The Sect Leader of the Xuanyang Sect, a man who had held power in the Wuji Market for over a decade, died ignobly in the mud of a foreign forest.

His killer, the square-jawed Elder, merely sneered. He shook the blood from his silver axe with a casual flick of his wrist, then turned to charge at Gu Yue without a second glance at the corpse.

Qin Lu stared at Wu Zheng’s severed head. His first reaction was shock, followed instantly by a cold, calculating rage.

He felt no grief. He and Wu Zheng were strangers, their relationship defined by a few sentences and a threat. There would be no tears.

But Wu Zheng’s death was a strategic catastrophe.

The equation had shifted. Initially, the ambushers had the advantage—four Foundation Establishment experts against three. Now, with two enemy reinforcements arriving and Wu Zheng dead, it was three against five.

The hunters had become the prey.

Worse, there was no escape. Li Qingdu’s arrogance had backfired spectacularly. The trapping array he had set to ensure no Crane Sect member could flee now locked the Wuji team inside with their killers. This was a cage match. Only the victors would walk out.

If Li Qingdu and Gu Yue fell, Qin Lu was a dead man.

Clang—!

A deafening metallic impact shook the valley.

Gu Yue blocked the giant’s axe with her sword, but the sheer kinetic force launched her backward. She crashed through two ancient pines before skidding to a halt, her face pale.

“Wuji Sect scum!” the giant roared, his eyes wild with bloodlust. “You dare invade our home? Prepare to die!”

He didn’t give her a moment to breathe. He charged again, the beautiful female cultivator following in his wake like a silent shadow.

Just as the giant prepared to deliver a finishing blow, he slammed on the brakes, raising his axe in a reflexive guard.

Boom!

A compressed bullet of air slammed into the flat of his axe. The impact was heavy enough to numb his arm, forcing him to stumble back three steps.

The giant blinked, staring at the source of the attack.

Qin Lu stood there, fingers still extended from the [Finger Flick Technique]. Beside him, Gu Can gripped his spear, his face grim.

“You’ve got a few tricks, I see,” the giant grunted, shaking the numbness from his wrist. He looked at the Qi Refining junior with genuine surprise.

“Hmph! Two measly Qi Refining ants,” the beautiful woman sneered, her stunning face twisted in disdain. “You must have the guts of a leopard to block our path.”

Thud.

Gu Yue landed beside Qin Lu. She wiped a trail of blood from her lip, her eyes burning with a manic light that Qin Lu had never seen before.

“Can you still fight?” Qin Lu asked quietly.

“Hehe!” Gu Yue grinned, revealing blood-stained teeth. “I told you, didn’t I? The Gu family does not know fear!”

“That’s right!” Gu Can laughed, spinning his spear. “Today, I kill a Foundation Establishment expert!”

Qin Lu looked at the siblings—the “gentle” lady now a blood-soaked valkyrie, the “reckless” brother now a fearless warrior.

This is who they really are.

A similar fire ignited in Qin Lu’s chest. He gripped the Seven Star Sword, his eyes narrowing into cold slits.

“Alright then,” he whispered. “Let’s kill them.”

Boom!

Qin Lu stomped the ground, exploding forward like an arrow. The Gu siblings flanked him, the three forming a spearhead formation as they charged the two Foundation Establishment experts.

“Arrogant fools!”

“Know your place!”

The giant and the woman scoffed, moving to intercept.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Sparks flew as weapons collided. Gu Yue peeled off to engage the woman in a blur of motion, leaving Qin Lu and Gu Can to face the giant.

The two juniors coordinated perfectly. Sword and spear struck in tandem, aiming for the giant’s eyes, throat, and previous wounds.

Initially, the giant laughed them off. He had just fought two Foundation Establishment experts; two Qi Refining pests should be nothing.

But as the exchange continued, his laughter died.

Something is wrong, he thought, parrying a vicious thrust from Qin Lu. This guy is supposedly Level 8? Impossible.

Qin Lu’s swordsmanship was too fast, too heavy, too precise. Every strike landed on the same spot of the giant’s shield, weakening it systematically.

Ding!

The giant blocked a thrust with his axe handle, the vibration rattling his teeth. He’s hiding his strength!

“Die!” Gu Can roared, thrusting his spear at the giant’s eye.

