The headless corpse crashed to the ground. That bizarre sword strike had scared the wits out of everyone.
Even Hu Yidao sucked in a sharp breath. He hadn't seen Li Xinge make any move to draw his sword.
A zero-frame start—who wouldn't be afraid?
He took a deep breath. "Family Head Li, you've already killed the man. Can we call it quits now?"
"Call it quits? Ridiculous! Hu Yidao, you're next!"
Li Xinge gave a faint laugh.
"Li Xinge, don't push me too far!"
Hu Yidao could hold back no longer. A low, muffled roar burst from him.
He, Hu Yidao, was a warlord who ruled over his corner of the world, yet a young man had driven him to such a state.
But in Li Xinge's eyes, Hu Yidao's fury looked more like a joke.
"Kneel and live. Fight, and die!"
It was the same line, yet it was especially good at stoking hatred.
"You really think I'm afraid of you!"
Hu Yidao's eyes reddened as formidable Qi and Blood power surged around him.
He gripped a blood-red greatsword, his astonishing battle intent surging all around him.
Hu Yidao struck first.
His blade came wrapped in towering fury, a thunderbolt of a blow that slashed straight at Li Xinge.
Before Li Xinge's breakthrough, facing Hu Yidao's all-out killing strike might have forced him to be on his guard every second.
But now, Hu Yidao's speed seemed painfully slow in Li Xinge's eyes.
Like a dragonfly skimming the water, Li Xinge retreated a few steps and dodged Hu Yidao's full-force slash.
Hu Yidao's blow missed and struck the ten-zhang-tall stone statue of the Mountain God, splitting it clean in two!
Dust billowed across the entire plaza.
"Hu Yidao, your swordsmanship isn't all that impressive."
With his hands behind his back, Li Xinge slowly emerged from the cloud of dust.
Seeing Li Xinge completely unharmed, Hu Yidao looked as if he'd seen a ghost.
He stared in shock. "Th-this... how is that possible?"
"You're still too weak."
Li Xinge shook his head.
"Bullshit!!!"
Thoroughly enraged, Hu Yidao charged at Li Xinge again.
His domineering swordsmanship crashed like a raging tide, each slash fiercer and more overbearing than the last.
Yet Li Xinge dodged them one after another with leisurely ease, as if an adult were toying with a child.
Another slash cut through empty air, and the two passed one another.
"Is that all?"
Li Xinge murmured.
Hu Yidao had to be considered one of the best among those at the same level. The Great Elder had been no match for him, and it was no disgrace to lose at his hands.
But against Li Xinge, he still wasn't worth mentioning.
The difference in their realms was like the difference between clouds and mud.
"Had enough fun? My turn."
Li Xinge murmured, and an invisible wave of power spread from his body.
In an instant, gale-force winds swept through. Sand and stones whirled into the air, spinning wildly around him.
A deeply oppressive howl filled the air.
Li Xinge's aura surged higher and higher within the vortex, reaching its peak in moments!
Leaning on his blade, Hu Yidao knelt on one knee, gasping as he looked at Li Xinge, who seemed like a heavenly god.
He felt the utterly despairing force of Li Xinge's aura.
Suddenly, Hu Yidao understood. A bitter smile tugged at his lips.
"Ha ha ha ha! Minor Accomplishment of Qi and Blood Realm—that's the difference between a genius and an ordinary person? Damn heaven, how unfair you are! How unfair!"
Hu Yidao pointed his blade at the sky and roared.
At that moment, he had truly gone mad.
His life had been the stuff of legend. Born the son of a farmer, he had carved himself a path to the heavens with nothing but a greatsword.
He had reached the Physical Body Realm at twenty-one and advanced to the Qi and Blood Realm at forty-seven.
He had once believed himself to be one in ten thousand—a peerless genius.
If not for his lowly birth, how could that brat have made a name for himself?
But today, the cruelty of reality had trampled his pride beneath its heel.
It turned out that in front of a true genius, he was still just some roadside ant, liable to be crushed underfoot with a casual kick.
"Hu Yidao, I'll give you one last chance. Serve my Li Family, and I'll spare your life!"
Hu Yidao was a formidable fighter, and Li Xinge had developed a desire to recruit him.
If he could bring Hu Yidao into his service and use some means to keep him under control, he could add another powerful fighter to the family!
Li Xinge's words brought Hu Yidao back to his senses.
He looked at Li Xinge and grinned. "Li Xinge, there are only two things about me that are hard: my cock and my backbone. You want me to be your dog? No chance!"
His powerful Qi and Blood power began to burn. Its scorching heat seared the air until space itself seemed to twist.
Hu Yidao's aura began to soar at an unbelievable speed.
At the same time, his face visibly began to age.
His middle-aged appearance turned into that of a withered old man within a few breaths.
"I'd rather die on my feet than live on my knees!"
Hu Yidao roared, pointing his blade at Li Xinge, his pupils filled with boundless madness.
"You're asking for death!"
Li Xinge had gone out of his way to show mercy, yet Hu Yidao had been so ungrateful as to burn his Qi and Blood power.
Li Xinge wasn't some brainless protagonist who'd stand around waiting for him to finish powering up.
Void Slayer left its sheath with a ringing sword cry.
Li Xinge shot forward like lightning. Hu Yidao saw him coming and hurriedly swung his blade to block.
The two passed one another.
Man and blade shattered together, and a fine head soared into the sky.
Void Slayer returned to its sheath. The blood coating the sword vanished without a sound, swallowed by the blade. It seemed to have gained a hint more spirit.
The mountain-sized corpse crashed to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.
The remaining leaders watched, their eyes bulging with rage.
"Revenge for the Stronghold Master!"
The Second Leader charged at Li Xinge first, his eyes bloodshot.
Aside from a handful of people, everyone else charged without hesitation, moths flying into a flame, one after another.
"Know your place!"
Li Xinge sneered.
He raised both hands, then swept them out with a fierce motion.
In an instant, flying sand and rolling stones became death-dealing messengers, mowing through the gathered leaders like stalks of wheat and slaughtering every last one of them!
Looking at the corpses strewn across the ground, Li Xinge's expression remained impassive.
The underlings who came running at the commotion lost their nerve when they saw the bodies on the ground.
They abandoned their weapons and armor, scattering in every direction across the mountains.
They feared that if they were even a moment too slow, the soul-reaping Yama would slaughter them.
Li Xinge had no interest in killing these underlings. His target was the Black Robe Stronghold's treasure vault. After all, the stronghold had been committing evil for years and must have amassed considerable wealth.
Even he was rather tempted by such a fortune.
His gaze shifted to a corner, where a figure crouched with his head buried, trembling all over.
Li Xinge slowly approached. When the man saw him coming, he dropped to his knees and kowtowed frantically as he begged, "My lord, please, don't kill me! Please don't kill me!"
"Take me to the treasure vault," Li Xinge said with a smile.
But to the man, that smile was more terrifying than the devil's.
"Y-yes, my lord. Please, follow me."
The treasure vault wasn't hidden. It lay in a cave in the back mountain.
Li Xinge shattered the heavy stone door with a single palm strike and stepped inside.
Inside the crude cave, gold, silver, and jewels lay piled like mountains. There were also some valuable cultivation manuals and spirit medicines.
There were many different things, but few of them were useful to Qi and Blood Realm Cultivators.
Then again, if any of it had been useful, Hu Yidao would have used it long ago.
Li Xinge walked out of the vault.
He struck the stone wall with his palm. With a thunderous crash, a boulder collapsed, sealing the passage into the vault.
After doing all this,
Li Xinge's figure slowly disappeared into the darkness.
Before you continue