Chapter 337: Opening the Door to Great Friendship

Jiang Fan nodded. "I'm in the Foundation Establishment realm. Is there a problem?"

Liuli felt like she could spit blood.A Foundation Establishment cultivator dares to challenge her, a descendant of the Demon Empress, and he asks if there's a problem? The more she thought about it, the more humiliated she felt. If news of this reached the demon race—that she couldn't even handle a small human cultivator in the Foundation Establishment realm—how could she still claim to be the daughter of the Demon Empress?

Gritting her silver teeth, she growled, "I truly underestimated you. But this is where it ends!"

The Demon Empress's bloodline surged within her, and an immensely powerful purple aura began to emanate from her pores. It coalesced on her skin, forming a layer of tangible scales. Her bright, jewel-blue eyes also turned purple.

"Unleash!" She suddenly exerted force with both fists. Jiang Fan, who had been in a stalemate, suddenly felt a terrifying force, several times stronger than before, surge towards him, rattling his bones and making them creak as if about to break.

Jiang Fan was startled. He had cultivated the Dragon-Elephant War Body, yet against her physique, it felt as fragile as paper? In this critical moment, Jiang Fan decisively tapped his toes and widened the distance between them. At the same time, he drew his Mourning Frost Sword and struck with a backhand, exclaiming, "Heaven and Earth Starfall!"

Accompanied by a rumbling tremor, a powerful sword qi, imbued with the extreme cold of the Mourning Frost Sword itself, swept forth. What made Jiang Fan's pupils constrict was this: The sword qi, striking the scales on Liuli's body, only left behind faint residual marks. One must know, this was a sword technique unleashed with the Mourning Frost Sword, an upper-grade magic artifact. Its power had increased by more than one level compared to before. Even the chief disciples of the Nine Sects might not be able to withstand it. Yet, it couldn't break through the strange scales on Liuli's body! As for the cold energy of the Mourning Frost Sword, it only left a thin layer of frost on Liuli's body.

Liuli sneered, saying, "To push me this far, you're quite something!" This layer of scales was the first innate talent of the Demon Empress's bloodline. While greatly enhancing strength, it also dramatically increased defensive power. Even a martial artist at the fifth layer of the Core Formation realm might not be able to break through her scales, let alone a mere Foundation Establishment cultivator!

She seized the opportunity to pursue. Her rapidly moving purple figure compressed the air, making it whimper. She instantly arrived before Jiang Fan, her eyes cold as she declared, "Now, pay the price for what you've done!"

Jiang Fan not only didn't dodge, but after a brief moment of thought, he decisively met her charge. His speed was even more exaggerated than Liuli's, and lightning flickered erratically between his legs! As the two approached each other, Jiang Fan leaped up. He stomped viciously towards Liuli with both legs. Two streams of lightning, like thunder dragons, fiercely struck her chest.

Relying on the innate talent of her Demon Empress bloodline, Liuli didn't take Jiang Fan's counterattack seriously. She suddenly clenched both fists, imbued with unmatched power, and slammed them fiercely towards Jiang Fan's legs. This strike would smash his legs, along with the lower half of his body, into a pulp.

"Say goodbye to this world!" Liuli's eyes were cold. "Starting now, I will unleash..."

Before she could finish speaking, as fists and legs collided, her expression instantly changed dramatically. The thunder dragons erupting from his legs were actually two bolts of lightning! In an instant, she felt her entire body go numb from the electricity! Immediately after, the thunder dragons broke through her arms and reached her chest. And her proud Demon Empress bloodline defense, that layer of purple scales, after holding out for less than a breath, began to emit a strong burnt smell. The powerful lightning pierced through the scales and violently struck her chest.

"Ah!" Liuli shrieked, flew several yards away, and crashed heavily onto the ground.

However, the pain on her body surface was nothing. The terrifying electrical power surged into her body, scorching her internal organs! She immediately felt as if her internal organs were burning. Clutching her abdomen, she twisted in extreme agony.

At the same time, Jiang Fan pressed his advantage. He pointed his chilling longsword at Liuli's neck and said, "I win."

How could Liuli still care about winning or losing? She could feel her condition. It was extremely bad! Even as a descendant of the Demon Empress, with such severe internal injuries, she absolutely wouldn't survive. Her face was filled with disbelief. Death had come so quickly, so suddenly. A single strike had taken her vitality. A hint of bitterness crossed her heart. She had merely wanted to bully a few elite human disciples. But who knew she would run into a monstrosity like Jiang Fan? The power of that single kick was no less than that of some sect elders. Thinking about how he had first humiliated her, and now he had taken her life, her heart felt desolate. For the dignified daughter of the Demon Empress to suffer such a fate... How pathetic...

