Chapter 156: Heavenly Demon City, Great Heavenly Venerate
On the square.
The demonic spirit is soaring.
Standing in the darkness were countless well-disciplined and huge monster armies.
The end is as far as the eye can see.
The lowest strength of a demon is the lord level, which is close to its transformation.
The team is neat and clear-cut.
The top lord is the centurion, the third-level demon is the captain of thousands, the ninth-level demon is the captain of ten thousand, the demon king is the captain, the demon emperor is the general, and the demon emperor is the commander-in-chief.
Look at this group of demon fighting troops.
Xiao Hei looked indifferent.
There are only three demon emperors here, one is a third-level demon emperor and two second-level demon emperors.
Naturally, he couldn't face three demon emperors alone.
But if you combine Da Hu and Huo Wu, you can still kill him.
He raised his eyes and looked around.
The sky is dark and filled with evil spirits.
Xiao Hei noticed that those extremely huge buildings were clearly demon altars.
They stand in special positions all around.
A black air column was released above each altar, converging and entangled with each other, forming a huge vortex in the air.
According to ancient memories, these altars have different functions from those in Shenwu Continent. They are not used for blood sacrifices, but for worship.
But its greater role is to serve as the array base for the space channel.
The huge vortex is constantly rotating, containing countless mysteries of space.
Obviously, the space passage above this is the entrance and exit to the Shenwu Continent.
This is a two-way channel.
As time goes by, the channel is getting bigger and bigger.
It seems that it won't be long before these monsters can enter the Shenwu Continent through this space passage.
Is this going to be a war?
Xiao Hei's expression remained unchanged.
For him, he doesn't care at all whether the demons are going to invade the Shenwu Continent or whether it will cause disaster to all living beings.
First of all, he is a mythical beast.
Whether they are ordinary monsters or humans, they are all inferior creatures to him.
Secondly, he himself is a demon clan.
The demon clan believes in the law of the jungle that the weak eat the strong and the strong are respected.
War is for better evolution, and there is nothing wrong with it.
He didn't want to prevent them from entering the Shenwu Continent, but he wanted to listen to his "father" master and kill them all!
The demons in the square were not surprised by Xiao Hei's appearance.
Even a little impatient.
The Great Master finally sent an envoy.
The war is finally about to begin!
The eyes of countless demons flashed with fanaticism, but due to the majesty of the Demon Emperor, no demons moved around, and discipline remained strict.
The three demon emperor commanders were also excited.
But when the three demon emperors felt the aura of the divine beast on Xiao Hei's body, their expressions changed.
Although they were demon emperors, they felt tremendous pressure from Xiao Hei.
This is the natural suppression of higher bloodline.
Of course, if they become Demon Lords, they will not be afraid of Xiao Hei's bloodline suppression.
But they didn't expect that the envoy sent by the Great Lord turned out to be an adult with the blood of a divine beast!
Xiao Hei is of average human height, and looks like a human boy of about 1.75 meters.
In comparison, the three huge demon emperors were like three mountains.
But at this moment, the three demon emperors clasped their fists and said respectfully:
"grown ups."
Xiao Hei looked at them indifferently.
This kind of indifference comes from the indifference and pride in your heart.
"What is this place?"
Xiao Hei looked at the third-level demon emperor indifferently and asked.
The third-level demon emperor was stunned, "Are you not the messenger?"
"Bold! How dare you question me? Did I let you ask?"
Xiaohei shouted with cold eyes.
My true self?
The three demon emperors were shocked.
This title of "I" is something that only the Demon Lord would call himself.
But the other party's cultivation level is only the sixth level Demon King.
Normally, he should call himself this emperor, or this demon emperor, but he calls himself himself.
They could see that the other party was definitely not bluffing, but was arrogant from the inside out.
Could it be that he is more than just a creature of divine beast blood?
What is his identity?
The third-level demon emperor with the highest strength hesitated for a moment and said:
"This, this is the City of Ten Thousand Demons in the Heavenly Demon Realm."
So far, none of the three demon emperors have doubted Xiao Hei's motives, but they are just a little confused about his identity.
After all, the demonic aura on Xiao Hei cannot be faked.
City of Ten Thousand Demons
Xiao Hei's heart moved, but there was no expression on his face.
Looking around, he looked at the densely packed group of demons and asked indifferently: "How many have gathered in total?"
