"His Majesty the Dark Emperor was right. That woman's residual soul escaped from the Emperor's Burial Pit!" A thunderous voice boomed outside the pit.
A giant, holding a bronze mirror in his hand, traced the source.
"Killing that woman will be a great achievement for me!" Tuoba's eyes, like copper gongs, were filled with murderous intent.
He raised his giant axe, located the space where Lin Yaoyao was, and was about to shatter the space to reach her.
Suddenly, he saw a young man smiling at him from the other side of the space...
That smile made even this powerful being, close to the realm of an emperor, shiver with fear.
To Tuoba's horrified gaze, Ye Kong directly swung the Sky-Splitting Hammer down.
In Ye Kong's space, it was just a simple swing of the hammer, appearing ordinary.
But in the other space, it was like nine-day stars falling, the earth cracking, and the laws of the universe shattering. An unimaginable force slammed into the giant's avatar's chest.
Boom!
With a deafening roar, the giant's avatar was instantly pulverized.
Tuoba didn't even have time to utter a cry for help.
"Time for bed, time for bed." Ye Kong yawned.
A good child knows that sleep comes first.
...
"Oh my god, what kind of sword technique is this?"
Lin Yaoyao's exquisite face was filled with shock.
In her two lives, she had never seen such a profound sword technique!
It had surpassed the heavenly realm, reaching the legendary divine realm!
How could that cheap master possess such a profound sword technique?
Lin Yaoyao put everything aside and eagerly began practicing, starting to comprehend the first level—Crescent Moon!
As time passed,
With each breath, it seemed as if a crescent moon rose, its curved shape unleashing the utmost sword intent!
Clang!
Lin Yaoyao used her hand as a sword, suddenly pointing at a boulder on Mount Peach.
Crack!
The sword intent surged, shattering the entire boulder into countless tiny pieces!
"This sword technique is too terrifying! It can deal a heavy blow to Foundation Establishment cultivators with just one strike!"
Lin Yaoyao's beautiful eyes sparkled with amazement.
"I've broken through to Qi Refinement Stage 7!"
In just over ten hours, she had not only mastered the first level of the sword technique but also broken through to Qi Refinement Stage 7!
"Ah, if my master knew how outstanding my talent is, wouldn't he be so angry that he'd spit blood and die?"
Lin Yaoyao felt a faint sadness.
"But this Xinghe Sect, it seems to possess the legendary divine-level sword technique. Its inheritance must be extraordinary."
Could there be hidden masters within the Xinghe Sect?
Lin Yaoyao thought carefully and then dismissed the idea.
Hidden masters were those who roamed the mountains, fished, and hunted pheasants all day, weren't they?
There were none like that in the Xinghe Sect.
As for the master... he was just a decade-old Qi Refinement cultivator who had given up on himself.
How could he compare to a hidden master?
As Lin Yaoyao thought about it, she slowly stepped into the Peach Pond, ready to wash away the sweat from her body.
...
Beast Taming Peak.
Qin Shou, the peak master of Beast Taming Peak, was playing with a colorful parrot.
"Elder Brother, we've searched several times and haven't found any trace of spiritual beasts on Serene Peak." Several disciples trembled as they reported, fearing that the peak master would send them to the Ape Garden to be pampered by the female apes.
"Continue sending people to search." Qin Shou said calmly.
"But... that is Serene Peak's territory after all." The disciples hesitated.
"It's fine, don't worry about Serene Peak." Qin Shou waved his hand. "Finding spiritual beasts is our top priority."
"Disciples obey!"
As the disciples retreated, the colorful parrot kept chirping, "Top priority, top priority..."
Gradually, it turned into "We're doomed," "We're doomed."
...
Serene Peak.
Ye Kong had a good sleep, waking up only when the sun was high in the sky.
He picked up his fishing rod, preparing for a new day of cultivation, only to find that the Bitter Sea was quite lively.
Several disciples from Beast Taming Peak rode on sea creatures, swimming around and occasionally diving into the water.
What were they looking for?
Were they planning to mate with the old turtles?
Ye Kong cleared his throat and said, "Dear nephews, the turtles in the Bitter Sea have already completed their mating. You don't need to help them."
