Chapter 92: Mutation

At the same moment, on the main peak of the Heaven-Profound Sect, a gaunt old man stood silently, his gaze fixed on the very place where Lin Hao and the others were located.

His aura flickered in and out, and his body seemed to contain an endless deathly intent, as though he were a man already at the brink of death. Behind him stood Zhong Ming, Jian Ru, and Sun Changshou, all three waiting with respectful silence.

“That boy’s realm is too low. His comprehension is decent enough, but in the end it is only passable fortune.” After a long while, a glimmer of contemplation appeared in the old man’s eyes, and his ancient voice slowly sounded. “After the secret realm of the Three Sects, bring these two here. With this girl’s pure innate constitution, she may make up for the Dao wound I lack... As for this child, his mind is exceedingly sharp. You must keep watch...”

“Yes!” The three behind him bowed respectfully upon hearing this, then slowly withdrew.

“Tsk, tsk. This method is truly extraordinary... not in vain after all for me to go to such lengths...” Lin Hao at this moment was leaning against a tree, browsing the technique he had obtained earlier from that man surnamed Xiao, praise slipping continuously from his lips.

“Shrinking the earth to an inch consumes a tremendous amount of spiritual energy...” When Lin Hao turned to this line, a strange look appeared in his eyes, and he murmured to himself, “No wonder that man was so weak. By the time he reached there, the spiritual energy in his body must have been nearly exhausted...”

“Truly, he has only himself to blame.” Lin Hao chuckled softly, no longer continuing to read. After putting away the book recording the method, he looked toward Zhao Min. “Do you know where outer-sect disciples gather herbs?”

“Not far from here. Head north for several dozen li, and you’ll find it.” Zhao Min was slightly taken aback at his words, then nodded in reply.

“Be careful here. I’ll go take a look over there.” After speaking calmly, Lin Hao stepped onto his sword and flew northward.

He passed over the Silver-Back Mountains, crossed several not-so-wide rivers, and after two hours reached a rather broad stretch of forested hills.

Here, flowers and grasses of all strange and varied forms grew everywhere. A faint medicinal fragrance filled the entire woodland, and merely smelling it brought a refreshing clarity to the heart. Feeling the breeze brushing through the forest, Lin Hao’s mouth could not help but curve slightly upward in a teasing smile.

But at that moment, a thick scent of blood came drifting over, and Lin Hao’s pupils suddenly shrank!

There were actually several corpses here, and the badges at their waists all bore the words Heaven-Profound. Only not far away, three black-clad figures stood in stillness...

“Ling’er...” Lin Hao’s heart sank. A flash of killing intent passed through his eyes as he strode forward.

“The Heaven-Profound Sect is really careless, to be so at ease with this place. This trip has been a huge profit for us!” Suddenly, a leisurely voice rang out. The speaker was an extremely lewd-looking man. Holding a storage pouch in his hand, he excitedly addressed the two beside him.

“What’s this? The herbs are yours. Later, after second brother brings back that woman, I want to enjoy myself first!” The man beside him patted his shoulder, letting out a lascivious laugh.

“You two should be careful. After all, we’re still within the territory of the Dark Yin Sect.” The last man spoke, his tone indifferent as he gave a mild warning, then said no more.

At that moment, a cold voice sounded:

“You three are in quite a good mood.”

Turning their eyes, they saw a white-clad figure walking up behind them. The newcomer was handsome, with long hair falling over his shoulders. In his snow-white robes, an ethereal air seemed to flow around him, giving the impression of a being from the heavens. It was precisely Lin Hao.

“A mere seventh level of energy condensation dares come seeking death?” The lewd man said with surprise flashing in his eyes. After tying the storage pouch to his waist, he released the aura of a stage-eight energy condensation cultivator and swaggered forward to press upon Lin Hao.

“Frost Cold.”

Lin Hao ignored him. The instant a spiritual energy battle blade took shape in his hand, he stepped forward and drew in the spiritual energy of heaven and earth with a violent surge. Then he brought the blade down upon the man!

The man had no strength even to resist; in the blink of an eye, he was already dead.

“This...” The remaining two stared at Lin Hao in shock. Spiritual energy stirred around them as their magical treasures manifested, and strong vigilance filled their eyes.

“Where did the woman you spoke of just now go?” Lin Hao looked at the two before him, his gaze full of coldness, his voice devoid of all emotion.

Upon hearing this, one of the two grew extremely grave, guarding against him inwardly all the while; the other, however, had a trace of killing intent flash in the depths of his eyes as he coldly shouted, “Could it be that you are—”

“Frost Cold.”

Before the man could continue his nonsense, the boundless chill once again spread over the spiritual energy blade in Lin Hao’s hand. With only a single strike, he easily cut the man down.

