Spells Grinding: From Basic Sparks to Divine Arts

Chapter 205: Furious Slaying of the Demon Beast

Riiip!

A sharp beak, glowing with terrifying Spiritual Qi, stabbed directly into the light curtain overhead. With a violent jerk, the beast tore a jagged gash in the energy barrier!

Seeing its chance, the bird-shaped Demon Beast twisted its massive body and squeezed through the crack, invading the sanctuary of the market.

This sudden breach sent shockwaves of panic through the defenders!

Although the crowd couldn’t immediately discern the beast’s cultivation level, the fact that it had punctured the formation with a single peck proved one thing: its strength was far beyond anything they could withstand.

The intruder was enormous. Its plumage was a strange, metallic hue—its head a dark azure capped with heavy, ominous black stripes. Its wings were long, pointed, and looked as hard as steel. Its flight was blindingly fast, and its beak shimmered with a diamond-hard luster.

Qin Lu’s eyes narrowed. He recognized it instantly.

It was a late-stage Tier 2 Demon Beast—the Dark Azure Sparrow!

“Screee!”

The Dark Azure Sparrow let out a piercing shriek and tucked its wings, diving like a meteor toward the Qi Condensation cultivators on the wall below!

“You dare, animal?!”

Qin Lu roared, his voice booming like thunder. He executed a sharp turn in mid-air, accelerating to his maximum speed to intercept the beast.

A late-stage Tier 2 Demon Beast was the equivalent of a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator. Against Qi Condensation juniors, it was a tiger amongst sheep. They had absolutely no means to resist.

Seeing the Dark Azure Sparrow plummeting toward them, the faces of the Qi Condensation cultivators twisted in terror. In a panic, they swiveled their Magical Artifacts and ignited their Talismans, firing a desperate, disorganized volley at the diving predator!

But how could such feeble attacks harm a beast of this caliber?

The sparrow simply folded its steel-like wings over its body to shield itself. The barrage of spells and arrows pinged harmlessly off its metallic feathers, creating showers of useless sparks. Its momentum didn’t even falter; it paused for a microsecond before accelerating again!

Its target was specific. It was locking onto the thin, weak-looking cultivator in Qin Lu’s squad—the archer.

That archer had slaughtered many of its kin during the initial siege. The sparrow had watched from above with vengeful intelligence. Now that it was inside, it wanted blood.

The thin cultivator saw death coming. A glint of ruthlessness flashed in his eyes. There was no fear on his face, only defiance. He drew his bowstring back to its limit, channeling every ounce of his energy into one final, heavy arrow!

Whoosh!

The arrow streaked upward, aiming straight for the Dark Azure Sparrow’s eye!

It was a perfect shot. Unfortunately, in the eyes of a late-stage Tier 2 beast, it was moving in slow motion. The sparrow merely tilted its head, and the arrow sailed harmlessly past.

In the next instant, the deadly beak was inches from the archer’s chest.

CLANG!

The sound of metal colliding with metal rang out, a deafening gong that vibrated in everyone’s chests.

At the critical moment, a figure had flashed in front of the archer. Qin Lu had arrived, his longsword raised, blocking the fatal strike with sheer brute force!

“Go repair the breach! I’ll handle this!”

Qin Lu barked the order without looking back, tossing a stack of Repair Talisman (High Grade) into the archer’s hands.

Before the talisman even landed, Qin Lu’s Spiritual Qi erupted. He activated the Cutting Technique, coating his blade in a soft, lethal layer of Sword Qi. With a snap of his wrist, he slashed down with catastrophic force!

Hiss!

The strike transformed into a crescent of Sword Qi, descending with unparalleled momentum.

The Dark Azure Sparrow, sensing mortal danger, shrank its neck back with unnatural speed, barely dodging the decapitating blow.

BOOM!

The Sword Qi missed the bird and slammed into the city wall below.

Stone that had stood for hundreds of years crumbled like dry clay. The massive wall was cleaved in two, debris exploding outward as a deep fissure tore through the battlements.

“Screee!”

The sparrow screeched in alarm and shot skyward, attempting to flee. It hadn’t expected this human to be so terrifyingly powerful. It knew instantly it was outmatched.

“Trying to run?”

Qin Lu sneered. He kicked off the air, soaring upward in pursuit. The Silver Sand Sword in his hand danced, weaving a net of blade light and sword shadows.

Since advancing to the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment, Qin Lu’s speed had skyrocketed. Even against a flying beast a minor realm higher than him, he was not only keeping pace—he was faster.

