Chapter 464 - 445: Kill, Kill, Kill!!
Su Ling’er was completely stunned. She stared at the tips of her toes, her mind a tangled mess.
’What just happened? What... what is going on? What am I doing?’
A moment ago, those steel blades were about to tear her limb from limb. The next, both sides had inexplicably returned to their starting positions.
Not only that, but her body was in an extremely humiliating state.
She found herself repeating a single motion.
Shrug.
Sink.
Shrug.
Sink.
It was as if a pair of invisible, giant hands were forcing her to perform a breathing exercise.
’What am I doing?’
’Why is my body bobbing up and down like I’ve contracted some strange illness? Am I trying to provoke the enemy?’
’On this battlefield, I’m demonstrating a Breathing Skill to a group of Evil Cultivators who don’t even have any Cultivation?’
’Should I unleash "Breath of the Maid" to scare them to death?’
Su Ling’er looked across at the enemy.
The sight made her jaw drop.
The dozens of black-clothed guards opposite her were also breathing in the exact same posture.
’What the hell is this? Is "Synchronized Breathing" this year’s new trend? They’re not even taking advantage of the situation. What a polite Breathing Skill.’
Their steel blades were still unsheathed as the dozens of burly men stood in a horizontal line.
They too were endlessly shrugging.
And sinking.
HUUUH—HAAA—!
HUUUH—HAAA—!
The guests watching from a distance were all slack-jawed.
Some rubbed their eyes, wondering if they’d fallen victim to some kind of Enchanting Smoke.
’Is this a fight to the death?’
’This is clearly a contest of lung capacity!’
’What... what kind of Demon Technique is this?’
Cold sweat beaded on the lead guard’s forehead. He desperately tried to lift the blade in his hand, but his body wouldn’t obey anything but that damn breathing rhythm.
Because it was not yet his turn to act.
Meanwhile, a storm was raging in Su Ling’er’s heart.
’Of course I can’t move, but why can’t they move either?’
’Could it be...’
The corner of her eye drifted toward the calm figure seated behind her.
Eldest Senior Brother remained as steady as a mountain, even lifting his teacup to gently skim the foam from its surface.
’That’s it!’
’Eldest Senior Brother must be behind all of this!’
’But this method of control... isn’t it a bit too humiliating?’
’Why make me gasp up and down just like them?!’
’Couldn’t he just kill this group of Evil Cultivators who have no Cultivation?’
’Is Eldest Senior Brother trying to humiliate them?’
’Does he want to crush the enemy’s spirit first, making them feel despair and regret in their helpless fury, before delivering the final, thunderous blow?’
’As expected of Eldest Senior Brother. Even when facing these Evil Cultivators with no Cultivation, he still insists on not just killing them, but destroying their will to live!’
「On the high platform.」
The purple-robed old man pointed at the guards below and cursed.
"Bastards! What are you all doing?!"
"You had your blades at their necks! Why did you retreat? Huh?! Why did you retreat?!"
"I pay you to kill people, not to stand there practicing Qi Cultivation!"
"Kill them! What are you doing standing there frozen?! Are you scared of a mere maid and a young master who only knows a few fancy moves?!"
No matter how he roared, the black-clothed guards below remained unmoved, their bodies simply continuing that hypnotic rhythm.
Because their action bars were still fast-forwarding!
HUUUH—HAAA—!
Lin Qingfeng sat in his chair, listening to the rising and falling gasps. The corner of his mouth twitched.
’So this is the so-called "turn-based auto-battle"?’
’I feel like I’d die of impatience waiting for my turn, but it seems perfect for clumsy players.’
’Too bad it’s not for me. Good thing I paid for an upgrade.’
"A bunch of wastes!"
The purple-robed old man finally lost his patience.
This kid from the Lin Family had always been known for nothing but flashy, impractical moves. In the face of overwhelming power, all theatrics were meaningless.
He didn’t want any more delays to cause unexpected problems.
"Since you won’t move, then I’ll send him on his way myself!"
Before his words had even faded, the aura around the purple-robed old man exploded.
His withered body shot into the air, his purple robes billowing in the wind. In an instant, his pair of dried-up hands turned pitch-black, even glowing with a sinister blue light.
Ghost-Hand Mr. Wang!
There was no telling how many lives those poisonous hands had reaped in the martial world. A single scratch was enough to ensure that not even the greatest healer alive could save you.
"Die!"
Mr. Wang’s figure shot past the guards, who were still bobbing up and down. His five fingers formed a claw, aimed straight for Lin Qingfeng’s throat.
The strike was as swift as a thunderbolt.
The guests in the distance only saw a blur, and the deadly, poisonous claw was already closing in on Lin Qingfeng’s face.
’It’s over.’
The same thought flashed through everyone’s mind.
That Mr. Lin was said to have been weak and sickly his whole life. Only after donating all those family heirlooms had his health recently improved, and he’d even learned some basic martial arts. But he was still just sitting in his chair drinking tea, showing no intention of getting up. Faced with a surprise attack from an expert of this caliber, what chance of survival did he have?
However.
The instant Mr. Wang made his move...
Su Ling’er moved.
Finally, her action bar was full. It was her turn!
[Turn 1: Su Ling’er uses [Normal Attack] on the enemy.]
Su Ling’er’s figure suddenly blurred into an afterimage.
The longsword in her hand shot out, a simple thrust aimed straight at an enemy’s throat.
PFFT!
In the blink of an eye, a hole appeared in the chest of a black-clothed guard who was in her path.
Blood splattered.
Having landed the blow, Su Ling’er immediately retreated.
SWOOSH!
