I Have Experience Killing You

Elsewhere.

Ning Xinyao pressed a hand to her forehead at Li Yang's words.

Her junior brother's attitude toward fiends was terrifyingly extreme.

Even if that's what you think, you can't just say it so casually!

She immediately moved to stop Xuan Shi.

But the next instant, several female cultivators blocked her path.

"Fellow Daoist, your junior brother has quite a way with words, so we'd like to exchange a few moves with his senior sister."

Those female cultivators had tried striking up conversations with Xuan Shi and been insulted by Li Yang. That was why they wanted to stop Ning Xinyao from coming to his rescue.

"Junior brother, you'll have to pray for your own good fortune."

Li Yang, meanwhile, showed no fear whatsoever. Instead, he laughed.

"Excellent! I was just worrying that you wouldn't commit any crimes, leaving me without a reason to kill you. But now that you want to kill me, you deserve to die, whether or not you secretly practice evil arts!"

Xuan Shi had met plenty of arrogant, insolent people. He was one himself.

But this was the first time he had encountered someone even more arrogant than he was.

"Do you know what it felt like the first time I killed someone?" Xuan Shi raised a hand. Demonic patterns crawled across his pale arm, transforming it into a razor-sharp demonic claw. "My hand got stuck between their ribs, and I couldn't pull it out. Blood sprayed all over my face, but the sensation was exhilarating."

Li Yang raised his Spirit Sword.

"Then you really are useless. The first time I killed someone, I felt nothing but satisfaction, and I still do. Slaughtering fiends like you gives me no sense of guilt. On the contrary, it makes my Dao heart ever more complete."

"Hmph! What I was actually trying to tell you was-I'm good at close combat too!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Xuan Shi became a demonic shadow and lunged.

Li Yang swept his sword across.

Clang!

Li Yang was driven back, his arm numb.

Fighting a Foundation Establishment Middle Stage Demon Scion while only at the peak of Qi Refining was still too much of a stretch.

But a notch had appeared in Xuan Shi's demonic claw as well.

"Your sword is sharp. I now believe you've indeed slaughtered countless people. Otherwise, your attacks couldn't be bolstered by such dense killing intent.

"But you should have felt it. The instant we clashed, I devoured a little of your energy.

"The Heaven-Devouring Devil Palace doesn't cultivate the Dao of slaughter, but killing intent can be devoured too!"

To that.

Li Yang offered only one reply.

"You talk too much!"

The two immediately clashed again.

At first glance, Li Yang appeared to be completely overwhelmed by Xuan Shi.

But anyone with a discerning eye could see that Li Yang was merely avoiding direct clashes, fighting as he retreated to relieve some of the pressure.

Although he was wounded, Xuan Shi bore even more sword cuts.

Yet Xuan Shi was in no hurry either.

With every exchange, his Demonizing Claw unleashed the Spirit-Devouring Hand, biting off chunks of Li Yang's killing intent and spiritual energy.

Weakening his opponent while strengthening himself-that was his fighting style and his advantage.

He admitted that the sword cultivator before him was indeed powerful.

Not only was every strike heavy and forceful, but his sword also came from fiendishly tricky angles.

Had they been at the same cultivation level, he truly wouldn't have been confident of winning.

Looking back, he had indeed been too confident in trying to take the man as a follower.

But Li Yang keenly caught that fleeting moment of distraction.

He immediately stopped retreating, stepped forward instead, and thrust his sword.

He had seized the instant Xuan Shi extended his claw, making it difficult for his opponent to dodge.

But by the same token, he could barely evade the demonic claw himself.

Shhk-shhk!

Xuan Shi's demonic claw shattered Li Yang's shoulder first.

But Li Yang's Spirit Sword also plunged savagely into Xuan Shi's lower abdomen.

"Heh." Xuan Shi laughed. "What a reckless way to fight. But you're wrong-my dantian isn't something you can cripple with a single stab!"

The moment he finished speaking.

An unparalleled suction suddenly erupted from the dantian in his abdomen.

The spiritual energy inside Li Yang poured out wildly, flowing into his opponent's dantian.

His Spirit Sword was also caught by the suction, unable to move.

Yet Xuan Shi could see no panic on Li Yang's face.

Rather than defending his own dantian, Li Yang actively cooperated with the suction, feeding spiritual energy into Xuan Shi's dantian.

Xuan Shi realized something was wrong.

"Why is your spiritual energy red..." His expression changed as he sensed what was happening inside him. "Killing intent!"

Xuan Shi's dantian already held a considerable accumulation of killing intent and spiritual energy devoured through the Spirit-Devouring Hand during their earlier exchanges.

And now Li Yang's killing intent was pouring madly into it along the Spirit Sword.

His constitution allowed him to rapidly absorb and refine ordinary energy.

But killing intent wasn't pure energy. It was more a razor-sharp manifestation of intent.

Killing intent couldn't be absorbed.

"I've actually killed some people from your Heaven-Devouring Devil Palace. Their main method of cultivation was devouring mortals' essence, vitality, and blood. So I have experience killing you too!" Li Yang's voice was icy.

Rather than resisting the suction holding his Spirit Sword, he thrust it fiercely forward.

That immense killing intent far exceeded the cultivation of someone at the peak of Qi Refining.

Now all of it flooded into Xuan Shi.

Sword Qi intertwined with the killing intent inside him, forming countless blades of sword light that erupted within his body.

"You...!"

Xuan Shi lashed out with his claw, intent on crushing Li Yang's head.

Gashes had already opened all over his body. Soon, he would be torn to pieces.

Shhk!

When the suction vanished, Li Yang jerked his sword upward. Its edge cut from bottom to top, emerging through the crown of Xuan Shi's head.

Xuan Shi's Demonizing Claw stopped dead less than an inch from Li Yang's skull.

"Next time, it'll be your real body!"

Li Yang's voice was icy.

On the training grounds.

Xuan Shi's eyes snapped open, towering waves of demonic energy erupting from his body.

He still had magical treasures he hadn't used and secret arts he hadn't unleashed, yet he had been killed in such a humiliating fashion.

He suddenly turned toward Li Yang's real body, seated cross-legged, his eyes brimming with murderous ferocity.

"Damn sword cultivator!"

Li Yang now had less than a tenth of his strength remaining.

Yet as he stood there with his sword in hand, not a single person dared meet his eyes.

This was a truly ruthless man.

Not only had he dared humiliate Xuan Shi, but he had also slain him with overwhelming force.

"Who exactly is this sword cultivator?"

"Even if Xuan Shi didn't use any magical treasures, this man is only at the peak of Qi Refining!"

"No wonder he's so conceited. He has the makings of someone who could tower above all others!"

Soon.

Only the final thirty people remained within the battlefield realm.

Li Yang successfully secured a place as a guard.

No one dared underestimate this sword cultivator at the peak of Qi Refining again.

Even the head of the White Household looked at him with newfound regard and awe.

"These are your guard tokens. Please keep them safe."

After the others left, Li Yang and the other twenty-nine selected cultivators received their White Household guard tokens.

Although Xuan Shi had been eliminated.

He soon paid a price to purchase a guard token from a female cultivator.

The head of the White Household merely turned a blind eye.

"Miss, the immortal masters are attending to important business on the training grounds. If you get caught up in it, even a hundred lives wouldn't be enough for this servant to atone!"

Everyone turned toward the voice.

They saw a beautiful young woman approaching from beyond the western gate, around sixteen years old.

She wore a plain brocade dress and looked fresh and lovely even without makeup.

Her beautiful eyes blinked, bright and lively, as she cast a curious glance their way.

But when she saw everyone looking at her, her expression turned shy.