Chapter 20: Electricity Strikes!

“Diamond Realm!” Chu Linfeng exclaimed in surprise. It was like trying to walk through a coal mine on crutches—step by step, striking coal—and yet he had encountered such a high-level demon beast, coincidentally when he was desperate to flee for his life.

Chu Linfeng was unaware that this griffin had actually targeted him!

His unique Nine Solitary Swords had summoned the power of thunder, especially the final Sword Eight, Executioner of Immortals, which directly drew down the lightning. This had attracted the attention of the thunder griffin from outer space.

The thunder griffin, which feeds exclusively on thunder, possesses an extremely keen sense for the power of thunder. Ordinary lightning and thunderclaps are mere electricity; only thunder formed through spiritual energy can truly be called [Thunder].

Thus, this thunder griffin seldom appeared on Earth, for from millions of years ago until the present revival of spiritual energy, only a handful of people could summon thunder.

But summoning thunder isn’t like a child playing with firecrackers—who would summon it for fun? After Chu Linfeng summoned the thunder, Bai Jingxuan stopped to watch, as if a group of powerful figures holding nuclear launch buttons were suddenly seeing one of them casually throw one—what was the meaning of that?

By chance, a thunder griffin passing through the solar system was suddenly drawn by the thunderbolt from the blue planet and locked onto the one who summoned the thunder.

Just as Chu Linfeng was silently cursing the griffin’s ancestors, the griffin stopped circling and dove directly toward the group!

“Watch out! Fire the laser guns! Everyone else, scatter quickly!” Shen Luoxi drew her spear and commanded the soldiers to open fire while urging everyone to evacuate.

A fierce volley of shots rained down, barely scratching the griffin—only a few feathers were lost.

After all, the griffin was a sixth-rank demon beast. Conventional laser guns could affect third and fourth ranks, and at fifth rank might injure the outer hide, but sixth-rank beasts had skin and muscles harder than steel plates. The standard weapons of airport soldiers were ineffective against it.

Chu Linfeng considered himself clever, thinking this must be a game of “eagle catching chicks.” The griffin diving would charge directly into the flock. Seeing the crowd run one way, he pulled his two sisters and ran the opposite direction.

The griffin, aiming for the group, saw the three break away and turned its wings to attack Chu Linfeng.

“No good!” Shen Luoxi shouted, ignoring the injury to her arm, channeling her true energy and thrusting her spear out. Just as the griffin’s claws were about to seize Chu Linfeng, the spear intercepted it, forcing the beast to flap its wings and retract its claws.

Chu Linfeng sighed in relief and slapped his thigh—why was this bird playing by its own rules?

He then told Tang Cai and Tang Xie, “Scatter and run!”

“No! We want to stay with you,” the two sisters said in unison.

“All right then! This bird likes to catch singles. Stick with the main group!” Chu Linfeng said, pulling them back toward the crowd.

The griffin readied to charge again. After Shen Luoxi had thrown down her spear, she suddenly lunged forward, grabbed the spear’s handle, and stabbed upwards again, forcing the griffin to flap its wings to dodge.

Taking advantage of the gap, the three squeezed into the crowd. Looking up, the griffin nearly caught Shen Luoxi’s claw but, realizing it was outmatched, she quickly withdrew, telling the soldiers and crowd, “Evacuate to the terminal immediately, I’ll cover you!”

The crowd began to move, but just as three people ran out about ten meters, Chu Linfeng had another clever thought: sometimes it’s not about outrunning the lion but just outrunning the person behind it.

The griffin gave a piercing cry, its body faintly entwined with lightning, and after a swift dive past the fleeing crowd, it directly targeted Chu Linfeng!

Even Shen Luoxi, who was holding the rear, was confused.

“Does Chu Linfeng smell funny or something?”

As the griffin’s claws reached for Chu Linfeng, the two sisters urgently turned and slammed their palms out to help block. Even before contact, the force of tens of thousands of volts repelled them both, and strong wind threw Chu Linfeng backward ten meters, landing hard on the ground.

“Cai Xie!” Chu Linfeng, ignoring the pain in his backside, anxiously looked toward the sisters who had been flung further away.

They trembled, struggling to rise but seemed paralyzed as if drugged.

Seeing Chu Linfeng fall, the griffin ceased its attack, landing fully on all fours. It exhaled a puff of black smoke tinged with the smell of burning, its front claws scraping the cement as it prepared for a final sprint, eyes fixed on Chu Linfeng.

Shen Luoxi rushed over in a flying step, spear planted on the ground, one hand supporting Chu Linfeng’s arm. “Are you okay?”

Chu Linfeng didn’t answer. He spat at the griffin.

“Bah! Damn it! No manners at all—like a bat with chicken feathers stuck to it—what kind of bird are you!”

“This beast seems to be targeting you specifically!” Shen Luoxi remarked.

Chu Linfeng was annoyed. He thought bitterly: Wang Defa, why don’t you admit you’re the one who summoned it? It’s a miracle I’ve run into you twice in three years, and both times it nearly cost me my life.

“What now? Do I still have a chance?” Chu Linfeng asked Shen Luoxi.

