Chapter 5: Today, if a God Blocks, I Shall Kill That God!

Wang Fan’s veins bulged with the effort to breathe. His words were muffled and broken. “I… I don’t know!”

“Since you don’t know, then die.”

Kacha.

With a sudden application of force, Wang Fan’s neck snapped.

The entire field fell into a deathly silence. Until the very moment of his passing, Wang Fan could not believe he would die in such a pathetic, stifling manner. He hadn’t even been given the chance to unleash his ultimate move.

Lu Jin didn’t spare him a second glance. He tossed the corpse aside like trash and turned his gaze toward the crowd.

The gathered disciples were paralyzed with terror. They retreated instinctively. It was finally clear to them: Lu Jin had returned as a powerhouse. He was no longer the cripple who had lost his cultivation in the Demon Cave.

As for the extent of his current strength: for him to instakill someone like Wang Fan, he had to be at least at the ninth stage of the Spirit Pearl Realm!

“He has recovered to his peak from three years ago!”

“We aren’t his match! But the Inner Sect elders of the Saintess Peak aren’t on the mountain. What do we do?”

“Where is Peak Master Ji Yaoyue? Is she just going to watch her disciples be slaughtered?”

“Quick! Request help from the other peaks!”

While they shouted, several transmission talismans were already in flight.

The three days of relentless lightning over Luxian Peak had already alerted the sect. Now that blood was being spilled, Inner Sect elders began to arrive from neighboring mountains. Several powerful auras descended, including a formidable expert at the first grade of the Jindan Realm.

In the current Ten Thousand Swords Sect, besides the eight Peak Masters, each mountain was staffed by several Inner Sect elders, each commanding dozens of disciples. As for the Sect Master: he was an ethereal figure who rarely appeared, even for major events like the Sect Tournament.

The Jindan expert who arrived first was Luo Jiu, an Inner Sect elder from the neighboring Nine Swords Peak. The other elders with him were all at the ninth stage of the Spirit Pearl Realm. Such a lineup was enough to shake the hearts of any observer.

Lu Jin’s expression shifted slightly, but he felt no fear. Today, if a God stood in his way, he would kill that God!

Buzz!

Luo Jiu descended. His aura billowed outward, making the very air hum with pressure.

“It’s Elder Luo Jiu from the Nine Swords Peak!”

“A Jindan expert is here! He will surely execute that brat!”

“Lu Jin is finished!”

The disciples cheered, their faces full of malicious joy. Luo Jiu and the others looked at the corpses littering the ground, their expressions turning icy.

“Elder Luo! That’s Lu Jin! He killed Elder Lu and his disciple, and now he has killed Senior Brother Wang Fan!” A disciple rushed forward, pointing at Lu Jin with gritted teeth.

“This Elder is aware,” Luo Jiu replied, his brow furrowing. He looked at the disciple. “Where are the leaders of the Saintess Peak?”

“The elders went to the Black Dragon River to hunt water demons. The Peak Master is likely protecting the Saintess during her seclusion. That is the only reason this bastard succeeded!”

Luo Jiu nodded. He turned his cold gaze toward Lu Jin. He was slightly surprised the boy was still alive, but he quickly resumed his haughty, untouchable demeanor.

“I didn’t expect you to still be alive after three years. Today, this Elder will personally oversee justice. New grudges and old debts shall be settled at once. I will clear the gates for the Ten Thousand Swords Sect!”

The other elders chimed in. “Elder Luo is right!”

“Lu Jin, don’t think for a second that your betrayal and slaughter of our disciples in the Demon Cave will be forgotten!”

“You were a cripple with a shattered Dantian three years ago. To have this strength now, you must have cultivated some vile, demonic path!”

“Speak! Where have you been these past three years?”

Their voices were like thunder, overbearing and heavy. Lu Jin looked down, shaking his head slightly. A cold arc formed on his lips. After a moment of silence, he looked up.

“Stop with the nonsense. Come at me all at once.”

The crowd froze. Then, they erupted in laughter.

“Lu Jin, you are too arrogant!”

“Your cultivation is a mere fifth-stage Spirit Pearl. You relied on some unknown trick to kill Wang Fan. You think that’s enough to challenge us?”

“But then again… you survived three years and came back with enough power to trigger a three-day tribulation and kill an eighth-stage expert. Lu Jin, the treasure you carry must be heaven-defying!”

“Hand over your treasures, and perhaps we can spare your life!”

Lu Jin frowned. “You talk too much.”

The elders’ gazes turned lethal. One ninth-stage Spirit Pearl elder named Niu Bi’an suddenly lunged forward. Spiritual Qi surged as a flying sword shot out from his spatial ring, hovering above his head with a freezing chill.

“Lu Jin, you are too insolent! This Elder will take you down first!”

Niu Bi’an was an Outer Sect leader. His status was far above someone like Elder Lu.

“Elder Niu, don’t kill him immediately. The boy has secrets we need to interrogate!”

“Rest assured, Elder Luo. I will capture him alive!”

