The Demon-Slaying Grandmaster

Chapter 225 Martial Arts Greatly Improved
In their second match, Li Jingxiao and the Eight-Armed Demon were evenly matched at first.

Moreover, relying on its superior physical strength and endurance compared to the eight-armed demon, it forced the eight-armed demon to defend.

But as the fight went on, Li Jingxiao soon discovered that the Wildfire Hundred Strikes, as well as the Yang Family Spear, Yue Family Spear, and Overlord Spear, all had flaws.

In the past, the enemies of these gun techniques were all human, and at most, martial arts masters with extremely high internal strength.

Therefore, the techniques were created to deal with humans, not demons.

It is not an enemy that has mastered a higher level of power.

This is the limitation of vision, knowledge, and cognition.

It was a bit better when we were competing in sword fighting before.

The Nine Swords of Dugu make you stronger the stronger the enemy.

If the enemy's martial arts skills are not high, the essence of the Dugu Nine Swords cannot be used.

After mastering the spear technique, the Wildfire Hundred Strikes attack is like the initial burst of fire.

Once it strikes, it launches a series of attacks, relentless and continuous, making it ideal for fighting against overwhelming odds.

The moves are incredibly powerful, but they also consume the most true energy.

The Eight-Armed Demon only defends and does not attack, so even if Li Jingxiao has no worries about not having enough true energy.

However, prolonged attacks are ineffective, just as the principle of warfare dictates that "one should strike while the iron is hot, but the momentum will wane and eventually be exhausted."

That indomitable spirit is slowly fading away.

Fortunately, Li Jingxiao's comprehension and natural talent were already quite high. With some minor improvements, as the fight went on for longer, his moves became more and more in line with his power.

Moreover, although the Dugu Nine Swords and spear techniques seem to have little connection.

However, his understanding of martial arts was enough to make the Wildfire Spear Technique even more perfect.

Half an hour later, Li Jingxiao had been hit countless times, and his Golden Bell Shield had blocked countless attacks.

The icon for the Wildfire Spear Technique in the skill menu suddenly flashed a few times.

It has been transformed into "The Wilderness Hundred Strikes - Modified - Great Completion" (40/1).

The gunshots darted and rolled, a display of both strength and gentleness.

Moreover, the spear techniques faintly bear the shadows of the "Spear Breaking Style" and "Qi Breaking Style" from the Dugu Nine Swords.

Caught off guard, the eight-armed demon was struck by Li Jingxiao's thirty-hit combo, landing three shots in his chest, abdomen, and arm.

Blood flowed suddenly.

The final shot was pressed against the eight-armed demon's neck.

The Eight-Armed Demon knew he had lost, even though he didn't know how many shots he had taken from Li Jingxiao.

But the spearhead couldn't break through the young Taoist's defense, so it was useless.

The Eight-Armed Demon, a battle maniac, has killed countless people, gods, and demons; the concept of holding back doesn't exist in his dictionary.

Therefore, if you can't break through someone's defenses, it's all for naught.

But when Li Jingxiao shot himself in the neck, he definitely didn't kill him.

The eight-armed demon asked with surprise and anticipation, "What kind of marksmanship is this?"

Li Jingxiao chuckled, then noticed that the icon in the skill bar had changed to "Wildfire Hundred Strikes - Modified".

(Combining the sword intent of the Dugu Nine Swords and integrating it into the body greatly increases its power).

When Li Jingxiao looked at the Eight-Armed Demon again, his eyes flashed with wild joy.

This guy is proficient in nine kinds of weapons, and in order to improve his fighting skills, he actually fought against all the masters in the underworld and the human world.

It can be said that the other party is a living encyclopedia of weapons in this world.

As long as I can suppress him with weapons, my individual combat strength will also be among the top tier.

Of course, Li Jingxiao looked at the many gunshot marks on his clothes.

Knowing that he could defeat the eight-armed demon was simply because his marksmanship had suddenly improved, which caught his opponent off guard.

Li Jingxiao chuckled, "Tell me, does my marksmanship count as being one or two moves better than yours?"

The eight-armed demon remained silent for a few seconds, then nodded helplessly.

As the Eight-Armed Demon nodded, Li Jingxiao received another notification in his mind: +2 experience points.

After glancing at the notification that he was at level 67 (13.8/37), Li Jingxiao chuckled.

Adding the 9.6 experience points I got from that wild boar demon, I've earned 13.6 experience points today.

It far exceeded Li Jingxiao's expectations.

Then, smiling, he said to the eight-armed demon, "This spear technique is called Wildfire Hundred Strikes, and it was taught to me by a senior named 'Li'."

I don't want to compete with you today, especially to push my limits.

After saying that, he casually took out a jar of strong liquor from his inventory and threw it to the Eight-Armed Demon.

"I'll buy you a drink, and then we'll have another match."

The eight-armed demon caught the wine jar and immediately smelled the faint aroma of wine.

Without hesitation, he slapped off the seal and tilted his head back to pour the wine into his mouth.

They drank with great gusto.

However, Li Jingxiao would not develop any goodwill towards the demon just because it helped him improve his spear and sword skills.