The giant tilted his head, dodging easily. He could kill the spearman in ten moves, but he couldn’t ignore the swordsman. The moment he committed to attacking Gu Can, Qin Lu would gut him.

Frustrated, the giant leaped into the air, hovering out of reach.

“Let’s see you hit me from down there,” he sneered. Flight was the ultimate trump card against low-level cultivators.

He was wrong.

Qin Lu looked up, his expression flat. He punched the air.

Five compressed air bullets erupted from his knuckles, merging in mid-flight into a single, roaring cannonball of wind. The Legend-rank [Finger Flick Technique] crossed the distance faster than the eye could follow.

Crack!

The giant’s shield shattered like glass. The wind blast slammed into his stomach.

“Ugh!”

He vomited blood, his flight wavering. What kind of martial art is that?! That’s not a Qi Refining technique!

“Who taught you that?” the giant demanded, wiping his mouth.

“I don’t explain myself to corpses,” Qin Lu replied coldly.

“You country bumpkin!” The giant roared, slapping a fresh defensive talisman on his chest. “I underestimated you. Now you die!”

He dove from the sky, gravity adding terrifying momentum to his swing.

“Dodge!”

Qin Lu shoved Gu Can aside. The axe cleaved the earth where they had stood a second ago, the shockwave splitting a nearby tree in half.

Qin Lu’s heart sank. The physical gap is too big. One hit and we’re paste.

“Old ghost! Die!”

Gu Can scrambled up and charged again, fearless as a newborn calf.

“Annoying fly!” The giant swung his axe backhand.

Qin Lu intercepted, his sword deflecting the blow. The three locked into a deadly dance. Despite their injuries and lower rank, Qin Lu and Gu Can were holding their own—barely.

Suddenly, a voice boomed from the sky.

“Hold on! Reinforcements are coming! We will kill them all!”

It was Li Qingdu. His voice was amplified by Qi, echoing across the battlefield.

The Crane Sect cultivators flinched, their eyes darting around nervously. The Wuji loose cultivators cheered, their morale soaring.

Qin Lu didn’t react. He knew Li Qingdu was lying through his teeth. There were no reinforcements. It was a desperate bluff.

But it worked. The giant faltered, his movements becoming frantic.

Qin Lu seized the opening. He feinted a retreat, then lunged.

The giant parried, his axe sweeping toward Qin Lu’s waist with enough force to cut a tank in half.

Crack!

Qin Lu’s [Golden Light Talisman] shattered instantly. The axe bit toward his flesh.

Shield!

Qin Lu cast [Spirit Shield Technique] instantly. A transparent barrier materialized inches from his skin.

Boom!

The axe stopped dead.

“What?!” The giant’s eyes bulged. A Qi Refining cultivator blocking a Foundation Establishment strike with a spell? Impossible.

Before he could recover, Qin Lu flicked his wrist. A small black sphere appeared in his palm.

He threw it point-blank into the giant’s face.

“Boom—!”

Purple lightning exploded like a supernova. The [Thunder Bead]—a parting gift from Wang Shenzhi—detonated with the force of a thunderclap.

The giant screamed as his shield disintegrated. The lightning ravaged his body, stunning him and sending him into a seizure.

“It worked!”

Qin Lu didn’t waste a microsecond.

Bang!

He lunged through the smoke. The [Seven Star Sword], glowing with lethal intent, thrust forward.

Pfft!

Steel pierced bone. The sword entered the giant’s forehead, punching through the back of his skull.

Qin Lu twisted the blade, blending the brain matter, then ripped it sideways. The giant collapsed, dead before he hit the ground.

Qin Lu exhaled, his chest heaving.

Achievement unlocked: Slay a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

He didn’t rest. He turned his gaze to Gu Yue.

She was losing. The beautiful female cultivator was a mid-stage expert, and she was dismantling Gu Yue’s defense with terrified efficiency.

“Senior Sister! I’m coming!”

Qin Lu launched himself across the clearing, appearing behind the woman like a ghost. He thrust his sword at her spine.

Sensing the threat, the woman spun, her red silk artifact deflecting the blade with a metallic clang.

She retreated, putting distance between herself and the trio. Her eyes widened as she saw the corpse of the giant.

“You… you killed Senior Brother Fang?!”

Qin Lu flicked the blood from his sword, his eyes cold.

“Not just him,” he said. “You’re next.”