“Hand over what you got, or I’ll kill her!”
Suddenly, Bai Feifei darted behind Dai Yuling, her hand clamping around Dai Yuling’s neck.
Ling Xiao sneered, “You foolish woman, so what if you kill her? No one truly dies here. I’ll just share what I got with Yuling later, while you’ll be the one going to hell!”
“Hmph, I have a treasure that can bind souls, making her truly die here!” Bai Feifei snapped.
“Oh, really? Try it then. Let’s see who dies first—you or Dai Yuling,” Ling Xiao said leisurely, sorting through the items in the sarcophagus.
He hadn’t closely examined the other items, but the cauldron was better than expected—a divine-grade treasure.
It was called the “All-Spirit Cauldron.”
Though it lacked offensive power, with this, he could refine high-quality pills far more easily.
In some ways, it outshone attack-based treasures.
Bai Feifei hesitated.
Ling Xiao’s calm demeanor made her wary of acting rashly.
“Senior Sister Bai, let’s forget it. There must be better things ahead. Why stoop to his level?” Shangguan Lei stepped in to mediate.
This gave Bai Feifei a way out, avoiding an escalation with unpredictable consequences.
“No! Ling Xiao, did you do something to me?” Bai Feifei’s brain finally caught up.
“So what if I did? You’re so vicious and cunning. If I didn’t take precautions, wouldn’t you have killed me?” Ling Xiao sneered. “But don’t worry, after the tower-climbing ceremony, I’ll naturally help you resolve it.”
“You’d better keep your word, or I swear I’ll kill you and everyone around you!” Bai Feifei thought hard but ultimately released Dai Yuling.
Killing her would likely lead to her own demise—Ling Xiao was too cunning, and she didn’t dare dismiss his words.
Seeing Bai Feifei let go, Ling Xiao collected all the items and returned to the main path.
In that instant, five attacks came from different directions.
Ling Xiao snorted, flicking his right hand. Five sword beams shot out, piercing the throats of the five attackers before returning to his Mountain River World.
Sword Control Technique was perfect for such ambushes—fast and lethal, simply marvelous!
“Remaining participants: twenty-five!”
Since the tower-climbing ceremony began, less than a day had passed, yet half the participants were eliminated.
These five targeting Ling Xiao didn’t fall to a trial but to their own greed.
“Anyone else want to try?” Ling Xiao coldly scanned the crowd, asking lightly.
Those planning a joint attack abandoned the idea.
Ling Xiao was too strong; they’d need to wait until he was trapped or injured.
“The Giant Stone Monster is about to wake. Let’s go!” Ling Xiao glanced at Dai Yuling and dashed forward.
…
Outside the Moonlight Pagoda, at the entrance, a crowd had gathered.
Too many had been eliminated, which felt unusual.
Whoosh!
Suddenly, five figures were ejected from the pagoda.
“Five more eliminated?” Chang Yueying murmured, frowning.
The other high-ranking members looked grim.
This time, the Moon Lady had increased the number of participants, but with half already gone so quickly, what was the point?
“What happened? How were you five eliminated?” Elder Jin asked coldly.
“It was Ling Xiao!” one said indignantly. “That guy ambushed us!”
“Yeah, he saw us get good stuff and attacked from behind, stealing everything,” another added.
“Scoundrel!”
“Villain!”
“Beast!”
“Sect disgrace!”
Several voices, including those from the Supreme Leader and Elder Jin’s faction, cursed Ling Xiao.
“Why so worked up? It’s just their side of the story,” Heavenly Eye Venerable, the Inner Sect Hall Master, said calmly. “My disciple Zhao Zhi received a Black-Winged Great Roc martial soul from Ling Xiao. If he were so vile, why would he give my disciple such a treasure?”
Thanks to Zhao Zhi, the previously neutral Heavenly Eye Venerable had grown fond of Ling Xiao and doubted the five’s claims.
“Exactly. You five, tell the truth. What happened?” Golden Light Venerable roared.
He despised false accusations.
“Venerables, we’re telling the truth! With our strength, how could we be eliminated so easily otherwise?” they insisted.
“Incorrigible!” Heavenly Eye Venerable snorted, pointing his index and middle fingers at his vertical eye.
A white light shot out, displaying the five disciples’ experiences for all to see.
“Hmph, just as I thought—false accusers! Elder Jin, what do you have to say?” Heavenly Eye Venerable asked. “As the Enforcement Hall Master, how should disciples who try to harm sect mates, lie, and refuse to repent be dealt with?”
“Seize them! Strip their cultivation and expel them from the sect!” Elder Jin ordered, unable to shield the five fools under everyone’s gaze. Enforcement disciples stepped forward, crippling their cultivation.
No amount of pleading helped.
Naturally, Elder Jin’s hatred for Ling Xiao deepened, and those who had cursed him fell silent, thoroughly embarrassed.
…
Inside the Moonlight Pagoda, to escape the Giant Stone Monster, Ling Xiao and the others fled into a fragrant medicine garden.
The vast garden spanned thousands of miles, its edges out of sight.
Multicolored auspicious clouds hovered in the sky, resembling rainbows in the distance.
“Remaining participants: twenty-three!”
Two more had been crushed by the Giant Stone Monster, which had entered its dormant state.
The group stood in the garden, hoping to find some benefits.
At the garden’s center stood a towering tree bearing strange fruits.
The ground was dotted with peculiar herbs. Few recognized them, but their spiritual aura alone was thrilling.
Yet, the garden’s center was enveloped in auspicious clouds, visible but not necessarily accessible.
