After leaving the Star Dou Great Forest, Ling Ye found a small town near the edge of the forest to settle down.
The town is called "Greenwood Town". Because it is close to the Soul Beast Forest, most of the people who come and go are mercenaries and adventurers who live on the edge. It is a mixed bag and the atmosphere is not very peaceful.
Ling Ye found the most inconspicuous little hotel, asked for a single room, and prepared to rest well for the night, fully adapt to the surge of power within his body, and at the same time ponder the wonderful use of that head soul bone.
As evening approached, he went downstairs to buy some dry food across the street for later use. Just as he stepped out of the hotel, he heard a series of cries and arrogant curses.
A small crowd had gathered at the street corner. An old man dressed in coarse cloth was slumped on the ground, clutching a worn-out cloth bag tightly in his arms, which seemed to contain some freshly picked medicinal herbs.
A burly man with a face full of scars, wearing leather armor and a soul-guided knife hanging at his waist, was cursing at the old man with two henchmen.
"You old codger! Don't you know the rules? If you set up a stall in Qingmu Town, you have to pay protection money! Your worthless herbs aren't worth much, but you can't waive the fee!" The burly man's spittle almost landed on the old man's face.
"Mr. Barton, please have mercy! My wife is seriously ill, and we're counting on selling this medicine to raise money to save her life... We really have no money to pay the bills..." the old man pleaded desperately.
"No money?" The burly man named Barton glared and kicked over the medicine basket on the ground, scattering herbs everywhere. "If you don't have money, get lost! If you utter another word, I'll break your legs!"
His two henchmen rolled up their sleeves, grinned maliciously, and stepped forward to snatch the last cloth bag from the old man's arms.
There were many onlookers, but most dared not speak out against it.
Some people whispered among themselves: "It's Barton and his gang again, relying on their status as Great Soul Masters to bully and dominate the market every day..."
"Sigh, what can you do? They just have the bigger fists..."
Ling Ye frowned.
He didn't want to cause trouble, but looking at the old man's desperate eyes and thinking about the days when he was looked down upon in the Spirit Hall, he couldn't suppress his anger.
Just as one of the henchmen's hands was about to touch the old man's cloth bag, a small pebble suddenly flew over and hit the henchman's hand with a "thud," making him cry out in pain and pull his hand back.
"Who?! Who's the blind fool who dares to meddle in my business?!" Patton whirled around, his fierce gaze sweeping across the crowd.
The crowd instinctively parted, revealing Ling Ye standing at the back.
Ling Ye was still maintaining his concealment technique, looking like an ordinary young man with pitifully weak soul power fluctuations.
Barton sized him up and down, finding that he couldn't discern his soul power level and that his clothes were ordinary. His arrogance grew even stronger: "Damn it, where did this brat come from? You're tired of living? Get over here and kowtow to admit your mistake, or I'll take care of you too!"
Ling Ye sighed and slowly walked forward: "I just saw injustice. You stole an old man's life-saving money, aren't you afraid of retribution?"
"Retribution? I'm the retribution here!" Barton sneered, two white spirit rings rising from his feet—the lowest-grade ten-year spirit rings. "Kid, it seems I need to let you know who's in charge in Greenwood Town!"
He let out a low roar, his muscles bulged, and his martial spirit seemed to be some kind of power-type bear martial spirit. He swung his fist, as big as a casserole dish, and smashed it toward Ling Ye's face, bringing with it a gust of evil wind.
A gasp rippled through the crowd, and some people even closed their eyes in disbelief, as if they could already see Ling Ye's head bleeding profusely.
However, Ling Ye simply turned slightly to the side, perfectly avoiding the powerful punch.
"Huh?" Barton missed his punch, paused for a moment, then flew into a rage, "You dare to dodge?!"
He pounced again, unleashing a flurry of punches with tremendous force.
Ling Ye simply dodged left and right as if strolling leisurely, and the opponent's attacks couldn't even touch the hem of his clothes.
He even had time to say to the terrified old man, "Uncle, pack your things and move back a bit."
"You fucking tricked me?!" Barton roared in anger, his soul power surging, seemingly preparing to use a soul skill.
Ling Ye was too lazy to waste any more time with him.
His eyes narrowed, and his fingers twitched almost imperceptibly.
First Soul Skill: Holy Light Protection!
But under the guise of disguise, they only used a tiny bit of their skills.
A tiny, firefly-like glow burst open in front of Barton's eyes. The light was not strong, but it was just right to interfere with his vision and the gathering of his soul power.
Barton felt a blur before his eyes, and his movements instantly froze.
In that instant, Ling Ye moved!
He stumbled, and a seemingly light punch landed on Barton's stomach.
"puff!"
Patton's eyes bulged out instantly, and he arched his body like a boiled shrimp. He spat out a mouthful of acid mixed with his dinner, and flew back four or five meters away, crashing heavily to the ground. He clutched his stomach and rolled around in pain, unable to even scream.
silence!
A deathly silence!
Everyone stared in disbelief at the scene.
A young man with weak soul power actually defeated Barton, a Great Soul Master, with a single punch?! He didn't even use his martial soul?
Wait, it seems like it used a faint light? Is it a firefly martial soul? Can that thing fight?
The other two henchmen were terrified. They looked at Ling Ye as if they had seen a ghost, and scrambled to Barton's side, lifted their boss up, and ran away without daring to utter a sound.
Ling Ye walked up to the old man, took out a few gold soul coins from his pocket and stuffed them into his hand: "Uncle, take the money and go back quickly, it's important to get your mother-in-law treated."
The old man was so moved that tears streamed down his face. He was about to kneel down and kowtow when Ling Ye stopped him.
"Thank you, benefactor! Thank you, benefactor!" The old man thanked him profusely, then, clutching the cloth bag and the gold soul coins, quickly left this place of trouble.
The crowd around Ling Ye looked at him with gratitude and curiosity, but Ling Ye didn't want to linger. He nodded slightly to the crowd and then turned and left quickly.
He returned to his hotel room as if nothing had happened.
However, the news that "a young man with a suspected Firefly Martial Soul defeated the Great Soul Master Barton with one punch" still spread quietly throughout the town as if it had grown wings.
Most people just took it as a joke, after all, Barton's strength was only so-so, maybe he underestimated his opponent or that the other person was hiding his strength.
However, this message was overheard by Hu Liena's team, who were still in the vicinity and secretly investigating.
Inside the hotel room, Ling Ye had just sat down, preparing to continue his cultivation, when his brows furrowed slightly.
His powerful mental energy sensed a familiar yet inquisitive fluctuation of soul energy rapidly approaching the town.
"Oh? So you were noticed after all..." Ling Ye's lips curled into a barely perceptible smile. "You came pretty quickly."
He wanted to see how this member of the Golden Generation planned to investigate him, a Firefly Soul Master.
Or he could give you a good "investigation"!
(End of chapter)