Looking at the hundreds of passive auras in the system, Ling Yi would have been lying if he said he wasn't tempted.
But he had no points right now, and there was nothing he could do about that.
There was also the matter of plot participation. To leave his current plane and travel to other worlds, he had to participate in the plot. As a transmigrator, Ling Yi didn't know the whole plot of The Smiling, Proud Wanderer, but he did know its general course and major events.
The Fuwei Escort Agency had only just been wiped out, and the curtain had only just risen on The Smiling, Proud Wanderer World. There was no rush.
Ling Yi was a little stunned as he looked at the Mount Song Branch's compound. Damn, its gray-brick walls were over ten zhang high, its massive solid-wood gates were painted red, and hundreds of disciples in matching training clothes were practicing sword techniques inside.
There was a magnificent main hall, and the ground was paved entirely with bluestone...
"Good heavens, this is a branch of the Mount Song Sect? What must the main sect look like?" Ling Yi was truly astonished. He looked back at his followers. Compared to these people, weren't they just a bunch of beggars?
Zhao Dongli and the others were a little embarrassed. They were also a little scared and hid behind Ling Yi.
They had been bullied by the Mount Song Sect's disciples so often that the mere sight of them now made them tremble to their bones.
"Pathetic." Ling Yi curled his lip in disdain.
Then he took a deep breath, channeled his internal force, and shouted, "Listen up, you Mount Song Sect scum! I, Ling Yi, am here to challenge your school!"
Boom! One stone had stirred up a thousand waves.
The Mount Song Branch's disciples and the other onlookers alike immediately turned their gazes toward Ling Yi's group.
"Th-those are the people from the Liyang Sect, aren't they? Have they gone mad?"
"Who's that kid? Why is he dressed so strangely?"
"The Liyang Sect is finished this time. We won't have anyone left to bully as we please."
A middle-aged man dressed in close-fitting black clothes stepped out through the red wooden gates.
"Zhao Dongli, how dare you!"
Zhao Dongli shrank back even farther and said nothing.
Ling Yi tilted his head and flicked his watermelon knife. "Are you the one in charge here?"
"And who are you?"
"Me? I just became the leader of the Liyang Sect. I heard your Mount Song Sect has been bullying my followers quite a bit, so I came here today to settle the score."
The man sneered. "It seems you must have some ability. In that case, let me see what you're relying on."
He put his left hand behind his back and raised his right. "Take one palm strike from me without being defeated, and I'll let you go. Otherwise, all of you will stay here and serve the Mount Song Sect as menial workers for ten years."
Ling Yi turned to ask Zhao Dongli, "Who's this guy? Why's he putting on such an act?"
"Uh, Sect Leader, he's Fei Bin, the Great Songyang Hand, one of the Mount Song Sect's ten second-generation experts."
"So you're Fei Bin." Ling Yi hadn't expected to meet a character from the plot of The Smiling, Proud Wanderer.
"Hmph, are you afraid now?" Fei Bin said coldly.
"No, no, no. What I mean is, you're about to get your boxed lunch."
With that, Ling Yi swung his knife...
The instant he raised the watermelon knife, everyone felt their hearts jolt.
An immense pressure descended from the heavens, bearing down on them.
As the knife rose, a stream of scorching air surged in from every direction and converged on Ling Yi!
The next moment, the knife fell, and a giant fire phoenix flew out from it.
"Screech!"
A phoenix's cry rang out, shaking the nine heavens. The lifelike phoenix of flame swept past, trailing a long tail of fire.
Fei Bin was the first in its path. He had no chance to resist and was instantly reduced to sparks and ash that drifted down through the air.
The phoenix continued unabated, sweeping onward and seemingly growing larger as it went. In the blink of an eye, it had reached several zhang in size.
"Boom!"
An explosion rang out, and the earth-shaking blast brought everyone back to their senses.
Following the sound with their eyes, everyone couldn't help drawing a sharp breath.
A trench stretched all the way from the front gate to where the main hall stood. As for the hall itself, it was now a pile of ruins.
