A Single Strike Kills, Ye Lingshuang is Shocked!

The weapon Li Qingshan held in his hand was none other than the Crimson Dragon Sword, a top-tier Grade 1 magical artifact that, after being enhanced by the Wish-Fulfilling Gourd, appeared unassuming yet possessed peerless sharpness!

He sought a single, lethal strike with minimal disturbance!

However, as an elite of the Holy Sect, how could Chen Feng be without a life-saving treasure?

Just as Li Qingshan's Crimson Dragon Sword was about to touch the back of his heart, a hidden protective jade talisman at Chen Feng's waist suddenly triggered on its own!

Hum!

A pitch-black light barrier covered in eerie runes manifested instantly, barely blocking that fatal thrust!

Pfft!

The tip of the Crimson Dragon Sword pierced half an inch into the light barrier, but could go no further!

The sharpness of the top-tier artifact ground violently against the automatically triggered demonic protective light, emitting a sound that made one's scalp tingle!

"What?!"

Chen Feng's soul nearly left his body; the icy killing intent behind him and the sudden attack jolted him awake from his fanaticism!

He had never imagined that the attack would come from the old waste behind him, whom he had regarded as nothing more than an ant!

The protective jade talisman had saved his life, but the hastily triggered barrier could not fully neutralize the lethal sneak attack, which was concentrated at a single point and contained the peak power of the ninth level of Qi Refining!

A massive, pure force slammed through the barrier and struck him squarely in the back!

"Pfft!"

Chen Feng felt the world go black, his internal organs feeling as if they had been displaced. He spewed another mouthful of dark blood mixed with visceral fragments, his entire body flying forward like a discarded sack. He crashed heavily not far from Ye Lingshuang, his injuries worsening to the point where even rising to his feet became an impossible task!

He turned his head with great difficulty, only to see the old man—Li Qingshan—slowly straightening his back, holding a broken sword that emitted a ghostly light, his eyes cold and calm!

"Who... who exactly are you?!" Chen Feng's eyes were filled with extreme shock, disbelief, and a trace of fear!

How could a third-level Qi Refining cultivator erupt with such terrifying power and speed?! And how could he possess a top-tier magical artifact capable of nearly shattering his demonic protective light?!

But the situation was critical, leaving no room for him to overthink!

He was severely wounded and dying, while this hidden old monster's true depth was unknown!

He glared at Zhang Tie, who was standing on the other side, stunned and at a loss due to the rapid succession of events. Using his last ounce of strength, he hissed, "Zhang Tie, you idiot! What are you still standing there for? Quickly, kill Ye Lingshuang! Kill her, and the jade slip is yours, all my treasures are yours—do it now!"

He only cared about completing the mission now! As long as Ye Lingshuang died!

Zhang Tie was jolted awake by the roar. He looked at the heavily wounded Chen Feng, then at the suddenly unfathomable old man, and finally, his gaze fell upon the dying Ye Lingshuang. Greed, fear, and struggle intertwined on his face. In the end, his desire for Foundation Establishment and his fear of Chen Feng overwhelmed his reason!

"Ah! Die!"

He let out a wild roar to bolster his courage, summoned his flying knife, and charged madly toward Ye Lingshuang, attempting to strike first!

However, since Li Qingshan had already made his move, how could he let him have his way?

The moment Chen Feng roared, Li Qingshan's figure moved again!

This time, he no longer hid!

With the Flying Rainbow Technique pushed to its limit, his figure moved as if teleporting, arriving before Zhang Tie despite starting later!

Simultaneously, the Crimson Dragon Sword transformed into a nearly invisible cold light, piercing straight toward Zhang Tie's throat at an incredibly tricky angle, with speed pushed to the absolute limit!

Zhang Tie felt a blur before his eyes, and a suffocating killing intent instantly enveloped his entire body. He tried in terror to maneuver his flying knife to defend, but the gap in speed was too great!

"No!"

Zhang Tie was terrified to the extreme, wanting to beg for mercy.

Pfft!

