I Become a Martial Arts God in the Chaotic Demon World

Li Tianbao greeted those who had come later from the Red Flag Thieves and toasted Han Zheng. After exchanging greetings, he was about to leave.

But at this moment, Han Zheng suddenly said, "Wait a moment. Now that everyone is here, I have a question for the Great Master."

"Oh? Brother Su, just speak directly if you have a question to ask."

"Are the Red Flag Thieves the strongest group of bandits in this hundred-mile radius of waterways?"

Li Tianbao proudly said, "It's not just within a hundred miles. Even if you look at the entire Smoke Wave Lake, my Red Flag Thieves are top-notch.

It's just that the hundred-mile radius is the boundary agreed upon by my Red Flag Thieves and other bandit forces, where no one is allowed to station and plunder merchant ships."

Li Tianbao thought that Han Zheng was still questioning the strength of his Red Flag Thieves.

Han Zheng nodded knowingly and then asked, "I heard that several months ago, your Red Flag Thieves even plundered a government ship, on which was the family of the Magistrate coming to take office in Smoke Wave Prefecture.

You Red Flag Thieves killed the entire family of the Magistrate and threw the Magistrate's head into Smoke Wave Prefecture, which enraged Colonel Liao Hongsheng of the Demon Cleansing Bureau. He led an attack on Five Elders Mountain.

Although Liao Hongsheng wasn't successful, the Red Flag Thieves also suffered considerable injuries, didn't they?"

Li Tianbao frowned slightly, "We did sustain some damage, but nowhere near a crippling extent."

Saying this, Li Tianbao felt something was amiss and shot a fierce look at Chen Lao San and Fang Dahai.

Their raid actually resulted in a loss of a third of their forces, and the external arrays were severely damaged.

It was preposterous that Chen Lao San and Fang Dahai would discuss such matters with outsiders, it was pure folly!

Han Zheng asked again, "After such a loss, I suppose the Great Master must deeply hate Liao Hongsheng? So, did Liao Hongsheng end up dying at your hands?"

Li Tianbao replied instinctively, "Of course not. The injuries Liao Hongsheng suffered shouldn't have been fatal."

Killing a Demon Sweeping Captain was no trivial matter.

If the Red Flag Thieves were on the level of the Blood Wolf Thieves, they would have boasted about it immediately to boost their own reputation.

But although Li Tianbao boasted about how strong his Red Flag Thieves were, they were actually just another bandit group unable to leave their hundred-mile territory, incomparable to the likes of the Blood Wolf Thieves, who rampaged across the region and were considered giant outlaws.

If they truly angered the Demon Cleansing Bureau and incited the Southern Mountain Demon Cleansing Department headquarters to send a garrison, Five Elders Mountain wouldn't hold out for long.

However, Li Tianbao then sensed something was even more amiss.

This 'Su Liu Yun' was clearly on the run from Kai Ping Prefecture and had fled to Smoke Wave Prefecture. How did he know so much about the Red Flag Thieves and Smoke Wave Prefecture?

And Han Zheng's demeanor had changed from the previous arrogance and frivolity to a calm and austere one, as if he had become a different person in a blink of an eye.

"Su Liu Yun, what do you mean by asking these questions?"

Li Tianbao asked with a frown.

Han Zheng leisurely ate the food on the table, and nonchalantly said, "At first, I really thought Master Liao Hongsheng's death was related to you.

But now it seems that a home-guarding cur like yourself wouldn't have the guts to take down Master Liao alone."

"Who are you calling a home-guarding cur? Who exactly are you!?"

Even if Li Tianbao was blind, he would have realized that something was wrong with Han Zheng by now.

A pitch-black long knife had already appeared in his hand.

"Of course, I'm calling you the home-guarding cur. You said it yourself that bandits come and go without a trace, yet once you found Five Elders Mountain, such an easily defended and difficult to attack location, you've been entrenched here ever since, grinding away your ambition.

Five Elders Mountain is only so big, and your stronghold can at most accommodate a couple hundred people.

So, your Red Flag Thieves were like this ten years ago, and ten years later, they are still the same.

For an old guard dog, security is the most important thing, so you probably didn't have the courage to go after Master Liao on your own.

It must have been some reason that forced you to make a move."

"Are you from the Demon Cleansing Bureau!?"

Li Tianbao suddenly startled in shock.

"Only guessing now? Han Zheng, Colonel of the Smoke Wave Prefecture Demon Cleansing Bureau, currently in charge of Smoke Wave Prefecture."

Han Zheng put down his wine glass and looked at Li Tianbao with a smirk that was not quite a smile, "I know you won't surrender without a fight, so I can't be bothered to say much more. But from today onwards, there will be no more Five Elders Mountain on Smoke Wave Lake, no more Red Flag Thieves."

"Arrogance!"

"You, entering the Five Elders Mountain alone, that's not an undercover operation, it's suicide!"

Li Tianbao's face suddenly turned crimson, a mix of shock and rage, but above all, a sense of humiliation.