"Five million."
The Demon Emperor said immediately.
"Five million?"
Xiao Hei frowned slightly, "So few?"
Seeing that Xiao Hei finally asked about the number of demons, the three demon emperors breathed a sigh of relief.
They finally confirmed that the other party was undoubtedly an envoy sent by the great master outside.
It's just that the identity of this messenger is a bit scary.
He actually has the blood of a divine beast in his body.
However, they didn't know that the other party had more than just the blood of a mythical beast.
This is simply a mythical beast!
Mainly because they don't dare to think about it.
Throughout Tianyao City, there are strange beasts, ferocious beasts, ancient relics, and the bloodline of divine beasts.
But there is no real mythical beast.
Divine beasts only exist in legends.
But the bloodline of mythical beasts also has high and low levels, and their strengths and potentials are also different.
The person in front of me seems to be not simple, maybe the blood concentration is very scary.
Such monsters are all popular among the Great Heavenly Lord.
The third-level demon emperor did not dare to offend, and said quickly: "The envoy does not know something, we are just the vanguard of exploring the path, and we do not directly participate in the battle.
The Great Heavenly Lord has recruited an additional 300 million troops from the entire Heavenly Demon Realm, and they are currently gathering at Ten Thousand Demons City. It will only take half a month at most to assemble them all.
Just wait until this space channel becomes large enough to pass through hundreds of millions of troops, and it will be time to attack the Shenwu Continent in one fell swoop.
Sir, when you come this time, has the great master outside informed us that we can enter the Shenwu Continent?"
At the end of the story, the Demon Emperor was a little excited.
He looked at Xiao Hei expectantly.
You know, the Shenwu Continent has countless blood foods!
Xiao Hei looked indifferent and did not answer his words. Instead, he asked:
"Which direction is Tianlong City located?"
Tianlong City?
The Demon Emperor was a little confused by Xiao Hei's sudden change of topic.
But he still said honestly: "Three thousand miles to the southwest."
Three thousand miles, so close?
Xiao Hei was a little surprised.
He knows a lot about Tianlong City.
Not only did Xia Hu and Huo Wu tell him, the master even directly passed all the memories related to Tianlong City to him through the contract.
It is said that Tianlong City is very mysterious. Buried under the entire Tianlong City are Tianlong and Divine Phoenix.
Because they are both divine beasts, he is very interested in Tianlong and Divine Phoenix.
I didn't expect Tianlong City to be so close.
Seeing that Xiao Hei was a little confused.
The demon emperor explained again: "What the messenger doesn't know is that the entire City of Ten Thousand Demons is actually built as a transmission channel. The energy required is very huge, and energy crystals alone are far from enough. So when choosing a location,
The choice was between Tianlong City and Tianyao City. Master Tianzun used great magic power to attract the dragon vein energy underground in Tianlong City and the richest earth vein energy in the entire Tianyao Realm underground in Tianyao City. This
Only then did the large space passage in Ten Thousand Demon City be successfully established."
Xiao Hei nodded slightly.
So that’s it.
"Sir Messenger, can we leave now?"
The Demon Emperor asked with fiery eyes.
leave?
There was a cold arc at the corner of Xiao Hei's mouth.
With a thought in his mind, the demon consciousness communicated with Huo Wu and Xia Hu and told them exactly what happened here.
Huo Wu and Xia Hu then appeared.
"The master wants us to slaughter this place."
Xiaohei said calmly.
Xia Hu grinned, the light flashed, and the black gold mace appeared in his hand.
After being upgraded by the young master, the black gold mace is heavier and has a built-in thunder and lightning effect, making it more powerful.
As for Huo Wu, she is focused on carrying forward the "Thousand Feathers Meteor Kill" taught to her by her master.
Today's "Thousand Feathers Meteor Kill", the sword energy shot out from the wings on her back is not "Thousand Feathers", but "Ten Thousand Feathers", and its power is ten times higher than before.
It is simply a mass murder weapon for large-scale massacre.
The three demon emperors were stunned by the sudden appearance of the two people.
They suddenly realized something was wrong.
But Xiao Hei and the other three would not give them any time to wonder.
Almost as soon as Xia Hu and Huo Wu appeared, they rushed towards the three demon emperors.
The three demon emperors were stunned.
This is
Are these three people here to fight?
