Chapter 21: Defense and Fists Beyond a Star Demon's

Those who can make it out here all have some skills.

Jiang Changkong had initially been worried that the three of them might hold him back.

After they consecutively killed several Star Demons, he felt reassured.

With their abilities, as long as they didn’t encounter a Nebula-level Star Demon, they would be fine.

Moreover, these three were quite aware of their role as bodyguards.

Whenever danger arose, they never wasted time talking—they just acted.

Their professionalism was beyond reproach.

After killing another Late-stage Star Qi Star Demon, the four of them paused.

Checking the route, they still had one-third left to go.

It was now six-thirty. As long as they didn’t run into major trouble, they would definitely arrive before ten o’clock.

“We need to be even more careful from here on out,” Liu Feng said with a serious expression, his voice lowered to a whisper. “Going deeper, we might encounter Peak Star Qi Star Demons.”

Zhang Mo and Xiao Hu both nodded. “The three of us may not be able to protect you.”

“I’m not weak either. I can protect myself well enough. If we encounter a large number of Star Demons, we’ll each flee for our lives. If it’s just one or two, you’ll be able to handle them,” Jiang Changkong replied.

The three nodded without saying anything more.

If they truly encountered a Star Demon they couldn’t handle, they would indeed flee separately—survival was the priority, even if only one made it out.

The four set off again, this time moving at seventy percent of their full speed to conserve more stamina.

They shortened their travel time and extended their rest periods.

Jiang Changkong looked ahead at the endless expanse of weeds, stretching as far as the eye could see.

After running for another ten minutes, Liu Feng and the other two stopped, their gazes fixed on the left front.

There, a large patch of weeds had been flattened.

The four cautiously approached and saw numerous animal-like footprints in the flattened weeds, each as large as a human head.

Some footprints resembled claws with three toes, others were round, and some had five toes…

Not far away, there were also several piles of feces.

“There are four types of footprints here,” Liu Feng observed carefully for a moment before saying, “Likely from four Star Demons.”

Without hesitation, he stuck a finger into the feces, his expression shifting slightly. “Still warm. They’re probably nearby.”

“Let’s proceed cautiously,” Jiang Changkong whispered.

The three nodded. Liu Feng wiped his hand on the weeds and rejoined them.

Roar!

Not long after they resumed their journey, a low growl echoed from ahead.

Four hideous and ferocious Star Demons blocked their path, their eyes fixed intently on them.

One stood on two legs with three-toed claws on its chest, somewhat resembling a dinosaur but not quite.

Another had four cylindrical legs and was covered in scales.

A third had feet like human palms with five toes, its body covered in fleshy lumps that looked revolting.

The last one was covered in sharp, gleaming barbs.

“It’s those four Star Demons. This is going to be tricky,” Liu Feng tightened his grip on his sword and whispered, “Fight while retreating. Let’s find a way to detour.”

“Can you handle three of them?” Jiang Changkong asked quietly.

Roar!

As they spoke, the four Star Demons roared and charged at them, flattening the weeds in their path.

“One-on-one, we only have a slim chance,” Liu Feng replied with a hint of strain in his voice.

“Is the detour far?” Jiang Changkong frowned.

“These four Star Demons will chase us, wasting time. Finding another route is uncertain,” Liu Feng said grimly, pulling Jiang Changkong back. “Don’t think about it. Let’s detour. We can’t win.”

“Hold off three of them. I’ll take care of one first.”

Jiang Changkong paused, Star Power surging from his body as he shook off Liu Feng’s grip. Like a cannonball, he charged toward the barb-covered Star Demon.

This Star Demon looked the most dangerous; the three of them might not be able to hold it off.

“You… sigh, let’s do it, save him.”

Liu Feng’s expression changed, and he quickly took action.

“You said we wouldn’t act on our own, remember?” Zhang Mo and Xiao Hu both angrily said.

Though angry, neither of them left. They still had confidence in saving Jiang Changkong.

The three intercepted the three Star Demons, while Jiang Changkong charged toward the barbed Star Demon.

Hands strumming the lute!

Taiji follows!

The barbed Star Demon emitted a dark glow all over its body, its barbs sharp like swords, radiating a piercing aura.

