Chapter 90: Extortion and Infiltration

The old man’s eyes shrank to pinpricks at the savage aura radiating from Lin Hao. His face twisted with alarm as he hastily raised the butcher’s blade in another desperate block.

“Shatter.” With a single word, Lin Hao swung the Heaven-Punisher down upon the blade. A thunderous crash, far more violent than before, erupted as the weapon in the old man’s hand burst into fragments.

“Tch...” Lin Hao tossed the Heaven-Punisher aside and, with a flick of his wrist, conjured another long staff of spiritual energy. Coiling strength surged through his body, the power of a cultivator at the eighth level of Energy Condensation, and he slammed it down with ruthless force.

“Impossible to stop!” The old man’s pupils contracted again. Staring in horror at the staff that seemed to carry heaven-shaking might, he only felt a monstrous impact strike his chest, sending his body flying away like a broken sack.

“I was perfectly fine... Why did I have to provoke this madman...” Feeling blood churn within him and spiritual energy go berserk, hatred rose in the old man’s eyes, while regret gnawed at his heart. But at that very moment, amid his unwilling cries, Lin Hao’s second strike came crashing down once more.

Thunk.

With a dull boom, the old man spat out a mouthful of blood and was sent flying yet again.

“Again!” A light of exhilaration flashed in Lin Hao’s eyes. The emotions he had suppressed for so long seemed to have found a release, and with blood and qi surging around him, he swung at the old man once more.

“Aah... aahh!!!” The old man stared at Lin Hao coming straight for him, terror exploding in his gaze. His hair stood on end as he let out a shrill scream and turned to flee in another direction.

But how could an injured man be faster than Lin Hao? Another muffled impact rang out, and the old man’s body crashed downward. A massive pit appeared on the ground. Struggling to rise, he seemed ready to run again, but Lin Hao had already descended before him, still holding the staff of spiritual energy in hand.

“M-mad... madman...” The old man looked up and saw Lin Hao standing in front of him. Immediate terror flooded his eyes, and his whole body trembled as he backed away in a daze.

“Still want to run?” Lin Hao studied him with great interest. Fierce light flickered in his eyes as he stepped closer.

Seeing this, the old man’s remorse was useless. He gritted his teeth, his aura surging as he lunged toward Lin Hao in a final act of desperation.

“Seeking death.” Lin Hao gave a cold snort. The long staff in his hand whirled and came crashing down upon the old man’s body. Amid the burst of piercing screams, the woman from earlier stood there in utter disbelief, staring at the scene before her.

No matter how hard she tried, she could never have imagined that Lin Hao would be this strong. And his methods were... so brutally direct.

As for the Heaven-Punisher Lin Hao had tossed aside, it transformed into the figure of a woman in black robes. Her expression remained placid as she watched the scene ahead, waiting quietly.

About two hours passed.

“Phew...” Lin Hao dispersed the staff of spiritual energy in his hand, picked up the storage pouch beside the old man, and let out a long breath. Relief appeared in his eyes. Clearly, after this bout of violence, his mood had improved greatly.

As for the old man, under Lin Hao’s tender “care,” he looked utterly miserable. His clothes were in tatters, his aura was exceedingly weak, and his face had been beaten into the shape of a swollen pig head. Even the back of his body, from an ill-timed struggle that had caused the staff to burst apart, had had its clothing torn open in an instant... and one could faintly see, at the corner of the unconscious old man’s eye, two lingering tears of grief...

The woman could only stare in stunned silence from beginning to end. It was not until Lin Hao walked toward her that she finally showed a guilty expression. Looking at him with some fear, she hurriedly cupped her fists in a respectful bow.

“Senior brother, I will remember your life-saving kindness.”

“Spare me the nonsense.” Lin Hao gave a cold snort and glanced at her indifferently. His voice was devoid of warmth. “I never hid my cultivation at the seventh level of Energy Condensation. What did you mean by what you said earlier?”

“This...” Meeting Lin Hao’s deep gaze, the woman’s heart gave a sudden jolt. An inexplicable chill rose from her back and quickly spread through her entire body.

Just now, she had clearly sensed his seventh-level cultivation and intended to use his life to buy herself a brief chance to escape. Had his combat strength not far surpassed that of ordinary people, she feared he would have been slain in an instant by that old man.

“So there’s no explanation you can give me?” Lin Hao looked coldly at the woman before him. His tone remained measured, but deep in his eyes, a sliver of killing intent flashed almost imperceptibly.

If this woman could not give him a satisfactory account, he would cut her down without hesitation. What Lin Hao hated most were people like this: those who pursued their own selfish desires while disregarding the lives of others. People like Chen Ping were nauseating to the core.

