"Me? Hunted?" The woman laughed, her hand covering her mouth in a manner that oozed both delicateness and arrogance. "Beast, you stand before the great Lady Zhen, Grand Advisor to the Immortal Emperor himself."

"Immortal is not the word I would use to describe a dead man," said Li, recounting the desperate note in the manual he read that detailed how all of civilization had collapsed - dead emperor included, of course. 

"You dare demean the name of the emperor?" came Lady Zhen's fierce response. 

Li's ursine eyes squinted as he noticed a difference in the golem's posture. Her expression deepened into a scowl and her fingers twitched ever so slightly. He could not actually sense any magical energy from her, and that was probably because she, like the heroes, used power far different from that which Li used.

He could, however, get a general read on the amount of power she had even if he did not have an exact understanding of the type. That was why he did not worry too much, but he was still wary of unknown attacks.

"Most impressive," said Lady Zhen, her scowl still prominent on her face. "It has been a long time since I have seen a magical beast of your caliber. Perhaps you are not a beast. No, your presence indicates you are more. Perhaps a devil? It matters not. Devil, Spirit, Beast – all have fallen before me."

Li had his burly arm raised overhead, reaching near the ceiling of the enormous kitchen. His ursine paw held in between its long, black-tinted claws the almost invisible silhouette of a slightly curved blade that he recognized as a Chinese dao. He had seen the difference in the golem's mood and predicted an attack, and he was right on the mark.

Though the blade was invisible, there was a ripple in space where its handle should have been that presumably explained where it had suddenly emerged from. Li pulled his arm back, shoving the blade out from the small portal. 

The attack had come lightning fast compared to the standards of this world. Li figured this was how she instantly cut so many victims in halves. Somewhat curious, he tried inspecting the blade, but it disappeared the moment he got a firm grasp on it.

"You think you possess the right to behold a treasure of the Divine Armory?" Lady Zhen shook her head mockingly. "Very well. I am feeling generous today, so I shall indulge your curiosity."

Lady Zhen thrust her arms to the side, the sleeves of her robes fluttering with the motion. Countless miniature portals appeared behind her until the image of the kitchen itself became distorted into a blend of unintelligible colors through the sheen of warped space. From each ripple of space appeared weapons of all kinds and colors.

Swords, staves, spears, and even fully nocked bows and arrows. 

At first, Li kept a keen eye on them, not recognizing any of them, but then he saw a few he did recognize. Mixed with the unknown weapons were a few relics from Elden World. 

The Golden Dragon Sword. Level 90 in strength.

The Seven-Spirit Splitstaff. Level 90 in strength.

The Forest Qilin Cleaver. Level 90 in strength.

Lady Zhen crossed her arms in triumph. 

"Behold my Dao of Creation that can create the finest of treasures kept throughout the ages. Weapons of such fierce power that they toppled entire armies, slew dragons, and beheaded devils. You may hold great power within you, but how can your lonesome strength compare to weapons that have carved their greatness through the eternal channels of time and history, proving their might through the ages?"

Lady Zhen saw Li shudder and put a paw to his face. She pointed to him with her head tilted back. The weapons emerged further from their portals and began glittering. "So you understand the position you are in? Then very well. My Flying Sword Whirl Incantation will ensure your death is quick and painless."

"Forgive me," said Li. He moved his paw away from his face and let it drop to his side, its shaggy black fur crackling with royal purple bolts of energy. "It is rude, but I had to stop myself from laughing. All that bluster for level 90 weapons?"

Lady Zhen cocked her head. "Wha-," she managed to let out before Li had charged forwards at a speed she could not comprehend, the massive paw curling entirely around her head, the scythe like claws clasping together like the bars of a jail. 

Li put strength into his legs and jumped with all his might, letting loose a concussive burst of force as he dragged Lady Zhen by the face through all three floors and roof of the mansion. The power of his jump was almost like flight, and he soared far above just the mansion until the brilliant golden structure became just a dull yellow dot surrounded in the dark of night. 

"How about a change of scenery?" said Li to the golem in his hand as he put his arm back and tossed her further upwards like a baseball player throwing a pitch. Her tiny figure rapidly faded as it blasted through a cloud. She had not died from the attack, and he had not intended her to. He was willing to experiment here where they were far from town and allow her to reveal more tricks and see if any were useful for him to understand. 

"Ah," murmured Li as his bulky form began to fall from gravity after losing momentum from the initial jump. "Guess I'll try out a full shift for the first time." 

He channeled [Aspect of the Howling Ursine] even further, casting [Shapeshift: Howling Ursine]. Unlike his aspect shifts which copied just parts of a creature's form, full shapeshifts allowed him to take on the complete stats and abilities of the creature he shifted to at the cost of limiting access to his other spells. 

Normally, Li did not cast full shapeshifts because even if he did become stronger in melee combat by taking some forms, lack of access to his full arsenal of powers made him overall weaker. But he figured this was a decent way to handicap himself.

Not to mention Li liked the Howling Ursine form. It was probably one of the strongest melee forms he had, and as a bonus, he could fly. 

Gashes opened up from Li's brawny back, and from them, instead of blood, there flowed a torrent of fiery purple energy that streaked outwards into the shape of wings. Two extra pairs of blazing horns emerged from Li's head as did an extra pair of energy-infused eyes. His form became noticeably larger and bulkier to the point where he would have stood as tall as some of the one-story buildings in Riviera. 

With the wings, Li sailed upwards, tracking down the golem. The Howling Ursine had the passive ability to sniff out damaged targets, and it applied here. He had slightly worried that a full shift might have affected his mind somehow, but thankfully, it was a smooth transition, and he felt absolutely in control of this body and its powers as if he had lived in it for years beforehand.

Li found Lady Zhen floating in the air. Her porcelain face had cracked, a few chips falling off to reveal pure white energy underneath. She grimaced upon seeing Li and put a hand in front of her face, raising two fingers in some kind of handsign.

"Devil Binding Hex!" she shouted. 

Red characters began to swirl around Li in rotating bands. Li used his fire-wreathed paws to bear slap the characters, and they shattered like fragile glass.

"More disappointment," said Li, his voice now completely inhuman. It echoed with a guttural, deep growl, rumbling not only physically, but mentally, ringing in Lady Zhen's artificial head, rattling through her bones. 

Lady Zhen smiled, however, and Li felt intrigued. What more was she going to do? 

"You should have destroyed me when you had me within your grasp," said Lady Zhen. "Now that I understand the threat you pose; I may unleash the fullest extent of my power."

Lady Zhen clasped her hands together, and when she split them apart, several copies of her emerged from her sides, all mirroring her movements. In total, there were nine copies of her, and they had replicated the damage she had taken as well. 

When Lady Zhen spoke, her voice echoed as her nine forms spoke in unison. "With the nine shades of my nascent souls working in unison, the key to the Divine Armory is fully complete. I bring forth now not the trinkets of man, but the unsealed weapons of the Heavenly Jade Court itself. May the works of the gods smite your existence from this reality.

In the face of divine judgement, I only tell you that you may rest well knowing that your core will bring forth the rebirth of my great people."