Chapter 132: The Sword-Practice Stone

The feathers hidden within the flying sand struck Lin Yi, only to be deflected away instantly. A closer look revealed a faint protective barrier shimmering across his body.

"You have some skill."

Xia Jiguang squinted, flicking his feathered fan once more. The power of these feathers was far greater than before; each one carried the impact of a bullet. Lin Yi stepped forward, his protective true essence held firm, and marched toward Xia Jiguang. The feathers struck like a surging tide, attempting to force Lin Yi back, but though his pace was slow, it never wavered. Each feather merely sent ripples across his barrier.

Xia Jiguang’s expression darkened. This Lin Yi was no ordinary opponent. Even among fellow Spirit Venerables, few would dare to face this technique head-on.

"Go to hell!"

Xia Jiguang snapped his fan shut and reached into the void. The power of heaven and earth coalesced into a massive hand that lunged toward Lin Yi. Lin Yi looked up, the corner of his mouth curling into a smirk. He clenched his right fist and, just as the giant hand descended, struck out with a brutal punch.

With a thunderous boom, the hand formed by the power of heaven and earth shattered into countless specks of light.

Xia Jiguang, pressing his advantage, moved with ethereal speed. In a single step, he reached Lin Yi’s side, swinging his fan toward his neck. Lin Yi seemed to have anticipated the move; as the fan arrived, he took a slight step back, causing the strike to slice through empty air. The sharp fan whipped up a gale that instantly pulverized a large tree in the courtyard.

Lin Yi’s gaze turned cold. He formed his fingers into a claw and clamped them onto Xia Jiguang’s shoulder. Xia Jiguang smiled contemptuously, attempting to channel the surrounding power of heaven and earth to crush Lin Yi’s arm. But Lin Yi remained unaffected. He tightened his grip, and with a sickening crack, Xia Jiguang’s shoulder was crushed to pieces.

"How is this possible!"

Xia Jiguang was stunned. This man was truly bizarre—the power of heaven and earth had no effect on him, and his physical strength was so monstrous that he had shattered his shoulder with a single squeeze.

"You brat, you’ve successfully angered me."

Gone was Xia Jiguang’s composure. He had expected dealing with Lin Yi to be effortless, but clearly, that was not the case. It was time to get serious.

"Hmph."

Lin Yi let out a soft snort and applied pressure to the shoulder he held.

*Thud.*

Xia Jiguang was driven a meter deep into the ground, leaving him completely bewildered. More importantly, he found he could not resist. Lin Yi’s palm was like a steel vise, and he was merely a piece of wire, twisted at the other's whim.

Liao Mei watched in a daze; her senior brother had been driven into the dirt like a nail. It took three full seconds for Xia Jiguang to recover, his heart flooded with overwhelming humiliation.

"You..."

Xia Jiguang glared at Lin Yi with venomous eyes, but before he could finish the word, Lin Yi punched him squarely in the eye socket.

"I was planning to play along for a while, but you’ve ruined my courtyard."

As he spoke, Lin Yi struck his other eye. Even without using any true essence, the force of the blow was unbearable. Xia Jiguang was left dizzy and disoriented. He tried desperately to gather the power of heaven and earth for defense, but as soon as it took shape, Lin Yi shattered it with another punch. He realized now that this young man, who appeared so ordinary, was a wolf in sheep’s clothing. He was a Spirit Venerable, yet he was being humiliated in such a way.

Lin Yi beat him a few more times until he felt somewhat relieved. Honestly, these people were truly tiresome. He just wanted a quiet rest, but they all seemed to have made an appointment to line up and beg for a beating. Though Lin Yi had practiced self-restraint over the years, that didn't mean he would swallow his pride when someone came knocking to stir up trouble.

With a flick of his finger, a beam of golden light pierced Xia Jiguang’s Dantian, rendering him a cripple.

"You dare destroy my Dantian!" Xia Jiguang roared in fury. The Dantian was the most vital part of a martial artist; whether practicing arts or the Dao, it was the foundation of all cultivation. To make matters worse, he was a Spirit Venerable—a figure of high standing. Only moments ago, he had been the one comforting Bi Deming; now, he had fallen to this state. Resentment, rage, and unwillingness filled his heart, making him wish he could tear Lin Yi apart.

"Why wouldn't I dare?" Lin Yi said coldly. "This is a lesson for you. If you dare come back, it will be your life."

"Then have the guts to kill me now!" Xia Jiguang looked up, eyes filled with hatred.

"Do you really think I wouldn't?" Lin Yi’s face remained expressionless as he formed his hand into a fist and exploded Xia Jiguang’s head with a single strike.

Liao Mei collapsed, sitting hard on the ground; she had been so frightened she lost control of her bladder. This was a Spirit Venerable, not some half-baked pretender, yet he had been easily crippled and then executed with a single blow.

