Start slaying demons from the proficiency panel.

Seeing the dragon claw descending upon his head, the white-haired demon raised both hands, using the power of the whirlwind to resist, forcibly relying on the rotational force of the wind to hold up the dragon claw, preventing it from pressing down no matter how hard it tried.

"Explode!" The white-haired demon shouted, and the whirlwind in his hand exploded instantly. The resulting shockwave pushed the dragon claw back, easily neutralizing the dragon's attack.

The power of this attack was so great that it even shattered many pieces of the dragon's claw scales, which fell to the ground.

The dragon, in pain, withdrew its claws and opened its mouth to try to spit.

The demons had long been accustomed to the dragon's previous spews of white dragon fire, and now, seeing this premonition of the dragon's behavior, they all sidestepped to avoid the dragon's impending burst of fire.

But in the next instant, something unexpected happened.

This time, what spewed out of the dragon's mouth was not dragon fire, but a large number of purple electric arcs.

The fourth-rank martial artist was caught off guard and was struck by a fist-sized arc of electricity. His whole body trembled instantly, and finally, he collapsed to the ground, his body covered in white smoke. It was unknown whether he was still breathing.

"What's going on?" Fujiyama asked, puzzled, as he hastily created an ice wall to block the countless arcs of electricity.

The old man with the cane looked surprised: "I've never heard of a dragon being able to control lightning. The intelligence I gathered before coming here didn't mention this."

Looking at the raging dragon, the white-haired demon said seriously, "It seems this hunt won't be so easy."

Relying on the electric arcs spewed from its mouth, these arcs spread over a wide area and were very powerful. The three demons were unable to get close to the dragon's side for a while, while Ning Xiu approached from behind.

In an instant, together with the dragon, they launched a pincer attack on the three demons, leaving them vulnerable from both sides.

For some reason, when the dragon spewed out arcs of electricity, Ning Xiu inexplicably felt a sense of familiarity from it.

It felt like reuniting with an old friend you hadn't seen in years in a foreign land—an indescribable sense of warmth.

The dragon felt the same way about Ning Xiu. After seeing Ning Xiu from a great distance, it nodded to him in a very familiar manner, showing its friendliness.

This left the demons stunned. Could it be that Ning Xiu had some connection with the dragon in front of them?

“Nie Jian, the three of us alone cannot capture this dragon in a short time, not to mention that there is this guy whose strength we cannot fathom causing trouble from behind. He was able to defeat Lu Changqing, so his strength must be at least in the upper third rank. If he joins forces with this dragon, we are probably no match for him.” Teng Shan said to the white-haired demon as he watched Ning Xiu approach step by step.

“Logically speaking, those old guys from the Golden Serpent Gang should have arrived here by now. According to the plan, with their assistance, we can successfully capture the dragon and leave in the shortest possible time,” the old man with the cane said with a frown.

"We can't worry about that now. We knew those eunuchs were always shady and untrustworthy. Tengshan, you go and hold that guy back. Cao Lao and I will do our best to capture the dragon," the white-haired demon said.

“Okay.” Tengshan nodded in agreement, and a footboard rose from the ice beneath his feet, carrying the man towards Ning Xiu.

“Old Cao, I’ll be responsible for attracting the dragon’s attention and damaging it. You take the opportunity to tie it up. Once you succeed, have Tengshan send the dragon away from here along the Dragon King River.”

"clear."

Originally, Lu Changqing, the master of the Imperial Guard, was a crucial link in the plan, responsible for attacking the dragon from a distance. However, after his defeat at the hands of Ning Xiu, this link was broken, and the heavy responsibility of attacking the dragon fell entirely on Nie Jian's shoulders.

Fortunately, Nie Jian was the strongest member of the team, so he was able to manage the task.

Just as the Black Heaven Gate demons split up to carry out their missions, on a distant hillside by the riverbank...

Four elderly men, dressed in the now-defunct robes of eunuchs and with their faces covered in rouge and powder, watched the fight on the river with great interest.

They all wore gold snake rings on their fingers, a status symbol that only former leaders of the Gold Snake Gang would wear.

The person wearing the ring is the leader of the Golden Snake Party.

Behind the four old men stood dozens of burly men in tight-fitting clothes, each carrying a large sword on their back, with bulging temples; they were all expert martial arts practitioners.

"Sitting on the mountain and watching the tigers fight, then reaping the benefits, there are advantages to coming tonight too." An old man let out a laugh that was indescribable, sounding very strange.