It is true that he was suppressed by Xiao Hei's bloodline, but these three are all demon emperors, and the gap between them and the three demon emperors is not a little bit.
No one among them can compete with these three people, and can even kill these three people.
But soon, they realized they were wrong.
And, it’s so wrong.
The three people arrived like lightning and instantly burst into flames.
kill!
The black gold mace fell from the sky like a huge mountain.
With such terrifying power, it seemed as if a hole would be made in the sky.
The expressions of the three demon emperors suddenly changed.
At this moment, a fiery red figure flew over.
The wings behind their backs flapped violently, and thousands of swords roared towards them, accompanied by black flames, and everything under their eyes was burning.
What followed was a burst of terrifying pressure from the blood of the divine beasts, causing the demonic power surging within the bodies of the three demon emperors to suddenly stagnate.
At this moment of stagnation, a puff of black air came out, and the three demon emperors suddenly felt cold all over.
The black flames of Huowu are not only not hot, but cold, and the black energy of Tan Snake Xiaohei is even colder, causing not only their demon bodies, but also the entire world to be frozen.
Both the physical body and the demonic essence were restricted, and the soul was suppressed by the bloodline.
The three demon emperors were unable to exert even 30% of their strength, which was a tragedy.
Peng!
The huge mace fell, and the strongest third-level demon emperor was killed by Xia Hu first.
Then a sweep.
The other two demon emperors were so shocked that they smashed one of them to pieces.
The other demon emperor was shot through by thousands of sword energy.
Working together, the three demon emperors were easily killed by the three of them in the blink of an eye.
Xia Nan would never have imagined that Xia Hu and the three of them would be so terrifying if they joined forces.
The battle lasted only a moment, and all three demon emperors died.
Five million demons didn't even react. They were still in a state of confusion, and the battle was over.
Without the three demon emperors, the three of them are like tigers joining the flock of sheep, killing the five million demon army
Thunder Temple.
I don't know how much time passed before Xia Nan woke up from her deep sleep.
Feeling refreshed and all injuries recovered.
Every time after swallowing the Violent Pill, the best treatment for Xia Nan is to sleep.
Feeling the perfect state of her body, Xia Nan nodded slightly.
After being destroyed again and again, the physical body becomes stronger and stronger.
And the soul also became stronger and tougher after being stimulated by the violent pill again and again.
This is mainly related to his understanding of the artistic conception of the sword intention and the mystery of destruction to the state of great perfection.
The strength of his soul is simply beyond the reach of ordinary people.
Breaking down and then standing up again refers to Xia Nan's current state.
The effect is very good, but it is also very dangerous.
At the same time, the time required to rest is too long.
The first thing after waking up is to open the panel to check life points and task completion.
【Life points:938847278】
[Task completion degree: 00000]
On the books, life points increased by more than 140 million.
Mission completion has also increased by more than 10 million.
Xia Nan smiled slightly.
It shows that these three people are really not idle these days.
Go to the hall, sit on the dragon chair, and explore with your spiritual consciousness
Um?
The location of the three people is a bit strange.
Then his mind moved and he appeared in the outside world.
"What are you doing hiding here?"
Xia Nan looked around and said.
This is a dark underground cave, with a cliff dozens of meters in front and an abyss below it.
Exploration with spiritual consciousness revealed that it was a long way from the ground, at least five thousand meters.
"Master."
"Owner."
Xia Hu and Huo Wu saw surprise on their faces when they saw Xia Nan.
Xiao Hei also looked surprised.
"father"
As soon as the words came out, Xia Hu and Huo Wu became happy.
Xia Nan stared at Xiao Hei.
"Owner."
Xiao Hei called out obediently.
Seeing Xiao Hei's "wronged" look, Xia Nan sighed secretly.
He felt that this child must be lacking love, otherwise why would he insist on calling him daddy?
But think about it, when he was born, the first thing he saw was him, and his blood was also fused to it.
But it is absolutely impossible for him to be a father!
A twenty-year-old boy, being called daddy by a boy who looks fourteen or fifteen years old, makes him feel uncomfortable no matter how he looks at it.
"What's going on?"
Xia Nan asked.
"That's it, Master D, when I first came here"
Xiaohei said.
Then he told Xia Nan everything that happened when he arrived here, through the soul contract, in detail.
