At this moment, the scene was very quiet. Everyone watched nervously, unsure of what was happening. Han Lu in the crowd smirked with a sense of schadenfreude and then left.
"Senior Brother, is there really no hope for Junior Brother Lin?" Yin Mochen asked, unwilling to give up.
Li Chujun shook his head, "There's no hope. Even if the Sect Master intervened now, it wouldn't help. Take him away and give him a proper burial."
Li Chujun had experienced many such events, but this was the first time something like this had happened. In previous outer sect competitions, everyone was always happy, and the outer sect disciples were satisfied. Although there were occasional injuries, there were never any fatalities. But today, something had gone wrong.
"Junior Brother Lin..." Yin Mochen couldn't believe it. Just moments ago, his junior brother had been lively and active, and now he was dead. "Senior Brother, you must seek justice for him," Yin Mochen said angrily.
Li Chujun's expression changed slightly, and he flicked his sleeve. "Enough. This matter ends here. I'll handle it. Give him a proper burial."
Yu Feng, a seventh-stage innate realm disciple, was a core disciple of the inner sect. No one wanted to see such things happen, but how could they sacrifice a core disciple of the seventh stage innate realm for an outer sect disciple?
Yin Mochen looked disappointed and helpless. He understood that Senior Brother Li meant the matter was over.
Yin Mochen carried Lin Fan's body. "Junior Brother Lin, your senior brother is useless and can't seek justice for you."
On the way back, the outer sect disciples who passed by pointed and whispered about Lin Fan's unfortunate fate. Although he had some flaws, he was otherwise a decent person.
Ning Mingyang rushed over after hearing the news, and when he saw the body on Yin Mochen's shoulder, his face turned pale. "Junior Brother Yin, what happened to Junior Brother Lin?"
"Senior Brother..." Yin Mochen shook his head at Ning Mingyang.
Ning Mingyang bowed his head, feeling as heavy-hearted as Yin Mochen. He understood the situation; this was not something an outer sect disciple could interfere with. The situation was too complicated.
"Senior Brother, this sword was something Junior Brother Lin wanted me to give you before he died. He also wanted you to give this sword to the junior brother you know." Yin Mochen took out a low-grade weapon from his storage bag with trembling hands.
Ning Mingyang looked at the low-grade weapon in his hand, and his eyes reddened.
"Junior Brother Yin, we can't do anything about this. We can only give Junior Brother Lin a dignified farewell," Ning Mingyang said after a moment of thought.
"Yes." Lin Fan's death had a significant impact on Yin Mochen.
...
The Holy Demon Sect had nine peaks, towering into the clouds like a celestial realm. Each peak had a clear and bright stone staircase.
Normally, outer sect disciples weren't allowed down the mountain, but given the circumstances, the disciples guarding the entrance made an exception and allowed them to leave.
At the foot of the mountain, lush greenery thrived. Yin Mochen and Ning Mingyang dug a large pit under an ancient tree and placed the coffin inside.
"Junior Brother, rest in peace. When I enter the inner sect, I'll visit you often," Yin Mochen said, eyes reddened, as he looked at the black coffin.
Ning Mingyang patted Yin Mochen's shoulder. "Junior Brother, life must go on. Everyone dies eventually; Junior Brother just went ahead of us. We will reunite someday."
"Yes," Yin Mochen nodded.
"Let's cover it up," Ning Mingyang said.
...
After everything was done, Yin Mochen and Ning Mingyang stood in front of Lin Fan's grave for a long time before sighing and leaving.
At this moment, the surroundings were quiet and peaceful. In front of Lin Fan's grave, ripples appeared as if space itself was undulating. A pair of jade-like feet slowly stepped out of the ripples, and a beautiful figure appeared before Lin Fan's grave.
The woman was dressed in the attire of an outer sect disciple of the Holy Demon Sect. She raised her slender fingers, and a bright light flashed.
The soil in front of Lin Fan's grave floated upwards as if controlled by someone. Gradually, the black coffin rose from the ground.
"Click..."
The nails sealing the coffin fell to the ground, and the coffin opened. Lin Fan's body slowly floated before the woman.
A look of regret appeared on the woman's stunning face.
"Another genius has fallen. There are so many geniuses in this world, but how many truly grow up? Such a waste of a supreme pill... sigh."
Her sigh seemed to penetrate time, filled with helplessness and a bit of melancholy.
...
Night.
It was very quiet.
For the tens of thousands of disciples in the Holy Demon Sect, the loss of one person would not make any difference.
To some, Lin Fan's death was sad, but to others, Lin Fan was just a name. His death meant nothing to them...
In the sect, Yin Mochen lay in bed, unable to sleep for a long time. He held the storage bag, seemingly able to smell the scent of his junior brother.
Ning Mingyang had obtained a technique from Senior Brother Meng. From today, he vowed to train hard, reach the innate realm, enter the inner sect, and seek justice for Junior Brother Lin.
Han Lu was in high spirits today, celebrating with a cup of wine.
The arrogant Wang Tianfeng seemed different today. He lit three sticks of incense in the courtyard and then sighed and went back inside.
...
The next day, at night.
"Ding, system update completed."
"Ding, True Essence function unlocked."
"Ding, Technique Classification function unlocked."
...
Lin Fan, who had been lying in the coffin for twenty-four hours, suddenly opened his eyes. Although it was pitch black in the coffin, Lin Fan's current cultivation allowed him to ignore such things.
Lin Fan pushed hard, causing the ground to shake, and then climbed out.
Lin Fan took a deep breath of fresh air.
Phew, I almost got myself killed. That was really dangerous.
Lin Fan wiped the sweat from his forehead, thinking about what had happened on the stage. He still felt a bit scared.
Lin Fan carefully observed his surroundings, especially the nine high peaks behind him. He realized he had left the Holy Demon Sect.
Lin Fan had a great fondness for the Holy Demon Sect, but since he was out now, he might as well explore a bit. When he became strong enough, he'd return and give everyone a surprise.
As for Yu Feng, who had struck him to death, Lin Fan didn't hold a grudge. After all, the side effect of the "Monkey Steals the Peach" technique was that the victim would feel a sudden urge to kill the user.
Besides, Yu Feng was somewhat of a hero, helping Lin Fan step into the innate realm. Such a favor must be repaid in the future.
Lin Fan couldn't wait to open his personal panel. Now that the system had upgraded, he wondered what new features were available. It was truly exciting.
Name: Lin Fan.
Level: 20. (Innate Stage 1)
Experience: (0/2000000).
True Essence: 100
Stored Experience: 0. (Can level up character or techniques.)
Body Refining Technique: "Indestructible Demon Body" Second Layer (200000/4000000).
Heart Technique: None.
Technique: "Monkey Steals the Peach" Level 15 (0/60000).
Combat Skills: None.
Sub-profession: Second Level Craftsman (1000/10000)
Equipment: Nine-Five Red Brick (Supreme Divine Artifact)
Title: Don't Submit, Just Fight. (Doubles cultivation for one incense stick's time, one-time use title.)
True Essence, Heart Techniques, and Combat Skills? Lin Fan wasn't sure what they were, but the experience needed to level up had decreased to only two million. It seemed Senior Brother was right; the gap between the acquired and innate realms was a significant hurdle.
The difficulty in crossing from the acquired to the innate realm was the high experience requirement. Once past this hurdle, the experience requirement normalized.
Lin Fan restored his grave to its original state. After all, he was officially "dead" now. If the grave remained disturbed, who knew what might happen? He then headed east, deeper into the forest.
To the east lay a vast empire.
Its name was the Great Yan Dynasty.
And Lin Fan's destination was there, a place where there would be more fun.