The Matter of Both Eyes Going Dark

"Is this the Chaos Indestructible Body? Why did it feel like..."

He was secretly startled. As his thoughts raced, he quickly steadied his mind.

Only when the four words "Chaos Indestructible" appeared in his mind—

A huge question mark surfaced along with them.

Then he opened his eyes with a completely baffled expression.

"Wait! This—this isn't right!"

"Why was it the cultivation method for the Chaos Indestructible Body? Shouldn't it have directly installed the physique into me?"

Lin Heng was dumbfounded.

Wasn't the normal procedure supposed to be direct installation? What was with handing him a compressed file?

The preliminary step for the Chaos Indestructible Body was to first cultivate the Five Elements Body to perfection, then cultivate the Reincarnation Body to perfection. Only then could one condense the Chaos Indestructible Body.

The Five Elements Spirit Root had already been a risky move—used well, it made one a genius; used poorly, it made one trash.

And now there was another Five Elements Body. So it was determined to pick a fight with the Five Elements.

He was no fool. After these two rounds of rewards, it was obvious the system wanted him to take this path of cultivation.

Combined with the initial Heaven-Defying Comprehension bonus, everything seemed incredibly deliberate.

The system remained silent, refusing to make a sound for a long while.

It was as though it had tacitly acknowledged his guess.

With no other choice, Lin Heng continued on his journey.

By the time night had fallen, the moon hung high and the breeze was gentle.

Birdsong and insect chirps occasionally drifted down from above Zigu, while the wind sometimes brushed past the treetops with a rustling sound.

The distant mountain peaks faintly revealed starlight, their hazy outlines stirring up wisps of rosy mist.

It was the hour when all sounds fell silent, and also when people were at their most exhausted.

"Grrrumble—"

Suddenly, a growl came from Lin Heng's stomach.

After traveling all night, he had only covered two-thirds of the way. Zigu was already too vast to be fully measured in kilometers.

Before dawn broke, Lin Heng decided to rest for a while.

"Damn it, I ran all this way and didn't even come across a single wild animal..."

Lin Heng shrugged.

He leaned against a tree branch, closed his eyes to restore his energy, and quietly waited for dawn.

But before long, he suddenly sensed something amiss.

Rumble—

An earth-shaking explosion sounded from afar.

The commotion was no small matter. Lin Heng had nearly fallen from the tree along with its branches.

Sure enough, as soon as the disturbance arose, a shout came from his left. "Who are you people? How dare you block the Zhao Family's carriage!"

The voice was filled with intense nervousness.

Lin Heng immediately darted toward the source of the sound.

He saw a group of people flying over on swords, surrounding a carriage. Their leader wore yellow robes, and every one of them held a sharp weapon.

Their attire was simple and practical, with only two emblems embroidered on their chests. One bore the character "Wang," and the other "Envoy."

"Wang Envoy? That was an unfamiliar title..."

"The Zhao Family? The Zhao Family of Swallow Cloud City? It couldn't be such a coincidence, could it?"

Lin Heng frowned, his mind spinning as he searched through what he knew about the Zhao Family.

After a while, he finally found a clue.

"Swallow Cloud City has four great powers: the Wang Family, the Li Family, the Zhao Family, and the Mu Family. The Wang Family presides over the City Lord's Mansion and is the foremost family in the city. The Li Family entered the market through wealth, while the Zhao Family is a renowned Alchemy-Medical Clan..."

Among the Western Continent's Thirteen Golden Treasures, Yanyun alone boasted the Zhao Family Tower.

That saying, "Zhao Family Tower," referred precisely to the Zhao Family of Swallow Cloud City.

It showed just how far-reaching their influence was throughout the Western Continent.

Even Lin Heng had heard a little about them.

"My lord informed your Zhao Family long ago that only by casting aside your merciful hearts could you plant your roots and stand firm."

"But you refused to heed the warning and stubbornly went your own way... I can only carry out my orders and take Miss Zhao's life. What a pity for such a fine beauty."

The leader shouted loudly.

"Insolence! Our young lady possesses a healer's benevolent heart. Aren't you afraid of suffering Heaven's Wrath for committing such vile deeds?"

"Heaven's Wrath!"

"Hahaha."

At those words, everyone present burst out laughing. Which one of them had not been stained with dozens of lives?

If Heaven's Wrath truly existed, how could it have allowed them to live until now?

At that moment, the carriage curtain was lifted, and a young woman stepped out.

Her eyes were as clear as autumn waters, her skin as white as snow, her delicate jade nose graceful and refined, her cherry lips rosy and soft.

Her frail appearance was enough to make anyone feel pity for her.

She wore elegant plain clothing with a white gauze shawl draped over it, and a jade pendant hung at her waist.

She looked like an immortal maiden cast down into the mortal world, yet she did not lack nobility or grace.

