Elite

A pale entity stepped slowly out of the blood mist.

It possessed a body similar to a human’s, with a head, torso, two hands, and two feet, but its face had no features.

There was only a hollow void occupying its entire face—a pitch-black abyss so deep its bottom could not be seen.

It was exceptionally tall; Jiang Xun, who stood at one hundred and eighty centimeters, barely reached its waist.

Fortunately, the restaurant’s ceiling was high enough, or it truly would not have been able to fit.

Its body was not muscular, but its lines were as elegant as cast iron.

Its arms were thin, its nails sharp, and its thighs slightly curved.

Behind it trailed a slender tail covered in black patterns, ending in a long, sharp stinger.

This was a presence that immediately made one feel it was not to be trifled with, and they had a unified name—Abyssal Demons!

“High-ranking? No…”

As the pale demon emerged from the blood mist, Jiang Xun’s expression immediately became incredibly grave.

At first, he thought it was the aura of a high-ranking demon, but as the descent concluded and the demon’s aura stabilized, he quickly discovered that the scent was far more intense than that of a common high-ranking demon.

This was not a mere high-ranking demon, but an elite among them.

This was an Elite Demon!

“This is bad.”

After confirming this, the man immediately realized the gravity of the situation.

If it were just a normal high-ranking demon, he might barely be able to handle it.

Combined with his teammates who would soon arrive, they could at least repel it even if they couldn’t kill it.

But if it was an Elite…

Although an Elite Demon was essentially the same as a high-ranking demon in that they lacked the ability to construct a territory, in terms of sheer strength, ten high-ranking demons would normally be no match for a single Elite!

While the Bureau was not incapable of eliminating a demon of this level, it required preparation—at least the appropriate relics or a combination of various magic potions.

But right now, they had nothing.

What should they do?

He watched as the demon fully revealed its body.

The thick aura of the Abyss spread rapidly with its descent, and the Shadow Realm, which had been on the verge of collapsing, noticeably slowed its rate of disintegration.

The environment within the restaurant underwent a massive change.

The floor beneath his feet began to soften, the air grew thick with a viscous, fishy smell, and the surrounding walls transformed into chunks of meat covered in blue veins.

This place no longer felt like a restaurant; it felt more like the stomach of some gargantuan organism!

While Jiang Xun was considering his options, the pale demon had already turned slowly to look at Yu Fu, the one who had summoned it.

Facing that hollow darkness, even Boss Yu, who had commanded the business world for decades, felt as if a mountain had dropped onto his shoulders.

The massive, irresistible pressure made him feel as though his body might be crushed instantly.

Extreme fear and despair pressed down on the old man’s body and mind simultaneously, but he gritted his teeth and endured the terrifying pressure.

He bowed slightly, raising the still-glowing necklace high in his cupped palms.

A gaze from an unknown source fell upon the necklace—or more accurately, upon the mysterious gemstone hanging from it.

The demon did not react initially.

A full ten seconds passed until Yu Fu was soaked in cold sweat, his body trembling like a candle in the wind, before he finally felt the weight in his hands vanish.

When he looked up, the necklace had been crudely snapped by the demon.

Only the gemstone remained, which the entity tossed into its pitch-black maw.

After swallowing the stone, the demon extended a single claw before Yu Fu’s expectant gaze and lightly sliced its own arm with a sharp nail.

Sizzle!

Drops of pitch-black blood flowed from the wound.

The old man did not hesitate, immediately taking out a pre-prepared bottle to collect the blood.

Once the small bottle was full, he seemed to release all his tension, letting out a heavy breath.

“Finally, I finally have it—the Blood of a Demon!”

Having said that, Yu Fu completely ignored the demon standing there and Jiang Xun on the other side.

He turned to leave with irrepressible excitement.

However, just as he attempted to exit through the rear passage, a gunshot interrupted him.

“Bang!”

The muffled gunshot sounded particularly ear-piercing in the current state of the restaurant.

Yu Fu’s movements stiffened.

He turned slowly to glance at the young man who had fired at him, but he only shook his head with an unreadable expression before turning back and continuing his stride.

Between the two of them, the pale demon held the specially made bullet casing it had flattened and looked at it before tossing it into its dark mouth.

In the next second, it spat it out as if in disgust.

The moment the bullet casing clattered onto the floor, Jiang Xun moved.

However, his target was not the demon, but Yu Fu.

An Elite Demon was not easy to deal with; he needed to detain Boss Yu first!

But whether this demon possessed a strong sense of contract or for some other reason, the moment Jiang Xun moved, his vision blurred.

His body was struck by a massive force!

Boom!

At the last moment, Jiang Xun managed to cross his arms in front of his head to block the punch that came like a bolt of lightning.

The force behind it made him feel as though he had been hit head-on by a speeding train!

His body, weighing nearly two hundred pounds, was insignificant against such strength.

Even though he tried his best to deflect the force, his body still flew uncontrollably for over ten meters, smashing through the restaurant doors and landing outside.

“Hiss… impressive.”

Quickly rising from the ground, the young man looked at his arm; a large area of redness and swelling had already appeared where he was hit.

This was only because his constitution far exceeded that of an ordinary person.

Anyone else would have been smashed into pieces instantly by that punch!

As expected of an Elite Demon, it was indeed difficult to handle.

Jiang Xun took a deep breath.

Seeing that the demon did not step out of the restaurant, he immediately realized what it was planning.

It wanted to stabilize this area!

Although demons below the Lord level did not have the ability to construct a territory, this mansion was already in a state of overlap between reality and the Abyss.

Even though the anchors had been shattered, the demon had descended early; it could use itself as an anchor to re-stabilize this space.

Once the space was stable, the demon could use itself as a bridge to summon more demons from the Abyss into the real world until the area was completely corrupted!

Jiang Xun realized the severity of the situation.

He had no time for hesitation.

After standing up, he prepared to step back into the restaurant.

However, a commotion came from the other side.

Old He and An Ye arrived in a hurry.

Before getting close, the bald man’s voice rang out first.

“Are you alright, Captain? The situation here is wrong. The Shadow Realm that was about to collapse has suddenly become stable again. We suspect…”

“It is a demon.”

Jiang Xun interrupted Old He’s loud voice.

After the two approached quickly, he pointed toward the restaurant with its wide-open doors.

“An Elite Demon has just descended. It is right inside.”

“…!”