The night was pitch-black, deep and silent. The entire Green Cloud City lay hushed. A dark cloud drifted across the sky, obscuring the bright moon overhead.
Inside Lin Feng's room, the Spirit Gathering Array formation disk placed on the floor glowed like a large, round lamp—bright but not harsh. Countless red specks of light filled the air within the room, slowly being drawn into Lin Feng's body as he sat cross-legged at its center.
On the bed beside him, Xiao Qiu was curled into a tight ball, sleeping soundly near the pillow. Ever since Lin Feng had advanced to the Foundation Building stage, he spent his nights cultivating, leaving the bed entirely to the little creature.
Suddenly, the sleeping Xiao Qiu shuddered violently as if struck by some unseen stimulus. It leapt to its feet!
"Squeak!!"
A sharp, terrified cry erupted from Xiao Qiu. Its fur stood completely on end. It arched its back, bared its teeth, and stared fixedly at the door, its eyes wide with unmistakable fear.
"Huh?!"
Lin Feng snapped awake instantly. His expression darkened. He immediately ceased his cultivation and stood up. With a flick of his right wrist, his flying sword materialized. Simultaneously, the Spirit Light Jade Pendant was already clenched tightly in his left hand.
"What's wrong?!"
Only after preparing his defenses did Lin Feng shoot a puzzled glance at Xiao Qiu, then followed its gaze towards the door. The door was closed, blocking his view outside, and he couldn't sense anything amiss himself.
"Squeak!! Squeak!!"
Xiao Qiu cried out urgently, lifting a tiny claw and pointing insistently at the door. The meaning was crystal clear: "Danger outside!!"
Lin Feng frowned deeply. He trusted Xiao Qiu implicitly, yet confusion warred within him—what danger could possibly be lurking in his own home? Why couldn't he sense anything?
Although Lin Feng lacked spiritual sense, the intuition of a Foundation Building cultivator was nothing to scoff at. Before Xiao Qiu's cry, and even now, he felt no disturbance…
If danger truly lurked outside, hiding was pointless. After a brief moment of consideration, Lin Feng made his decision. He activated the Spirit Light Barrier, then strode purposefully towards the door.
As he advanced, his mind focused. The flying sword beside him shot forward, its tip gently nudging the door open. The gap widened gradually, finally revealing the scene in the outer room beyond…
Though the light was dim, Lin Feng's eyes instantly locked onto a figure standing motionless in a corner of the room. The figure stood like a statue, emanating no discernible aura. If not for seeing it with his own eyes, Lin Feng would never have known it was there.
"That's…"
The instant Lin Feng saw the figure, his pupils contracted violently. An intensely bizarre feeling surged within him—a feeling that seemed… strangely familiar?!
"Whoosh!!"
In that very moment of eerie recognition, the statue-like figure exploded into motion. It lunged towards Lin Feng with unimaginable speed! In the blink of an eye, as the figure closed the distance, Lin Feng finally saw its features clearly. Then, he froze utterly, as if struck by a paralysis spell…
Charging towards him was a figure entirely shrouded in a black cloak. Beneath the hood was a face—ghastly pale, like paper. Its eyes were unnervingly white, vacant, and utterly lifeless… the face of a corpse!!
The sight of that face seemed to rip Lin Feng's consciousness away. Everything around him seemed to slow to a crawl. The charging figure moved with agonizing slowness. That horrifying visage overlapped perfectly with a face that had haunted his nightmares countless times. In a disorienting flash, an image seared itself across Lin Feng's mind:
In the image, an identical terrifying 'monster' was lunging towards him. And behind the monster, shrouded in shadow, stood two other figures. One was gaunt and white-haired, resembling an old man. The other stood tall and straight, seemingly a middle-aged man. This man's silhouette… felt achingly familiar. So… intimate.
"Father!!!"
Lin Feng's entire body locked rigid. The cry tore from his throat unbidden.
With that cry, reality snapped back into place. The two shadowy figures weren't in the corner of the room. But right before his eyes, a zombie-like 'monster' had indeed pounced!
The 'zombie' was upon Lin Feng in an instant. Its right arm lifted, thin and withered, but ending in claw-like fingers that gleamed with an eerie, knife-edge sharpness. It slashed viciously towards Lin Feng's face!
"CRACK!! BOOM!!"
