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Alkaid, standing under 1.8 meters tall, faced the 2.3-meter demon, appearing as if a young girl standing before a burly man.
But he unsheathed his sword without hesitation and charged towards the demon, which resembled a mountain of flesh.
With a burst of energy from his feet, the force coursed through his entire body, propelling him like an arrow shot from a bow.
He took a long stride forward, and the robust demon also excitedly charged forward.
Its massive body rolled towards him like a mountain of flesh.
Seeing this, Alkaid's muscles and bones resounded in unison, and the accumulated force within his body layered and pressed forward, entirely channeled into the sword in his hand. His arm, stable to the extreme, gripped the sharply honed sword. At that moment, the blade seemed to stir a barely perceptible white froth as it thrust towards the mountainous demon.
Just as the two charging figures were about to collide, the demon let out a low growl, and its already demonic right hand underwent a drastic change, forming a thick palm that slapped down towards the sharp sword aimed by Alkaid.
Although the sword could penetrate the thick palm of the demon, given the demon's bulky frame and terrifying weight, the subsequent head-on collision would undoubtedly send him flying and severely wound him in an instant.
Lightning fast.
At the exact moment just before they clashed, Alkaid's figure deftly sidestepped, dodging the demon's strike that could pulverize even solid walls.
One man, one demon...
They passed by each other.
Alkaid could clearly smell the foul stench mingled with heat emanating from the demon's body!
However, just as their forms were about to completely pass by one another, Alkaid's sword suddenly twisted sharply, switching from a thrust to a horizontal slash, landing heavily on the immense body of the demon.
If this stroke were to land on any other martial artist, it could theoretically rip them apart.
The severe ones could even be cleaved in two.
But upon this demon...
"Zzzt!"
A dull thud.
The sharp sword did tear through the demon's flesh, but it was as if it had struck rock, unable to penetrate deeply.
Moreover, as the edged blade entered the body, a force so strong it was nearly irresistible continuously impacted his tightly gripped hands. In the backlash of interacting forces and pulling, his grip on the sword nearly failed, almost sending the weapon flying.
This change caused Alkaid's complexion to shift.
But his adaptation was decisively extreme.
The sharp sword instantly switched from a heavy blow meant to split the demon into a sweeping cut along its body.
"Hisss!"
The short sword slashed across, creating a trail of crimson blood light.
Yet, instead of inflicting a fatal wound to the demon, these blood lights further provoked its violent nature.
"Roar!"
A low roar erupted, and the demon's body showed an even more pronounced transformation. The enormous being began to twist around, its gigantic palm swinging as if it was a solid steel rod, furiously crashing towards him.
At the critical moment, Alkaid used the short sword in his hand as a fulcrum to spin in mid-air!
As he flipped, the rushing short sword was released from his grip.
Before this, as his form was about to cross with the demon's...
To be precise, his right leg was already bent.
As the tightly gripped sword was released into mid-air, prepared to follow its inertia and fall, his bent right leg suddenly straightened, kicking out and striking squarely against the sword hilt.
"Bang!"
With that kick, the hilt of the sword flew like an arrow released from a bowstring, emitting a piercing scream as it tore through the void. It shot into the demon's skull, far too fast for it to react, and pierced right through.
Fatal Kill!
"Hisss!"
The sharp sword, devoid of its scabbard, not only penetrated the demon's skull, but continued with undiminished force towards the wall ahead, burying half of its blade into it.
Meanwhile, Alkaid, who had just completed a pass-by maneuver, landed on the ground, carried by the inertia of his charge.
Due to his mid-air spin, he had no time to adjust his center of gravity perfectly; upon landing, he stumbled back three steps before regaining his stance.
Before him, the demon's towering 2.3 meter, mountain-like body also continued with inertia for two steps before heavily crashing to the ground.
In front of him, on the wall four meters away, the half-buried short sword still trembled slightly, with clumps of cement and rubble falling down incessantly.
"Phew!"
Alkaid exhaled deeply.
The heat wave formed by the violent surge of his blood and qi was released in a single breath.
He glanced at the dozens of human bodies hanging around the room, resembling wind-dried meat...
Men and women.
Eventually, he was silent without a word.
Then, he moved to the wall and pulled the sword out of it.
It must be said, a sharp sword worth several hundred thousand really lived up to its value.
Half of the blade shot into the wall, appearing to have no significant wear and tear.
But, there was no avoiding the need to go back and make repairs.
"Two more to go,"
he uttered.
With a shake of his right hand, the dust and blood that clung to it were shaken off.
Then, with sword in one hand, he pushed open the iron door, closed it behind him, and walked past the interrogation room to shove open another door.
In the room...
There were still cages, each holding hundreds of numb and desperate people.
Alkaid didn't speak but closed the door instead.
He did this to prevent those inside from seeing the horrors of the room where the demons resided.
Despite...
Their experiences might have already been enough to destroy their minds.
He closed the door.
He didn't open the cages to set the people free; instead, he left the room as if nothing had happened, climbed the stairs, and exited the basement.
Just then, a guard pushed open the door to enter.
Perhaps it was time for a shift change with the guard of the basement?
Or maybe the basement itself was originally guarded by two.
However, that didn't matter anymore.
The instant their paths crossed, Alkaid quickly snapped the guard's neck and gently carried the body back downstairs.
Armed with lethal weapons, the urge to kill arises naturally!
What's more for a Grandmaster, whose every part of his body can serve as a deadly weapon!?
When a Grandmaster has a mind to kill, unless surrounded by a high-rank military unit, ordinary people were nothing more than lambs to the slaughter in their presence.
After making sure the stairwell door was secure, Alkaid found a room and continued to escape through the window.
He headed straight for the second demon.
Midway through, Alkaid momentarily paused.
In the Spiritual World...
The branch representing the "Martial Artist" was finally brought to full bloom after being infused with the "Demon Hunter's" Experience.
Aside from providing some tactics and skills to fight above one's level, it finally bore its fruit.
From then on, a Third Rank Grandmaster reached Perfection, with all details fully realized, flawless.
If he were to complete the cultivation of the Third Rank Grandmaster based on this information, he would be the strongest Grandmaster.
But...
Alkaid had no obsession with reaching extremes.
Nor did he pursue the idea of a Grandmaster's body overthrowing a Martial Saint.
He would not hesitate to advance when the foundation was solid and the time was right.
Therefore, while the information bestowed by Third Rank Perfection wasn't important, the third Dao Fruit that it yielded was very significant.
Dao Fruit is the manifestation of a cultivator's ultimate understanding and application of a cultivation stage.
"The first two Dao Fruits, one being 'Formless', hiding weapons within the body, and the second being 'Perception', discerning anomalies, this third Dao Fruit…"
Soon, the Dao Fruit was plucked, transforming into beams of starlight, illuminating his Spiritual World.
In the radiance of the starlight, numerous memories from his time as a Third Rank Grandmaster began to surface.
Arduous cultivation, battling demons, confrontations of life and death...
Most of his experiences were on the path of combat.
Because only by fighting demons at the Grandmaster stage could one ensure their own safety.
Such experiences led to a wealth of combat experience.
This abundance of combat experience, coupled with the various insights and understandings of the Grandmaster Realm, ultimately formed the secret technique of the Third Rank Grandmaster!
The only technique designed for head-on combat.
Heavenly Star.
Humans have seven orifices which correspond to the stars of the Nine Heavens.
For every star that is lit, one can stimulate the body's hidden potential, unleashing strength far beyond its limits.
This is not only a secret technique but also a Forbidden Technique!
A technique of risking one's life! A Fatal Kill technique!
But...
This was precisely the technique Alkaid needed at this moment!