"Several of the Black Heaven Sect's experts have been lost, making it far from easy to capture the Flood Dragon quickly. Once they lose another member, it will be time for our Golden Serpent Party to make its move."

Under the watchful eyes of this group, Tengshan had already stepped onto the ice and approached Ning Xiu's location.

One is a third-grade immortal cultivator, and the other is a third-grade martial artist; each has its own strengths and advantages.

The immortal path excels in the immense power of its spells, but it cannot be broken by martial artists getting close, otherwise it is easy to lose all its strength.

The power of martial arts cannot be fully exerted on the target from too far away; one must do everything possible to get close to the enemy.

Fujiyama was extremely experienced in this regard. He maintained a safe distance of several feet from Ning Xiu while stepping on the ice. Within this distance, no matter how fast Ning Xiu accelerated towards him, Fujiyama could react immediately and move away.

boom!

A commotion erupted beneath the Dragon King River, which had long since turned to ice, as towering, thick ice walls rose up, blocking Ning Xiu's path toward the dragon.

At the same time, Tengshan continuously cast spells, and layer upon layer of ice walls rose from the ground, surrounding Ning Xiu and quickly forming an ice prison that enclosed him.

Having done all this, Tengshan ascended to the top of the ice wall, looking down at Ning Xiu: "Today, the Black Heaven Gate is handling its affairs; anyone who interferes will die."

Ning Xiu looked up at Teng Shan, his crimson eyes revealing no emotion whatsoever. He grinned and said, "What a coincidence. When the Demon-Subduing Commander is on duty, anyone who gets in my way dies."

boom!

Ning Xiu moved his feet and rushed towards Tengshan at a speed that was almost like a blur.

The Thunder Hammer in his hand was emitting large amounts of blue electric arcs.

[094] Ning Xiu sinks into the icy prison.

The higher the rank of a cultivator, the more extraordinary and powerful their magical techniques become.

While those in the lower three ranks are still diligently practicing the Five Elements Techniques, those in the upper three ranks can already control a portion of the natural power of heaven and earth.

Wind, rain, thunder, lightning, plants, mountains, and rivers are all their helpers. As for the sorcerer Tengshan, judging from his most proficient magic, it should be the ability to condense water into ice.

Wherever there are major rivers, wells, pools, waterfalls, or similar terrain features, that is his natural home ground.

The fact that Tengshan was able to completely freeze the turbulent Longwang River demonstrates its formidable strength.

As Ning Xiu charged toward him with his Thunder Hammer, crackling with electricity, Teng Shan moved his hands, and three massive ice walls instantly rose up in Ning Xiu's path.

Each barrier is at least ten feet thick, and its defensive capabilities and ability to withstand impacts should not be underestimated.

Meanwhile, under Tengshan's control, ice spikes pierced out one by one from the ice surface. If Ning Xiu intended to crash into them head-on, he would inevitably suffer considerable damage.

Ning Xiu dragged the Thunder Hammer across the ice, causing it to slide continuously along the surface, with arcs of electricity leaping across the ice.

Under Tengshan's watchful gaze, Ning Xiu leaped up with his hammer and recklessly smashed it against the first ice wall.

Under Ning Xiu's urging, the Heavenly Gang particles adhered to the surface of the Thunder Hammer and then slammed into the ice wall.

boom!

The seemingly thick ice wall collapsed instantly, revealing a huge crater, with spiderweb-like cracks spreading outwards.

Following the first burst of hammer force, a second and a third burst of hammer force immediately erupted. The ice wall, which had already developed cracks, could no longer withstand the force and shattered into a large number of ice blocks that scattered on the ground.

With this momentum, Ning Xiu arrived in front of the second ice wall in the blink of an eye. The fourth force of the fifth level of Dengfeng hit the ice wall, and the ice wall did not last long at all. In an instant, it collapsed and was completely destroyed.

"Huh?!" Fujiyama never expected Ning Xiu to be so fierce.

He had dealt with martial artists of the upper three ranks before, but none of them possessed such ferocious strength. It would take them at least several moves to destroy the first wall.

Ning Xiu's strength was simply monstrous; with a single blow, he destroyed two walls in succession. Fujiyama had never seen such power before.

The Dengfeng Fivefold Force can unleash five powerful forces, each stronger than the last. The final force is so powerful that even a master a grade higher than Ning Xiu might not be able to withstand it easily.

The more he fights, the stronger he becomes; this is the terrifying power of the fifth level of the Ascension Technique, allowing Ning Xiu to unleash a power he shouldn't possess at this stage.

Seeing Ning Xiu charging toward the last ice wall, Fujiyama knew he had to do something to salvage the situation.