Having done this, Lin Hao’s eyes flashed with impatience. He coldly barked, “Speak!”

“To answer senior brother, they went to the east.” The last man standing was so startled that his face changed. Hastily bowing to Lin Hao with respect, he quickly answered.

Lin Hao said nothing. With a wave of his hand, another blade strike fell, and after killing the man, he swept up the three storage pouches with a flick of his sleeve and drove his sword straight eastward.

With Fang Ling guarded by Bai Chou, for her to still fall into such danger could only mean that the one leading this attack was extraordinarily powerful. Lin Hao dared not tarry on the way. He swallowed energy-condensing pills one after another to replenish the spiritual energy in his body, and his speed was like a released arrow, vanishing in an instant.

Before long, in a gloomy stretch of forested hills, Lin Hao heard the sounds of fighting.

With a thunderous boom, a mountain wall suddenly shook, sending up a great cloud of dust. In that moment of disruption, a white-clad figure abruptly flew out of the dust. Spiritual energy surged around him, streaks of lightning flashing as he charged toward the black-clad man not far ahead. It was Bai Chou.

“Die!”

Killing intent flashed in Bai Chou’s eyes. Along with a cold shout, he closed in on the man in an instant. Amid the flashing lightning came another explosive sound, and Bai Chou spat a mouthful of blood before being sent flying backward once more.

“Bai Chou!”

Lin Hao looked at Bai Chou, who flew like a broken kite, and a look of alarm flashed in his eyes. His aura surged sharply skyward. As the power of stage-eight energy condensation erupted, he moved as if about to kill the black-clad man, but Bai Chou’s urgent voice rang out.

“South of here, that’s where Fang Ling is! Hurry!!”

Bai Chou shouted loudly. Lightning flickered around him, and his wounds were actually recovering at a visible rate. The aura in his body had become even more formidable than before.

Seeing this, Lin Hao felt somewhat reassured. After giving Bai Chou a deep look, he swallowed another pill and, with spiritual power surging around him, flew straight south.

“Brat, let’s see what more you can do.” After Lin Hao left, the black-clad man looked at Bai Chou with utter disdain and sneered. Then he flashed forward to kill.

...

“Time is tight...”

Feeling the continuous booms and explosions behind him, Lin Hao’s heart was in extreme urgency. The killing intent in his eyes had become stronger than ever before. Grinding his teeth, he flew for about a quarter of an hour before Fang Ling’s figure finally entered his sight.

She stood among numerous corpses, her expression cold as she guarded against the several black-clad figures surrounding her. Yet she was already wounded in many places, her tattered clothing stained entirely red with blood, as though she were clad in a garment of blood.

“Heaven-Punisher!”

Seeing this, a wave of furious wrath surged in Lin Hao’s heart. The Heaven-Punisher in his hand instantly transformed into a savage and bizarre battle blade. The moment the blade took shape, boundless frost and coldness condensed at once, and he shot forward to strike at one of them.

“Who goes there!”

The instant Lin Hao’s aura spread outward, the people below had already sensed it. Killing intent flashed in their eyes. Two of them remained to deal with Fang Ling, while the rest all rushed toward Lin Hao.

“The one who will kill you!” Lin Hao shouted coldly, his eyes blazing with sinister killing intent. As blood qi roiled around him, the Heaven-Punisher in his hand suddenly fell!

With a thunderous boom, Lin Hao slashed apart the magical artifact in the black-clad figure’s hand. The blade momentum did not stop. As sharpness erupted in all directions, that black-clad figure collapsed at once, dead.

“Die!!”

At this moment, another black-clad figure had already closed in. The power of a peak stage-eight energy condensation cultivator spread out as he brought his blade straight down at Lin Hao’s head.

Seeing this, cold light burst in Lin Hao’s eyes. Boundless frost power spread around him as he stepped forward. A great quantity of spiritual energy from heaven and earth poured into his body in an instant. On the Heaven-Punisher, a strange and ferocious aura swept out, and he met the strike with a single blade.

Another explosive sound rang out. The black-clad figure’s long blade shattered in his hand, and he spat blood. His face was filled with utter terror. Just as he was about to retreat and flee, a judgment from the depths of the underworld came down upon him.

“Fall into demonhood!”

Madness flooded Lin Hao’s eyes. His aura burst outward violently, and he stepped forward to drive a fist straight into the man’s chest.

A dull thud sounded. The black-clad figure’s chest suddenly caved in. He spat blood, his aura weakening in an instant, and his body was sent flying backward.

Lin Hao had just arrived, yet with thunderbolt methods he had already slain two men in succession. The surrounding cultivators were so shocked they did not dare move rashly, all of them on high alert.

“How dare you touch Lin’s woman?”

Lin Hao glanced at Fang Ling, whose body was covered in blood as she battled two opponents, and his eyes were full of coldness. Stepping forward as vast amounts of spiritual energy poured into him, he charged toward the two men.

