"Now, it's your turn."
Lin Feng's voice was calm, as though he were discussing something utterly trivial. Yet to Daoist Black Tiger and the others, it sounded like a death-knell demon's voice rising from the Nine Hells.
Their bodies trembled, their faces turned deathly pale, and they staggered backward until their backs hit the cold, hard cave wall. There was nowhere left to retreat.
Dead?
End their own lives?
What kind of joke was that?!
They had cultivated bitterly to reach the Golden Immortal realm and endured countless years. They had not done all that just to kill themselves in this godforsaken place!
"Senior Brother! Fight him!" One of the Daoists wore a vicious expression as he roared in a low voice. "No matter how strong he is, he's only one person! If we attack together, I refuse to believe we can't wear him down!"
"That's right! He must be some ancient monster who specializes in body cultivation. As long as we don't let him get close and bombard him with Dao techniques and divine abilities, he'll definitely die!"
"Form the array! Use the Four Directions Spirit Locking Array to trap him to death!"
Driven into a corner, their savage natures emerged, and they instantly reached a consensus.
A trace of resolve flashed through Daoist Black Tiger's eyes. Staring fixedly at Lin Feng, he shouted sternly, "Who exactly are you, sir? We are independent cultivators from West Kunlun. We have neither old grudges nor recent enmity with you. Why must you exterminate us all?"
As he spoke, he secretly signaled several junior brothers, while Immortal Essence surged wildly within him.
They were stalling for time.
As long as the Four Directions Spirit Locking Array was formed, sealing this space and cutting off spiritual energy, no matter how powerful Lin Feng's body was, he would only be a living target!
Lin Feng seemed not to have heard him, nor did he seem to notice their little movements at all.
He did not even spare these dying men another glance.
He slowly turned around and once more looked down at the stunning figure on the ground, at those eyes filled with shock, confusion, and a trace of humiliation.
"Didn't you hear what I said just now?"
Lin Feng's tone remained calm, but it carried an unquestionable dominance.
Qiong Xiao's heart lurched.
He... he was still talking about making her his maid at a time like this?
Didn't he see those men setting up an array?
That was the Four Directions Spirit Locking Array. Once it took shape, even Golden Immortals would be trapped to death inside!
Was this man arrogantly overconfident, or did he truly have nothing to fear?
Qiong Xiao bit her lower lip, wanting to say something, but her throat was dry and she could not force out a single word.
Under the gaze of Lin Feng's deep, abyss-like eyes, she felt as if all her thoughts had been seen through. Even the thought of resisting seemed laughable.
"Ding! Detected that target Qiong Xiao's state of mind has wavered and cracks have appeared in her Dao Heart. Maid compatibility has risen to 30%! Host, keep up the good work and conquer her completely!"
The system notification rang in Lin Feng's mind, and a satisfied curve appeared on his lips.
The timing was about right.
"Be my maid. Though the Primordial World is vast, no one will dare touch you again."
Lin Feng repeated himself, as though delivering a final ultimatum.
At that moment, Daoist Black Tiger and the others finally finished preparing their formation.
"Array, rise!"
Daoist Black Tiger roared, and four streams of light shot into the sky from their hands. They intertwined above the cave, forming a gray net that instantly covered the entire cavern.
An obscure, stagnant aura spread through the air. The spiritual energy within the cave seemed to be sucked dry in an instant, becoming incomparably thin.
"Hahaha! It's done!"
Seeing the grand array complete, the sharp-faced Daoist's hideous, crazed laughter instantly returned.
"Kid! No matter how heaven-defying your body is, without spiritual energy to replenish yourself in this Spirit Locking Array, let's see how long you can last!"
"You dared meddle in our affairs? Today, we'll make sure both your body and soul are destroyed!"
Daoist Black Tiger also breathed a sigh of relief. A cruel smile returned to his face as he looked at Lin Feng like a wild beast already trapped in a cage.
He was certain of victory.
Yet Lin Feng still ignored them.
He merely watched Qiong Xiao quietly, waiting for her answer.
That composure, that calmness—it was as if the great array capable of trapping and killing Golden Immortals was nothing more than a joke in his eyes.
Qiong Xiao was completely stunned.
She looked at this man, then at the gray net overhead that radiated an ominous aura. Her thoughts churned like stormy seas.
On one side was certain doom. On the other was a domineering promise that seemed capable of holding up the heavens.
How was she supposed to choose?
Or rather, did she even have a choice?
"Ding! Detected that target Qiong Xiao has abandoned resistance and tacitly submitted. Maid Contract automatically generated!" "Ding! Congratulations, Host, on successfully subduing Maid Number One: Qiong Xiao!" "Ding! Congratulations, Host, you have obtained all of Maid Qiong Xiao's abilities: [Cultivation: Early Golden Immortal (available for use)], [Divine Ability: Thirty-six Transformations of the Heavenly Dipper Formation (incomplete)]!" "Ding! Novice Mission completed. Congratulations, Host, on receiving one [Novice Gift Pack]! Open immediately?"