Boom

Crack

The Taiji Diagram descended, shattering the barbs, and his fist directly plunged into the Star Demon’s body.

Clang

The barbs also stabbed into Jiang Changkong’s body, but it felt like striking an iron fortress.

No penetration!

“Holy crap…”

This scene startled the three so much they nearly failed to dodge the Star Demon’s attacks.

One punch shattered the Star Demon’s barbs and penetrated its body?

The Star Demon’s attacks couldn’t penetrate his defense?

Before, it was Martial Artists who couldn’t penetrate Star Demons’ defenses, but now the tables had completely turned!

“Hold them off; I’ll finish this and come help.”

After speaking, Jiang Changkong threw out a flurry of punches, his iron fists directly pulverizing the barbs.

Roar

The Star Demon roared in pain, its barbs gathering dark light as they stabbed toward Jiang Changkong once more.

A faint Taiji Diagram manifested, deflecting part of the force, while the remaining power still failed to penetrate his defense.

Squelch

This time, a fist directly smashed into the Star Demon’s head, exploding it and spilling brain matter. The Star Demon collapsed limply.

After dealing with the barbed Star Demon, Jiang Changkong went to the nearest Xiao Hu, facing a dinosaur-like Star Demon with nothing but a single punch.

Sensing danger, the Star Demon’s claws glowed with golden light, sharp as blades.

Boom

Crack, crack…

A punch landed, shattering the claws. Jiang Changkong charged like a wild beast, his fist following the path of the claws straight into the Star Demon’s body.

Xiao Hu seized the opportunity, his sword light slicing across the Star Demon’s neck, nearly severing its head.

The remaining two were even simpler. Jiang Changkong just charged over and delivered another violent punch.

Star Demons at the peak of Star Qi couldn’t withstand a single punch from him now!

In no time, all four Star Demons lay as corpses, each bearing wounds from his fists.

Jiang Changkong found some weeds to wipe the blood from his hands and said, “Dig out the Star Stones, and let’s keep moving.”

“Alright.” The three nodded, extracting the Star Stones.

Four first-order top-grade stellar stones, each providing Essence: 400!

Equivalent to what he’d earn from one round of grinding.

Each Star Demon corpse provided Essence: 100.

“Here, you killed them all.” Liu Feng handed him the four Star Stones.

Jiang Changkong took one: “We agreed earlier to split them.”

“You didn’t take your share before; how can we accept now?” Liu Feng and the other two said with a bitter smile. “Besides, even if we split half, you’d still get two.”

“Then I’ll take two.” Jiang Changkong took another one.

“Take all four; we can split them later.” Liu Feng and the three insisted.

Unable to refuse, Jiang Changkong had no choice but to accept.

Including the four corpses, this haul totaled Essence: 2000!

After tidying up, the four resumed their journey. Liu Feng whispered, “I never expected you to be this strong? Are you at the Star Cloud Level?”

“Your fists are even tougher than the Star Demon’s claws and barbs.”

Xiao Hu added, “The Star Demon’s barbs stabbed you but couldn’t penetrate your defense?”

“My defense is very strong; even first-tier top-grade weapons can’t break through it.”

Jiang Changkong didn’t hide it: “I didn’t mean to keep it from you; I just knew you wouldn’t have believed me before.”

The three nodded. If Jiang Changkong had said this before, they would have definitely not believed him.

Even the martial arts taught in Martial Arts Schools couldn’t possibly block the claws and barbs of Star Demons of the same tier.

As for First Tier Top Grade weapons, the swords in their hands were exactly that—capable of tearing through Star Demon defenses, on par with the claws and barbs of Star Demons.

If even such weapons couldn’t harm Jiang Changkong, then the barbs and claws wouldn’t be able to either.

“With Brother Jiang’s formidable strength, we can pick up the pace a bit,” Liu Feng pondered for a moment before saying, “Let’s strive to arrive earlier.”

Having witnessed Jiang Changkong’s power, his form of address had also changed.

“Mm, for those below the Star Cloud Level, as long as there are no more than four or five, we’ll just eliminate them directly and split the Star Stones equally,” Jiang Changkong said quietly.

Zhang Mo and Xiao Hu had no objections. As long as they didn’t encounter swarms of Star Demons or those above the Star Cloud Level, they could easily push through.