Sky Wind Mountain Range Periphery. Sunlight filtered through ancient trees, casting mottled shadows. The air was thick with spiritual qi and the fragrance of grass and wood.
Behind Zhao Mingxuan, four Heaven Profound Sect outer sect disciples fanned out, their magical artifacts gleaming with cold light. All were at the late Qi Condensing stage, somewhat famous even among the sect's outer disciples. Dealing with two "brats not even at Foundation Establishment" should have been child's play. The thin-faced disciple at the front even whistled, his eyes sizing up Lin Ying with ill intent.
Two disciples whispered quietly, their voices light yet clear in Lin Che's ears:
"Senior Brother Zhao, that girl is quite pretty, why don't we..."
"Shut up!" Zhao Mingxuan cut them off coldly, his eyes fixed on Lin Che's storage pouch, "Focus on the task. That kid's pouch has spirit stone fluctuations and roasted chicken aroma—he must've just gotten some opportunity. Take them down and report to the elders for merit."
He turned to Lin Che, his tone lofty and domineering: "Kid, hand over your storage pouch and tell me where you teleported from, and I'll spare your lives. Otherwise..."
Before he finished, the thin-faced disciple behind him suddenly screamed, blood blossoming on his chest as he collapsed softly. He died with eyes wide, never seeing the attack coming.
[System Detected: Host secretly activated Slaughter God Domain· Bai Qi Mode. Range: Ten zhang. Effect: Silent instant kill. Consumed Slaughter Points: 50.]
Lin Che's figure vanished like a ghost, reappearing behind another disciple. His woodcutter's knife had somehow become a pitch-black dagger. The blade sliced across a throat—no time for a scream. The disciple clutched his spurting neck, eyes glazed, body convulsing as he fell.
[Instant Kill·Complete. Time: 1.3 seconds. Targets: Qi Condensing 8th Layer ×2. System Evaluation: Host's move was sick. Recommendation: Keep it up, don't mess up.]
Zhao Mingxuan's face changed drastically as he shouted: "Form the sword formation!"
The remaining two disciples hurriedly formed seals. Four flying swords rose, forming a crude sword array. Sword light wove into a net, sealing a three-zhang radius. Yet Lin Che moved like a dragon, weaving through the gaps, his dagger trailing black killing intent, each strike precisely hitting the sword array's weakest points.
[Sword Formation Weakness Analysis: Complete. Host Combat IQ: MAX. Recommendation: Next time just use Overlord's aura to shatter the formation—cooler.]
BOOM—the sword array collapsed. Two disciples vomited blood and flew back, crashing heavily into ancient trees, bones shattered, dead on the spot.
Zhao Mingxuan finally realized he'd kicked an iron plate and turned to flee. But as he took his first step, a petite figure blocked his path.
It was Lin Ying.
She held her wooden saber, eyes determined. Though her spiritual qi wasn't as profound as Lin Che's, it carried undeniable resolve: "You can't leave."
[System Detected: Little Sister Courage Value: 100%. Combat Evaluation: Mid Qi Condensing vs Late Qi Condensing 9th Layer. Win Rate: ...Forget it, don't let little sister take the risk. Host please finish this quickly.]
Lin Che's ghostly figure appeared behind Zhao Mingxuan, his dagger pressed to his heart, voice cold as nine-nether winter: "Move again, die."
Zhao Mingxuan froze rigid, cold sweat trickling down his temples. He stammered: "You... you dare kill Heaven Profound Sect disciples? The sect won't let you off! My master is a Golden Core elder, he'll—"
[Threat Assessment: 0%. Host Killing Intent: 99%. Recommendation: Silence him, no need for talk. Villains die from talking too much.]
Lin Che's lips curled into a cold smile, his eyes devoid of ripples: "Heaven Profound Sect? I'll come knocking eventually. For now, I'll collect some interest."
The dagger sliced. A blood line appeared on Zhao Mingxuan's neck. His eyes widened, body collapsing softly. His final thought: What kind of monster is this youth?
---
Moments later, five corpses lay strewn in the forest, the air reeking of blood.
Lin Che skillfully looted their storage pouches, obtaining: 3,200 low-grade spirit stones, 50 mid-grade spirit stones, ten bottles of Qi Condensing Pills, four 1st-tier flying swords, one 2nd-tier dagger, and a Heaven Profound Sect outer sect disciple identity token.
[Loot Statistics: Total value approximately 8,000 spirit stones. Host struck it rich. Friendly Reminder: Little Sister is looking at you with accusatory eyes because her roast chicken plan was interrupted. Recommendation: Soothe her immediately, or risk triggering the "Little Sister Strike" scenario.]
Indeed, Lin Ying was puffing her cheeks, grumbling unhappily: "Brother, you were too fast... My chicken hadn't even stewed yet. In this wilderness, where will I find such fat spirit beasts?"
Lin Che chuckled, ruffling her hair: "I'll roast you two bigger ones tonight, fatter than these."
"Promise!" Lin Ying's eyes lit up, her mood shifting from cloudy to sunny in an instant.
---
Deep in the valley, beside a stream with flowing water and dense spiritual qi.
Lin Che decided to break through to Golden Core here. He set up a concealment formation, left three warning talismans, then sat cross-legged. He took out three thousand spirit stones from his pouch, forming a small mountain. Spiritual qi surged into his body like tidal waves.
[Golden Core Breakthrough Preparation: Complete. Success Rate: 92%. Friendly Reminder: Breakthrough process takes three hours. Do not be disturbed, or all efforts are wasted. Additional reminder: Little Sister's roast chicken aroma may attract more demonic beasts. Please stay alert.]
Lin Che took a deep breath and said to Lin Ying beside him: "Yingying, guard me. Kill anyone who approaches."
"Mm!" Lin Ying nodded firmly, gripping her wooden saber, her small face full of seriousness: "Brother, cultivate without worry. I guarantee not even a mosquito can get in!"
She walked to a large boulder not far away, sat cross-legged, and began cultivating too. The spiritual qi concentration here was three hundred times Tianmen Village's—an absolute cultivation paradise for her. In just one hour, the spiritual qi in her body reached saturation.
[System Detected: Little Sister cultivation progress: Mid Qi Condensing → Peak Qi Condensing. Breakthrough time: 1 hour. Evaluation: Little Sister's talent is heaven-defying. Host can lie down and relax. Recommendation: After host's breakthrough, consider making Little Sister your enforcer while you focus on looking pretty.]
Lin Ying slowly opened her eyes, feeling the surging spiritual qi within her, only a hair's breadth away from Foundation Establishment. She looked joyfully at Lin Che, but saw her brother still in closed cultivation, spiritual qi forming a massive vortex around him, lightning flashing at its center, the sight terrifying.
She didn't dare disturb him, quietly standing guard, her small hand tightly gripping the wooden saber, eyes vigilantly scanning the surroundings.
Yet what no one noticed was that at the center of her forehead, a golden lotus mark quietly emerged, emitting faint holy radiance. At its center, what seemed like Buddhist chants lingered. After three breaths, it vanished without a trace, as if it had never appeared.
[Abnormal Energy Fluctuation... Scanning... Heavenly Dao Laws Blocking... Conclusion: No Anomalies. System Recommendation: Don't ask—asking means Little Sister activated a cheat code.]
The system's cold notification went unheard by anyone.