Xia Nan's eyes lit up, and her consciousness looked through the cave to the huge building in the distance that was faintly reaching the sky.
In the dark night, the huge building crawled on the earth like an ancient beast.
Tianyao City!
The center of the demon world!
Take back your consciousness and walk towards the cliff.
His spiritual consciousness probed downwards, and he found that beneath the abyss was indeed an underground spiritual vein shrouded by a huge restriction.
"You mean that as long as you destroy this spiritual vein, you can detonate the entire Tianyao City?"
Xia Nan looked at Xiaohei.
Unexpectedly, these three people actually dug up the underground spiritual veins of Tianyao City.
Xiao Hei nodded.
"Master, the three of us have calculated it, and it should be possible."
Xia Hu said.
"Yes, Master, this spiritual vein is the top spiritual vein, and today the Great Heavenly Lord in the demon world used the power of the formation to extract all the underground spiritual energy of the entire demon world here. Once it explodes, there will be a big explosion of spiritual energy.
.The Sky Demon City will definitely be detonated by then."
Huo Wu said.
"It's just that this restriction is very powerful. I'm afraid it will take at least the middle stage of Shattering Void Realm or above to break through and enter this top underground spiritual vein.
With our strength, we will definitely not be able to enter. Only you, the master, can enter."
Huo Wu looked at Xia Nan with bright eyes.
Xia Nan pondered for a moment, smiled slightly, and said: "There is no problem in entering, but the problem is that after entering, Tianyao City will only be detonated, and the crisis has not been resolved."
"The best way to solve the problem is to kill the Great Heavenly Lord of the demon clan and destroy the space passage of Ten Thousand Demons City after exiting at the same time."
According to the information obtained by Xiao Hei, the Great Heavenly Lord of the Demon Clan has reached the ninth level of the Shattering Void Realm. He is a super strong man who can soar through the sky at any time, and is the real controller of the Demon Celestial Realm.
Once such a strong man is killed, it will be a huge blow to the entire world of demons.
At the same time, it also just solved the problem of Shenwu Continent being invaded by monsters.
Most of the demons on the Shenwu Continent came out of the Heavenly Demon Realm.
With the death of the Great Heavenly Lord, the Heavenly Demon Realm has lost its supreme ruler. Civil strife is inevitable, and it will no longer have the power to deal with the Shenwu Continent in a short time.
The Shenwu Continent took advantage of this period to rest and recuperate, and at the same time purify the human race.
Kill the demon clan Great Heavenly Lord?
The three of them were all surprised, but then they looked excited.
If someone else had said to kill the Great Heavenly Lord of the Demon Clan, the three of them would definitely have scoffed.
But when Xia Nan said to kill the Great Heavenly Lord, the three of them didn't have the slightest doubt.
As for the consequences of killing the Great Heavenly Lord of the Demon Clan, the three of them have never considered it and will not consider it.
They only know that by following Xia Nan's footsteps, they will be able to reach the pinnacle of martial arts step by step and go to the upper world and the fairy world in the future!
"Master D, what do we need to do next?"
Xiao Hei immediately heard what Xia Nan meant and his eyes brightened.
Xia Nan nodded secretly.
This guy's intelligence is indeed extraordinary, and he can immediately guess that he will need them next.
This is much better than Xia Hu and Huo Wu.
"But he could immediately guess what I was thinking. It couldn't be because he contains my bloodline, right?"
Thinking of this, Xia Nan quickly put the thought away.
Damn it, this kid is a mythical beast, except for the contractual relationship with him, the rest has nothing to do with him!
If you want to recognize your father, there is no way!
Xia Nan felt like she was crazy because this kid recognized him as his father.
"Xiao Hei, find a way to lure the Great Heavenly Lord here. As long as he can reach the abyss, he won't be able to escape even if he wants to!"
Killing the Great Heavenly Lord of the demon tribe here is the best way.
It can not only kill the Great Heavenly Lord, but also explode the underground spiritual veins and destroy the Sky Demon City.
It can be said that it kills two birds with one stone.
Ultimately, it was because he only had one chance.
If you want to gain power beyond the Great Heavenly Lord, you must swallow the high-level violent pill.
But no matter how tenacious his soul is, he can only swallow this high-level violent pill once at most.
If swallowed for the second time in a row,
It will definitely explode,
There is no doubt about it.
