Although he didn't quite grasp the situation, Zhao Dabao, who had just exited the formation, was still sarcastic.
"Uh, Third Elder, are you tired from standing?"
Upon hearing this, Yao Chen nearly had his nose bent out of shape from frustration. Screw being tired from standing—this was about seeking to save my own life!
"Mr. Zhao, Mr. Zhao, please persuade this young Taoist. I truly didn't intend to launch a sneak attack; we can surely negotiate this matter."
Third Elder was very angry with Fatty Zhao's words but still had to maintain a pleading attitude. After all, one only lives once.
Hearing Third Elder's words to Zhao Dabao, Jin Xu also stopped lifting his right hand and turned his head to look at them.
This was a patron, and their opinion was still worth considering.
Fatty Zhao pondered for a moment.
Although he didn't know what exactly had happened outside during the time he had been in the formation, it seemed that their side was currently in a dominant position.
Now, killing Third Elder would be hard to explain to Medicine King Valley.
The family would also find it hard to understand.
And it would make things difficult for his father.
So, kill them.
Who was with him and who was an outsider—Fatty Zhao could still tell the difference.
Seeing Zhao Dabao take a stance.
Jin Xu calmly nodded, raising his right hand for the "Hand Palm Thunder·Five-Percent Spiritual Power Version"
"Young Taoist, listen to me explain! Little Taoist, Taoist master, my ancestors... I swear I will..."
Yao Chen's cultivation career came to an explosive end.
This incident teaches us, swearing is detrimental to one's health.
Watching Jin Xu deal with Third Elder in one blow, Zhao Dabao was also stunned.
Was he really that strong?
He actually thought Yao Chen was kneeling on the ground to act out some drama to gain sympathy, and then take the chance to launch a sneak attack.
And he's gone just like that?
Using his swollen eyes, which were narrowed to slits, he looked at Jin Xu.
The young Taoist who had made him question his reliability in the morning now seemed to be the epitome of safety.
"Young Taoist, where is my cousin?"
Since Yao Chen was gone, Zhao Dabao felt that Zhao Yan could also be gone for a while, but after looking around, the scope of his current vision was too limited, and he couldn't find him.
"Oh, he said he wanted the deceased cultivators' belongings from the formation. Seeing as how eager he was, I just kicked him in."
Jin Xu's response couldn't have been more matter-of-fact.
As for the two turncoats, they were already being held down by the robust men still standing by Zhao Dabao's side.
They didn't dare resist, terrified as they were.
Upon hearing this, Zhao Dabao couldn't help but chuckle. Yet, his laughter pulled at his wounds, and he began to inhale sharply from the pain. His subordinates noticed and hurried to apply medicine to him.
After the whole ordeal was over, Zhao Dabao found a large boulder to sit on and waved the porcelain bottle in his hand at Jin Xu, saying, "Young Taoist, you've been a great help to me this time. When I get back and consume the Enlightenment Pill, I'll formally invite you to our Zhao family's treasure vault to pick a few items you like."
Speaking hurt him, so Fatty Zhao paused before continuing, "Also, my cousin was right—that formation indeed holds numerous cultivator relics. Once my brothers have recuperated, we'll retrieve them all, and then Young Taoist Jin Xu, you can pick two items first."
After all, Jin Xu had just effortlessly taken down an established Void Refinement Realm powerhouse.
Even if the young Taoist preferred gold and silver, paying a mere hundred taels of gold for the life of a Void Refinement Realm powerhouse was far too cheap.
Thus, Zhao Dabao was both inviting him and making promises.
He was just worried that this mysterious and powerful young Taoist might think the price offered was too low.
...
The Zhao family's treasure vault sounded very tempting. Jin Xu nodded and accepted the invitation.
As for the formation before him, he had observed it for quite some time and felt that it was similar to the light blue sphere that had trapped Xuanxu Temple that day.
The intensity of both seemed to be similar.
Hmm, he wanted to try and break the formation in his own way.
Jin Xu shared his intentions with Zhao Dabao, urging him to take the people out of the canyon.
