The Golden Leopard King, realizing the gravity of the situation, dug its claws into the ground and attempted to rise.
Sensing the Golden Leopard King's intent to escape, Lin Li grew anxious!
At this moment, the sword in his hand was continuously absorbing the Golden Leopard King's energy, relentlessly feeding it back to him.
Because of this, Lin Li's cultivation was rapidly rising!
Having just broken through to the sixth level of Qi Refinement, in a short amount of time, Lin Li's realm had already stabilized, and he was nearing the proficient stage of the sixth level of Qi Refinement!
It was easy to imagine that if things continued like this, it wouldn't take long for Lin Li to reach the peak of the sixth level and potentially even break through to the late stage of Qi Refinement!
He had taken a huge risk, facing the threat of death, to seize this great opportunity!
Now that this precious opportunity was slipping away, how could Lin Li possibly allow that?
"No way!"
Gritting his teeth, Lin Li resolved, "I absolutely can't let it escape!"
Fate often takes strange and dramatic turns!
Who would have thought that a mere sixth-level Qi Refinement disciple from Xuantian Sect would dare to have such a bold thought—that he couldn't let a Golden Leopard King, who could kill him with one blow, escape?
Channeling all his spiritual energy, Lin Li gripped his sword tightly!
Screech—!!!
"Roar!!!"
The Golden Leopard King let out another agonizing cry!
Originally, the Golden Leopard King's defense could withstand the attacks from even a Foundation Establishment cultivator like Luo Zhiyuan.
However, that was because the Golden Leopard King was using its demonic energy to enhance its outer defenses, causing most of the force of the attacks to be absorbed by the demonic energy.
Now, though...
Ye Fan, in the form of the demonic sword, had already pierced into the Golden Leopard King's body, constantly draining its blood essence and demonic energy!
Even though the Golden Leopard King tried to channel demonic energy to strengthen its defenses, any energy near Ye Fan was immediately absorbed!
Furthermore, the defenses of its abdomen were naturally weaker than other parts of its body.
And, since Ye Fan's sword was slicing from within, breaking through its defenses was much easier!
With a forceful slash from Lin Li, the Golden Leopard King's belly was torn open, creating an even larger wound!
Meanwhile...
The Daoist who had been worried that the Xuantian Sect disciple hiding in the grass might be crushed by the Golden Leopard King was astonished to hear the beast's repeated cries of pain!
"Huh?!"
The Daoist exclaimed in surprise, "Anyone appearing in the back mountains of our sect must be a disciple of Xuantian Sect."
"Among the disciples entering the back mountains this time, only Luo Zhiyuan is at the Foundation Establishment stage. However, he's already severely injured and recovering."
"Logically, only a Foundation Establishment cultivator would be able to break through the defenses of a peak Foundation Establishment-level Golden Leopard King."
"But aside from Luo Zhiyuan, there shouldn't be any other Foundation Establishment cultivators in these mountains."
"How strange! Truly bizarre!"
"The disciple hiding in the forest not only survived being crushed by the Golden Leopard King, but is also causing it such immense pain. I can't figure it out!"
As the Daoist muttered in disbelief, the graceful voice of Qinglian Fairy drifted over as she approached, stepping lightly across the air like a celestial being.
"Senior Brother, why haven't you pressed the attack?" she asked sweetly.
"Junior Sister, look."
Instead of answering directly, the Daoist pointed at the Golden Leopard King. "It seems to be in great pain."
"Huh?"
Qinglian Fairy's beautiful eyes gleamed as she noticed the strange situation. "What's happening?"
"It seems we have a rather interesting disciple within our sect," the Daoist replied with a smile. "If I launch an attack now, I may accidentally harm them. Why don't we wait and see what kind of surprise this little fellow can offer us?"
"If the Golden Leopard King tries to flee, Junior Sister, you can use your Qinglian Pearl to block it, and then I will strike."
"I will follow Senior Brother's plan," Qinglian Fairy agreed, nodding with curiosity as she watched the Golden Leopard King.
At the same time...
Farther away, the group of Xuantian Sect outer disciples, who had previously been upset with Lin Li for vanishing and seemingly abandoning them in their moment of danger, also noticed the strange cries of the Golden Leopard King.
Initially, they had despised Lin Li for running away, unlike Luo Zhiyuan, who bravely stood his ground. They felt bitter about their fellow disciples being killed by the beast.
However, upon hearing the beast's pitiful roars, their curiosity was piqued.
"Hey, Senior Brothers, look!"
The outer disciple Lin Li had saved earlier, who was still at the mid-level of Qi Refinement, pointed at the Golden Leopard King in confusion. "The two elders haven't attacked it, so why does it seem to be in such pain?"
"I don't know either!"
"Could it be that Elder Zou or Qinglian Fairy's spells have improved to the point where they can cause such agony without lifting a finger?"
"That must be it!"
"Earlier, the Golden Leopard King was so unstoppable and invincible, but now, against Elder Zou and Qinglian Fairy, it's so pitifully weak!"
"I wonder when we'll be able to achieve such power like Elder Zou and Qinglian Fairy?"
"It's truly enviable!"
"Ah, stop dreaming! We're only outer disciples in the Qi Refinement stage. Elder Zou is in the late Core Formation stage, and Qinglian Fairy is in the mid-Core Formation stage! They have hundreds of years of lifespan and unfathomable power! We can't even imagine reaching their level. For now, we should focus on breaking through small realms and finding a way to acquire a Foundation Establishment Pill before our lifespans run out. That's the right path!"
"Agreed!"
As the Daoist in the green robe, Elder Zou, and Qinglian Fairy observed curiously, and the outer disciples watched in awe, the Golden Leopard King continued thrashing and roaring in pain, unaware of what was happening inside its body.
The truth was...
Just as the Golden Leopard King was trying to stand, Lin Li had used the Blood-Drinking Demonic Sword to slice open its belly, leaping into the gaping wound!
Ordinarily, such a wound would have caused blood to gush out uncontrollably!
But inside the Golden Leopard King's belly was the Blood-Drinking Demonic Sword!
All of its blood was being devoured by the sword!
Thus, despite the huge wound, there was hardly any blood spilling out.
The Golden Leopard King was already covered in blood from Elder Zou's earlier attacks, so no one noticed the new wound in its abdomen.