Retribution Comes to the Wicked

Early the next morning, the diligent new disciples rose before dawn, preparing to water their corn. But when they reached the fields, they began cursing one after another. Some utterly heartless bastards had trampled a neat stretch through their cornfields, crushing quite a few seedlings to death.

Some observant people followed the trampled path with their eyes and discovered that it led straight toward the Spirit Spring plot belonging to Qin Haoxuan and the other two.

Could Gu Xiaoyun have made good on his threat and truly destroyed the corn in Qin Haoxuan's field? Thinking of this, several sharper-witted disciples immediately ran over. Sure enough, the sight before them was utter devastation. Fresh green corn stalks had been snapped in half and strewn all over the ground.

Not long afterward, Qin Haoxuan and the other two arrived together. Today, after Qin Haoxuan finished watering the corn seedlings and filled the last water vat, he planned to deliberately cause trouble and go meditate on Solitary Confinement Mountain for a few days.

From afar, they saw many people gathered around their field, whispering among themselves. When they saw Qin Haoxuan, their eyes held both schadenfreude and sympathy.

Why were these people looking at him like that? Qin Haoxuan grew suspicious and quickened his pace toward the spirit field. This was...

The orderly corn seedlings that had filled the field yesterday had now become scraps scattered across the ground!

Qin Haoxuan's vision went black. All his efforts these past days had gone to waste! Gu Xiaoyun? It was Gu Xiaoyun, wasn't it? That day, he had said he would destroy my spirit field. I thought it was merely something said in anger, but I never expected him to actually dare do it.

Qin Haoxuan's face turned iron-blue. Without saying a word, he strode off quickly, charging straight toward Gu Xiaoyun's dormitory.

The disciples who sensed a spectacle were thrilled. They had been waiting for this moment ever since Gu Xiaoyun and Qin Haoxuan traded threats yesterday, but they had not expected happiness to arrive so quickly. Zhang Yang, especially, was excited. Yesterday, Qin Haoxuan's glare had chilled him to the marrow. Gu Xiaoyun was an Immortal Seedling Realm Seventh Leaf expert, far stronger than someone like Yuan Shanxiang at the Immortal Seedling Realm Fifth Leaf. Besides, he was Gu Yunzi's biological nephew. Once Qin Haoxuan made a move, whether he won or lost, he would gain nothing good from it.

"Gu Xiaoyun, come out. Let's have a chat."

Having done his dirty work and vented his anger the previous night, Gu Xiaoyun slept sweetly and soundly. In his dream, Qin Haoxuan was kneeling at his feet, humbly begging for mercy. Xu Yu and Murong Chao were also whispering flattering words in his ear, begging him to take over Qin Haoxuan's Spirit Spring plot. Full of smug satisfaction, he looked upon their pitiful state and was just about to agree to their request, reluctantly taking over Qin Haoxuan's Spirit Spring plot, when a thunderous roar suddenly yanked him out of his beautiful dream.

Gu Xiaoyun rubbed his eyes. Seeing Qin Haoxuan with his hair standing on end in rage, he was still immersed in the dream's sweetness as he yawned and said, "Did you run into some natural disaster or calamity, lose all your corn seedlings, and come begging me to trade plots with you?"

Upon hearing that, Qin Haoxuan, who had originally planned to question him first so as not to wrong an innocent man, no longer needed to ask anything. Gu Xiaoyun's tone plainly exposed that last night's deed had been his. Otherwise, how could someone still lying in bed dreaming know that all of his corn seedlings had been destroyed?

"Good, good, good!" Qin Haoxuan said "good" three times in a row. He said nothing else, suddenly pouncing forward, seizing Gu Xiaoyun by the throat with one hand and punching him in the dantian with the other.

Poor Gu Xiaoyun was still bleary-eyed with sleep. He had never imagined that a new disciple with neither strength nor backing would dare attack him. With his throat gripped, he took several vicious blows to the dantian from Qin Haoxuan, followed by another punch to the pit of his stomach.

Caught completely unprepared, how could Gu Xiaoyun compare to Qin Haoxuan in brute strength? Just as he was about to gather spiritual power, Qin Haoxuan repeatedly struck his vital points. Under the excruciating pain, his incompletely gathered spiritual power was scattered, leaving him no time to cast even half a spiritual art.

"I warned you! If even the slightest thing happened to the corn seedlings in my spirit field, I wouldn't let you off! Yet you insisted on courting disaster and actually destroyed my cornfield!" Qin Haoxuan roared as he raised his iron fist again and struck the spots between Gu Xiaoyun's cheeks and the roots of his ears.