“Replying to senior brother.” In just a few breaths, the woman, under Lin Hao’s invisible pressure, was drenched in sweat. She hurriedly bowed deeply, her expression extremely respectful. “Today, I was hunted by this man because I happened to possess a secret treasure.”

“This map records the location of a buried treasure site, and within it lies great fortune. It seems to be related to the immortals of the legendary land of Chu Tomb...” The woman took from her storage pouch an old, timeworn scroll made of some unknown beast hide, and together with the storage pouch, respectfully offered them before Lin Hao. She continued, “In this high-grade storage pouch are ten thousand medium-grade spirit stones, as well as several magical treasures. I offer all of them to senior brother, and ask only that you forgive my earlier offense.”

“Immortals, huh...” Lin Hao looked at the ancient scroll and the storage pouch presented in both her hands. A strange glint flashed in his eyes. After a brief pause, he accepted them and said flatly, “Very well.”

“Thank you, senior brother.” The woman bowed respectfully once more before heading toward the nearby mountain forest. Lin Hao gave a faint glance at the old man, who was on the brink of death, and then flew back toward the Profound Heaven Sect on his sword.

“Something related to immortals...” Along the way, Lin Hao sat cross-legged upon his sword and studied the ancient scroll in his hands. His gaze flickered uncertainly as he murmured to himself. “The place I’m in is called Chu Tomb. It is the burial ground where a true immortal was laid to rest a thousand years ago... This map seems to be only a fragment...”

“Judging by the contents of this storage pouch, it doesn’t seem like the people of Chu Tomb owned it... It feels more like it came from the same place as Ji Tianya...” While Lin Hao continued his thoughts, the identity token in his robes suddenly began to flash. He sent his divine sense into it, and an aged voice reached him.

“A large number of disciples from the Dark Profound Sect have entered our Profound Heaven territory, intending once again to invade us! Lin Hao, inner sect disciple, by order of the sect master, you and Zhao Min are to proceed to Silver-Back Mountain and intercept the invading disciples of the Dark Profound Sect. If you encounter anyone from the Azure Net Sect, do your utmost to rescue them!”

“Elder Sun Changshou’s transmission... It should not be a trick.” After memorizing the map transmitted through the token, Lin Hao flew directly toward the meeting place marked on it.

“If it’s just a minor clash, then it’s of no concern... I only fear that the Dark Profound Sect is launching a full-scale invasion. By then, entering the Three Sects Secret Realm will likely take much effort... The inner sect disciples should all be deployed this time... Could this be someone’s scheme? Something about it feels wrong...” Along the way, Lin Hao kept pondering the matter, and a sense of unease grew in his heart. It was as though someone were deliberately pushing everything forward from behind the scenes.

“In times like these, with trouble everywhere... Heaven-Punisher cannot be used...” After thinking for a long while, Lin Hao decided that it would be better to keep a low profile. After all, making a name for himself at a time like this was hardly a good thing.

After flying for several hours, a figure of exquisite, immortal grace entered Lin Hao’s vision. The woman wore plain white robes and stood with her hands clasped behind her back upon a flying sword, calmly gazing into the distant horizon as if waiting for something. It was Zhao Min.

“Let’s go.” Zhao Min noticed Lin Hao’s arrival and gave a faint instruction before flying straight toward the distance. Lin Hao looked at the vastly changed Zhao Min, a strange expression flickering in his eyes. He said nothing and followed closely behind.

Before long, the two descended slowly in a peculiar place. Looking closely, one side of the mountain range here was silver, while the other was a vivid red. It was eerily strange, as if this were the remains of some colossal silver-backed beast that had been beheaded. It was likely from this that Silver-Back Mountain got its name.

“Stay behind me later. Don’t wander off. Most of the invaders are at the eighth level of Energy Condensation or above.” Zhao Min scanned the area and gave a cool, half-hearted instruction before walking toward a slightly higher point.

Lin Hao responded with a rather strange “Mm” and followed quietly behind her. Then, as if remembering something, he asked, “How many disciples were dispatched for this mission?”

“Why do you ask?” Zhao Min raised a brow, sounding somewhat impatient. After a moment’s thought, however, she gave a flat explanation. “Outer peak disciples above the fifth level of Energy Condensation mostly went out to gather herbs and spirit stones. Only inner sect disciples are scattered across the region to carry out interceptions.”

Hearing this, Lin Hao pondered briefly and said no more. With Fang Ling’s own strength, handling a demon beast at the sixth level of Energy Condensation should be no problem. Besides, with Bai Chou watching over things, there was little for him to worry about. Still, not seeing Zhao Min for nearly a year, her changes were a bit... unexpected.