The next second, she was back at her starting point, beginning the loading process for her next turn.
Her shoulders began to shrug again.
HUUUH—HAAA—!
HUUUH—HAAA—!
Su Ling’er: "..."
She stared at the fallen guard, on the verge of a mental breakdown.
’No, Eldest Senior Brother, what are you doing? Why did you make me retreat?!’
’I was already in their ranks, wouldn’t it be better to just sweep through them?’
’Eldest Senior Brother, controlling me like this makes me look like some kind of idiot who just pokes once and runs away!’
Meanwhile, Mr. Wang had closed the distance to Lin Qingfeng.
"Break for me!"
Mr. Wang roared. He pushed his Inner Strength to its absolute limit, his pitch-black ghost hand stirring up a foul wind. It was less than three inches from Lin Qingfeng’s neck.
He could even see the fine hairs on Mr. Lin’s face, and those... calm eyes.
They even seemed to hold a hint of... mockery?
Lin Qingfeng held his teacup.
In that moment, the world slowed down in his eyes.
He could clearly see the dirt under Mr. Wang’s fingernails and the savage glee in his eyes, anticipating victory.
But it was too slow.
Lin Qingfeng simply tilted his head slightly.
The ghost hand brushed right past his cheek.
Mr. Wang’s pupils contracted violently.
’He dodged it?’
’How is that possible? How could this be?!’
’At such a close distance, from such a tricky angle, how could a pampered young master from a wealthy family possibly have the ability to dodge that?’
Refusing to believe it, Mr. Wang changed his claw into a palm and swept it backhanded, aiming straight for Lin Qingfeng’s temple.
The change in technique was lightning-fast, and the Inner Strength concentrated in his fingertips represented his life’s work.
CRACK.
A crisp sound rang out.
It was the sound of his palm being intercepted.
Lin Qingfeng’s left hand had risen at some unknown moment, casually clamping down on Mr. Wang’s wrist.
That ghost hand, imbued with decades of sinister, poisonous Inner Strength, was frozen in mid-air, unable to advance another inch.
"You..."
Mr. Wang felt as if his wrist was caught in an iron vise. The force was so great it caused the qi and blood in his own body to stagnate.
He looked at Lin Qingfeng in utter horror.
He saw Mr. Lin, who usually kept his abilities hidden, calmly pull a handkerchief from his sleeve and dab at a bit of water on the corner of his mouth.
"Sir, such a temper is bad for your health."
Lin Qingfeng’s voice was gentle, without a trace of killing intent.
"Since you’re so fond of this hand, why don’t you leave it behind as a souvenir?"
The moment he finished speaking.
𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺
Lin Qingfeng gave a light twist of his wrist.
CRACK!
The sound of shattering bone echoed through the hall.
"AHHH—!!!"
Mr. Wang let out a bloodcurdling scream. His entire right arm had been twisted into a corkscrew, with shards of bone piercing through his purple robe, spraying blood everywhere.
But it wasn’t over.
Lin Qingfeng rose smoothly, using the ruined arm to swing Mr. Wang’s entire body into the air.
BANG!
Mr. Wang’s body slammed directly onto the hard floor, causing the bluestone tiles to crack and shatter.
"PUH!"
Mr. Wang coughed up a mouthful of blood. Before he could even catch his breath, Lin Qingfeng’s foot was already on his chest.
He pressed down.
CRACK.
The sternum collapsed.
Then exploded into a fine mist of blood!
The once-invincible Ghost-Hand Mr. Wang died on the spot, without even a chance to utter his last words.
He didn’t even leave a complete corpse behind.
A dead silence fell.
The guests in the distance forgot to even breathe.
What had they just seen?
Mr. Lin, the one who had donated the artifacts, had single-handedly disabled the long-famous Ghost-Hand Mr. Wang? And then stomped him into a bloody mist!
That composure, that ruthlessness... this was clearly a wolf in sheep’s clothing!
’Was his previous persona all a disguise?’
’So... so this is Mr. Lin’s true face.’
’Hiding his true strength... This is what it means to truly hide one’s strength!’
’The Lin Family was hiding their power all along?! Could it be that everything before was part of some grandmaster plan?!’
All sorts of speculations spread like wildfire through the crowd.
At this moment, the only one who remained "lucid" was Su Ling’er.
Watching Lin Qingfeng stomp that Evil Cultivator with no Cultivation into a bloody mist, the adoration in her eyes was almost palpable.
’Some nobody Evil Cultivator dared to mess with Eldest Senior Brother! As expected, Eldest Senior Brother is the strongest!’
’This is the beacon of righteousness I want to follow!’
Just as Su Ling’er’s internal monologue reached a crescendo and she was about to shout "Eldest Senior Brother is magnificent!", her body suddenly trembled.
[Turn 2: Begin.]
Su Ling’er: "..."
That irresistible force descended upon her once more.
She watched, helpless, as her own body raised its longsword and once again shot forward like an afterimage.
PFFT!
Another guard, his action bar still loading, was stabbed through the throat.
SWOOSH!
Su Ling’er snapped back to her starting point.
Her shoulders shrugged.
HUUUH—HAAA—!
Su Ling’er felt a wave of despair.
’Seriously, Eldest Senior Brother, you’ve already taken out their leader. Can you turn off your Divine Techniques now?!’
’Wouldn’t it be better to just let me finish them all off at once?!’
Lin Qingfeng glanced at his junior sister, still diligently playing her "turn-based" role, then turned his gaze to the terrified black-clothed guards.
He dusted off his robes and decided to encourage his little Palu of a junior sister, who was still stuck in her turn.
"Junior Sister, nice work."
Su Ling’er: ...