He closed the distance instantly, forcing the bird into a chaotic dogfight. Under Qin Lu’s oppressive strength, the majestic beast was reduced to a punching bag.

Feathers flew like snow.

In mere moments, the Dark Azure Sparrow was covered in deep gashes, blood raining down from the sky.

“Screee!”

Suddenly, the bird let out a desperate, piercing wail. It executed a violent aerial maneuver, flipping its body and flapping its wings with a frenzied rhythm. It dove straight at Qin Lu, its speed exploding, increasing by nearly 30%!

Its steel-hard wings spread wide, slashing down toward Qin Lu like twin guillotines, trying to cover the sky.

“Hmph.”

Qin Lu didn’t flinch. He thrust his left palm forward.

Hum!

A shimmering shield of Spiritual Qi materialized instantly in front of him.

Bang!

The Shield Spell held for exactly one breath before shattering under the bird’s desperate assault. But one breath was all Qin Lu needed.

As the shield shattered, Qin Lu’s right hand was already pointing at the heavens. His fingertip crackled with blinding purple electricity as he slashed it downward!

KRA-KOOM!

A pillar of thunder, thick as a tree trunk, crashed down from the clear sky, smashing directly into the Dark Azure Sparrow!

Lightning Strike Technique!

The violent surge of lightning coursed through the bird’s body. It shrieked in agony as its feathers charred and smoked. The paralysis froze its muscles, leaving it suspended in the air for a heartbeat, emitting the smell of burnt meat.

It was heavily injured, but still conscious.

Qin Lu didn’t give it a chance to recover. As he closed the final distance, he opened his mouth and exhaled a stream of white mist.

Ice Qi Technique!

The absolute zero chill enveloped the bird. With its defenses shattered by the lightning, it had no way to resist. Instantly, the charred beast was encased in a block of solid ice, turning into a frozen statue in mid-air.

Qin Lu flashed past it.

Thud!

With a casual swing of his sword, he lopped the head off the ice sculpture.

The head and body separated cleanly, tumbling toward the earth.

The late-stage Tier 2 Dark Azure Sparrow was dead.

“Phew…”

Qin Lu exhaled a cloud of white breath, calming his surging blood.

He now had a clearer understanding of his own power. Against a monster equivalent to a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, he needed only twenty exchanges to secure a dominant kill.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

With a few precise flicks of his sword, Qin Lu carved the falling carcass into manageable sections.

Whoosh!

He waved his hand, sweeping the valuable materials into his Storage Bag.

After securing the loot, Qin Lu glanced down at the wall.

The archer had already used the talismans to seal the breach in the light curtain. The few Tier 1 beasts that had slipped through during the chaos had been surrounded and bombarded into paste by the other squad members.

Qin Lu relaxed slightly.

The battlefield had stabilized. The cultivators were back in formation, firing spells and arrows at the horde outside.

Beyond the light curtain, the corpses of Demon Beasts were piled so high they nearly blocked the view of the lower barrier. It was a mountain of meat.

Yet, the living beasts didn’t care. They scrambled over the bodies of their kin, clawing and biting at the shield with wanton abandon.

With this much supply, the price of beast meat in the market is going to crash… Qin Lu thought idly.

He turned his gaze to the right flank.

That was Gu Yue’s sector.

Gu Yue was hovering in mid-air, her sword lowered. She wasn’t fighting. Her brow was furrowed, her eyes scanning the horde with confusion.

Sensing his gaze, she turned. Their eyes met across the chaotic battlefield.

“Qin Lu,” her voice reached him via secret transmission. “Something is wrong with these beasts.”

“Wrong how?” Qin Lu sent back.

“I can’t explain it,” she hesitated. “It’s just… a feeling.”

“Uh…”

Qin Lu was momentarily speechless. That wasn’t much to go on.

“HAHAHA! Come on! Daddy hasn’t had enough fun yet!”

A loud, raucous laugh interrupted their telepathic exchange.

Qin Lu and Gu Yue both looked to the left.

Gu Can was hovering there, holding a cylindrical Magical Artifact that looked like a cannon. He was blasting into the horde while screaming insults at the monsters, his face flushed with manic excitement.

Before Qin Lu could observe further, Jiang Ge’s voice exploded over the battlefield, urgent and strained.

“Attention! The East Wall is in critical condition! Foundation Establishment cultivators from Sectors Three and Four on the South and North walls—reinforce the East immediately!”

Qin Lu’s heart skipped a beat. He whipped his head toward Gu Yue.

South Wall, Sector Three… that was Gu Yue’s position.