This fatty had always looked down on such a weakling, often bullying her, so how could he have thought she was capable of anything significant?
In the eyes of the fatty official, this Lin Zhuyu was merely a cultivator at the first layer of Condensing Meridian. Her whip technique was perhaps some mystic art, at most a low-grade mortal mystic art. What was there to fear?
It wasn't worth him unleashing his full mystic art to counter it!
"Hmph! This Lin Zhuyu is just trash! What can she do to me?"
"She's not worth me using a mystic art to fight. I can suppress her directly with my spiritual energy."
This was what the fatty thought.
And this was also what he did.
Therefore, he met his doom.
From the fatty's perspective, he only saw the long whip flick, and an ice-blue light instantly flared. The whip was as fast as lightning, striking him down with the speed of a bolt from the heavens.
Countless chills flowed through the air, and an extreme icy power erupted.
This chilling power made the fatty tremble. He felt as if he had entered the northernmost cultivation realm of the Nine Provinces, alone, facing the Four Holy Emperors of the extreme north and their ice-elemental heavenly treasure!
That Taiyin Ice Soul Annihilation Divine Light, a top-grade heavenly mystic art!
A full moon seemed to manifest from the sky, as if to freeze all things!
In the fatty's eyes, Lin Zhuyu was no longer a mortal, no longer an ordinary low-level cultivator, but a celestial being residing above the Taiyin!
"Taiyin Ice Soul Annihilation Divine Light!"
"Top-grade heavenly mystic art... How could this be?"
"Lin Zhuyu, how could she possess a mystic art of this caliber? Even if she had such a mystic art, how could she wield it with her meager Condensing Meridian first-layer spiritual energy?"
"This is illogical..."
"She can't possibly be a celestial being..."
The fatty's expression was contorted, as if his mental will was resisting something.
Then, his spiritual energy broke through the interference of his mental will, and his mind became clear.
As his mind cleared, he realized.
"So it was a mental illusion..."
"It was an illusion on the mental will."
"It was false, not real."
Unfortunately, although he realized it, the realization came too late.
Although the mental interference had been broken, the materialized whip had already touched his body.
The truly substantial icy power struck, eroding the fatty's body. Half of him seemed to be frozen, and the spiritual energy in his dantian was suppressed by the endless cold.
The erosion of icy power.
This was not a false erosion of icy power, but a genuine one.
In an instant, the fatty spat out a large amount of blood. Within this blood, there were even some solidified ice, and solidified internal organs!
All of this was shocking to behold!
"Cough, cough!"
After enduring such a blow, the fatty looked at Lin Zhuyu with utter disbelief.
Although he had seen through it, this was not the top-grade heavenly Taiyin Ice Soul Annihilation Divine Light, but merely mental will interference.
Lin Zhuyu had likely used some mental will mystic art before.
But even so, a mystic art with such mental attack effects, combined with the power of this whip technique, was enough to be considered a high-grade mortal mystic art.
How did Lin Zhuyu, this trash, possess a high-grade mortal mystic art?
Didn't she not even have a mid-grade mortal mystic art?
"Heavens, how is this possible? How could Lin Zhuyu master such a powerful whip technique?"
"This must be mid-grade mortal, right? No, it must be high-grade mortal!"
"Even if it's a high-grade mortal mystic art, isn't she only at the first layer of Condensing Meridian? How does she have the spiritual energy to unleash such a mystic art?"
"Yes! Unleashing high-grade mystic arts requires sufficient spiritual energy. The idea of a Condensing Meridian realm cultivator using a heavenly-grade mystic art is a fallacy, impossible to achieve... How did Lin Zhuyu bypass this fallacy?"
"I think she didn't bypass the fallacy, but she's been hiding her cultivation all along!"
"But her current spiritual energy fluctuation is still at the first layer of Condensing Meridian! We can tell if she's hiding her cultivation with our spiritual eye technique."
"Idiot! Didn't you see her control over her physical body earlier? She's not hiding her spiritual energy cultivation, but her body cultivation! Her physique is strong!"
"So that's it! All the logic makes sense now. It turns out that Lin Zhuyu's physical strength is already comparable to the fourth layer of Condensing Meridian. She's a body cultivator, which is why she could directly defeat this fatty!"
The collateral disciples below marveled.
They marveled at Lin Zhuyu's strength, the power of the Cold Moon Whip technique, and that Lin Zhuyu was a rare body cultivator among cultivators.
This not only angered the fatty spitting blood on the ground but also angered the supervisor of the officials in the Salary Hall – Lin Yang.
Lin Yang, from his high position, slammed the table, causing a corner of the table made of hard, dense iron spirit wood to shatter.
Dense iron spirit wood is a type of spirit wood in the cultivation world. The hardness of a table made from it is imaginable. Yet, Lin Yang shattered this hard table with a single palm strike.
His strength was evident.
Moreover, Lin Yang did not use any spiritual energy in this palm strike but pure physical strength, indicating that Lin Yang was not only a cultivator but also a body cultivator among cultivators!
Dual cultivation of both spirit and body, cultivating both spiritual energy and physique, made a cultivator very powerful!
"Disrupting the order of the Salary Hall! You are courting death! Come, all of you, attack together and cripple them!"
Lin Yang did not know how Lin Zhuyu had become so powerful, but that was not important. What was important was that his dignity had been severely challenged.
If the people he sent were defeated by a mere weakling, where would he put his face? Young Master Lin Yao would surely think he was incompetent.
Therefore, these two must die!
If not dead, then crippled!
That mortal, Lin Xuan, would be bedridden for the rest of his life! His legs would be broken, and he wouldn't be able to get out of bed.
As for Lin Zhuyu, who was already a cultivator, her dantian would be destroyed, and her spiritual energy cultivation abolished!
And since Lin Zhuyu was not only a cultivator but also a body cultivator? Then her tendons and sinews would be severed!
As long as one wanted to deal with someone, any method could be devised!
As Lin Yang's order was given.
Officials rushed forward, charging towards Lin Xuan and Lin Zhuyu.
Fang Ming watched Lin Yang calmly.
He knew of Lin Yang from Lin Xuan's memories.
This was one of Lin Yao's lackeys, and not one of the low-ranking servant lackeys. Lin Yang himself was a direct disciple of the clan.
Direct disciple, collateral disciple, servant.
This was the three-tiered hierarchy of the Lin family, a clear division of status, although it did not truly represent everyone's status – after all, Lin Xuan, also a direct disciple, was not doing well.