Chapter 227 - 221: The Right Time, Place, and People! Slaying the Demon Elephant in the Spotlight

Chapter 227: Chapter 221: The Right Time, Place, and People! Slaying the Demon Elephant in the Spotlight

Not long after Fu Juemin fell into the water, he immediately activated Shadow Control.

A dense shadow, like spreading ink, unfurled silently beneath the water, permeating everything. Even the rushing current couldn’t wash it away.

Fu Juemin moved through the shadows, experiencing a strange sensation that was hard to put into words—it was as if he were in another, silent dimension at the bottom of the river, devoid of sound and pressure.

Through the murky water, he saw the Fish Demon that had "swallowed" Li Huaisuang. After entering the water, it didn’t hesitate. With an agile flick of its massive body, it dove rapidly in the opposite direction of the water gate.

After receiving Li Huaisuang’s "help," the Fish Demon seemed to have instantly broken free from the brink of "losing control." It had regained its "senses" and was now swiftly fleeing the death trap that had been meticulously set for it.

At this point, Toad Palace’s plan to capture the Fish Demon could be declared a failure once again.

But for Fu Juemin, his own "hunt" had just begun.

Relying on Shadow Control, he followed the direction of the current and rapidly approached the Dragon Gate Water Gate.

Fu Juemin dove deeper and deeper, gradually drawing near a massive shadow lurking in the depths of an iron-barred cage...

In the dim underwater world, an eerie blue light illuminated a radius of several dozen feet.

At the center of the light source was a giant toad crouching on the riverbed, its body comparable in size to a water buffalo. Its bulging eyes were like two bizarre blue lanterns submerged in a cold pool. With each breath, its belly and jowls pulsed rhythmically, inhaling and exhaling water and the eerie light.

A large patch of shadow, swaying with the current, silently "flowed" toward the giant toad.

Suddenly, a long, sturdy arm emerged silently from the shadow, followed by a torso and a head... Fu Juemin’s complete figure appeared. One hand gripped the pitch-black iron bars of the cage—each as thick as a grown man’s thigh—like a pincer.

The current brushed against his face as he stared at the Toad Demon, which was now just inches away. A faint light glinted in his eyes. Inside his chest, his heart beat steadily and powerfully, its rhythm the only clear sound in the absolute silence of the underwater world.

A subtle sense of tension crept into his mind.

This tension likely stemmed from the slight constraint and unease of being underwater, unsure of how much of his full strength he could bring to bear.

Anyone would feel an instinctual tension in a completely unfamiliar environment, and Fu Juemin was no exception.

But he had Shadow Control, after all, and quickly suppressed this fleeting emotion.

His appearance didn’t seem to alert the Toad Demon in the slightest. In its pair of eerie blue "lanterns," Fu Juemin seemed no different from the fish, shrimp, and seaweed drifting by with the current—just another part of the environment.

With a thought, Fu Juemin’s figure suddenly vanished into the shadows. The next moment, he was almost pressed against the giant toad’s rough, warty back.

He reached out, attempting to touch its strange skin—

Just as his fingertips were about to make contact!

BOOM—!!!

A perfectly clear vacuum trail erupted without warning in the dim water!

A terrifying shockwave raged silently. A few river fish that happened to be swimming by were instantly turned into a fine mist of blood and flesh, unable to even struggle, dissolving silently into the water.

Where the trail passed, the water briefly collapsed and disintegrated before frantically rushing back in, creating a rapidly spinning vortex. It released a powerful suction that made even the heavy iron cage tremble and hum...

Fu Juemin’s figure reappeared outside the cage, a grave and wary expression on his face.

When the Toad Demon was still, he’d almost mistaken it for being "dead." But the moment it moved, the attack it unleashed was terrifying.

It was also a tongue attack, but this Toad Demon was far stronger than the Guardian Demon from before.

Compared to the Guardian Demon’s "immaturity" and "greenness," this Toad Demon was undoubtedly much more "mature."

’A creature Toad Palace brought out to lure the Fish Demon is probably on the same level of strength...’

Fu Juemin’s brow furrowed slightly.

’If I were on land with my Demon Body fully activated, I wouldn’t be afraid to fight it.’

’But underwater, with no solid footing and all sorts of restrictions, I’m not very confident.’

This brought him back to a problem Fu Juemin often faced when dealing with underwater Demon Fiends—how to lure them out of the water?

Fu Juemin stood in the water, his brows tightly knit, as he watched the Toad Demon, which had once again become calm and resumed pulsing its jowls, looking forlorn and lonely.

Soon, however, his furrowed brow relaxed.

’I’m an idiot!’

Fu Juemin lightly tapped his forehead, a self-deprecating smile on his lips. ’This thing isn’t wild; it’s ’domesticated.’

’Why would Toad Palace just let it stay submerged at the bottom of the river forever...’

Realization dawned on him.

Without another glance at the giant toad, he turned and silently vanished into the shadows, rising toward the surface like an upward-flowing dark current...

....

The riverbank levee had already become a battlefield.

The shouts of battle, the clash of weapons, gunshots, and screams blended into a deafening cacophony.

First, men from the Blue-clothed Gang and the Woodcutter Gang arrived, cutting off the Instructor, the Young Master, and Tang Jing’s group, who hadn’t managed to fully retreat.

