He looked at the flower resting quietly in the pond, its pale petals shimmering faintly.

  “Aiva, can you sense anything special?” Lin Chen asked, keeping his guard up.

  [Yes. It contains a vast amount of pure Essence Qi. It is definitely a treasure. You should collect it.]

  “Alright.”

  Lin Chen stepped into the pond—and instantly sucked in a sharp breath.

  “What the hell…?” he thought. “This water is cold as ice.”

  The chill wasn’t normal cold. It bit straight into his bones, creeping through his boots and up his legs. With every step closer to the frost lotus, the temperature dropped further, until even the water’s surface began to crust over with thin layers of ice.

  So this thing is freezing the pond itself.

  When he finally reached out and grasped the lotus, a sharp frost surged into his palm. His fingers stiffened instantly, white frost spreading across his skin.

  “Tch!”

  Lin Chen didn’t hesitate. He plucked the flower in one swift motion and immediately tossed it into his storage ring.

  The freezing pressure vanished at once.

  “Whoo… I feel cold,” he muttered as he hurried out of the pond. Essence Qi surged through his body, evaporating the water and driving the chill away.

  “When I return, I should ask Master what this flower is,” Lin Chen thought, turning slightly as he adjusted his breath.

  Then—

  An arrogant voice cut through the forest.

  “Well done, trash. Now hand over that treasure and get lost.”

  Lin Chen paused.

  He didn’t turn immediately. He just stood there, silent for a moment, as if confirming he had really heard that.

  Then he slowly looked back.

  A young man in white robes stood a short distance away, posture relaxed, expression full of disdain. Two other cultivators stood behind him, clearly acting as attendants. From the way they positioned themselves, it was obvious—they had been watching for a while.

  So that’s how it is.

  Lin Chen exhaled lightly.

  “You waited until I finished the fight,” he said calmly. “Pretty patient.”

  The arrogant youth scoffed. “That lightning beast was troublesome. You did the hard work for me. Consider it your honor.”

  Lin Chen’s eyes narrowed slightly.

  “In the cultivation world,” the youth continued casually, “treasures belong to the strong. You’re injured. I’m not. Hand it over, and I might spare your life.”

  He straightened slightly, arrogance oozing from every word.

  “And I am Wang Qi, a direct disciple of the Heavenly Dao Pavilion,” he declared, his aura flaring with authority.

  “Offend me, and you’ll learn what it means to regret it.”

  Lin Chen sighed.

  'Sigh… it seems I really have to bury these guys.'

  That was the only conclusion he could reach.

  These people clearly weren’t going to leave unless they got the treasure—and there was no chance he was handing it over to this fool.

  Worse, he knew this type all too well. Petty, vindictive, and obsessed with status. Even if Lin Chen defeated them and let them live, this loudmouth would definitely use his ancient sect background later to stir up trouble.

  That would mean endless problems.

  So it was better to deal with it here.

  Cleanly.

  His eyes flicked over the three of them, calmly assessing their strength.

  This Wang Qi was the strongest among them—at the second stage of Pulse Convergence. The other two were clearly just lackeys, barely scraping into the first stage.

  “Oh? So Young Master is from the Heavenly Dao Pavilion?” Lin Chen said, cupping his hands with a flattering smile that looked almost sincere. “Forgive my ignorance. I’ve never seen a disciple from an ancient sect before.”

  Wang Qi's chest puffed up slightly.

  In his eyes, this reaction was only natural. Disciples from first-rate sects were never on the same level as him. Their so-called opportunities? They were things he was meant to take.

  “Hmph,” he snorted. “At least you know your place.”

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  He waved his hand lazily. “Go. Take it from him.”

  One of the lackeys immediately stepped forward, eyes shining with greed. Lin Chen obediently took out the snow lotus and held it in his palm, standing still as if waiting to hand it over.

  The lackey walked right up to him, completely blocking Lin Chen from the view of the other two.

  The arrogant youth waited for the man to turn back with the treasure.

  He didn’t.

  Instead—

  Thud.

  A head hit the ground.

  A heartbeat later, the body followed.

  Wang Qi’s pupils shrank as he realized Lin Chen was no longer in front of him.

  In the next instant, Lin Chen appeared behind them, sword already moving, killing intent sharp and cold.

  The second lackey reacted just in time, drawing his sword and barely blocking the strike. Sparks flew as swords clashed.

  But Lin Chen didn’t press forward.

  Instead, he lifted his foot and kicked viciously upward.

  Crack.

  The kick landed squarely in the groin.

  “AAAAA—!”

  The lackey’s scream was sharp and shrill, his face twisting in agony as his body folded forward. His grip loosened instantly.

  Lin Chen didn’t waste the opening.

  A clean slash.

  Blood sprayed.

  The second lackey collapsed, eyes empty before his body even hit the ground.

  Silence fell.

  Wang Qi staggered back two steps, his expression finally cracking—shock, disbelief mixing together.

  “You—! You dared—!”

  Lin Chen slowly turned to face him, the snow lotus safely stored away, his sword dripping blood.

  “You talk too much,” Lin Chen said calmly. “And you trusted your background too much.”

  He raised his sword slightly, eyes cold.

  “In the cultivation world,” Lin Chen continued, echoing the youth’s own words, “strength decides everything.”

  “Yes—and you’ll die by my hand, trash,” Wang Qi sneered. “Those two were insects. I’m a real Pulse Convergence cultivator.”

  He drew his sword from his storage ring. The swords rang sharply, Qi surging as his aura fully erupted. The pressure alone was enough to make ordinary Essence Forging cultivators kneel.

  “Let’s see who dies,” Lin Chen replied calmly.

