“Only Hand Covers the Sky!” With a thunderous shout, the heavens seemed to tremble as the massive black-cyan palm descended upon the dozen-plus figures.
“Trouble!” The charging group let out terrified cries, hastily unleashing their attacks. Beams of light flared up.
Yet the black-cyan palm, like a fiendish hand from the netherworld, was unstoppable. It smothered their assaults and pressed downward.
“No!” Ji Qingshan screamed in panic as the ground quaked, erupting in a deafening boom.
“Boom!”…
The earth shook, splitting apart as dust billowed upward. A sea-like surge of energy exploded, radiating in all directions. Trees toppled like snow under a blazing sun.
Where Ji Qingshan and the others had stood, no one remained alive. When the dust settled, only a massive handprint and a pile of crushed corpses remained.
Gazing at this strike, Lin Xiao sighed inwardly. The last time he’d used it was against the Feng family, defeating Feng Lanyue and Chen Yan’s combined phenomenon. Now, unleashing it again, its terror was undiminished.
But this strike had only killed the dozen because they weren’t top-tier experts.
Their attacks and defences had struck scattered points on the black-cyan palm rather than converging as one— essentially a series of one-on-one clashes they couldn’t win.
Ji Qingshan, drained of his strength, had been wiped out entirely. Had he retained his earlier power, the outcome might’ve been different.
“It seems I need to raise my cultivation. Even killing Ji Qingshan was a struggle. Against the top four— or even the Asura Butcher— victory’s uncertain!”
Lin Xiao felt the pressure. His strongest attack was the Devouring Heaven Spirit-Gathering Finger, blending spiritual and primal energy— an outlier with immense power.
But its drawback was the lengthy preparation time and the massive energy drain after one use, preventing consecutive strikes.
If a single blow didn’t cripple his foe, leaving them unable to retaliate, he’d be the one in peril.
Mo Yi and Ji Qingshan had already reached Martial King. The higher-ranked Dao Yi, Duan Cangsheng, and the Asura Butcher must have too— possibly even second-rank Martial Kings.
With such a cultivation gap, he’d gain little advantage in a clash.
After looting their storage rings, Lin Xiao erased all traces of the group before departing.
Word needed to stay tight for now. If Ji Qingshan’s defeat leaked, the Qing Alliance would suspect him. Once that spread, the Liu and Gong families’ Martial Venerables and Kings would come rushing.
…
Half a day later, Lin Xiao followed his plan, arriving near the Liu family. Before heading to the Junzang site, he intended to give both families a “surprise.”
Otherwise, letting them hunt him unchecked would spell trouble.
The Liu family’s sprawling complex stretched wide, surrounded by towering ancient trees— a perfect spot for seclusion and concealment.
Of course, drawing near revealed the grand entrance, its plaque bearing the bold, vigorous characters: Liu Family!
Guarded by experts at the gate, with several patrols circling the perimeter, the Liu family was a hair-trigger fortress— one move could set off the whole.
Normally, even in this chaotic region, few dared provoke the Liu family.
But after the patriarch’s battle with the Gong family head in Blackwind City, their vigilance had sharpened.
Surveying the terrain briefly, Lin Xiao landed. As planned, he and Hu Yue masked their faces, emerging slowly from the ancient trees towards the Liu family gate.
The Liu family didn’t know them, so no breath-altering powder was needed.
“Who are you?” As Lin Xiao and Hu Yue appeared, a young man at the gate shouted. The middle-aged man beside him grew wary, a broadsword already in hand.
Masked figures at the Liu family gate were a provocation in themselves.
“Crack!” Without a word, Lin Xiao surged his spiritual energy, locking onto the youth’s head. With a twist, the neck snapped, and the youth died instantly, eyes wide in death.
“You!” The middle-aged man jolted in shock, roaring, “Enemy attack!”
Boom!
Before he finished, Lin Xiao slashed out. A blinding sword beam cleaved through the man and the gate alike.
A mere early Heavenly Martial, the man stood no chance against Lin Xiao’s power, falling in one strike.
Since he’d acted, Lin Xiao held nothing back. After killing both, he strode boldly into the Liu family grounds.
At the sound from the gate, the heavily guarded Liu family erupted in rapid footsteps.
“Who dares cause chaos in my Liu family!” A stern, booming shout rolled out as an elder soared forth on primal energy wings, radiating fury.
Lin Xiao paused, sensing the elder’s aura, and relaxed inwardly. As he’d learned from a Liu family captive, only one low-tier Martial King remained— a third-rank elder— with the rest below Heavenly Martial.
This man was his primary target. Martial Kings were the Liu family’s backbone— losing one would be a devastating blow.
As long as he killed this Martial King, the others posed no threat.
“Boom!”
The elder acted decisively. Seeing the masked duo, he attacked without further questions, unleashing a vast palm strike towards them.
Boom!
Lin Xiao countered with a thunder greatsword, meeting the elder’s palm beam head-on. The clash dissolved into a surging shockwave, neutralising the attack.
The Liu family elder’s face darkened. Wielding thunder power, this foe was no pushover— capable of matching him.
“Who are you? What’s your purpose here?” the elder demanded grimly.
“Heh, coming to your door naturally means business. I’d hoped to sit and chat civilly with you, brother, but your welcome leaves me hesitant to step inside!” Lin Xiao chuckled lightly, deliberately lowering his voice to a hoarse, aged rasp.
Using the Spirit Emperor of Devouring Heaven’s concealment technique, he masked his aura, making it unreadable and stoking the elder’s wariness.
“Hmph, you kill two of my Liu family at our gate and call that a civil chat?” the elder retorted, bristling with anger.
“It’s not that I wanted to kill— your juniors were too arrogant, barking at us right off. I couldn’t help myself,” Lin Xiao said nonchalantly, as if it were a trifling matter.