“Well now, you two are disciples of the Profound Heaven Sect, I take it?” Suddenly, a lazy female voice drifted over. Looking in the direction of the sound, they saw, not far behind them, a scantily clad woman walking toward them with a deliberately flirtatious air, her eyes brimming with seduction. After a quick glance at Zhao Min, she raised a brow and looked at Lin Hao with interest. “Such a handsome little man. Would you care to follow sister by her side?”

“This... doesn’t seem quite appropriate...” Lin Hao appeared somewhat surprised and looked at the newcomer with a peculiar expression, speaking as if in hesitation.

The seductive woman laughed softly, her eyes teasing. “Little boy, do you know how many people dream of crawling beneath sister’s feet? I’m giving you a chance, and you still don’t want it?”

“Enough nonsense!” Zhao Min’s face had already darkened when the woman first appeared and ignored her. Now that neither of them seemed inclined to pay her any mind, her expression became even worse. Spiritual energy surged around her as a long sword manifested in her hand. With a cold shout, she shot straight at the seductive woman.

“Little man, wait until sister finishes off this ugly woman, then I’ll come keep you company. Don’t be impatient.” The seductive woman tossed another flirtatious glance at Lin Hao, then unleashed her spiritual energy and clashed with Zhao Min at once.

“I wonder whether Zhao Min can defeat her...” As the two women fought fiercely in the air, Lin Hao was quite content to remain idle. Leaning leisurely against a tree trunk, he took out the wine gourd given to him by Ji Tianya and sipped from it one mouthful at a time, utterly at ease.

Boom.

With a thunderous blast, the two women were forced back. Seizing the moment, the seductive woman hurled three flying swords, driving them straight toward Zhao Min. Zhao Min could not evade in time and was pushed onto the defensive, beaten down under the woman’s pressure.

“Ah... in about a hundred breaths, that should be about enough...” Lin Hao took a swig from the gourd and watched Zhao Min fall into disadvantage above, quietly calculating when she would be defeated.

If Zhao Min knew what he was thinking, she would probably have rushed over with a sword in hand on the spot. Fortunately, matters unfolded exactly as Lin Hao had predicted. Around a hundred breaths later, the seductive woman heavily wounded Zhao Min by sacrificing a magical tool in self-detonation. Zhao Min’s body crashed to the ground, her spiritual energy in complete disorder, and she could no longer fight.

“Die.” A murderous glint flashed in the seductive woman’s eyes. The sword in her hand instantly thrust toward Zhao Min’s neck.

Seeing this, Lin Hao’s eyes glimmered with a strange light. A long sword of spiritual energy formed in his hand in an instant, boundless cold intent spreading outward as it shot straight toward the sword in the woman’s hand.

Clang!

With a sharp clash of metal, the woman’s eyes filled with horror as the sword in her hand was sent flying at once. Sensing the terrifying force that had knocked it aside, the seductive woman looked at Lin Hao, who was still leisurely drinking wine at the side, and said in a grave voice, “You are not at the seventh level of Energy Condensation!”

“And what does my cultivation have to do with whether I am at the seventh level?” Lin Hao took another mouthful from the wine gourd and calmly looked at the woman. “I do not wish to kill anyone today. Leave.”

“Well, now, what a grand tone, my friend.” Suddenly, a voice full of disdain rang out. Looking toward the source, they saw a young man approaching from the distant sky. Though every step he took seemed to tread on empty space, he gave off the steady impression of standing on solid ground. His aura faintly rolled outward, and he was in fact a cultivator at the peak of the ninth level of Energy Condensation! He seemed even stronger than the seductive woman by three parts.

“May I ask what advice you have for me, friend?” Lin Hao watched the man’s skill in walking through the air, a trace of brilliance flashing almost imperceptibly in his eyes. A meaningful smile also appeared on his face.

“You insolent brat, I’m merely giving you face. Do you really think you are fit to call me brother?” The young man cast a disdainful glance at Lin Hao and rebuked him coldly. Then he looked at the seductive woman and smiled. “Junior Sister Xu Qing, are you injured?”

“None of your business.” Xu Qing answered coldly and no longer paid him any mind. But at that moment, the aura around Zhao Min, who stood beside Xu Qing, suddenly trembled. A flying sword shot straight toward Xu Qing.

“This...” Xu Qing’s pupils contracted violently. The attack had come too suddenly, and she had been engaged in conversation with the man surnamed Xiao, leaving her with no way to avoid it. Just as it seemed she was about to be pierced through, the man surnamed Xiao made his move. In the instant a long sword of spiritual energy condensed in his hand, he sent it flying straight toward the attacking sword.

Clang!

With another metallic clash, the magical treasure Zhao Min had used to strike at Xu Qing was knocked away. Xu Qing’s eyes flashed with killing intent as she once again charged at Zhao Min.