Her cheek trembled. “The only one at the Diamond Realm who can reliably kill it is my master. I’ve already sent for help, but he won’t arrive for at least fifteen minutes.”

“Li Chenqian? I’d rather die than be saved by him!”

Seeing Chu Linfeng still sulking, Shen Luoxi felt a mix of anger and amusement. Forget not wanting him saved; even if she wanted it, she could barely hold out another fifteen minutes.

“Hahaha!” Chu Linfeng suddenly laughed. “Interesting, truly interesting. Three years ago when I met you, I became a cripple. Today, meeting you again means death. Seems like in my past life, I owed not only Li Xiaoxue but also you, Shen Luoxi!”

Hearing this mockery, Shen Luoxi’s heart bled. Bitterly she thought: “So in your eyes, I’m your nemesis, the ruin of your life! I should never have listened to Li Xiaoxue three years ago and shown mercy.”

The famed genius girl of the Capital Region, proud and ice-hearted Shen Luoxi, couldn’t help but let two tears fall. Then, gripping her spear, she slowly rose.

“You go. I’ll hold it off. I should have ended it all three years ago. Fine. Consider this my debt repaid to you, Chu Linfeng. Our karmic ties must end here.”

“Husband! Battery!” Tang Xie, standing nearby, looked up and reminded.

Battery? Chu Linfeng suddenly remembered and glanced at the two girls lying on the ground, his mood plummeting. You two are about to shut down, and you tell me about batteries?

Seeing Chu Linfeng’s dejected look, Tang Xie raised a shaky hand, pointing at Shen Luoxi. “She’s the big super battery!”

Chu Linfeng’s scalp tingled! With Tang Xie so close to Shen Luoxi, it was surely going to end with a kiss.

“Teacher Shen… I think we can still save him.”

“Hm?” Shen Luoxi turned, puzzled. “What do you mean?”

“If we work together, we can defeat it—but you have to trust me!” Chu Linfeng answered earnestly.

“Work together?” Shen Luoxi instinctively scanned him. No cultivation at all! But looking at his childish yet serious face, he didn’t seem to be lying.

“Yes, work together! Do you trust me?” Chu Linfeng insisted.

“Work together!” Such a familiar yet strange phrase. Three years ago, when that youth burst onto the scene and rose to fame at Peach Blossom County, the genius girl of the Capital Region had dreamed countless days and nights of fighting side by side with this unparalleled talent. So eager had she been at East Sea to realize that dream, but it had been the first and last time.

As these thoughts flooded his mind, the griffin, having gouged a deep pit in the concrete, suddenly leapt high into the air, its body crackling with summoned thunder, preparing for a final fatal strike.

Chu Linfeng looked at the silent Shen Luoxi and the griffin now soaring, closed his eyes, and prepared to die.

Yes! Who was she? The genius girl of the Capital Region, one of the Four Pillars, Shen Luoxi. How could she believe the nonsense of a cripple like him? Forget it—this is the end. Destruction awaits.

Just as Chu Linfeng accepted his fate, Shen Luoxi suddenly spoke.

“I’ve always believed in you!”

Hearing this, the pain in Chu Linfeng’s backside vanished as he flipped upright in a single bound and stood shoulder to shoulder with Shen Luoxi.

“What do we do? What weapon do you need?” Shen Luoxi asked.

“My weapons are in the cabin, but it’s okay. With your cultivation, the sword doesn’t matter—I’ll use sword intent,” Chu Linfeng said.

“With my cultivation?” Shen Luoxi was puzzled.

“No time to explain. Take me to the sky!”

“Take you to the sky?” Shen Luoxi was even more confused. What trick was this? Was he going to sacrifice himself?

“Hey… I have no cultivation and can’t fly. Of course, you have to lift me up. I’m worried about destroying the airport when the fight breaks out!” Chu Linfeng said urgently.

“Oh, I see!” She grabbed Chu Linfeng’s hand and rose. At the instant their hands touched, her face flushed.

“Drop your spear! You won’t need it. You’ll still have a free hand,” Chu Linfeng said.

His words made Shen Luoxi even more embarrassed. Was this scoundrel imagining a final waltz in the sky before death? That last dance would indeed be romantic…

Though reluctant, she complied and dropped her spear.

The griffin, seeing Chu Linfeng lifted high into the clouds, flapped its wings fiercely and soared after them.

“Use your other hand to hold my waist!” Chu Linfeng said from within the clouds.

This startled Shen Luoxi. Holding his waist? That was definitely a waltz move, and the mental image was vivid!

“Hurry! That big bird is coming up fast!”

Shen Luoxi was speechless.

“Yes, right there. A little to the right,” Chu Linfeng directed her like a dance partner.

She silently regretted how she’d ended up agreeing to this. “This scoundrel must be mad, wanting to humiliate me before dying.”

“Good, right here. Channel your true energy into my dantian—just connect the flow, don’t push it. Understand?” Chu Linfeng instructed seriously.

“Oh, like this?”

“Ha… ha… ha…”

The moment the true energy connected, Chu Linfeng went wild with exhilaration!

The energy was so pure—it was professional training! So invigorating!

His eyes gleamed fiercely as he shouted,

“Electricity—come forth!!!”