The scarred man in black stared at Li Xiaoyao, on the verge of pissing himself.
At this moment, he felt an unprecedented sense of mortal peril.
The countless "fierce beast vengeful spirits" surrounding him offered no sense of security whatsoever.
It was as if Li Xiaoyao could end his life with a single sword strike whenever he pleased.
This feeling was utterly dreadful!
"Who are you, who exactly are you?"
The scarred man in black shrieked.
He failed to realize that his voice had become high-pitched and thin, like a startled little girl, utterly devoid of the aura of a "Great Master of the Demonic Path."
Li Xiaoyao remained as usual, riding the wind on his sword, calm and detached, outrageously handsome!
He said indifferently.
"A mere rogue cultivator, Li Xiaoyao!"
Then, Li Xiaoyao continued to ask gently.
"Let me ask you one thing, where is the mountain gate of your Black Mountain Ghost Sect?"
Upon hearing this, the scarred man in black was both shocked and furious.
"Why are you asking about the mountain gate of our Black Mountain Ghost Sect? Could it be you intend to attack our Black Mountain Ghost Sect? Are you insane! I'm not afraid to tell you the truth, our Black Mountain Ghost Sect's Sect Master is about to break through his bottleneck and ascend to the Nascent Soul stage..."
"Noisy!"
As the scarred man in black continued to babble, Li Xiaoyao, too lazy to listen to his nonsense, flicked his sword finger lightly.
Swish!
A beam of sword light, like a white silk banner, descended from the sky.
Sharp!
Powerful!
Unstoppable!
The "fierce beast vengeful spirits" blocking the way were all annihilated by the sword qi, their souls scattered.
They offered no defensive capability whatsoever.
In the blink of an eye, the sword qi reached the scarred man in black.
The scarred man in black was petrified, his soul threatening to fly out. He instinctively swung his "Hundred Ghost Banner" to block.
Riiip!
The "Hundred Ghost Banner," tempered through a thousand trials, seemed utterly vulnerable before the sharp sword qi, which tore open a large gash.
The sword qi then pierced the scarred man in black's shoulder.
Puff!
Blood gushed out.
The scarred man in black's entire arm was almost crippled.
Before the scarred man in black could even cry out in pain, something even more tragic happened.
The "Hundred Ghost Banner" was pierced by the sword qi, and the runes within, refined with Yin Fire, were broken.
Countless "fierce beast vengeful spirits" instantly lost their control and began a frenzied backlash.
Roar roar roar!
The eyes of these "fierce beast vengeful spirits" blazed with sinister, dim ghost fire, ready to pounce and retaliate against the scarred man in black.
"Don't come near me, don't come near!"
The scarred man in black screamed in terror. He channeled his true essence, condensed a "Yin Fire Whip," and waved it menacingly, attempting to drive away the "fierce beast vengeful spirits" that were closing in.
Crack!
The "Yin Fire Whip" lashed out, just repelling a "fierce tiger vengeful spirit," when a "hungry wolf vengeful spirit" lunged forward and bit fiercely into the scarred man in black's thigh.
Gash!
A large chunk of flesh was torn from the scarred man in black's calf.
He let out a heart-wrenching scream of agony.
Ahhh...
At the same time, more "fierce beast vengeful spirits" swarmed forward, gnawing ferociously at the scarred man in black.
The scarred man in black would not have been so helpless otherwise. His "Yin Fire Whip" possessed immense power, enough to suppress most "fierce beast vengeful spirits."
Unfortunately.
Li Xiaoyao's sword qi not only pierced his arm but also invaded his body with "Myriad Sword Intent," creating a "suppressing force" that stifled the scarred man in black's power.
Thus, the scarred man in black became a fish on a chopping block, gnawed to pieces by a horde of "fierce beast vengeful spirits."
"Ahhh... Save me, please, spare me, I'll tell you the location of the Black Mountain Ghost Sect's mountain gate..."
As he spoke, the scarred man in black, with no regard for his dignity, revealed the location of the "Black Mountain Ghost Sect" mountain gate, along with the method to pass through the mountain-protecting formation, spilling it all out.
Li Xiaoyao noted it down.
By this time, the scarred man in black was no longer recognizable, his body mangled by the gnawing.
"Please, spare me..."
The scarred man in black extended his bloody hands, pleading with Li Xiaoyao for help.
A flicker of pity crossed Li Xiaoyao's eyes.
But then, his gaze resolutely firmed once more.
Heaven's wrath may be forgiven!
But self-inflicted doom is unpardonable!
I promised to spare you, but the "fierce beast vengeful spirits" you refined will not spare you. This is your retribution!
Soon, the scarred man in black was torn to shreds and killed by the countless "fierce beast vengeful spirits."
He had indeed met a fitting end!
After the scarred man in black died, Li Xiaoyao commanded his sword, and endless sword qi shot out, transforming into a radiant "sword qi dragon."
Slay slay slay!
In an instant, all the "fierce beast vengeful spirits" were annihilated.
With this matter concluded, it was time to leave.
Li Xiaoyao activated the flying sword beneath his feet, preparing to depart.
Suddenly, he remembered something "most important." He turned back and flew again.
Li Xiaoyao leaped from his flying sword and landed beside the corpses of the scarred man in black and his companions.
With a wave of his hand, his true essence surged out.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!
Several "storage bags" flew out from the corpses.
These were the storage bags of the five men in black.
Li Xiaoyao's palm flashed with sword light, sharply breaking the restrictions on the storage bags.
He opened the storage bags and looked inside.
Wow!
Not bad, not bad, plenty of spirit stones, this trip was worthwhile!
Combined, the five "storage bags" contained, conservatively estimated, over thirty thousand low-grade spirit stones.
The remaining "heavenly treasures" added up to another twenty thousand low-grade spirit stones in value.
This act of "acting on behalf of heaven" would likely yield fifty thousand low-grade spirit stones.
Awesome!
Rent for nearly a month was secured.
Li Xiaoyao tilted his head, glancing at the "Qingyuan Immortal Sword" on his shoulder, his eyes filled with affection, like a devoted lover gazing at his beloved.
The look was indescribable!
It made one's skin crawl.
Li Xiaoyao's love for the "Qingyuan Immortal Sword" surpassed all else. All "romantic relationships" were not worth mentioning, how could they compare to the "Qingyuan Immortal Sword"?
Li Xiaoyao put away the five "storage bags," and with contentment, prepared to leave.
Just then, a trembling, hoarse voice weakly sounded.
"Young hero, please wait!"
Li Xiaoyao followed the sound and saw that the unconscious old village chief had woken up. Supported by two villagers, he walked shakily towards Li Xiaoyao.
It was evident that the old village chief and the two villagers were extremely afraid of Li Xiaoyao.
This young man before them was too sharp, too terrifying!
With just a few casual sword strikes, he had easily annihilated the "Black Five," he was too powerful!
The old village chief and the others were unsure of Li Xiaoyao's intentions, and instinctively feared him.
"Immortal, thank you for your rescue! Our Qingyang Village has nothing to repay you with... Quickly, go fetch the gift!"
The old village chief instructed a villager.
That villager immediately sprinted away and returned shortly, running back just as quickly.
When he returned, the villager held a wooden tray.
On the tray lay some coins, made of gold, silver, and copper.