Ruthless. The man before her was young, but his strength was terrifyingly monstrous. She had to run. She had to leave this hellish place; she didn't want to stay for another second.

*Tap, tap, tap.*

Footsteps echoed. To Liao Mei, they sounded like the march of the devil.

"Don't kill me, please don't kill me," she begged, kneeling on the ground. At this moment, dignity meant nothing; she only wanted to live.

"Get up. Remember to take the corpse back. And tell those people at Red Skull: if anyone else comes to my door, don't blame me for killing every single one of you," Lin Yi said, his voice indifferent.

"You're really not going to kill me?" Liao Mei looked up, her long eyelashes wet with tears, a look meant to stir a man’s desire to protect. Her figure was alluring, but in Lin Yi’s eyes, she was nothing more than a pile of bones.

"If you cry one more time, don't blame me for being impolite," Lin Yi warned.

Liao Mei stopped her crying instantly, her eyes full of fear and a sliver of gratitude.

"Get out," Lin Yi said flatly.

Liao Mei scrambled away, dragging Xia Jiguang’s body with her. Xia Yumuo, kneeling before the villa, kept her head bowed low, her heart in a panic. A living person had just had his head exploded right in front of her. Everything that had occurred was like a battle between gods. Only now did she realize her own ignorance; she had been a frog in a well all along.

Xia Deshou’s expression was stiff. He could only pray that Lin Yi wouldn't hold a grudge against the Xia family; otherwise, even with billions in assets, it would all be meaningless if they were dead.

Lin Yi had no interest in the others. He retrieved a storage bag—Xia Jiguang’s. He felt no psychological burden about profiting from the dead. Cultivation was a path of struggle; in the past, he had traversed countless dangerous lands in pursuit of opportunity, and the bones beneath his feet could have encircled the entire Lan City.

Lin Yi inspected the bag. As expected of a Spirit Venerable, it was vast, with a capacity of over a hundred cubic meters, filled with countless treasures.

"Huh? What is this?"

With a thought, a cyan stone slab, roughly the size of a human head, appeared in his hand. It was clearly broken, though he couldn't tell how many pieces it originally had. As his consciousness immersed itself in the slab, he discovered it was sealed with countless sword rays. Each ray represented a sword intent, and simultaneously, a sword technique.

"This looks like the Sword-Practicing Stone from the Thousand Sword Manor," Lin Yi mused, his eyes flickering.

The Thousand Sword Manor had once been famous in the cultivation world. They specialized in sword arts that bordered on the divine, and their strength was terrifying. Had their recruitment not been so harsh, they would have long been ranked among the top ten powers of the cultivation world. This stone was their most important inheritance, recording the sword techniques and intents of generations of disciples, elders, and sect masters.

Lin Yi was surprised. Xia Jiguang was lucky to have obtained such a treasure. However, the stone was broken; if he wanted to comprehend the techniques, he would need to repair it.

"Does this mean I have a mountain of treasure I cannot yet access?" Lin Yi thought to himself. He didn't complain; obtaining such an item was already a stroke of fortune. Though he didn't strictly need the techniques, they would be a fine way to pass the time.

Lin Yi vaporized the rest of the contents in the storage bag, then remembered Ma Feng. Although Ma Feng had ulterior motives, he had been injured while acting as his gatekeeper. Lin Yi was not a heartless man. He walked over to Ma Feng; the wound on his shoulder was bleeding heavily, but it wasn't fatal, even if it looked gruesome.

Ma Feng was nearly unconscious, but the sound of Lin Yi’s footsteps forced him to crack his eyes open.

"Open your mouth," Lin Yi commanded.

Ma Feng’s lips twitched, and Lin Yi flicked his finger. A healing pill turned into a streak of light and darted into his mouth. After giving the pill, Lin Yi ignored him and turned his gaze to Xia Deshou.

"Mr. Lin," Xia Deshou called out cautiously.

"Your daughter is quite generous, wanting to buy my villa for two billion," Lin Yi said emotionlessly.

If this were any other villa, two billion would be more than enough. But Villa No. 8 had been specifically designed by him. The spirit-gathering array alone had cost ten thousand low-grade spirit stones. At current market prices, that was nearly a trillion, not to mention the spirit fields and illusion arrays. Anything here was a priceless treasure.

Xia Deshou’s face flushed; he couldn't miss the sarcasm in Lin Yi’s tone.

"Mr. Lin, this was all due to my poor discipline. The Xia family is willing to offer half of our assets as compensation. I hope you can forgive my daughter," Xia Deshou said.

Lin Yi was slightly surprised. "You are quite generous."

Xia Deshou smiled bitterly to himself; he had no other choice.