That's why Xia Nan made this decision.
Of course, the process of deceiving the Great Heavenly Lord here is very dangerous, and you will die if you are not careful.
Therefore, it not only requires Xiao Hei's wisdom, but also great courage.
Xiao Hei said immediately without any hesitation: "Yes! Master!"
Then he turned around and left.
Xiao Hei, like Xia Hu and Huo Wu, never hesitates in Xia Nan's orders.
Xia Nan looked at the direction where Xiao Hei disappeared, pondered slightly, then turned to Xia Hu and Huo Wu and said, "You go first to the Thunder Temple."
Xia Hu hesitated for a moment and said: "Young Master, the Great Heavenly Lord is at the peak of the Shattering Void Realm. Not only is he powerful, but he has also cultivated his demonic skills to the extreme. I am afraid that strength alone may not be enough."
"I know this. To deal with him, you can't just rely on brute force. Don't worry, I have my own way."
Xia Nan nodded slightly and said.
"You guys go in first."
Seeing that his young master had already made up his mind, Xia Hu knew it would be difficult to persuade him.
"Yes, Master."
"Yes, Master."
Xia Hu and Huo Wu responded.
Xia Nan thought, and a whirlpool appeared around the two of them.
The two stepped in and immediately disappeared.
Xia Nan was the only one left in the dark underground space.
Xia Nan is not worried about whether Xiao Hei can trick the Great Heavenly Lord here.
The process may be dangerous, but with Xiao Hei's wisdom, it shouldn't be a big problem in the end.
All he has to do now is how to improve his strength.
After taking a look at the system mall, Xia Nan thought to herself.
At present, the price of the fifth-level high-level violent pill has reached 10 billion glory points.
Such a price is still affordable for him.
After all, he still has four magic crystals. If he redeems them all, he will get 40 billion glory points, which is equivalent to four level five high-level violent pills.
Once he takes this fifth-level high-level violent pill, his cultivation will reach the peak of the Void-Breaking Realm, the same level as the Great Heavenly Lord.
But after all, this level of cultivation is forcibly improved. To put it bluntly, it is empty.
Compared with the real Nine Heavens of Breaking the Void Realm, there is still a huge difference.
If you want to crush the Great Heavenly Lord and kill him in one fell swoop, you can only use force to overcome skill.
In terms of realm or strength, completely crush him.
Therefore, the best way is for him to upgrade his cultivation level to the True Martial Realm, and then take the sixth-level high-level violent pill, so that his strength can surpass the Void-breaking Realm in one fell swoop.
In this way, there is almost no need to use the sword, and he may be able to kill the Great Heavenly Lord with one punch.
According to the past price rules, if it is a level six Violent Pill, the price will rise tenfold again.
In other words, the price of the sixth-level high-level violent pill will reach 100 billion glory points.
Xia Nan then carefully sorted out what she had gained during these days.
In the end, he basically redeemed them all to the system and became glory points.
In the end, the system gained 12 billion more glory points.
The glory point on the panel became 18.9 billion.
18.9 billion, just that much?
Even if you add the remaining four magic crystals, you can get up to 59 billion glory points in total, which is still a long way from 100 billion glory points.
Xia Nan frowned.
Unless, the Thunder Temple is exchanged to the system.
But that's obviously impossible.
"So poor!"
Xia Nan lamented for the first time that she was very poor.
Each level of violent pill given by the system is strictly targeted at the cultivation level.
It can amplify the strength of the user ten times, a hundred times, or even a thousand times.
However, the fifth-level violent pill is only for the Peeping Void Realm. Once he breaks through to the True Martial Realm, these fifth-level violent pills will lose their effect on him, and the corresponding sixth-level violent pill must be effective.
Therefore, he cannot improve his cultivation level yet and must remain at the ninth level of the Peeping into the Void Realm.
"System, is there any way to increase combat effectiveness?"
"have!"
Xia Nan's eyes suddenly brightened.
"In what way?"
"Consume 100 million life points to unlock the second forbidden martial art of the Destruction Sword Technique, the Vicious Heavenly Sword, in advance."
Taboo martial arts?
This was the first time Xia Nan heard about it.
But the thought of 100 million life points made his lips twitch.
This dog system is so evil!
It’s simply taking advantage of the situation!
But at this time, there is no room for bargaining.
