Chapter 126: Forced to Fight, So Exhausting

"Oh, I am in such a bind..."

Li Changluo wanted to scratch his head, but a massive ice cream cone in his hand left him with no way to do so. He had expected that in such a grand moment, he would be showing off with some overpowered cheat... A suit of armor this handsome should have at least been paired with a frigid spear or a halberd. Or, at the very least, a Tang saber. He could not for the life of him understand why he was holding a giant ice cream cone instead. Was he supposed to smear the Seventh Young Master of the Dragon Clan to death with it?

The scene was incredibly awkward. The monsters in the tavern, upon seeing this, were stunned for a moment before bursting into raucous laughter, clutching their stomachs. Even the perpetually yawning White Lotus seemed to perk up. This kind of "chuunibyou" combat seemed to be an innate attribute of Li Changluo.

"Big brother, what’s wrong? Why are you looking so distressed?" the ethereal little girl floating in mid-air asked, tilting her head with concern.

"With you like this, how am I supposed to fight with any peace of mind?"

"Is this the power I needed? Did you think I needed an ice cream cone? How did you even come up with that?"

"..."

The monsters in the tavern were dumbfounded. They watched as Li Changluo, gesturing wildly at thin air like a shrew, cursed and ranted.

"Grandstanding..." The Seventh Young Master of the Dragon Clan let out a cold snort and continued to manipulate the strings of his zither to attack. This time, he manifested even more rays of light, which rained down upon the corner where Li Changluo was still ranting.

However, just as those sharp rays were about to touch him, an ice wall suddenly erupted from the ground in front of Li Changluo. After a deafening crash, the Young Master’s light rays were frozen mid-air.

"Big brother, it was delicious. Now that I’ve finished, we can begin." The little girl, Biluo, licked the ice cream from Li Changluo's hand, finishing by sucking on her fingers with lingering satisfaction.

Li Changluo stamped his feet in fury. *Begin your lollipop!* Were you messing with me? You conjured an ice cream cone just to eat it yourself?

"Watch out, big brother!"

At that moment, the Seventh Young Master leaped before Li Changluo, raised his zither, and the music played once more. A bolt of lightning silently struck down from the tavern's ceiling toward Li Changluo. He didn't even react in time to dodge and was struck dead-center. The tavern floor began to burn where the bolt hit.

Li Changluo felt his entire body go numb and his mind go blank. He only heard the voice of the little girl, Biluo, echoing in his ears: "Big brother, are you dead?"

*Damn it, why would you ask if I'm dead?*

"Big brother, this is your first time using the power of an artifact spirit. Given your current demonic energy, I’m afraid you won't be able to control it, so..."

"So what?" Li Changluo wanted to ask for clarification, but he felt his hand involuntarily reach for the fruit knife tucked into his waistband. On the hilt of the knife, two swirls of black and white energy were chasing each other, but the difference was... the blade suddenly grew longer. A chill flowed continuously along the steel, causing everything it touched to freeze until it became an ice blade over a meter long.

Li Changluo felt that while his consciousness remained clear, his entire body was no longer under his control. Meanwhile, the little girl, Biluo, was now sitting squarely on his head. Even though she was intangible, the humiliating posture reminded Li Changluo of an anime he had watched as a child, where the protagonist would summon a robot and sit on its head to control the attacks.

Before Li Changluo could recover from the shame, his body, gripping the long blade, moved with lightning speed toward the Seventh Young Master. The sheer velocity made Li Changluo feel motion sick, and with a "blech," he couldn't help but vomit. Yet, even while retching, his body uncontrollably swung the blade at the Dragon Prince.

In the blink of an eye, they clashed a dozen times. However, Li Changluo still hadn't adapted to the speed and was still vomiting. The monsters in the tavern witnessed a bizarre scene: Li Changluo was battling the Dragon Prince while simultaneously throwing up. The sight was so peculiar it defied logic. *Did he give himself motion sickness from fighting? What kind of principle is that?*

The Seventh Young Master, however, clearly felt that Li Changluo was no longer the same amateurish little demon; his demonic energy had surged significantly. Moreover, because Li Changluo was wearing the Ice Dragon Scale Armor, his own attacks were losing much of their effectiveness. Li Changluo's movements were becoming increasingly wide-ranging, and the Seventh Young Master began to struggle. He wasn't suited for close-quarters combat, and Li Changluo’s current speed was like a mad dog that couldn't be shaken off, sticking to him so closely he had no room to strike.

But that wasn't the worst of it. Initially, he could calmly parry the ice blade, but suddenly, black flames began to erupt from the blade's edge. Whenever those flames touched him, his demonic energy would be scorched away. In other words, if this stalemate continued, his energy would be entirely burned out.

Realizing this, the Seventh Young Master decided to end it quickly, regardless of the destruction it might cause to the tavern. After blocking another strike, he slung his zither onto his back and let out a low shout. A powerful shockwave exploded around him, and a silver dragon, white as snow, spiraled through the tavern. The Seventh Young Master had revealed his true form. He let out an angry roar, a true dragon cry that sent the monsters in the tavern trembling in fear. Even the elders of the great demon clans couldn't help but cover their ears.

"Manager, what are you doing?" Lin Dandan asked, covering her ears and looking up at her manager. She was standing there, eyes closed, hands pressed together, perfectly still.

"Making a wish!" White Lotus replied with a faint smile, tapping Lin Dandan on the head.

The monsters watched as Li Changluo, showing no fear, gripped his long blade and charged headlong toward the white dragon in mid-air.

"Wow, how majestic!"
"Wow, so brave!"
"Wow, look, he's still vomiting..."
"Wow, that's so damn unique, but he's vomiting on me!!!"

The monsters hiding in the corners were stunned by Li Changluo’s courage in the face of such danger. They all looked up, watching the fierce battle overhead.

"Damn it, damn it, let me out, you jerk, Biluo..."
"Blech!"

The reality was that Li Changluo was being dragged through the air and across the ground by Biluo, forced to engage the dragon directly, and he was physically and mentally exhausted—he was on the verge of a total breakdown.