The Prodigies War

Watching Lin Xun walk alone toward the enemy ranks, Qing Geng and the others stood frozen. His so-called way of settling things is to walk straight into the tiger’s jaws?

Their expressions grew strange.

“Senior Martial Uncle, why didn’t you stop him?” Fu Yunzi asked anxiously. He could hardly believe that Qing Heng, who had protected Qing Feng for years, would now allow him to walk to his death.

“Just watch,” Qing Heng said quietly. His expression was complicated, but somewhere in his heart, he seemed to understand.

Seeing Lin Xun approach alone, Wen Tuyang and the others burst into laughter once more.

“Qing Heng, I never expected you would abandon your useless junior brother...” Wen Tuyang sneered.

Beside him, the white-haired elder stepped forward in a flash. “I’ll capture him first. Best not let this grow troublesome—”

He never finished the sentence. In the blink of an eye, Lin Xun’s hand was already around his throat. He lifted him effortlessly like he was lifting a chicken by the neck.

“Trouble?” Lin Xun smiled faintly. “Sometimes trouble is a good thing. At least then...you might survive.” His eyes were deep and unfathomable.

The white-haired man’s pupils contracted violently. His face darkened to a purplish hue as he struggled with all his might, but it was useless. He could not summon even the slightest trace of strength.

Silence fell. The Tialing Sect experts who had been laughing moments before now stood frozen, their smiles stiffening on their faces and their eyes wide with disbelief. Some even wondered if their vision was playing tricks on them.

A so-called waste at the Cyclic Derivation Stage had, with a single casual motion, seized a seventh realm Emperor Stage cultivator.

At the distant mountain gate, Qing Geng’s face went rigid. “He...” his voice cracked in disbelief.

The others were no better, their minds blank and utterly stunned.

“Martial Uncle...” Fu Yunzi stood rooted to the spot, dazed beyond words.

Bang!

The white-haired man’s body crumbled into ash, scattering into the wind, like an ant being

crushed. Then Lin Xun turned his gaze to Wen Tuyang and the others. “Why have you stopped laughing? Please, continue.”

Wen Tuyang’s expression shifted violently.

“Who are you?” A black-robed figure stepped forward.

It was She Yunleng, a supreme elder of the Tianling Sect, a peak supreme Emperor Ancestor! As he advanced, a terrifying aura swept outward, causing the air to tremble under its pressure.

In the Dao Derivation Zone, supreme Emperor Ancestors were regarded as the strongest beings beneath the Immortal Stage. They could look down upon the vast majority of cultivators in the world.

In contrast, to Lin Xun, such a person was nothing more than a minor character. He took a single step. In the next instant, he appeared before She Yunleng as if teleporting and casually reached out with one hand. The speed was astonishing, too fast even for the eye to follow.

Startled, She Yunleng instinctively swung both arms up to block in front of him. Crack! Crack!

Both arms shattered instantly, bone fragments bursting through flesh, blood spraying into the air. Before the pain could even register, Lin Xun’s hands had already closed around his throat. He lifted him effortlessly. A supreme Emperor Ancestor was unable to withstand even a single move!

The sight made everyone’s scalps prickle. Minds went blank. No one could comprehend how Qing Feng, who was mocked by countless sects and branded a disgrace even within his own, would suddenly become so terrifying?

“Stop!”

Wen Tuyang roared, eyes bloodshot with rage. However, She Yunleng hung helplessly in Lin Xun’s grasp, so none of them dared make a reckless move.

They thought he was using She Yunleng as a hostage, but they were wrong. Lin Xun had never intended to take him hostage at all.

Bang!

With a casual flick of his fingers, She Yunleng disintegrated into ash and scattered into the wind. Just like that, a supreme elder of the Tianling Sect was erased from existence!

The sight struck Qing Heng and Fu Yunzi like a blow to the chest, their hearts trembling. Wen Tuyang and the others froze in terror. Their scalps tingled and their minds went blank, as if their souls had fled their bodies.