They would be suppressed here by the ancestors of Maoshan, and would surely be a great evil that plagues the region.

Letting him out will definitely cause a huge mess.

Moreover, being imprisoned here provides him with an extra sparring partner to practice with and improve his martial arts skills.

Incidentally, it's also a source of experience.

Li Jingxiao also took the opportunity to change out of his +3 Jingxiu robe, which was almost torn to shreds.

Take it to the armor shop in the game to get it repaired.

After thinking for a few seconds, he used the level 4 spirit stones he had recently acquired on the Jingxiu Robe.

+4 Jingxiu Robe - Defense +22, Physical and Magical Damage Reduction 40%
Defense increased by 3 points, and physical and magical damage reduction is also 5% higher than the +3 Jingxiu Robe.

With a 40% damage reduction, it can actually be considered a god-tier item.

With his invincible shield and physical strength, ordinary attacks were indeed no different from tickling Li Jingxiao.

Even a fatal wound, with a 40% damage reduction, might turn a potentially fatal injury into a serious one.

A serious injury may actually be just a minor one.

Even for Li Jingxiao, as long as he wasn't killed in one blow, it was all worthwhile.

No matter what kind of injury you get, you can recover in a short time by taking a few red potions in the game.

Of course, Li Jingxiao also discovered that the upper limit of the robe's defensive power was not high.

At least against a demon of the level of the Eight-Armed Demon, a single iron spear could pierce holes in a monk's robe.

Li Jingxiao confirmed that the Eight-Armed Demon was indeed extremely difficult to harm.

After the eight-armed demon finished drinking, he took the opportunity to talk and regained a lot of his strength.

In the third match, I was absolutely invincible.

He was fighting with all his might, and his goal was simply to force the Eight-Armed Demon to retreat, making him feel like he had lost another move, so that he could gain experience.

The clanging of spears against each other, and the sounds of spearheads being blocked by the Golden Bell Shield and physical defenses when they struck Li Jingxiao, echoed continuously within the second-floor tower.

The proficiency level of "Rapid Fire - Modified" also skyrocketed from Mastery (40/1) to Mastery (6000/1).
And you can get 2 experience points every now and then.

Five hours later, Li Jingxiao suddenly received a notification in his mind that he had leveled up.

Level 68 (0.8 million/38 million)
The 1 attribute point was unsurprisingly added to Constitution.

体质40、根骨33+12、悟性36+6
Li Jingxiao then forced the eight-armed demon back with a single spear thrust, and laughed, saying, "That was exhilarating! But I'm hungry. We'll fight again tomorrow."

After saying that, he took out a jar of strong liquor and a sheep, and said to the eight-armed demon, "I'll treat you to wine and meat, but give me back my weapon." The eight-armed demon was really exhausted this time, and in the past, he had a 9% win rate in fights.

I've never been treated like this before.

Seeing that Li Jingxiao had stopped fighting, he was unhappy but subconsciously relieved.

Seeing that there was wine and meat, the eight-armed demon was actually quite happy.

However, he also knew in his heart that this young Taoist priest was not a straightforward person.

And it probably won't be easy to fool him.

He obediently returned the iron sword and spear to Li Jingxiao.

For Li Jingxiao, this devil was far more useful than Dang Kang.

They can provide experience and help me improve my martial arts skills; they are simply the best sparring partners.

As for the upper three floors, Li Jingxiao had no intention of doing so at the moment.

The Eight-Armed Demon is already so powerful; going up there would just be asking for trouble.

After going down one floor, I saw that the wild boar spirit ignored me completely and just lay on the ground sleeping.

Li Jingxiao smiled, stepped forward and threw a punch, sending the wild boar demon flying more than ten meters.

After hearing the notification sound of +1.2 experience points in his mind, he laughed and took out the token from his inventory before flying out of the Demon Locking Tower.

As for whether Kang cursed him behind his back, Li Jingxiao didn't hear it and pretended not to know.

At this moment, Master Xuanming was not only still guarding outside the tower, but also had six elders of the Xuanzi generation guarding outside the tower together in the position of the Seven Stars.

It seems that he was worried about something happening to him inside the Demon-Sealing Tower, so he wanted to take immediate action to suppress him.

Seeing that Li Jingxiao's Jingxiu robe was somewhat tattered, the seven old Taoist priests couldn't help but feel a pang of heartache.

This robe is clearly an excellent magical artifact, and now it's damaged like this. It would be strange if he didn't feel bad about it.

Fortunately, Li Jingxiao did not appear to be injured. The seven old Taoist priests and the 48 Maoshan disciples guarding the tower looked at him with respect.

It's obvious at a glance how fiercely Li Jingxiao fought those demons inside.

Even so, he was not injured.

His abilities were thus reassessed and raised to a higher level.

When Li Jingxiao said that he was competing with the eight-armed demon in swordsmanship and spearmanship, the way everyone looked at him changed again.

If we use Taoist magic and supernatural powers to fight the eight-armed demon, no one will think there's anything wrong with it.

It's hard not to be surprised that he would abandon his Taoist magic and supernatural powers and instead fight for so long with the weapon that the Eight-Armed Demon is best at.

