Not Killing You Is My Welcome Gift

Su Hao's words made the others freeze, wariness filling their eyes. Indeed, a newly inducted disciple from a dump like the Eastern Gate who dared speak to them like this had to have something to rely on.

"What backing do you have?" Though wary, Zhang Yuan could not help asking curiously.

"To be honest, I am the reincarnation of the Devil Master, one of the Nine Great Immortal Emperors of the Immortal Realm. Great fortune rests upon me. Offend me, and heaven will strike you down with thunder and lightning," Su Hao said with a perfectly straight face.

"Damn it!"

Zhang Yuan flew into a rage, and the wariness in his heart vanished at once. This brat was spouting blatant lies without even batting an eye.

"Alas, I speak the truth, yet no one believes me." Su Hao shook his head and sighed. "The whole world is drunk, while I alone am sober!"

Zhang Yuan gritted his teeth, his face twisting viciously. "Brat, you dare toy with me? Get down!"

As his voice fell, he pointed forward with one hand. A sharp sword light immediately appeared, carrying terrifying edge as it stabbed straight for Su Hao's energy sea.

He meant to cripple him.

To a cultivator, the energy sea was more important than life itself.

Zhang Yuan's attack was vicious. He wanted Su Hao to suffer a fate worse than death.

"Courting death!"

Lin Yaoyao shouted, and the purple broadsword in his hand whistled out amid a raging gale, colliding with the incoming golden longsword.

Pfft!

Yet after a single clash, Lin Yaoyao staggered back, blood spraying straight from his mouth.

Zhang Yuan sneered. "I am at the fifth level of Energy Condensation. Besides, the sword in my hand is no low-grade spirit artifact—it is a mid-grade spirit artifact, the Golden Snake Sword! Killing the likes of you in seconds is nothing."

With that, a vicious smile appeared on his face. He pointed again, and the golden sword curved nimbly through the air. Sword light burst forth like a spirit serpent exhaling, shooting straight toward Su Hao's energy sea.

The gale surged, and killing intent filled the air!

"You're nothing but trash from the Eastern Gate. Today, I'll cripple you."

The others nearby folded their arms and sneered, already imagining Su Hao sprawled on the ground, wailing in agony.

Su Hao's expression slowly changed. He glanced at Lin Yaoyao, who lay on the ground vomiting blood, and his eyes gradually turned cold. "What I hate most is people laying hands on my brothers."

Clang!

As the longsword stabbed toward him, Su Hao raised his broken sword and blocked it with flawless precision. Countless cracks appeared across the broken blade.

The gap between a low-grade spirit artifact and a mid-grade spirit artifact, whether in material or power, was immense.

"So what if I did?" Zhang Yuan sneered, utterly unconcerned. He silently recited an incantation, and the Golden Snake Sword accelerated, stabbing at Su Hao again and again.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The sounds of metal striking metal rang out without pause, sparks flying in all directions. More and more cracks spread across Su Hao's black iron sword, like shattered porcelain that would split into pieces with the first gust of wind.

Yet even as he defended, Su Hao advanced step by step, steadily closing in on his opponent. The chill in his eyes grew ever denser.

"Kill!"

All of a sudden, he shouted and abruptly sped up. The stabbing longsword collided with the broken sword once more, and with a crack, the broken sword snapped and shattered completely.

The Golden Snake Sword was knocked back as well.

At the instant the broken sword shattered, Su Hao's expression suddenly changed, as though something unexpected had happened. But he paid it no heed. With a sweep of his sleeve, he pushed his speed to the limit and charged straight at Zhang Yuan.

"Hmph, so what if you get close? I'm at the fifth level of Energy Condensation. One punch is enough to kill you!" Zhang Yuan sneered. In his eyes, dealing with Su Hao was no more difficult than crushing an ant with a raised hand.

He was not the only one who thought so. Everyone around them felt the same. How could a newly inducted disciple possibly be a match for a swordsmanship genius?

Zhang Yuan even stopped using the Golden Snake Sword and instead threw out his fist.

At that moment, Su Hao arrived as well and roared, "Bare your fangs and brandish your claws, and I'll break your claws and smash your dog mouth!"

Boom!

Their fists collided, blasting out a surge of air. The wind howled like a roaring azure dragon.

Stomp, stomp, stomp!

After that punch, someone cried out miserably and staggered back, blood pouring from his fist.

It was Zhang Yuan!

The sight caught the surrounding people completely off guard. For a moment, they stood frozen, unable to react, unable to believe what they were seeing.

A fourth-level Energy Condensation cultivator had shattered the fist of a fifth-level Energy Condensation cultivator with one punch?

Not only them—even Zhang Yuan himself was stunned. His fist had been shattered by a newcomer at the fourth level of Energy Condensation?

But this was only the beginning. After throwing that punch, Su Hao became even faster. As he took a great stride forward, he raised his fist again, strength erupting from it like a mountain flood bursting loose.

The second punch!

Crack!

Zhang Yuan's teeth shattered beneath Su Hao's fist, blood spraying everywhere. The pain made tears and snot stream down his face as he shrieked like a slaughtered pig.

After two punches, Su Hao still did not stop. He advanced like a giant, the earth trembling beneath his steps as terrifying cracks split open and sand and stones shot into the sky.

The third punch carried even greater force—Su Hao's utmost burst of power—and struck squarely at Zhang Yuan's head.

Boom!

Zhang Yuan was sent flying backward, blood blurring his vision. His head spun as though it had been struck by a giant iron hammer, on the verge of exploding.

Only after a long while did he regain some awareness, but he lacked even the strength to crawl to his feet. He could not even summon a magical artifact, and could only roar weakly yet viciously, "Hit him! Beat him to death!"

Only then did the people around him react. All of them flew into a rage and charged forward at high speed. From every direction, spiritual power surged, stirring up terrifying gales.

No one who entered a second-tier Immortal Sect was ordinary. Though these people were young, all possessed the cultivation of the fourth level of Qi Condensation and had mastered their own signature spells. Wind, rain, thunder, and lightning struck at once.

"Fire!"

Su Hao showed no fear. He opened his mouth, and a fire dragon surged forth, its blazing flames sweeping in every direction and incinerating all in their path.

The temperature of heaven and earth skyrocketed in that instant. Within the limited space, it felt as though they had been thrown into a raging furnace!

Under the searing heat of the flames, those rushing forward recoiled in horror. They felt that if they came any closer, they would be burned into charcoal.

Everyone looked at Su Hao, no longer daring to underestimate him in the slightest. This newly arrived youth was terrifying—his cultivation could crush even those at the fifth level of Qi Condensation.

"Remember this next time: don't provoke me. I won't kill you today—consider it a gift for our first meeting!"

Su Hao shouted coldly. A final spark flew out and landed between Zhang Yuan's legs. The flames ignited his clothes and scorched his flesh. Zhang Yuan, who had already been limp and feeble, let out a shriek. His face turned purple with pain as he shot high into the air, racing away with a tail of flames behind him.

"It's burning! It's burning! My... treasure!" His miserable howl stretched into a long trailing note.

The scent of singed hair lingered at the scene.

"Hahaha!"

Lin Yaoyao climbed to his feet, casually wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, and could not help bursting into laughter as he watched Zhang Yuan flee in a wretched state.

"Let's go."

Su Hao called out and left directly with Lin Yaoyao.

After the broken sword shattered, a streak of sword light had slipped into his body without a sound. It caused no harm, seeming instead to rely on him for survival.

"Could it be a sword soul?" Su Hao was surprised. Some powerful magical artifacts could condense a soul, gain intelligence, and even gradually cultivate themselves, becoming demons or immortals.