Then instinct took over. They turned and fled. If even She Yunleng had fallen in a single move, what hope did they have? Unfortunately for them, they still did not understand just how terrifying the opponent before them truly was.

Lin Xun flicked his fingers lightly through the air, as casual and natural as placing a stone upon a chessboard. In the next instant, sword qi erupted from the void. One strand after another roared forth, their blazing sharpness illuminating the mountains and rivers in a flash. The brilliance was so intense that many were forced to squeeze their eyes shut.

PU! PU! PU! PU!

A succession of dull explosions rang out. In different corners of the battlefield, arcs of blood burst forth, one after another. Nineteen people, including Wen Tuyang, sect leader of the Tianling Sect, were pierced through by the sword qi. Their flesh, body and primordial spirit were obliterated at the same instant.

They fell where they stood. As the sword qi dissipated, only the thick scent of blood lingered in the air. Their enemies were gone, as though they had never existed.

At the distant mountain gate, the onlookers stood frozen. Moments earlier, Wen Tuyang and his group, acting under Tian Ruojing’s orders, had seemed like an overwhelming calamity, a crisis that threatened the survival of the Tianwu Sect.

Now, in the span of a breath, Qing Feng had slaughtered them all.

“Martial Uncle...he...” Fu Yunzi was so shaken he could barely speak. The others were no better. Not one of them could remain composed.

Qing Heng’s expression grew increasingly complex. Almost in a whisper, he said, “Do you still not understand? He is a Dao Deriver...”

Dao Deriver!

The two words crashed down like a bolt from a clear sky. Qing Geng and the others felt as if thunder had exploded inside their minds. The color drained from their faces and their hearts sank to the depths. Only moments ago, they had firmly declared their intention to hand Qing Feng over. If Qing Feng chose to settle accounts now, who among them could possibly withstand him?

In the distance, Lin Xun walked back unhurriedly. When he reached Qing Heng, he cupped his fists in salute. “My apologies, I should have told you sooner. I am not your junior brother, Qing Feng. I have merely borrowed his body and inherited his memories. Before I leave this world...I will repay him.”

Qing Heng drew in a slow, steady breath. Then he returned the salute. “Thank you.”

His heart was a tangled mess of conflicting emotions.

“Could it be...you are Lin Xun, the Dao Deriver being hunted by the four great dao lineages across the world?” Qing Geng’s voice rang out, sharp with sudden realization.

Lin Xun inclined his head. “That’s correct.”

Lin Xun!

The name alone made everyone’s hearts tremble. Over the past year, the four great dao lineages had mobilized countless forces, sweeping across the Dao Derivation Zone in search of Dao Deriver Lin Xun. Who would have thought that he had been hiding within their Tianwu Sect all along?

Lin Xun’s gaze shifted to Qing Geng. “Do you have anything else you wish to say?”

Under that calm, indifferent stare, Qing Geng’s body went rigid and his voice trembled. “What...what do you intend to do?”

Lin Xun’s expression did not change. “In the face of a crisis, you were willing to abandon your own fellow sect members.”

He raised a hand. “What use are you?”

A streak of sword qi flashed. In the next instant, Qing Geng was slain where he stood. That bloody scene sent a chill through everyone present. Those elders who had stood beside Qing Geng moments earlier felt especially cold. Their faces drained of color and their hearts sank as if plunged into an icy abyss.

Lin Xun’s gaze swept toward them.

At that moment, Qing Heng stepped forward. “Fellow Daoist, please stop. They are...after all, members of my Tianwu Sect. Allow me to deal with them.”

Even he had been shaken by Lin Xun’s ruthless decisiveness.

“Very well.” Lin Xun agreed without hesitation.

Qing Heng breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank you, Fellow Daoist.”

“There is no need to thank me.” Lin Xun spoke calmly. “And you need not worry that, because of me, the Tianwu Sect will become the target of the four great dao lineages.”

He paused slightly. “Before long, I will personally pay a visit to those four great dao lineages and settle the enmity between myself and the Heavenly Mandate Apostles once and for all.”

Qing Heng froze. He...intends to confront the four great dao lineages?!

The others felt as though they were trapped in a dream. To them, the four great dao lineages were the supreme ruling powers of the Dao Derivation Zone, forces that stood at the very pinnacle of the world.

As for the Heavenly Mandate Apostles who had already stepped onto the Immortal Path, there was no need to mention them. They were beings whom they could only revere from afar for their entire lives. Now, Lin Xun spoke of personally paying them a visit. How could they not be shaken?

Lin Xun did not explain further. Instead, he changed the topic. “There is no time to delay. I will first make a trip to the Tianling Sect to see Tian Ruojing. You may return to your positions and wait.”

With that, he turned and strode away. Only after his figure disappeared into the distance did Qing Heng, Fu Yunzi, and the others gradually regained their composure.

Fu Yunzi’s face was etched with concern, “Senior Martial Uncle, once word of today spreads, our Tianwu Sect will become the center of the storm. What should we do?”

Instead of answering directly, Qing Heng suddenly asked, “Do you know how the four great dao lineages rose to stand at the pinnacle of the Dao Derivation Zone?”

The question caught Fu Yunzi off guard. He shook his head.

“It is because each of them possesses a Dao Deriver!”

Qing Heng drew a slow breath before continuing, his voice low and solemn. “Dao Derivers wield vast divine powers and command supreme means beyond our imagination. Throughout history, whenever a Dao Deriver departs this world, they leave behind a heaven-reaching great dao within the Dao Derivation Zone. The four great dao lineages have preserved these complete great daos. That is why they have stood at the pinnacle of the world for countless ages!”

Fu Yunzi frowned slightly. “Senior Martial Uncle, what do you mean by this?”

Qing Heng’s expression turned resolute. “If the Tianwu Sect wishes to survive this storm, there is only one path left for us. We must place our complete trust in Lin Xun!”

“Trust him?” Fu Yunzi echoed, recalling Lin Xun’s earlier words. A tremor ran through his heart. “Senior Martial Uncle, do you truly believe Lin Xun has a chance to sweep away the enemies within four great dao lineages?”

Qing Heng replied calmly, “It is not a matter of what I believe. A clash between them is inevitable. And when that day comes, I would rather believe Lin Xun will be the one left standing.”

“What if he loses?” someone asked, unable to restrain themselves.

“Then the Tianwu Sect will be doomed as well.” Qing Heng’s expression did not change.

Silence fell. For a long moment, no one spoke. Their hearts churned like a stormy sea.

“Why be so tense? If Lin Xun wins, our Tianwu Sect...may well usher in a transformation unlike anything in its history!” Qing Heng’s eyes burned with fervor as he continued, “In this world, fortune and calamity are intertwined. From what I have seen, Lin Xun still deeply values the kindness of my junior brother, Qing Feng. And that is enough.”

As he spoke, excitement quietly welled within him. According to what he knew, when a Dao Deriver eventually departed, the body they had borrowed would retain their Immortal-level cultivation and comprehension of the great dao.

In other words, when Lin Xun left this world, Qing Feng would undergo a transformation beyond imagination!

......

In the void, Lin Xun walked unhurriedly.

“In merely half a year, the five dao bodies have jointly derived a supreme dao perfectly suited to Qing Feng’s cultivation...Not bad.”

As he sensed the vast and surging power of the Supreme Emperor Ancestor Stage flowing through him, he exhaled a breath of relief. Compared to the Immeasurable Stage cultivation he once possessed, his current strength was still lacking. However, at the very least, it was enough to protect himself.

This was precisely why he had dared to reveal his identity today.

“Once I settle matters with Tian Ruojing, I will leave this region and find a secluded place to cultivate. Only by stepping onto the Immortal Path will I truly have the qualifications to contend with those Heavenly Mandate Apostles. ” He made his decision.