Here he was, groveling and trying to cozy up to someone, putting on a sycophantic smile, hoping to retain the services of a Xuan Gang Realm expert. Little did he expect that the other party was actually an undercover agent from the Demon Cleansing Bureau!

It wasn't that Li Tianbao's sense of vigilance was low, but as a Demon Sweeping Captain garrisoning the State Mansion, Han Zheng daring to be an undercover agent was simply too bizarre.

Normally, to go undercover, you'd send someone weaker to infiltrate the Red Flag Thieves, try to blend in as a thief in charge of the Array, then coordinate from within and without to breach the defenses of the Five Elders Mountain.

Which Great Master would personally come to go undercover?

The most important thing was that Han Zheng's power was too deceptive.

If it had been Liao Hongsheng coming to go undercover from the outset, his Late Stage Xuan Gang Realm Cultivation would immediately have alerted Li Tianbao.

Whereas Han Zheng's Cultivation was just below his, which gave Li Tianbao the confidence to suppress him and no further suspicion was placed on his identity.

At this very moment, Li Tianbao viewed Han Zheng's behavior as outright suicide.

So eager to reveal his identity, trapped deep within the entire Red Flag Thieves stronghold and still hoping to leave alive?

Even if there were people from Smoke Wave Prefecture's Demon Cleansing Bureau ready to coordinate from outside, by the time they got in, Han Zheng would have been chopped into mincemeat!

With a furious shout, Li Tianbao's pitch-black long knife was drawn from its sheath, shrouded in chilly Demonic Qi that swept out, slashing directly at Han Zheng.

Around Han Zheng, the concentrated and torrential Gang Qi erupted suddenly, his blood boiling and swelling, and in an instant, his aura surged to an exceedingly terrifying level.

Li Tianbao's expression dramatically changed before his blade fell.

Was this the power that could be unleashed by an Early Stage Xuan Gang Realm Martial Artist?

You call this Early Stage Xuan Gang Realm power?

Before Li Tianbao could react, Han Zheng's aura surged even higher. The torrential Gang Qi climbed dozens of feet, and accompanied by Han Zheng's descending punch, the violent whirlwind behind him transformed into the illusion of an Ape Demon, howling skyward!

Ape Demon Nine Transformations! Earth Splitting

That punch almost drained eighty percent of the Gang Qi from Han Zheng's body. The Gang Qi-packed fist of more than ten feet struck out, like a primordial Ape Demon in a rampage, swinging a punch powerful enough to split the earth!

Li Tianbao's eyes were filled with horror.

The might of this punch even exceeded his imagination; how could this possibly be the strength an Early Stage Xuan Gang Realm Martial Artist could possess?

In a state of panic, Li Tianbao immediately retreated his knife, igniting his vital energy and positioning the blade in front of him, boundless Protective Gang Qi surged and condensed as a barrier, like waves churning in the vast ocean, erupting wave after wave of formidable force.

Although his reaction was relatively decisive, under the Earth Splitting strike, the vast surge of Protective Gang Qi instantly shattered into nothingness.

The precious knife in Li Tianbao's hand, also of Mystical Weapon Level, was torn apart by the formidable force in an instant, and he was sent flying by the punch, a burst of crimson mist exploding from his body.

Wherever Earth Splitting passed, the ground fissured under the intense force, tearing a huge hole in the top of the stronghold, instantly leaving the scene in ruins.

Several of the Red Flag Thieves standing too close to Han Zheng and Li Tianbao, unable to dodge in time, were directly shredded by the Earth Splitting punch, instantly vaporized into a mist of blood, leaving nothing behind.

All the Red Flag Thieves in the stronghold were stunned there, unable to recover for a long time.

Chen Lao San and Fang Dahai exchanged glances, their eyes filled with shock and regret.

They'd brought back a monster! A monster that destroyed their stronghold!

Han Zheng's face was slightly pale.

This was the first time he had used Earth Splitting, and the exhaustion it caused was even more astonishing than when he used Moving Mountain at his previous Innate Realm.

The punch had drained eighty percent of his strength in an instant, but thankfully Han Zheng's True Martial Yuan Chen Treasure Body was present, with incredible strength in his flesh.

Otherwise, other Xuan Gang Realm Martial Artists might have the power to execute Earth Splitting, but such a majestic force bursting out of the body all at once, would have likely caused their own meridians to burst first.

Taking out a flare used by the Demon Cleansing Bureau, a beautiful blaze shot skyward in an instant.

The top of the stronghold was torn open by an enormous hole from the Earth Splitting punch, with the flare's light clearly reflecting over the entire Five Elders Mountain peak.

Seeing this scene, everyone present changed their complexion.

Li Tianbao, covered in blood, crawled out from a pile of ruins like a blood-soaked gourd.

His vitality was strong and his foundation deep, surviving a direct hit from Earth Splitting - he was not dead yet.

Pointing at Han Zheng, Li Tianbao howled in madness, "Kill him! Quick, go to the outskirts of the Five Elders Mountain and activate the Array, start the Siege Crossbows for defense!

There are people from the Demon Cleansing Bureau outside, if they get inside the Five Elders Mountain, we all die!"