“Stop him! Quickly!”

Someone among the black-clad group shouted, and at once they all spread out their cultivation bases and rushed to kill Lin Hao again.

“Cut them all down!”

Lin Hao cast a cold look at the others behind him. His voice carried no emotion as the Heaven-Punisher in his hand suddenly transformed into the figure of a black-clad woman. As boundless savagery radiated outward, it went straight toward the crowd.

“Not good!”

The two still fighting Fang Ling felt their hearts sink. Their attacks upon Fang Ling grew even fiercer.

“Frost Cold!”

Looking at the two before him, both of whom were faintly growing frantic, Lin Hao’s killing intent had already become dense to the extreme. A spiritual energy battle blade manifested in his hand, and as endless cold gathered, he suddenly struck at one of them.

“Thunder Summoning!”

Upon seeing this, the black-clad figure hurriedly leapt backward. While rapidly forming hand seals, a heavenly thunderbolt descended from the sky, carrying a fierce and destructive force!

With a boom, Lin Hao endured the violent churn of blood and qi within him and stepped forward to slash at the black-clad man. Amid a shrill scream, the black-clad man was actually killed instantly by that single strike.

With a dull thud, Fang Ling and the black-clad figure exchanged a blow. A not-insignificant storm surged outward, and both were sent flying.

“Fall into demonhood!”

Seeing that Fang Ling was not in immediate mortal danger, Lin Hao stepped forward. A great mass of spiritual energy from heaven and earth surged into his body, and he instantly appeared beside the man. Killing intent filled the air as he brought down a punch.

“Die!”

A cold shout, like a verdict from the depths of the underworld, rang out. The man’s body suddenly exploded apart, and half of his body was blasted into a cloud of blood mist by Lin Hao’s fist.

“Run!”

Seeing Lin Hao’s iron-blooded methods, the black-clad group all revealed looks of horror. Someone roared, and the others scattered in all directions, fleeing in panic.

What happened today was truly a first in their lives. A youth they had never even heard of possessed heaven-shaking battle power, and his methods were brutally ruthless to the extreme. And yet this youth was nothing more than a seventh level energy condensation cultivator.

“No need to pursue them.”

Lin Hao glanced at the black-clad woman, who was about to give chase, and gave a calm order. Then he came before Fang Ling, sending out his divine sense to probe her body. Only then did he finally set his heart at ease. Fang Ling’s injuries were not severe; with proper recuperation for a period of time, they would heal.

“You stay here and take care of her. I’ll be back shortly.” After instructing the black-clad woman, Lin Hao rubbed Fang Ling’s hair, left behind the thin red blade he had obtained earlier, and flashed away toward Bai Chou’s location.

The black-clad woman respectfully answered at once, while Fang Ling’s eyes flashed with a dim light, her heart filled with thoughts that no one could tell...

At this same moment, in the place where Bai Chou was fighting, a burst of explosive sound sent his body flying backward, crashing heavily into a mountain wall.

The black-clad figure’s eyes flashed with killing intent as he went straight for Bai Chou’s neck. He clearly intended to seize this chance and behead him.

Bai Chou’s eyes remained filled with coldness. Gritting his teeth, his left arm suddenly exploded apart. Using some unknown secret art, he stirred up a violent storm. Even the black-clad figure suffered considerable injuries from Bai Chou’s counterattack.

“Seeking death!” The black-clad figure’s eyes flashed with killing intent. Just as he was about to rush at Bai Chou again, an extremely frosty longsword came straight at him from the horizon.

“This sword is no ordinary one!” Sensing the sinister cold emanating from the sword, the black-clad figure’s eyes turned grave. With a sweep of his hand, a powerful ice arrow instantly formed and flew toward the frost-laden sword.

With a thunderous boom, Lin Hao had also arrived. Blood qi surged around him as a frantic intent filled the air, and he punched straight at the man.

“Seventh level energy condensation?” After detecting that Lin Hao’s cultivation was only at the seventh level of energy condensation, the black-clad man’s eyes flashed with suspicion. Yet his own perfect energy-condensation aura surged as he returned the blow.

A dull thud.

“Fall into demonhood!”

After that muffled impact, the two retreated several steps. Lin Hao’s gaze overflowed with chill as he stepped forward. A great amount of spiritual energy poured into his body, and he once more drove his fist at the man.

“Stronger than before!”

Only now did the black-clad man truly take him seriously. White light flickered around his body, and a powerful aura suddenly burst forth as he met the strike head-on.

“Not weaker than Chen Ping...”

After this exchange, blood qi surged wildly within both of them. Lin Hao suppressed the urge to spew blood. Killing intent flashed in his eyes as he actually fused the frost-cold technique with the force of his fist.