Chapter 57: Killing in a Rage

Whoosh!

Ling Xiao flew out of the training room and into the courtyard.

There were no sparring partners in the training room, after all, and he desperately wanted to test exactly what level his transformed "Bull Demon Art · Meteor Star Slaying Fist" had reached.

Boom!

With just a casual punch, a decorative stone in the courtyard was instantly shattered.

This power was comparable to a full-strength strike from the Level 4 demon beast he had encountered in the Fulong Mountains.

"Not bad. My attack is much stronger than that of an ordinary fourth-stage Martial Vein practitioner. If I integrate Martial Will, the power will increase even further. This way, my chances of making the top three in the grand finals are much greater!"

The might of this punch left Ling Xiao feeling immensely gratified.

High-level martial arts that had reached the Transformation Realm likely possessed an attacking power no weaker than the lowest-tier top-level martial arts.

Watching Ling Xiao in the courtyard, Hong Qi revealed a satisfied smile on his face.

He suddenly pulled a book from his sleeve; though it was somewhat tattered, it was relatively complete.

"It seems it's time to give this thing to the little fellow. I thought he wouldn't need it in his lifetime, but I didn't expect his strength to improve so quickly."

Just as he was about to call for Ling Xiao, a commotion suddenly erupted from outside.

Ling Fei rushed in, shouting loudly, "Ling Xiao, something has happened! A little beggar is looking for you!"

Hearing the word "beggar," Ling Xiao immediately thought of his childhood companion with whom he used to beg for food, and he rushed out in a hurry.

Outside was a little beggar even younger than Ling Xiao, looking only about six or seven years old, and he was covered in blood.

"Brother Ling Xiao, Grandpa Hong, please go save everyone! If you don't go soon, they'll all be dead!"

Without asking questions, Ling Xiao told Hong Qi to look after the little beggar, then gathered his Qi and took to the air. He made no attempt to conceal his lightness skill.

The "Cloud Soaring Steps · Dragon Transformation" was fully unleashed, moving at an absurd speed.

Ling Fei watched the figure that moved like a bolt of lightning in a daze, muttering to himself, "Compared to him, my lightness skill is like a frog at the bottom of a well."

Before long, Ling Xiao arrived at the gathering place of the Beggar Clan of Tianfeng City—a ruined temple outside the city.

Though called the Beggar Clan, it was actually just a group of pitiful beggars who gathered to beg for more food and help one another.

When he reached the ruined temple, the ground was soaked in blood, and corpses lay scattered everywhere.

"Gouzi! Gouzi, wake up!"

"Luobotou! Luobotou, didn't you say you'd be my wife when you grew up?"

"Uncle Six-Finger! You can't die! I told you I'd make sure you lived a good life after I became wealthy!"

"Hunchback Uncle! Blind Grandpa! Stone Pillar! You guys... ah—! Who was it? Who did this!"

Out of more than twenty people, except for the little boy who had run to fetch help, not a single soul had survived; they had all been brutally murdered.

For what?

Ling Xiao's eyes turned bloodshot. He had never wanted to kill someone as much as he did right now!

Hm? That is...

Ling Xiao noticed some footprints, then stepped down hard and accelerated in pursuit.

At that moment, on a main road leading to Tianfeng City, several people were walking along, chatting and laughing.

They all had bloodstains on them.

Among them was none other than Li Xingyun, whom Ling Xiao had encountered in the Fulong Mountains.

"Senior Brother Xingyun, congratulations on mastering the Gale Sword! That single strike killed over twenty people. Beautiful!"

"They were just twenty-some beggars. It's nothing special."

Li Xingyun smiled, a hint of pride on his face.

"Senior Brother Xingyun, you have not only mastered the Gale Sword but have also broken through to the fourth stage of the Martial Vein. If you encounter that fellow named Ling Xiao again, you must take his life."

"Naturally. I haven't forgotten the grudge from the Fulong Mountains!"

With his strength greatly increased, Li Xingyun naturally thought of revenge.

Back then, he didn't dare to act personally because he wasn't certain he could win decisively against Ling Xiao.

But things were different now. The Ling family had their annual competition, and his Li family had theirs as well.

In the Li family's annual competition, he had not only taken first place in the elimination rounds with an undefeated record, but he hadn't even used his full strength from start to finish.

Just now, while hunting demon beasts in the Fulong Mountains, he had killed a Level 4 demon beast—the very one that had once forced him into a desperate situation—with a single sword strike.

Thus, he was currently overflowing with confidence.

On the way back, when he encountered a little beggar begging for food, a murderous intent suddenly arose, because one of the moves in his Gale Sword was called—the "Continuous Strike."

This strike could attack multiple targets.

Driven by a mere whim, he had killed over twenty beggars with a single sword strike.

Of course, he had no idea that another little beggar was playing in the nearby bushes.

Having killed people, he felt no remorse; instead, he was extremely smug, excited by his mastery of the Gale Sword.

"Did you kill those beggars?"

Suddenly, a figure landed in the middle of the road, and a voice as cold as if it came from the depths of the underworld emerged from him.

"Ling Xiao?"

Li Xingyun would not forget that face. Ever since the incident in the Fulong Mountains, he had kept a portrait of Ling Xiao in his room to motivate himself.

"Hehehe, that's right, I killed them. Do those beggars have some connection to you?"

He smiled faintly, his gaze revealing a trace of killing intent.

It seemed they had met on a narrow path today, and being in the wilderness made this a perfect place for robbery and murder.

Ling Xiao also recognized Li Xingyun.

He suddenly thought of the masked bandits they had encountered on the way back; could they have been sent by this guy as well?

Regardless, since Li Xingyun had killed his kin, he had to die!

"Today, you all die!"

Having received a definitive answer, Ling Xiao no longer hesitated.

He could see that Li Xingyun had broken through to the fourth stage of the Martial Vein, but so what? If he attacked with full strength, Li Xingyun wouldn't last three moves against him.

As for the others, one move would suffice.

"Hahahaha!"

"Did you hear that? That guy said he's going to kill us."

"That's the funniest joke I've ever heard in the world."

"A mere peak Martial Student dares to be so arrogant. It's laughable."

"Senior Brother Xingyun, he doesn't even take you seriously."

The group of Li family disciples froze for a moment before bursting into laughter, treating Ling Xiao's words as nothing more than a joke.

However, their laughter abruptly ceased.

Because Ling Xiao had moved.

In an instant.

Ling Xiao beckoned with his hand, and a streak of sword light shot out.

While the Li family disciples who had been mocking Ling Xiao were still enjoying the pleasure of ridicule, they suddenly felt a sharp pain in their necks.

Terror then flashed across their faces.

Immediately after, one by one, they fell to the ground with a thud, their life force extinguished.

"You! You actually dare to kill them? Do you really want to provoke a war between the Li and Ling families?" Li Xingyun had not expected Ling Xiao's sword to be so fast.

In a single instant, he hadn't even had time to block before the people behind him were all dead.

Over a dozen Li family disciples of the third stage of the Martial Vein—the strongest among them was even at the peak of the third stage and was on the verge of breaking through to the fourth—had been killed so easily.

"If I kill you, no one will know what happened today!"

Ling Xiao intended to silence them all. He would not let a single person leave this place; otherwise, it might truly trigger a war between the Li and Ling families, and the Ling family might not necessarily protect him then.

(End of Chapter)