Already Third Rank?

Lin Mo walked toward Xu Xiaodao.

Xu Xiaodao struggled to his feet, bracing himself for battle.

At this point, any thought of escape was hopeless.

After burning his blood essence and suffering severe injuries, his combat strength had already plummeted.

Yet even now, he still couldn't believe how strong Lin Mo before him had become.

"Who the hell are you? How can you be this strong?"

"That, I have you to thank for."

Stopping three meters in front of Xu Xiaodao, Lin Mo spoke in a low voice.

A faint arc curled at the corner of his mouth.

"You... could it be..."

Suddenly, Xu Xiaodao's eyes went wide.

Had this kid swallowed the Thunder Bead?

No, that couldn't be right. While the Thunder Bead could amplify combat power, the boost right after ingestion wouldn't be this ridiculous.

At most, it increased strength by fifty percent.

He himself was a Peak Fourth Rank fighter, and after burning his blood essence, he could even match a Fifth-grade Martial Artist.

Even if Lin Mo had swallowed the Thunder Bead, there was no way his combat power could be this monstrous.

But Lin Mo wasn't about to let him say more.

Xu Xiaodao had silenced the informant to keep the Thunder Bead a secret.

Likewise, Lin Mo didn't want Xu Xiaodao revealing anything about it.

That thing was his trump card—he couldn't afford to expose it too much.

So whether for revenge or to seal his lips, Xu Xiaodao had to die.

Xu Xiaodao only felt a blur before his eyes as Lin Mo's hand clamped around his throat.

"You... ghhk..."

In an instant, Xu Xiaodao's face turned purple, and he couldn't utter a single word.

"When you set out to harm us, you should have been ready for the consequences."

"Crack!"

Lin Mo's fingers tightened, and the crisp sound of snapping bone rang out.

Xu Xiaodao's neck twisted to the side, his pupils dilating rapidly as he lost all signs of life in an instant.

Xu Xiaodao, dead.

The others nearby were startled as well.

"This kid sure doesn't hesitate to kill," Wang Xiao thought to himself, watching.

Zhang Junjie and the others were somewhat dazed. A Peak Fourth Rank martial artist, just dead like that?

And killed by Lin Mo?

Was this still the same Xiao Bai they used to know?

Still, their hatred for Xu Xiaodao brought them a wave of relief.

If not for Lin Mo, they might have all been killed by Xu Xiaodao earlier.

Lin Mo searched Xu Xiaodao's body but found nothing of value.

Come to think of it, a lone cultivator like him—what treasures could he possibly have?

So Lin Mo stood up and walked over to Zhang Junjie and the others.

"Good kid, how did you escape the Wolf King's pursuit?"

Zhang Junjie gave Lin Mo a bear hug, asking with curiosity.

"Don't even mention it. I ran until my legs gave out. Luckily, I stumbled into a mud pit and hid inside—barely made it out alive."

Pointing at the mud stains on his clothes, Lin Mo shrugged with a wry smile.

"A mud pit? Right, hiding in one could mask your aura."

Hearing this, the group understood.

"Is that so? Then what was that glowing ball that guy threw? Why did it make the Wolf King chase you?"

Wang Ling asked curiously at this point.

"I have no idea. I tossed it halfway. If I hadn't, I doubt I'd be seeing you all now."

"Makes sense. Haha, as long as you're fine."

"It was great teaming up with you all, but I have something to take care of, so I need to leave early."

Lin Mo let out a chuckle and spoke again.

"Ah? You're leaving already?"

Hearing this, Wang Ling felt reluctant to part.

Lin Mo nodded, an apologetic look on his face.

With him gone, the rest of them would have to find another person and start over, rebuilding their synergy.

"Lin Mo, these are the spoils from our previous missions—all for you. If it weren't for you, we'd probably all have been done for this time."

Zhang Junjie walked over at that moment, handing over a backpack stuffed full of Datura Flowers and some materials they'd gathered.

Lin Mo looked at him in surprise, then glanced at the other four.

He found everyone smiling back at him—even Qin Bufan, with that face that never seemed to crack a smile.

Even Guo Hong was doing his best to keep a smile on his face, though it looked painfully awkward.

"I appreciate the thought, but I'll just take my share."

Lin Mo smiled, and before Zhang Junjie or the others could say a word, he took his own portion and stuffed it into his backpack.

"But..."

"Lin Mo, doing this makes us all feel bad."

The others stepped forward again.

"Enough. We're teammates who trust each other—I just did what I had to do.

I believe that if any of you were in trouble, you wouldn't stand by and watch either."

With that, Lin Mo waved his hand and left with Wang Xiao.

Before leaving, Wang Xiao gave the group a long, meaningful look and pressed a personal business card into their hands.

"If you ever run into trouble, call me on this private line. As long as it's within my ability, I'll do what I can to help."

These people had earned Lin Mo's approval—seemed like decent folks.

Wang Xiao didn't mind giving them a hand.

Clutching Wang Xiao's personal card, they watched Lin Mo and the others walk away.

Zhang Junjie and the rest stood there in silence for a long time.

"Director Wang actually gave us his private number."

After a while, Wang Ling broke the silence.

The others' faces lit up with surprise.

Who was Wang Xiao? How much power did he wield? They had some idea.

Tying themselves to someone like that was a huge opportunity for cultivators like them, who had no backing.

Of course, they understood perfectly well.

It was all because of Lin Mo.

"We're lucky—we met Lin Mo."

"Yeah."

Zhang Junjie's words met with unanimous agreement.

As for Xu Xiaodao's corpse, it just lay there quietly, ignored.

No one spared it a second glance.

The martial artist world was cold and cruel like that.

If you planned to do someone dirty, you had to be ready for their retaliation.

Inside the city, there were rules and laws to hold things in check.

But out in the wild, life was worthless—like weeds.

It wasn't until the River City Military Department patrol arrived that they asked a few questions and quickly disposed of the body.

Inside the Martial Artist Building, in the testing room.

Wang Xiao stood with his mouth hanging open, staring at Lin Mo like a wooden chicken.

Beside him, on the massive screen, Southern Province Commander Lu Li and Second High School Principal Yang Ziqing both had their eyes wide open, rising abruptly in shock.

After Wang Xiao brought Lin Mo back, he needed to prepare the paperwork and arrange another live-streamed test for tomorrow, since he was taking Lin Mo to the Martial Alliance Training Camp.

The Southern Province Commander and the principal of Lin Mo's school both had to be online to confirm the handover.

After all, once Lin Mo entered the training camp, he wouldn't need to take the college entrance exam—he'd be directly participating in the internal selection.

Those who passed would go straight to Martial University without retaking the exam.

So Lin Mo's school principal had to be present to verify the transfer.

Of course, being able to enter the Martial Alliance Training Camp meant the school itself would receive direct commendation from Southern Province.

This was an even greater honor than getting first place in the college entrance exam.

Yang Ziqing was naturally thrilled when he first got this news.

He cheerfully watched Lin Mo's test online alongside his old superior.

But who could have guessed—the test results instantly knocked their jaws to the floor!

"Th-this, he's already at Third Grade?"