One slash had reduced everything to ruins.
Silence reigned. No one present dared make a sound; their throats felt dry and their heads spun.
"That Liyang Sword Technique is pretty fierce. I barely even used any strength." A voice sounded in everyone's ears.
Then they all shuddered.
Damn it, he'd barely used any strength? He'd wiped out their branch compound with one slash, and he'd barely used any strength?
If he used his full strength, wouldn't half the city be gone?
Ling Yi really hadn't expected the Liyang Sword Technique to be so powerful. Even he thought it was outrageous, to say nothing of everyone else.
The remaining Mount Song Sect members trembled. That slash had exceeded their understanding of martial arts and completely shattered their courage.
"You, come here!" Ling Yi pointed his watermelon knife at one of the Mount Song Sect disciples.
"Gah!"
Seeing Ling Yi point the knife at him, the man's mind immediately broke, and he fainted on the spot.
"For fuck's sake..." Ling Yi was speechless. "That's a terrible state of mind."
"You..." The watermelon knife pointed at another man.
"I..." The Mount Song disciple looked ready to faint.
"If you dare faint, I'll swing again."
The man's eyes rolled wildly as he teetered on the edge of unconsciousness, but he finally endured the pressure and stayed awake.
"M-my, my lord, please give me your orders."
"Do you know where the money's kept?"
"The m-money vault? I-I know."
Ling Yi looked at Zhao Dongli. "Go get the money."
Zhao Dongli swallowed. "Isn't... isn't that a bit much?"
"What's wrong with it? They bully you all the time. It's only right and proper for us to take a little money."
Having had enough of poverty, Zhao Dongli didn't want to think so much about it now. With the sect leader, that big shot, backing him up, he could just charge ahead.
Seeing enough gold, silver, and treasure to fill two large carts, Ling Yi was struck by how rich they were. This was only a branch, too. What about the Mount Song Sect's headquarters?
"Let's get it back to the sect first."
"Sect Leader, we don't have enough hands," Zhao Dongli said, both pained and delighted.
"Aren't there plenty of people right here?" Ling Yi said, pointing his knife at the remaining Mount Song Sect disciples.
Zhao Dongli: "..."
You're robbing them and making them help deliver the goods to your door? Isn't that going too far?
"You're all happy to help, aren't you?" Ling Yi said with a grin, his eyes narrowed.
"That's right, we'd be happy to help you, my lord," the Mount Song disciples hurriedly said, rushing over to lend a hand.
Pah! Smiling tiger, hiding a knife behind that smile! You demon, would we dare say no?
After several hours of work, the group finally returned to the Liyang Sect.
Seeing the dilapidated Liyang Sect again, everyone felt as though a lifetime had passed.
Looking at the two large carts piled high with gold and silver, Zhao Dongli and the others still found it hard to believe, as if they were dreaming.
"The sect's buildings are too run-down. We need to repair them, or we'll look far too shabby."
"Yes!"
"There are quite a few abandoned fields around here. Hire people to plant them, at least with some vegetables and fruit. Raise some chickens, ducks, geese, and the like, too. Having to go down the mountain whenever we want some meat is a hassle."
"Yes!"
"Tonight, figure out which sects we'll visit to settle scores tomorrow. Start with the closest and work outward, and put them in order. We'll visit several a day. We're still poor, and this bit of money isn't enough."
"Uh, yes!"
"Didn't we buy two sheep earlier? Slaughter them tonight and roast them whole. You know how to roast a whole sheep, right? You don't? Never mind, then. Go down the mountain tomorrow and bring back a cook."
"Yes!"
"Everyone get up around five tomorrow morning. I'll teach you the Liyang Heart Sutra."
"Really? Sect Leader, you're mighty!"
"You're all too weak. I can't handle everything myself from now on, can I? That would be far too hard on me as sect leader."
"Uh, yes, but Sect Leader, what time is five?"
"...Mao hour, I think. I seem to remember it's Mao hour."
"...Yes!"