Li Jingxiao didn't try to embellish his reputation by saying he lost more than he won, but for many Taoist priests, this was already a remarkable achievement.

At least throughout Maoshan, there is no one who can defeat the Eight-Armed Demon in a simple martial arts contest.

They weren't even qualified to fight the Eight-Armed Demon.

Li Jingxiao recounted his experiences after being imprisoned in detail, but it was mostly true with only a small portion being false.

After their conversation, Li Jingxiao, seeing that it was getting late, was thinking of going home.

He glanced down at the Jingxiu robe he was wearing, then quickly changed it off and had his game character take it to the armor shop for repair.

Fortunately, apart from buying alcohol and horses, there's basically nowhere else you need to use game currency.

Therefore, Li Jingxiao didn't care about the repair cost of 5 game coins.

But in the eyes of Master Xuanming and the others, in the blink of an eye, the robes on this guy's body were completely renewed.

The crowd initially showed expressions of shock, followed by a look of delight.

Just as someone was about to speak, they were stopped by a single look from Master Xuanming.

After watching Li Jingxiao soar into the sky, break the sound barrier with a bang, and fly rapidly back to the capital.

Master Xuanming then said to the six elders, "Let's go back to the main hall and discuss this in detail."

The six elders nodded in relief.

One by one, they used their supernatural speed techniques, either flying or leaping between tree trunks out of the forbidden area.

After they arrived at the main hall of the Three Mao Patriarchs and sat down, Master Xuanming spoke, “I know what you are thinking.”

Jingyou would not refuse to help me at Maoshan and repair the magical artifacts passed down from my ancestors.

Helping once or twice is fine, but any more than that is not the way of friendship.

The six elders immediately understood what the sect leader meant.

They all nodded in agreement and quickly decided that if Li Jingxiao helped Maoshan repair a precious artifact, they would pass on to him a Taoist magic technique.

As for any damaged magical artifacts that the elders possess and wish to ask Li Jingxiao for repair, that is a matter for the elders and Li Jingxiao to discuss the payment themselves.

But the prerequisite is that Li Jingxiao must first repair one of Maoshan's most valuable treasures.

The elders had no objections to this.

As those in power at Maoshan, we all understand that the stronger Maoshan is, the better it is for everyone.

Moreover, the elders pondered and discussed it.

They quickly decided to first ask Li Jingxiao to repair the 'Jade Target Fire Thunder Sword' and the 'Five Directions Five Emperors Coin Sword'.

Both of these are powerful weapons for attacking demons. Repairing either one will make all the demons in the world realize the consequences of offending Maoshan.

Moreover, once any artifact is re-installed in the Demon-Sealing Tower, there's no need to send 48 disciples to guard it year-round.

In particular, the Five Emperors' Golden Coin Sword, hanging in the Demon-Locking Tower, can suppress all the demons inside and make them behave.

If it were replaced with the Jade Target Fire Thunder Sword, although the effect would be slightly less, it would still be enough to deter the demons in the Demon Locking Tower from thinking about how to escape all the time.
-
Li Jingxiao returned to the capital close to midnight.

I thought Qin Keqing and Jia Yuanchun should have already gone to sleep.

But when they arrived home, they saw that there were still many candles burning in Qin Keqing's room.

They deliberately made a noise to alert the people inside the house.

After hearing the noise inside, a maid quickly pushed open the door and came out, where she saw Li Jingxiao standing in the middle of the courtyard.

She exclaimed with delight, "Madam, Second Madam, Master is back!"

Immediately, many footsteps echoed inside the house, and soon Li Jingxiao was welcomed into the house by Qin Keqing, Yuan Chun, and others.

One woman after another served him tea, and another gave him towels to wipe his face and wash his hands.

After a flurry of activity, they sat down on either side of him and asked him in a low voice.

Li Jingxiao naturally wouldn't mention that he had been fighting demons all day.

He only said that he went to Maoshan and, under the protection of many immortals, successfully broke through to the next realm.

The women were finally relieved with joy.

Then, Yuan Chun glanced at Qin Keqing and saw Qin Keqing nod.

After gathering his thoughts, he said, "My lord, at noon, my father sent someone to report that my uncle-in-law from the Lin family has been serving as an official in Yangzhou for seven years."

His Majesty, mindful of the many merits of Lin's uncle, intends to transfer him back to the capital to take up a post.

Uncle Lin sent someone back to the capital to report to his father, eldest uncle, and grandmother that there were still many matters in Yangzhou that needed time to be dealt with.

"I plan to send my aunt and cousin back to the capital before the river freezes over."

When Li Jingxiao heard that Lin Ruhai had been transferred back to the capital, his first thought was that he would finally be able to see Lin Ruhai again.

Then he thought of Lin Daiyu, who was still young, and couldn't help but sigh.

Then I realized that if Jia Min came back with her, Lin Daiyu wouldn't be able to stay at the Rongguo Mansion.

Jia Baoyu, that boy, never had the chance to grow up with Lin Daiyu.

Thinking of this, Li Jingxiao couldn't help but smile slightly.

(End of this chapter)