Hit in that vital point on the neck, Gu Xiaoyun let out a miserable scream and fainted!

Gu Xiaoyun's lackeys were so frightened that they shrank to one side, not daring to come help. They shouted, "I've already reported this to the Law Enforcement Hall! If you keep hitting him... keep hitting him, you'll be thrown into solitary confinement!"

At the mention of solitary confinement, Qin Haoxuan sneered. "I've wanted to go into solitary confinement for a long time. I was just worrying about how to get in!"

As he spoke, he unleashed another flurry of punches on Gu Xiaoyun's chest and abdomen, specifically targeting the areas around his internal organs.

Gu Xiaoyun might have been an Immortal Seedling Realm Seventh Leaf cultivator, but Qin Haoxuan had ambushed him while he was still muddleheaded. For Gu Xiaoyun, it had always been him beating others; nobody had ever dared beat him. Thus, his actual combat experience was nil. Qin Haoxuan, on the other hand, had been renowned far and wide for fighting since childhood. Whenever he fought, he targeted weaknesses and lethal spots. Even an Immortal Seedling Realm Seventh Leaf cultivator could not withstand such a desperate, life-risking style of fighting.

Had they fought at another time, the one getting beaten would certainly have been Qin Haoxuan. But now... with blazing fury and the ambush coming first, Gu Xiaoyun had truly capsized in a gutter.

Xu Yu and Murong Chao tried to restrain Qin Haoxuan, but with one swing of his arm, he sent them staggering back four or five steps. They were secretly anxious. If this continued, someone would be killed.

The others, Zhang Yang included, had not expected Gu Xiaoyun to be so utterly unable to withstand a blow. Qin Haoxuan had beaten him viciously, leaving him no room to strike back, yet not a single person dared step forward to pull Qin Haoxuan away.

"Stop! Stop now!"

Just then, several law enforcement disciples hurried over. Seeing Qin Haoxuan committing violence, one of the law enforcement captains formed a hand seal. After several breaths of preparation, his spiritual power transformed into several boulders the size of human heads and knocked Qin Haoxuan aside like a charging bull.

Gu Xiaoyun lay on the bed in a deep coma. His face was swollen like a pig's head, his nose bruised and his eyes blackened, blood bubbles constantly rising from the corners of his mouth. Bruises covered his entire body. Qin Haoxuan's barrage of punches had especially struck his internal organs, which were likely injured as well. He was barely clinging to life. Though he was not quite at death's door, he was certainly in no good condition.

As law enforcement disciples, they always carried some spiritual medicine with them. Gu Xiaoyun was Hall Master Gu Yunzi's biological nephew, so the captain examining him did not hesitate to take the most precious pill from among the several pills in his robe and stuff it into Gu Xiaoyun's mouth.

The spiritual medicine turned into a stream of liquid the moment it entered his mouth and was swallowed into Gu Xiaoyun's stomach. Its medicinal power quickly took effect. Gu Xiaoyun, who had just been on the verge of drawing his last breath, finally recovered somewhat, and his breathing became a little steadier.

After briefly examining Gu Xiaoyun's injuries, the law enforcement captain said, "The injured man has twenty-seven fractures throughout his body, and his internal organs may be damaged. Hurry and invite several elders from Spirit Field Valley to treat him! Take the culprit back to the Law Enforcement Hall for trial!"

Two law enforcement disciples moved to seize Qin Haoxuan. Qin Haoxuan did not resist, and without the slightest fear on his face, he said, "No need for a trial. He destroyed the corn seedlings in my field, and I injured him. I admit my guilt. Lock me in solitary confinement."

The law enforcement captain cast Qin Haoxuan a cold glance. To this legendary figure, who had entered the sect less than a month ago, fought all the way from the Immortal Seedling Realm Third Leaf to the Seventh Leaf, set the fastest record for Rooting among weak seeds, and was about to enter solitary confinement for the second time, he said, "Do you have anything to contest?"

"I was the one who hit him. I have nothing else to say. Just lock me in solitary confinement." Qin Haoxuan responded with great calm.

At this moment, Zhang Yang, who had been hiding among the crowd, suddenly egged them on. "A villain like Qin Haoxuan deserves at least a year or half a year in solitary confinement!"

"That's right, if he's to be locked up, lock him up for a year!"

Most of the onlookers feared that the world was not chaotic enough. Some belonged to Zhang Kuang's or Li Jing's faction, while others were Zhang Yang's lackeys. After Zhang Yang shouted those words, they all began joining in, condemning Qin Haoxuan for all sorts of evil deeds.