The deadly claws struck just as they reached Lin Feng—but were intercepted by the Spirit Light Barrier shimmering before him. However, in the next fraction of a second, the barrier shattered violently!
It wasn't that the blow possessed the sheer power to instantly destroy a top-grade treasure artifact barrier. It was Lin Feng's momentary lapse of concentration—his shock had disrupted his control over the barrier, creating a critical flaw that the attacker exploited perfectly.
The barrier's collapse sent a wave of terror through Lin Feng. He was fully alert now. With a desperate, last-millisecond effort, he threw himself backward. The claw, reeking of decay, sliced through the air mere millimeters from the tip of his nose—and slammed into his chest instead!
"THUD!!!"
A dull impact echoed. Lin Feng was hurled backward like a ragdoll. He crashed through the table and chairs behind him, then landed heavily on the bed, shattering it into splinters.
"Cough!!"
Pushing himself up against the wall, Lin Feng felt a searing pain in his chest. A metallic taste flooded his mouth. He coughed, spitting out a small mouthful of blood. He looked down. His protective robes showed deep gouges across the chest, nearly torn through. Beneath them, the flexible inner armor bore distinct, deep dents.
"Hmm? Not dead?!" A voice tinged with surprise sounded from the doorway. Lin Feng's heart lurched. He snapped his head up.
The 'zombie', having delivered its blow, now stood motionless once more in the doorway. From behind it, stepping forward unhurriedly, emerged a young man clad in long robes patterned with fiery designs. He looked at Lin Feng, a distinct expression of surprise on his face.
The young man's expression held a peculiar mix. His gaze held surprise, yes, but also a thick layer of scorn and contempt. Moments ago, upon seeing his corpse puppet, Lin Feng had cried out 'Father!'—a reaction so pitifully weak it had nearly made the young man burst out laughing right then and there. For a cultivator to be so utterly cowardly… it was laughable.
Yet, despite being seemingly 'scared stiff' and taking a direct blow to the chest from the corpse puppet, Lin Feng appeared to have suffered only minor injuries. This puzzled the young man greatly. He scrutinized Lin Feng more carefully, his gaze lingering on the protective robes. His eyes suddenly widened with dawning realization and greed. "That's… a spirit artifact robe!! You actually possess such a fine treasure?!"
"Golden Core cultivator!!"
Lin Feng stared at the unfamiliar young man, his pupils contracting slightly once more. Shock reverberated through him. He forced himself to sound calm. "Who are you? We have no grievance. Why break into my home?"
"No grievance?" The young man's eyes flashed with venom. "You killed my Ink Lion Beast! You ruined my breakthrough! And you dare say no grievance?!"
"What?" Lin Feng was momentarily stunned, but comprehension dawned instantly. He gasped, "That demonic beast that day… it was yours?!"
"Heh heh, understand now?" The young man glared at Lin Feng with pure hatred, his voice dripping with malice. "I've come today for vengeance. If you don't wish to involve others… come with me. We'll settle this outside the city. Of course…" He seemed to sense something, his gaze flicking momentarily to the left before continuing, "…if you prefer to fight here, I'm happy to oblige."
"..." Lin Feng fell silent. He understood the other likely didn't want a fight here causing complications. He could already hear his neighbors, Zhang Fangzhou and the others, stirring next door. If battle erupted here, they would be walking into certain death. Innocent civilians nearby could easily get caught in the crossfire…
Logically, for his own sake, fighting here made sense. Causing a huge commotion, attracting other cultivators from the city—that might even work to his advantage. But the cost… his home would certainly be destroyed, and innocents might pay the price. That was something Lin Feng could not accept.
His decision made, Lin Feng gritted his teeth. "Fine! We fight outside!"
"Hmph! At least you have some spine. But don't delude yourself into thinking you can escape midway to find help. I can leave anytime today. I can return anytime later. I can even target those close to you…"
"I understand. Don't worry. Our business ends today! Lead the way!"
"Haha! Then try not to lose me!"
The young man threw his head back and laughed. With a light tap of his foot, his body shot straight upwards. He smashed through the roof and vanished outside.
"..."
Lin Feng glanced at the 'zombie' still standing in the doorway, its empty eyes fixed on him. Then, he also stomped his foot, launching himself up through the hole in the roof. An instant later, the 'zombie' blurred into motion, a phantom shadow following close behind…