do you think you're a monkey?"
Sneering, Long Hao gathered the strength within his body. It felt like a Flood Dragon was roaring as he stood up and delivered punches toward the descending demon, his fists flashing with a hot red glow, reminiscent of a rising sun.
"Great Sun Rising!"
This time, Long Hao activated the dragon vein within his awakened body. 10,000 Jin divine strength burst forth, resembling an erupting volcano that shot straight into the sky.
While the demon screamed in horror, its entire body was blasted away, crashing heavily into the distant ground.
"Heh, turned out to be a pig for the slaughter!"
Upon closer inspection, the scales on the demon were mostly shattered. Its skin appeared burnt, as if it had been subjected to intense fire. Dark demon blood seeped out, indicating its demise.
Although Long Hao only had the cultivation base of Fleshy Body Realm 7th Layer, his awakened dragon vein provided him with 10,000 Jin divine strength, equivalent to the strength of a Fleshy Body Realm 10th Layer Great Perfection powerhouse.
The high-level demon was strong, but it proved no match for Long Hao.
Approaching the fallen demon, Long Hao endured the unpleasant stench of demon blood, extracted a black lacquered bead from its body, and discovered that it was about the size of a marble. The pure demon qi contained within the bead ignited an intense desire within him.
"So, this is the Demon Bead?"
After calming his emotions by running Primal Chaos Ancestral Dragon Secret Art, Long Hao carefully observed it.
The Demon Bead was the essence of a demon's cultivation base. When absorbed by Abyss Demon Race, it directly enhanced their cultivation. While Human Race cultivators couldn't directly absorb demon qi, they could refine it into a spirit pill or temper it into a Spirit Artifact to enhance their power.
"I wonder if I can absorb it directly."
After pondering for a moment, Long Hao decided to give it a try. After all, Primal Chaos Ancestral Dragon Secret Art was capable of refining demon qi for cultivation.
However, upon swallowing the Demon Bead, a surge of pure demon qi erupted. It transformed into a fierce evil spirit, a demonic dragon eager to engulf Long Hao's spiritual consciousness.
For a moment, Long Hao's eyes turned bloodshot, his body exuding demon qi, and a crazed bloodthirsty impulse twisted his face, as if he were becoming an incarnation of Abyss Demon Race.
"Primal Chaos Ancestral Dragon Secret Art, suppress!"
At the critical moment, Long Hao urgently operated Primal Chaos Ancestral Dragon Secret Art. The dragon vein within his body devoured the pure demon qi like a hungry beast.
After a while, the demon qi around Long Hao dissipated, and his face gradually returned to normal.
"Hu, that was close!"
Had his reaction been a bit slower, he might have been overtaken by the demon qi, turning into a mindless slaughter machine.
Although dangerous, it also confirmed that Primal Chaos Ancestral Dragon Secret Art could directly absorb Demon Beads for cultivation—an enormous discovery for Long Hao.
"Hey, it seems like the second dragon vein is showing signs of loosening. It looks like it's about to awaken?"
After absorbing a high-level Demon Bead, Long Hao was astonished to discover this.
If he absorbed one more high-level Demon Bead, he could directly break through. With the strength of two Flood Dragons, who in Fleshy Body Realm could contend with him?
"It looks like it's worth collecting more Demon Beads."
Originally, collecting Demon Beads was a mission requirement, exchanged for spirit stones and spirit pills. However, now it seemed unnecessary trouble, as Long Hao could quickly improve his strength.
"Heh, little demon pests, come to Uncle Long's bowl!"
Long Hao excitedly shouted, treating the fearsome Abyss Demon Race as food.