Careless. In the end, he had been too careless.
This was the only thought running through Li Chang'an's mind—he had underestimated the situation…
He never imagined that what seemed like just a simple robbery would actually lure out Zhang Mazi himself. That was surprising enough, but what truly shocked him was Zhang Mazi's martial soul—it could devour other martial souls!
Fortunately, there was one silver lining. After absorbing that man's martial soul, Zhang Mazi's strength didn't increase at all. In fact, his aura became unstable.
Only then did Li Chang'an understand—Zhang Mazi's martial soul was at best a trash bin, not a refinery. Otherwise, he would've long dominated the continent by devouring martial souls over the years.
Zhang Mazi could swallow others' martial souls, but he couldn't use them for himself. That was a huge flaw.
But even so, Zhang Mazi's five-ring (Spirit King) strength wasn't a joke. He was basically one-punching everyone like they were children. Li Chang'an and the others were no match for him—after a few exchanges, they were all knocked to the ground.
"Ulalala!" Zhang Mazi looked at Li Chang'an and his group with a creepy grin. Just as he was about to strike again, he suddenly noticed a flash of red light in the distance!
Zhang Mazi wasn't an idiot. Quick as lightning, he grabbed the only girl in the group—Hu Liena—and felt slightly more secure after doing so.
Moments later, that red light streaked down and landed in front of him.
An old man stood there, clad in the crimson robes of a archbishop. His slicked-back hair was meticulously groomed, and his gaze was icy as it bore into Zhang Mazi.
A cold voice rang out from the man—Duolong—without a hint of emotion:
"You dare provoke the Spirit Hall? Let go of the girl now!"
Although Duolong looked calm on the outside, he was panicking internally. Of all people to capture, he had to grab Hu Liena. If this situation wasn't handled properly, he might as well slit his throat now and be done with it.
After all, no matter how you looked at it, Hu Liena was one of the Pope's only two personal disciples, and she was also the Saintess of the Spirit Hall. If anything happened to her, there would be no going back.
Hearing the words "Spirit Hall," Zhang Mazi broke out in a cold sweat. Damn it, how did he end up offending them? But this only made him more determined to hold Hu Liena hostage—it was his only bargaining chip!
"Hmph. Let her go? Not happening. Unless you promise to let me go and never come after me again!"
As he spoke, Zhang Mazi tightened his grip on Hu Liena's neck. His eyes leered at her body, and he couldn't help but swallow.
'If I get to have her even once, I could die happily!'
What Zhang Mazi didn't notice was the nearby young boy—Li Chang'an—unconsciously touching his left ear, his expression turning ice-cold.
Even Li Chang'an himself didn't realize that whenever he developed a killing intent, he would instinctively touch his left ear. And this was the first time in his life he had ever truly wanted to kill.
After a moment of silence, Duolong finally said,
"Fine. As long as you release her, I swear I won't pursue you. How about it?"
Although he was somewhat confident he could rescue Hu Liena, her special status made him hesitate—he couldn't afford to take the risk.
Zhang Mazi's eyes lit up. The girl's identity really was something special. That only strengthened his resolve—not only would he not let go, he wanted even more.
"No! I've changed my mind. I want 100,000 gold soul coins. You can come ransom her from my mountain stronghold later!"
He had already decided—once he got back to the stronghold, he was going to enjoy her. Even if he died afterward, it would've been worth it!
With that, Zhang Mazi gave the group a smug look, kept his martial soul activated in vigilance, and began retreating toward the mountain.
"Don't come any closer! One step and I'll kill her…"
---
Li Chang'an glanced at his soul power progress bar, then at the retreating Zhang Mazi. His aura grew even colder. His soul power had already recovered to 50%. Once he hit 70%, he was charging in to kill.
Xie Yue's face was grim—after all, the girl kidnapped was his sister.
"Vice-Dean Duolong, I request to go save my sister!"
Duolong shook his head. "It's useless to go now. I will immediately summon all nearby Spirit Hall members. We'll bring the ransom money and a full force to pressure Qiuming Mountain. Wait here for one incense stick's time."
This was the safest and most reliable plan. As soon as he finished, Duolong transformed into a red light and disappeared into the sky. Time was of the essence.
"Wanna charge in?" Li Chang'an asked calmly, his tone as cold as still water, eyes fixed on Xie Yue and Yan.
"I do… but we…"
Yan was panicking. He had feelings for Hu Liena too, so of course he was anxious.
"Then recover your soul power. In five minutes, we go in ourselves!"
With that, Li Chang'an sat down cross-legged and began recovering his soul power. He didn't want to wait even a second longer.
Xie Yue had wanted to object, but seeing how bold Li Chang'an was being, he couldn't back down now. Besides, his feelings were heavier than anyone's.
"Alright!"
Both Xie Yue and Yan nodded and resumed recovering soul power.
--
Five minutes later…
Li Chang'an opened his eyes. The former elegance on his face had completely disappeared, replaced by a deadly cold aura.
"Let's go!"
He was the first to dash forward, infusing soul power into his legs and pushing his speed to the limit.
Xie Yue and Yan exchanged a look, then nodded and followed, surging forward with their own soul power.
Zhang Mazi wasn't slow. To prevent Hu Liena from making trouble on the way, he had knocked her out. Fortunately, in his rush, he didn't do anything else to her.
"Full alert, everyone! We're in big trouble this time. But I promise—if we get through this, you'll all live in luxury!"
"Yes!"
The entire mountain stronghold sprang into action. After tossing Hu Liena into his room, Zhang Mazi headed off to organize his men. He had a lot to handle before he could "enjoy himself" in peace.
---
'Faster. I need to be faster!'
That was all Li Chang'an could think. Even with his incredibly strong body, the speed at which he was running was beginning to push his limits. But he kept accelerating… and accelerating…
When the wooden gates of the stronghold finally came into view, he let out a silent breath of relief—he made it!
A brilliant purple soul ring rose around him. The Pangu Axe appeared in his hands, and the donghuang Bell manifested and shielded his body.
"Today—whoever dares block me, dies!"
BOOM!!!
The dazzling purple axe light flashed—and the stronghold gate was obliterated.
___
💖 Want to support the translations? Get early access on [Patreon]!
🥇 Patreon: patreon.com/user?u=79514336
Or just search Translator-Sama on patreon