Otherwise, if the three ice walls had been shattered so quickly, Ning Xiu would have closed the distance between them, and it wouldn't have been so easy to pull them apart then.

As the ice behind the third ice wall began to crack, under Tengshan's magic, the water of the Dragon King River surged up and solidified into two ice giants, each two zhang tall, before it even hit the ground.

They braced themselves against the ice wall with their arms to increase its ability to resist Ning Xiu's attacks. At the same time, Tengshan did not forget to continuously reinforce the ice wall so that it could withstand Ning Xiu's upcoming hammer blow.

The ice wall continued to thicken, quickly growing from ten feet to more than thirty feet, a thickness that even the city wall of Qiantang City had never reached.

Finally, Ning Xiu, carrying the final level of the fifth level of the Dengfeng Force, swung the Thunder Hammer in his hand towards this last high barrier.

Despite the many obstacles, we will crush them all!

As strategists often say, one can break through the surface by focusing on a single point. For this reinforced, thickened, and enlarged ice wall, a thunder hammer is no different from a needle.

Looking at the ice wall from the side, one can clearly see where Ning Xiu made his move. The electric arcs spread inwards, creating numerous lightning-shaped cracks within the ice wall.

These cracks are spreading and engulfing the entire ice wall, hinting at an imminent collapse.

Fortunately, there were two ice giants supporting the ice wall from behind; otherwise, even if Ning Xiu's hammer blow failed to break the ice wall, it would have easily knocked it down.

Seeing that Ning Xiu's advance was being blocked, Tengshan quickly formed hand seals, intending to use his strongest technique to suppress Ning Xiu.

In an instant, a large amount of water vapor floated up and transformed into a seamless, square cage that descended and suppressed Ning Xiu.

Just as Ning Xiu was about to escape the area where the icy cage had descended, his ankles were frozen solid, immediately restricting his movement.

With this delay, Ning Xiu had no time to escape and could only watch helplessly as the Frost Prison enveloped him, shattering the ice and carrying him deeper into the Dragon King River.

A huge hole appeared where the icy cage had been smashed, and the water inside was bubbling up with lots of bubbles, but it soon calmed down.

Fujiyama was very confident in his move. As long as it was in a watery environment, anyone at the second rank of martial arts would be trapped for a period of time and unable to struggle if he successfully trapped them.

If this drags on for too long, the only outcome will be being permanently frozen in an icy cage, unable to struggle any longer.

The icy cage carried Ning Xiu as it sank, finally crashing heavily onto the riverbed after falling over a hundred feet.

At this moment, centered on the icy cage, the river water began to freeze, and the freezing force continued to surge upwards, finally piercing out from the hole in the river surface.

Like a long spear pointing to the sky, if you were at the bottom of the Dragon King River, you could see a huge, irregular ice pillar covered with ice shards where the ice cage fell.

Extremely cold air continuously spread, and any fish, shrimp, or crab that dared to approach would be frozen into ice sculptures in an instant.

Seeing the ice pillar appear, Fujiyama breathed a sigh of relief. After being hit by his move, Ning Xiu had completely lost his ability to move even if he didn't die, and could no longer hinder their progress in capturing the dragon.

Immediately, Tengshan rushed towards Nie Jian's side and joined the battle to besiege the dragon.

In the distance, the leaders of the Golden Snake Gang, standing on the hillside, saw that Ning Xiu had not put any pressure on Teng Shan at all and had been easily killed. Each of them showed dissatisfaction and anger.

"Useless thing. You can't even seriously injure Fujiyama, let alone kill him."

"Father-in-law, what should we do now?" someone asked.

The pale-faced old man at the head of the group immediately ordered in a sharp voice, "Make your move! We absolutely cannot let those guys from the Black Heaven Gate get the first shot!"

……

Nie Jian used his wind manipulation technique to constantly maneuver around the dragon. With the speed of the wind, the dragon's attacks could not reach him at all. At the same time, with the power of the storm, every move Nie Jian made caused the dragon to roar in anger.

Despite possessing immense strength, the dragon was unable to inflict any damage on Nie Jian, who was as small as an insect. Enraged, the dragon unleashed its four claws, each strike causing cracks to appear on the ice surface. It was only thanks to Teng Shan's quick efforts to stabilize the ice that the dragon was prevented from returning to the water.

While Nie Jian attacked the dragon, the old man with the cane continuously manipulated the branches extending from the wooden wall, weaving them into a large net of trees, seeking an opportunity to ensnare the dragon.