  ‘Aiva, support me fully.’

  [Confirmed. Full assistance engaged.]

  Wang Qi moved first.

  His sword flashed, a crescent of Qi tearing through the air straight at Lin Chen’s chest. The strike was fast—decisive—meant to end the fight in one blow.

  Lin Chen vanished.

  'Lightning Phantom Step.'

  The slash carved a trench through the ground where Lin Chen had stood, dirt exploding upward.

  “What—?!”

  Lin Chen reappeared at the youth’s flank, sword already descending.

  Clang!

  Steel met steel. The arrogant youth grunted as the impact forced him back a step. His eyes widened—he hadn’t expected Lin Chen’s strength to rival his own.

  “Impossible. You’re injured!”

  “Yeah,” Lin Chen said, blood still drying at the corner of his mouth. “And you’re still slow.”

  He twisted his wrist.

  “Second Form — Bloodstorm Swordplay.”

  Blood-red Qi surged along his sword, lightning threading through it like veins. Sword shadows bloomed behind him, overlapping and collapsing into a single killing arc.

  The arrogant youth roared and poured all his Qi into defense, sword raised, veins bulging.

  BOOM—!

  The clash detonated.

  The youth was hurled backward, smashing through two trees before crashing into the ground. He coughed violently, blood spraying from his mouth.

  His eyes shook.

  “H-how…?”

  Lin Chen stepped forward, each footstep steady.

  “You made one mistake, you thought Pulse Convergence meant you were untouchable.”

  “And you forgot something else,” Lin Chen said coldly. “Never underestimate your opponents."

  Wang Qi's expression twisted instantly. Veins bulged on his forehead as humiliation and rage flooded his face.

  “How dare a trash from a first-rate sect lecture me!” he roared.

  His aura exploded, a violent storm of Essence Qi ripping outward and shredding the ground beneath his feet as the pressure surged several times over, crashing down like a mountain.

  His robes snapped wildly, killing intent flaring as he snarled, “You forced this—I’ll erase you completely!” Raising his sword, he shot into the air.

  The air behind him trembled.

  Sword-shaped streams of Qi condensed one after another, forming dozens of translucent swords suspended in midair. Each one hummed sharply, vibrating with murderous intent, like a rain of execution waiting to fall.

  “Heavenly sword—Ten Thousand Qi Swords!”

  With a wave of his sword, he sent them crashing forward.

  The sword rain descended like a tidal wave—whistling, shrieking, tearing through trees as if they were paper. The forest ahead was instantly carved apart, trunks exploding, earth splitting open under the barrage.

  Lin Chen’s pupils shrank.

  ‘Aiva.’

  [Calculating optimal evasion and counter.]

  Lightning flared around Lin Chen’s legs.

  “Lightning Phantom Step!”

  He vanished just as the first wave struck.

  BOOM—BOOM—BOOM!

  The ground where he stood moments ago was shredded into a crater. Sword Qi tore through the area relentlessly, leaving nothing intact.

  Lin Chen reappeared midair, narrowly dodging another cluster of swords. One grazed his shoulder, slicing flesh and sending blood spraying.

  “Tch—!”

  He gritted his teeth and twisted his body, landing hard on a broken tree trunk.

  Wang Qi laughed wildly. “Run! Run as much as you want! You can’t escape!”

  More Qi swords formed, even denser than before.

  Lin Chen exhaled slowly.

  “So this is an ancient sect disciple…” he muttered. “Annoying.”

  Lightning surged violently around his sword, blood-red Qi mixing into it as his aura climbed.

  “Then let’s end it.”

  He lifted his sword.

  “Third Form — Final Desolation.”

  The lightning around his sword compressed inward, condensing into a massive crimson sword.

  The youth’s laughter faltered.

  “What—?”

  Lin Chen’s eyes sharpened.

  The sword came down.

  The lightning arc tore forward like a collapsing sky, swallowing the incoming Qi swords whole. One by one, they shattered—crack, crack, crack—before the wave slammed straight toward the arrogant youth.

  His face drained of color.

  “NO—!”

  He raised his arms, pouring every drop of Essence Qi into defense.

  Too late.

  The attack engulfed him.

  The explosion lit up the forest, lightning roaring as the shockwave ripped outward, flattening everything in its path.

  When the light finally faded—

  Only silence remained.

  Lin Chen staggered back a step, chest heaving as he sucked in ragged breaths. His arms felt heavy, his meridians burning.

  Using the Third Form twice in a row… that had pushed him straight to the edge.

  Now, in this state, he doubted he could even defeat a cultivator of the same realm head-on.

  [Your Essence Qi is at seven percent.]

  “I can feel it,” Lin Chen muttered, wiping blood from the corner of his mouth. “That technique is terrifying, but the cost is insane.”

  Still, he glanced at the ruined battlefield and let out a slow breath.

  “At least the danger’s gone.”

  His eyes lit up.

  “And now… looting.”

  He rubbed his hands together and bent down, stripping the storage rings from the two lackeys first. A quick probe of Essence Qi later, his expression froze.

  “…Five thousand high-grade spirit stones each?”

  Ten thousand in total.

  Lin Chen stared at the numbers in silence.

  “Did these guys rob half the realm or what?” he muttered. “That’s more than two years of my savings.”

  Either these idiots had been extorting people nonstop—or ancient sect disciples really lived in a different financial universe.

  Shaking his head, he walked toward the Wang Qi's body.

  “Let’s see what the big shot has—”

  The moment his hand touched the corpse, the body suddenly crumbled, breaking apart into fine particles that scattered into the air like ash.

  Lin Chen’s pupils shrank.

  He froze.

  “…Shit.”

  “He’s alive.”

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