The law enforcement captain glanced from Qin Haoxuan to Zhang Yang, and a teasing smile curled at his lips. Gu Xiaoyun had been jumping about everywhere these past days, always trying to seize Qin Haoxuan's land. Who in Spirit Field Valley did not know about that? Now that Qin Haoxuan's field had been destroyed, if the matter were truly investigated, Gu Yunzi certainly would not escape blame. Since Qin Haoxuan had acted with cause, according to the rules of the Primordial Sect, he had indeed broken one rule, but another rule could spare him part of his imprisonment.

"That's right!" The law enforcement captain said with a smug look. "Lock Qin Haoxuan in the Nine Yin Ice Cave... for twenty days!"

"No, that's far too light! He nearly beat someone to death, and he only gets twenty days in solitary confinement?" Zhang Yang was unwilling to accept it and took the lead in shouting, stirring up a wave of noisy clamor.

The law enforcement captain's expression turned cold. His gaze swept over the crowd like icy blades as he said, "If you refuse to accept it, go appeal to the Law Enforcement Elder!"

Everyone caught by his gaze felt as if they had fallen into an ice cave, and none dared speak again. Besides, if they truly appealed to the Law Enforcement Elder, with Qin Haoxuan's spirit field destroyed and Xu Yu and Murong Chao backing him, he likely would not receive many extra days anyway. And if the matter were really investigated... Zhang Yang knew that Gu Xiaoyun might very well expose him.

"Whew..." Escorted by two law enforcement disciples, Qin Haoxuan let out a long breath, feeling as though a heavy burden had been lifted. After briefly saying farewell to Xu Yu and Murong Chao, he headed toward Solitary Confinement Mountain with delight written all over his face.

The law enforcement captain watched Qin Haoxuan's relaxed departing figure, then looked at Gu Xiaoyun, who would be unable to leave his bed for at least a month, and muttered to himself, Did I really sentence him too lightly? Forget it! There's no need to think about this. Since no one was beaten to death, there's no need to offend a violet seed!

Gu Xiaoyun desperately wanted to speak at this point, because he could have shifted all the blame onto Zhang Yang. That way, Qin Haoxuan's punishment would not have been so light; he might even have been locked up for several months. As for Zhang Yang... he would likely have been implicated too, while Gu Xiaoyun himself would not have suffered much. Yet now... he had become the unluckiest one of all.

Qin Haoxuan walked quickly. Aside from being happy that he had gone berserk on Gu Xiaoyun, what pleased him even more was that upon coming to a place like this, his body would no longer suffer from the medicinal power. Instead, his cultivation would grow even faster.

The moment he stepped through the small door, waves of cold air rushed at his face. The farther inward he went, the heavier the chill became. Before he even reached the Nine Yin Ice Cave, thick layers of ice already covered the rock walls on both sides.

At the entrance to the Nine Yin Ice Cave, even the iron lock on the door had frozen over. A law enforcement disciple formed a hand seal and cast Blazing Flames. It took quite a while before he melted the ice from the lock.

Under the astonished gazes of the law enforcement disciples, Qin Haoxuan remained calm and composed in the Nine Yin Ice Cave, a place where even they had to circulate spiritual power to ward off the cold. He did not even seem to use spiritual power to resist the chill as he walked straight inside.

Qin Haoxuan's performance in the Lava Cellar had already spread among these law enforcement disciples. Now, he was as much at home in the Nine Yin Ice Cave as a fish in water. Could it be that he was extraordinarily gifted and feared neither cold nor heat? For an ordinary person to cultivate to the point of fearing neither cold nor heat, they would need to reach an extremely high realm, at least twenty or thirty leaves of the Immortal Seedling Realm!

From the moment he entered Solitary Confinement Mountain, Qin Haoxuan had prepared himself for a fight. Yet when he entered the Nine Yin Ice Cave, not only did no one throw a blanket over him and beat him, those old hands who had arrived before him could not even be bothered to look at him. Each of them meditated and practiced qi, resisting the cold.

Only yesterday did I discover that on the QQ Reading app, many friends had submitted questions for the author... I did not have time to answer them before they expired. Starting today, I will carefully check those author questions. I will give every friend's question a detailed and serious answer there.

Lastly, please give me some recommendation votes. If you like it, remember to add it to your collection. Also! I am updating twice a day now, so please do not say that I only update once a day, thank you. Some people have asked about mass updates. All I can say is that after a little while, I will definitely unleash a burst of updates! Guaranteed!