Top Five

Bang! Qin Lang stomped his foot into the earth and charged out first. Spiritual energy surged from his dantian, flowing through his meridians to every corner of his body, continuously reinforcing his physical strength.

"Kid, you're courting death!" Seeing Qin Lang charge over alone, the youth at the third level of the Qi Refining Stage opposite him turned cold, throwing a punch directly at Qin Lang.

Bu Lianshi was not slow either; she followed closely behind Qin Lang, her eyes locked on every move of the three opponents, ready to coordinate with Qin Lang's attack at any moment.

Boom!

With a thunderous explosion, Qin Lang's fist collided with the opponent's. Both were shaken to their cores, but incredibly, Qin Lang only retreated three steps, while the youth of the same cultivation level was sent flying back more than ten steps. He collapsed to the ground, his entire arm crackling as if it had shattered, and he let out a harrowing scream.

Qin Lang's body had also taken a significant impact, but he quickly channeled the opponent's force into the ground during his three-step retreat. By the time he raised his fist again, he was perfectly aligned with Bu Lianshi behind him.

With almost no need for communication, the two surged forward, meeting the other two who were rushing toward them. Qin Lang targeted the youth at the second level of the Qi Refining Stage, while Bu Lianshi engaged the other youth at the third level.

The three opponents had not expected Qin Lang to be so powerful; in just one exchange, he had knocked their strongest member out of the fight. Yet, the scene that followed left them surprised, even as a cruel smile tugged at the corners of their mouths.

"Fighting a third-level Qi Refining Stage opponent with only second-level cultivation? You're looking to die!" the third-level youth sneered as he saw Bu Lianshi approach.

Although the situation was the same on the other side, he knew his teammate's strength; even if he couldn't defeat Qin Lang, he wouldn't be routed so easily. But this side was different—the girl in front of him looked far too delicate, and he was certain he could crush her with a single punch.

However, the following scene defied all their expectations. Although Bu Lianshi was suppressed, she clung tightly to the third-level youth, occasionally even launching counterattacks whenever he let his guard down.

As for Qin Lang's side, it was far more direct and violent. Fists met flesh with a continuous thud-thud sound. Even Lin Chuan, standing to the side, felt his mouth twitch, thinking to himself that Qin Lang was truly ruthless! Three breaths later, the youth fighting Qin Lang was sent flying back, vomiting blood, his chest caved in; he clearly wouldn't survive.

Having dealt with this excess, Qin Lang immediately joined forces with Bu Lianshi, instantly inflicting heavy injuries on the third-level youth. By the time the youth who had been knocked back by Qin Lang's first punch rushed back, he was faced with one teammate severely injured and the other on the verge of death.

"You... you..." The two conscious third-level youths looked at Qin Lang and Bu Lianshi as if they were seeing vengeful ghosts, their faces filled with disbelief. The only youth still capable of fighting had no courage left to continue.

"We'll give you all our Spirit Cores, please, just let us go!" the youth immediately knelt on the ground, begging loudly, his face full of terror.

Qin Lang and Bu Lianshi, panting, turned to look at Lin Chuan, who had been watching the show. Without realizing it, they had already come to view Lin Chuan as the leader of their group.

"Take the Spirit Cores, and let's go," Lin Chuan said softly.

He was no murderer; there was no need to kill them all. Of course, if these people didn't know what was good for them, he wouldn't be soft-hearted. The "saintly" type was better off existing only in legends; such a trait was not suited for survival in this cruel world.

After collecting the Spirit Cores handed over by the youth, Qin Lang took a look. There were only a few third-level cores, and most were second-level—a far cry from what they already possessed. The lowest-level Spirit Beasts they had hunted these past few days were third-level, with some powerful ones being fourth-level. Lin Chuan had even specifically hunted fifth-level Spirit Beasts to consume their cores. Although most were consumed, having seen better, Qin Lang had long since lost interest in such low-level items.

"Let's go!" Lin Chuan waved at Qin Lang and Bu Lianshi, then turned and left.

The two behind him immediately followed, happily playing the role of little followers. They handed over the Spirit Cores they had just collected, and the three soon disappeared into the forest.

"Could that white-haired youth be the strongest among them?" the severely injured youth muttered to himself, watching the three walk away in fear.

"It really seems so..." the other youth swallowed hard, speaking with difficulty.

Not far from the previous battle, under a large tree.

"You did well just now. At the very least, you knew to knock one person out of the fight, quickly finish off the weakest one, and then combine forces to severely injure a third-level opponent. You've both improved a lot over these past few days, and not just in terms of combat power!" Lin Chuan said with a smile, reaching out to pat Bu Lianshi on the head.

"That's for sure! My strength is already top-tier among those at the third level of the Qi Refining Stage. Even against a fourth-level opponent, I have the power to fight back!" Qin Lang said smugly, a rich smile on his face.

Bu Lianshi also nodded, smiling in response to Lin Chuan's head-pat. She was quite satisfied with her own performance; although she wasn't as strong as Qin Lang, she had done the best she could at her current cultivation level, and she felt genuinely happy about her progress.

"Honestly, I think our group's strength could reach the top five out of the hundred-plus groups that entered this time. Basically, as long as we don't run into powerful Spirit Beasts, the danger is minimal," Qin Lang said happily. As for powerful Spirit Beasts above the seventh level of the Qi Refining Stage, with Lin Chuan's sneaky Byakugan, nothing was a problem.

"How much do you know about the other groups?" Lin Chuan asked.

The former Lin Chuan had never cared about such things, remaining completely immersed in his own world until the day he died, having lost all hope for this world—until he transmigrated here.

But at that time, there was only half a month left before the assessment, and he had to devote all his energy to cultivation, so he didn't know much about the affairs of the Lin Clan.

"Overall, there are a few strong groups. Some of them have broken through to the sixth level of the Qi Refining Stage, and one person has even reached the seventh level—even you, Lin Chuan, wouldn't be a match for them! But with you around, reaching the top five is definitely no problem," Qin Lang said after some thought.

Lin Chuan nodded and said nothing more, instead activating his Byakugan to scan the surroundings for danger. Suddenly, his gaze sharpened and landed on the site of the previous battle.

The area had turned into a slaughterhouse; three corpses lay scattered in pieces. They were the three who had fought Qin Lang and Bu Lianshi. At this moment, another group of three stood beside the corpses, and the youth leading them possessed a dense amount of spiritual energy in his dantian—he had clearly reached the sixth level of the Qi Refining Stage.