Before Niu Bi’an’s voice had even faded, the flying sword vibrated and shot toward Lu Jin under the force of his spiritual Qi.

“A mid-grade sect sword technique: the Nine-Point Piercing Sword?” Lu Jin smiled faintly. He didn’t move an inch.

Great Derivation Dragon Transformation Art, First Layer: Dragon Membrane!

Buzz!

The mantra activated. Spiritual power flooded his palm, forming a layer of white light. He reached out to catch the flying sword with his bare hand.

The onlookers sneered. “He’s trying to catch Elder Niu’s sword with his hands! Foolish!”

“Has he given up on resisting?”

“Stupid!”

In the next second, their words died in their throats. They froze where they stood.

The flying sword had pierced through the air like lightning, but the moment it hit Lu Jin’s outstretched palm, it ground to a violent halt.

“What? How!”

“He caught a flying sword? With his bare hand?”

“What kind of demonic art is this? That’s Elder Niu’s trump card!”

Lu Jin applied pressure. Kacha. The flying sword was crushed into shards.

Niu Bi’an was horrified. “Impossible!” But in his shock, he felt a sudden chill in his forehead. A shard of his own sword had pierced through his brow, trailing a line of brain matter out the back of his skull.

The crowd was in disbelief. Luo Jiu’s brow furrowed tightly. For Lu Jin to kill Niu Bi’an so casually right in front of him was unacceptable!

Lu Jin sighed, gently pushing over the standing corpse of Elder Niu. “I just wanted to find Liu Ruyan for revenge. Why are you all so eager to die?”

He didn’t waste any more words. His figure blurred as he charged forward. His palm was wreathed in spiritual power. His target: the Inner Sect Elder, Luo Jiu!

The crowd gasped again. “He’s attacking Elder Luo first!”

“An ant trying to shake a tree!”

“Courting death!”

Luo Jiu was surprised but reacted instantly. Lu Jin could catch a sword and kill a ninth-stage expert; even as a Jindan powerhouse, Luo Jiu would not take him lightly. He opened with a killing move.

“Hundred Sword Slash!”

Spiritual light flickered. A hundred phantoms of spiritual swords materialized, densely packed and screaming through the air. They shot toward Lu Jin like a volley of arrows, vibrating the very void.

Facing this overwhelming force, Lu Jin’s gaze was cold. The white Dragon Membrane manifested again, forming a glowing sphere that enveloped him.

This was the defensive power of the Initial stage of the Great Derivation Dragon Transformation Art. Against a Jindan expert, Lu Jin had to be cautious. The power of the Jindan Realm was leagues beyond the Spirit Pearl Realm.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The spiritual swords slammed into the white defense like boulders hitting a lake, creating massive ripples and endless explosions. The spiritual Qi in the area became a chaotic mess, blurring Lu Jin’s figure.

The disciples cheered. “With Elder Luo’s attack, he is dead for sure!”

“Taking ten swords was likely his limit!”

“The Hundred Sword Slash is one of the ten great high-grade Profound techniques of our sect. A mere fifth-stage brat should be honored to die by it.”

In the middle of the chaos, the spiritual swords continued to strike. The earth trembled and dust filled the air.

Suddenly, the chaotic spiritual energy generated by the explosions was sucked away by a massive force. Lu Jin’s brow rose.

The Heaven Burial Coffin can even devour this?

In his moment of surprise, a wave of pure energy was funneled into his body. Within his Dantian, a sixth Spirit Pearl began to form its core. As the pearl manifested, a new martial technique rushed into his mind.

Sin-Fire Prison-Suppressing Sword!

Transform spiritual power into a sword of fire to cleanse all sin! At its peak, ten thousand paths of fire form a sword prison to suppress all things!

“It arrived at the perfect time. But to condense the fire sword, I need an exotic fire Qi… I can’t use it yet. However, for Luo Jiu, the Hundred Sword Slash is enough!”

He suddenly spoke, his voice carrying through the din. “The Hundred Sword Slash… it isn’t used like that!”

Buzz!

Before his voice faded, a violent burst of spiritual Qi erupted. From the center of the dust and chaos, a flood of spiritual swords shot outward. He was using the exact same technique to strike back at Luo Jiu!

The flying swords collided in the air between them, creating sharp, deafening explosions. The crowd was horrified.

“He can still counterattack!”

“As far as I know, the Hundred Sword Slash was the strongest move Lu Jin knew three years ago. If he’s already using his trump card, he’s at his wit’s end!”

“Heh. Elder Luo can condense a hundred and sixty swords. He is at the peak of this art! How can Lu Jin compete!”

“Wait… something is wrong! Look!”

Swish! Swish! Swish!

Luo Jiu’s swords were exhausted, but he hadn’t defeated Lu Jin. Instead, a never-ending stream of swords continued to erupt from Lu Jin’s position, flowing toward Luo Jiu like a river of steel!

“What?! How is this possible!” Luo Jiu was terrified. At a glance, there were at least five hundred swords!

“Elders! Help me!” Luo Jiu roared in panic.

Lu Jin’s eyes turned cold. “Those who block me: die!”