A string of system notifications exploded in Lin Feng's mind.
A vast and majestic understanding of formations poured into the depths of his soul like the Nine Heavens Milky Way flowing backward.
The originally obscure and incomprehensible transformations of formations now appeared in his eyes as simple and clear as a child's scribbles.
Thirty-six Transformations of the Heavenly Dipper Formation... so that's how it is.
A meaningful smile curled at the corner of Lin Feng's mouth.
"Open."
He muttered inwardly.
"Ding! Novice Gift Pack successfully opened! Congratulations, Host, on obtaining:" "[Reward One: Chaos Demon God Origin Bloodline x1 drop (can be used to strengthen yourself or a maid)]" "[Reward Two: Divine Ability <Thirty-six Transformations of the Heavenly Dipper Formation> completed and upgraded to its full version!]" "[Reward Three: System Space activated (initial size: ten cubic meters)]"
The full version of the Heavenly Dipper Formation!
Lin Feng's eyes lit up.
This was truly like receiving a pillow just as he was getting sleepy.
"Kid, you're about to die and you still dare space out!"
Seeing Lin Feng remain silent for so long, Daoist Black Tiger assumed he had been frightened senseless. With an angry roar, he launched the first attack.
"Take my Black Tiger Heart Grasp!"
Black qi swirled around him as Immortal Essence surged. He threw a punch, producing a piercing shriek through the air as it shot straight for Lin Feng's heart.
The others attacked at the same time. Blade light, sword shadows, and all manner of divine abilities sealed off every possible route of retreat around Lin Feng.
They wanted to kill him in a single strike, blasting this strange young man into scraps!
Qiong Xiao's heart leaped into her throat, and she instinctively cried out.
"Watch out!"
However, Lin Feng moved.
Facing this siege, enough to make Golden Immortals of the same realm avoid its edge, he merely slowly raised his right hand.
There was no earthshaking aura, no radiant flow of magical power.
He simply extended one finger and lightly tapped the air.
"Bzz—"
A soft hum rang out.
The entire cave—no, the entire space within the Four Directions Spirit Locking Array—suddenly froze.
Daoist Black Tiger's powerful punch stopped in midair, unable to advance even an inch further.
Those dazzling blade lights and sword shadows, those brilliant divine techniques and spells, all froze in the air as if they had become part of a motionless Scroll Painting.
At that instant, time itself seemed to have been paused.
"What... what is this?"
The vicious grin on Daoist Black Tiger's face froze, and genuine terror appeared in his eyes for the first time.
His body could not move!
Even his Immortal Essence had frozen!
It was as though an invisible hand had seized his throat and gripped his soul, making even his thoughts sluggish.
"A formation? No... impossible!"
He stared at Lin Feng in utter horror. "How can you set up a formation inside the Spirit Locking Array? You have no Immortal Essence, you..."
His words abruptly stopped.
Because behind Lin Feng, a white tiger formed entirely from gathered spiritual energy was slowly taking shape.
The tiger roared toward the heavens, and the pressure it released made even him, a Golden Immortal, feel his soul tremble!
Then came a second, a third...
In the blink of an eye, thirty-six lifelike Illusionary Images of ancient ferocious beasts of different forms appeared around Lin Feng, making him seem like a divine lord of formations who held the power of life and death.
Every beast represented one transformation of the formation!
"The Heavenly Dipper Formation... Thirty-six Transformations... the perfected realm!"
Qiong Xiao murmured distractedly. Her beautiful eyes were wide open, filled with worldview-shattering shock.
He not only knew her Array Techniques, but had even reached the legendary perfected realm!
How was that possible?!
This divine ability was her innate accompanying technique. Even she had comprehended only a dozen or so transformations. How had he done it?
"Noisy."
Lin Feng calmly uttered two words and lightly swept his fingertip.
The thirty-six Illusionary Images of ancient ferocious beasts instantly transformed into streams of light, forming an incomparably profound killing array that descended upon Daoist Black Tiger and the others.
"No—!"
"Senior, spare us!!"
"I was wrong! I was truly wrong!"
Miserable screams and pleas for mercy echoed through the cave, but they lasted less than a breath before abruptly ending.
Before the complete Heavenly Dipper Killing Array, a few independent Golden Immortals did not even count as ants.
They vanished into smoke.
Literally vanished into smoke.
There was no blood flying everywhere, no severed limbs. Daoist Black Tiger, his junior brothers, and even the Four Directions Spirit Locking Array they had set up were thoroughly broken down beneath the flowing light of the formation, turning into the purest spiritual energy of heaven and earth before dissipating without a trace.
It was as though they had never existed.
The cave fell silent once more.
Lin Feng withdrew his finger and stood with his hands behind his back, his expression unchanged, as if he had merely crushed a few ants.
He turned and looked at the utterly petrified Qiong Xiao. The corner of his mouth lifted slightly, revealing a warm smile.
"You see, the trouble has been dealt with."
"So now, we can discuss what a qualified maid needs to do."
Before you continue