Crack!

A soft sound echoed, and a flash of cold light appeared. The massive snake-shaped Vein Demon that had been battling with Li Gongnian just moments before had its head completely severed at its vital seven inches, rolling several meters away on the ground.

Though the snake's head was cut off, its giant body continued to writhe, causing the snake's blood to spray everywhere from its neck, creating an extremely gruesome scene.

However, none of the snake's blood splattered onto Li Gongnian, as if an invisible barrier surrounded him.

Seeing this, the Sky Thunder Valley brothers, who initially wanted to find some confidence in challenging Li Gongnian, exchanged glances and simultaneously felt a strong sense of apprehension towards this genius from the Spirit Fighting Commerce.

After all, Xu Changgui and Lu Zhang had just managed to kill that Eighth Rank Middle Stage tiger-shaped Vein Demon not only by combining their efforts as brothers but also by using some unexpected tricks.

Such tactics can only work once; once the enemy learns and guards against them, it's not so easy to succeed again. Just based on this point, their combined efforts did not appear as effortlessly impressive as Li Gongnian's slaying of the snake-shaped Vein Demon.

While Xu Changgui and Lu Zhang were feeling uneasy, Li Gongnian was not burdened with such thoughts. He dominated the battle from the start, and employing some techniques to slay the Eighth Rank Middle Stage snake-shaped Vein Demon was no big deal to him.

"Brother Xu, Brother Lu, do you have the courage to join me in confronting that Eighth Rank Advanced fiend?"

The next moment, Li Gongnian shouted loudly; his ultimate goal was the Eighth Rank Advanced Black Bear Vein Demon. In his eyes, only such a formidable Vein Demon could be considered a true opponent.

"Haha, what is there to fear?"

Taunted by Li Gongnian in public, even though Xu Changgui had deep apprehensions about that Eighth Rank Advanced Vein Demon, he certainly couldn't back down now, as it was not only about their brotherly dignity but also the prestige of Sky Thunder Valley.

Thus, Xu Changgui displayed extreme boldness; at this point, any fear was pointless, and being able to battle an Eighth Rank Advanced Vein Demon might be a rare opportunity for his cultivation.

"Alright, then let's see what that big guy is capable of!"

Getting the expected response, Li Gongnian's fighting spirit surged. In a one-on-one, he wasn't absolutely confident in defeating the Black Bear Vein Demon, but with the Sky Thunder Valley brothers assisting him, he believed that even if he didn't win, he could at least remain unbeaten.

Li Gongnian had his own plan: the moment he couldn't match the Black Bear Vein Demon, he would immediately abandon Xu Changgui and Lu Zhang, seizing the opportunity to rush into the cave to get the medicinal herbs he needed. As for the life and death of the brothers, what did it have to do with him?

Needless to say, before the cooperation even began, both sides had already started scheming against each other. Such a partnership was undoubtedly imperfect, and unexpected changes could arise at any moment.

Regardless, after the words were exchanged, the joint attack on the Eighth Rank Advanced Black Bear Demon was thus formed.

"Roar!"

The Eighth Rank Advanced Vein Demon, although unable to speak human language, had no trouble understanding human conversation. At that moment, the Black Bear Vein Demon roared in anger, seemingly furious at the audacity of these humans.

Whoosh!

Bang!

As the roar fell, everyone saw a shadow flicker before their eyes, and the enormous Black Bear Vein Demon jumped directly down from the high platform, causing the entire ground to shake violently.

Witnessing this, Li Gongnian, the Sky Thunder Valley brothers, and even the ordinary cultivators on the periphery felt a surge of joy because the cave was on the high platform. Now, with the Black Bear Vein Demon "deserting its post," their chances of success had substantially increased.

"Brothers, I'll go first!"

With thoughts racing through his mind, Li Gongnian voiced aloud and proceeded ahead to intercept the Black Bear Vein Demon. This scene caught Xu Changgui's attention, flashing a glint in his eyes.

Xu Changgui, unlike the fiery-tempered Lu Zhang, had his own plans, aligning with Li Gongnian's earlier thoughts. Both intended to take advantage of the other's distraction with the Black Bear Vein Demon to rush into the cave and secure what they wanted.

Xu Changgui didn't believe Li Gongnian to be a fool. His premature attack on the Black Bear Vein Demon was clearly unusual, and the next moment he understood why.

"Brother Xu, be careful!"

Just as the idea arose in Xu Changgui's mind, he saw the Spirit Fighting Commerce genius Li Gongnian sidestep, and the massive Sandbowl-sized fist of the Eighth Rank Advanced Vein Demon Black Bear was careening straight for his head.