"Miss, why did you come down? This old servant will hold these people back. Hurry and leave."

"Uncle, I am the one they wish to kill. This has nothing to do with you. Please return and deliver a message to my mother. Tell her Wan Qing did not fail Father's final wish."

"Miss!"

"Cough, cough!"

Zhao Wanqing coughed twice, then ignored her servant's pleas and stubbornly took two steps forward.

"Miss Zhao is famous far and wide. What a pity... I cannot spare you today."

The Yellow-Robed Man drew his weapon, and the blade clattered inside its sheath.

But at that very moment, the sound of a breaking branch suddenly came from the thick brush beside them.

"Who's there?!"

"What person?!"

Everyone turned to look toward the brush. Left with no choice, Lin Heng stood up and poked his head out.

"Sorry, just passing through, just passing through. You all carry on..."

He awkwardly rubbed his nose and spoke sheepishly.

He had originally intended to turn around and leave, but he had accidentally made a sound.

"Hmph. Since you've stumbled upon our good deed, stay behind and accompany them in death."

"You two, go chop him down!"

"Young master, run!" Zhao Wanqing hurriedly cried out.

She did not want a random passerby to lose his life because of her.

With that said, the two men immediately walked toward Lin Heng with blades in hand.

"Seriously? I'm just a passerby... and you're trying to chop me down right away?"

"Kid, stand still. It's just a matter of both eyes going dark—one slash will settle it."

One of them comforted him.

"Fine, fine. Since you've both put it that way."

Lin Heng helplessly shook his head.

He quietly waited for the two men to approach.

Whoosh!

Clang! Clang!

He raised his hand and swung it, twisting the blade from one man's hand and sending it flying into the other man's abdomen.

Before the man's disbelieving eyes, he swiftly pulled the blade out, gave him a bone-grinding twist, and split him open like a lobster being butterflied.

Thud!

The two men fell to the ground one after another, sprawled every which way as they went straight to sleep.

So young. So peaceful.

"You!?"

The leader's pupils suddenly contracted. Staring fixedly at Lin Heng, his expression abruptly changed. "Qi Refining Third Layer? You're a cultivator too!"

"Oh, you only noticed my cultivation realm now? I told you I was just passing by, yet you insisted on sending two subordinates to their deaths."

"How about this? Leave behind your Storage Rings as compensation. You can kill these two however you like—I won't stop you."

"Arrogant! I'm at the Qi Refining Fifth Layer. Crushing you to death would be as easy as crushing an ant!"

"Come and receive death!"

The Yellow-Robed Man snorted coldly, tapped the ground with the tip of his foot, and transformed into a streak of light as he pounced at Lin Heng.

Swish! Swish!

Two fierce attacks struck at the same time.

A cold smile curved Lin Heng's lips. His figure flickered as he dodged the attacks, then his right hand shot out, seized the other man's wrist, and twisted hard.

Creak, creak—

"Ah!"

Accompanied by the teeth-grating sound of bones shifting out of place, the man screamed and dropped to one knee, clutching his arm with pain written all over his face.

"How is this possible?! How could your physical strength be so high?!"

"Oh, I forgot to tell you—I'm a body cultivator."

Lin Heng did his best to give him a reason he could take peacefully onto the road. After all, dying without understanding anything was quite painful.

Qi Refining Realm cultivators did not have that many flashy spells or divine abilities when they fought. Whoever had greater strength and greater endurance could hold out until the end.

He was indeed only at the Qi Refining Third Layer, but with three Spirit Wheels as reserves and support, he could theoretically even wrestle with a Qi Refining Sixth Layer cultivator.

Spirit Wheels were like backup hidden energy sources, and could also be regarded as an auxiliary cheat device that could not be quantified by data.

It was not the case that every additional Spirit Wheel raised one's cultivation by one layer.

There was no absolute, either-or relationship between cultivation and the number of Spirit Wheels.

The Yellow-Robed Man was unwilling to accept this. He forcibly propped himself up and swung his blade with his remaining left hand.

His somewhat stiff movements were naturally defused with ease.

Crack!

Another scream rang out as his left hand was twisted and broken as well.

Lin Heng made no further unnecessary movements. He pressed both hands above and below the man's head. "Kneel there and don't move. It's just a matter of both eyes going dark—it'll be over soon!"

"Big brother, don't..."

Lin Heng exerted force with both hands, smiling as he showed the others a vine-following melon-twisting maneuver.

Unfortunately, he had not gotten the angle right and directly tore open a major artery, splashing himself with blood.

"He was still too fragile. One twist around, and he passed out."

At those words, even Zhao Wanqing was dumbfounded.

One twist around?

Passed out?

After practicing medicine for many years, she had seen plenty of living Bodhisattvas, but this was her first time seeing a living King Yama.

Never mind one full turn—even after more than half a turn, no one would ever wake up again.