Chapter Seventy-Two: Advancing Under the Cover of Darkness

After achieving his objective, Qin Ming took his leave from Huangfu Qi.

Truth be told, the power of that spell just now was so terrifying that he would have believed it came from a Golden Core Patriarch. There was simply no other way to describe it but as monstrous.

Now, the perfect replica of that spell was quietly lying in Qin Ming’s storage pouch, taking the form of a purple leaf. It could be used at any moment, awaiting a fated bearer.

With this trump card in his possession, Qin Ming felt a surge of confidence.

…

Qin Ming piloted his Spirit-Light Shuttle toward Qingyang Market. All along the way, he maintained a moderate speed, conserving his spiritual power. If he were to travel at full speed, he could reach the velocity of a Foundation Establishment cultivator, but the spiritual exhaustion would be so severe that Qin Ming himself could only sustain it for half an hour.

As he was halfway along his route—

“Hm?”

Qin Ming’s brow furrowed as he suddenly sensed the ripples of a magical duel not far away.

In a mountain hollow several hundred yards ahead, more than a dozen cultivators from the Feathered Spirit Sect were encircling and slaughtering a handful of itinerant cultivators, the area shrouded by a hazy blue formation. If not for his powerful spiritual sense, Qin Ming would have missed it entirely.

“Let none escape!”
“No news must leak out!”
“Kill them all!”

The leader, dressed in the core disciple robes of the Feathered Spirit Sect and wielding a magic sword, was indulging in slaughter.

On the other side, the victims wore miner uniforms from the same sect, their cultivation ranging from high to low—clearly recruited rogue cultivators. They fought desperately, but trapped by the array, they were like fish in a net.

Among the sect’s pursuers, a burly, dark-skinned youth wielded a massive black hammer radiating the aura of late-stage Qi Refining. Approaching the struggling miners, he sneered, “Run, then! Why aren't you running anymore? Since you happened to discover this, blame your own misfortune!”

With that, he sent the giant hammer flying, smashing it down upon one of the miners. The rogue cultivator, panic-stricken, hastily conjured a round shield magic artifact in defense, but the hammer crashed into his head, bursting it into a cloud of blood.

“Old He!!” The other miners, evidently close companions, watched their friend die with eyes full of fury and despair. They fought all the harder, realizing escape was impossible and even seeking to perish together.

“Hahaha, what a clever trick! The Thunder Origin Sect could never have imagined in their wildest dreams that the Feathered Spirit Sect secretly harbored a peak Foundation Establishment cultivator with a Heavenly Spiritual Root, quietly using a third-tier spiritual vein to break through to the Golden Core stage. No need to exploit resources excessively. By the time the other sects realize, it’ll be too late for regret!”

An elderly miner let out a bitter laugh, but before he could finish, the core disciple leader dispatched him with a single spell, beheading him.

“You talk too much!” the youth spat, his face sinister, before turning and resuming his slaughter.

Qin Ming’s heart chilled. He had no intention of interfering or playing the hero. Stumbling upon such a matter by chance, his best option was to leave immediately.

He moved quietly, using the cover of mist to slip away along a detour.

“Who’s there!”

Suddenly, a purple magic sword shot toward him, aiming for his neck!

The formation’s reach was broader than he thought; as soon as Qin Ming drew near, it detected his presence. The Feathered Spirit Sect cultivators swiftly finished off the other miners and split into over a dozen streaks of light to pursue him.

Four of them were late-stage Qi Refining, the rest mid-to-late stage.

Qin Ming prepared to push his Spirit-Light Shuttle to its limit and break free.

But the core disciple leader snorted coldly, waving his formation chess piece. The blue array instantly expanded, enveloping Qin Ming.

In that moment, countless fierce spells rained down upon him.

Now that they were close, the sect’s cultivators recognized his face. “It’s just one of our own spiritual farmers. I thought it was some fool with a death wish.”

Qin Ming knew that unless he dealt with these people, he would never escape today.

His gaze hardened, and he formed a seal, pointing to the sky.

Suddenly, winds roared and clouds billowed as a black thundercloud spanning hundreds of yards appeared overhead, lightning crackling within.

At first, the Feathered Spirit Sect cultivators were startled by the display. But when they realized it was only the Spirit Rain Art, they all breathed easier and burst out laughing.

“Hahahaha! He’s so desperate he’s using the Spirit Rain Art! What now, going to give us a bath?”

But as soon as the words left their mouths, torrents of rain poured from the dark clouds overhead.

The cultivators raised their spiritual shields to ward off the rain and surged toward Qin Ming.

Yet as they advanced, countless invisible, hair-thin poisonous barbs hidden in the raindrops slipped through their shields and defensive artifacts, piercing their bodies.

A bizarre scene unfolded.

One by one, the dozen cultivators stiffened midair as if struck by lightning, then plummeted from the sky.

From the clouds, countless thorny vines descended, lashing toward the bodies below, ravenously draining their blood and souls to form drops of blood pearls.

Even two late-stage Qi Refining cultivators were felled, tumbling straight down!

With a wave of his hand, Qin Ming collected the blood pearls.

In the blink of an eye, only the fat, dark-skinned hammer-wielding cultivator and the core disciple leader remained.

The leader’s face twisted in shock as he realized something was wrong. “No, it’s a soul attack!”

Qin Ming watched as the invisible poison barbs neared the leader.

Suddenly, a silver brocade cloth about a yard long flew out from the leader’s arms, reflexively shielding the two men.

Qin Ming narrowed his eyes at the brocade, muttering, “A soul-defense artifact, huh? Looks like another disciple of some standing.”

He immediately withdrew the deadly rain.

With a flicker, he left an afterimage in place and appeared above the two survivors.

A three-inch-long aura of blood and energy blazed on his fist as he struck at the fat, dark-skinned cultivator.

The youth responded quickly, forming seals; his black giant hammer instantly doubled in size and crashed toward Qin Ming like a mountain.

Boom!

With a single punch, Qin Ming sent the hammer flying without losing momentum, his fist slamming into the youth’s head.

Bang!

The cultivator’s head—and upper body—exploded in a spray of blood, his corpse falling like a rag doll.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The core disciple leader swiftly formed a sword seal, sending several green sword rays at Qin Ming from all directions—two even arced through the air to strike from behind.

Qin Ming was unflustered, his powerful spiritual sense spreading wide.

As the sword rays struck, he casually reached out and grabbed the true form of the green magic sword.

Buzz!

The sword trembled violently in his grip, letting out a pitiful wail.

Blood spurted from the leader’s mouth as his artifact was broken, horror twisting his face.

Without hesitation, he leapt onto his flying artifact and tried to flee.

But how could his speed compare to a top-tier Spirit-Light Shuttle? Within a few breaths, Qin Ming was upon him.

Without a word, he punched the leader into a nearby cliff, his terrifying strength crushing life from the man in an instant.

Qin Ming was about to search the bodies for storage pouches when his expression changed—he sensed a far more formidable aura approaching.

“Foundation Establishment stage?”

…