Foreigners

Besides this cultivator at the sixth level of the Qi Refining Stage, two others stood by his side. They appeared to be in the same group, but their cultivation levels were significantly lower, both at only the first level of the Qi Refining Stage, and they were quite weak even for that level.

"Trash! I told you to track the scent, and you lead me to a group that's already been crippled by someone else? They don't have a single Spirit Core on them. What's the point of killing them? What a waste of my energy!" The speaker was the cultivator at the sixth level of the Qi Refining Stage. Before his voice had even faded, he kicked one of his companions, sending the youth flying over ten meters until he slammed hard into the ground, showing no restraint whatsoever.

The youth did not look very old, but he was exceptionally tall. If Lin Chuan hadn't known that there couldn't be anyone here over ten years old, he would have mistaken him for an adult, as the boy already stood at 1.8 meters tall.

"Young Master Yan, the scent I picked up was definitely in this direction. This group must have just been robbed, which is why they have no Spirit Cores. The people who robbed them haven't gone far; I can still smell them!" The youth who had been kicked rolled a few times on the ground, his body covered in bloody scrapes, before climbing back up to speak.

"Trash, why aren't you leading the way? Are you waiting for them to run off?" Yan Kang cursed angrily and kicked the other person standing beside him.

The tall boy sniffed the air lightly, took the lead, and quickly disappeared from the battlefield with the other two, leaving only piles of corpses behind. The direction they were heading was exactly where Lin Chuan and his two companions were resting.

"It seems we are about to encounter the top-five team you mentioned!" Lin Chuan said, his eyes narrowing slightly and his expression turning grim.

"What do you see? Is that powerful team coming this way?" Qin Lang asked in surprise, looking around in all directions.

Because Lin Chuan's Byakugan possessed a 360-degree field of vision, the direction he faced was often not the direction he was actually observing. Qin Lang had several times followed Lin Chuan's gaze only to find nothing, while the prey actually appeared behind Lin Chuan, forcing him to scan every direction when observing.

"Right where you fought earlier. They killed the three people you were battling and are now heading toward us. One of them seems to have an extremely keen sense of smell and can track our trail!" Lin Chuan said in a low voice.

"A keen sense of smell?" Bu Lianshi was immediately startled, then asked with somewhat rapid breathing, "Is it a very tall youth with only first-level Qi Refining cultivation, accompanied by someone at the sixth level?"

"That's right! Do you have information on them?" Lin Chuan asked. He felt no sympathy for this group from the bottom of his heart; not only did they kill three people who were already defenseless, but the way the sixth-level youth treated his companions made him feel deeply repulsed.

"Yes, I've heard others talk about that group!" Bu Lianshi said, frowning. "The youth at the sixth level is named Yan Kang. His talent is said to be quite good. Among the youths in his group, the tall one is named Faye, and he is from an alien race! The other youth's talent is also said to be decent."

"But as you've noticed, in their group, apart from Yan Kang's strength reaching the sixth level, the others are only at the first level. This is entirely because Yan Kang seized the cultivation resources of those two, using everything the group could have utilized on himself alone. That is how Yan Kang achieved a cultivation level far beyond the others today."

Lin Chuan's expression turned gloomy. This approach might seem like a way to rapidly increase one person's combat power, but the end result was far from pleasant. Judging by the current plight of the other two, it was clear this was pure exploitation and oppression, forcing them to risk their lives for him without treating them as partners at all.

"Hmph, people like that won't go far. If you don't cherish your partners, one day you will die under someone else's blade. No one will feel sorrow for your death, and no one will stand up for you. Such a person deserves to die!" Qin Lang said suddenly with anger, his face turning red as if he had been triggered by something.

Lin Chuan glanced at the agitated Qin Lang, lowered his head to ponder for a moment, and said, "Then how about we stay and meet this Yan Kang?"

"Are you confident you can handle this Yan Kang?" Qin Lang asked in surprise.

"Sixth level of the Qi Refining Stage—it won't be difficult to deal with!" Lin Chuan shrugged. This was the highest cultivation level he could currently handle; any higher, and he would have to take Qin Lang and Bu Lianshi and run.

Gentle Fist was not invincible. As a powerful close-quarters taijutsu of the Hyuga clan, although Lin Chuan could use the power of the Byakugan to directly damage an opponent's internal organs and meridians, he had to be able to strike the opponent's body to do so.

Cultivators who reached the seventh level of the Qi Refining Stage already had enough strength to evade Lin Chuan's attacks. Furthermore, as a person's cultivation level increased, their internal organs and meridians gradually became stronger. Although they couldn't be intentionally trained or defended, with Lin Chuan's current strength, it was very difficult to break through the internal defenses of a seventh-level cultivator. Even if he could injure them, it wouldn't have much effect, and it would only make the opponent more cautious of his attacks, making the subsequent battle even more difficult.

An evenly matched opponent is a rare opportunity for training! It just so happens that I've made some modifications to my Gentle Fist over the last two days; I'll test their effectiveness on this Yan Kang! Lin Chuan thought to himself.

"By the way, what's the deal with that alien named Faye?" Lin Chuan asked with some curiosity.

"He has the bloodline of the ancient barbarian tribes; he isn't a pure human. It is said that the bodies of these aliens are extremely powerful, but their aptitude for immortal cultivation is quite poor, so they can only practice martial arts. It's fine in the early stages, but in the later stages, any random cultivator can cause them great harm," Qin Lang explained.

"A strong body? And poor aptitude for cultivation?" Lin Chuan's eyebrows arched slightly, and his heart stirred. This reminded him of someone in Naruto—the person who stood at the pinnacle by practicing only taijutsu.

After a moment of contemplation, Lin Chuan said nothing more, instead turning his gaze toward a certain direction. In the vision of the Byakugan, the three of them had already arrived.

Yan Kang narrowed his eyes when he saw the three of them, feeling a bit puzzled.

In his view, the people capable of taking the Spirit Cores from the previous group shouldn't have such low cultivation levels. What surprised him even more was that the three of them didn't look shocked at all upon seeing them arrive; instead, they faced their direction as if they had known they were coming and were waiting for them.

Especially the white-haired, white-eyed youth sitting in the middle. The moment Yan Kang saw him, he felt a sense of being seen through, but upon realizing the opponent was only at the first level of the Qi Refining Stage, he let out a cold snort and ignored him.

"What? Trying to rob our Spirit Cores, you..." Qin Lang's words were cut off by Yan Kang.

"Kill you, and the Spirit Cores will naturally be mine! Move!"