Chapter 618: With me here, what’s there to fear?
At that moment, on an island not far from Harbor Island, two figures were searching for something.
"It was clearly right here. Why can’t we find it?" Both men were dressed in ancient robes, and the one speaking had only one arm.
"Brother Wan, could you have remembered incorrectly?" another, a hideous old man, let out a cold snort. "You’ve called me all this way. You’re not just messing with me, are you?"
"Brother Chang, how could I possibly deceive you? I found that item right here," the one-armed elder snorted coldly, looking at his severed arm. "If it weren’t for a powerful enemy who suddenly appeared, preventing me from taking it, I wouldn’t even want to share it with anyone! Once I get my hands on it, my strength will surely soar, and I will avenge the loss of my arm!"
"Oh? You seek revenge?"
Just then, a light laugh suddenly rang out, startling them both.
"Who?"
Grave expressions appeared on their faces. For someone to have approached without them noticing, the intruder’s strength had to be far superior to theirs.
"Weren’t you looking for me?"
A figure slowly emerged on the small island. It was Lin Mu.
"You?!" The elder with the surname Wan looked at Lin Mu, his eyes filled with shock. Although he had never seen Lin Mu before, he remembered that voice. The man had commanded a Flying Sword to sever his hand. His cultivation level was so high that he was certainly no match.
"Brother Wan, was it this youngster that injured you?" On the other side, the elder named Chang showed a trace of doubt on his face. "This person has no True Qi fluctuations around him. He looks just like an ordinary person. Could you be mistaken?"
Elder Wan replied grimly, "Do you think an ordinary person could appear before us without our noticing?"
The expression on Elder Chang’s face also grew solemn. "Your Excellency, I am the Sect Leader of Hongmen, Chang—"
Elder Chang gave Lin Mu a fist salute, preparing to probe his opponent.
"Scram!"
However, before he could finish speaking, Lin Mu cut him off.
"You..." Elder Chang sneered coldly. "Such an arrogant youngster. Do you not know that I am—"
"You talk too much."
Lin Mu appeared directly in front of Elder Chang.
So fast! Elder Chang was startled but sneered and struck out with his palm.
Lin Mu likewise met him with a palm strike, his expression calm.
Seeing Lin Mu’s palm technique looking so weak and feeble, Elder Chang’s smile grew even more disdainful. He wants to clash palms with me? He’s simply asking for trouble!
"Be careful, Brother Chang!" Wan Xiong shouted a warning at that moment.
But it was already too late.
PFFT!
The moment his palm touched Lin Mu’s, Elder Chang was filled with regret. He had assumed the seemingly weak hand would be no threat, but an incredibly violent force suddenly swept over him, shattering his arm and sending him stumbling back several steps.
"The Divine Communion Realm?!" Elder Chang stared at Lin Mu in horror, his eyes filled with terror. It has to be the Divine Communion Realm! How else could I, a pinnacle Martial Arts Grandmaster, fail to withstand even a single palm strike?
"Divine Communion Realm? What’s that?" Lin Mu shook his head and continued walking toward Elder Chang. With my current cultivation level, even the Divine Communion Realm is no match for me.
"Your Excellency, I am the Sect Leader of Hongmen! I was in the wrong. I’ll leave immediately!" Elder Chang no longer hesitated. He spun around and fled at high speed, stepping across the surface of the sea.
"Did I say you could leave?"
Lin Mu let out a cold laugh. With a light tap of his finger, a streak of Sword Qi whistled through the air.
Punishing Immortal Sword Qi!
The sword light was incredibly fast, arriving in the blink of an eye!
"Damn it!" Anger and fear filled Elder Chang’s face as he fully circulated his True Qi to speed up his escape. But the Sword Qi pursued him like a shadow, impossible to shake off.
"Boy, are you determined to fight my Hongmen to the death?"
Elder Chang’s enraged voice echoed as the True Qi around his body whirled wildly. He suddenly spun around. "I’ll stake it all against you!"
True Qi swirled in his hands, pulling the seawater from both sides to form a giant ice barrier in front of him, hoping to block the Sword Qi for even a moment.
CRACK!
However, the Punishing Immortal Sword Qi easily shattered the ice and pierced through Elder Chang’s chest.
"Ugh..." The elder looked down at the wound on his chest, gave a bitter smile, and plunged headfirst into the sea.
Slain with a single finger!
***
PLOP!
Back on the island, Wan Xiong fell to his knees, pleading repeatedly, "Senior, spare my life! Please spare me!"
Seeing this terrifying display—slaying a peak Martial Arts Grandmaster with a single finger—Wan Xiong knew he was no match. It wasn’t that he couldn’t fight back; it was that he didn’t dare.
"You’re quite smart," Lin Mu glanced at Wan Xiong and said, "Did you come here in search of this?"
Wan Xiong looked up and saw a thumb-sized stone hovering in Lin Mu’s palm. The stone emitted a faint glow in the night.
"This..." Wan Xiong’s breath hitched, and he spoke through gritted teeth. "If Senior likes it, please, take it as a gift."
"Tell me, where did you get this?" Lin Mu asked. "You knew you couldn’t absorb it, so you hid it here. It seems the Spirit Vein you discovered isn’t far from this place."
"Spirit Vein?" Wan Xiong shook his head. "This junior doesn’t know what it is, but I did find it beneath an island about a hundred miles from here."
"A hundred miles away? Beneath an island?" Lin Mu was briefly taken aback before he laughed in realization. "How did I not think of that?"
"If Senior likes it, I... I will give it to you," Wan Xiong said, his heart aching with bitterness. He had obtained this item with great difficulty, and he only had one. It contained a power that he found astonishing, but he didn’t know how to use it. He had intended to study it with the Hongmen Sect Leader, only to see him slain by Lin Mu’s sword.
"Do you know what this is?" Lin Mu asked.
"This junior does not know," Wan Xiong replied honestly.
"A Spirit Stone," Lin Mu said. "These are only born where the world’s Spirit Veins converge. They have their uses."
"A Spirit Stone?" Wan Xiong said, "If Senior likes it, please, feel free to take it."
Lin Mu shook his head. "This Spirit Stone might be useful to ordinary martial artists, but it’s of no use to me." The Spirit Stone in his hand contained very little Spiritual Energy, even less than what he could absorb from the environment with a casual breath.
Lin Mu continued, "Although the Spiritual Energy in this Spirit Stone is sparse, if you use it for cultivation, you are bound to reach the Divine Communion Realm within two years. It’s yours."
Astonishment and excitement washed over Wan Xiong’s face. Reach the Divine Communion Realm in two years? If word of this got out, it would drive countless Martial Artists into a frenzy!
Taking the Spirit Stone, Wan Xiong kowtowed repeatedly. "Thank you, Senior!"
"No need to thank me." Lin Mu gave Wan Xiong a deep look and said, "This is what you deserve. But you should know what to do, right?"
The moment he finished speaking, Lin Mu shot up from the ground and vanished into the night.
Does Senior intend to go to that island? Wan Xiong was shocked and hurriedly shouted, "Senior, that place is perilous! You mustn’t go! I almost didn’t make it back alive last time!"
Thinking of that place, a look of lingering fear appeared on Wan Xiong’s face.
"What is there to fear when I am here?"