From where he stood, Chen Qi believed that if the Lin and Chen families broke into open war, it would end only in mutual ruin. Such a clash would weaken them both, and the other powers of Qing County would be only too eager to step in and seize the advantage.
He couldn't imagine the Lin family tearing itself apart over a single sprig of herb.
Lost in that thought, footsteps sounded outside the wooden shack. Chen Qi's smile grew wider.
"Our people are here," he said.
Rising, he walked to the door and peered out. Four figures approached along the path. There were three middle-aged men, each carrying the air of those accustomed to command. Beside them stood a woman in a purple gown, the high slit of her skirt fluttering in the mountain breeze. Her chest showed a generous sweep of pale skin; beneath the fabric, two long, straight legs hinted at themselves—an alluring sight.
They were the Chen family's principal members, and the woman was none other than the Fourth Mistress, Chen Yan.
The visitors reached the hut, and Chen Yan batted her eyelashes like a silk curtain. Her voice cooed, syrup-thin. "Second Brother, I hear you found a Blood Spirit Grass from the Lin family. Is it true?"
Chen Qi nodded. "Yes. It's here in the hut now."
He led them inside. On the stone table lay the herb—a plant of pure blood-red, its faint glow bathing the room.
Their eyes gleamed like predators'. The Blood Spirit Grass didn't merely invigorate the blood or improve constitution; for a cultivator at the Body Tempering or Bone Forging stages, it could significantly raise the odds of breaking through a rank. Such a treasure was priceless.
Chen Yan's voice purred with envy. "If you refine that grass, Second Brother, you'll reach the fourth rank of Bone Tempering. Little Sister envies you."
Chen Qi's grin widened. "All thanks to that Lin brat. If he hadn't found it first, I might have missed this chance."
He shifted tone, amusement curling at the corner of his mouth. "I wonder if the Lin family will come to demand it back. They might come knocking for justice."
Chen Yan sniffed disdainfully. "Second Brother, now that the Blood Spirit Grass is in our hands, it belongs to the Chen family. What has the Lin family to do with it? If they dare come for it, we simply refuse."
Beside her, the burly Third Master, Chen Mang, snarled, "Right. If words don't work, then fists will. When has the Chen family ever feared the Lin family?"
Chen Qi waved a hand, moderating them. "I don't think the Lin family would really go to war over this. I called you here more as a precaution."
In his mind, the Lin patriarch was no fool; launching an all-out war over one herb would be reckless. Chen Mang nodded in agreement.
"Your point is sound," he muttered.
Chen Qi rose. "Let's go see the Lin mine for ourselves."
No one objected, and they stepped outside. But as they left the hut, three figures were already approaching from the other direction.
The leader was a youth wearing a deep-blue robe; a girl in a pale green dress walked beside him. It was Lin Yi and his companion.
Seeing Lin Yi, Chen Q, Ii, and the others exchanged puzzled looks. Lin Yi had once been Qing County's brightest young prodigy—everyone recognized him. But hadn't he been crippled? Why was he here, coming to the Chen family mine?
Chen Qi frowned. "You little brat. What are you doing at the Chen mine?"
Lin Yi's face was expressionless. "I heard the Chen family stole a Blood Spirit Grass from the Lin family. I'm here to take it back."
At those words, laughter burst from the Chen family members.
Chen Yan covered her lips with a silken hand and let out a teasing giggle."Oh my, you've come to take the Blood Spirit Grass?""Are you out of your mind?"
A cripple with no cultivation daring to demand the Blood Spirit Grass—was that something any sane person would say?
Lin Yi smiled faintly."No illness," he said evenly. "I just figured my fists were hard enough. So here I am."
"Hahaha!"
The Third Master, Chen Mang, threw back his head in boisterous laughter. Even Chen Qi, the Second Master, couldn't help but shake his head, a mocking smile on his lips. His gaze toward Lin Yi was that of someone watching a fool perform tricks.
"It seems the boy's gone mad. No need to waste words—throw him out of the mine."
Then his eyes turned to Gu Xi, his expression sharp as a blade of ice.
"Little girl," he sneered, "if I'm not mistaken, you're my nephew Chen Shan's fiancée, aren't you? Yet here you are, clinging to another man. You must think little of my Chen family's name."
His voice hardened, the threat clear."I'll visit your Gu family myself and have a nice talk with your father about this disgrace."
Gu Xi's face went pale, her heart sinking. It was obvious now that the Chen family had no intention of letting her family go easily.
But then Lin Yi spoke—calm, quiet, and cold."You won't get the chance."
Chen Qi frowned. The more the boy spoke, the more deranged he seemed. The Second Master's irritation flared.
And in that instant—
A shadow flickered before his eyes.
It moved too fast to follow.
In the blink of an eye, Lin Yi was in front of him, fist clenched tight, surging forward with a power that tore through the air like thunder splitting the heavens.
That punch carried death. Chen Qi could feel it in his bones.
Panic seized him. His face drained of color as he threw up his hand in desperation, channeling all his internal energy. His skin flashed with a bronze glow as a layer of defensive qi hardened over his palm.
"Boom!"
The fist and palm collided, and the world exploded in sound.
Then—
Before anyone could even comprehend what had happened, Chen Qi's body burst apart like a firework ignited at close range. Flesh and bone shattered into crimson mist.
Blood rained down across the sky, painting it a ghastly red.
[Target Chen Qi killed. Brutality Value +400]
The world went still.
Chen Yan, Chen Mang, and the other two Chen family heads stood rooted to the spot, as if struck by lightning. Every drop of color drained from their faces; their bodies trembled uncontrollably.
One punch.
With a single punch, the Second Master of the Chen family—a Bone Forging cultivator of the third level—was dead. Gone. Not even a corpse left behind.
And the one who had done it… was Lin Yi, the so-called crippled young master whose cultivation had supposedly been destroyed.
Impossible. Absolutely impossible.
The Lin family disciple who had led Lin Yi here stood frozen, mind blank.Moments ago, he had worried whether the young master could stand against Chen Qi.
Never in his wildest dreams had he imagined Lin Yi would kill him in one blow.
Gu Xi's chest rose and fell violently.
Even though she had once seen Lin Yi obliterate Shen Yuheng—a Bone Forging expert of the fourth stage—with a single strike, witnessing it again still left her trembling.
It was terrifying.