He planned to use his full strength for a descent of the "Hand Palm Thunder. Full Power Version."
No help for it, when striking horizontally with full power. He feared piercing through the whole Lezi Mountain—there were villages on the other side of the mountain, after all.
Without full power, he was afraid he wouldn't be able to break it.
When he destroyed the light blue sphere that day, using all his strength, he barely managed to create a small crack.
So, he had to choose to strike from above down.
The clearing was complete. Jin Xu leapt up high, his right hand bursting with lightning, "Hand Palm Thunder. Full Power Version."
...
...
Zhao Yan, who had been kicked into the formation by Jin Xu, was currently being tested within the formation.
He now understood why after many cultivators entered the formation, there would be a series of snap, snap, snap sounds followed by the cultivators' screams.
Zhao Yan was from the Medicine King Valley and had some accomplishment in the art of pills.
Yet this bizarre formation was testing him in artifact refining.
Refine a high-grade magic artifact within an hour to receive a reward and move on to the next test.
Fail, and you get slapped to death.
He, Zhao Yan, could only be considered a small genius in Gusu City, not the legendary Innate Taoist Body that learns everything in an instant and cultivates without any bottlenecks.
Even before becoming an immortal, they don't have any realm divisions.
It's said that it's because they ascend to immortality so quickly that there's no need for such distinctions.
As time trickled away, Zhao Yan did not despair. He was waiting for his master to extract the secret of moving freely within the formation from Zhao Dabao, and then come to rescue him.
"My master is a powerful being of the Void Refinement Realm!"
This was Zhao Yan's last thought.
Then he saw the light.
Golden light.
...
This feeling was different from the last time.
"Hand Palm Thunder. Full Power Version" only met with slight resistance before breaking through the grand formation.
Watching as the valley before him turned into a basin.
Jin Xu thought he may have gone a bit overboard with his move, or perhaps he had improved again.
Yep, progressing is something to be happy about, but the young Taoist couldn't feel joyful at the moment.
Jin Xu had just checked carefully, and other than a jade bottle that was just outside the range of the Hand Palm Thunder attack, there was nothing left in the basin.
He had even hoped to pick up a skill cultivation technique or storage magic artifact to use.
"..."
He jumped down into the basin, picked up the jade bottle with the words Soul Nourishing Liquid carved on it—by the name, it seemed like a medicine liquid that could help the divine soul.
He remembered there was a Guardian Spirit at home that talked like his eldest senior brother, whose divine soul was injured, perfect to take it back for his use.
Exiting the valley.
The little Taoist saw a plump "pig head" accompanied by a group of robust "pig heads" standing there.
It was quite a spectacle.
Jin Xu walked up to the plump "pig head": "I have one piece of good news and one piece of bad news, which do you want to hear first?"
"The bad?"
"The items in the formation were accidentally shattered by me, leaving only a bottle of Soul Nourishing Liquid, which I find useful, so I took it."
After all, it was the young Taoist who exerted the effort, so of course Zhao Dabao had no objections to him taking the Soul Nourishing Liquid.
But everything turned into slag, what the heck?
Fatty Zhao's face was expressionless, as he continued to ask.
"What about the good news?"
"Your clan brother, Zhao Yan, also disappeared along with it."
That did indeed pass as good news.
With this matter concluded, Zhao Dabao and Jin Xu said their goodbyes in Gusu City.
The two made an agreement that as soon as Zhao Dabao finished taking the Enlightenment Pill and the swelling subsided, he would invite the young Taoist to his family's treasure vault.
The main issue was the swelling, or else when they returned to Gusu City at midnight, the residents might think that a pig demon had attacked.
As for the death of the Third Elder and Zhao Yan, Fatty Zhao said he would handle it.
With no more worries, Jin Xu was ready to return to his Xuanxu Temple. He had been away for a day and was actually missing the bickering of the fish and the dog.
The journey was uneventful.
The little Taoist arrived at the base of Little Platform Mountain and casually climbed up.
Looking up at the Taoist temple gate.
Wow!