However, at this moment, Jiang Fan retracted his sword. He helped Liuli sit up, then took out a Rejuvenation Pill and put it into her mouth. The pill dissolved instantly upon entering her mouth, turning into a stream of sweet spiritual liquid that merged with her injured internal organs.

Liuli was stunned. "You're saving me?" she asked.

"Who needs your help? Crocodile tears, hmph!"

Jiang Fan looked a bit awkward. A mere sparring match had nearly cost her life. Before using his Thunder Dragon Lightning Legs, he had hesitated a bit, fearing its power would be too great. But the woman had been so aggressive that he had no choice. He hadn't expected to injure her so severely.

"Sorry, it's a new technique I learned; I couldn't control its power," Jiang Fan said.

Liuli actually spat out blood. Already injured, she was so enraged by his "couldn't control its power" remark that she spat blood again. So, Jiang Fan still had power to spare? He hadn't unleashed his full power? If he had gone all out, she would have been kicked to death just now? Was this truly the daughter of the Demon Empress fighting a human in the Foundation Establishment realm? No one would believe it if she told them!

Filled with shame and rage, she pushed Jiang Fan away. "I don't need your help!" she snapped. "Besides, you can't save me!"

However, she surprisingly discovered that the pain in her abdomen was slowly subsiding. In fact, it was itching, a sign that her wounds were healing. She couldn't help but be greatly surprised. "What did you give me to eat?" she exclaimed. "How can its effect be so miraculous?" She had seen human healing elixirs before, but she had never seen anything so heaven-defying.

Seeing that she had recovered, Jiang Fan subtly let out a breath of relief. Although he didn't know the woman's true identity, it was not appropriate to take her life before she explicitly showed malice. It would be better to hand her over to the higher-ups of the Nine Sects for judgment.

He stared at her, pondering. "What were you saying earlier?" he asked. "Starting now, I will unleash..."

Liuli's expression froze. Beads of cold sweat, betraying her guilt, appeared on her forehead as she stammered, "I was saying I would open... open the door to friendship! Yes, exactly, open the door to friendship."

The phrase "unleash a massacre"—not only was she severely injured at the moment, but even if she were at full strength, with a monster like Jiang Fan present, she wouldn't dare utter those words. She could only take a step back and declare "open the door to friendship."

Hearing this, Jiang Fan flicked her forehead. She yelped in pain and glared at him fiercely. "What are you doing?" she demanded.

Jiang Fan retorted gruffly, "Do you take me for a fool? You were about to say 'unleash a massacre,' weren't you?" Her fierce expression just now had nothing to do with "friendship."

Liuli felt guilty, but stubbornly insisted, "I didn't say that! I was definitely going to open the door to friendship. Believe it or not."

Seeing her rogue-like expression, Jiang Fan couldn't help but smile. "I couldn't care less if you're lying," he said. "I'll hand you over to the Nine Sects' higher-ups; they'll question you properly! Now, first dispel this mist for me!"

"The Nine Sects' higher-ups?" Liuli's heart sank with a thud; she was a little flustered. Her current methods were certainly more than enough to deal with ordinary elite disciples of the Nine Sects. But against the powerful experts of the Nine Sects, they wouldn't stand a chance. In just a few moves, they would discover her identity as the Demon Empress's daughter. Then, her situation would become troublesome.

"I'm talking to you!" Jiang Fan impatiently flicked her forehead again. Her fair, smooth forehead turned red from the flick, and the pain brought Liuli back to her senses. She clutched her forehead, baring her teeth at Jiang Fan. Inwardly, she had cursed Jiang Fan countless times, but she only dared to do so in her mind.

She dared not resist and could only obediently open her small, cherry-like mouth and spit out a demon core the size of an eyeball. As the demon core appeared, the surrounding mist quickly receded back into it. This reconnected the Sword Forest with the outside world.

Jiang Fan breathed a sigh of relief. Noticing Liuli was about to swallow the demon core back into her body, he snatched it from her and said, "This thing is too profound for you to handle. I'll keep it for you." With that, he skillfully tucked it into his pocket.

This startled Liuli. She quickly covered the top of her head, her face showing panic.