Chapter 26: Heh, Men!

Sensing the newcomer’s aura, even the Sect Master of the Spear Sect experienced a change in expression. He was a second-grade Jindan powerhouse himself, yet facing such pressure, he couldn’t stop his heart from trembling with instinctive fear.

When the crowd finally saw the man clearly, their faces paled.

“It is the Leader of the Ghost Wolf Gang: Xue Qi!”

“Heavens! He is a third-grade Jindan expert!”

“Why did he appear so suddenly? Does he regret letting us in? We paid two thousand Spirit Stones: is he going to go back on his word and kill us?”

“No! What did he just say? Kill his son? Did that brat actually kill his son?”

“Bold! Truly audacious!”

The experts who had arrived first had all paid their toll to the Ghost Wolf Gang. Now, seeing the Leader himself arrive with murderous intent, they were stunned. They found it hard to believe that anyone in this territory would dare kill Xue Qi’s son. Even the Spear Sect Master retreated to the side; Xue Qi was not someone to be provoked.

Huh?

Lu Jin frowned at the newcomer but eventually shook his head with a smile. “Your Ghost Wolf Gang relies on power to bully others: your son’s death was well-deserved. Why? Does an old man like you want to follow him to the Yellow Springs?”

Xue Qi’s face turned incredibly dark. He let out a violent roar. Ignoring everything else, spiritual Qi erupted from his body, frantically condensing into a massive fist above his head that slammed directly toward Lu Jin!

“Die!!!”

Xue Qi’s roar was backed by immense pressure. Several nearby cultivators who failed to dodge in time spat out blood: they were killed on the spot by the sheer force of the shockwave.

“Just this?”

Lu Jin didn’t move an inch. To his current self, a third-grade Jindan was no challenge at all. Seeing his lack of reaction, many onlookers were horrified: they hadn’t expected him to be this calm. Xue Qi’s attack was clearly intended to obliterate him; it was a strike so powerful it seemed to darken the very heavens!

BOOM!!!

In the next second, a massive explosion echoed through the ravine. As the crowd watched a figure being sent flying backward, everyone turned to stone. Their mouths hung open, yet they were too shocked to make a sound.

“You’re only a third-grade Jindan. Why so arrogant?”

Lu Jin shook his head indifferently. He didn’t linger. He flickered away, vanishing into the distant forest. The entire process had taken mere minutes, yet it left an indelible mark on the minds of those present.

Too powerful! That young man had to be a genius from a super sect out on a trial!

Leader Xue Qi lay on the ground, his bones seemingly shattered. He vomited blood uncontrollably, his aura withering away as his combat power plummeted. When the crowd finally recovered, several people rushed toward him. Their expressions had shifted from shock to malicious glee.

“Hahaha! Xue Qi! You never expected to see this day, did you!”

“Spit out everything you’ve taken from me!”

“Right! We only submitted all these years because we feared your gang’s power. Now, we’ll kick you while you’re down!”

“It feels so good to hit a man when he’s broken! Hand over all your treasures immediately, or we’ll hack you into ten thousand pieces!”

The scene became a chaotic riot. A group of experts swarmed over him. Xue Qi felt such despair he wished he could simply die.

“You dare—”

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Xue Qi tried to use his past authority to resist, but he was immediately met with a brutal beating. After several such attempts, he was actually beaten to death by the various faction leaders.

An incense stick’s time later.

The crowd had dispersed, but another figure descended upon the spot. When she saw the bare branch of the Soul-Breaking Fruit Tree, her expression turned instantly dark!

“Which bastard dared to steal my Soul-Breaking Fruit!”

“Don’t let me find you. If I do, I’ll skin you alive and scatter your ashes to the wind!”

The woman was Wang Min. She had come specifically for the fruit, but her progress had been delayed by her own cultivation and the time spent healing Yang Dianfeng. She hadn’t expected someone to beat her to it.

Looking at the carnage around her, her face twisted in a snarl. “No matter how strong you are, to dare oppose the Blood Moon Holy Land means you have only one path: death!”

She didn’t leave immediately. Instead, she sat cross-legged and began to breathe in a strange rhythm. Crimson mist began to seep from her nostrils, spreading into the air before slowly dissipating. After half an hour, her dark eyes suddenly lit up. She looked toward a specific direction in the forest.

“You won’t escape!”

Buzz!

She vanished instantly.

Meanwhile, Lu Jin, having obtained the fruit, was moving swiftly. He wanted to find a quiet place where he wouldn’t be disturbed so he could offer it to Empress Qinglian. After leaving the mountain range, he returned to the forest behind the Ten Thousand Swords Sect.

He was familiar with this area. Long ago, he had buried a large number of Spirit Stones here to power certain arrays. Though they had been neglected, he found that the stones were still in their positions. He nodded with satisfaction.

“The Empress needs to cultivate, so she cannot be disturbed. There are plenty of Spirit Stones here. While my arrays aren’t invincible, the defense should be sufficient. I’ll do it here!”

Lu Jin immediately began to reactivate the old formations. Amidst a series of humming sounds, barriers of light shot into the sky, quickly enveloping the space.

“Empress, it is ready now?” Lu Jin asked.

“Empress?” Empress Qinglian’s voice reached him. “You used to call me ‘Lord Empress.’ Last time you called me ‘Empress Qinglian’ and I chose not to care. Now, you call me simply ‘Empress’?”

Lu Jin frowned. “Uh…” He didn’t offer an explanation.

“Heh. Men!”

Lu Jin was speechless. “Lord Empress, please accept this Soul-Breaking Fruit!”

“Mmhmm.” Her voice was indifferent.

The fruit vanished from Lu Jin’s hand in an instant. He didn’t say anything more and sat down to stand guard for her. Inside the coffin, however, the moment the Empress took the fruit, her peerless face broke into a smile.

“Heehee! Perfect! The Soul-Breaking Fruit! Hopefully, my soul can recover a bit. This feeling of being suppressed by that bastard Heavenly Dao is truly unpleasant. So very unpleasant!”

Kacha!

She opened her cherry lips and took a massive bite out of the fruit.