"Hmph! Still refining pills... What shamelessness! A trash-tier innate talent with a low-grade fire spiritual root actually dreaming of becoming a Pill Master? Ridiculous!" whispered the figure in the center, lurking near Lin Feng's bedroom door. After observing for a moment, he sneered disdainfully, then instructed the other two shadows beside him, "Once we go in, grab him first! Don't let him escape!"
The other two nodded. Then, the central figure abruptly raised his foot and kicked violently at the door.
CRASH!
The door burst open under the force.
Instantly, all three adopted combat stances, ready to rush inside. But the next moment, they froze in unison. The small bedroom before them held only a pill furnace with flames still flickering within... its occupant was nowhere to be seen.
"How…? I just sensed him refining pills in here! Where is he?" muttered the figure on the right, his voice thick with confusion and alarm.
"Looking for me?"
A voice, cold and unexpected, spoke suddenly behind them. All three spun around in shock, their faces paling.
THUD!!
Before the figure on the left could fully turn, a vicious blow slammed into the back of his neck. A surge of potent true essence invaded his meridians. Darkness swallowed his vision, and he crumpled unconscious to the floor.
The remaining two whirled fully, horrified to see their companion already downed. Their eyes snapped to Lin Feng, who stood calmly holding the unconscious man by the collar with his right hand. A faint, chilling 'smile' played on Lin Feng's lips as he regarded them.
"Lin Feng!" The one who had kicked the door blurted out, disbelief etched on his face. How had he circled behind them? And to silently incapacitate a Foundation Establishment Stage, Layer Three cultivator…
He had no way of knowing Lin Feng cultivated the Concealed Essence Art. Hiding his presence, Lin Feng was utterly undetectable to someone merely at Foundation Establishment Stage, Layer Four. Had Lin Feng chosen lethal force from the start, all three would already be corpses.
Lin Feng casually tossed the unconscious man aside. His gaze swept over the two remaining intruders standing in his doorway, his expression impassive. "Xue Ziqi," he stated coldly. "I recall warning you that my patience has limits. You ignored that and dared provoke me again. I hope you've prepared yourself… for the consequences."
The glow from the furnace illuminated the faces of the three 'assailants'. The leader was unmistakably Xue Ziqi. The man beside him, and the one already knocked out, were also familiar faces – fellow disciples from the same intake cohort. Both possessed Foundation Establishment Stage, Layer Three cultivation.
Xue Ziqi snapped out of his shock, his eyes instantly burning with venomous hatred. "Hmph! Lin Feng! Don't think a few tricks make you invincible!" he spat viciously. He shot a look at his remaining conscious companion. "Attack together!! Watch out for his powerful flying sword artifact!"
His previous humiliation in Lingyue City, Xue Ziqi was convinced, stemmed solely from Lin Feng's reliance on that formidable weapon and his own carelessness. Now, having advanced to Foundation Establishment Stage, Layer Four, and aided by another Layer Three disciple, he felt supremely confident against Lin Feng, supposedly still at Layer Two.
But just as Xue Ziqi pulled out a spell talisman, ready to unleash it, he witnessed something that shattered his confidence.
Lin Feng blurred. One moment he stood near the door; the next, he materialized directly in front of Xue Ziqi's companion. The man had no time to react, no time to raise a defense.
CRACK!
A sickening impact echoed through the room, accompanied by the distinct sound of shattering bone – likely a nose. Lin Feng's fist had connected squarely with the man's face. Without a sound, the disciple collapsed, unconscious.
Against a mere Layer Three opponent, Lin Feng, now solidly at Layer Four and utilizing his close-quarters movement technique, the Phantom Ghost Step, dispatched him effortlessly.
"Y-You... You're at Layer Four!!" Xue Ziqi stammered, his eyes bulging, voice rising to a disbelieving shriek as he finally perceived Lin Feng's true cultivation level. "Im... impossible!!" He'd been secretly proud of advancing to Layer Four within two months of joining the Lingyue Sect. Yet Lin Feng, who had been only Layer Two two months prior and possessed a far inferior spiritual root, had matched him! The shock was staggering.
(He might have felt slightly less aggrieved had he known about the Vice-Sect Master gifting Lin Feng two Snow Sprout Pills.)
His earlier confidence, built on perceived superiority in cultivation and numbers, evaporated instantly. With both companions down and Lin Feng's cultivation revealed as equal to his own, terror surged through Xue Ziqi. Panic gripped him.
"GRAAAH!" With a desperate roar, he hurled the Grade 3, Lower Tier Purple Lightning Talisman in his hand straight at Lin Feng. Simultaneously, his right hand flashed as he drew a broad-backed saber shimmering with golden light – Golden Light Saber (Upper Tier Artifact). He charged, swinging the blade wildly towards Lin Feng's head. If killing Lin Feng hadn't been his initial intent, survival instinct now drove him to a frenzy of lethal violence.
"Hmph!" A cold gleam flickered in Lin Feng's eyes. He didn't dodge. True essence surged as he activated the Spirit Light Jade Talisman (Supreme Artifact) in his grasp. A shimmering golden barrier instantly materialized around him.
BOOM!! CLANG!!
The purple lightning bolt struck the golden barrier with a thunderous detonation, arcs of energy sizzling outwards. Almost simultaneously, the ear-splitting shriek of metal on metal rang out as Lin Feng's right hand shot forward. Crimson-silver light flashed – the Crimson Soul Flying Sword.
Sparks flew. A streak of golden light spun through the air…
…and embedded itself point-first into the wooden floor nearby.
It was the upper half of Xue Ziqi's saber!
The sickeningly familiar feeling of his weapon suddenly becoming light sent a chill of utter despair through Xue Ziqi. Exactly like Lingyue City! One clash, and his weapon – this time an Upper Tier Artifact saber gifted by his uncle for protection – was shattered like mud before Lin Feng's flying sword.
Before he could even process this disaster, the searing heat of a blade settled against the side of his neck. He froze instantly, every muscle locking in terror. It felt like a branding iron pressed to his skin.
"L-Lin Feng!" Xue Ziqi shrieked, his face deathly pale, sweat beading on his forehead. "You can't kill me!!"
Lin Feng looked down at the trembling, ashen-faced Xue Ziqi, a flicker of utter contempt crossing his features. "Look at you. Pathetic," he stated calmly. "Relax. I'm not going to kill you." Murder was never his intent. Besides, within the confines of the Lingyue Sect, killing three fellow disciples would mean instant exile at best, execution at worst. These fools weren't worth that level of trouble.
Relief washed over Xue Ziqi's face for a split second.
Lin Feng's voice cut through it, icy and deliberate. "However… escaping death doesn't mean escaping punishment. I warned you. Provoke me again, and you would pay a price…" He paused, seemingly considering. Then, a slow, utterly unnerving, sinister smirk spread across his face, making Xue Ziqi's blood run cold.
"W-What… what are you going to do?!" Xue Ziqi's heart hammered against his ribs. Fear choked him. "Lin Feng! I know I was wrong! I shouldn't have provoked you! Please, spare me... I-I can give you spirit stones!! Spirit herbs too!" He fumbled frantically at his storage ring, pulling out a pouch bulging with stones and another containing herbs, thrusting them desperately towards Lin Feng. "Please! Overlook my offense! Let me go this once! I swear I'll never dare bother you again…!"
Lin Feng's lips curled disdainfully. He didn't even glance at the offered items. Instead, he uttered five words that filled Xue Ziqi with soul-crushing dread:
"Stop rambling! Strip!!"