There wasn't much hesitation.
"Unblock!"
Life points-100 million
[Unblocking, please wait]
[Unsealing completed. The second style of "The Destruction Sword Technique", the "Ultimately Evil Sky Sword", is an upgraded version of the "Slaughter Style". It requires understanding the mystery of destruction, the mystery of thunder, the mystery of killing, and the mystery of the sword respectively. 】
[Note: "The Extremely Evil Heavenly Sword" is a taboo martial art, which is not tolerated by heaven and earth. Once it is used, a thunderstorm will fall from the sky, hundreds of dragons will dance wildly, and everything within a radius of thousands of miles will be filled with violent thunder dragon sword energy, destroying everything. Be careful.
use.
The power of the "Ultimately Evil Heavenly Sword" depends on how much the secrets are comprehended. If you fuse one kind of secrets, it will be the elementary level. If the secrets are fully comprehended, the power can reach thousands of miles. If you fuse two kinds of secrets, it will be the intermediate level; if you fuse three kinds of secrets, it will be the advanced level; if you fuse all the secrets, it will be an intermediate level.
The four mysteries will reach the power of Dzogchen, with a range of up to five thousand miles.]
The skill column "Slaughter Style" was immediately replaced by "Vicious Heavenly Sword".
It is not tolerated by heaven and earth. Once it is used, thunder and disaster will fall from the sky!
It turns out that this is taboo martial arts!
Xia Nan's eyes were bright and the corners of her mouth were slightly raised.
Most people are afraid of thunder disasters.
Even people from the Thunder God Clan are afraid.
After all, thunder tribulation is the will of heaven and earth, and it will be chopped into ashes if you are not careful.
But Xia Nan is not afraid.
Not only does he have purple energy in his body, but he also has the God of Thunder. Every thunderstorm he receives is almost always used to increase the energy reserves of the God of Thunder.
Taboo martial arts!
Because of its huge power, it is not tolerated by heaven and earth!
From this point of view, these 100 million life points are well spent!
But, after all, it is 100 million life points.
Thinking of this, Xia Nan still feels pain in her body
Tianyao City.
At the gate of the city, a cold-faced Xiao Hei punched the city guard general.
This is a hornet's nest.
This is Tianyao City, the most noble place in the entire Tianyao Realm, where the Great Heavenly Lord lives.
Now someone actually dared to cause trouble at the city gate and even beat up the city guard general.
This is not bad!
call out!
A signal firework exploded in the air.
Many demons in the city saw this scene and couldn't help but be stunned.
"This boy is so arrogant! He dares to kill the city guard general."
"He is quite arrogant. Now let's call the Tianlong Guard to see if he is still arrogant."
Hurrah!
A huge wave of evil energy surged out from the city gate, and a group of demon emperor-level guards rushed out.
That's right, they are all Demon Emperors, twenty-eight in total.
Wearing armor, they all look like guards.
The squad leader has the highest level of cultivation and is the ninth-level Demon King.
Xiao Hei was able to blow up a fifth-level demon emperor city guard general with one punch, which shows his strength.
The squad leader was not stupid, he immediately ordered his team members to surround Xiao Hei.
"Things with no eyes dare to cause trouble in Tianyao City! Surround them and kill them on the spot!"
Something with no eyes!
Xiao Hei's eyes suddenly turned cold, and a terrifying pressure came over him.
The aura of the mythical beast is overwhelming and evident.
This is the first time that Xiao Hei has released the aura of the divine beast without reservation.
The wanton release of the divine beast's aura immediately caused all the demon kings present to crawl to the ground.
The bloodline pressure is so terrifying!
With just the pressure of the divine beast's bloodline, he was able to render all the demon kings powerless to resist.
Even under the extreme bloodline pressure, even if he is asked to kill ordinary demon emperors below the third level alone, he can do it.
This kind of natural suppression on the bloodline is simply impossible for ordinary monsters to resist.
Heavenly Demon Palace.
In the empty hall, a figure with closed eyes sat.
This is a young man wearing a golden robe.
Suddenly, he opened his eyes, a flash of blue light flashed away, and there was an uncontrollable surprise in his eyes.
"Mythical beast!"
Whoosh!
The figure disappears.
He appeared again at the city gate.
A terrifying momentum descended.
All the demons crawled on the ground and shouted enthusiastically: