Chapter 112: Why Do Some People Always Have a Grudge Against Life?

Lin Yi had no intention of lingering here. He toyed with the spirit stone in his hand for a moment and said, "Is there anything else? If not, we are leaving."

Granny Qiu and Yu Xiaoyu exchanged a glance. Yu Xiaoyu said, "Mr. Lin, we would like to invite you to visit Snake Valley."

"No, let's do it another time," Lin Yi politely declined.

"Oh." Yu Xiaoyu looked a bit disappointed. There were some things she had wanted to ask Lin Yi for advice on, but his aloof and distant demeanor made it difficult for her to speak up.

Granny Qiu, being a shrewd veteran, interjected, "Since Mr. Lin has matters to attend to, we shouldn't keep you any longer."

With that, Granny Qiu took out a golden bank card and said, "Mr. Lin, this is our Snake Valley Gold Card. I wouldn't dare boast about other places, but within the Northern Province, it carries quite a bit of weight. You may use this card for any expenses, and Snake Valley will cover them all."

She was attempting to win Lin Yi over; even if she couldn't secure his friendship, she wanted to at least leave a favorable impression.

Lin Yi looked at Granny Qiu with a faint, inscrutable smile. He nodded, "Very well, I will accept your gold card."

Seeing Lin Yi accept the card, a smile immediately appeared on Granny Qiu's face.

Suddenly, a cold, feminine voice rang out: "Granny Qiu, I didn't expect you to be so tenacious. Ruan Zhen went there in person, and yet he still failed to kill you."

Upon hearing this, Granny Qiu’s expression darkened. She turned around to see five figures approaching.

Leading them was a stunning woman in her thirties. Her eyes were like pools of water, her lips like cherry blossoms, and her figure was curvaceous and alluring. She wore leather attire that made her look both sexy and captivating. Behind this beautiful woman followed four old men, each possessing the strength of a seventh-level Grandmaster. Although their individual strength was a minor realm lower than Granny Qiu's, their combined force was more than enough to bridge that gap.

"Wei Ruoxue, you’re already at that age, why keep pretending to be young?" Granny Qiu narrowed her eyes and sneered.

This Wei Ruoxue was the head of the Wei family. Though she looked to be in her thirties, her true age was about the same as Granny Qiu’s. It was only because Wei Ruoxue had accidentally consumed a rare spirit herb in her youth that her appearance had barely changed.

Snake Valley and the Wei family had been mortal enemies for a long time. However, their strengths were evenly matched, and they had always kept each other in check. But in recent years, a genius had emerged from the Wei family; he became a Grandmaster at nineteen and was currently ranked ninety-ninth on the Heaven and Earth Rankings of Yanxia. The Heaven and Earth Rankings, promoted jointly by the five major powers of Yanxia, recorded the most talented individuals under fifty and carried immense authority.

The Martial Arts Association held training events partly to cultivate talent and partly to vie for rankings on these lists. Because of this, the Wei family had become increasingly arrogant and domineering in recent years. Naturally, the first target they sought to eliminate was their old rival, Snake Valley.

Wei Ruoxue smiled dismissively and said, "Granny Qiu, I have the capital to pretend to be young. What about you? Once the greatest beauty of the Northern Province, you are now yellowed and withered, just like a village hag."

Granny Qiu remained silent.

Seeing her grandmother being belittled, coupled with the prior incident involving Ruan Zhen, Yu Xiaoyu was already seething with anger.

"You old witch, you brought so many people here just to look for trouble? Come on then, if I’m even a little bit afraid of you, I’ll change my name to yours!" Yu Xiaoyu shouted, hands on her hips.

Wei Ruoxue’s expression darkened. She glared sharply at Yu Xiaoyu: "What a sharp-tongued little girl. How dare you call me an old witch. I was going to let you live a little longer, but since you are courting death, don’t blame me for being ruthless."

With that, Wei Ruoxue produced a short blade and swung it at Yu Xiaoyu. A chilling, lethal glint flashed through the air.

Granny Qiu gave a cold snort: "Do you really think I don't exist?" She stepped forward and slammed her cane onto the ground, unleashing a flash of red light that neutralized Wei Ruoxue’s attack.

However, a closer look would reveal that the arm holding the cane was trembling slightly. Her internal injuries had not fully healed, and she could only muster about seventy percent of her strength. If Wei Ruoxue and the four old men joined forces, she and her granddaughter would certainly perish.

Granny Qiu could only pray that Lin Yi would intervene to resolve this deadly situation. But Lin Yi remained indifferent, standing to the side like a spectator. Granny Qiu felt helpless, though she showed nothing on her face.

"Granny Qiu, if you commit suicide now, I might consider sparing a descendant for your Snake Valley," Wei Ruoxue said with a grin.

"Heh, Wei Ruoxue, do you really take me for a fool?" Granny Qiu sneered. Such nonsense was only meant to fool idiots. Besides, after fighting for so many years, they knew each other all too well.

Wei Ruoxue chuckled and waved her hand, telling the four old men behind her, "Attack together, kill this old hag first."

"Yes." The four men nodded, drew their weapons, and charged at Granny Qiu.

"Well come!" Granny Qiu laughed, swinging her snake-headed cane. A ten-meter-long fire dragon roared into existence.

The men quickly dodged to the side, and the dragon’s thick tail smashed into the ground, causing the nearby dry grass to burst into flames. The men didn't flinch, exchanging glances before speeding toward Granny Qiu.

"Go!" Granny Qiu pointed a finger, and the fire snake turned rapidly.

At this moment, Wei Ruoxue retrieved a long white whip from her storage pouch and whipped it into the air, wrapping it around the fire snake.

"It’s useless. My fire snake is formless unless you are a practitioner of the Dharma," Granny Qiu said.

"That’s not necessarily true." Wei Ruoxue smiled coquettishly, licking her red lips. She pulled with her fair arms, and white lotus blossoms bloomed along the whip. With each lotus petal that fell, the flames on the snake dimmed. Within seconds, the fire snake had turned into a frozen, icy serpent. Wei Ruoxue pulled again, and with a series of cracks, the frozen snake shattered into shards of ice.

Granny Qiu’s pupils constricted. She hadn't expected Wei Ruoxue to possess such a treasure. But there was no time to react, as the four old men had already closed in.

"Get lost!" Granny Qiu roared, sweeping her cane across the area. A crimson light rippled outward, but the men simply activated their protective energy barriers and defensive artifacts, ignoring the attack as they pressed their assault. With her injuries still lingering, Granny Qiu was quickly forced onto the defensive.

Watching from the side, Yu Xiaoyu was frantic. She pleaded, "Mr. Lin, please save my grandmother! I will do anything you ask." She then knelt and knocked her head against the ground three times.

Before Lin Yi could speak, a cold voice cut in: "Little girl, you were so sharp-tongued just a moment ago; why are you kneeling and begging now? You don't actually think he can save you, do you?" It was Wei Ruoxue.

Since the four old men were more than enough to overwhelm Granny Qiu, she remained at leisure.

"Hmph," Yu Xiaoyu snorted. Wei Ruoxue was in no rush to kill her; she wanted to witness the despair and helplessness of this little girl who had called her an old witch—the thought alone excited her.

"Since you trust him so much, I’ll kill him first." Wei Ruoxue said dismissively, whipping her lash toward Lin Yi’s head. Even before the whip arrived, the surrounding air turned frigid.

A glimmer of joy flashed in Yu Xiaoyu's heart. Wei Ruoxue was far too confident. If she hadn't made a move, things might have been complicated, but now that she had, Yu Xiaoyu could already imagine her fate.

Lin Yi’s gaze turned cold as he reached out to grab the whip. Wei Ruoxue’s eyes flashed with mockery; the brat dared to catch her weapon with his bare hand—he clearly didn't know the meaning of death.

However, with a *snap*, the whip was caught firmly in Lin Yi’s hand. Looking at his palm, not only was there no injury, but not even the skin was broken.

"How is this possible..." Wei Ruoxue was shocked, but the truth was before her eyes.

"Sigh." Lin Yi sighed. Why did people always insist on throwing their lives away? Wasn't living better? Wei Ruoxue tried to pull her whip back, but her efforts were in vain, causing her expression to sink.

"Hey, ignore the old hag, come help me!" Wei Ruoxue released the whip and retreated rapidly.

"Understood." The four old men abandoned Granny Qiu and moved in, surrounding Lin Yi.

"Attack together!" Wei Ruoxue joined the fray. With five Grandmasters combined, unless this young man was a Half-step Spirit Venerable, he would surely fall here.

Lin Yi remained calm. He said to one of the old men, "Lend me your sword." As he spoke, the treasure sword in the man's hand flew automatically into Lin Yi’s grip. The moment he held the blade, his aura became piercingly sharp.

"First strike!" Lin Yi swung the sword, and a golden sword aura condensed at the tip—the mere sight of it made one’s scalp tingle, as if it could slice through space itself.

*Swish.*

Golden light flashed, sweeping toward them. The men panicked and tried to block with their weapons, but it was futile. The golden light passed through them like a knife through tofu, slicing them and their weapons in two.

*Thud.*

Several heavy heads rolled to the ground, blood spraying everywhere. Because the aura was so sharp, the mouths of the severed heads were still twitching as they landed.

Wei Ruoxue was terrified by the sight; several Grandmasters hadn't even been able to dodge a single strike. "Who, who exactly are you?" she shrieked, her voice trembling.

Lin Yi said indifferently, "Lin Yi, from Jiang Province. Though, most people prefer to call me Mr. Lin."

"Mr. Lin!" Wei Ruoxue’s mind went blank. She had heard Yu Xiaoyu call him that earlier but hadn't paid it any mind. She never imagined that the young man before her was the very Mr. Lin who could slay a Spirit Venerable.

"Well, the questions are over, and it’s time to send you on your way," Lin Yi said coldly.