The disciples on the sea creatures immediately turned black in the face.
But they quickly regained their composure, ignoring Ye Kong and continuing their search.
Ye Kong was speechless. Were these disciples so diligent that they were eager to mate all the old turtles in the Bitter Sea?
"Alright, stop harming my turtles!" Ye Kong picked up his fishing rod and swung it at the disciples.
Slap! Slap! Slap!
The disciples, caught off guard, were struck with bloody marks all over their faces. The leading purple-robed disciple was even knocked into the Bitter Sea.
"What are you doing?!" The disciples from Beast Taming Peak were furious.
How dare a mere Qi Refinement cultivator attack them?
The purple-robed disciple stood in the water, his face furious, and his surrounding aura began to roar.
It seemed like he wanted to attack Ye Kong!
Ye Kong stood calmly on the shore. He was puzzled. Serene Peak had always been peaceful and avoided by disciples from other peaks.
Why were they all here treasure-hunting today?
Weren't the turtles still in their non-breeding season?
"Want to fight? I'll stand still and let you hit me!"
Ye Kong stared at the purple-robed cultivator calmly. If he dared to attack, the fishing rod in his hand would quickly teach him what it meant to be chilled to the bone.
The purple-robed disciple's anger grew, but reason ultimately prevailed. He sent a message to his peak master.
"Master, should we attack that useless fellow?"
The peak master replied coldly: "Don't you want to live? Hurry back!"
The purple-robed disciple transmitted again: "Master, he's just a Qi Refinement cultivator. What can he do to me?"
The peak master replied: "I'm saving your life. If you go too far and kill that useless fellow, what then? Squashing Serene Peak is as easy as squashing an ant."
The purple-robed disciple finally realized that he was a Foundation Establishment cultivator, while that useless fellow was only Qi Refinement, barely able to catch a pheasant without getting hurt.
He must be trying to swindle us!
The purple-robed disciple looked at Ye Kong, his eyes filled with the realization of his scheme. He waved his sleeve and snorted, "Let's go."
With that, he led the disciples from Beast Taming Peak away.
Ye Kong's face was filled with suspicion. Nothing comes to visit the Three Treasures without a reason. These people must have come for something.
He released a trace of his spiritual power, instantly covering the entire Serene Peak.
Not even an ant crawling on Serene Peak could escape his perception.
"Taking a bath again? This disciple is too lazy." Ye Kong shook his head helplessly.
Then, he noticed an unusual situation at an ant nest.
Ye Kong gently reached out and grabbed a black ant with a single horn, instantly bringing it to the palm of his hand, where it trembled in fear.
"This... it has developed sentience?" Ye Kong's eyes narrowed.
Unexpectedly, Serene Peak had given birth to an ancestral-lineage return of an ancient fierce beast.
Ye Kong took out the Sky-Splitting Hammer and gently tapped the little ant.
Bang!
The little black ant trembled, its ant-face confused.
"Wrong, wrong." The Sky-Splitting Hammer could awaken people's wisdom, but it could also make them dumber.
Ye Kong tapped the little black ant a few more times, and finally, on the last tap, the little black ant's eyes glowed, bowing to Ye Kong.
"You have some intelligence. From now on, you're in charge of guarding the entrance to Serene Peak." Ye Kong said calmly.
In his second life, all he sought was this tranquility and peace.
The little black ant kicked its legs hard, jumping like a flea and landing in front of the disciples from Beast Taming Peak.
"The scenery of this Free and Unfettered Peak is indeed breathtaking. It would make a wonderful place for our spirit beast garden," remarked the purple-robed attendant thoughtfully.
Before anyone else could utter a word, the purple-robed attendant felt a dark spot catch his eye.
Bang!
A tremendous force struck his face, sending him flying backwards with teeth shattering all around.
"Who was that?!" roared the disciples of the Beast Taming Peak.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
All they saw was a black streak flashing before their eyes, followed by their own noses and faces being bruised and battered.
"Quick, quick, report to the Peak Master! We've been beaten up by ants from the Free and Unfettered Peak!"