Elder Qi's eyes widened, and his feet landed firmly on the ground. He looked down at Ling Feng's feet, his brow furrowed.
"Kid, your cultivation definitely surpasses the Golden Core stage, not simple at all. I didn't expect you to hide your cultivation!"
A hint of confusion flickered in Elder Qi's eyes.
It was clear he was already suspicious of Ling Feng's identity.
Ling Feng, however, unhurriedly moved his feet off the cracked bluestone slab and even reached out to brush off the dust from his body.
Then, he looked towards Elder Qi.
"If my cultivation were below the Golden Core stage, I would have been pulverized by your casual toss just now! You truly have the nerve!"
Ling Feng responded calmly.
Elder Qi's eyes immediately widened.
"Kid, who exactly are you? Could you be a spy infiltrated into my Myriad Sword Sect? What are you trying to do?"
As he spoke, Elder Qi unleashed his full aura and pressure, steadily advancing towards Ling Feng.
It was evident that Elder Qi intended to suppress Ling Feng to the point of immobility.
But unfortunately, Ling Feng paid no heed to Elder Qi's imposing aura, not even swaying his body.
Subsequently, Ling Feng calmly raised a hand and pointed it at Elder Qi!
"Who I am is not for you to question. From this moment on, you are my slave!"
"What did you say?"
Elder Qi's eyes widened in disbelief. For a fleeting moment, he felt a sense of approaching death.
His steps, which had been closing in on Ling Feng, instantly halted. Elder Qi almost couldn't resist fleeing.
However, it was all too late.
Before Elder Qi could even lift his foot, Ling Feng's figure instantly appeared before him.
And that hand had already pierced through Elder Qi's chest!
Elder Qi looked at his bleeding chest in disbelief. He was, after all, a cultivator at the Soul Transformation stage, possessing formidable physical strength.
Moreover, he was wearing protective robes.
Yet, none of it had a chance to be used in front of Ling Feng. All his defenses seemed as fragile as paper.
Ling Feng had dealt with him in mere moments!
"No, don't kill me!"
At this moment, he finally understood what fear was, and he couldn't help but plead in a trembling voice.
Ling Feng, however, stared at Elder Qi with a detached expression. "Don't worry, if I wanted to kill you, I would have done so already. The reason I'm acting here is because no one will disturb me!"
With that, Ling Feng withdrew his hand from Elder Qi's chest.
A drop of blood now rested in Ling Feng's palm!
Seeing this, Elder Qi's eyes widened. "This is... the Soul Blood Extraction method?"
"Correct. Your soul blood is now in my possession. Kneel and submit!"
Ling Feng stated indifferently, his tone extremely overbearing.
With a twist of his wrist, Ling Feng collected Elder Qi's soul blood.
Elder Qi instantly came to his senses. Without any hesitation, he knelt before Ling Feng.
"Thank you, Master, for sparing my life!"
"You're quite clever. You're worried I'll go back on my word and kill you!"
Ling Feng cast a disdainful glance at Elder Qi. His words fell, and he began walking back towards his original location.
At this point, those previous individuals should still be lingering.
Ling Feng was always a man of his word. Since he had said he wanted Elder Qi to escort him away, he would certainly make Elder Qi do so!
Elder Qi watched as Ling Feng passed by him, and then he suddenly snapped back to reality.
"Master, where are you going..."
"Clean yourself up. Even as my slave, you shouldn't be seen in such a state. Then escort me away. What, do you have an objection?"
Ling Feng turned back and gave Elder Qi a dismissive glance.
With just a look, Elder Qi felt as if his entire body had frozen. He then hurriedly shook his head at Ling Feng and said, "No, I wouldn't dare. Your servant will tidy up immediately and escort Master away!"
With that, Elder Qi changed out of his blood-stained clothes.
A Soul Transformation stage expert, even with their heart pierced, would not die and could even heal themselves within a short period.
Even if their physical body were destroyed, it could be reshaped.
However, this still consumed a significant amount of true essence.
Elder Qi dared not delay, but his hands still trembled slightly.
At the same time, Elder Qi understood why Ling Feng had targeted his heart meridian earlier.
Perhaps that location allowed Ling Feng to extract his soul blood more easily.
But no matter what, it was too late to think about such things now. Ling Feng was his master.
This was an unchangeable fact. To survive, he had to obey Ling Feng.
Although he knew very well that Ling Feng would definitely be a disaster for the entire Myriad Sword Sect, Elder Qi had no other choice!
Ling Feng's control over his soul blood was enough to indicate that Ling Feng's cultivation far surpassed his own.
Furthermore, Zhang Zhicong had still not come to meet Ling Feng, which already indicated something.
Zhang Zhicong must have become Ling Feng's subordinate. Recalling the scene where Sect Leader Hong and Zhang Zhicong had vied to take Ling Feng as a disciple, Elder Qi was shocked.
At that time, the two of them were clearly acting!
If that was the case, then Sect Leader Hong was also under Ling Feng's command!
How many more people had this Ling Feng controlled?
"Are you done?"
Ling Feng's impatient voice cut through the air.
Elder Qi jolted back to attention, quickly followed, bowing and scraping like an old servant.
"Yes, yes, your servant is ready!"
"You're quite lucky. Your cultivation is high, and your status in the Myriad Sword Sect is also higher. Therefore, from now on, you can issue commands to Zhang Zhicong and Sect Leader Hong. If anything happens, I will notify you first! Do you understand?"
Ling Feng said lightly, his tone as if he were chatting about everyday matters.
Elder Qi's entire body trembled. His guess was not wrong at all.
Ling Feng had indeed gained control of Zhang Zhicong and the other two. It was just that his luck was truly good; at least from now on, he could command those two!
"Yes, your servant obeys. Master, please give any orders!"
"I will notify you if anything arises. During this period, do not cause any more trouble for me. I need to go into seclusion for a few days!"
Ling Feng commanded lightly.
Elder Qi hurriedly nodded and bowed, "Yes, yes, your servant will absolutely not disturb Master!"
"Act normally for a while and escort me away. As for how you explain this to your disciples and how you salvage your reputation, that's your own business!"
Ling Feng said casually.
Elder Qi quickly straightened his back, then rose into the air on his sword. "Master, please!"
Ling Feng glanced at him and knew what Elder Qi intended to do. He immediately stood firm and, following Elder Qi, flew on his sword above everyone's heads.
In an instant, everyone, including Zhou Tao, was stunned!
"Master, you are..."
"Hmph, all of you shut your mouths about today's events. From now on, no one is to bother this person!"
Elder Qi snorted coldly, and under everyone's dumbfounded gazes, he led Ling Feng away from the back mountain!