Chapter 60: Overawing the Petty and Frivolous, Part I

As Lin Chen's offensive grew increasingly ferocious, one of the enemies became so terrified that he shivered and stammered, "Spare my life, please spare my life!"

Lin Chen cast a glance around him. Instead of hesitating, a surging, towering fighting spirit welled up in his heart.

He let out a loud shout, "Die!"

This roar resonated like a great bell, leaving everyone's ears ringing with a dull hum.

His eyes were filled with endless killing intent, and he said coldly, "You blindly follow the wrong side without regard for right and wrong, today shall be your day of doom!"

With resolute determination, Lin Chen unleashed the Clear Breeze Sword Technique.

In an instant, the vast and boundless power of merit within his body was awakened, rushing like a torrential flood as it poured frantically into the sword in his hand.

The previously plain and unadorned sword body instantly burst forth with brilliant radiance, emitting a blinding light that was impossible to look at directly.

Immediately following this, countless dense sword shadows erupted from the blade at a dazzling speed.

Interweaving and overlapping, they formed a vast ocean of sword light. Carrying peerless might and the power of merit, the sword shadows swept across the sky like a violent storm of death, overwhelming the enemy with the force of a decaying withered branch.

The few individuals charging at the very forefront were pierced through by the sword shadows instantly, not even given the chance to utter a single scream.

Their bodies were blown backward by the immense force, crashing heavily onto the ground and kicking up a cloud of dust.

Cultivators slightly further back attempted to raise their sabers and swords in defense.

However, how could the might of the sword shadows be something they could possibly resist?

The razor-sharp sword shadows effortlessly sliced through their sabers, spears, and halberds, and then plunged mercilessly into their flesh.

"Ah, ah, ah!"

For a time, painful shrieks rose and fell in succession, echoing lingeringly in the night sky.

"Go to hell, you despicable scoundrel!"

A tall man wielding a massive axe roared as he charged fiercely toward Lin Chen, attempting to use sheer brute force to break through the blockade of sword shadows.

Yet the moment he stepped into the range of the sword shadows, dozens of them shot toward him with lightning speed.

Under the onslaught of the sword shadows, the giant axe shattered into countless fragments in an instant.

Struck by the sword shadows, shocking bloody gashes appeared all over his body, and blood gushed out like a fountain.

With wide eyes and a face full of shock, he roared, "Impossible! This... this is impossible!"

Staggering a few times, he crashed straight to the ground, completely devoid of breath.

Simultaneously, an agile figure in black attempted a sneak attack from the flank, using the shadows of the buildings as cover to close in rapidly.

However, every movement he made could not escape Lin Chen's acute perception.

Right as he was about to strike, a sword shadow shot out abruptly from the darkness, piercing his throat with pinpoint accuracy.

Clutching his throat, he murmured in disbelief, "How... how could this be..."

At last, he collapsed weakly to the ground, twitching a few times before lying still completely.

By this time, some had begun to drop to their knees and beg for mercy, "Spare us! We were only acting under orders, please let us go!"

Lin Chen let out a cold snort, "Hmph! Now you know how to beg for mercy, but it's too late!"

As soon as his voice fell, an even more formidable aura erupted from Lin Chen's body.

The power of the sword shadows increased once again, and those who still harbored surviving hopes were instantly torn to shreds.

In merely a blink of an eye, all the enemies besieging Lin Chen were slain by these terrifyingly peerless sword shadows.

A dozen corpses lay scattered across the ground in disorder, blood flowing out continuously to form winding crimson streams.

Wielding his sword, Lin Chen stood tall in the midst of this Shura battlefield. His garments were tattered beyond recognition, covered in crisscrossing wounds from which blood endlessly flowed.

Looking at the tragic scene before him, Lin Chen said with an icy expression, "This is only the beginning. Prince, I will surely make you pay an agonizing price!"

Taking a long breath, he continued, "Mengmeng, help me search these people."

"Understood!" the latter replied with a nod, and began rummaging through the corpses as well.

Although she was already a junior grandmaster, she still felt that Lin Chen was stronger than her. Especially tonight, it made her find it hard to believe that he was the same down-and-out young Daoist priest from before.

For Lin Chen, who had no background or backing, these were his only cultivation resources.

As for begging, with countless eyes watching him now, it was utterly impossible.

Fortunately, he possessed the great treasure known as the Golden House; otherwise, he truly would not have known how to proceed.

A short while later, the two of them finished tallying the items they had plundered.

This left Lin Chen somewhat disappointed. The group together yielded barely over two thousand merit coins.

Compared to Xue Chan and Gu Yu previously, the items on these people were pitifully meager.

Aside from those, there were quite a few healing pills, along with a pitch-black jade pendant.

Lin Chen picked it up and examined it closely. Finding nothing particularly special about it, he simply tossed it into his storage ring.

Having packed up everything, he whispered a reminder, "Mengmeng, we need to change locations. This place will probably be discovered before long."

A moment later, the two left the courtyard one after the other, vanishing without a trace.

The next day,

news of the slaughter of more than a dozen men spread throughout Nanyang City, striking fear into the hearts of many rogue cultivators and causing them to flee in droves.

They had wanted to make a name for themselves and seize Lin Chen's head in exchange for wealth that would make anyone green with envy.

However, having witnessed Lin Chen's strength, no one was foolish enough to throw their lives away for profit without knowing what was good for them.

Naturally, there remained a few arrogant individuals harboring an inflated sense of self-worth who stayed in Nanyang City.

Upon hearing this news, the person who flew into the greatest rage was none other than the Prince. Previously, he had utterly disregarded this wet-behind-the-ears punk.

Clearly, this matter had exceeded his expectations, but after this night, his murderous intent toward Lin Chen grew only more intense.

With a gloomy face, he spoke slowly, "Sang Yu, conduct a search immediately and kill him as soon as possible. This boy cannot be left alive, lest dragging things out leads to trouble."

"Understood!" A masked woman acknowledged the order and vanished from the Prince's estate.

If others could be considered mere chess pieces to him, this woman was his trusted confidante. For all these years, no one had ever been able to touch him.

The primary reason was precisely this woman by his side; no one knew just how strong she truly was, and rumor had it she had never tasted defeat to this day.

Under her command were over a dozen subordinates, every single one of them possessing terrifying strength.

Once Sang Yu had departed, the Prince murmured to Xiao Yunchao beside him, "How goes the investigation regarding that matter?"

Xiao Yunchao bowed slightly and replied, "It has been confirmed. Barring any unexpected events, they should be arriving shortly."

For once, the Prince wore a trace of a smile. "You've done well with this task. Once this matter passes, I will have you transferred to the Inspectorate."

Xiao Yunchao immediately dropped to his knees, overflowing with gratitude as he said, "Thank you, Second Uncle, for your boundless grace. Chaor'er will never forget this kindness in this lifetime."

"Very well, you may withdraw," the Prince waved a hand dismissively, then added, "By the way, spend some time interacting properly with Jingya over these next few days. It will be beneficial for your entry into the Inspectorate."

The latter responded with a grateful "Understood,"

then turned and left, thinking how much effort his uncle was expending on his behalf.

And the reason the Prince treated him thus was because the Prince had never fathered a son, having only a single daughter.