At this moment, Xu Changgui finally understood why Li Gongnian was the first to strike earlier. It was definitely not to engage in a three-hundred-round battle with the Black Bear Pulse Demon. With a clever dodge, he directly delivered Xu Changgui right in front of the Black Bear Pulse Demon.

To the Black Bear Pulse Demon, Li Gongnian was an enemy, and these two humans were naturally enemies too. It didn't matter whom it attacked.

So when it saw Li Gongnian dodge its attack, it didn't change its course. That punch still came straight, but the target had already shifted from Li Gongnian to Xu Changgui.

"Damn fellow!"

Seeing the opponent's little trick, not only making the onlookers think Li Gongnian was the first to strike, but also cleanly extricate himself, making him the focus of the enemy's attack. Xu Changgui couldn't help but curse inwardly.

But anger aside, Xu Changgui knew it was impossible to argue with Li Gongnian right now and could only deal with this strike from the Eighth Rank Advanced Black Bear Pulse Demon first.

Moreover, since Li Gongnian dodged so quickly, Xu Changgui was caught off guard, and the Black Bear Pulse Demon's attack speed was extraordinary. It was already too late for Xu Changgui to dodge.

So, in an instant, Xu Changgui could only instinctively raise the short blade weapon in his right hand, holding it horizontally in front of his chest, and then unleashed his Meridian Qi all over, hoping to withstand the powerful strike of the Black Bear Pulse Demon.

Clang!

A crisp sound rang out, followed by a "crack" sound that reached everyone's ears. Xu Changgui felt a huge force hit him, his chest boiling with blood, and he took several steps back.

Whish!

At this moment, the middle-level Earth Rank short blade unexpectedly broke in half, the blade tip flying upward and cutting Xu Changgui's face, evidently sliced by the blade edge.

Fortunately, Xu Changgui was ultimately the leading figure of the younger generation in Sky Thunder Valley, the Heavenly Thunder Child, with extraordinary cultivation. Coupled with the middle-level Earth Rank weapon absorbing part of the force, although it was embarrassing, he wasn't seriously injured, thanks to sheer luck.

But from this blow, Xu Changgui realized that even if he used all his means, he might not be a match for this Black Bear Pulse Demon in ten rounds, especially with such force. If the short blade hadn't blocked it, a few of his ribs might have been broken under this overwhelming power.

"Brother, lend me a hand!"

Knowing he couldn't support long against the Black Bear Pulse Demon alone, Xu Changgui gave a deep shout the next moment. Having been tricked by Li Gongnian just now, he certainly wouldn't rely on the genius of Fighting Spirit Commerce to save him now.

"Beast, take a sword!"

However, just as Xu Changgui thought that Li Gongnian would definitely not intervene, this genius from Douling Commerce shouted, and a cold light appeared from the back of the Black Bear Pulse Demon's neck, exuding sharpness.

It looked like the weapon that Li Gongnian used to slash the snake-shaped vein demon earlier, and at this moment, Xu Changgui and Lu Zhang finally sensed clearly that the longsword was indeed at the advanced Earth Rank level.

If this sword hit, even if the Black Bear Pulse Demon was at Earth Rank Advanced, it would likely be decapitated.

After all, while the flesh of Meridian Demons was strong, it could not match a truly sharp weapon. They were still flesh and blood, and once their heads were severed, they couldn't reattach them.

So at this moment, Li Gongnian seemed to be targeting the vital spot ruthlessly, and the sword struck so precisely, forcing the Black Bear Pulse Demon to halt its pursuit of Xu Changgui and lower itself, letting the sword light sweep past over its head without inflicting any harm.

"Everyone, let's attack together!"

Having missed the strike, Li Gongnian took advantage of the momentum to slice downward, shouting as he did so. At this time, even Xu Changgui was unsure if the dodge by the genius from Douling Commerce was a ploy against him or merely evading the Black Bear Pulse Demon's attack.

Although he had doubts in his heart, Xu Changgui and Lu Zhang didn't hesitate. After witnessing the black bear demon's extreme prowess, Xu Changgui knew that none of the three could be a match for this evil demon in single combat, not even Li Gongnian.

For a moment, the low-end scuffle in the open space continued, and this pinnacle battle quickly reached a fever pitch. Once a result was determined, it would decide the trend of the situation on the top of Xuan Yun Peak today.

If the Eighth Rank Advanced Black Bear Demon won, then everyone on top of Xuan Yun Peak, human cultivators one and all, probably wouldn't leave the peak alive.

But if Li Gongnian and Xu Changgui successfully killed the Black Bear Pulse Demon, then after collecting what they wanted, they might even share in the spoils.

Even the human cultivators who were disgruntled about the three blocking the mountain path before were now all hoping the three of them would win, as this was their only chance.