The blade pierced through his hastily raised protective spiritual light without resistance, precisely severing his windpipe!

Zhang Tie's forward momentum froze abruptly. He clutched his spurting throat with both hands, his eyes filled with shock and the terror of death, before his body went limp and collapsed, his life extinguished on the spot!

A one-hit kill on a Great Perfection Qi Refining cultivator!

Clean and efficient!

Now, only the severely wounded and dying Chen Feng, the gasping Ye Lingshuang, and Li Qingshan, standing with sword in hand and an indifferent gaze, remained on the scene.

Watching Zhang Tie get killed in an instant, the last shred of hope in Chen Feng's heart was extinguished, replaced by utter coldness and fear.

He looked at Li Qingshan, suppressing his shock and his injuries, and spoke rapidly in a hoarse voice: "Senior! Who exactly are you? To hide so deeply, you are surely no ordinary disciple of the Spring Autumn Sect! I am an inner sect disciple of the Holy Sect, and my master is a Golden Core Elder!

If you are willing to stop here, I am willing to swear an oath by my inner demons that I will not pursue today's events, and I am willing to offer all my possessions. I can even recommend you to join the Holy Sect to receive personal guidance from our Golden Core ancestor. Wouldn't that be ten thousand times better than being with trash in this Spring Autumn Sect?

Why must you forge a blood feud with my Holy Sect for the sake of a dying Ye Lingshuang?"

Seeing Li Qingshan kill the Great Perfection Zhang Tie in seconds, he immediately assumed Li Qingshan was a Foundation Establishment cultivator hiding his cultivation.

Otherwise, it would be impossible to be this strong.

Therefore, his tone had shifted.

He attempted to lure him with benefits and threats, while simultaneously preparing to secretly summon a treasure to ambush Li Qingshan.

Li Qingshan turned slowly, wiping the blood from the Crimson Dragon Sword. He looked at Chen Feng calmly, his eyes as still as an ancient well, as if he were looking at a dead man.

"Are you finished?" he asked indifferently.

Chen Feng's heart sank; the other party's reaction clearly showed he remained unmoved.

Li Qingshan would not give him another chance. People of the Demonic Sect were full of tricks; he could not leave him alive, or there would be endless trouble!

His figure moved once more, maintaining that ghostly speed, as the Crimson Dragon Sword in his hand struck directly for Chen Feng's head!

Despair and madness flashed in Chen Feng's eyes as he tried to desperately activate some secret technique, but how could a body so heavily wounded be faster than Li Qingshan's thunderous strike?

Squelch!

The Crimson Dragon Sword plunged precisely into the center of his brow, completely shattering his soul!

The expression on Chen Feng's face froze in a mix of terror, unwillingness, and disbelief; his body twitched once, then fell completely silent.

With this, both cultivators at the Great Perfection of Qi Refining had been executed!

Li Qingshan quickly cleared the battlefield, collecting the storage bags of Chen Feng and Zhang Tie, along with the protective jade talisman that had nearly succeeded, before flicking a fireball to reduce the two corpses to ash.

Only after finishing all this did he walk quickly to Ye Lingshuang's side.

Ye Lingshuang had witnessed the entire lightning-fast sequence of events and the constant reversals, especially the hidden depth, lethality, and decisiveness of Li Qingshan's killing blow, which left her incomparably shocked.

She looked at Li Qingshan, who was crouching beside her, her beautiful eyes filled with extremely complex emotions.

There was the daze of surviving a disaster, the shock of having her entire perception overturned, deep confusion, and a trace of indescribable gratitude and... vigilance.

She opened her mouth, her voice thin as a thread due to weakness and shock, yet filled with disbelief: "Li... Li Qingshan? Is it really you? You were actually able to kill cultivators at the Great Perfection of Qi Refining? Your cultivation... this... what exactly is going on?"

Li Qingshan looked at her pale yet still elegant face and sighed softly, knowing that after today, he would no longer be able to hide everything completely.

"Senior Sister Ye," he said in a low, steady voice, "this is a long story. This place is not suitable for lingering; I will take you away from here first."