It was not only Qiy Tong, the Half-Step Innate Elder of the Qiy Family, who felt despair. Someone else was even more desperate at this moment: the Half-Step Innate Elder from the Holy Fire Sect, a man surnamed Xue. He was already charging toward Chen Fei, but the overwhelming power of the four flaming Yan Swords hovering by Chen Fei's mouth made him tremble uncontrollably, as if he had gone mad.

"No, how can this be…" Elder Xue's eyes filled with fear. His scalp went numb with terror, and in the next instant, he retreated frantically.

"Trying to run?"

But the only response was a calm, rising tone. Then, Chen Fei's four flaming Sword Qi of Sanyang True Fire quivered and vanished into thin air with a SWISH, leaving only a faint, scorching heat lingering in the air.

In the next instant, the four Sword Qi of Sanyang True Fire reappeared in the four cardinal directions above Elder Xue's head.

In that moment, a terrifying energy instantly enveloped and imprisoned him, causing a look of pure fear to spread across his face.

At that moment, he could practically smell the stench of death.

"I told you, did you really think I was afraid of you?" Chen Fei watched the scene with a calm expression, his matter-of-fact tone sending chills down their spines. Qiy Tong's old face turned ashen, and his body began to shiver nonstop.

We're Half-Step Innates, for crying out loud! But in the face of Chen Fei's dismissive tone, are we no better than helpless infants?

"Don't!"

"My apologies…"

In the next moment, he no longer had the luxury to think.

In a single instant, his eardrums were assaulted by two sounds at once: a miserable howl and a calm shout. Immediately after, he witnessed a scene he would never forget for the rest of his life.

Just as Chen Fei's indifferent words faded, the Sword Qi of Sanyang True Fire circling above Elder Xue's head suddenly quivered. They rained down like flaming meteors, shrouding and inundating everything. In the next instant, they precisely pierced the four most vital points on Elder Xue's body: his head, heart, dantian, and neck.

Then, with a final THUD, his body hit the ground.

Qiy Tong, the Half-Step Innate Powerhouse of the Qiy Family, was horrified to find that Elder Xue, who had been part of his group moments ago, had been reduced to a burning corpse. He had crashed onto the leaf-strewn ground, completely bereft of life.

"How… how is this possible? How can you be an Innate Ancient Martial Artist?"

Seeing this, the Half-Step Innate Elder Qiy Tong felt his legs go weak. The complex emotions on his old face vanished, leaving it utterly blank.

He couldn't fathom how someone as young as Chen Fei could possibly be a true Innate Ancient Martial Artist.

What's more… even an Innate Ancient Martial Artist shouldn't be this powerful, right?

After all, the elder from the Holy Fire Sect was a Half-Step Innate, just like him. Even with the vast gulf separating their realms, a Half-Step Innate should still be a formidable opponent. It was impossible that he could be so easily and thoroughly crushed in a single, fatal strike.

Could it be… Suddenly, an unbelievable thought surfaced in Qiy Tong's mind, and his pupils constricted. Could he be… even stronger than an Early Innate Ancient Martial Artist?

***

Once a person completely loses their conviction, they naturally become much easier to "handle."

Of course, for the current Chen Fei, there wasn't much difference when dealing with someone at the Half-Step Innate level anyway.

A sharp glint flashed through his pitch-black eyes, which were as clear as glazed glass. With a flicker of his body, it took only a few breaths before another corpse lay before him, incinerated by the raging Sanyang True Fire.

"This really is too much like bullying," Chen Fei muttered to himself with a slight shake of his head after finishing. "The power gap is just too vast."

In fact, with his current strength, he had already condensed the fourth Sword Qi of Sanyang True Fire. Strictly speaking, he was powerful enough to be on par with a Qi Refining Fifth Layer expert or a Mid Innate Ancient Martial Artist. Not to mention that this Sword Qi of Sanyang True Fire was a Cultivator's technique, which, in terms of quality, far surpassed the internal energy within an Ancient Martial Artist's body.

So, this was no different from bullying. The gap was simply too immense.

"But my formation seems pretty useless, huh? In such a short time… it's about to be completely destroyed?" Chen Fei then glanced at the formation, which was on the verge of shattering, and shook his head with a small smile.

In truth, he had started teaching himself Mystic Sect Formations several months ago, sometimes intentionally, sometimes not. At first, he found it interesting and fun, but it gradually evolved into a desire to acquire another skill, to enhance his foundation and have another method for self-protection.

This was why he had been able to tell at a glance that the dense fog outside Tian Kui Market was the work of a Mystic Sect Formation.

