Fierce Battle with the Assassin

A few days later.

The morning forest was shrouded in a faint mist that had yet to dissipate, looking ethereal and distant, like the light veil of a dancing fairy.

Soft sunlight spilled into the woods, turning the lush leaves into varying shades of deep and light green.

Deep within the dense forest, the roars of wild beasts suddenly erupted. Lin Yiqing, dressed in gray hempen clothes, was wreathed in wisps of blood-red aura, his hand gripping a Refined Iron Dagger dripping with beads of blood.

Opposite him, a jet-black exotic beast circled him, pacing constantly as it sought an opening to attack.

The beast had two heads and resembled a leopard, though it was now covered in wounds and drenched in blood.

Since breaking through to the seventh level of the Body Tempering Realm, Lin Yiqing had begun to intentionally accumulate real-world combat experience.

In a fight, the factors that determine victory are not just cultivation techniques and martial arts; personal combat awareness is equally vital.

Suddenly, the black leopard lunged, moving as fast as a bolt of black lightning. It reached Lin Yiqing in an instant, its two maws wide open as it prepared to snap down on him.

Lin Yiqing's heart was as still as water. The moment the leopard pounced, he tightened his grip on the hilt, leaned slightly to the right into a lunge, and swung his sword in a horizontal slash.

"Rip."

The sound of the blade slicing through flesh and bone reached his ears. The exotic beast had been cleaved in two, its blood and gore splattering the ground.

"Hoo."

After a long moment, Lin Yiqing finally raised a hand to wipe the sweat from his forehead. This battle had been far from easy.

The beast was incredibly swift, its speed so great that he dared not even blink for fear of losing his life on the spot. He had only managed to slay it by seizing a single, hard-won opportunity.

With such high-intensity combat, I'll likely be able to break through to the eighth level of the Body Tempering Realm after a few more fights.

Lin Yiqing mused to himself. With these days of fighting, the Origin Power Seed within him had grown increasingly robust, and the faint white mist swirling around it showed signs of coalescing into a halo.

"What a pity about the pelt; otherwise, I could have made a coat." Lin Yiqing looked at the beast's remains on the ground with a touch of regret.

He carved the muscle from the beast's legs and stored it in his Universe Bag, then buried the carcass on the spot—a routine he had followed throughout his recent training.

With a sufficient supply of meat, he had grown quite a bit taller, and his entire bearing had become more handsome and refined.

"Whoosh."

Just as Lin Yiqing turned to leave, an arrow shot toward him from the dark forest.

Hearing the sound, Lin Yiqing quickly raised his sword to parry, splitting the incoming arrow in two before looking warily toward the woods behind him.

"Who's there?"

A cluster of bushes swayed, and three tall figures emerged from the trees.

The three appeared to be in their thirties or forties, dressed in gray cloth and leather armor, their faces coarse and cruel.

Two of them held Refined Steel Broadswords; one looked dull-witted, while the other had a cocky, swaggering air and a flamboyant mohawk.

The last man wore a gloomy expression and gripped an Ox-Horn Longbow. Judging by their attire, they clearly belonged to the same faction.

"Heh, this kid's got some skill. He actually managed to dodge your arrow, Lao Bai."

The man with the mohawk tilted his head and spoke to the cold-faced man with the bow in a mocking, exaggerated tone.

Lin Yiqing watched them with cold eyes. The fact that they had launched a sneak attack without provocation and ignored his question, acting with such arrogance, made his blood boil.

"What is the meaning of this?"

Seeing that the trio meant him harm, Lin Yiqing's face turned frosty. He held his sword horizontally before him and asked coldly.

"Heh, kid, you've offended someone you shouldn't have. You've got a death wish, don't you? Hand over your valuables! If you do, I might give you a quick death and save you the agony of torture!"

The mohawk-wearing man pointed his Refined Steel Broadsword at Lin Yiqing, his face full of malice. His tone suggested he had already marked the naive youth as his prey.

Based on his years of experience, a kid of Lin Yiqing's age usually crumbled and begged for mercy after a good scare; there was no need to take him seriously.

"Who sent you?"

Lin Yiqing's heart sank. If his guess was correct, he was in serious trouble today.

"Heh, after you're dead, I'll cut off your head to present as an offering. Then you'll know."

With that, the mohawk-wearing man and the dull-witted brute charged forward, blocking Lin Yiqing from the front and back.

The man with the longbow leaped into a tree, drawing his ox-horn bow into a full moon.

Lin Yiqing's expression remained unchanged, but his nerves tightened. Hearing their words, he realized this was almost certainly orchestrated by Lin Mang.

He gripped the hilt of his Refined Iron Dagger tightly; only the cold sensation of the blade helped steady his mind.

This was his first time killing a person. Even with Lin Shan, who had been his rival, Lin Yiqing had never intended to take his life.

However, he knew clearly that in this world where might made right, conflict and bloodshed were inevitable. He just hadn't expected this day to come so soon.

"If you won't drink the toast of friendship, you'll have to drink the forfeit of punishment. Just hack him to pieces and let's go collect the reward."

As they spoke, the two men swung their broadswords at him from both sides. Lin Yiqing hurriedly dodged to the side, raising his dagger to parry their onslaught.

As they clashed, he could tell that the dull-witted man and the one firing cold arrows from the tree were roughly his equal in strength.

They were all around the seventh level of the Body Tempering Realm, but the mohawk-wearing man had already reached the eighth level.

Lin Yiqing's expression grew grave. His opponents were stronger than him and held the numerical advantage; if he wasn't careful, he might lose his life here today.

The immense force from the collision of blades left his palms numb and tingling.

Fortunately, he possessed his own advantages; ever since he began his cultivation, his reflexes had grown increasingly sharp, and his physical strength had been increasing by the day, allowing him to barely maneuver with ease against the three of them.

"Whoosh! Whoosh!"

No sooner had Lin Yiqing dodged the duo's assault than several arrows erupted from the trees toward him, forcing him to swing his sword once more to deflect them.

"Give it up, brat! Second-grade martial art: Steel-Breaking Slash!"

Seeing his chance, the man with the cockscomb hairstyle raised his broadsword high and brought it crashing down.

A faint white glow was vaguely visible on the blade, the telltale sign of using Origin Power. If this strike connected, Lin Yiqing would likely be dead or severely wounded.

At this critical juncture, a flurry of thoughts raced through Lin Yiqing's mind, and his heart became as calm as still water, as if all fear had been replaced by pure reason in that instant.

Even time seemed to slow in his eyes. He parried the dull-witted man's attack with a flick of his sword, then sidestepped the cockscomb-haired man's descending blade, the entire sequence flowing like moving clouds and flowing water.

"Second-grade martial art: Wood Sword Art!"

The moment he dodged, a faint cyan radiance lit up the blade of Lin Yiqing's sword. The Origin Power Seed within him surged with activity, finally settling outside his dantian as he broke through to the eighth level of the Body Tempering Realm at that very moment.

The Refined Iron Dagger danced, trailing several cyan sword shadows, and amidst the terrified gaze of the man with the cockscomb hairstyle, he decapitated him with a single strike.