Immediately after, members of the Qinglian Gang and Patrol Police from both the Hua Realm and the Concession poured in. Multiple factions clashed on the narrow levee, their forces interlocked in a chaotic melee.

The light from the torches illuminated the riverbank as bright as day. Silhouettes fought and fell frenziedly in the flickering light...

Not far from this chaotic battlefield, three figures stood silently in the shadows on the roof of an abandoned warehouse, looking down on the slaughter below.

"Judging by his build and appearance, that’s undoubtedly Ji Shaotong."

"His strength also seems to roughly match..."

A burly figure completely hidden in a large cloak spoke in a booming voice, "It’s just that the Techniques he’s using... are a far cry from the style of the legendary Demon Elephant."

"Back then, Ji Shaotong’s Heart Scene shattered and his heart meridians were all severed. It’s a miracle he even survived," a young woman, who held a red umbrella to hide her face even in the dead of night, added in a crisp, delicate voice. "It’s not impossible that he chose a new path and started his training over."

The cloaked man shook his head. "No matter how you change your path and start over, a person’s habits and fighting style, developed over many years of immersion in the Martial Dao, are ingrained to the bone. They’re very difficult to change."

"So, you’re saying this Ji Shaotong is a fake?" the girl with the red umbrella asked softly.

The cloaked man didn’t answer. He simply turned his gaze to the side, toward the old man with the handlebar mustache who had been standing with his hands behind his back, silent until now.

"Vice Tower Master, what are your thoughts?"

The old man with the handlebar mustache gazed quietly at the distant levee, teeming with figures and firelight, and said slowly, "Whether he is real or fake is irrelevant. It is an indisputable fact that he possesses both the Dragon Elephant Skill and the Five Poison Skills."

"That alone makes this trip worthwhile for us... Since he jumped out and called himself Ji Shaotong, then he *is* Ji Shaotong."

"As long as the world recognizes him as the Demon Elephant, taking his head will be enough to claim that bounty."

The cloaked man nodded slightly.

But the girl with the red umbrella couldn’t help but ask, "Then why didn’t we just strike earlier? Tonight is a golden opportunity to kill him."

"Not tonight."

The old man with the handlebar mustache shook his head.

"Why not?" the girl asked, her tone puzzled.

"If we are to kill this Ji Shaotong, we must be fully prepared. We must crush him completely in one go, leaving absolutely no chance of survival."

The old man thought for a moment, then said leisurely, "To accomplish this, we need the right time, the right place, and the right people. We cannot lack any of the three."

"First, the right people."

He held up one finger. "Ji Shaotong, after all, was a fiend who, at only Half-Step Heart Intent, dared to challenge the absolute masters and bathed half of Jiangzuo in blood. Although he has supposedly started his training anew, and I am confident I can kill him, that confidence is only eighty percent."

"The remaining twenty percent must be covered by the two of you, along with other experts who hold a grudge against the Demon Elephant."

"The other ten percent falls to Nan Xiangcheng, who wishes to cooperate with us. His troops will also be a significant asset at the critical moment."

"Right now, our people are not all gathered. The ’right people’ are not here."

"Second, the right place."

The old man’s gaze swept over the river below. "As an heir to the Formless Demon Sect, Ji Shaotong has learned a vast and complex array of skills. Who knows how many secret Escape Skills he has hidden."

"To kill him, we must choose a killing ground, a place from which he has no escape. This location is near the river, with waterways leading in every direction. It would be too easy for him to get away."

"Therefore, the ’right place’ is not here."

"Finally, the right time..."

The old man with the handlebar mustache looked at the two before him, his eyes gleaming with a sharp light.

"When we of the Black Tower strike, we are killing a figure as famous in the Martial Arts world as the Demon Elephant."

"Naturally... we must choose an auspicious day, under the watchful eyes of all!"

"Otherwise, if we kill him silently, wouldn’t it be like wearing embroidered robes in the dark? A pointless effort."

"Everything you’ve said is indeed perfectly reasonable."

After listening, the girl with the red umbrella sighed softly. "But I still think it’s a pity to miss this opportunity."

"What if that Ji Shaotong hears of this and goes into hiding?"

"Shenghai is so large, a veritable sea of people. Where would we ever find him then?"

"You needn’t worry about that."

The cloaked man chimed in with his booming voice. "The kid on horseback tonight should be the successor Ji Shaotong has chosen to inherit his legacy. Ji Shaotong even passed the Dragon Elephant Skill on to him."

"That kid’s Talent is astonishingly high. He’s so young, yet he’s already achieved minor success with the Dragon Elephant Skill. I heard... he even killed a Half-step Gratitude expert."

"Ji Shaotong must treasure him dearly."

"Besides, it’s a long-standing tradition of the Formless Sect. They either don’t seek a successor, or once they do, they become fiercely protective."

"As long as we get our hands on that kid, we won’t have to worry about Ji Shaotong not showing himself!"

"Ah, I had forgotten about that..."

Beneath the red umbrella, the girl’s voice was soft and delicate. "Speaking of which, Ji Shaotong has a good eye for picking a successor."

"That boy, whether it’s his figure or his looks, is one in a million."

"It almost makes me reluctant to act against him..."

The old man with the handlebar mustache listened to the words of the two beside him and said no more.

He just gazed into the distance, at the heart of the river churning in the darkness, as a knowing, meaningful smile slowly spread across his face—the look of a man who had everything under control.