He himself was studying the subject, and it seemed his aptitude was already quite good.

"Whatever, the test is pretty much over."

Following another soft murmur, Chen Fei waved his hand. The dazzling, hot fog that had permeated the silent night instantly dissipated.

He looked toward where the dense fog had vanished. There stood Qiy Army, who was known as the uncrowned king of the Qiy Family and its Third Elder. The once high-spirited man was now in a sorry state. His clothes were tattered, and shocking, high-temperature burns covered his body, his flesh a stark and vivid red.

"You…" Seeing this, Qiy Army almost ground his teeth to dust, partly from anger at Chen Fei for using such "despicable methods" against him, and partly because he couldn't help but feel a sliver of terror rising within.

Even though he had been on the verge of breaking the formation Chen Fei had laid, he was now completely exhausted.

Could this kid… possess strength rivaling an Innate Ancient Martial Artist just by using Mystic Sect Formation techniques? But he's so young! How is that possible!?

"Where are they? What have you done to them?" He had no time to ponder these questions, however, because he was horrified to discover that the other two who came with him were gone!

His pupils shrank, and his scalp prickled with shock. As he looked at Chen Fei again, his eyes couldn't help but reveal his profound turmoil.

This kid… what on earth has he done?

"Are you asking about them? Sorry, it seems they didn't wait for you. They've already gone to the underworld for their next reincarnation," Chen Fei said indifferently, pointing at the charred corpses of the Holy Fire Sect's Half-Step Innate Elder and the Qiy Family's Qiy Tong.

Under normal circumstances, he wouldn't have bothered to be so ruthless. But these people had been so tactless, trying to kill him in the middle of the night less than a day after their last encounter.

Besides, I'm not some pushover, so how could I not have a ruthless streak? Even a clay Bodhisattva has a temper, does it not?

"What… what did you say!?"

Upon hearing this, even a man like Qiy Army—revered as the uncrowned king of the Qiy Family, who had once slain an Early Innate Ancient Martial Artist—couldn't help but tremble. His expression changed dramatically as a feeling of terror began to crawl through his heart.

He had been trapped in that Mystic Sect Formation for a few minutes at most.

But in just those few minutes, this young man had eliminated two Half-Step Innates. This was no joke.

Even a true Early Innate Ancient Martial Artist probably couldn't accomplish that. After all, the timeframe was incredibly short, and Half-Step Innates weren't exactly feeble.

HISS.

At this thought, even a notorious villain like Qiy Army couldn't help but suck in a sharp breath of cold air.

Deep inside, he was completely enveloped by that emotion called terror.

"I… I'm sorry… Senior, I realize my mistake. Please, I beg you, spare me." The immense pressure finally forced him to recognize the reality of the situation. Chen Fei was a monster he could never hope to defeat. His face pale, he hung his head and begged for mercy.

At this moment, he fully understood that in the face of absolute, terrifying power, his so-called strength and notoriety were utterly worthless.

As for the Qiy Family behind me? What a joke. Would such an astonishingly talented monster even give the Qiy Family a second glance?

"Spare you?"

Hearing this, Chen Fei offered a smirk that wasn't quite a smile. "The three of you came to kill me tonight," he said coldly. "Now, two of them are dead, yet you want me to spare you. Don't you think that's a bit unfair?"

Hearing these words, Qiy Army's chiseled face stiffened. With a thud, he fell to his knees. "Senior, I have no grudge against you, and I didn't know your identity before…"

"But you are a member of the Qiy Family."

Chen Fei cut him off, his voice slow and cold. "Now that I've killed so many of your Qiy Family, do you really think you'll all just swallow this bitter pill? Please, I'm not that foolish. And I'm not in the habit of leaving loose ends for myself, understand?"

Sweat poured down Qiy Army's forehead. His face was deathly white as he understood that Chen Fei, with such a tone, was not joking. But…

"I'll give you two choices. One, cripple your own martial arts, and I will let you live. Two, I will personally send you on your way." As he struggled internally, Chen Fei's cold voice rang in his ears, making him jolt.

"No! I am willing to surrender! I am willing to forsake the darkness for the light and join Flying Leopard! Please, Senior, consider how hard it is for this junior to cultivate martial arts and show me mercy just this once," he said, astonishingly offering to surrender.

"Have you thought this through?" Even Chen Fei was surprised by this turn of events. "Once you choose to join Flying Leopard, you must draw a clear line with the Qiy Family, and even the entire Martial Forest. Otherwise, that would be betraying the nation."

This was the kind of decision from which there was no turning back.

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